From: J. R. Molloy (jr@shasta.com)
Date: Tue Sep 18 2001 - 10:53:31 MDT
From: <extropy@theogeny.com>
> By mentioning only Islam in your statements, you suggest that the
> endorsement of violence, the requirement of discrimination, and the
> inequality of women are features unique to Islam. But they aren't;
> the sacred books of Christianity and Judaism are equally susceptible
> to quote-mining, and equally full of clear and unambiguous statements
> that no rational person of good intent could endorse. (On the other
> hand, it's entirely possible to find statements in all three sets
> of holy books denouncing violence and calling for brotherhood and
> virtue and forgiveness.)
Yes, that's right. It's religiosity itself, rather than any specific religion,
that is the cause of this problem. As Richard Dawkins has pointed out, "
...faith is one of the world's great evils, comparable to the smallpox
virus but harder to eradicate. Faith, being belief that isn't based on
evidence, is the principal vice of
any religion."
--- --- --- --- ---
Useless hypotheses, etc.:
consciousness, phlogiston, philosophy, vitalism, mind, free will, qualia,
analog computing, cultural relativism, GAC, Cyc, Eliza, cryonics, individual
uniqueness, ego, human values, scientific relinquishment
We won't move into a better future until we debunk religiosity, the most
regressive force now operating in society.
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