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General Interest > Philosophy, Sociology & Psychology
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Religion
    #4725709 -

Many of us saw religion as harmless nonsense. Beliefs might lack all supporting evidence but, we thought, if people needed a crutch for consolation, where's the harm? September 11th changed all that. Revealed faith is not harmless nonsense, it can be lethally dangerous nonsense. Dangerous because it gives people unshakeable confidence in their own righteousness. Dangerous because it gives them false courage to kill themselves, which automatically removes normal barriers to killing others. Dangerous because it teaches enmity to others labelled only by a difference of inherited tradition. And dangerous because we have all bought into a weird respect, which uniquely protects religion from normal criticism. Let's now stop being so damned respectful!
-Richard Dawkins (on the September 11th attacks)


Religion has caused and been the justification of many atrocities throughout history without giving much back; it is the virus that feeds off the cells of a larger organism to survive. Humanity has been strong enough to cart this virus around the entire world with it, and we continue to see massive problems because of this. Religion can give us the righteous belief that our enemies are going to Hell and that some people are morally inferior to us, but the amount of damage it has caused in no way justifies these points.

Science is significantly slowed by this virus; research that could save the lives of children and make crippled people walk again is being stopped, medical procedures by the consent of the patient are being threatened and equality of human rights has been set back. When is it too much? We say we should let others live as long as they've harmed no one else, but religion has been harming humanity's development for centuries, even millenia; should society and the intelligent among us now take an active stance in trying to turn the tide?


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So long as you are praised think only that you are not yet on your own path but on that of another.

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Re: Religion [Re: Ravus]
    #4725746 -

Ravus said:
September 11th changed all that.


the crusades, the inquisition, the bloody religious wars of the 16th and 17th century, ..., i don't see how 9/11 changed all that much re: murders committed in the name of some random religion.

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Re: Religion [Re: qhr0me]
    #4725752 -

I noticed that part of the quote too, but I think Dawkins was just saying that to try to better communicate the overall point he was making.


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So long as you are praised think only that you are not yet on your own path but on that of another.

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Re: Religion [Re: Ravus]
    #4725778 -

I agree and I agree. :thumbup:


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"Don't believe everything you think". -Anom.

" All that lives was born to die"-Anom.

With much wisdom comes much sorrow,
The more knowledge, the more grief.
Ecclesiastes circa 350 BC

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Re: Religion [Re: Icelander]
    #4725810 -

club membership sucks
hells angels has all the right trappings

tell a member to do something "for the cause" (he would be ostracized otherwise - excommunicated from the club) and he will.

the cause is nothing but membership (fake friendship)


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:brainfart: _ :finger:

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Re: Religion [Re: redgreenvines]
    #4725927 -

The cause is there, but a lot of the time it seems to be one herd with no leader.

What I've often wondered about religion is whether the leaders of it actually buy into the bullshit. Is religion really just one herd, as they would like us to think? The leaders can obviously pretend to be religious and use religion as justification for their gaining power by any means necessary, but if they're smart enough to rise that high, why would they be ignorant enough to fall for some 2,000+ year old Jewish myths?


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So long as you are praised think only that you are not yet on your own path but on that of another.

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General Interest > Philosophy, Sociology & Psychology
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