@castroy64 What you described is actually called "anti-theism". Some atheists are also anti-theists, but not all of them. To use an analogy, dalmatians are dogs, but not all dogs are dalmatians. Whether or not an atheist is _also_ an anti-theist may depend on to what degree they feel a religion has negatively impacted their lives. For example, someone may be indifferent towards the Greek gods, but dislike Christianity because they feel that it promotes practices that they consider intrusive and/or harmful.
To be fair , she has to ask the question . Look at how many science deniers there are on any youtube video with Richard Dawkkins in them . Its obvious that its not obvious to some .
jacquelineandron 😃 becoming an atheist went a great deal towards helping me deal with my depression as well. I became more proactive in solving my personal issues and struggling with the concept of finding gods purpose for me.
There definitely seems to be a correspondence - I have felt the same way about people like Sam Harris, Lawrence Krauss, and the late Christopher Hitchens. Listening to intelligent people putting forth reassuringly *rational* thinking can be quite soothing to the mind.
@@catkeys6911 Exactly. Whereas church leaders' inane utterances are cringeworthy by comparison. By using words such as faith, trust, hope etc they come across as foolish ignoramuses.
@@xxgmehhhejkdkkjjfctsxxsjjj5194 Facts can be proven . God is not established as fact . Perhaps god exists but until you can prove it we cannot state it as fact . Sorry. Your conviction is not sufficent .
I truly admire Dawkins! being an African-American and being Christian, it's like being gay and being Christian all my life i was trying to join a club that i knew I wasn't welcomed in the first place..... as a kid I always felt this and always knew this but had no real way to put the words. listening to richard articulate the words is amazing, and insightful and truly ground breaking. in the African American Community you are more isolated than you think. you are the monirity of the minority, there are no outlets for a young black man like me to have to speak about their atheism. Richard has definitely educated me with the background and the knowledge in order to support my atheism as well as deepen my science know how, thank you Mr Dawkins
Ricki Hearns ....in reply. l feel sorry for you, that such a young human being and you are an atheist... and if you want to know the truth about your atheism..... l suggest, you read about God and make sure that your atheistic belief are correct. l would start first, with the Early Church Fathers writings in the Roman Catholic Church. You would need to get facts.. not opinions. Opinions can be wrong.
A truly great Man, and a privilege to witness history being made with his sterling contribution to reason, critical thought, scientific enlightenment and a heartfelt plea to our common humanity. Religion should be held up to forensic examination at this point in time. It has terrorized, subjugated, dictated to, and held back our species for 2,000 years. Enough, now. Surely?
Just how does Dawkins live with the existence of someone like Gandhi? Here was a man, a professional lawyer, who gave up everything for a cause that would bring him nothing but suffering and poverty, for what? Is it possible to say he did not believe in a God, then why was he doing it? Are we to assume that he was so stupid to not be doing it to be for a cause, like Dawkins, to have a nice lifestyle, of travelling around the world and feeling important hob-knobbing with the hoi polio? Relative to that; how does Dawkins’s deal with the existence of Steve Jobs, who was an ardent admirer of Gandhi and who, according to the once CEO of Apple, had a picture of the great man which was only possession he had in his house. Does Dawkins lump him ‘Steve Jobs’ in with all the other misguided fools who believe in some form of religion….. It’s bloody ridiculous to have to listen to such endless nonsense…
the first 13 years of my life I was indoktrinated with Christianity, My parents where/are christians, my whole family is. My school is, most of my friends are, and the majority of my village is christian. But at the age of 13 I started thinking about the truth of Chrisitianity, when I went 14, I first heard about Richard Dawkins, I read The God Delusion, and now I am a 'level 6' atheïst! Thank You Richard Dawkins for setting me free from religion!
Paul Mallory Willfully ignorant. I agree. But that means we can find an opening and plant the seed to free them from the chains of bondage by religion.
Hitler was a catholic and often said he was doing god's work in Mein Kampf. Mao and Lenin knew that if you want to make ignorant people bow down and worship you, you have to replace their religion with a new one. Pictures of Mao were everywhere in China and everyone had to have a copy of Mao's little red book which was their bible. Dictators since the beginning of human history have set themselves up as a god or, at the very least, god's representative on earth.
"Kindly inform us how science benefits humanity." I actually put my hand over my 0-shaped mouth at that remark. Richard Dawkins is a truly great man. Everything he does is for the education and betterment of humanity and that, in my eyes, makes him the best kind of human there is. Funny how my friends (I'm fifteen) idolise pop stars and glamour models. Dawkins is my sanctuary in a sterile and vacuous school/home environment. Thank you, Richard, for enriching my experience of life here on Earth.
I'm 77 and us old folk are often too quick to criticise young people. You are brilliant and I hope you have been working to encourage your contemporaries to think rationally. Good luck to you!
quite the opposite. "But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him".
It's of the likes of Richard Dawkins, the late Christopher Hitchens, AronRa, Seth Andrews, Dan Barker, Sam Harris, Neil DeGrasse Tyson and others that the world NEEDS MORE, MANY MORE.
Dear Professor Dawkins, I am a great admirer of your books and your way of thinking, and just to put things in context, before I go any further, let me say that I come from a Muslim background, but I am not religious at all. In fact when it comes to the question "Are you a believer in God?" my answer is a firm no. So like you, I am an atheist. Like you as well, I love the high culture of music and arts as expressed and engendered through both the Christian Church and [surprise surprise] Islam. You have only to read the history of Muslim civilizations throughout Central Asia, India and Spain in the middle ages to appreciate the colossal contributions the Islamic world made to learning, arts, literature, science, music, architecture and administration. Let me also say that, despite the general distorted views held about Muslims now, the majority of them neither pray 5 times a day, nor do they literally believe in the strict Sharia code. Admittedly, in recent years the Saudi brand of Wahabi Islam has proliferated throughout the world via its Saudi funded mosques, but that is, and should be, of deep concern to free thinking Muslims themselves. There is a strong vein of secular thinking that has permeated and run throughout the body politic of Islam, right from its very inception more than 14 centuries ago to the present times. The poetry of Omar Khayyam, Hafez and an army of others throughout the Islamic world, has made fun of and rejected the orthodox views and beliefs of mullahs. I have written a lot of rhymed and metered poetry myself in Urdu, expressing views contained in your great book The God Delusion [and I might add, anticipating your book by at least a decade, if not more]. My poetry is also scathing about the practice of burqa and hijab, among other failings shown by orthdox believing Muslims [such as the injunctions against music and performing arts etc.]. Like you, I believe that these aspects of Islam hurt Muslims more than anyone else. And though a non-specialist layman myself, I have used poetry as a vehicle to propagate a Darwinian view of life amongst the Urdu reading public. But it bothers me to see that you seem to equate a yes/no answer about God with bad/good, and your examples of 'bad' always come from Muslims who reportedly are so brainwashed by their religious beliefs, that they think it is justifiable for them to kill people in order to go to their 72 houris in paradise. [This view is particularly propagated by Sam Harris]. In this regard, you invariably refer to the 9-11as an example. But hundreds of Western writers, journalists, architectural engineers and intellectuals have expressed doubts about the reasons for why that monumental tragedy occurred. Who can in their right minds justify the killing of innocent human beings, no matter what the triggers of it might have been? But, given the destruction of several Muslim countries following in the wake of 9-11, and the deaths and displacement of millions of innocent Muslims due to it, would it not be better for an intellectual of your caliber to stay shy of the blame game perpetrated by the media in recent years? Your contributions in the field of evolutionary biology and the service you have done to enhance human understanding in this regard are phenomenal. It breaks my heart to see that in the long run this may be sullying your reputation for fair mindedness. I think, like your great pal Professor Lawrence Krauss, [another icon of mine], you should stay clear of stereotyping Muslims generally as half-witted brainwashed bigots ready to kill people for their religious beliefs, a view propounded not particularly by you, but by right wing interests. The culture of demonization whether against Muslims or others should be avoided in the interests of fair mindedness, and you are one of the most fair-minded intellectuals on the planet. The same incisive thinking that has fashioned and embellished your work in evolutionary biology must be employed in the service of your other general views about life and humanity. But lastly, coming back to the main issue about religion, the question whether one believes in God or not, is peripheral I think, to the whole business of living itself. Because in great moments around human history, people have built whole edifices of viable cultures and life. Their daily lives have not revolved around the perpetual question of whether they believed in God or not, but around the building of cultures and civilizations. Religion can of course build bad cultures and horrid civilizations, but that is a deeper challenge than the mere question in the belief of God. However, I think your book The God Delusion had done a great service to mankind by triggering a worldwide debate on the subject. I have watched and listened to all your lectures and presentations alongside Lawrence Krauss, Christopher Hitchens and others, and will always remain a devoted fan and reader of your books. Many thanks for your life and your intellect. Show less
Dawkins is an inspiration for people of all ages and it's hardly surprising that he has not been honoured given the two-faced leadership we have in this country - Arise Sir Richard!
I totally agree with him throughout the video, particularly when around minute six he says that most likely the survival of religion in the 21st century is caused by a willful ignorance toward Science. Here in Italy, for instance, the percentage of people who know the scientific method and how it works is shockingly and alarmingly low.
Italy's pride is being the seat of Catholicism . There is a sense of National pride in the art and the history that even the boldest of facts have trouble competing with .
@@pooddescrewch8718 I'm not denying the central and pivotal importance that the humanistic arts have in my Country, but I wouldn't mind a little more attention towards the brilliant male and female scientists and researchers here, starting from putting more money into our scientific research, which is so important, especially today.
@@vervoid73 Yes, boys are separated from girls and 'dragged' to madrases, not mosque yet. They have to go to a mosque with their father once they remember certain passages in Qur'an.
Here is the thing. The world would be better off without the bronze age myths. Sorry guys, grow up and learn and stop the mental abuse of kids. You are helping no-one.
@@ivanl7449 rape capital, in sweden we starting to actually report it, go to the police when had that fucking awful experience. I was almost raped in year 2000, he hit me, dragged me, i fought back enough and screamed enough to make someone call the police. He gave up when he hears the siren, when i crawled to safety, the police asked me: we have to go and file a report (sorry english here, im swede) i said no, i dont want to, i was completely destroyed, knowing no way in hell he will be convicted, even tho i know ppl saw it happen and heard my screams even calling the 911 for me. rates mean nothing, higher rates only means more dare doing it. if I had same experience today, i would fucking report, back then, knew noone would fucking take it serious. (the one that tried to rape me was muslim so have a tiny point there tho ok)
@castroy64 The level of your delusion is breathtaking. Plus what you write is wrong. Either you don't know or you are lying. Soviet Union, China, NK etc. were/are state religions. The majority of atheists criticize them constantly for their religiosity. The most religious country on this earth right now is not e.g. Saudi Arabia but North Korea.
Certainly irrelevant to the conversation, but every video that I see of Dawkins confirms my impression that he is an extraordinarily ethical and scrupulously honest man. I can't say the same for at least one of the men he debated...a quote-mining wretch of a mathematician called John Lennox, who needs a lesson or two in truthfulness.
You had me at natural selection! Mr. Dawkins, yes you are getting to us and I can't explain how much your work had influenced my life... thank you in the name of all free thinkers! We love you!
I have applied for a job once that was so heavily laced with questions about guilt and morality it was ridiculous. "is it Wrong to break the Law" "Do you ever exceed the Speed limit?" "Is it against the law to break the speed limit?" "Is it wrong to break the speed limit?"
Oh I didn't change my mind easily at all, and I was very, very good at finding justifications :-). It took me a few years of research and questioning things before I became an atheist. And Dawkins has definitely contributed to that :-).
Unfortunately yes, especially in the south. America is a very religious country, it is nearly impossible to get elected into congress if you openly reject religion. Atheism is often used as sort of a dirty word or an insult. There is also a large misconception that people think that atheism is a religion its self. Which is sort of like thinking that non-smoking is a habit. Sorry if my grammar is bad i am in a bit of a hurry
I saw an interview onced with Richard Dawkins and they asked him what he would ask God he said" where were you hiding". I cannot in my mind understand why he and other atheists do not believe there is a God that created this universe and everything that was created. God said i am alpha and omega the beginning and the end,the Lord of Lords, the Rose of sharon, the bright and morning star, The king of kings and the Lord of Lords among others i cannot think of. I feel so sorry for Richard Dawkins when he stands before the Lord and realizes thathe is indeed God and he was created by him. Then he will hear God say depart from me I never Knew you. I know God does not want him to go to hell where their is eternal torment but yet he does not believe there is a hell either.
Always up for a good read. My point is that when a person states that they believe any one thing, they are given pass on the accuracy by default. When they state they "know" or "think" something the responsibility for accuracy for said statement is imperative. There is almost an instant call to prove the statement while the believer is left to wander and tell more about their belief.
Remember in school when you finished a test. Most people waited for someone else to take their test up to the teacher. Once one hands in their test everyone follows. That's my observation of Atheism in the US. Someone needs to hand in their test.
My point was to illustrate that you need those units to perceive the measurements you're taking. In this particular case (the speed of light), due to the fine tolerances it's not inconceivable, though very unlikely, that by publishing results with two different meanings, and similarly adjusting how your instruments can measure something they can engineer your entire perception of that facet of reality.
Interesting how we managed to show on small scale the peer review process. Your inquiries further honed my ideals or hypothesis if you will. We also found ours is a philosophical difference that is more alike than different. Thanks for the spirited debate and peer review.
When I think of all those young people who struggle with their sexuality, who are told that homosexuality is a sin, worthy of being tortured for all eternity, I'm glad there are people like Dawkins in the world who offer them a life buoy.
I accept that our knowlege has tken us in directions we thought were impossible before . Thats the closest I can get . I would be happy to find out there was a god ...not so much to worship ... but imagine the implications . .
I didn't say ALL, You did! I was actually referring to people of faith, who would feel naked without their beliefs. Also the expression "cold comfort" really means 'no comfort at all'!
It's amazing the level to which people often ignore the world around them to have a go at something they usually don't understand, like tweeting from an iPad about corporate greed.
The truth is that no one knows how or if consciousness survives the corporeal death . There is simply not enough facts available to suggest that physical death is compatible with consciousness . So LIVE WHILE YOU CAN .
@linkforever92 how valid are these explinations. could it really inplant the c14 into the orginism and the shell should retain the same age as the snail. also is that link in support of my info our contrary to my info?
Oh please lettuce be real tea, the scientific community can't even agree on how many times we went to the moon in this century, can we really expect them to k or what happened thousands of centuries ago... nope
@@paulk9188 Yep we can if we use our ability to reason which statements are nonbiased and have the adequate anmount of verifiable facts supporting their statements . Thats the thing about science . Its not to be taken as law ... its open to challenge .... the best idea wins
It's difficulty to explain, but it both slows down and stay the same speed. If you are yourself being sucked into the black hole at the same distance form the singularity then light will travel at the same speed everywhere at the same distance from said singularity (assuming no other bodies are effecting it) if you are in "normal space" however the speed of light around the black hole will be much slower. Thats why Einsteins called it relativity, because what you experience is all relative.
Remember: I never said science was "wrong". Ultimately though you still operate on the premise that your instruments, the instruments of your peers, theirs and your ability to tally the results, etc. that when they all add up they're accurate. The odds of something that widely accepted by that point is monumentally low, but it's much like why Dawkins leaves that 1%. You don't know, but til you know better you have to go with what you've got. Again: A WELL FOUNDED belief.
I adore Richard Dawkins, what an absolutely marvolous person! About his teeth, who cares?! He's BRILLIANT! His mind is kick ass and thus, he is oozing sexy charisma
@linkforever92 there are reports from science magezine that a freshly killed seal was carbon dated at 23,000 years. since the known age was less than a day or zero years, then that means that the error rate was 23,000% right. if it was dated to be 10 years then the error rate would be 10% error.
Hi Richard, Serious question here. No offense intended at all as I have serious respect for you. You are a complete champion for the cause but your not far off 70 y/o now and I would assume this issue is going to out live you and probably myself as well. Do you have a prodigy if that's the correct term? Who are we going to look to in the future to continue your hard work?
me too man, he literally changed my life...it was hard to accept at first....but now atheism and the scientific view on life is soooooo much more exciting and fulfilling
Kids like you make me feel good about the future. Choosing Rationality offer faith in the unproven will truthfully allow the Human species to expand into the stars. Keep thinking.
DAG, you are conflating the measurement of space and time with the "units" used to describe that measurement. The unit of measure is not the measurement itself. If I measure something to be 1 meter long, that thing does not suddenly grow if the French academy of science redefines the length of a meter. Surely you can see this.