10 comments to “Always Remember, Kids…”

1. Phronk:
   3 February 2007, on 6:11 pm

   Now you’re not being fair to the Christian position. God only causes misery for people who deserve it - sinners.

   Also: We are all sinners.

2. beepbeepitsme:
   3 February 2007, on 6:28 pm

   We are taught from an early age that bad things will happen to us if we do the wrong thing. This sets up the potential for further guilt if something bad happens to us. As then it becomes a case of, “I must have done something wrong because something bad happened to me.”

   If you are taught as a child, that bad things happen to you if you displease a god, as millions of people must be taught, then every bad thing that ever happens to you becomes part of this self-fulfilling prophecy.

   Luckily for me I was taught that bad things can happen to people if they do something silly or wrong, (like diving into the shallow end of the pool etc), but I was never subjected to “it is god’s punishment” because you did something wrong type of mentality.

   And for that, I am very grateful to my parents.

3. Naomi:
   3 February 2007, on 7:47 pm

   If that’s Mother Nature, she needs a new stylist and some botox. And to go on a diet!

   I was as fortunate as BBiM. My parents were probably atheists, unacknowledged even to and between themselves. And both came from fundie families, something that didn’t occur to me until I became an atheist. When I opened the envelope containing my AmericanAtheist membership card, I must have breathed a cloud of head-clearing outgassing. I used to think that they were just products of poor schools…

   It causes me serious discomfort to be around them for more than an hour or two.

   I don’t even want to dissect Bob’s post. It gave me the willies just to read it.

   Thanks, Bob, for “harshin mah buzz here.” Now I have to go drown some cute puppies…

4. Matt:
   3 February 2007, on 7:52 pm

   That’s right Phronk. Gawd beats us because he loves us.

   Just keep telling yourself that after gawd lays the smackdown on you and you’re dabbing make up on your black eye so that no one asks any questions.

   And if someone does, just say you walked into a door.

5. Troff:
   3 February 2007, on 11:44 pm

   We are taught from an early age that bad things will happen to us if we do the wrong thing. This sets up

   Just to put the final spin on the cognitive dissonance… let’s not forget that a whole bunch of people - typically those in power - can do the wrong thing and next-to-nothing happens to them.

   Pedo-priests protected by the church. GW Bush. How many other politicians?

6. The Old Git:
   4 February 2007, on 5:56 am

   I’m afraid that you’ve got it all wrong, Bob, though it pains me to say so.

   You see, that poor woman’s plight provesthat the Xtian God does love us, because if He didn’t, He wouldn’t need to keep sending us these messages that we’d better pay attention to Him, or else. Besides, what’s killing off a few folks to God, or destroying their homes and infrastructure if it’s going to save the others from eternal Hellfire?

   The fact that you just don’t seem to get this, Bob, makes me worry for your eternal soul.

   So, I say unto you, Bob, come to Jesus now - my office is the third door on the left on the second floor, and I charge only $500 per hour for a consultation!

   Seriously, though, the issue you are referring to poses an insurmountable one for Xtians to answer, though their attempts to do so generally cause me some amusement. As Kant said, all theodicities are doomed to failure, for God’s alleged perfect goodness, justice, wisdom, power, and other perfections are not compatible with the existence of evil and suffering in this world.

7. Bob:
   4 February 2007, on 1:21 pm

   As Kant said, all theodicities are doomed to failure, for God’s alleged perfect goodness, justice, wisdom, power, and other perfections are not compatible with the existence of evil and suffering in this world.

   Well, just don’t forget how dedicated Kant was to the existence of God and religion for the purposes of morality…

   Morality thus leads ineluctably to religion, through which it extends itself to the idea of a powerful moral Lawgiver, outside of mankind, for Whose will that is the final end (of creation) which at the same time can and ought to be man’s final end.

   Kant was definitely a believer…

8. God is for Suckers! - Commentary, news, and rants on the evils and stupidity of belief in the big invisible daddy in the sky. Illuminating and watchdogging the widespread attempts to institutionalize the theocratic rule of the US. Making fun of believers :
   4 February 2007, on 1:54 pm

   [...] Inspired by Bob’s post, and by this article about people returning to the site of their demolished church, I had to offer up a prayer to the Merciful and Just Lord Gawd!!! [...]

9. The Old Git:
   4 February 2007, on 3:25 pm

   Kant was definitely a believer…

   But he could not reconcile ‘Gods’ alleged ‘omni-properties’ with all the suffering and evil that existed in the world - and which, by definition, was god’s handiwork, so his belief included the seeds of it’s own destruction.

10. Bob:
    4 February 2007, on 5:50 pm

    Well, to you and me, definitely…

    But, to Kant, he was simply making room for faith…