Things to Do When Science Fails...

epix · 13th January 2013, 11:37 AM

The content of the list depends on the type of scientific failure. For example, when science fails making you immortal, you may as well get the clue how to deal with such a failure from this article titled Belief in God rises with age, even in atheist nations
http://news.uchicago.edu/article/201...theist-nations

Are you kidding me?

Quote:

This suggests that belief in God is especially likely to increase among the oldest groups, perhaps in response to the increasing anticipation of mortality [...]

I guess not.

It looks like a conversion from atheism to theism is primarily caused by the sense/instinct of self-preservation. That makes sense, because we have evolved from animals, and animals are very instinctive creatures. But what about those atheists who stick with their principal belief all the way to the cemetery?

Well, they are no longer guided by animalistic instincts, and that's because they have never evolved from animals - they are the progeny of Adam and Eve.

Monketey Ghost · 13th January 2013, 11:39 AM

I... direct you to your sigline, lower.

Apathia · 13th January 2013, 11:49 AM

But then what are you going to do when God fails?

And you're a failure, yourself?

eight bits · 13th January 2013, 12:18 PM

I looked over the report itself, which is here:

http://www.norc.org/PDFs/Beliefs_about_God_Report.pdf

It's a bit thin, don't you think? The narrative is at best equivocal between "cohort effects" (people who were born two generations ago may be living representatives of attitudes towards religion in the WW II era - or before, since some of the surveys are themselves old) and "aging effects" (OMG I am going to die someday! - so if I suck up to Jesus, I won't?).

The surveys find some indication for both kinds of effect. OK. But there is nothing here, not one damned thing, that supports any speculation about why, if there is an aging effect, it favors belief in God. Lots of thing happen as you age besides using up whatever time you have on-planet. None of those things are controlled for in this study.

So, we end up with yet another bikini bathing suit. As the old joke about a bikini goes, "What it reveals is interesting, but what it conceals is crucial."

Acleron · 13th January 2013, 12:31 PM

Atheists do not have a belief.

There was no Adam or Eve.

The amount of evidence that we evolved from other animals is overwhelming.

The amount of evidence that some entity created us is zero.

Dog Breakfast · 13th January 2013, 12:42 PM

It seems like they're mixing up belief with hope. I don't see how all the stuff about theism that doesn't make any sense in youth can become crystal clear just via death anxiety. Not that I read the report yet, or anything. Maybe they talk about it???

Foster Zygote · 13th January 2013, 12:50 PM

Quote:

This suggests that belief in God is especially likely to increase among the oldest groups, perhaps in response to the increasing anticipation of mortality...

So theistic beliefs increase with the desire to deny reality.

And?

Mister Earl · 13th January 2013, 01:01 PM

It's fairly obvious Epix doesn't post this sort of stuff to convince anyone. He's probably had well over a hundred threads very similar to this, and nobody's been converted. I don't think he doesn't notice this.

... honestly, I suspect the reason Epix keeps this up isn't to convince anyone else. I think he's trying to convince himself. Like a child chanting, "There is no monster under the bed." when things are dark and frightening.

JFrankA · 13th January 2013, 01:07 PM

....when does science fail? Science is a process, a way of figuring out how stuff works. The process doesn't fail. Just that some things (such as being immortal) isn't possible.

(Although, I might add, thanks to people who use science, we are living a lot longer than we have in previous generations, so add a "yet" to that statement above.

)

dafydd · 13th January 2013, 01:09 PM

Another Epix fail. One wonders why he keeps on starting these threads.

catsmate1 · 13th January 2013, 02:57 PM

Originally Posted by Mister Earl

It's fairly obvious Epix doesn't post this sort of stuff to convince anyone. He's probably had well over a hundred threads very similar to this, and nobody's been converted. I don't think he doesn't notice this.

... honestly, I suspect the reason Epix keeps this up isn't to convince anyone else. I think he's trying to convince himself. Like a child chanting, "There is no monster under the bed." when things are dark and frightening.

Originally Posted by dafydd

Another Epix fail. One wonders why he keeps on starting these threads.

Originally Posted by Douglas Adams

If they don't keep on exercising their lips, he thought, their brains start working.

dafydd · 13th January 2013, 03:14 PM

Originally Posted by epix

The content of the list depends on the type of scientific failure. For example, when science fails making you immortal

Science has never tried to make anybody immortal, so no fail. You fail, from the very first sentence. No cigar, try again. ''When science fail making you immortal'' calls for a comma. When science fails, making you immortal. So when science fails, it makes you immortal. You meant when science fails at making you immortal. Little words are important, please try to include them.

Foster Zygote · 13th January 2013, 03:33 PM

Originally Posted by Mister Earl

It's fairly obvious Epix doesn't post this sort of stuff to convince anyone. He's probably had well over a hundred threads very similar to this, and nobody's been converted. I don't think he doesn't notice this.

... honestly, I suspect the reason Epix keeps this up isn't to convince anyone else. I think he's trying to convince himself. Like a child chanting, "There is no monster under the bed." when things are dark and frightening.

Or in this case, "There is a monster under the bed".

The Norseman · 13th January 2013, 04:12 PM

Originally Posted by Foster Zygote

Or in this case, "There is a monster under the bed".

...and it's athiest !!!!111leventy!!111

pakeha · 13th January 2013, 04:27 PM

Oh, epix.
What a silly study.
What do you think it actually shows?

Quinn · 13th January 2013, 04:33 PM

So conversion from atheism to theism has a distinct positive correlation with senility and dementia? Got it, thanks.

arthwollipot · 13th January 2013, 04:33 PM

The OP suggests that people convert to theism as they get older. I don't think this is necessarily true. Atheism is more common among youth. Personally, I attribute that to the internet providing better access to knowledge and information that was not available in earlier decades, leading to the rise in acceptance of atheism within society. Older people are more theistic because they are more conservative in their belief systems, and were more likely to have been raised with religious backgrounds. I don't think that this particular article supports the idea that people change their beliefs as they age, though I admit that this may have been better-supported in the study that the article cites.

bruto · 13th January 2013, 09:30 PM

Well, if as Epix suggests, we will be more likely to believe in God when we're older, weaker, and more afraid to die than we now are, or better yet demented, then it would seem the best and sanest thing to do would be not to worry. If he's right, and since according to scripture God loves the last minute convert most anyway, the obvious conclusion is that we should continue to be atheists and it will all take care of itself.

Andrew Wiggin · 13th January 2013, 09:36 PM

Science harder!

SatansMaleVoiceChoir · 14th January 2013, 02:03 AM

I don't get it. 'Science' isn't a monolith. There is a scientific method, but that doesn't fail. A hypothesis might 'fail' when subjected to the scientific method, but that just reinforces that the method works.

I don't get it.

dafydd · 14th January 2013, 02:52 AM

Originally Posted by SatansMaleVoiceChoir

I don't get it. 'Science' isn't a monolith. There is a scientific method, but that doesn't fail. A hypothesis might 'fail' when subjected to the scientific method, but that just reinforces that the method works.

I don't get it.

There is nothing to get. This is usual in an epix fail.

SatansMaleVoiceChoir · 14th January 2013, 03:03 AM

Originally Posted by dafydd

There is nothing to get. This is usual in an epix fail.

Got it.

epix · 14th January 2013, 10:19 AM

Originally Posted by Quinn

So conversion from atheism to theism has a distinct positive correlation with senility and dementia? Got it, thanks.

AAAAAhahahaha...

epix · 14th January 2013, 10:30 AM

Originally Posted by pakeha

Oh, epix.
What a silly study.
What do you think it actually shows?

It shows the consequence and confirms the long suspected. The atheists can't argue a point without shooting an unfavorable topic with ad hominem.

dafydd · 14th January 2013, 10:30 AM

Originally Posted by epix

AAAAAhahahaha...

That's about the level of your arguments. Fail, yet again. None of us have been converted into believing in your god, yet again.

dafydd · 14th January 2013, 10:31 AM

Originally Posted by epix

It shows the consequence and confirms the long suspected.

No, it doesn't.

tsig · 14th January 2013, 12:37 PM

Originally Posted by epix

It shows the consequence and confirms the long suspected. The atheists can't argue a point without shooting an unfavorable topic with ad hominem.

Nothing like proving to yourself what you already know to confirm your conclusions.

epix · 14th January 2013, 08:18 PM

It looks like some Ph.D.'s had the misfortune of having their study exposed to the eye of the atheist for whom the senior escape from the paradise of atheism equals treason punishable by a loud horse laugh.

I guess that the crashing sound made by the falling towers of Soviet scientific atheism, is still audible.

Quote:

In Russia, comparing the difference between those who believe in God but hadn’t previously, and those who don’t believe in God but used to, researchers found a 16 percent change in favor of belief.

But there is good news too.

Quote:

“Belief in God has decreased in most countries, but the declines are quite modest especially when calculated on a per annum basis,” Smith said.

It doesn't matter if the decline is "quite modest," as long as it keeps steady. Then, on one leafy autumn afternoon in the year of our Lord 12877, theism will breath its last.

Weak Kitten · 14th January 2013, 08:29 PM

I am finding as I get older that finding belief in a religion is becoming more and more difficult. I used to feel that if I asked enough questions and listened to enough answers I could at least find the edges of the puzzle. But now I am even confused about what the rules are to basic religions like Christianity. When individuals within a single religion cannot agree on what is right and wrong how can an outsider like me even hope to figure out which religion is correct? If any is correct at all!

hgc · 14th January 2013, 08:32 PM

Epix, no one cares half as much as you about this atheism/theism horse race. Comfortable in your own beliefs (or lack thereof)? Great. Carry on.

Feeling agitated that so many don't share your beliefs? Ask yourself why you need constant reinforcement. You may be teetering.

AdMan · 14th January 2013, 09:15 PM

Originally Posted by hgc

Epix, no one cares half as much as you about this atheism/theism horse race. Comfortable in your own beliefs (or lack thereof)? Great. Carry on.

Feeling agitated that so many don't share your beliefs? Ask yourself why you need constant reinforcement. You may be teetering.

^ This. Good post, revealing much about our friend epix.

Good Lt · 14th January 2013, 09:27 PM

Originally Posted by epix

Well, they are no longer guided by animalistic instincts, and that's because they have never evolved from animals - they are the progeny of Adam and Eve.

Please provide evidence that A) these two people existed ever, B) that the male was snapped into being from nothing by magic, and C) that women can be formed from a male rib by magic. Oh, and D) that snakes talk.

Ground rule: "The Bible says it" is not evidence for the truth of the claims made in...the Bible.

Good luck!

Shalamar · 14th January 2013, 09:49 PM

I still have no idea what epix is talking about.

I think he just strings random words together.

chillzero · 15th January 2013, 12:15 AM

Originally Posted by epix

It looks like a conversion from atheism to theism is primarily caused by the sense/instinct of self-preservation. That makes sense, because we have evolved from animals, and animals are very instinctive creatures. But what about those atheists who stick with their principal belief all the way to the cemetery?

Well, they are no longer guided by animalistic instincts, and that's because they have never evolved from animals - they are the progeny of Adam and Eve.

Hang on.
Did you just say that people who are atheist in old age were not evolved from animals .... but those who convert are following natural instincts of self-preservation - based on their evolution from animals?

Adam and Eve bred atheists (or rather, people who are atheist at a particular laet stage of life, during a particular monitored period), and everyone else evolved?

marplots · 15th January 2013, 01:44 AM

How do you know they believe in God? Atheists might lie. In fact, if atheists are as sinful as the religious say, they likely do lie. Maybe everyone but you is just pretending to believe in God.

Here, I'll show you how it works.
I'm an atheist. Now watch closely...

I believe in God. Really. Truly.

See?

The only logically consistent answer is to distrust anyone who says they believe in God. Which, conveniently, I already do.

neilgodfrey · 15th January 2013, 01:47 AM

Hoo boy! How do we know those death-bed converts weren't just trying to be nice and comforting to their religious relatives who came to their bedside? I've been there. You say anything to be nice to stop their tears and pain and leave you to rest in peace.

geni · 15th January 2013, 01:50 AM

Originally Posted by SatansMaleVoiceChoir

I don't get it. 'Science' isn't a monolith. There is a scientific method,

The availible data strongly suggests otherwise.

marplots · 15th January 2013, 01:54 AM

Originally Posted by neilgodfrey

Hoo boy! How do we know those death-bed converts weren't just trying to be nice and comforting to their religious relatives who came to their bedside? I've been there. You say anything to be nice to stop their tears and pain and leave you to rest in peace.

About time we got some info from the dead. Should I offer my sympathies at your passing? I couldn't find anything in Emily Post about the proper protocol.

Anyhow, welcome to the forum. The dead have been underrepresented here, although often inserted second hand by way of pithy quotes.

Halfcentaur · 15th January 2013, 09:45 AM

Funny how shaken by death the theists are. You don't see them authentically realizing that if they're really going to be spending eternity somewhere with their loved ones, they should know they will be reunited before they know it in the grand scheme of things. A lifetime is but a moment compared to eternity. And yet they mourn the dead with all the signs that they realize their loved ones are gone, and they can't deal with it.

Of course one can pretend they're just sad about being separated for a while, but you don't go through something as powerful as mourning when your child goes to college.

Theism is denial. Denial that has been shaped for thousands of years by people as a meme that has made denial itself something to be celebrated by giving it a pretty new name you call "faith". Theism is a desperate need to escape the finality you know in your "heart" is more than a possibility. The dishonest thing about people like Epix is that they pretend they're willing to openly discuss this issue in spite of all their cultural conditioning.

It's almost enough to make me feel guilty knowing I am just serving as a means for Epix to reinforce their personal system of denial by offering myself as a target for the projection of their own faulty beliefs onto my position.

epix · 15th January 2013, 09:50 AM

Originally Posted by hgc

Epix, no one cares half as much as you about this atheism/theism horse race.

A horse race? It looks to me like a bus race...

13th January 2013, 11:37 AM	#1
epix Master Poster Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Borgia Apartment, Vatican City Posts: 2,957	Things to Do When Science Fails... The content of the list depends on the type of scientific failure. For example, when science fails making you immortal, you may as well get the clue how to deal with such a failure from this article titled Belief in God rises with age, even in atheist nations http://news.uchicago.edu/article/201...theist-nations Are you kidding me? Quote: This suggests that belief in God is especially likely to increase among the oldest groups, perhaps in response to the increasing anticipation of mortality [...] I guess not. It looks like a conversion from atheism to theism is primarily caused by the sense/instinct of self-preservation. That makes sense, because we have evolved from animals, and animals are very instinctive creatures. But what about those atheists who stick with their principal belief all the way to the cemetery? Well, they are no longer guided by animalistic instincts, and that's because they have never evolved from animals - they are the progeny of Adam and Eve.
	__________________ Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. Huh? What's your point?

13th January 2013, 11:39 AM	#2
Monketey Ghost Body of Work Join Date: May 2003 Location: I'm on your screen! Posts: 14,807	I... direct you to your sigline, lower.
	__________________ _{The membership of this forum is henceforth to refer to me as potato-headed Bobby} _{SSKCAS, member in long standing}

13th January 2013, 11:49 AM	#3
Apathia Master Poster Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Tempe, AZ Posts: 2,937	But then what are you going to do when God fails? And you're a failure, yourself?
	__________________ "At the Supreme Court level where we work, 90 percent of any decision is emotional. The rational part of us supplies the reasons for supporting our predilections." Justice William O. Douglas "Humans aren't rational creatures but rationalizing creatures." Author Unknown Last edited by Apathia; 13th January 2013 at 11:50 AM. Reason: Failure

13th January 2013, 12:42 PM	#6
Dog Breakfast Critical Thinker Join Date: May 2012 Location: Why not? Posts: 352	It seems like they're mixing up belief with hope. I don't see how all the stuff about theism that doesn't make any sense in youth can become crystal clear just via death anxiety. Not that I read the report yet, or anything. Maybe they talk about it???
	__________________ Personal weblog, both green and black.

13th January 2013, 12:50 PM	#7
Foster Zygote Dental Floss Tycoon Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge Posts: 14,407	Quote: This suggests that belief in God is especially likely to increase among the oldest groups, perhaps in response to the increasing anticipation of mortality... So theistic beliefs increase with the desire to deny reality. And?
	__________________ It looks just like a Telefunken U47... You'll love it.

13th January 2013, 12:18 PM	#4
eight bits Critical Thinker Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 407	I looked over the report itself, which is here: http://www.norc.org/PDFs/Beliefs_about_God_Report.pdf It's a bit thin, don't you think? The narrative is at best equivocal between "cohort effects" (people who were born two generations ago may be living representatives of attitudes towards religion in the WW II era - or before, since some of the surveys are themselves old) and "aging effects" (OMG I am going to die someday! - so if I suck up to Jesus, I won't?). The surveys find some indication for both kinds of effect. OK. But there is nothing here, not one damned thing, that supports any speculation about why, if there is an aging effect, it favors belief in God. Lots of thing happen as you age besides using up whatever time you have on-planet. None of those things are controlled for in this study. So, we end up with yet another bikini bathing suit. As the old joke about a bikini goes, "What it reveals is interesting, but what it conceals is crucial."

13th January 2013, 12:31 PM	#5
Acleron Graduate Poster Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: In a beautifully understandable universe Posts: 1,933	Atheists do not have a belief. There was no Adam or Eve. The amount of evidence that we evolved from other animals is overwhelming. The amount of evidence that some entity created us is zero.

13th January 2013, 01:01 PM	#8
Mister Earl Master Poster Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 2,143	It's fairly obvious Epix doesn't post this sort of stuff to convince anyone. He's probably had well over a hundred threads very similar to this, and nobody's been converted. I don't think he doesn't notice this. ... honestly, I suspect the reason Epix keeps this up isn't to convince anyone else. I think he's trying to convince himself. Like a child chanting, "There is no monster under the bed." when things are dark and frightening.

13th January 2013, 01:07 PM	#9
JFrankA Illuminator Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Hartford, CT Posts: 4,054	....when does science fail? Science is a process, a way of figuring out how stuff works. The process doesn't fail. Just that some things (such as being immortal) isn't possible. (Although, I might add, thanks to people who use science, we are living a lot longer than we have in previous generations, so add a "yet" to that statement above. )
	__________________ "How perverted you are.", "I will bite you like a serpent. The poison will slowly kill your sophism..." - SnakeTongue "More truth is in a single issue of Mad than a year of Time." - Gord in Toronto "Oh, and one more thing: For those who fight for it, life has a flavor the sheltered will never know." - Wise man in Sucker Punch

13th January 2013, 01:09 PM	#10
dafydd Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Belgium (Flatland) Posts: 31,475	Another Epix fail. One wonders why he keeps on starting these threads.
	__________________ Yesterday upon the stairs I met a man who wasn't there He wasn't there again today I wish that he would go away.

13th January 2013, 02:57 PM	#11
catsmate1 Philosopher Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Dublin (the one in Ireland) Posts: 7,136	Originally Posted by Mister Earl It's fairly obvious Epix doesn't post this sort of stuff to convince anyone. He's probably had well over a hundred threads very similar to this, and nobody's been converted. I don't think he doesn't notice this. ... honestly, I suspect the reason Epix keeps this up isn't to convince anyone else. I think he's trying to convince himself. Like a child chanting, "There is no monster under the bed." when things are dark and frightening. Originally Posted by dafydd Another Epix fail. One wonders why he keeps on starting these threads. Originally Posted by Douglas Adams If they don't keep on exercising their lips, he thought, their brains start working.
	__________________ Yes I gave in and configured an avatar.

13th January 2013, 03:14 PM	#12
dafydd Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Belgium (Flatland) Posts: 31,475	Originally Posted by epix The content of the list depends on the type of scientific failure. For example, when science fails making you immortal Science has never tried to make anybody immortal, so no fail. You fail, from the very first sentence. No cigar, try again. ''When science fail making you immortal'' calls for a comma. When science fails, making you immortal. So when science fails, it makes you immortal. You meant when science fails at making you immortal. Little words are important, please try to include them.
	__________________ Yesterday upon the stairs I met a man who wasn't there He wasn't there again today I wish that he would go away. Last edited by dafydd; 13th January 2013 at 03:17 PM.

13th January 2013, 03:33 PM	#13
Foster Zygote Dental Floss Tycoon Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge Posts: 14,407	Originally Posted by Mister Earl It's fairly obvious Epix doesn't post this sort of stuff to convince anyone. He's probably had well over a hundred threads very similar to this, and nobody's been converted. I don't think he doesn't notice this. ... honestly, I suspect the reason Epix keeps this up isn't to convince anyone else. I think he's trying to convince himself. Like a child chanting, "There is no monster under the bed." when things are dark and frightening. Or in this case, "There is a monster under the bed".
	__________________ It looks just like a Telefunken U47... You'll love it.

13th January 2013, 04:12 PM	#14
The Norseman I Void Warranties Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: The Treasure Valley Posts: 3,242	Originally Posted by Foster Zygote Or in this case, "There is a monster under the bed". ...and it's athiest !!!!111leventy!!111
	__________________ "I have always thought that a wild animal never looks so well as when some obstacle of pronounced durability is between us." "Sticking the flounce is the hardest move in forum gymnastics." -tsig

13th January 2013, 04:27 PM	#15
pakeha Philosopher Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 8,010	Oh, epix. What a silly study. What do you think it actually shows?
pakeha Philosopher Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 8,010

13th January 2013, 04:33 PM	#16
Quinn Breathtakingly blasphemous. Join Date: Jan 2002 Posts: 1,891	So conversion from atheism to theism has a distinct positive correlation with senility and dementia? Got it, thanks.
	__________________ It's not a matter of living life without mystery or wonder. It's a matter of living life without the approval of people who ignorantly assume that by rejecting the irrational, I experience no mystery or wonder. And frankly, I do just fine without that.

13th January 2013, 04:33 PM	#17
arthwollipot Observer of Phenomena Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: The other side of your screen Posts: 43,038	The OP suggests that people convert to theism as they get older. I don't think this is necessarily true. Atheism is more common among youth. Personally, I attribute that to the internet providing better access to knowledge and information that was not available in earlier decades, leading to the rise in acceptance of atheism within society. Older people are more theistic because they are more conservative in their belief systems, and were more likely to have been raised with religious backgrounds. I don't think that this particular article supports the idea that people change their beliefs as they age, though I admit that this may have been better-supported in the study that the article cites.
	__________________ Jadey (in RvB game thread): I just want to take a moment to commend Arth on his role as Parasitic Alien Tumor. I think he really connected with the character and there were times when I forgot that he was just acting. That's the kind of talent that you can't teach.

13th January 2013, 09:30 PM	#18
bruto Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: way way north of Diddy Wah Diddy Posts: 11,191	Well, if as Epix suggests, we will be more likely to believe in God when we're older, weaker, and more afraid to die than we now are, or better yet demented, then it would seem the best and sanest thing to do would be not to worry. If he's right, and since according to scripture God loves the last minute convert most anyway, the obvious conclusion is that we should continue to be atheists and it will all take care of itself.
	__________________ "Sir, I have found you an argument; but I am not obliged to find you an understanding.(Samuel Johnson) The gods are less for their love of praise....(Wendell Berry)

13th January 2013, 09:36 PM	#19
Andrew Wiggin Master Poster Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: A small planet named for its dirt. You'll find it filed under 'mostly harmless' Posts: 2,914	Science harder!
	__________________ "Everyone takes the limits of his own vision for the limits of the world." - Arthur Schopenhauer "New and stirring things are belittled because if they are not belittled, the humiliating question arises, 'Why then are you not taking part in them?' " - H. G. Wells

14th January 2013, 02:03 AM	#20
SatansMaleVoiceChoir Graduate Poster Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 1,300	I don't get it. 'Science' isn't a monolith. There is a scientific method, but that doesn't fail. A hypothesis might 'fail' when subjected to the scientific method, but that just reinforces that the method works. I don't get it.
	__________________ The aim of argument, or of discussion, should not be victory, but progress. - Joseph Joubert Do not believe hastily. - Ovid There is no worse lie than a truth misunderstood by those who hear it. - William James

14th January 2013, 02:52 AM	#21
dafydd Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Belgium (Flatland) Posts: 31,475	Originally Posted by SatansMaleVoiceChoir I don't get it. 'Science' isn't a monolith. There is a scientific method, but that doesn't fail. A hypothesis might 'fail' when subjected to the scientific method, but that just reinforces that the method works. I don't get it. There is nothing to get. This is usual in an epix fail.
	__________________ Yesterday upon the stairs I met a man who wasn't there He wasn't there again today I wish that he would go away.

14th January 2013, 03:03 AM	#22
SatansMaleVoiceChoir Graduate Poster Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 1,300	Originally Posted by dafydd There is nothing to get. This is usual in an epix fail. Got it.
	__________________ The aim of argument, or of discussion, should not be victory, but progress. - Joseph Joubert Do not believe hastily. - Ovid There is no worse lie than a truth misunderstood by those who hear it. - William James

14th January 2013, 10:19 AM	#23
epix Master Poster Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Borgia Apartment, Vatican City Posts: 2,957	Originally Posted by Quinn So conversion from atheism to theism has a distinct positive correlation with senility and dementia? Got it, thanks. AAAAAhahahaha...
	__________________ Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. Huh? What's your point?

14th January 2013, 10:30 AM	#24
epix Master Poster Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Borgia Apartment, Vatican City Posts: 2,957	Originally Posted by pakeha Oh, epix. What a silly study. What do you think it actually shows? It shows the consequence and confirms the long suspected. The atheists can't argue a point without shooting an unfavorable topic with ad hominem.
	__________________ Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. Huh? What's your point?

14th January 2013, 10:30 AM	#25
dafydd Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Belgium (Flatland) Posts: 31,475	Originally Posted by epix AAAAAhahahaha... That's about the level of your arguments. Fail, yet again. None of us have been converted into believing in your god, yet again.
	__________________ Yesterday upon the stairs I met a man who wasn't there He wasn't there again today I wish that he would go away.

14th January 2013, 10:31 AM	#26
dafydd Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Belgium (Flatland) Posts: 31,475	Originally Posted by epix It shows the consequence and confirms the long suspected. No, it doesn't.
	__________________ Yesterday upon the stairs I met a man who wasn't there He wasn't there again today I wish that he would go away.

14th January 2013, 12:37 PM	#27
tsig a carbon based life-form Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 26,791	Originally Posted by epix It shows the consequence and confirms the long suspected. The atheists can't argue a point without shooting an unfavorable topic with ad hominem. Nothing like proving to yourself what you already know to confirm your conclusions.

14th January 2013, 08:18 PM	#28
epix Master Poster Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Borgia Apartment, Vatican City Posts: 2,957	It looks like some Ph.D.'s had the misfortune of having their study exposed to the eye of the atheist for whom the senior escape from the paradise of atheism equals treason punishable by a loud horse laugh. I guess that the crashing sound made by the falling towers of Soviet scientific atheism, is still audible. Quote: In Russia, comparing the difference between those who believe in God but hadn’t previously, and those who don’t believe in God but used to, researchers found a 16 percent change in favor of belief. But there is good news too. Quote: “Belief in God has decreased in most countries, but the declines are quite modest especially when calculated on a per annum basis,” Smith said. It doesn't matter if the decline is "quite modest," as long as it keeps steady. Then, on one leafy autumn afternoon in the year of our Lord 12877, theism will breath its last.
	__________________ Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. Huh? What's your point? Last edited by epix; 14th January 2013 at 08:29 PM.

14th January 2013, 08:29 PM	#29
Weak Kitten Graduate Poster Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Lost and lonely...will you be my friend? Posts: 1,728	I am finding as I get older that finding belief in a religion is becoming more and more difficult. I used to feel that if I asked enough questions and listened to enough answers I could at least find the edges of the puzzle. But now I am even confused about what the rules are to basic religions like Christianity. When individuals within a single religion cannot agree on what is right and wrong how can an outsider like me even hope to figure out which religion is correct? If any is correct at all!
	__________________ A quick reminder to all participants that although incomprehensibility is not against the Membership Agreement, incivility is. Please try and remember this, and keep your exchanges polite and respectful. -arthwollipot

14th January 2013, 08:32 PM	#30
hgc Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Jun 2002 Posts: 13,028	Epix, no one cares half as much as you about this atheism/theism horse race. Comfortable in your own beliefs (or lack thereof)? Great. Carry on. Feeling agitated that so many don't share your beliefs? Ask yourself why you need constant reinforcement. You may be teetering.
	__________________ Bowel-shaking earthquakes of doubt and remorse assail him and wail him with monster truck force. - Cake, The Distance Was there a second singer on the grassy Knowles? - Stephen Colbert

14th January 2013, 09:15 PM	#31
AdMan Philosopher Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 7,197	Originally Posted by hgc Epix, no one cares half as much as you about this atheism/theism horse race. Comfortable in your own beliefs (or lack thereof)? Great. Carry on. Feeling agitated that so many don't share your beliefs? Ask yourself why you need constant reinforcement. You may be teetering. ^ This. Good post, revealing much about our friend epix.
AdMan Philosopher Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 7,197	__________________ It is far better to grasp the universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring. - Carl Sagan

14th January 2013, 09:27 PM	#32
Good Lt Graduate Poster Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Satellite of Love Posts: 1,487	Originally Posted by epix Well, they are no longer guided by animalistic instincts, and that's because they have never evolved from animals - they are the progeny of Adam and Eve. Please provide evidence that A) these two people existed ever, B) that the male was snapped into being from nothing by magic, and C) that women can be formed from a male rib by magic. Oh, and D) that snakes talk. Ground rule: "The Bible says it" is not evidence for the truth of the claims made in...the Bible. Good luck!
	__________________ Sorrowful and great is the artist's destiny. - Liszt Certainly, in the topsy-turvy world of heavy rock, having a good solid piece of wood in your hand is often useful. - Ian Faith

14th January 2013, 09:49 PM	#33
Shalamar Dark Lord of the JREF Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Super Star Destroyer Executor Posts: 2,397	I still have no idea what epix is talking about. I think he just strings random words together.
	__________________ "The truth is out there. But the lies are inside your head."

15th January 2013, 12:15 AM	#34
chillzero Domestic Godless Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Top of the world, ma! Posts: 15,235	Originally Posted by epix It looks like a conversion from atheism to theism is primarily caused by the sense/instinct of self-preservation. That makes sense, because we have evolved from animals, and animals are very instinctive creatures. But what about those atheists who stick with their principal belief all the way to the cemetery? Well, they are no longer guided by animalistic instincts, and that's because they have never evolved from animals - they are the progeny of Adam and Eve. Hang on. Did you just say that people who are atheist in old age were not evolved from animals .... but those who convert are following natural instincts of self-preservation - based on their evolution from animals? Adam and Eve bred atheists (or rather, people who are atheist at a particular laet stage of life, during a particular monitored period), and everyone else evolved?

15th January 2013, 01:44 AM	#35
marplots Philosopher Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 5,417	How do you know they believe in God? Atheists might lie. In fact, if atheists are as sinful as the religious say, they likely do lie. Maybe everyone but you is just pretending to believe in God. Here, I'll show you how it works. I'm an atheist. Now watch closely... I believe in God. Really. Truly. See? The only logically consistent answer is to distrust anyone who says they believe in God. Which, conveniently, I already do.
marplots Philosopher Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 5,417