A friend now bothering me to write a book expressing the naturalist worldview, with specific emphasis on atheism.
I'm so unqualified that I can't even begin to explain to him how unqualified I am.
I might give it a try anyway. I had the idea of splitting it into three parts:
1 - There are probably no gods
Debunking transcendental (false dichotomy), cosmological (special pleading), teleological (argument from ignorance), and ontological (just stupid) arguments for god is doable. But when it comes down to physics, I can't wrap my mind around it. Dimensions curl up? What the hell are you talking about, Hawking? But this is a place to argue against all the "You can tell God exists, because _______" assertions. (Also, I don't know what that argument is called where they say, "The universe can't have been around forever, because we never would have gotten to modern day if it was, so it had to be created," but it's fucking stupid and I'm going to take it apart, too. It's sort of like saying, "Well if there are infinite negative numbers and infinite positive numbers, how do you ever get to zero?!")
2 - We do not need gods
A demonstration of secular morality - again, I'm unqualified. What can I possibly say on this subject that couldn't be said better by Steven Pinker or Peter Singer? If anything, all I could hope to do here is simplify the language to make it accessible. Probably go over Euthyphro's Dilemma to further divorce gods from morality. This is a place to knock down, "If God wasn't real, then ________, which would be horrible" arguments.
3 - We should not want gods
Gods are sadistic. Gods are jealous. Gods are unjust. Gods are solipsists. Gods are usurious misers. Gods are cruel. A response to cries of, "Doesn't believing ________ help people?" Followed by a meditation on meaning without purpose, direction with no goal. Life is ours.
Anyway. If I do pursue this, it will be small, almost certainly less than 100 pages, and I will share it with friends and family. Maybe it'll end up on the interwebs and promptly vanish into the void. Then, sometime in the future, a Rabbi will find it and start arguing with me. That'd serve me right.
I think that last bit makes more sense if you're aware that I recently picked an email battle with a Rabbi. I was feeling contrary at the time.
I'm so unqualified that I can't even begin to explain to him how unqualified I am.
I might give it a try anyway. I had the idea of splitting it into three parts:
1 - There are probably no gods
Debunking transcendental (false dichotomy), cosmological (special pleading), teleological (argument from ignorance), and ontological (just stupid) arguments for god is doable. But when it comes down to physics, I can't wrap my mind around it. Dimensions curl up? What the hell are you talking about, Hawking? But this is a place to argue against all the "You can tell God exists, because _______" assertions. (Also, I don't know what that argument is called where they say, "The universe can't have been around forever, because we never would have gotten to modern day if it was, so it had to be created," but it's fucking stupid and I'm going to take it apart, too. It's sort of like saying, "Well if there are infinite negative numbers and infinite positive numbers, how do you ever get to zero?!")
2 - We do not need gods
A demonstration of secular morality - again, I'm unqualified. What can I possibly say on this subject that couldn't be said better by Steven Pinker or Peter Singer? If anything, all I could hope to do here is simplify the language to make it accessible. Probably go over Euthyphro's Dilemma to further divorce gods from morality. This is a place to knock down, "If God wasn't real, then ________, which would be horrible" arguments.
3 - We should not want gods
Gods are sadistic. Gods are jealous. Gods are unjust. Gods are solipsists. Gods are usurious misers. Gods are cruel. A response to cries of, "Doesn't believing ________ help people?" Followed by a meditation on meaning without purpose, direction with no goal. Life is ours.
Anyway. If I do pursue this, it will be small, almost certainly less than 100 pages, and I will share it with friends and family. Maybe it'll end up on the interwebs and promptly vanish into the void. Then, sometime in the future, a Rabbi will find it and start arguing with me. That'd serve me right.
I think that last bit makes more sense if you're aware that I recently picked an email battle with a Rabbi. I was feeling contrary at the time.
porphyria:
I miss talking to you. I wish I was a Rabbi so I could email battle you passionately in the name of god, it sounds sexy.
thedespair:
I'd like to read this, if you do end up going for it