When i see meme I think "what the OII is that"?
posted by koan
Can you be an atheist without believing in memes? That would be good news.
Now that I have looked it up I can state categorically that you can be an atheist without even knowing what a meme is. People were atheist long before richard dawkins just as people believed in god long before jesus christ and the catholic church.
Not only is new atheist a convenient label to use it seems they are now constructing a belief system to fit in with the idea that atheism is just another form of religion. Bit like wearing a frock and flowers in your hair and claiming to be a new age druid. Entertaining, but come off it.
The reality is most people simply prefer a secular society where they can believe what they want without being bullied all the time and the churches are emptying because religion has lost the ability to impose the social sanction they once had and are panicking at the loss of power that a secular society means for religion. The need to impose your religion and values on everybody else like christian fundamentalists would have has it's own insane rationale that at it's heart requires the suspension of reason. Most people just can't be unreasoning and extremes only get and keep power in exceptional circumstances, in a modern world that is harder and harder to do. If all around believe in the things you have been brought up believing it is hard to break away - you do need to learn to think for yourself - now you have home schooling or religious schools and in the states christian universities where the social sanctions are carried through. In the olden days the strictly brought up throwing over the traces when they reach young adulthood was a common theme in literature and films.
I haven't actually read any of Richard Dawkins books, (does that mean I am not a new atheist) I find his style very boring, I got half way through Climbing Mount Improbable before I got fed up and I looked closely at the God delusion with a view to buying and decided it wasn't telling me anything I hadn't already worked out for myself. His notion of the selfish gene is interesting but I doubt even he would claim it to be the whole answer especially since he can't prove it's existence, just as he is only 99.99% certain there is no god. Come to that I haven't read any of Christopher Hitchens books either. I like some of his articles and debates but disagree with him wholeheartedly about the middle and islam. People who see things in black and white are usually wrong.
I m in fact a verty old type of atheist/agnostic call it what you will. I'm a freethinker and we've been around since the dawn of time. We've never gone away and have not just come back. There is no such thing as a new atheist. You don't need someone else's words to express yourself nor cut and paste your philosophy and approach to life from bits you have read nor ask someone how you should view things and what your perspective should be. Being able to quote luther and spinoza at the drop of a hat doesn't mean anything except you have a good memory. Listen and make up your own mind. Same with religion, make up your own mind. I've always suspected the really hostile fundamentalist types, of all types are that way because if they concede someone else who doesn't share their philosophy may have a valid point of view they are entitled to hold their sense of self won't stand because it is a construct not of their own making.
To use a hillwalking analogy - the one with the map and compass and the loud opinion might not know how to read the former or use the latter but believes he does and will brook no argument. It behoves you well to be able to use them yourself and find your own way. Getting lost and making mistakes is how you learn and you learn most when you really screw things up just don't automatically assume the last person you asked the way knows any more than you do.
See, we can all produce tin pot philosophy and pithy sounding sayings.
