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Zuckerberg: Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah Commenter: Aren't you an atheist? What a non-sequitur. I tell someone "have a good trip" even though I'm not g

Zuckerberg: Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah Commenter: Aren't you an atheist? What a non-sequitur. I tell someone "have a good trip" even though I'm not going on the trip. I tell someone "Good luck with that promotion" even though it isn't my paycheck. Why would it be surprising that an atheist wished someone Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukkah?

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PaulRobinson 10y ago
Because a large number of atheists believe that even acknowledging a religion is a slippery slope into accepting its ideas as having validity. Even describing oneself as agnostic is enough to drag people over from /r/atheism on Reddit into insisting that such a thing is impossible and you must either be religious or atheist and if somebody should insist that no, they're quite open-minded but see no hard evidence for either World view, they will be shouted down and called a liar. Some parts of modern atheism is so toxic, it hardly a surprise that so many people wish to reject it. This is a perfect example of the kind of interaction that makes some people think atheists are just inconsiderate dickheads lacking basic manners or empathy.
- zaccus 10y ago
  Oh please. Either you're exaggerating, or you've been going to /r/atheism looking to start fights. In regards to 'agnostic', what the word literally means is that you aren't certain. There are agnostic theists and agnostic atheists. If someone asks if you believe in God and you say you're agnostic, you're not answering the question completely. That's all people are saying, don't let it get to you.
  - PaulRobinson 10y ago
    There you go. You're doing it. Stop it. I used to hang around in /r/agnostic and left because of the constant trolling from people insisting this argument you're making is valid. It isn't. It is perfectly possible to say "I have no evidence to support either world view, but plenty of others do, and I would like to see more of that before coming to a decision on my own". Do I believe in the flying spaghetti monster? No. Why? Because I know exactly how it was conceived and why. Do I believe in the miracles the Catholic church claim for their saints and figureheads such as Jesus? Literally no fucking clue because I don't have primary source evidence. Could be true, could be bullshit. I'm not going to come down one way or the other without more evidence. Your argument that I _must_ feel one way or the other, and I'm lying if I don't, is not just lacking empathy, patronising and rude, it's philosophical nonsense.

deleted 10y ago

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PaulRobinson 10y ago

Because a large number of atheists believe that even acknowledging a religion is a slippery slope into accepting its ideas as having validity. Even describing oneself as agnostic is enough to drag people over from /r/atheism on Reddit into insisting that such a thing is impossible and you must either be religious or atheist and if somebody should insist that no, they're quite open-minded but see no hard evidence for either World view, they will be shouted down and called a liar. Some parts of modern atheism is so toxic, it hardly a surprise that so many people wish to reject it. This is a perfect example of the kind of interaction that makes some people think atheists are just inconsiderate dickheads lacking basic manners or empathy.

zaccus 10y ago
Oh please. Either you're exaggerating, or you've been going to /r/atheism looking to start fights. In regards to 'agnostic', what the word literally means is that you aren't certain. There are agnostic theists and agnostic atheists. If someone asks if you believe in God and you say you're agnostic, you're not answering the question completely. That's all people are saying, don't let it get to you.
- PaulRobinson 10y ago
  There you go. You're doing it. Stop it. I used to hang around in /r/agnostic and left because of the constant trolling from people insisting this argument you're making is valid. It isn't. It is perfectly possible to say "I have no evidence to support either world view, but plenty of others do, and I would like to see more of that before coming to a decision on my own". Do I believe in the flying spaghetti monster? No. Why? Because I know exactly how it was conceived and why. Do I believe in the miracles the Catholic church claim for their saints and figureheads such as Jesus? Literally no fucking clue because I don't have primary source evidence. Could be true, could be bullshit. I'm not going to come down one way or the other without more evidence. Your argument that I _must_ feel one way or the other, and I'm lying if I don't, is not just lacking empathy, patronising and rude, it's philosophical nonsense.