The Hitch is dead.

antiskeptic

Galvasean wrote: »

Give some of these guys a few emails. You'd never know you might learn something.
http://www.militaryatheists.org/expaif.html

edit.

Way of topic. Sorry.

Arcus Arrow

11.08

antiskeptic wrote: »

I've never read him or even seen much of him but.....

12.31

antiskeptic wrote: »

Didn't mean what? I'm looking at a man I know something about and then saw interviewed and giving specific answers to specific questions.

First you go off waffling about Christopher Hitchens while claiming you’ve never read or seen much of him. Then, little more than an hour later, you try to claim almost the opposite in order to justify more ignorance based projections.


Religious belief is ignorance given confidence. Because organised religion is founded on lies it’s adaptable.

Religion poisons everything as Hitchens said. In the believer it stiches together confusions to where the follower is convinced that that condition then represents cohesion. It has adults confusing their own language with statements like “I was born….again” and feeling sorry for those who have (in the believers confused mind) only been born “once”. Evangelical maternity wards must be mad places: how did the birth go? Really bad! Not to worry have another go at it and if that’s not great sure we can go again..

That’s why Christopher Hitchens was so successful a debater: he surgically cut through the stitching and laid bare the confusions of religious belief. It’s why so many believers across the internet will try to attach themselves like parasites to threads dedicated to reflecting on the fact he’s just died of cancer. It comes from the underlying insecurity of not really being 100% sure of all this god thing bollocks they’ve been sucked into.

Zillah

Would that the Hitch had lived to see Dear Leader perish!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16239693

MrPudding

antiskeptic wrote: »

I'm sure they turn back into atheists when the shelling stops..

I love the almost overwhelming arrogance of the believer. It used to annoy me until I worked out it isn't really arrogance and it is in fact something to be pitied

The thing I love the most about this arrogance is it is simply an indication of a personality defect. Your typical arrogant believer that spouts the type of sh1t above would seem to have issues that he feels he is unable to fix himself. He cannot get through life without the crutch that is his religion. He also fears death and in order to be able to function in our modern world has to cling to the hope that there is something after death.

This type of believer also thinks that other people have the same problem as him; that god shaped hole in their life, that lack of purpose. As people that don't need the crutch of religion, that don't fear death, that are happy to not know all the answers, but won't stop looking for them, we should pity these people. Whilst they don't see it, their world is a horrible place full of fear and hatred.

I pity the believer, especially the apparently arrogant ones.

MrP

Arcus Arrow

antiskeptic wrote: »

edit.

Way of topic. Sorry.

Christopher Hitchens liked a good joke especially when it poked fun at the ridiculous beliefs of the followers of organised religion.

Why don't you tell everybody about your god thing, master of the universe, controller and creator of a billion billions stars, gatekeeper of the eternal post death destination of those it saved for boredom central, designer of every living cell in the universe, emperor of all human activity who.....took time out of it's unimaginably busy schedule to help you.... find your motorbike gloves.

Christopher Hitchens uncovered the arrogant buffoons that christian believers make of themselves spouting opinions that others have convinced them of. He is no more but the damage to superstition he did while he lived won't stop with his death.

RichieC

There will be claims that the Hitch had a deathbed conversion almost certainly..

not sure if it was hitch or dawkins that said. they'll have a recorder with them at the end. a fine idea.

Christians will lie through their teeth to promote their cults.

MrPudding

RichieC wrote: »

There will be claims that the Hitch had a deathbed conversion almost certainly..

not sure if it was hitch or dawkins that said. they'll have a recorder with them at the end. a fine idea.

Christians will lie through their teeth to promote their cults.

I think it was Dawkins that said he could not say he would not convert on his deathbed. Not because of a moment of clarity but simply through fear or some abnormal functioning of the brain as it dies.

I find that fact that theists think that people terrified out of their wits as they die "finding god" somehow validated their belief to be somewhat ridiculous. It is to be likened to a torture victim, having had his finger nails pulled out, his fingers broken and electrodes attached t his testicles declaring his undying love for the tyrant that ordered him tortured. Nothing to be proud of and certainly no indication of the rightness of loving the tyrant.

MrP

Dades

MagicMarker wrote: »

Save yourself the time and turn off the computer.

I'm going to attempt to follow this advice, though I have to leave my computer on, and also read all the replies. :pac:

I should never have stuck my head down the rabbit hole and entered the world of nonsense and gobbledegook.

robindch

antiskeptic wrote: »

a.k.a skewering a deity.

If your deity had been brave enough to show up, perhaps there could have been a debate. Unfortunately, it wasn't (so much for omnipotence!)

antiskeptic wrote: »

If at this point in his life he wasn't aware of that most basic of Christian claims then illiterate (in that system) he most certainly was.

Firstly, Hitch knew christian dogma as well as most atheists do, and considerably better than most christians. That's why he was trounced religious cheerleaders so regularly -- because he knew it better than they did.

Secondly, and to ask you again, since you never read any Hitchens and seem to have little idea of what he said, I'm fascinated as to why you think you understand anything about his point of view. Is this another faith-based position?

Anyhow, would you like to clarify this or would you like to post some more paragraphs of meaningless nonsense?

fisgon

antiskeptic wrote: »

he had turned around to face this insurmountable opponent ... and shivered in the face of it. Never having developed the tools of humilty or doubt or deep self-reflection (at least they were not on show here) all Hitch could do was approach certain death with the same defiance that had proved so successful in the past.

Wow, talk about seeing things the way you want them to be, rather than the way they are. I suppose that this particular skill is a prerequisite for a religious believer, and so you obviously have practice at it.

The idea that he wasn't self-reflective in this interview is almost laughable. Did you actually watch it? Do you understand the English language? That's pretty much all he was, reflective, and honest.

antiskeptic wrote: »

I think he knew how hollow his stance was but, after a lifetimes investment in the proudful polemic, couldn't bring himself to admit it.

Again, talk about refusing to engage with the reality of the interview and instead making up a version of it that you would be comfortable with. This comment is actually very instructive about this kind of cognitive dissonance that people go through when their beliefs are questioned. They take the evidence that is right before their eyes, ignore it and instead change it to suit their own position and belief system.

If you think that Hitch knew how hollow his stance was you are delusional. (though in fairness, given your other posts here, delusions are certainly part of the package in some shape or form). There was nothing unsure about him, reflective, yes, but unshaken in his positions. I saw a kind of calmness there, amid the understandable fear of dying, which he admitted.

In fact, that 27 or so minutes was one of the most profound things I have seen in a long time. An atheist faces his death, as we all have to.

Newsite

MrPudding wrote: »

I love the almost overwhelming arrogance of the believer. It used to annoy me until I worked out it isn't really arrogance and it is in fact something to be pitied

The thing I love the most about this arrogance is it is simply an indication of a personality defect. Your typical arrogant believer that spouts the type of sh1t above would seem to have issues that he feels he is unable to fix himself. He cannot get through life without the crutch that is his religion. He also fears death and in order to be able to function in our modern world has to cling to the hope that there is something after death.

This type of believer also thinks that other people have the same problem as him; that god shaped hole in their life, that lack of purpose. As people that don't need the crutch of religion, that don't fear death, that are happy to not know all the answers, but won't stop looking for them, we should pity these people. Whilst they don't see it, their world is a horrible place full of fear and hatred.

I pity the believer, especially the apparently arrogant ones.

MrP

Newsite

smokingman wrote: »

Says he who believes that people that don't fall for the unicorn/magic claptrap get their flesh burned for "eternity" in some place called hell and that they "deserve" it...you wish for inhuman torture for your fellow humans every day and that sickens me far more than anthing your high horse is insinuating.

Ya what now? What kind of stuff are you smoking?

MrPudding

Newsite wrote: »

What?

MrP

Newsite

MrPudding wrote: »

What?

MrP

?

You must not even realise what you're saying when you post at this stage

Galvasean

Are you STILL here?

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This has to be one of my favourite Hitch essays. http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/fighting_words/2004/06/unfairenheit_911.html

pH

Too soon?

roosh

not sure if this has been posted before, but just came across this and thought some might enjoy it.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4yvPSZN5ZQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsUSb13m5VY

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This is pretty fantastic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzKiZ39Dvho

jank

It appears he may be agnostic?

jank

jank wrote: »

It appears he may be agnostic?

No, being an atheist does not imply one would want to destroy religion with the wave of a magic wand.

jank

Deleted User wrote: »

No, being an atheist does not imply one would want to destroy religion with the wave of a magic wand.

Why?

An atheist is simply someone who lacks a belief in any gods. That's all it is.

Knasher

jank wrote: »

Why?

Well Hitchens admitted in the video that the reason he wouldn't completely undo religion is simply because he loves the argument. Although I'm sure he would have found something else to argue about if it had ever come to that.

As to the magic wand thing, if I had the ability to simply get rid of religion with a magic wand, I wouldn't use it either. Simply for the reason that getting rid of religion isn't enough, it still leaves behind the credulity that fostered religion in the first place and would allow religion to be replaced, perhaps, by a far more dangerous belief. Better the devil you know.

The goal has always been to get people to really thing about these things and not just accept them blindly.

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That clip is from Collision the movie. Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gr9nNsMeZs

R P McMurphy

'in confidential' interview with CH on sky arts 1. Available on anytime, available until tomorrow

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taOBFURZvcA

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He was a bit of a looker when he was younger as Fry says in the video.

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