> Platt said: > If someone finds value in believing in God, leprechauns or a rabbit's > foot, who is to say they are wrong other than those who believe everyone > should believe what they believe and try to force their beliefs on others > by ridicule, intimidation or at the point of a gun? > > > dmb says:Adding to Arlo's reply, I'd say you're being a bit of a drama > queen. Nobody here has a gun and "force" is a pretty weird way to > characterize the use of words, which is all we have as far as weapons go.
Thinking of words are weapons illustrates my point. > And so what if the disagreements have been vigorous (especially mine)? > That just means that people think it's important, that we all care about > the issue. > But mostly I'd object to the notion that it's okay to believe in God so > long as one "finds value" in it. Using the word "value" speciously makes > it seem like it would be endorsed by the MOQ but going by that usage we > can say sloth, intellectual laziness, crack cocaine and murderous revenge > are okay so long as we find value in it. Sloth and intellectual laziness is in the eye of the beholder. Drugs have been praised here as mind-expanding. Justifiable homicide is just one of the many degrees of murder. >Obviously, that would be > nonsense. In fact, one of the problems with religious beliefs is that > people find it so emotionally satisfying and even when the practical > consequences are harmful. The practical consequences of nonreligious beliefs have also been harmful to others. > It can be used as a kind of escapism. It can put > an end to one's own personal growth. It can be used to justify horrible > crimes. This isn't always the case, of course, but let's not pretend that > it doesn't matter. Lets not pretend that atheists are any more humane than theists. Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
