SLAYER Guitarist Was Killed By 'God,' Says WESTBORO BAPTIST CHURCH

[Robert]

Like many people, I used to think atheist meant belief that there are no gods, rather than the lack of belief in any god so I usually called myself agnostic.
It was only a few years ago that a certain Fluffy McDeath pointed out to me that my lack of belief in any gods meant I was an atheist. Nowadays I tend to describe myself as such if asked, which happened most recently when I started my current job, late last year. My answer was met with astonishment, much to my amusement.

 

[Speelgoedmannetje]

I have totally left agnosticism behind. Personally I think that there definitely IS something wrong with a person, who if asked whether they are currently being used as a seat cushion by an elephant would respond "I don't know". Maybe in an academic / extreme skeptic / nut job kind of way you might be technically correct that we can't actually know anything because we might all be living in the MATRIX, in a practical manner when a proposition that should be incredibly obvious is found repeatedly to profoundly lack evidence in its favour then it is only the particularly pedantic or bloody minded or merely delusional that will say that the proposition might yet have merit.

I cannot absolutely and definitively say that there is zero possibility that an elephant is currently sitting on me, I cannot completely prove that one is not, but I can say that evidence for that proposition is lacking. Sometimes absence of evidence IS evidence of absence.

Evidence of God is as lacking as evidence of leprechauns. I know that neither exists.

First they have to come up with a definition of what god actually is, before that all statements considering 'god' is both true and untrue.

 

[Speelgoedmannetje]

if we are lucky this is when the hate family get their ass kicking comeuppance

Hieronymus Bosch style?

 

[Robert]

First they have to come up with a definition of what god actually is, before that all statements considering 'god' is both true and untrue.

If you're hoping for something coherent that goes further than, "a sentient being who created the universe," you'll be waiting awhile.

 

[faethor]

If you're hoping for something coherent that goes further than, "a sentient being who created the universe," you'll be waiting awhile.

I'd add sentient and being go to far. No way that's proveable either.

 

[Glaucus]

Like many people, I used to think atheist meant belief that there are no gods, rather than the lack of belief in any god so I usually called myself agnostic.
It was only a few years ago that a certain Fluffy McDeath pointed out to me that my lack of belief in any gods meant I was an atheist.

Oh sure, give HIM all the credit. Wasn't it I who pointed out the Greek roots of the word and how it meant "without god"? How we so easily forget.

Heh, just kidding, I have no recollection actually.

 

[Glaucus]

In a slightly different direction.... I want to raise my daughter "without god", but I have an amazing amount of pressure from my own relatives. They pick her up and take her to church despite my protests (my wife isn't helping me on this front). I swore that no matter what I will teach her that religion is a myth and that no good comes from it. Very frustrating. I guess on the plus side of things, being a member of the church does have social advantages. The funny thing is the priest, who's practically our neighbor, has babies just slightly older than Sophia. Perhaps one day she'll convert them to the realm of reality. Wouldn't that be a coup?

 

[faethor]

We talk about God in our house. My kids go to Sunday School, mostly because their friends want to. We, also, talk about Zeus, Odin, etc. and the history of beliefs. Along with rational processing of evidence, aka science. Science is a natural for kids. Religion - yeah that requires indoctrination.

 

[Robert]

Oh sure, give HIM all the credit. Wasn't it I who pointed out the Greek roots of the word and how it meant "without god"? How we so easily forget.

Haha - perhaps it was. When I said only a few years ago, it was probably closer to a decade and my memory is notoriously awful.

 

[cecilia]

In a slightly different direction.... I want to raise my daughter "without god", but I have an amazing amount of pressure from my own relatives. They pick her up and take her to church despite my protests (my wife isn't helping me on this front). I swore that no matter what I will teach her that religion is a myth and that no good comes from it. Very frustrating. I guess on the plus side of things, being a member of the church does have social advantages. The funny thing is the priest, who's practically our neighbor, has babies just slightly older than Sophia. Perhaps one day she'll convert them to the realm of reality. Wouldn't that be a coup?

just encourage her to think for herself and get educated

that's what my family did and despite them being catholic my brother and I couldn't get sucked into the irrational world of religious dumbness.

have her read about the Greek gods (I love those stories) and Aesop's fables....she'll get the idea quickly enough

 

[redrumloa]

We talk about God in our house. My kids go to Sunday School, mostly because their friends want to.

Ah-ha!! I didn't subject my kids to Sunday School, even though my wife and I don't quite see eye to eye on the subject. I went to CCD (Catholic Saturday School) as a kid and found it of little to no value.

 

[Robert]

Ah-ha!! I didn't subject my kids to Sunday School, even though my wife and I don't quite see eye to eye on the subject. I went to CCD (Catholic Saturday School) as a kid and found it of little to no value.

I was sent to Sunday school for a little bit but as soon as I complained about not liking it, I never had to go again.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

First they have to come up with a definition of what god actually is ...

And that IS a problem. Usually the existence of any proposed god can be dismissed because the definition already contradicts itself and/or reality.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

In a slightly different direction.... I want to raise my daughter "without god", but I have an amazing amount of pressure from my own relatives.

You think THAT's pressure. Wait till you get the pressure to tell her about Santa! Then what are you going to do? It's just another lie, isn't it. I had much turmoil about that when my first one was tiny.

 

[redrumloa]

You think THAT's pressure. Wait till you get the pressure to tell her about Santa! Then what are you going to do? It's just another lie, isn't it. I had much turmoil about that when my first one was tiny.

I think Santa and the Easter Bunny are harmless. My kids all figured it out very early. It teaches kids to be skeptical.

 

[Robert]

I think Santa and the Easter Bunny are harmless. My kids all figured it out very early. It teaches kids to be skeptical.

When I was five years old my friend, who was ten, told me Santa didn't exist. When I let slip to my Mum, she was pretty angry at my friend. She had a real soft spot for Christmas and all that goes with it, including tons of tacky decorations.
Despite this, as a family we all kept up this pretence that Santa was real, right up until my Mum passed away, a few years ago.

 

[cecilia]

I think Santa and the Easter Bunny are harmless. My kids all figured it out very early. It teaches kids to be skeptical.

kids are born skeptical / natural scientists.

the problem is that some groups of religious people beat that out of their kids

 

[Speelgoedmannetje]

And that IS a problem. Usually the existence of any proposed god can be dismissed because the definition already contradicts itself and/or reality.

As a programmer, I know like no other that people do not have a single clue of what they have in mind

 

[Glaucus]

Oh, Santa is easy. You just say: "Santa is for good kids, and you're ROTTEN TO THE CORE! NO PRESENTS FOR YOU! MUAHAHA". That has the extra benefit of making Christmas far more affordable.

Ya, telling lies to your kids is a tricky thing. I imagine the hardest thing I'll have to explain to her will be when something truly horrible happens and it's all over the news. How would I explain to her about a gunman shooting kids in school? I don't even want to think of that myself.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

I think Santa and the Easter Bunny are harmless. My kids all figured it out very early. It teaches kids to be skeptical.

Yeah, I played on that "skeptical" angle too. "But everyone knows Santa exists. Do you think people who don't believe in something existing would go and tell people that they do?" ... he he he