h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

that a particular brand of Christian (or sometimes followers of other religions) think that an atheist (such as myself) would turn into a howling neanderthal without laws based on the bible.

and I quote

>>For me the bible is like a guide; it is a map to follow to allow us to prosper through life, and the docent is some kind of unknown force holding everything together.

Without this guide; I don't see any problems at all to go down the bank with an oozy, and help myself to a lot of dosh, or similar as the criminally minded might be able to imagine.<<

It makes me want to

because, obvs, as an atheist I just want to rape, pillage and shoot people right left and centre.

It's an unusual proposition that humans are the creation of a supremely benevolent being, yet we're still so brutally savage and evil that we'll turn to rape, murder and violence at the drop of a hat without the right rulebook.

That kind of reasoning makes me want to too Sho. There's no reason at all why human beings shouldn't be able to treat each other decently without being told how to by an invisible friend or having the threat of some kind of eternal unpleasantness hanging over them if they don't, but with the get-out-jail-free card that you can, on your deathbed and with hell staring your face, ask for forgiveness and get away with it. What a cop out.

I honestly don't know what goes on in a person's mind to believe some of the stuff in most religious texts, but then to extrapolate and twist it in the most grotesque ways makes me

well, not being an anthropologist I can't be sure, I'm pretty sure that if we studied prehistoric social groups but I'm pretty sure that they managed to all get on by observing practical rules.

Such as: the strong ones who can hunt, do that, and the weaker ones who can maybe work out how to make fire and invent the wheel do that. and that they didn't go around killing people willy nilly, or whatever.

but it seriously makes me want to

What an utterly, utterly stupid thing to say in public. I'll ignore the wider implication that all of us heathens are violent maniacs.

This confirms my suspicion that a lot of people are either very 'simple' or their brain was broken before they were born. It's obvious they lack the ability to think or reason for themselves. In which case it may be a good ploy to let them believe they'll go to hell if they are bad.

If we believe in the Christian God, we should all love one another. But if we all love one another, we have no need to believe in God, heaven or eternal damnation.

to be honest, I've no problems with Christians (Jews, Muslims, Pastafarians etc etc) living their lives according to their religious teachings with two provisos (which aren't onerous)

1. they do not break the laws of the land
and
2. they don't try to force me to do the same (live by their teachings)

The fact that the way I live my life (basically: don't hurt anyone, try to help even when there is no reward etc) sometimes crosses over with one or other religious teaching is purely coincidence.

What I'm currently most bothered by is how evangilists/fundamentalists here in the States are claiming "religious freedom" to justify bigotry and to force their religious beliefs into our schools.

I'm sorry, an "oozy"?



OK, now back to how stupid the actual comment was. I hear things like that quite regularly, being exposed to a handful of hardcore evangelical types (including the one who sent a sympathy card when my mom died stating in so many words that she is better off dead). What's scary to me isn't that all these folks think I am incapable of behaving without their god, but that they believe *they* can't. Now *that* is sick.

I think oozy is what you become when you've been attacked by the gun.

I may not be religious, but these are the words of the Dalai Lama this afternoon. I do have such admiration for his thoughts.

"All the world’s major religions, with their emphasis on love, compassion, patience, tolerance, and forgiveness can and do promote inner values. But the reality of the world today is that grounding ethics in religion is no longer adequate. This is why I am increasingly convinced that the time has come to find a way of thinking about spirituality and ethics beyond religion altogether."

I am happy to learn that people like the one quoted in the first posting have a to follow. What a relief!

Me? No thank you, I don't need it. Neither have all the people I know (well, most of them, there may be one or two, you never know)

Never had any problems with the powers that be myself. In fact I have w*rked very well together with police, lawyers, judges and the like for many years

(agnostic)