Agnostics needed! 26 Aug 2010 There’s an advertising headline I never thought I’d see. We’re conducting a web survey of nonbelievers (atheists, agnostics, doubters, sceptics etc.) So far, we’ve had a good response, with over 1700 usable submissions. We’ve got lots of atheists, but we do not have as many agnostics as we would like. We’d like to ask for your assistance on this project in the following ways: 1. If you are an agnostic, please do the survey. 2. If you are acquainted with people you know or think may be agnostics, please make the existence of the project and the URL of the survey known to them. 3. If you have any suggestions for finding more agnostics, websites, blogs, organizations etc., please send us your suggestions at fwbritton@yahoo.com. 4. Reposting this request anywhere you think it will be helpful. The survey is here. Fred Britton (Research partner on this project) Religion
Philosophy The Greek Pantheon Test 5 Nov 2010 I’ve been very busy teaching, and so this blog has suffered. So I thought I’d do a short screed of an idea that I have had for some time. I have discussed what a religion is for a while now. Instead I want to ask today, What is a god?… Read More
Epistemology Doxastic biases and arguments for religion (and other things) 18 Feb 201218 Feb 2012 Helen De Cruz has the results of a fascinating survey on how various arguments for and against the existence of God are treated by philosophers… according to their general stance – atheist, agnostic, or theist. Basically it considers not whether people think the arguments are right (a common mistake scientists… Read More
Accommodationism Accommodating Science: Unpicking the arguments 23 Feb 20144 Mar 2014 So given that it is not entirely clear what religion is, or even what science is, it would help if we could put the arguments clearly. It is hard to find clear statements of either the accommodationist or the anti-accommodationist positions, so what we have to do first is reconstruct… Read More
If I understand your argument correctly, then I’m an agnostic*. Though I like to think of myself as a gnu fangled, in your face, bitchingly strident, way dickish atheist. I have issues. *Atheist about Abrahamic god, meh about other possible gods that I’ve no idea about.
How, by becoming a non-dickish, non-strident person? But that’s my everyday persona. You’d never pick me as a gnu atheist if you saw me in the street. It’s only when I happen upon a phone booth and change into my Scarlet A t-shirt that things get weird!
About the Abrahamic god, I am also an atheist. I suspect you gnu inclusivists count all people who’ve not considered all conceptions of supernatural beings as agnostics. Even Ken Ham probably hasn’t considered and rejected all possible deities. Therefore, he’s an agnostic! Oh, bad example. Ken Ham hasn’t considered anything, ever!
This doesn’t surprise me. Atheists are sexy. Agnostics are not. Admitting that you’re an agnostic is about as exciting as saying your favorite hobbies are sorting out your pencil drawer, scrubbing the bathroom grout, and long romantic walking tours of local cabbage fields. Even when they get fired up, it’s about being militantly noncommittal.
What’s sexy about somebody who holds a lecture about the improbability of god’s existence every time you invoke his name shortly before you come? Agnostics don’t comment they enjoy.
The pleasures of removing grout are vastly underrated. I intend to do mine as soon as I finish this trainspotting…
Are you implying that trainspotting is a boring hobby for geeks? I’ll have you know that I’m a militant trainspotter, sir! (Or as they call it here, rail-fanning). Much less boring than watching paint dry! Especially if you stand on the tracks…..
I think we’ve discovered why cricket is the English obsession, and why Anglicans are indiscernibly different to agnostics….
I was disappointed with the form after seeing that rather sexy remark on grout and pencils that it asked no questions about hobbies. Which meant I could say nothing about antifungal bath sealant or discuss my collection of 1950’s athletes footpowder tins, and I was all fired up given the high octane nature of my hobbies, as any agnostic would be.