Rate how religious you are.

Agnostics are just atheist without balls.

also flagging polls would be GREAT

@Shimakaze said:

@diz: I've attempted several times to put this discussion to an amicable end but at every point you spout nothing but inflammatory comments about my views and ability to debate. You've degraded into a simple troll. It's time to lock this thread.

The discussion is not about being amicable, but justifying views through reason. I see you use an offended tone now, despite being the one who made (and still makes) directly insulting comments to me.

I could understand if your emotional response to the challenges I put to you has clouded your objective judgement. But you have not really addressed anything I've said at all.

@diz: This is about the common usage of the word which is why people choose to call themselves agnostic rather then atheist and vice verse. Everything else you're saying is not relevant to this discussion. I'm done talking about this.

Don't you think the basis of faith is also the absence of proof? wouldn't that make many faithful people agnostics too, by your own definition?

1. 
 
Atheist to the core in pretty much every aspect.  Was pretty early on that I decided the Christian influences I was getting didn't appeal to me and make much sense to me. 

@Dany said:

Agnostics are just atheist without balls.

also flagging polls would be GREAT

You sir are a fucking dick.

@Meowshi said:

@Shimakaze said:

@diz: This is about the common usage of the word which is why people choose to call themselves agnostic rather then atheist and vice verse. Everything else you're saying is not relevant to this discussion. I'm done talking about this.

This seems a lot like an argument I was having with this guy on the Escapist forums. He was a charming fellow who said that he wouldn't play a game with a gay character, because he found them disgusting and hated them. It's an awful forum. Anyway, when people started calling him homophobic (personal attacks are the pinnacle of debating!) he responded with this gem of wisdom:

"Man, I ain't scared of no damn gay!"

So of course, people began to point out the actual definition of the word, but he refused to listen because he was so tied up into the argument that facts stopped being important.

That doesn't even make any sense, What does any of this have to do with prejudice? That's like when people try to compare Obama to Hitler in order to antagonize him. If you don't agree with someone, that's fine. But comparing them to those kinds of people with no basis just makes you sound like Fox News.

The truth is, you're right. The common usage of the word "agnostic" by a lot of people is simply "someone who isn't quite sure either way about the existence of god". That doesn't stop it from being wrong, though. People use words incorrectly all the time. It doesn't mean we should throw the dictionary out the window, and we certainly shouldn't start insulting each other like a bunch of baboons from the Escapist forums! We're better than that!

There is no wrong when it comes to language. Just interpretations and misunderstandings. That's why people stick to the common usage (because that's what people use). Like I said before, language is always evolving, and words take on new meanings. Like Fags referring to loud guys on motorcycles. My whole argument in this thread has been that agnosticism in the sense of simply being aware that there's no way to prove or disprove God is common enough that it's not necessary to specify and people who think of themselves as "just" religious or atheist are usually still aware of that fact. That's why in a thread like this it's irrelevant compared to the common meaning which actually describes a level of belief, which is exactly what the poll is about.

I'm not really sure which of you is right or wrong, but it doesn't really matter. Kiss and make up.

Thank you!! I've been trying to do that for ages.

I tend to find that a smarter a person is, the less religious he is. An interesting correlation...

I tend to find that a smarter a person is, the less religious he is. An interesting correlation...

@d_breeze said:

@Enigma777 said:

I tend to find that a smarter a person is, the less religious he is. An interesting correlation...

I can't tell if this is actually serious...

100% cereal

I tend to find that the smarter a person is, the less predisposed they are toward sweeping generalizations and poorly thought-out, nazi-themed avatars.
 
Also shitty South Park references.  

@Meowshi said:

@Shimakaze said:

@diz: This is about the common usage of the word which is why people choose to call themselves agnostic rather then atheist and vice verse. Everything else you're saying is not relevant to this discussion. I'm done talking about this.

This seems a lot like an argument I was having with this guy on the Escapist forums. He was a charming fellow who said that he wouldn't play a game with a gay character, because he found them disgusting and hated them. It's an awful forum. Anyway, when people started calling him homophobic (personal attacks are the pinnacle of debating!) he responded with this gem of wisdom:

"Man, I ain't scared of no damn gay!"

So of course, people began to point out the actual definition of the word, but he refused to listen because he was so tied up into the argument that facts stopped being important.

That doesn't even make any sense, What does any of this have to do with prejudice? That's like when people try to compare Obama to Hitler in order to antagonize him. If you don't agree with someone, that's fine. But comparing them to those kinds of people with no basis just makes you sound like Fox News.

The truth is, you're right. The common usage of the word "agnostic" by a lot of people is simply "someone who isn't quite sure either way about the existence of god". That doesn't stop it from being wrong, though. People use words incorrectly all the time. It doesn't mean we should throw the dictionary out the window, and we certainly shouldn't start insulting each other like a bunch of baboons from the Escapist forums! We're better than that!

There is no wrong when it comes to language. Just interpretations and misunderstandings. That's why people stick to the common usage (because that's what people use). Like I said before, language is always evolving, and words take on new meanings. Like Fags referring to loud guys on motorcycles. My whole argument in this thread has been that agnosticism in the sense of simply being aware that there's no way to prove or disprove God is common enough that it's not necessary to specify and people who think of themselves as "just" religious or atheist are usually still aware of that fact. That's why in a thread like this it's irrelevant compared to the common meaning which actually describes a level of belief, which is exactly what the poll is about.

I'm not really sure which of you is right or wrong, but it doesn't really matter. Kiss and make up.

Thank you!! I've been trying to do that for ages.

I believe in the possibilty of a higher being or some form of consciousness. But I do not believe in a "god". Wherever that places me.

@Shimakaze said:

There is no wrong when it comes to language. Just interpretations and misunderstandings. That's why people stick to the common usage (because that's what people use). Like I said before, language is always evolving, and words take on new meanings. Like Fags referring to loud guys on motorcycles. My whole argument in this thread has been that agnosticism in the sense of simply being aware that there's no way to prove or disprove God is common enough that it's not necessary to specify and people who think of themselves as "just" religious or atheist are usually still aware of that fact. That's why in a thread like this it's irrelevant compared to the common meaning which actually describes a level of belief, which is exactly what the poll is about.

I'm not really sure which of you is right or wrong, but it doesn't really matter. Kiss and make up.

Thank you!! I've been trying to do that for ages.

If there is no wrong, why insist on using your supposed "common" usage of the meaning of agnosticism and reject mine? In my sphere, common usage of the meaning does not relate to theistic religion at all (which has it's own "ism"), but to knowledge. That's because I'm in the BHA (British Humanist Association), who used this definition of agnosticism and atheism in their public declaration of belief in the 1980's.

Your initial Wikipedia definition bears this view of agnostism out, but gets immediately contradicted by the other definitions you provided. Agnosticism is not really about proof or disproof of God. How could you call agnosticism a logical fallacy yourself? Wouldn't that indicate your view of agnosticism is distorted and needs some further investigation?

I don't understand why you think anything else but the alleged "common" and inaccurate meaning of the word is irrelevant, unless you insist on being correct without the benefit of supporting justification. Your opinions about what is relevant to this thread might not be relevant in themselves.

I thought the "common" meaning of agnosticism was doubt over faith, rather than an inability to prove or disprove a particular religion, anyway....

The results of this poll make me real, real happy to be a member of this community :]

I'm as far atheist as you can get and I don't support freedom of religion. I think we'd be better off severely restricting the political, economic and social rights of theists as they are actively hampering social progress all over the world.

Atheist. I'm surprised God was not given a name, like Bill or something. Vishnu, Buddha, and then God. Pompous religious asses think their invisible man in the sky is more important than a name!

Monotheistic religions tend to combine the name, role and nature of their gods into one term. It's really only in polytheistic or pseudo-polytheistic (one god in many forms) religions where deities get named.

I'm super religious for delicious lasangna

@Natesaint said:

Atheist. I'm surprised God was not given a name, like Bill or something. Vishnu, Buddha, and then God. Pompous religious asses think their invisible man in the sky is more important than a name!

Maybe god was his name. hmmmm?

 
3 i guess. I don't go to church but i do believe that there's a chance that there is a god.

I'm as far atheist as you can get and I don't support freedom of religion. I think we'd be better off severely restricting the political, economic and social rights of theists as they are actively hampering social progress all over the world.

I went to Israeli private schools, so there was no chance I was going to turn out religious.

Wheres the "chreaster" option?

I hate atheists that are all up in your face about it. I belive in a god, and I pray at night, but that's it. I don't go to church or anything.

I'm basically an atheist, but I'm tolerant of tolerant religions.

@cnlmullen said:

I'm basically an atheist, but I'm tolerant of tolerant religions.

This!

People can believe whatever they want to believe. I don't care as long as they don't force their beliefs onto me.

Once I was agnostic, but somewhere down the line I changed my mind to Atheism.