Chart of the Day - 5.17.2009

Charolotte Allen's oped piece is one misrepresentation after another. In fact, it's one lengthy defamation of athiests.

Rather than respond to all of her nonsense, I'll just comment on a couple of her ideas.

First, the section Kevin addressed -- "The problem with atheists -- and what makes them such excruciating snoozes -- is that few of them are interested in making serious metaphysical or epistemological arguments against God's existence, or in taking on the serious arguments that theologians have made attempting to reconcile . . ."

Kevin says that this is the same-old, tired argument he's read oh, so many times before. That's true, this is a lie oft repeated, but that's not the real problem. The real problem with the argument is that it's meaningless.

What on earth would a metaphysical argument be made by a person who doesn't believe in god? How does an atheist make an epistemological argument about a non-existent entity? This is pure nonsense. It doesn't even rise to the level of sophistry.

Ms. Allen: People who have no reason to believe in "metaphysics", don't craft arguments based in that nonexistent "field". Jeez.

Likewise for an epistemological argument. For the most part, atheists have looked at the so-called "evidence" for god offered by religious people and have concluded that the probability that god exists is so vanishingly small that no reason exists to believe it. Moreover, many atheists have looked carefully at religious peoples' claims and have found them utterly absurd. No reason exists to get into discussions of the nature, scope and limitations of knowledge.

What Ms. Allen is crying for is a serious response to a ridiculous question. I recommend you to the dreaded PZ Myers' Courtier's Reply for an appropriate response. (http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2006/12/the_courtiers_reply.php).

Ms. Allen claims that, "What primarily seems to motivate atheists isn't rationalism but anger -- anger that the world isn't perfect, that someone forced them to go to church as children, that the Bible contains apparent contradictions, that human beings can be hypocrites and commit crimes in the name of faith."

She's wrong. Many, many decisions throughout the world are made on the basis of the truth of religious beliefs. Since most religious beliefs are false, these decisions are made for entirely wrong reasons. Two examples: 1. Giving tax-exempt status to churches so that they can use public money to spread false information, fear and hatred of those who are different and 2. the pope convincing people not to use condoms because condoms supposedly don't help inhibit the spread of AIDS (condoms do help).

Atheists are finally standing up and telling it like it is: Your religious beliefs are nonsense and making any decisions based upon those beliefs is down right stupid. Stop hurting yourself, your family, your country and the world. Give up on the tooth fairy and grow up.