There Is No God by Penn Jillette

[Gray Fox]

Morning Edition, November 21, 2005 · I believe that there is no God. I'm beyond Atheism. Atheism is not believing in God. Not believing in God is easy -- you can't prove a negative, so there's no work to do. You can't prove that there isn't an elephant inside the trunk of my car. You sure? How about now? Maybe he was just hiding before. Check again. Did I mention that my personal heartfelt definition of the word "elephant" includes mystery, order, goodness, love and a spare tire?

So, anyone with a love for truth outside of herself has to start with no belief in God and then look for evidence of God. She needs to search for some objective evidence of a supernatural power. All the people I write e-mails to often are still stuck at this searching stage. The Atheism part is easy.

But, this "This I Believe" thing seems to demand something more personal, some leap of faith that helps one see life's big picture, some rules to live by. So, I'm saying, "This I believe: I believe there is no God."

Having taken that step, it informs every moment of my life. I'm not greedy. I have love, blue skies, rainbows and Hallmark cards, and that has to be enough. It has to be enough, but it's everything in the world and everything in the world is plenty for me. It seems just rude to beg the invisible for more. Just the love of my family that raised me and the family I'm raising now is enough that I don't need heaven. I won the huge genetic lottery and I get joy every day.

Believing there's no God means I can't really be forgiven except by kindness and faulty memories. That's good; it makes me want to be more thoughtful. I have to try to treat people right the first time around.

Believing there's no God stops me from being solipsistic. I can read ideas from all different people from all different cultures. Without God, we can agree on reality, and I can keep learning where I'm wrong. We can all keep adjusting, so we can really communicate. I don't travel in circles where people say, "I have faith, I believe this in my heart and nothing you can say or do can shake my faith." That's just a long-winded religious way to say, "shut up," or another two words that the FCC likes less. But all obscenity is less insulting than, "How I was brought up and my imaginary friend means more to me than anything you can ever say or do." So, believing there is no God lets me be proven wrong and that's always fun. It means I'm learning something.

Believing there is no God means the suffering I've seen in my family, and indeed all the suffering in the world, isn't caused by an omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent force that isn't bothered to help or is just testing us, but rather something we all may be able to help others with in the future. No God means the possibility of less suffering in the future.

Believing there is no God gives me more room for belief in family, people, love, truth, beauty, sex, Jell-o and all the other things I can prove and that make this life the best life I will ever have.

More 'This I Belie

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5015557

 

[ríomhaire]

I believe that there is no God. I'm beyond Atheism. Atheism is not believing in God.

Wrong. Agnostisism is not believing in god, Atheism is believing there is no God.

 

[Absinthe]

Wrong. Agnostisism is not believing in god, Atheism is believing there is no God.

NO YOU ARE WRONG YOU ARE ALL SO WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WAOEONOR WONRONG WORNS WERO TOGNOWRTONGN ORNWRG

Understood?

 

[Nat Turner]

That's silly. There almost definitely is or was some sort of higher power that influenced our existence. To believe otherwise is betting on a chance that closely approaches 0.

You can take any perspective and use it to justify living a certain way. It doesn't make his special.

 

[DeusExMachina]

Wrong. Agnostisism is not believing in god, Atheism is believing there is no God.

Agnosticism is the belief that it is impossible to know whether a God exists or not. Those two definitions are basically the same...

Let's not make Absinthe come in here now.

EDIT: Nevermind.

 

[Nat Turner]

Agnosticism is the belief that it is impossible to know whether a God exists or not. Those two definitions are basically the same...

Let's not make Absinthe come in here now.

He has already arrived, and He will once again right the wrong. There is no turning back now.

 

[Tr0n]

Agnostics believe there is no way to prove there is a god. Or they just don't give a damn.

 

[Absinthe]

No, I'm going to keep my mouth shut unless somebody pokes me. If that happens, you are going to see a violent emotional explosion whose closest analogue is the devestation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

So... don't. :|

 

[Tr0n]

*pokes ab*

:E

 

[CptStern]

That's silly. There almost definitely is or was some sort of higher power that influenced our existence. To believe otherwise is betting on a chance that closely approaches 0.

You can take any perspective and use it to justify living a certain way. It doesn't make his special.

please, believing that, in this massive universe, we were created by an omnipotent force that had our best interests in mind isnt bordering on the rational in the least ...in fact the sheer improbability of a personal god involved in our lives has to be unmeasureable ..it's almost idiotic to think otherwise because there's not even the tiniest shred of evidence to support that idea

 

[Absinthe]

*'splodes*

Any way, I don't agree with the way in which he seems to arrived to his conclusions. I do, however, find it to be an interesting take on life without god and what that means.

 

[DeusExMachina]

No, I'm going to keep my mouth shut unless somebody pokes me. If that happens, you are going to see a violent emotional explosion whose closest analogue is the devestation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

So... don't. :|

Oh I'm sure someone's gonna ignite you.

By the way, going off topic once more, whatever happened to that guy in the last God thread that you were arguing with. It was disgusting how he thought he was right in every single word he said .

 

[Axyon]

NO YOU ARE WRONG YOU ARE ALL SO WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WAOEONOR WONRONG WORNS WERO TOGNOWRTONGN ORNWRG

Understood?

Did I just see the whole thread flash past my eyes?

 

[Gray Fox]

*'splodes*

Any way, I don't agree with the way in which he seems to arrived to his conclusions. I do, however, find it to be an interesting take on life without god and what that means.

QFT Thats what's IMO so good about this that I still decided to make a thread about such overdiscussed subject on thease boards.

 

[Ravioli]

"there is no god"

lol? Did you just found out? I knew that since i was 3 years old..pfft

 

[Beerdude26]

That's silly. There almost definitely is or was some sort of higher power that influenced our existence. To believe otherwise is betting on a chance that closely approaches 0.

You can take any perspective and use it to justify living a certain way. It doesn't make his special.

Contradictions ftw \0/

 

[dream431ca]

Did I just see the whole thread flash past my eyes?

 

[Solaris]

That's silly. There almost definitely is or was some sort of higher power that influenced our existence. To believe otherwise is betting on a chance that closely approaches 0.

You can take any perspective and use it to justify living a certain way. It doesn't make his special.

And the most complete BS post of the year goes to....

Your saying there almost definatly is something, and then give us some decimal. Wow, what proof or evidence do you have to support this? NOT ONE LITTLE SCRAP. You can't just say something like that, theres no logic behind it.

 

[Nat Turner]

And the most complete BS post of the year goes to....

Your saying there almost definatly is something, and then give us some decimal. Wow, what proof or evidence do you have to support this? NOT ONE LITTLE SCRAP. You can't just say something like that, theres no logic behind it.

No, there actually is logic behind it. The chances that I even exist as a person, instead of being contained within a star or something, are astronomically small without some higher power.

 

[Gray Fox]

No, there actually is logic behind it. The chances that I even exist as a person, instead of being contained within a star or something, are astronomically small without some higher power.

The chances of a higher power existing are even more astronomical.
So we win according to the statistics.

 

[Nat Turner]

Contradictions ftw \0/

No, not really. Believing there is absolutely no creator or any higher power is as radical as believing in a Christian god.

 

[Nat Turner]

The chances of a higher power existing are even more astronomical.
So we win according to the statistics.

Not really, as your argument is deeply flawed. You assume that science is completely correct and has uncovered everything. This is not the case.

I am not saying a specific deity exists, I'm just saying there's almost definitely some original creator or higher power.

 

[Beerdude26]

Not really, as your argument is deeply flawed. You assume that science is completely correct and has uncovered everything. This is not the case.

I am not saying a specific deity exists, I'm just saying there's almost definitely some original creator or higher power.

Ohnoes more contradictions :O

 

[ComradeBadger]

And the most complete BS post of the year goes to....

Your saying there almost definatly is something, and then give us some decimal. Wow, what proof or evidence do you have to support this? NOT ONE LITTLE SCRAP. You can't just say something like that, theres no logic behind it.

Shorten your sig and get some proper views with regards to others and the respect of their beliefs.

 

[Gray Fox]

Not really, as your argument is deeply flawed. You assume that science is completely correct and has uncovered everything. This is not the case.

I am not saying a specific deity exists, I'm just saying there's almost definitely some original creator or higher power.

Wouldn't your argument be flawed too, if mine is flawed.

 

[Beerdude26]

Wouldn't your argument be flawed too, if mine is flawed.

No because for some reason his argument is more logical than ours

Maybe because a higher entity wants him to win this argument :O

 

[Nat Turner]

Wouldn't your argument be flawed too, if mine is flawed.

No, not really. I'm saying everything is a possibility. You're saying this exact possibility is supreme over all others.

 

[$kelet0r]

anything is possible
but the logic of stating that you were created by a higher intelligent entity as quite likely and more likely than the complexities of atoms and molecules bonding infinitely makes no sense

we have proof that you can make things from mere energy, we can create complex matter from mere atoms as humans because that is the reality of our existance
we have no proof that something went to the trouble to create us, only blind faith nurtured by millenia of ignorance and fear

 

[Beerdude26]

No, not really. I'm saying everything is a possibility. You're saying this exact possibility is supreme over all others.

Oh. I thought you meant that :|

So actually we just yelled at each other for nothing lol

 

[Nat Turner]

anything is possible
but the logic of stating that you were created by a higher intelligent entity as quite likely and more likely than the complexities of atoms and molecules bonding infinitely makes no sense

I think it does. Molecules can bond infinitely and create something that possibly resembles me, but it doesn't mean that it's me.

we have proof that you can make things from mere energy, we can create complex matter from mere atoms as humans because that is the reality of our existance
we have no proof that something went to the trouble to create us, only blind faith nurtured by millenia of ignorance and fear

I'm not saying something went through "the trouble" to create us. I'm just saying there's most likely some sort of outside force that did something.

And anyways, the chances of some supernatural force ever existing would not be 50 50. Chances don't work that way. It's like saying the chances of God existing are also 50 50. That's where the "almost definitely" comes from.

 

[Beerdude26]

Something really, really, REALLY weird happened and then time was born

Or something like that. You can't speculate about the idea that a supernatural force exists if you can't prove it exists. People will never believe you if you can't prove it and will call you 'that weird person that likes cats'.

/me sees Nat Turner go on a voyage into outer space to look for evidence

 

[ríomhaire]

The chances of winning the lottery are astronomical, but someone does every week. If the theory of the Big bang/big Gulp is correct the universe has been created infinate times before so the chances of anything happeing are irrelevant because there is an infanate amount of time for them to happen.

But unless our understanding of the universe is way off(which I think it probably is) then something had to start it off.

 

[swiss_cheese9797]

anything is possible
but the logic of stating that you were created by a higher intelligent entity as quite likely and more likely than the complexities of atoms and molecules bonding infinitely makes no sense

we have proof that you can make things from mere energy, we can create complex matter from mere atoms as humans because that is the reality of our existance
we have no proof that something went to the trouble to create us, only blind faith nurtured by millenia of ignorance and fear

HERE HERE!

Thread may have gotten a little off track it seems. The whole God issue has been done to death, but the thread started with an article about how a person lives his life when he believes there is no god to blame or ask things of.

I for one agree with Mr. Jillette on this topic and on most of the things I've read or heard from him. He put words to some concepts I have had in my head for a while now, and I definately agree with what he says.

I don't believe in any higher power, but I don't look down upon those that do. I do, though, really pitty and laugh at folks who use any religion as a crutch or as a way to feel like they are better than those who don't have the same beliefs. Lest we forget that fat cow on that trading-moms (or whatever) show who totally flipped out when she learned the other lady wasnt a christian. I saw the show, I know some of you saw the commercials. There will always be people like that, though. Perhaps if there is a god, those kinds of folks are put here to teach people what happens when you turn a belief system into something negative, or simply a dependancy. Your thoughts?

 

[Uriel]

Okay! I Get The Point, You Dont Believe In God, I Dont Care. Quit Talking About It And....

Keep It To Yourself

 

[jondy]

I think it does. Molecules can bond infinitely and create something that possibly resembles me, but it doesn't mean that it's me.

Creationist! Vacate the area!

...sorry.

 

[Absinthe]

Okay! I Get The Point, You Dont Believe In God, I Dont Care. Quit Talking About It And....

Keep It To Yourself

YOUR GOD IS DEAD, BISH

 

[Beerdude26]

YOUR GOD IS DEAD, BISH

Shhh.

Have a tranquilizer cookie.

 

[Nat Turner]

Something really, really, REALLY weird happened and then time was born

Or something like that. You can't speculate about the idea that a supernatural force exists if you can't prove it exists. People will never believe you if you can't prove it and will call you 'that weird person that likes cats'.

/me sees Nat Turner go on a voyage into outer space to look for evidence

My existence is evidence enough.

 

[Beerdude26]

My existence is evidence enough.

:|

K.

 

[CptStern]

Okay! I Get The Point, You Dont Believe In God, I Dont Care. Quit Talking About It And....

Keep It To Yourself

absolutely not