Posts tagged atheism
Nyquil on the Rocks
Mapping the universe, one laundry pile at a time.
The Fallacy of Equivocation.
Utterly brilliant and simplistic. But the people that often commit equivocation will likely not get it.
Think of it like trying to roll 12 “sixes” on twelve dice in one roll. That has an atomically low probability of happening. That’s about how likely it would be that a species of animal suddenly just sprung into existence out of nowhere. Essentially like the proverbial 747 coming together from junk parts in a tornado. Those kinds of long odds we’ll call “god” because the likelihood of such a creature existing in the forms that terrestrial religions depict it reaches so close to zero, one might as well not even consider it a possibility.
Now, think of those same 12 dice. Instead of trying to roll all “sixes” in one shot, you roll all twelve until you get a “six” or a few “sixes.” You set those aside, and you keep rolling until you get another, and another, and another, until you finally have a row of twelve. This is essentially how natural selection works. In an environment where all “sixes” allow you to be fully capable and successful, the twelve dice that can adapt will survive.
Now, tell me which is more likely to be true. You roll twelve dice once and pull straight “sixes,” or you take your time and EVOLVE the straight “sixes?”
“Debating the religious is like playing chess with a pigeon.”
…damn good analogy.
I’mma just leave this here.
I’m partial to the ICP Fallacy myself. Though the Minchin Declaration is always useful!
Absolutely love it.
Accurately sums up how I feel about Reason Rally.
“We have now sunk to a depth at which the restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men.” — George Orwell
My answer to everyone that tells me I need to “just chill out” about my bashing of religion.
Good ol’ Corinthians. Christians like to forget about this one, don’t they?
You see, folks, this is why cherry-picking is a logical fallacy, and why the entire bible is thus inherently fallacious. You can’t just pick out the parts you like and live by that credo. You have to look at the entire contents of something before you choose to live by it. Well, the Bible just so happens to be wrought with this kind of double-think, so therefore there is no logical reason you should follow it.
Get it?
Got it?
Good.
My Trip to the Creation “Museum”
So I went to Kentucky this week to see some horses, get some sun, and for a general change of scenery. On this trip, the lovely Kahn Artist and I decided we would visit the Creation Museum. She had already been, but encouraged me to go, despite my apprehensions about my ability to keep quiet in a security-controlled environment specifically designed to keep those of our ilk out. But, I bit the bullet, and we spent the money to get it.
Oh boy, was I ever angry by the time we got out.
The first thing you’re greeted with is a huge set-piece showing two paleontologists working at a dig site. One scientist says, and I’m para-quoting, “this animal died millions of years ago, before being buried under layers of sediment and fossilized.” Then, another scientist says, “I think the global flood did it all instantly, 4000 years ago. Same evidence, different conclusions! God did it!”
Seriously. And that’s it. That’s all. The patron is expected to simply take for granted that the theological point of view is the correct one simply because it’s theological. There’s no debate, there’s nothing. The creationist paleontologist just kind of rolls his eyes and smiles at the other paleontologist as if to say “look at this silly dude and his conclusions that don’t involve god. What a dummy.”
As we progressed, we came across the Adam and Eve exhibit. Here are some shots.
I can’t even describe how wrong so much of this is. In the first picture, he’s attempting to feed what looks like a small, predatory cat. In the second picture that’s an early human living peacefully with an immature vegetarian Tyrannosaur. I can’t make this shit up, folks. They stated that, in the garden of Eden, no animals were carnivorous, and therefore could live together in harmony.
The third picture demonstrates a non-so-subtle bash at homosexuality, and also mocking the idea that humans are animals and evolved from them.
Shortly after, we came to the dinosaur exhibit, which made me rage even more.
An inaccurate model of Deinonychus, shows larger-than-actual size, inaccurate proportions, inaccurate forelimb structure, and a lack of feathers.
This description of a stegosaurus showing, blatantly inaccurately, that the sediment layers it was found in date to ~2348 BC. This is about 150 million years off the actual dating. At least they got the location right.
That was all I really got from the dinosaur exhibit that I really felt to be decent, as all of the other “no, fossils can’t be old because Jesus” reasoning.
What truly made me rage was the part about evolution through natural selection. Here are pictures and explanations from that.
While this is semantically correct, it’s still very misleading. Throughout the “museum,” they attempt to argue this point, but, as the following pictures will show, do so with circular reasoning. What they don’t understand is that, without natural selection, there is no evolution. Also, when natural selection is present, evolution must come of it. You can’t have one without the other, folks.
What they don’t understand about this diagram is that it accurately conveys evolution through natural selection. They then try to say at the bottom, saying that it would take too long for a species to evolve in this fashion (in a 6000 year time span, yes, but not over billions of years like what actually happened), and that God then granted them tools in which to “change rapidly.” Again, this would still be evolution through natural selection. Regardless of how it was initiated.
Again, they use circular reasoning to explain the evolution of dog species by saying that God built the variety into their… well… genetics, I suppose. It’s never explicitly stated what exactly the variety was built into. Again, this is ironic in that it shows evolution through natural selection, as all dog breeds are technically different species of canids.
Again, more of this “God infused variety” (into what, where?) nonsense. Though this time, they go as far as to make the baldly inaccurate claim that billions of years isn’t enough to produce this much variety. Where they’re getting this information, and what evidence they are using to support it, I have no idea. Oh wait, because Jesus.
Here, they use dragon legends and crocodilians as “reasonable evidence” for the idea that humans cohabitated with dinosaurs. Because Jesus.
Now. I left out a part in which they state that “belief” in natural selection is the reason racism exists. I became so frustrated and upset at this point, that I had to walk away. To say that natural selection is the reason that racism, genocide, and war exists is an egregious and flagrant piece of hateful madness that I cannot begin to comprehend. Especially in the face of all of the death, war, and murder that was in the name of God over the centuries.
One last piece of misinformation before I close this up.
Ash Cloud: They basically said that “because ashes can cool the Earth, it’s plain to see that The Flood caused the Ice Age. Derp
Lava Dome: What? What the hell? There is no such discrepancy in K-Ar dating. It’s especially ideal for newly formed lava crusts.
Canyons: Again, what? Where are you getting this information?
AS with the rest of the “museums” exhibits, the geology section was plagued with circular reasoning and it’s explanations are “no, because Jesus” at best.
This is a motherfucking travesty of science and education. Not to mention that everything here is not-so-subtly designed to show science as an overly complicated system (often by using large, complicated trees and formulas) and then comparing it to the “simple and elegant” creationist system (often by using vivid pictures, colorful imagery, and bold, straight lines). It’s intellectually dishonest, and catered toward children.
This “museum” is one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen in my life. That it exists, and that I’ve actually seen it, tore away a major part of my hope for the future, and replaced it with yet another cynicism.
To call it a travesty would be an understatement.
Anonymous asked:
Isn't it the exact same sort of oppression when a white western man tells Arab women how they're supposed to lead their lives? Some women WANT to veil. I know that's hard for a white western atheist man to understand, but it's not your job to understand it, or give us your permission. I say this as a Hijabi gal, living in America, whose dad nags her NOT to wear the veil in public. You don't know us, you don't know our lives, you don't know our choices. Shut the fuck up. Please.
Okay, here’s what you aren’t understanding. No, I can’t tell you what to do, and I wouldn’t want to. If following the guild lines set for you by that religious institution is what you want to do with your life, in spite of that religious institution’s stance on morality and reality, fine. You’re allowed, and me, nor anybody else, is giving you permission or telling you not to.
My problem begins with those women that don’t know they have a choice. That if they were to not wear clothing that covers them completely, they could be severely disciplined. That they are used, as such, as objects. That they aren’t allowed to be educated or make their own choice.
So the fact that you choose to wear it, and choose to/are allowed to wear a less cumbersome variant, means you have exactly one more right than someone that is forced to wear it.
Do not shill that ignorant garbage at me and expect me to take it lightly. It is people like you, that defend and approve of the methods of restraint and oppression used by religious institutions, that allow it to continue. The fact that you’re a woman doing it instead of a man makes absolutely no difference.
Relevant.
Reposting these for posterity.
I just watched the TNG episode “Who Watches the Watchers,” and I must say, it was one of the finest pieces of science fiction I have ever seen, and one of the most important messages in all of fiction itself.
It moved me nearly to tears.
It was nice to see the promotion of knowledge, understanding, and the dispelling of superstition being lauded as the right, fair, and ONLY thing to do rather than nonsensical beliefs and fairy tales that only cause harm and hatred being “respected” for no good reason.
Seriously, guys. There’s so much we can get done.
Let Us Follow Italy’s Lead, and…
I know I’ve posted lots of anti-religious stuff today. Get over it.
More tits and cursing tomorrow, I promise.
