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But that would require them to look outside themselves and attempt to put themselves into another person's intellectual and emotional state, which would itself require them to have a functioning theory of mind, the development of which I fear has been horribly stunted in many of them. Most of these people are not genuinely evil, or even casually evil, but their belief system has distorted them and sundered them from their fellow human beings in a most unfortunate manner.
Empathy cannot be learned, it is innate, Therefore, even if there are lessons in the bible that preach empathy, tolerance, etc., there will always be individuals that cannot relate. Oh they can put up a good front and jump on the war on Christmas persecution bandwagon and nonsensical superficial garbage like that, but they come up empty on the things that require relating to another person's hardships and misfortune.
Empathy cannot be learned, it is innate, Therefore, even if there are lessons in the bible that preach empathy, tolerance, etc., there will always be individuals that cannot relate. Oh they can put up a good front and jump on the war on Christmas persecution bandwagon and nonsensical superficial garbage like that, but they come up empty on the things that require relating to another person's hardships and misfortune.
Empathy may not be learnable, but I believe it is usually re-learnable for those who were born with it but were exposed to damaging belief systems at an age where they had not yet developed the mental defenses to resist such an assault, as long as you get to them early enough and they are willing to be open and listen.
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Originally Posted by northnut
Ah, is that what is going on? Interesting because I've reported a few of the posts & for whatever reason, the mods don't feel like either deleting said posts or deleting that poster. Interesting.
I've always had a strong feeling all or at least most of the moderators of this sub-forum are in silent agreement with people like claude/nomansland because they and people like them get away with this stuff on a daily basis, and nothing is ever done about it, or them.
Last edited by Lunar Delta; 08-21-2013 at 03:57 PM..
It is clear that this person has no intention of being reasonable or playing fair. Seriously, atheist commandments? I'm sorry, but those exist only in your mind, my friend.
The only document we have that even comes close to such a thing is this: Humanist Manifesto III
Now read through all of that and tell me, what is so bad about it?
Thanks for posting this. I never heard of it, but now that I am aware, I am going to call myself an atheist humanist from now on. Or is that redundant?
I used to be a WASP... now I am a "WAS Humanist, or WASH for short". I like the sound of that.
I am going to print this out and hang it on a prominent wall.
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Originally Posted by Lunar Delta
Or you could call it a reasonable extrapolation based on currently available information. We know the vast majority of humans have a built-in sense of empathy. People are not born wanting to hate and harm and degrade others. They are taught how to be that way. If we can remove this unfortunate aspect from our children's education and upbringing and enhance our minds to the point where we can directly communicate our thoughts, feelings, ideas, beliefs and mental concepts directly to other people, I see no reason why it should not work out.
You could even say I have... faith in humanity's ability to work together and overcome.
I am going to let you in on a little secret. Are you ready? You may not believe it, but I love humanity. I love my species. I think we are the most astounding thing this planet will ever produce. We can be so brilliant when we put our minds to it. If we only worked together, we could achieve so much. I don't believe the vast majority of humanity has any kind of inherent evil. I believe that the human brain is so complex and sensitive to the conditions in which it develops that it can become easily twisted and maladaptive, but this is not and does not have to be an inevitability. If we are educated in a way and raised in a manner that promotes, encourages, and brings out the best in us, we can be incredibly noble indeed.
The very real possibility that we might not make it brings me great sadness. What a shame it would be to lose something that had such unlimited potential.
I can't rep you again, but wanted to tell you that this is a great post. Shhh, don't tell anyone else, I share your secret.
However, I am still waiting for someone to teach us the secret chants.
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Originally Posted by jmqueen
Well, this atheist doesn't insult religious people or "spit in the face" of anyone ... and I can't remember the last time any atheist on this thread started a thread whose sole purpose was to insult religious people. In other words, we go about our lives every day, minding our business, volunteering, donating to charity and adopting homeless animals. We say "please" and "thank you," and hold the door for the elderly or infirm. We smile at the post office clerk. We let people with crying children or fewer items in their basket go ahead of us at the supermarket.
You would never know by our behavior that we're atheists -- in fact, you almost certainly assume we are not, because you believe that only religious people are "good" and atheists are "bad." Until, of course, we're called out and insulted on a thread like this deliberately.
So let's think ... WHO exactly is the better person here?
I do this all the time too! Who'da thunk it with atheists?
Try taking a real history course. You can't believe everything you read on the internet.
Hitler was not a religious person.
This is more than "reading things off the internet;" Hitler was well-known to have a belief in god. He publicly espoused Christianity to the German people, because it appealed to their sensibilities; he certainly never denigrated it publicly. Hitler believed that he was divinely guided by a god, and that this "true" god had chosen the Germans as the rightful inheritors of the world.
Can you please direct me to anything credible dictating that he had an absence of spiritual belief? There's a difference between having a spirituality that isn't explicitly "Christian," and being an "atheist."
Thanks for posting this. I never heard of it, but now that I am aware, I am going to call myself an atheist humanist from now on. Or is that redundant?
It isn't necessarily redundant, although it does sound a bit awkward. "Secular Humanist" is the term most use.
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Originally Posted by tulani
I can't rep you again, but wanted to tell you that this is a great post. Shhh, don't tell anyone else, I share your secret.
However, I am still waiting for someone to teach us the secret chants.
Why thank you. As for the chants, I have yet to learn them myself, though I hope to be let into the inner circle soon.
People who don't go to church are more likely to be mentally ill. That may *technically* be true, but I suspect that people who don't go to church are also more likely to: be physically ill, live a long distance from a church, work on weekends, or not own a car. Correlation is not causation.
Unless the religious believers are trying to say that belief in religion means you are more likely to own a car or not work on weekends, which is the same type of results that one can draw from this "study."
The only thing I will say is that being a part of any community - religious or otherwise - is better for one's health than being isolated. So, yes, it's better to be part of a church than to be hermit, but one could also get the same benefit being part of a local hiking club, bird-watching club, etc. Social interaction is far more important than a belief in deity when it comes to mental healthy.
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