Looney Cartooney Apologetics With JP Holding

A video revealing JP Holding's vivid imagination:

Atheism is the End of Skepticism

After I posted the blog entry, Atheism is the Beginning of Skepticism, I wanted to write more. I felt more needed to be said. I just wasn't sure at the time how to write it. But here's what I love about the blogosphere: sometimes, one of my readers, or another blogger who visits here, has finished a train of thought I began, or posted a response that completed what I started, or wrote comments that were just flat out better than anything I had to say. Such moments make me smile.

The Fine-Tuning Argument Debunked

Here is a fantastic video The A-Unicornist found which provides a solid refutation of the Fine-Tuning Argument:

Vote for Dead-Logic!

Okay, so I'm just copying Tristan by letting you know that Dead-Logic is now listed at AtheistSites.com, so go there and vote! Click the "like" thumbs up for Dead-Logic!

And for the record, I voted for Tristan's blog, Advocatus Atheist, because he deserves it. Go vote for him too at AtheistSites.com. Thanks for your support!

Dead-Logic.com

The Golden Egg

This is my box:

Atheism is the Beginning of Skepticism

It wasn't that long ago that we experienced the fallout of PZ Myers' utter failure to communicate, which turned into a battle of semantics between people who most likely agree with each other more than they realize (which is why Rule #9 on Dead-Logic's Rules of Engagement is: "Find common ground"). Now John Loftus appears to be throwing a little more mud in the water by claiming that atheism is skepticism - although John has since changed the phrase to "atheism is full-blown skepticism." John explains in the comments section:

Matt Dillahunty Talks About Skeptical Thinking

[via The Atheist Experience]
Dead-Logic.com

Positive Ideologies

Skepticism. Now that's something I can get behind. Secularism. Yes. Bring it. These are positive ideologies that non-believers can get behind, because it makes sense: atheism is not an ideology, but an outcome of skeptical, logical inquiry which rejects poorly supported metaphysical claims; secularism promotes the separation of church and state to preserve religious freedom for all, as well as the development of science-based knowledge.

- The A-Unicornist, I don't get atheist organizations

The Irresponsibility of Faith

via The Walking Dead

Picking up where I left off in my previous post (and continuing with the zombie theme) concerning religious faith, I mentioned briefly that one might recognize a few parallels between the undead (zombies) and the reborn (Christians). Before I go any further, I want to clarify that I mean no disrespect to Christians or any other faith group. What I oppose is fundamentalism along with any worldview which extols absolute faith as a virtue and condemns doubt as a sin and a vice. I speak out against the actions and attitudes of those religionists who exhibit zombie-like behavior, which includes a lack of autonomous thought and independent judgment, mindlessness, and a disposition towards attacking anything that's different from you.

Zombies

The zombie apocalypse is upon us!

a Christian (uri)nation

I saw this "patriotic" declaration stuck on the wall in a gas station restroom, right above the toilet. I took this picture of it with my phone. You don't have to be a Wheel of Fortune master to fill in the blanks that have been peeled away:

Kirk Cameron Likes It, AND It Has Pictures!

This will show all of you who think evolution is scientific.

"Four Columns" on ExChristian.net

I took the suggestion given to me by exrelayman and submitted my Four Columns article to ExChristian.net. I'm excited to say that my article currently appears on the site's front page.

You can find the article here: Four Columns (or, "The Sermon That Made Me An Agnostic").

Check out the rest of the site's excellent content: ExChristian.net, which I have added to Dead-Logic's Links Page.

Happy Valentine's Day!

The Best Valentine's Day Message Ever

So romantic...

Four Columns

or,

The Sermon That Made Me An Agnostic

I Still Don't Like This Guy

The last time I watched a video by this guy, I called him an idiot. This video, however, is actually pretty good:

Celebrate Darwin and Evolution!

Check out this awesome (and informative) video by ReligiousFiction:

Why Say Atheism is a "Lack of Belief in God"?

This post is not about recent comments made by PZ Myers concerning "dictionary atheists." There's enough mud in that water as it is. I do, however, want to discuss the reasons why we (or at least I) go to pains to describe atheism as a "lack of belief in gods":

Creationists Fail Again

Here's another fantastic video by DarkMatter2525:

The Worthier Part

My birthday was this past Thursday, February 3. Turning 36 means I crossed the threshold that puts me closer to 40 than to 30. I'm okay with that. The older I get, the deeper my reservoir of knowledge and experiences gets. This gives me a perspective on life that I simply couldn't have had in my 20s. Part of that is due to the years, but most of it is due to the mileage. The School of Hard Knocks is my alma mater; experience my wisest and most demanding tutor. I'm not saying I'm wise; I'm just saying that I'm getting less dumb as time goes on.

Picking a Fight with PZ Myers

PZ Myers has pissed off a lot of atheists lately with his post, Why are you an atheist? While it wasn't my favorite post of PZ's, I didn't get pissed off until he posted this entry today: You don't really want to be like Ray Comfort, do you? The following is a comment I wrote on PZ's blog in response to his "Ray Comfort" post:

Beware the Dark Side

Benny Hinn - Dark Lord of the Sith

Prayer and an Omniscient God

This is part two of the Q&A series based on my interview with Thomas Prosser. Read part one here: Fear of Hell.

Why Study Philosophy?

For some of us, the choice of majoring in philosophy is not really much of a choice; it's an inescapable fact of reality because we are compelled by the power of its questions; we are enthralled by the conceptual mysteries it presents; we're mesmerized by paradoxical positions that we want to simultaneously affirm and to deny; we are never satisfied with superficial answers... or even with sophisticated ones; we want to understand what's beyond the horizon, even when we're not sure what's on this side of it; and while we seek to understand and comprehend, we're in love with the process of investigation itself...

- Roberto Ruiz
Why Major in Philosophy (Berto: Philosophy Monkey)

Replace the phrase "majoring in" with "studying" if you're not actually planning on getting a degree in philosophy. Either way, this is an excellent description of the "love of wisdom." Replace the word "philosophy" with "science" and you might end up with a better understanding of what science is all about.

Dead-Logic.com

Fear of Hell

A few Saturdays ago I had the privilege of spending over an hour talking on the phone with Thomas Prosser, economic sociologist at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. Thomas contacted me a while back asking whether he could use material from my blog for a project he's working on. Then he asked to interview me for additional help with his project. With Thomas' permission, the next few entries feature questions Thomas asked me during the phone interview, along with my answers, derived from excerpts of the transcript of our interview, which I have adapted, modified, and in places expounded upon for the purposes of this blog.

"Juggalo Apologetics" Starring Bill O'Reilly

I just watched this video at the A-Unicornist, and thought I'd offer my two cents worth...

This is Why I Write

If upholding the virtue of honesty comes with the price of enduring judgments
and condemnations, even from those closest to you,

If you cannot lie to yourself and those around you any more,

If you are compelled by the desire for humility,
the need for truth, and compassion for humanity,

If you are filled with awe and wonder when you consider the universe
in which we exist and are a part,

If you believe fighting to eliminate hatred, prejudice, and atrocities caused by
dogma, faith-based reasoning, and the neglect to think critically is a noble cause,

If promoting the benefits of the scientific method, freethought and skepticism
is a virtue you value highly,

If you see everything that's wrong with the world and feel a burning desire
to do your part to make our world better, even if it's just a small contribution,

Then you understand why I write.

Dead-Logic.com

Darwin Day

Darwin Day is a global celebration of science and reason held on or around February 12, the birthday anniversary of evolutionary biologist Charles Darwin. Check out the website for details: www.darwinday.org.

The Gnostic Gospel

Last week I wrote an article in which I critiqued a blog entry by Christian Cadre member BK. My post, titled, Who's Being Silly, Exactly? is a direct response to BK's entry, titled, "New Atheists Say the Silliest Things." BK has since responded to me, albeit briefly. Here's what he had to say in his defense: