Anyone who doesn't like Led Zeppelin is dead to me....

They say that in polite discourse there are several topics that one should avoid at all costs. Unfortunately, these also tend to be the most interesting topics with the strongest emotional investments.
Seeing as we spend so much time here discussing 2 highly controversial topics, religion and politics, I figured we could devote a post to the most controversial topic of all!

Music preference.

What are you grooving to now, and why?

More waste paper to recycle...

As we all know, Ray is going to be putting out some more of his concentrated brain-farts in book form in the new year. According to the sidebar on his website:

"COMING SOON: The Atheist Bible (Holman Publishing), and, You Can Lead an Atheist to Evidence, But You Can't Make Him Think (WND Publishing)."

You can be sure that both will be as vapid, dishonest, fallacious, irritating and self-righteous as his blog, but let's have a look at these 'major' publishing houses, shall we?

Holman Publishing:

A subsidiary of Lifeway Christian Resources, presided over by Dr. Thom Rainer (former Dean of the Billy Graham School of Evangelism of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary which, incidentally, is where he received his 'doctorate').

According to Wiki, Holman Publishing is; "Specializing in Christianity pertaining to fiction, homeschool, youth, history, and other interests", So he's gone to the right place there.

&

WND Publishing (otherwise know as WorldNetDaily):

Again, from Wiki: "The website's Commentary page features editorials from the site's founder, Joseph Farah and other social conservative authors such as Pat Buchanan, Ann Coulter, David Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, and Chuck Norris.", so Ray's keeping in good company there too.

If you look through the works of some of their published writers, you'll see how they could believe that what Ray has produced can be considered a 'book' - you'd never get this shit past Penguin.

I guess none of this is particularly surprising, eh? It's that same old story. Ray taunts, misrepresents, insults and generally winds up atheists. Atheists respond. Ray quotemines the responses and concocts a 'book' out of re-hashed arguments and faulty logic. Some intellectually and ethically vacuous publishing house prints the book. Ray's fanbase buys the books. Ray makes money. Repeat.

For fun, let's have a guess at some possible Chapter Titles for Ray's two up-coming best-sellers.

"The Atheist Bible"

&

"You Can Lead an Atheist to Evidence, But You Can't Make Him Think"

I'm sure we can think of something...




Cheers,

Matt

"I have a severe case of Deja Moo; I've seen this bullshit before..."

Test Results....

As promised, here are the results from today's test. You all did extremely well and can take the rest of the day off.

The Correct Answers (according to me - feel free to disagree):

1. What was in the beginning?
A: "At the point at which time begins, our best explanation for the evidence we can see is that there was a super-dense point of all the matter and energy in the universe very shortly after it had began to expand." - Baldyslaphead

I also would have accepted; "How the hell should I know?" - Tilia

2. How will life on earth end?
A: "More than likely with the earth be enveloped by the sun as it goes red giant. There is a possibility that the milky way galaxy and thus the earth will be destroyed when it collides with another galaxy." - Beanstalk - Rocky S.

Selected because galaxies colliding is just cool.

3. What happens after death?
A: "Nothing. Nonexistence. Blissful oblivion. I'm actually rather looking forward to it." - Tripmaster Monkey

"Always look on the bright side of life, dee-do dee-do dee-do..."

4. What is the purpose of existence?
A: "We're just transportation for our genes. How we spend our life's is up to us." - Tilia

Short and sweet

5. Why there is order in all of creation?
A: "Is there? Hadn't noticed." - Liz

Short and sweet too

6. Why there is morality in every civilization?
A: "It probably arose because species that co-operated were more successful at breeding than those that did not. Beyond the mere existence of *a* morality, there is no *universal* morality anyway." - Baldyslaphead

Have you been looking at the answers sheet?

7. Why does every civilization believe in a Creator?
A: "Man naturally anthropomorphizes natural forces, such as lady luck and father time, as a primitive way to deal with a world they don't understand completely, or to sublimate another emotion (for instance, smacking a television to "convince" it to work)." - Rex Mundane

Funny because it's true, and the right answer (apparently)

8. Why does every sane person have a conscience, even when it is not dictated by society?
A: "For the same reason that every sane person has legs even though they're not dictated by society." - Baldyslaphead

You lose half a mark because some people have no legs, the full answer is:

A: "See "Selfish Gene" by Richard Dawkins." - Theshaggy

A good example of citing your sources

9. How did nothing create everything?
A: "It didn't." - Nonmagic

Bam!

10. Which came first--the chicken or the egg?
A: "Exactly" - Liz

Eggsactly

I would also have accepted 'God' or 'Godditit' for any answer. I would....but I'm not an intellectually stunted Creationist, so I won't.

Scores:

Liz: 9/10
Theshaggy: 9/10
Beamstalk - rocky s: 9/10
Rex Mundane: 9/10
Nonmagic: 9/10
Tripmaster Monkey: 9/10
Baldyslaphead: 8.5/10
Tripmaster Monkey Mk2: 0/10 - see me.
Tilia: 9/10

Special credit for Bob (for not knowing anything), Froggie (for the chicken-egg joke) and Charles (so he doesn't spill the beans about the great Atheist Conspiracy).

Kaitlyn: no answers = no points for you.

Well done everyone, we've answered 'The 10 Questions Atheists Can't Answer'....what's next?