UK Atheists Hope to Eliminate Jedi Population

[Conor147]

its a shame. i thought this forum was above that kind of censorship.

i wonder why religious beliefs are considered above criticism and beliefs regarding politics etc are fair game.

or maybe its just a butthurt moderator that took what i said personally? wouldnt be surprised.

Actually it's because you've been repeatedly indulging in ad hominem attacks. Anyway, it's not censorship since:

A) None of your comments have been removed entirely.
B) You have not yet been prevented from posting.

Probation merely means they have their eye on you.

actually, if you look both the posts i was reprimand for there were not a single ad hominem or insult, unless you think blasphemy isnt a victimless crime.

and ive addressed all arguments on their own terms.

maybe you are confusing the logical fallacy with the word.. "insult"?


to emphasize, i was in fact reprimanded for criticising religion and faith.

 

[strobe]

Oh God no. This not about "sticking it to the man" or anything like that. It's about the TRUTH. For intelligence's sake please people take the census seriously. The census is incredible.

For the love of the TRUTH just put "No religion". Who wants religiously geared academies teaching lies?! I don't and I doubt many people putting in Jedi do either.

Here is my respones Mr.Cameron. MIND YOUR OWN FUCKING BUSINESS!!!!!!!!!

Really?? REALLY?! You're not spiting the temporary, partially in power politician by screwing with the census. You're screwing with yourself and more importantly me.

Every single person who deliberately fills out the census incorrectly is terrible. I will fight anyone who wants to do it. I'm a 6' 65ish kg 20 year old with no fighting experience but I will fight you. Even worse for me I'd debate you; I do maths and people can't understand me very well.

I don't understand hiding shit for the sake of nothing. GAARHHHURK-

 

[Mad1Cow]

its a shame. i thought this forum was above that kind of censorship.

i wonder why religious beliefs are considered above criticism and beliefs regarding politics etc are fair game.

or maybe its just a butthurt moderator that took what i said personally? wouldnt be surprised.

Ah come on mate, lighten up a little.

I agree that religious beliefs should not be above criticism. As H.L. Mencken delightfully said: "We must respect the other fellow's religion, but only in the sense and to the extent that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart".

im not familiar with the probation system and what it entails, but im guessing that i could be banned. so essentially im being banned for criticising religion. this is the 21st century and im being reprimanded for criticising religion. have we not learned from our mistakes? what the enlightenment taught us? thats why im sad

and i dont see how religion is supposed to be respected if it cant be honestly criticised? how is it respect if it is mandatory? in the same way donating to charity is not benevolence if it is mandatory, its tax.

surely if im being honest about religion and regarding it on its own terms and merits, im the one thats respecting it? rather than hiding it away from the outside world like an embarrassing relative?

I'm pretty sure it was the general view of "ATHIESTS ARE SMART AND RELIGION IS DUMB" that got you put on probation. You're entitled to your own view and all, but when you're starting arguements about "my views are better than yours" people are gonna take offense to it. It's religion, it's in the eye of the beholder, we don't force it on to others. It's not simply Pokemon with Charizard facing a Magikarp. Each has varying positives and negatives that should be explored.

 

[CrimsonBlack]

"If your religion is of low enough importance to you to that you are willing to put in a religion from 3 good sci-fi films from years ago, and 3 more recent rubbish ones,please consider ticking 'No Religion' instead"

Well considering that the religion of Christianity is a religion from one book thousands of years ago, i'm kind of struggling to see the difference between that and Jediism(?). They're both as legitimate as each other.

Not to say that religious people are not entitled to their beliefs. You can believe whatever you want to believe, I just have a problem with people telling others that saying you follow the Jedi religion is somehow less legitimate than following, say, catholocism.

Also want to add, what you wrote reminded me of Cargo Cults described by Dawkins in The God Delusion - how missionaries to island nations spawned cults because of the superior technology they used which were delivered via cargo boxes on planes or ships. One of these cults was waiting for a deity-like missionary called John Frum to return with loads of cargo. An adherent called Sam was interviewed by David Attenborough:

ATTENBOROUGH: "...but Sam, it is nineteen years since John Frum said the cargo would come. He promised and he promised... isn't nineteen years a long time to wait?"
SAM: "If you can wait two thousand years for Jesus Christ and he hasn't come yet, I can wait longer than nineteen years for John Frum".

 

[the D0rk One]

im not familiar with the probation system and what it entails, but im guessing that i could be banned. so essentially im being banned for criticising religion. this is the 21st century and im being reprimanded for criticising religion. have we not learned from our mistakes? what the enlightenment taught us? thats why im sad

and i dont see how religion is supposed to be respected if it cant be honestly criticised? how is it respect if it is mandatory? in the same way donating to charity is not benevolence if it is mandatory, its tax.

surely if im being honest about religion and regarding it on its own terms and merits, im the one thats respecting it? rather than hiding it away from the outside world like an embarrassing relative?

Duuuude... You're seriously taking this thing... seriously? You're even acknowledging Jedi as a real religion? Really?

I can really see why you'd yell fuck the Pope or stone an imam to death for a change, but, what the hell has master Yoda got to do with freeing the world from religion?

 

[Conor147]

I find it amusing that people view me this way, because I got faith

faith. lol. what is that good for? faith doesnt distinguish between one religion or another. it doesnt do anything to differentiate truth from bullshit. if you genuinely care whether or not your beliefs are true, faith is something to be avoided.

"Faith means not wanting to know what is true."
? Friedrich Nietzsche

"Faith is believing what you know ain't so."
? Mark Twain

"Faith is a cop-out. If the only way you can accept an assertion is by faith, then you are conceding that it can't be taken on its own merits."
?Dan Barker

etc. etc.....

It makes me a better person. Isnt that good?

if you are sure you can live with not caring if your beliefs are true, and are sure it makes you a better person, then by all means continue to believe it. but dont pretend faith is a good reason to believe something or that it makes it true (not that you are, but most religious people do)

but i cannot conceive of how believing in an invisible sky daddy can make someone a better person. atheist are typically better educated, less likely to go to jail, happier, less likely to be divorced etc. just contrast sweden (where almost nobody believes in god) with mexico (where everyone everyone believes in god). theres a direct positive correlation between religiosity and corruption, and with irreligosity and societal success.

personally, the thought of an invisible man watching me poop would get me down after a while and i would probably feel depressed knowing my atheist relatives are going to burn in hell while i frolic on clouds.


EDIT: i just thought about this again. how can believing in something make you a better person when you know the belief is not justified and is in all likelihood, bullshit? isnt that tantamount to admitting that your well-being as a person depends on and thrives on absurdities?

Whats for sure is your lack of faith is disturbing

i.e. you are jelly and mad because you have spent your life collecting retarded superstitions for which there is no evidential justification and you are now butthurt at me because im glad my parents didnt brainwash me into not caring about or undersanding the difference between evidence and non-evidence (faith).

OMG! Youre right!!! What have I done?!

Cmon! Now youre serving me oppurtunities to use these!

i like how youre pretending i didnt understand so you can explain it to me instead of addressing what i said.

In other words... what youre saying is:

Are you doing this on purpose?! This is just too easy!

only if you think the term "red herring" is synonymous with trap.

 

[Geo Da Sponge]

its a shame. i thought this forum was above that kind of censorship.

i wonder why religious beliefs are considered above criticism and beliefs regarding politics etc are fair game.

or maybe its just a butthurt moderator that took what i said personally? wouldnt be surprised.

Actually it's because you've been repeatedly indulging in ad hominem attacks. Anyway, it's not censorship since:

A) None of your comments have been removed entirely.
B) You have not yet been prevented from posting.

Probation merely means they have their eye on you.

actually, if you look both the posts i was reprimand for there were no ad hominems, unless you think blasphemy isnt a victimless crime.

and ive addressed all arguments on their own terms.

maybe you are confusing the logical fallacy with the word.. "insult"?

Actually I was specifically referring to the first time you quoted me, where you constructed the entire post in an insulting manner because you disagreed with me. Or referring to your opponents as "being utterly raped" by you and "pathetic". While these were not the posts you were specifically put on probation for, it seems likely that the moderator involved would've read your entire input in this thread before making a judgement.

And again, a one day probabtion is quite literally the smallest punishment they can give out. Hardly censorship.

 

[Conor147]

im not familiar with the probation system and what it entails, but im guessing that i could be banned. so essentially im being banned for criticising religion. this is the 21st century and im being reprimanded for criticising religion. have we not learned from our mistakes? what the enlightenment taught us? thats why im sad

and i dont see how religion is supposed to be respected if it cant be honestly criticised? how is it respect if it is mandatory? in the same way donating to charity is not benevolence if it is mandatory, its tax.

surely if im being honest about religion and regarding it on its own terms and merits, im the one thats respecting it? rather than hiding it away from the outside world like an embarrassing relative?

Duuuude... You're seriously taking this thing... seriously? You're even acknowledging Jedi as a real religion? Really?

I can really see why you'd yell fuck the Pope or stone an imam to death for a change, but, what the hell has master Yoda got to do with freeing the world from religion?

what made you think im acknowledging jedi as a real religion? i cannot find one single allusion.

maybe you didnt read anything i wrote?

the only thing im taking seriously is that ive been officially rebuked by a moderator for criticising religion/faith and am being threatened with censorship. thats quite serious business.

 

[CrimsonBlack]

its a shame. i thought this forum was above that kind of censorship.

i wonder why religious beliefs are considered above criticism and beliefs regarding politics etc are fair game.

or maybe its just a butthurt moderator that took what i said personally? wouldnt be surprised.

Ah come on mate, lighten up a little.

I agree that religious beliefs should not be above criticism. As H.L. Mencken delightfully said: "We must respect the other fellow's religion, but only in the sense and to the extent that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart".

im not familiar with the probation system and what it entails, but im guessing that i could be banned. so essentially im being banned for criticising religion. this is the 21st century and im being reprimanded for criticising religion. have we not learned from our mistakes? what the enlightenment taught us? thats why im sad

and i dont see how religion is supposed to be respected if it cant be honestly criticised? how is it respect if it is mandatory? in the same way donating to charity is not benevolence if it is mandatory, its tax.

surely if im being honest about religion and regarding it on its own terms and merits, im the one thats respecting it? rather than hiding it away from the outside world like an embarrassing relative?

If I had to guess why you were put on probation was not because you criticised religion, but your spat with Mad1Cow seemed to be getting out of hand on both sides a bit on both sides. I'm sure you got a message in your account inbox saying why you were put on probation. With regards to religion, you should hate the sin but not the sinner, and it just seemed like you were about to hate the sinner more just now.

Personally, I think all religion is utter rubbish, and the combined misery it has caused, and continues to cause in the world FAR outstrips its benevolence.

 

[JasonKaotic]

Why did they feel the need to keep emphasising "the non-religious" and "citizens that don't follow a religion" and "UK atheists"? It's not like a shocking personality trait or anything, nearly everyone here's atheist.

Funnily enough though, according to WOT that website's from America, not the UK... yeahh. I smell IRL trolls.

 

[Conor147]

its a shame. i thought this forum was above that kind of censorship.

i wonder why religious beliefs are considered above criticism and beliefs regarding politics etc are fair game.

or maybe its just a butthurt moderator that took what i said personally? wouldnt be surprised.

Actually it's because you've been repeatedly indulging in ad hominem attacks. Anyway, it's not censorship since:

A) None of your comments have been removed entirely.
B) You have not yet been prevented from posting.

Probation merely means they have their eye on you.

actually, if you look both the posts i was reprimand for there were no ad hominems, unless you think blasphemy isnt a victimless crime.

and ive addressed all arguments on their own terms.

maybe you are confusing the logical fallacy with the word.. "insult"?

Actually I was specifically referring to the first time you quoted me, where you constructed the entire post in an insulting manner because you disagreed with me. Or referring to your opponents as "being utterly raped" by you and "pathetic". While these were not the posts you were specifically put on probation for, it seems likely that the moderator involved would've read your entire input in this thread before making a judgement.

And again, a one day probabtion is quite literally the smallest punishment they can give out. Hardly censorship.

constructing a post in an insulting manner was not my intention, and is not an ad hominem. an ad hominem is "person X has property Y, therefore his argument is invalid". i have not engaged in this at all.

whats wrong with saying "utterly raped"? am i alluding to him literally being a rape victim? am i saying that his argument is invalid because he is easily raped? what? if i replaced "utterly raped" with "owned", would that be okay? why? theyre synonymous on the internet. and whats wrong with saying "pathetic"? what the hell?

suppression of speech is censorship. threatening with censorship is censorship. in nazi germany it was easy to speak out. not so easy to speak out and not have your door bashed down.

 

[Mad1Cow]

im not familiar with the probation system and what it entails, but im guessing that i could be banned. so essentially im being banned for criticising religion. this is the 21st century and im being reprimanded for criticising religion. have we not learned from our mistakes? what the enlightenment taught us? thats why im sad

and i dont see how religion is supposed to be respected if it cant be honestly criticised? how is it respect if it is mandatory? in the same way donating to charity is not benevolence if it is mandatory, its tax.

surely if im being honest about religion and regarding it on its own terms and merits, im the one thats respecting it? rather than hiding it away from the outside world like an embarrassing relative?

Duuuude... You're seriously taking this thing... seriously? You're even acknowledging Jedi as a real religion? Really?

I can really see why you'd yell fuck the Pope or stone an imam to death for a change, but, what the hell has master Yoda got to do with freeing the world from religion?

what made you think im acknowledging jedi as a real religion? i cannot find one single allusion.

maybe you didnt read anything i wrote?

the only thing im taking seriously is that ive been officially rebuked by a moderator for criticising religion/faith and am being threatened with censorship. thats quite serious business.

No it's because you're making it out that everyone is idiotic. Seriously look back at your replies. The thing you've said most is either "I think you're confusing X with Y" or "Did you read anything I wrote?". You're allowed to disagree with people but don't go starting a war with it. We're meant to be grown adults, not "my sandcastle is better then yours because I'm always right so there". See other peoples perspectives and appreciate them and then you'll get less grief.

Also if this is replied to with a ARE YOU CONFUSING PERSPECTIVE WITH BLAH or something, irony win ^_^

 

[Mad1Cow]

I find it amusing that people view me this way, because I got faith

faith. lol. what is that good for? faith doesnt distinguish between one religion or another. it doesnt do anything to differentiate truth from bullshit. if you genuinely care whether or not your beliefs are true, faith is something to be avoided.

"Faith means not wanting to know what is true."
? Friedrich Nietzsche

"Faith is believing what you know ain't so."
? Mark Twain

"Faith is a cop-out. If the only way you can accept an assertion is by faith, then you are conceding that it can't be taken on its own merits."
?Dan Barker

etc. etc.....

It makes me a better person. Isnt that good?

if you are sure you can live with not caring if your beliefs are true, and are sure it makes you a better person, then by all means continue to believe it. but dont pretend faith is a good reason to believe something or that it makes it true (not that you are, but most religious people do)

but i cannot conceive of how believing in an invisible sky daddy can make someone a better person. atheist are typically better educated, less likely to go to jail, happier, less likely to be divorced etc. just contrast sweden (where almost nobody believes in god) with mexico (where everyone everyone believes in god). theres a direct positive correlation between religiosity and corruption, and with irreligosity and societal success.

personally, the thought of an invisible man watching me poop would get me down after a while and i would probably feel depressed knowing my atheist relatives are going to burn in hell while i frolic on clouds.


EDIT: i just thought about this again. how can believing in something make you a better person when you know the belief is not justified and is in all likelihood, bullshit? isnt that tantamount to admitting that your well-being as a person depends on and thrives on absurdities?

Whats for sure is your lack of faith is disturbing

i.e. you are jelly and mad because you have spent your life collecting retarded superstitions for which there is no evidential justification and you are now butthurt at me because im glad my parents didnt brainwash me into not caring about or undersanding the difference between evidence and non-evidence (faith).

OMG! Youre right!!! What have I done?!

Cmon! Now youre serving me oppurtunities to use these!

i like how youre pretending i didnt understand so you can explain it to me instead of addressing what i said.

In other words... what youre saying is:

Are you doing this on purpose?! This is just too easy!

Please do me the honor of marrying me...please...oh come on, we can ride the happy train for eternity with this gold ^_^

 

[icyneesan]

Obviously these Atheists have fallen to the dark side of the force.

 

[Conor147]

im not familiar with the probation system and what it entails, but im guessing that i could be banned. so essentially im being banned for criticising religion. this is the 21st century and im being reprimanded for criticising religion. have we not learned from our mistakes? what the enlightenment taught us? thats why im sad

and i dont see how religion is supposed to be respected if it cant be honestly criticised? how is it respect if it is mandatory? in the same way donating to charity is not benevolence if it is mandatory, its tax.

surely if im being honest about religion and regarding it on its own terms and merits, im the one thats respecting it? rather than hiding it away from the outside world like an embarrassing relative?

Duuuude... You're seriously taking this thing... seriously? You're even acknowledging Jedi as a real religion? Really?

I can really see why you'd yell fuck the Pope or stone an imam to death for a change, but, what the hell has master Yoda got to do with freeing the world from religion?

what made you think im acknowledging jedi as a real religion? i cannot find one single allusion.

maybe you didnt read anything i wrote?

the only thing im taking seriously is that ive been officially rebuked by a moderator for criticising religion/faith and am being threatened with censorship. thats quite serious business.

No it's because you're making it out that everyone is idiotic. Seriously look back at your replies. The thing you've said most is either "I think you're confusing X with Y" or "Did you read anything I wrote?". You're allowed to disagree with people but don't go starting a war with it. We're meant to be grown adults, not "my sandcastle is better then yours because I'm always right so there". See other peoples perspectives and appreciate them and then you'll get less grief.

Also if this is replied to with a ARE YOU CONFUSING PERSPECTIVE WITH BLAH or something, irony win ^_^

when did i say im always right? or are you just inferring that from what has happened?

well if the guy maintains that im wrong, and that he DID in fact read any of my posts, and that i AM in fact alluding to jedi being a real religion, then feel free, anyone reading this, to supply one single quote of mine that backs up such an accusation.

the guy accused me of holding a position that i dont and i objected. what the hell is wrong with that?

 

[Geo Da Sponge]

Constructing a post in an insulting manner was not my intention, and is not an ad hominem. An ad hominem is "person X has property Y, therefore his argument is invalid". I have engaged in this at all.

What's wrong with saying "utterly raped"? Am I alluding to him literally being a rape victim? Am I saying that his argument is invalid because he is easily raped? What? If I replaced "utterly raped" with "owned", would that be okay? Why? Theyr'e synonymous on the internet. And what's wrong with saying "pathetic"? What the hell?

Suppression of speech is censorship. Threatening with censorship is censorship. In nazi germany it was easy to speak out. Not so easy to speak out and not have your door bashed down.

We have now achieved Gowin's Rule everyone. This forum is now like Nazi Germany.

The way you structured your post was ad hominem whether you meant it or not. You insulted me in that post, and by doing that you implied that anyone who agreed me was lacking in intellignece. You were therefore attempting to undermine my argument through insults.

And as it turns out, you have no 'rights' on this website. You have whatever freedoms the Escapist kindly extends to you, since this is technically a private forum. The minimum requirements to enter may be very low, but the Escapist owners reserve the right to remove you or whatever privileges you have. In this case they are apparently worried about having someone here who will insult people they disagree with.