Re: ATHEISM - A Side-Effect of Religious Stupidity

On May 10, 1:32=A0am, "SongBookz" <songbo...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> "SeppoP" <seppo_pietikai...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>
> news:68ko16F2sprqqU1@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
>
>
>
>
> > Bible Bob wrote:
> >> On Fri, 09 May 2008 12:11:34 -0500, Rod <icom...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>
> >>> Bibon wrote:
> >>>> TUPELO, Miss., -- A federal court of appeals has ruled in favor of
an=

> >>>> inmate who claimed that Wisconsin prison officials violated his
right=
s
> >>>> under the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment because they
> >>>> refused to allow him to create a study group for atheists.
>
> >>>> The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that prison officials erred
> >>>> because they =93did not treat atheism as a =91religion.=92=94 The
cou=
rt said,
> >>>> =93Atheism is [the inmate=92s] religion, and the group that he
wanted=
 to
> >>>> start was religious in nature even though it expressly rejects a
beli=
ef
> >>>> in a supreme being.=94
>
> >>>> Brian Fahling, senior trial attorney for the American Family
> >>>> Association Center for Law & Policy, described the court=92s ruling
a=
s =93a
> >>>> sort of Alice in Wonderland jurisprudence.=94
>
> >>>> =93Up is down, and atheism, the antithesis of religion, is
religion,=
=94
> >>>> stated Fahling.
>
> >>>> The Supreme Court has said that a religion need not be based on a
> >>>> belief in the existence of a supreme being. In the 1961 case of
Torca=
so
> >>>> v. Watkins, the Court described =93secular humanism=94 as a
religion.=

>
> >>>> =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0
*****=
*******
>
> >>>> Yes, atheism is a religion and is recognized as such by Federal
Court=
s
> >>>> in the USA. More ammo for you to use against those who doubt your
> >>>> FAITH!
>
> >>> =A0 Atheism is not a religion..the fact that a judge and lawyers see
i=
t as
> >>> such is just another indication of the mentality of sickness that
> >>> permeates society today. Atheism is a mode of existence, a means of
> >>> living ones life free of unjustified restraint.
>
> >> Rod,
>
> >> Atheism is a religion as indicated by the "ism" suffix. =A0While not
al=
l
> >> atheists belong to the religious cult; many do. =A0Those that do
promot=
e
> >> their religion and speak against other religions just like
> >> fundamentalists from other religions do. =A0Atheism involves =A0self
> >> wor****p, man wor****p, and systems wor****p.
>
> > So, if I don't play flute, according to you I'm a musician who
practices=

> > not playing flute?
>
> Very weak analogy. =A0If you don't play the flute, you're not a flutist
- =
you
> may or may not still be a musician.
>
> "Atheist" means "without Theism" (deity is a synonym). =A0It does not
mean=

> "without religion." =A0Zen is an example of a religion that is also
atheis=
t.
>
> Atheism qualifies as religion under word's, "religion," definition:
>
> - A set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the
> universe - atheists may or may not, but commonly, believe the universe
beg=
an
> with a "big bang," =A0life arose through evolution and natural
selection, =
and
> so forth (and some non-atheists have similiar beliefs). =A0The fact that
> everyone has beliefs concerning the "cause, nature, and purpose of the
> universe," indicates that everyone has a religion.
>
Atheism is not a religion, nor is theism.