[FoRK] More faith-driven insanity: kill the teacher!

[Jeff Bone]

On Nov 30, 2007, at 1:36 PM, Sat N wrote:

>> Religion doesn't cause all violence, that's certain;  but religion
>> *inherently causes* even more (a) non-rational thought, (b)
>> intolerance and cultural exclusion, (c) hatred, and (d) xenophobia
>> (and hence xenophobic violence) than would otherwise exist.  Further
>> it "immunizes" those infected against the very kinds of rational
>> discourse and persuasion that could counter those tendencies.  And it
>> is, indeed, infectious.
>
> Prove it. Use your scientific principles to prove it - anecdotes are
> not sufficient for a proof.

BTW:

If you really want rational, rigorous, comprehensive arguments to the  
effect that religion is in no way innocuous, I don't need to provide  
that for you;  of late a number of folks from Dawkins to Hitchens to  
Harris and so on have been doing a fine job of making and supporting  
that point.  The rhetorical burden, at this point, is on those who  
would reconcile rationalism and religion to respond.

Cf.

   The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins

   God Is Not Great:  How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher  
Hitchens

   The End of Faith by Sam Harris

   God:  The Failed Hypothesis by Victor Stenger

...and so on.




$0.02,

jb