P.S. Where is your front page LOL?

“Your” means “belongs to you.”

“You’re” is a contraction of the two words “you are.”

Yes, language is fluid and has a life of its own, but Americans are generally losing English proficiency, not because of immigrants who speak other tongues, but because of a tragic lack of emphasis on genuine literacy and correct English in our public, charter, and private school systems. Tweets and texting are more or less ruining spelling, grammar, even meaning; we don’t know yet how micro-messaging is going to affect the way we talk and write in the future, but I worry that in 50 years nobody will know how to write. Just beware. You’re wrong if you think your security doesn’t depend upon good communication skills.

I’m taking a class on short stories next month, the professor is usually open to suggestions so maybe she’d agree to give us one by Asimov – I’ll ask her if we can read Reason, it sounds fascinating

And regarding fear and rage, you make it really easy. I can actually imagine you trembling when you wrote “Here to think so many lives dedicated – er, wasted – on nothing more than a simple little false premise!”

Yeah, that’s faith. This insulting treacherous unreliable thing you hate so much is faith

Anyway, just for your information: You are whining like a four-year-old who has just been told that Santa Claus is not scientifically proven. I mean WTF, I didn’t even say “does not exist”, and yet you are freaking out! Grow up, for God’s sake. If you need a motivation, imagine her sending annoying crying girlies right down to Hell

I never said that it were false or childish or a waste of time to worship the Invisible Pink Unicorn. It is rather you who is denying the one true God And worse, you even condemn faith as “insulting” because it bears the risk of “wasting your life” to a fantasy. And to top it all, you are freaking out because I deny to call unfaithful people true believers? You are either one very confused person or a pretty persistent regular troll.

As to the miracle argument – I don’t find any merit in it either. Miracles have to be independently verifiable and in this day and age, sovereign (not performed through a “worker.”) They are by definition extraordinarily rare events that confound the natural laws of science and physics. Not much of that going around, is there? And there won’t be, until the Antichrist rises.

In the German Wikipedia, there is quite a nice segment dealing with the many other flaws of the wager. Just think about it: Did you ever ask yourself why the *real* Goddess should refrain from punishing all the Christians with eternal torture? Are you really willing to take the risk of *not* rejecting Christianity?

2.) As Asimov’s story shows, logic is totally worthless in regard of truths when it’s applied to false premises. Any intelligent paranoid guy with a clear perception shows that very clearly – the flaw in his worldview isn’t a lack of attention or a lack of logic, but a false premise.

3.) You are believing in something that is on the same level as any child’s fantasy. If you can’t deal with that, if you desperately want others to think that your belief is far more than just some invented imaginary friend among billions of imaginary friends, then prove it. Until you have succeeded to do so, I will graciously forgive you worshipping a false god and denying her Holy Unicornness

So whenever a spectacular miracle occurs, it is just the tip of the iceberg. To view it in the proper context, one has to see the many non-spectacular miracles and especially the countless non-spectacular non-miracles. Also, one has to differ between pure chance and covariating elements. If I think of a person in the exact moment where she rings me, it may be an incredible coincidence. But it may also be that we both heard a song in the radio we connected with the other person without conciously noticing it, which would make it much less of a miracle.

Regarding healing, I side with a recent comic on the atheistcartoons-website:
“I asked God to cure my cancer and he did!”
“Miracle!”
“I asked God to grow me a new hand, but he didn’t…”
“Well, duh.”

Now, if the belief helps to activate the self-healing abilities, then it’s fine. The success of the placebo-effect is absolutely real. Also, the social contact in many esoterical treatments has an effect itself, independent from the therapy. So there is a pragmatic legitimation for it, even when it isn’t rooted in some supernatural power.

On the other hand, I have leveled only the accusation of hubris, and that was an observation and fact, not an insult or bashing. Let that be the end of our conversation on this subject for the moment, will you?

As I explained, it was in fact logic that led me to my beliefs (and I know that is not usually the case; it just happens to be in my case, and the case of certain people like McDowell and Dr. Henry Morris) but it still took faith to step into them. They are simply not incompatible.

So far all you’ve brought is assertions and Asimov, not cold logic or any set of facts to back yourself up. So if you want me to bow to your logic and facts you’re going to have to actually use some.

Yes, in the scheme of things it makes no difference; I’ve read the end of the book too. It doesn’t threaten my belief, shake it, or affect it. The arrogance and nastiness of expressing it in this fashion, however, pisses me off, and I’m bad for expressing that? Well I am not living by a double standard; I’m going to express things that annoy me just as others are free to express what annoys them.

If you were willing and able to do that, you’d have done so. Instead, you acted just like I expected…