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‘the single worst idea in history’
"The idea of one true god. The idea that our life and ethical conduct on Earth determines how we will go into the next world."

I have to say I agree with him.

"Okay,’ wrote Engel, ‘let’s imagine that; let’s imagine six billion people who believe that flesh and blood is all there is; that once you shuffle off this mortal coil, poof, you’re history; that Hitler and Mother Teresa, for example, both met the same ultimate fate. Common sense suggests that such a world would produce a lot more Hitlers and a lot fewer Teresas, for the same reason that you get a lot more speeders/murderers/rapists/ embezzlers when you eliminate laws, police and punishment. Sceptics and atheists can say what they like about religion, but it’s hard to deny that the fear of an afterlife where one will be judged has likely kept hundreds of millions from committing acts of aggression, if not outright horror. Nothing clears the conscience quite like a belief in eternal nothingness.’ "

Wrong. I think he is confusing fear of what will happen with simple compassion for fellow man. I have no fear of what might or might not happen after I am gone, but that does not influence how I act why I am here. General compassion for my fellow man makes you live after death in the legacy you leave behind.

Wrong. I think he is confusing fear of what will happen with simple compassion for fellow man. I have no fear of what might or might not happen after I am gone, but that does not influence how I act why I am here. General compassion for my fellow man makes you live after death in the legacy you leave behind.

Few people are motivated out of compassion alone. The belief that our actions are observed and judged by a higher power is a binding force for advanced cultures. That higher power can be the Almighty, or it can be the State, but the vast majority of people instinctively require that their lives be set in context by a higher authority than themselves.

Certainly, some individuals don't require that. You may be one of them. But what works for you will not work for any society if tried on a large scale. Altruistic athiesm is an individual choice, but one that thrives only under the shadow of a moral culture, and in good times.

Fairweather philosophies don't stand the test of time. Say what you will about monotheism, but it creates societies that last. Athiest peoples without an iron fisted state do not remain unassimilated for long.

Wrong. I think he is confusing fear of what will happen with simple compassion for fellow man. I have no fear of what might or might not happen after I am gone, but that does not influence how I act why I am here. General compassion for my fellow man makes you live after death in the legacy you leave behind. SD

Wrong. I think he is confusing fear of what will happen with simple compassion for fellow man. I have no fear of what might or might not happen after I am gone, but that does not influence how I act why I am here. General compassion for my fellow man makes you live after death in the legacy you leave behind.

Good for you, but that doesn't make Steyn wrong.

SD

General compassion for my fellow man makes you live after death in the legacy you leave behind.

So that's your choice. But if you are an atheist, there are no grounding principles that require you to live that way. You could decide that societal laws are not for such a one as you and scoff at them as you please. Or that rape is ok if you don't get caught, or robbery or murder for that matter.

Atheists have "no controlling legal authority".

General compassion for my fellow man makes you live after death in the legacy you leave behind.

If there is no God, this is wholly irrational.

So why be compassionate? Why is that any better than being a self centered SOB. There is no rational way to choose between the two, except that the SOB usually lives more comfortably.

Why care about a legacy, if all you are is mobile worm food on its way to their feast. Why not just grab as much as you can get away with, and damn the consequences?