> They are simply being completely closed-minded about religion, and > judging every religious person based on a stereotype.
Erik replied:
You are being close-minded and irrational, and underestimating William and Fool. Their opinion is based on clear thinking and a lot of facts.
What facts? "Facts" like the one you cite below? And believing stereotypes is clear thinking?
I wrote:
> Sure, you can say that many of class x do a certain thing, so maybe it's > reasonable to assume that anyone from class x will do that thing.
Erik replied:
No, that is not what I am saying, I am saying something much more specific. I am saying that anyone who associates themselves with religion, which is known for its irrationality
Known for irrationality by whom? This is not a fact. This is a statement of opinion. You may feel that religion is known for irrationality, but you have presented no facts to back that up.
Erik:
All of your analogies are poor, since they fail to capture this fundamental quality. Also, you ignore quantitative differences. If 1% of a group is "bad", I probably would not judge such a group harshly (although it depends how "bad" the 1% are). But if 60% of a group is bad, then I will very likely judge someone who associates themselves with that group harshly.
So show me the cite that says 60% of religious people are "bad." Show me any cite that contains facts, not opinions, that states that more that 50% (i.e. "the majority") of religious people are bad. If you want to talk about facts, then perhaps you should supply some, instead of quoting opinion as fact.
Me:
> So just as it's an incorrect stereotype to say that all science > fiction fans like Star Trek, and just as it's an incorrect stereotype > to say all African-Americans are criminals, it's an incorrect > stereotype to say that all religious people are irrational extremists.
Erik:
All "true" Christians are irrational. After all, the foundation of the religion is faith, not reason.
That's your definition of Christianity. Some Christians would agree with it, some wouldn't. And we aren't talking about just Christianity, we're talking about all religions.
Me again:
> And anytime I hear you or The Fool or William or anyone else saying > that all religious people are irrational, or extremist, or evil, I > will point out to you or them how irrational you are being.
Erik:
Unfortunately, you are the irrational one. But I guess your mind has
been too conditioned by religion to realize it. That is another one of
the evils of religion, it destroys the mind ("but if I had a backup
copy..." -- Marvin Minsky)
You still have failed to show how I'm being irrational. It's irrational to fight stereotypes? Please explain.
And you ignored my core argument, which is that not all religious people are irrational or extremist, and in fact the majority of religious people are not irrational or extremist. The only number you cite, 60% is a number that, as far as I can tell, you made up. How irrational is that?
Reggie Bautista
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