John Smith wrote on Mar 16
th, 2013 at 4:27pm:
I don't position myself as being intellectually superior or inferior, that is for others to decide, I merely stated my opinion ... I can see why someone may take that attitude if they feel threatened or unsure of their belief, but that is for them to work out and not my fault. I cannot help how you interpret my comment
Yet that is exactly what you are doing when you say something like this...
Quote:"anyone that believes in fairy tales, ogres, mystical beings that rule over the world or any other such nonsense can only be described as an idiot"
wrong , I am merely giving my opinion on the topic at hand. Are you suggesting that the only opinions I can give are those that you or the person asking agree with? Otherwise I am positioning myself as intellectually superior .. ????? Like I said, you are free to interpret my response anyway you like, and 10 different people can have 10 different variations on how they may interpret it, each dependant on their own experiences.
This is not the words of someone thinking; '
I don't think I'm intellectually superior to this person, I just don't share their beliefs'. Saying
'anyone who believes X is an idiot' makes it very clear how you view your own intellect compared to theirs, especially when you have to misrepresent their beliefs to do it.
Quote: Quote:Interesting that you claim not to tell people what to believe, but you will call people idiots for believing it anyway.
Person 1: I believe in Jesus
Person 2: You should not believe that
Person 1: I believe in Jesus
Person 2: You are an idiot for believing that
I fail to see the difference except person 2 in the first example is better mannered.
I)
When have I ever told anyone they shouldn't believe in Jesus ... I chose not to believe, you believe whatever you like
2) Since you asked, Who said I didn't believe in Jesus? He existed, although not in the way the bible has you believe ... he was referred to once in Roman records ..although those records simply say he was a criminal who was crucified ... no mention of a resurrection or any of the miracles he supposedly worked .. funny that considering the Romans were meticulous record keepers.
I never said you did directly. But calling someone an idiot for believing X isn't much different from telling them not to believe X. Calling someone an idiot for what they believe hardly fits with...
it is very different, you are judging me by your standards , my response is determined by totally different standards ..
Quote:I chose not to believe, you believe whatever you like.
If you really lived by that you wouldn't be calling everyone who isn't an atheist an idiot.
but I don't call them all idiots ... only those who ask me for my OPINION .