Occam - 09 December 2008 08:23 PM

While many of my beliefs are the same as yours, I have to recognize that I have no proof of the non-existence of a god.  My view is based on plausibility arguments, but is still faith.  Similarly, a theist who says s/he has no proof of the existence of a god but believes in its existence by faith has his/her thinking based on critical thinking and common sense just as much as mine is.  And, I feel our differing views are both based more on critical thinking and common sense than are the views of anyone who claims s/he has proof or disproof of the existence of a god. Occam

It is irrational to base ones future on deduction. If a god can exist perhaps, it may be true therefore, I have faith it does.
Common sense tells me; all we can be sure of is that perhaps we are here. My analytical attempt to describe, tells me that perhaps there is something I cannot ever understand.
To be more assertive may become combative.

Edited as marked in red above, because I didn’t recognize your theistic views.

Nobody wants to come out and play,...... so sad.

misued the term “common sense” because it usually means gut feel.  In other words, belief without evidence, but which one is sure is obvious to everyone else.  I probably should have used “logic” or “reasoning”.  I have to disagree with just about all of your post.

It is irrational to base ones future on deduction.

While we have to predict our future based on induction and guesses, deduction is an extremely important part of a rational system on which to base one’s future.

If a god can exist perhaps, it may be true therefore, I have faith it does.

That’s fine, but we must recognize that faith is belief without evidence or proof.

Common sense tells me; all we can be sure of is that perhaps we are here.

An odd statement, “sure of” followed by “perhaps” makes it internally inconsistent.

To be more assertive may become combative.

  Not so, as pointed out in earlier posts.  There is a whole spectrum of words describing behavior, from passive to combative.  Assertive isn’t the same as combative, but rather somewhere in the middle of that spectrum.

Occam

So what is the slogan of Militant Humanists?

“I will fold, spindle and mutilate you if you do no become a Humanist because I AM A HUMAN BEING.” 

psik

Mriana - 07 December 2008 05:08 PM

I know, yet they forget how violent Christian extremists can get.  It can be a real problem when trying to keep your family safe, esp when you have no clue what sort of Xian one is.  One has to use caution sometimes or they can end up with some really big headaches.

As a collective Humanist I have increasingly come to reject any association with atheism as part of my “militancy”. Frankly, I think a person’s religious beliefs/nonbeliefs are their own and a privacy matter, if we need political correctness to seal this matter up for us.

Instead, I am militant about militarism, war manufacturing, and antiHuman activities. My latest brillig is that now that the world is going broke, and very quickly so, that it may at last be time to scrap military budgets around the world as an austerity measure.

It’s something the UN could orchestrate if we granted them some small portion of the savings. Turn the Nimitz into a helicopter ship to be used in disaster relief, and count it as the US’s contribution to this cause for a year.

I must find my pipe, this sobriety is too stressful for me…