[Vision2020] About Evidence

[Joe Campbell]

Atheism is not the view that "nothing is wrong." Even Art believes
that some things are wrong.

How exactly does God help? I love God as much as the next guy, but
frankly I don't see how he makes this issue easier to understand. Are
you saying that if God wanted to make it so that, say, poverty was a
good thing, that would make it the case that poverty was a good thing?
How does God's laying down the moral law make the moral law something
worth following? Poverty is bad, rape is wrong, slavery is wrong. God
believes these claims too because they are all true. I don't see how
it makes sense to say that they true BECAUSE God believes they are
true, or says they are true, or makes them true, or whatever. Bringing
God into the picture doesn't help.

Maybe I'm mistaken here. But then you should be able to help me out.
How exactly does God or religion help to solve the truthmaker problem
about values? How does an appeal to God help to explain why what is
right is right, why what is wrong is wrong, why what is good is good,
or why what is bad is bad? You are not going to provide an answer that
is going to convince anyone other than the very people who already
believe the story you are telling. That is the case with all
philosophical problems, I think. At most, you can shout an answer and
get your many friends to say it's so -- by pointing me out as an
atheist (which I am not) or something like that. But that doesn't make
it so either.

Again, this is a complex issue. We do no good pretending the answers
that we believe are obvious and have no problems of their own.

Joe

On Tue, Jul 17, 2012 at 9:51 PM, Donovan Arnold
<donovanjarnold2005 at yahoo.com> wrote:
> "Some beliefs provide motivation to fly jets into tall buildings, and some
> convince parents to withhold medication to sick children. Some beliefs
> promote misogyny, racism, and homophobia."
>
> And atheism teaches us none of it is wrong, as there is no God, just
> science.
>
> "Science without religion is lame"--Albert Einstein.
>
> Donovan J. Arnold
>
> From: Chasuk <chasuk at gmail.com>
> To: lfalen <lfalen at turbonet.com>
> Cc: viz <vision2020 at moscow.com>
> Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2012 10:28 PM
>
> Subject: Re: [Vision2020] About Evidence
>
> There are not 7 billion different belief systems, or anywhere near
> that number. At best, there are a half dozen, regurgitated and
> recapitulated into a fistful of semi-unique varieties. And some
> beliefs are harmful. Some beliefs provide motivation to fly jets into
> tall buildings, and some convince parents to withhold medication to
> sick children. Some beliefs promote misogyny, racism, and homophobia.
> Not all beliefs are equal.
>
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