Atheists suck - says most everyone

[This_person]

Atheist here, If there is a God why doesn't the MF'er just SMITE all the bad people on earth? Murderer, Child abuser, Woman beater, etc... We supposed to learn from these horrible experiences ???????

I'm not God (though I often feel He should come to me for advice, apparently you do too ).

My interpretation of bad things in life is that is the only way we know about good things in life. Everything for everyone is relative to some baseline. If there were no bad, we would not be able to see good. If there were no up, we would not be able to see down. No left, therefore no right. No ying, therefore no yang. As we go through life, we see good, we see bad, and we understand the reference point in the middle. It helps us prepare for the ultimate good and bad: Heaven and Hell.

 

[Merlin99]

Interesting how you answered your own question.

So a conflicted Christian is a better person than a peaceful atheist?

 

[This_person]

So a conflicted Christian is a better person than a peaceful atheist?

Which one has motivation to improve him/herself?

 

[SamSpade]

Atheist here, If there is a God why doesn't the MF'er just SMITE all the bad people on earth? Murderer, Child abuser, Woman beater, etc... We supposed to learn from these horrible experiences ???????

My perspective is what I said at my father's memorial service last year. He was a good man and in his later life completely devoted himself to the service of others. Many people were grieved that such a good man could be taken from them.

Why do good people die, and bad people live? We ask this with regard to God - because - well who else would we be asking it of? We ask him, why do you take the good people, and let the bad people live on? And the most obvious answer to me is - they're done. They've done what they were here to do. When a prizefighter wins his battle, you don't clap and THEN ask him to go a few more rounds. He won. Time to claim the prize. Ok. So why do bad people live on? Because they're NOT done. You and I absolutely hate them - but surprisingly - God does not. He will give them as much time as they need, and if not, they will face judgment like everyone else.

I won't belabor the ancillary arguments - how can he allow evil to persist. To us, death is the ultimate evil but to God it isn't.

 

[SamSpade]

Which one has motivation to improve him/herself?

That's probably the kernel of the discussion. A Christian - or for that matter, any religious person whose beliefs involve improving themselves - has some yardstick with which they measure themselves. If they attend a religious service, hopefully they get reminders of what kind of person they should strive to be, and expose themselves to opportunities to change. If you don't have that, you're not likely to try.

You don't have to exercise or go to the gym to be healthy, but you're probably not going to be healthy if you never do anything of the like. You're not going to improve who you are without some means of examining yourself.

Christianity has always appealed to me in a way that most world religions don't in that - if you're following it - you recognize your sinfulness as NOT putting yourself above others. You're not *better* because you're a Christian, just blessed. Fortunate. Forgiven. "Not of works, lest any man should boast".

 

[MADPEBS1]

Sorry for your loss!!! I'm simple, don't think that deep. I just SCREAM at the TV when i see a young child dies in a hot car and the next story is about some rapist murderer, saying there is no GOD. If something like that happens to my family, I'm going to become the GOD that would kill that bad person (hopefully its a MAN, can't go to womans prison ) and do something bad without hurting someone else so i can get into same jail as that person and do some really bad things to them!!!

Wasn't there a movie made with that story line?

 

[Hijinx]

Sorry for your loss!!! I'm simple, don't think that deep. I just SCREAM at the TV when i see a young child dies in a hot car and the next story is about some rapist murderer, saying there is no GOD. If something like that happens to my family, I'm going to become the GOD that would kill that bad person (hopefully its a MAN, can't go to womans prison ) and do something bad without hurting someone else so i can get into same jail as that person and do some really bad things to them!!!

Wasn't there a movie made with that story line?

I feel about Atheists the way I feel about homosexuals. As long as they don't bother me I don't give a flying #### what they believe.

 

[This_person]

Christianity has always appealed to me in a way that most world religions don't in that - if you're following it - you recognize your sinfulness as NOT putting yourself above others. You're not *better* because you're a Christian, just blessed. Fortunate. Forgiven. "Not of works, lest any man should boast".

This is the constant cry against Christians who do wrong - that they're hypocritical because they believe one thing but act another way. A true Christian (as I understand it) never suggests that they won't sin, but they will continue to strive to be better. It's a basic difference in understanding what it means to be a Christian between Christians and non-Christians.

 

[Bann]

Which one has motivation to improve him/herself?

Oh, just freaking stop it. One of my very best friends is an atheist. In fact, I have several in my life, now that I think about it. Which - is just it - I don't ever think about it much, because it doesn't interfere with my life or our friendship or impact me in any significant way at all.

How do you know what is in every single person's mind? Atheist or otherwise? You don't, so quit making such wild, grandiose generalizations about people.

 

[Bird Dog]

Hmmmmm.....

 

[Restitution]

Any reason why this was posted in the Political section? Shouldn't this be in the Religious section??

 

[This_person]

Oh, just freaking stop it. One of my very best friends is an atheist. In fact, I have several in my life, now that I think about it. Which - is just it - I don't ever think about it much, because it doesn't interfere with my life or our friendship or impact me in any significant way at all.

How do you know what is in every single person's mind? Atheist or otherwise? You don't, so quit making such wild, grandiose generalizations about people.

Well, I'm not talking about anecdotal evidence, I'm speaking in the broader philosophical terms.

 

[This_person]

Any reason why this was posted in the Political section? Shouldn't this be in the Religious section??

The original study was about how people perceive others. There was no intention of this being about anything beyond how people perceive others. I thought that to be a political kind of discussion.

 

[Bird Dog]

Any reason why this was posted in the Political section? Shouldn't this be in the Religious section??

Atheists don't beleive they're practicing a religion.......just sayin'

 

[vraiblonde]

I am guessing that the religious types are the ones who thought the hypothetical ####bag was an atheist.

It's always interesting to me, watching Christians (in particular) try and justify themselves and tell everyone how much better they are because they believe in a deity. Not because they're actually a good person, mind you, but because no matter what they do, they'll supposedly be "forgiven". "*I* can be rude and mean and lie and whatever strikes me because *I* believe in God and He will forgive me. You, on the other hand, no matter how generous or kind or charitable or honest, aren't as good as me and will burn in Hell."

Religion is fascinating, from a sociological perspective.

 

[PsyOps]

It's always interesting to me, watching Christians (in particular) try and justify themselves and tell everyone how much better they are because they believe in a deity.

No. I'm better than you because, well..................................... I just am.

 

[vraiblonde]

The original study was about how people perceive others. There was no intention of this being about anything beyond how people perceive others. I thought that to be a political kind of discussion.

Here you go:

Six Photographers Took The Same Man’s Picture, What They Captured Will Make You Think

 

[This_person]

It's always interesting to me, watching Christians (in particular) try and justify themselves and tell everyone how much better they are because they believe in a deity. Not because they're actually a good person, mind you, but because no matter what they do, they'll supposedly be "forgiven". "*I* can be rude and mean and lie and whatever strikes me because *I* believe in God and He will forgive me. You, on the other hand, no matter how generous or kind or charitable or honest, aren't as good as me and will burn in Hell."

There you go, Sam. Just a few posts after you and I attempt to dispel this very thought, someone brings it up as a "new" thought anyway.

 

[This_person]

Here you go:

Six Photographers Took The Same Man’s Picture, What They Captured Will Make You Think

Thank you! That is pretty awesome.

It would be interesting to provide the exact same six photos to large groups of people (one to each group), and see what their take on "who is this guy" comes from each photo.

 

[MADPEBS1]

perception perception perception,

Had to get my picture fix in seeing how lady has phucked it for me !!!!!!!!!!!