1. Why Dawkins is right and his critics are wrong

Comment #235020 by planeswalker321 on August 22, 2008 at 11:13 am

[[[[That is a bloody lie. I tried to persuade those children to abandon their belief in CREATIONISM. That is NOT the same as persuading them to become atheists. I was scrupulously careful to do no such thing.

I suspect that you didn't watch the documentary at all, but read one of the critics, such as Libby Purves, and believed her.

Please apologise NOW. As an educator, I feel extremely strongly about this.
Richard ]]]]

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I may have seen the documentary, or I may be thinking of a different lesson, but yes, I can confirm that you were merely teaching evolution, and encouraged them to think objectively (without actually trying to "convert" the children into anything more than children.)
I think I can also see where your critics are coming from; they see it as a slippery slope. After all, if you tell them that one part of the bible could be wrong, it logically casts into doubt the rest of it. I certainly agree with this, slippery slope though it may be; if a part of the bible is wrong, it does indeed cast doubts upon the rest. Even so, the goal of science is to seek objective truth, so a scientist must follow the evidence, no matter what the implications. Teaching this to children is certainly nothing to be ashamed of, it is, after all, SCIENCE CLASS.

2. Atheists are just as dogmatic as theists, and the only reasonable person is an agnostic.

Comment #226872 by planeswalker321 on August 8, 2008 at 7:35 pm

That, sir, is a hasty generallization fallacy. While there no doubt are atheists who are atheist because they're told to be, that hardly describes the lot of 'em. To whit; I am atheist because I see no supporting logic behind a god. Unlike agnostics, though, I remember to apply DesCartes' method of doubt for all unsupported conclusions.

3. Hinduism and Buddhism offer much more sophisticated worldviews (or philosophies) and I see nothing wrong with these religions.

Comment #226869 by planeswalker321 on August 8, 2008 at 7:26 pm

If you agree with the philosophies, why not borrow some of those, and leave the myths behind?

4. What does atheism say about the purpose (or the meaning) of life?

Comment #226867 by planeswalker321 on August 8, 2008 at 7:22 pm

I would hardly be so presumptuous as to attribute purpose to any life besides my own. As for my purpose? To gain knowledge, enjoy life, and to help others to do the same.

5. People who've experienced God KNOW that God exists

Comment #226862 by planeswalker321 on August 8, 2008 at 7:17 pm

This argument is not objective, as it points out within its own premises. It's not a logical proof for anything.

6. What is the role of free will to an atheist?

Comment #226861 by planeswalker321 on August 8, 2008 at 7:15 pm

An interesting question. Is there free will? We are all influenced by our external environment. Did you decide to go to work today? No doubt you did, but why? No doubt, you had a reason. That reason influenced you, then, to make that choice.
Free will succumbs to causality.

7. If you don't have religion, where do you find your sense of community?

Comment #226857 by planeswalker321 on August 8, 2008 at 7:10 pm

Communities are becoming meaningless; the globalization thanks to the internet creates digital communities called "forums." Needless to say, flaming the occasional n00b is far less hazardous to his health than burning someone at the stake, circa that time when religion gave people a sense of "community."

8. What are your qualifications to question religion anyway? Just who are you?

Comment #226854 by planeswalker321 on August 8, 2008 at 7:07 pm

I can question religion because I can question. I am me; is anything more needed?