Category: Monotheism

Atheist Preachers

In my list of favorite Christian preachers who turned atheist is Seth Andrews. Preachers have to have the gift of the gab since that’s the tool of their trade; Seth has that in spades. He is a delight to listen to — like listening to a virtuoso violinist. Years of preaching the Good Book does make one into a maestro in that business. A sample video coming up.

Another favorite is Dan Barker. He preached for 19 years. He was no ordinary preacher; he was the kind of preacher that you’d not want to sit next to on a bus (Richard Dawkins’ description of Dan in the preface to Dan’s book Godless.) He has even appeared on Oprah, talking about his de-conversion. A sample video of him in an Oxford Union debate will be up next. One of the people on the opposing side was Peter Hitchens, a devote Christian. That’s ironic considering that his brother, the late great Christopher Hitchens, was the world’s most celebrated atheist. Continue reading “Atheist Preachers”

Hitchens

The internet reveals to me more than anything else how little I know about the world compared to how much others know. And how intelligent, wise, wealthy, famous, accomplished, and spectacularly talented some others are. In short, granted that I learn a lot through the internet, the unfortunate side-effect is that it gives me an inferiority complex.

Perhaps it’s not a complex; the blunt fact is that I am objectively inferior to those superstars on the internet. But if I set aside my ego, I am genuinely grateful that I live in a world with the world wide web.

I think YouTube is one of the best parts of the web. Over the years I have subscribed to dozens of channels. I spend lots of delightful hours on them. I have many favorite personalities. Such as? Stephen Fry, Christopher Hitchens, to name just two. Continue reading “Hitchens”

Hayek on Monotheism

I have the most profound respect for F. A. Hayek (1899 – 1992). He was one of the greatest economists of the 20th century CE. I am supremely grateful that I have access to his ideas, thanks to my formal training in economics. All the effort of studying economics is worth the reward of being able to read Hayek.

I was delighted to learn what Hayek thought of monotheism, one of the two ideologies — the other being socialism/communism — that I thoroughly detest. Here it is: Continue reading “Hayek on Monotheism”

Steven Weinberg on the Monotheist God

Axis of EvilIt’s been a while since I have expressed my disgust of monotheism. So here’s Nobel laureate physicist Steven Weinberg on the god of the monotheists. He says he dislikes that god — and clarifies that his dislike of a non-existent being is akin to the dislike he has for other villains of literature. Watch the brief ~3 min. video. Continue reading “Steven Weinberg on the Monotheist God”

On Technology, Prosperity and Dysfunctional Ideologies

We take it as a given, almost a fact of nature like the seasons or the geography of continents, that different parts of the world enjoy different levels of prosperity. But there’s nothing “natural” about this since this is almost entirely within human control. The differences are stark, and at one end of the scale, heartbreaking. Consider the extremely rich first. Luxembourg has an annual per capita income of over $110,000, Norway over $100,000, Switzerland around $85,000. Those are small countries and outliers with perhaps little to tell us. But the US is large and has an annual per capita income of $53,000. Why is it so rich?

At the other end of the scale are Burundi and Malawi with only $200 or so annual per capita incomes. Why are they so poor? The richest countries are around 500 times richer in per capita terms than the poorest. What accounts for this inequality in incomes of countries? That question has engaged the attention of people for hundreds of years — starting with of course the great Scottish economist Adam Smith who inquired about “The Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations” in his famous 1776 book.
Continue reading “On Technology, Prosperity and Dysfunctional Ideologies”

Richard Dawkins on the Monotheistic God

The god of the Old Testament is the same god that Christians adopted in their New Testament. Following the Jews and the Christians, Islam proclaimed the same monotheistic god. Who is this god? Richard Dawkins, a non-believer, characterized that god in his book The God Delusion thusly:

“The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”

Every word in that description is justified — within the so-called “holy” books. Chapter and verse can be quoted to show why that god is “the most unpleasant character in all fiction.”

On Ideas & Ideologies

I mainly criticize ideas and ideologies because ideas fundamentally affect human welfare. Most of the time my focus is on ideologies and not people. That distinction is worth keeping in mind. If ever someone misconstrues my criticism of an ideology with animosity against a group or a person, it reveals at best a reading comprehension problem and at worst guilt associated with a hidden prejudice of the reader against the group I am accused of opposing.
Continue reading “On Ideas & Ideologies”

Jesus Saves and his Followers are Wonderful People

Not only does Jesus save, his followers save as well. Here’s a comment that one of Jesus’s own (whose handle is “Jesus Loves You”) wrote:
Continue reading “Jesus Saves and his Followers are Wonderful People”

Dawkins says, “Ratzinger is the Perfect Pope”

I am doing my bit to show how terrible the monotheistic organized cults religions are. Richard Dawkins answers the question “Should the pope resign?” with a definite “No.” He writes in yesterday’s Washington Post: Continue reading “Dawkins says, “Ratzinger is the Perfect Pope””

Christianity Makes Perfect Sense

It is based on perfectly logical and reasonable premises. What’s there not to like about Christianity? Continue reading “Christianity Makes Perfect Sense”