Bob, I never thought I'd say this, but you're beginning to make me sympathise with the believers. I mean, it's one thing to have a really strong opinion and to be determined to express yourself to the fullest, but I think your intense proclamations are giving your opponents more reason to want to seek refuge in religion!! Man, you are scarier than any brimstone-and-hellfire preacher!
Book I'm reading at the moment, by Carl Sagan, is absolutely rock-solid on scepticism. He says much the same thing you say, only he says it with a tad less spittle...
But the thing is, at one point he takes a step back and admits that it's maybe unfair and downright bad manners to ridicule believers too much, because, as he admits, they're only human beings, and no human being ever feels completely safe in the world. Being human, they need something to make sense of Life, (which persists in being unexplainable despite aeons of philosophising).
He admits that even sceptics are "guilty" of the same ploy.
Scepticism is, for some people, their religion. It's something they can hold on to, and believe in, and trust in, and take comfort from. So, really, no matter how right I think you are in your specific points, I have to admit I think that you, (and I) are making one big fundamental mistake here - we're forgetting that we're arguing with people who, in terms of vulnerability and humanity, are no different than ourselves.
And even if religion often breaks the rule of Live and Let Live, do you think it's good that its opponents make the same mistake?
Originally Posted by Ian-T
