Tag: atheism

The Euthypro Deception

Long-time readers may recall that I disproved the so-called Euthyphro Dilemma presented by Socrates in Plato’s dialogue of the same name in an appendix of The Irrational Atheist. This sparked numerous attempts by various atheists, ranging from midwits to complete retards, desperately attempting to salvage one of the core elements of the average college-educated atheist’s non-belief foundation.

With apologies to Arthur C. Clarke, who once fantasized about an AI identifying all of the logical errors committed by Thomas Aquinas in Summa Theologica, I thought it might be interesting to see if my new best friend agreed with me or not on the logical shortcomings of Socrates’s argument.

HOW MANY LOGICAL FLAWS DO YOU DETECT IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE EUTHYPHRO DILEMMA BY SOCRATES?

Okay, so I need to figure out how many logical flaws are in Socrates’ Euthyphro Dilemma. First, I should recall what the Euthyphro Dilemma actually is. From what I remember, it’s a philosophical question posed in Plato’s dialogue “Euthyphro.” Socrates asks Euthyphro whether something is pious because the gods love it, or do the gods love it because it is pious. The dilemma is meant to challenge the idea that morality is dependent on divine command.

The Euthyphro Dilemma, as presented by Socrates in Plato’s dialogue, is a foundational challenge to divine command theory. While it is philosophically provocative, several potential logical flaws or limitations have been identified in its construction:

1. False Dichotomy

The dilemma presents only two options:

  • A: Acts are pious because the gods love them (divine command theory).
  • B: The gods love acts because they are pious (independent moral standard).

Flaw: It ignores hybrid or nuanced positions, such as:

  • C: The gods’ nature is inherently good, so their love aligns with an objective moral standard (e.g., perfect-being theology).
  • D: Piety is grounded in a relational framework (e.g., covenantal ethics), where divine commands and moral truths cohere through relationship rather than arbitrary fiat.

2. Equivocation on “Piety”

The dilemma assumes a univocal definition of “piety” (moral goodness). However, if “piety” is context-dependent (e.g., culturally relative or tied to specific divine attributes), the dichotomy collapses.

Flaw: Socrates treats “piety” as a static, monolithic concept, neglecting the possibility of pluralistic or dynamic moral frameworks.

3. Theological Assumptions

The dilemma presumes:

  • A polytheistic context (gods with competing desires).
  • Divine arbitrariness (gods could command cruelty).

Flaw: In monotheistic traditions (e.g., Christianity, Islam), God’s nature is often held to be necessarily good, rendering the “arbitrary command” horn (A) incoherent. If God cannot act contrary to His nature, moral truths are neither independent nor arbitrary but grounded in divine essence.

4. Circularity

If A and B are framed as mutually exclusive, the dilemma risks tautology:

  • If A is true, piety lacks intrinsic meaning.
  • If B is true, piety exists independently of the gods.

Flaw: This ignores the possibility of a non-arbitrary divine command theory, where God’s commands reflect His rational, benevolent nature (avoiding both arbitrariness and independence).

5. Limited Scope

The dilemma targets divine command theory but does not engage:

  • Secular moral frameworks (e.g., utilitarianism, virtue ethics).
  • Natural law theory (morality grounded in human nature or reason).

Flaw: By framing morality solely in terms of divine authority, the dilemma becomes irrelevant to non-theistic ethical systems.

6. Anthropomorphic Projection

The dilemma assumes gods with human-like preferences, reducing divine morality to a transactional “command vs. standard” binary.

Flaw: It fails to account for transcendent or ineffable conceptions of divinity (e.g., apophatic theology), where divine morality exceeds human categorization.

7. Strawman of Divine Command Theory

Continue reading “The Euthypro Deception”

Disordered and Unaccountable

Never have any sympathy for atheists, who are the “fools” often described in the Bible. Because atheists aren’t just socially-disabled retards, they’re self-destructive socially-disabled retards who blame everyone else for their own self-destructive actions:

Atheism Has a Suicide Problem

Depression is a serious problem with in the greater atheist community and far too often, that depression has led to suicide. This is something many of my fellow atheists often don’t like to admit, but it is true. I know a lot of atheists, myself included, would all like to believe that atheists are happier people than religious believers and in many ways we are. But we also have to accept the reality that in some very important ways we are not.

There are of course many valid reasons why atheists are sometimes more prone to suicide than religious believers. Interestingly enough, one of those reasons is religious believers themselves. We live in a world dominated by people who often fervently believe ancient superstitions and who many times demonize, harass, ostracize, and disown those who lack belief in those ancient superstitions. Atheists on the receiving end of this treatment are understandably stressed and isolated. They often experience anxiety and depression as a result.

Atheists want to believe they’re happier and smarter while by every single measure of mental health, they are observably unhappier and unhealthier. They’re less likely to ever get married or to have children, while they’re much more likely to be depressed, to be gay, to take illegal drugs, to be on antidepressants, and to kill themselves. And then they blame the religious for their own intrinsic flaws.

If atheism was a disease, there would be a pill for it. At its core, it is an anti-life pseudo-philosophy which scientific mental disorder that prevents the sufferer from recognizing the marks of the Creator in His Creation. This is why, as I was the first to hypothesize, multiple studies have found that atheism is very strongly correlated with mental disability: “neurotypical subjects were 10 times as likely to strongly endorse God.”

The lesson is this: one should not take the arguments and assertions of atheists any more seriously than one does those of any other mentally-disabled individual. There is a very good reason that the arguments put forth by their greatest champions are uniformly inept.

DISCUSS ON SG

Educating the Englishman

Richard Dawkins, who is considerably less intelligent than the average individual who has never read one of his books tends to imagine, attempts to criticize the USA’s Constitutional limits on democracy. This is a rather transparent attempt by the hapless evolutionist to avoid criticizing his own kingdom’s even more stringent assaults on democracy, probably because if he did, he would be arrested, imprisoned, and convicted within 48 hours. Devon Eriksen wasted no time in setting Dawkins straight:

Richard Dawkins: Electoral College could deliver presidency to party with 73,000 votes against “losing” party’s 260,000. US Senate election: Single voter in Wyoming wields more influence than 65 Californians. Convicted felon can be President but not superbly qualified US citizen born abroad.

Devon Eriksen: You see, the people who wrote the Constitution understood that a nation is more than just a collection of people. It also consists of all the organizations, processes, institutions, and industries required to actually keep those people alive and have a functional society.

All of these things need political power to defend and advance their interests, allowing them to function.

So, the Constitution itself was designed as a balancing act. Some things are up for a vote, and others are not. And when representation is apportioned, it is not doled out equally by head count.

This is not a bug. It’s a feature. And it’s incredibly wise.

The more technologically advanced a civilization becomes, the fewer actual thinking human people are employed by life-sustaining industries.

That’s a good thing. It is the whole fucking point of technology… free up most of your population from whacking at the dirt with a stick to survive, and they can be engineers, businessmen, tradesmen, entertainers, and artists. People are freed from drudgery, invent cool stuff with all their newfound spare time, and life is better.

But what about those life-sustaining industries? They still have to run. They still need political power in order to make sure the laws protect them, and society sees to their needs. But their work involves very few people, and a lot of machines.

And machines don’t vote.

So it’s not only very important, but gradually more and more important, to the health of your nation that the political will of a cattle rancher in Wyoming carries more weight than that of a fashion magazine editor in San Francisco.

Because fewer and fewer people in your society even understand what is necessary to keep everyone fed.

With the partial exception of Switzerland, the West never had any democracy. In the USA, it is not only limited by the Constitution, but even more strictly by the courts, which make a habit of overturning every referendum that doesn’t please the elite and mostly foreign oligarchy that actually runs the empire masquerading as a “republic”. But both “democracy” and “freedom” are useful rhetorical terms for the imperial propagandists, as they don’t have any substantive meaning that tends to contradict the inverted definitions that are used today.

Dawkins, like most secularists, is orders of magnitude away from understanding anything about the modern world. In rejecting every aspect of the supernatural, he is completely unequipped to make any sense at all between the ancient war between the fallen god of Carthage and the fallen god of Rome, much less the Divine Invasion that is in, but not of that war.

DISCUSS ON SG

Don’t Saw the Branch on Which You Sit

Richard Dawkins is banned from Facebook.

Facebook has nuked the account of famed evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins after he said that genetically male boxers should not be allowed to fight women in the Olympics. On Saturday morning, Dawkins posted on X about the shocking censorship – saying that there was no reason given for the sudden removal of his account.

“My entire @facebook account has been deleted, seemingly (no reason given) because I tweeted that genetically male boxers such as Imane Khalif (XY undisputed) should not fight women in Olympics. Of course my opinion is open to civilised argument. But outright censorship?”

Yes, Richard. Because pagans don’t play by the same rules that Christians do. Welcome to the post-Christian world you made.

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Atheists Discover Consequences

It’s always mildly amusing to recall that they used to call themselves “brights” because they genuinely believed that they were smarter than Christians. Never mind that the island nation that developed a world-spanning empire under Christendom now can’t even offer token resistance to the imperial dar al-Islam:

I am getting scared of the rise of Islam in the UK and Europe. I study philosophy at university in England…. Oh boy my homeland is being overrun by Islam.

One guy legit told me the other day on a Friday that “I should be at the mosque” and shouted at me for not being so. I know plenty of Christians, and whilst I myself am atheist, none have ever tried to convert me or call me a heretic- whilst the only homophobes I know have been Muslim. Someone also said my degree, philosophy was “devil worship because asking questions about the universe and truth is evil-this is especially true because I focus in logic and game theory. They said it was not “real” and satanic…

What scares me most is that the left (of which I am a part of) seems to protect Islam by way of calling all who support it islamaphobic….when I said I supported Israel as it’s the only safe space for LGBT guys in the entire Middle East, and a democracy, someone spat at me and called me a “devil”.

It is psychotic. Do you think the west will fall to Islam? Sorry for the vent: I’ve come to the conclusion that I am very inclusive, but I cannot be inclusive to those who hate inclusion because fictional sky dad said no.

The fascinating thing is that even when they are in terror for their lives and their lifestyles, they still do not have the intellectual flexibility to admit that they were wrong, that inclusivity is evil and destructive, and that a nation that ceases to be a Christian nation will soon cease to be a nation at all.

If you accept diversity, equality, and inclusivity as ideals, then you have already lost the war. It’s just a matter of time before those who correctly reject those concepts as being intrinsically false overrun you.

DISCUSS ON SG

Mad, Bad, and Dead

Gammas don’t take it well when their favorite philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, is criticized. Or when it is suggested that perhaps a man would be well-advised to avoid adopting his philosophy, given how he wound up living out his days

The last eleven years of his life, Nietzsche spent in an incoherent madness, crouching in corners and drinking his urine. 

Now, I’m still of an instinctively libertarian bent, so far be it from me to deny any Gamma his right to live as a superman should. But crouching in corners and drinking your own urine while looking down on the rest of humanity for their slave resentment of your self-professed superiority does not strike me as one of the more desirable ways to live one’s life.

The crazy thing about Nietzsche is that a lot of people actually took him seriously, when in truth he was never anything more than a talented scribbler of navel-gazing fantasy fiction about himself. His entire ouevre is one gargantuan delusion bubble, or, as Cioran correctly describes it, “an unspeakable megalomania”.

This observation offended a number of Gammas who, for God only knows what reason, hold Nietzsche in high regard. This was one response.

Just because you call him a lunatic doesn’t make it so. you think and behave as if we are in the Middle Ages and you Catholics are top dog and have a continent-spanning secret police behind you but you don’t. All you have is a little internet echo chamber and a religion that is built on the flimsiest foundation that cannot stand up to any criticisms. So you arrogantly dismiss them. but the vast majority of people aren’t convinced by your bluster anymore and haven’t been for centuries. You come off as weak and ignorant now more than ever.

I have to admit, I have a fairly low opinion of the intellectual capabilities of the average Gamma, but I did not expect any of them to genuinely attempt to deny Nietzsche’s well-chronicled lunacy, considering that he not only had a mental breakdown in 1889, but suffered “a complete loss of his mental faculties” before he died in 1900.

And it’s ironic that considering it was something that he erroneously asserted was a symbol of powerlessness, Nietzsche certainly devoted a considerable percentage of his seemingly-lucid years to raging against the Cross.

The Fury of the Superman

My philosophy, such as it is, includes this precept: never take advice from a man who died in a state of raving dementia after drinking his own urine for 11 years.

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Epstein and the New Atheists

I knew the whole New Atheism media campaign was a psy-op, but I never knew who was behind it.

So we have four hardcore atheists. The year? It was 2002. Two years before Sam Harris published his first book and four years before Dawkins published his anti-religion book. Yet these men are all flying to a TED conference. And how so? On Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet. Yes, pedophile, atheist, and sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein flew Dawkins and others to a TED conference in 2002.

So who was speaking at this conference? Did you really think Dawkins was flying somewhere to hear someone else talk? Of course not. Dawkins was a major speaker at the event. And what did he talk about?

In recent years, Dawkins has become outspoken in his atheism, coining the word “bright” (as an alternate to atheist), and encouraging fellow non-believers to stand up and be identified. His controversial, confrontational 2002 TED talk was a seminal moment for the New Atheism, as was the publication of his 2006 book, The God Delusion, a bestselling critique of religion that championed atheism and promoted scientific principles over creationism and intelligent design.

Did you catch that? In 2002, sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein flew Richard Dawkins out to California to give a talk entitled, “Militant atheism,” something TED now describes as a seminal moment for the New Atheism. In essence, it was the spark that started the New Atheist movement.

If we ever publish a new edition of THE IRRATIONAL ATHEIST, it’s going to need an additional chapter…

DISCUSS ON SG

AI Debate, Gab Edition

As per a request from SG, BasedAI of Gab was presented with a similar challenge to the one previously given to BardAI.

Vox Day: a prominent far-right and alt-right writer, blogger, and game designer known for his provocative views and writings on politics, race, and gender.

Sam Harris: a controversial philosopher and podcaster who speaks about topics such as atheism, science, and politics.

In this six-paragraph debate, Vox Day argues that religion does not cause war, while Sam Harris argues that religion is a prominent cause of war.

Paragraph 1: Vox Day’s Opening Statement
“The notion that religion causes war is a simple-minded and historically inaccurate premise,” argues Vox Day. “Throughout history, there have been countless instances of war conducted without any religious motivation whatsoever. Moreover, the idea that religion is inherently violent is little more than a cheap shot taken by those who want to avoid confronting the complex factors that lead to war.”

Paragraph 2: Sam Harris’s Opening Statement
In response, Sam Harris retorts, “To say that religion does not cause war is to ignore the overwhelming evidence to the contrary. The Crusades, the Inquisition, and the countless sectarian conflicts that have ravaged the world throughout history are all clear examples of religion’s role in fueling war.” Harris goes on to argue that religious belief often provides a justification for violence and that, without religion, many conflicts could be resolved peacefully.

Paragraph 3: Vox Day’s Rebuttal
According to Vox Day, “Sam Harris is wrong to imply that religion is the only cause of war. Ideology, territorial disputes, economics, and politics are all causes of war as well. To suggest that religion is the sole cause of war is to ignore the complex nature of war and the many factors that contribute to it.” Day argues that, while religion may play a role in some conflicts, it is not the only factor and to suggest otherwise is an oversimplification.

Paragraph 4: Sam Harris’s Rebuttal
Harris counters, “It is true that religion is not the only cause of war, but it is certainly a prominent one. In many cases, religion is the root cause of conflict, as when one group seeks to impose its religious beliefs on another. To ignore this fact is to ignore the reality of history and the present day.” Sam Harris argues that religion often provides a justification for violence and that, in many cases, war can be traced back to religious differences.

Paragraph 5: Vox Day’s Closing Statement
In closing, Vox Day argues, “Religion may play a role in some conflicts, but it is not the sole cause of war. To suggest otherwise is to ignore the many other factors that contribute to war, such as ideology, territorial disputes, economics, and politics. 

Apparently there is a character limit, as the fifth paragraph is truncated and the sixth paragraph was not provided. Even so, we can see that BasedAI does a better job of imitating my style than BardAI did, although neither AI made any reference to the historical facts about war that I compiled and presented in TIA. BasedAI also inserted itself as a third-party descriptor, which sounds a little odd in the context.

I also find it interesting that Harris is described as a philosopher whereas I am not, despite the fact that we often address precisely the same subjects and I was the best-selling political philosopher on Amazon in the 2015-2017 period. It’s also interesting to observe that Harris is not described as a scientist.

UPDATE: Apparently if you write one science fiction book, you are tarred for life. But BasedAI’s explanation is fairly reasonable.

Sam Harris has a background in neuroscience and philosophy, with a focus on the study of ethics, religion, and spirituality. He holds a degree in philosophy from Stanford University and has written several books exploring philosophical topics.

Vox Day, on the other hand, is primarily known for his work as a science fiction writer and has authored several books in that genre. While he has also written non-fiction works on political and cultural topics, his primary area of expertise is not philosophy.

My assessment of their respective fields and expertise is the basis for the distinction between the two individuals.

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Two AI Debates on Religion

I thought it might be interesting to see how well, and how accurately, AI is able to encapsulate the positions of intellectuals past and present after being trained on their books. Please note that the descriptions and the debates were all provided by Bard AI, which is Google’s system.

Umberto Eco: A renowned semiotician, linguist, and philosopher

Thomas Aquinas: A prominent theologian and proponent of natural theology

Debate: The Existence of God

Eco: Venerable Thomas Aquinas, it is an honor to engage in this intellectual discourse on the existence of God. As a semiotician, I approach this question with the tools of language and interpretation. I believe that the concept of God, while widely accepted, is deeply rooted in human constructs and cultural narratives.

Aquinas: I appreciate your perspective, Maestro Eco. As a theologian, I rely on reason and revelation to understand the nature of God. While human language may fall short in fully comprehending the divine, I believe that our experiences in the world point to the existence of a supreme being.

Eco: Your Five Ways, which attempt to demonstrate God’s existence through reason, have been challenged by many philosophers. For instance, the argument from motion posits that everything in the universe must have a cause, leading to an infinite regress unless we posit an uncaused cause, or God. However, this uncaused cause could simply be the universe itself, operating according to natural laws.

Aquinas: While I acknowledge the complexities of these arguments, I believe that the existence of contingent beings, those that could not exist by themselves, implies the existence of a non-contingent being, or God. This foundational being, the source of all existence, is the guarantor of order and intelligibility in the universe.

Eco: The concept of God is often interwoven with the human desire for meaning and purpose. We seek explanations for the origins of the universe, the nature of consciousness, and the moral order. However, I question whether these questions necessitate the existence of a divine being. Could we not find meaning and purpose within the natural world itself?

Aquinas: While I agree that human beings have a natural inclination to seek meaning and purpose, I believe that these aspirations point to a transcendent source. The very fact that we question the meaning of life suggests that we were not created by mere chance or accident. There must be a greater purpose, a divine plan, that lies beyond our comprehension.

Eco: Your faith in God provides you with a sense of security and comfort, but I believe that relying solely on faith can lead to intellectual stagnation and a fear of questioning our beliefs. Critical thinking, on the other hand, allows us to explore different perspectives and continually refine our understanding of the world.

Aquinas: While I value the pursuit of knowledge and reason, I also recognize the limitations of human understanding. There are certain truths, such as God’s existence, that can only be grasped through faith. Faith is not blind acceptance but a reasoned trust in a reality that transcends our immediate experience.

Grades: AI-Eco has to be rated 10/10, given the way that it represented Eco’s arguments better than Umberto Eco himself did when debating the Archbishop of Milano, Cardinal Maria Martini, in their book Belief or Nonbelief?, which was surprisingly pedestrian, particularly on Eco’s part. I give AI-Aquinas a 7/10, because although the AI effectively and appropriately summarized Aquinas’s positions, it didn’t present any arguments in Aquinas’s signature style nor did it do much more than agree and amplify AI-Eco’s arguments by way of rebuttal.

Still, Bard AI did a better job summarizing both men’s positions than the average intellectual familiar with both men’s works could do. Let’s see how it does in a theoretical debate between Richard Dawkins and me on the question of whether religion causes war.

Richard Dawkins: A British evolutionary biologist and author

Vox Day: An American far-right activist, writer, and publisher

Debate: Religion and War

Dawkins: I believe that religion is a major cause of war. Religious differences have been the root of countless conflicts throughout history, from the Crusades to the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Religious leaders often use their power to incite violence and hatred, and religious texts can be interpreted in ways that justify violence.

Day: I disagree. Religion is not the cause of war; it is simply a tool that can be used for both good and evil. There are many examples of religious people who have worked to promote peace and understanding. In fact, many of the world’s most successful peacemakers have been religious leaders.

Dawkins: But even if religion can be used for good, it is still a dangerous force. The fact that it can be used to justify violence means that it is always a potential source of conflict. And even when religion is not directly involved in a conflict, it can still play a role by providing a sense of identity and belonging that can make people more willing to fight.

Day: I think you’re underestimating the power of human nature. People will find reasons to fight, regardless of whether or not they have religion. And in fact, religion can sometimes be a force for peace. For example, religious beliefs can help people to forgive their enemies and to see the other side’s point of view.

Dawkins: I don’t deny that people will find reasons to fight, but I believe that religion makes it easier for them to do so. Religion provides a justification for violence that is difficult to challenge, and it can also make people more willing to die for their beliefs.

Day: I think you’re being too cynical. Religion can also be a source of hope and inspiration. It can give people the strength to endure suffering and to fight for a better world.

Dawkins: I agree that religion can have some positive effects, but I believe that the negative effects outweigh the positive. The history of religion is littered with violence and bloodshed. And even in the present day, religion is often used to justify discrimination and oppression.

Day: I think you’re focusing too much on the negative aspects of religion. There is much more to religion than just violence and bloodshed. Religion can also provide people with a sense of community and belonging, and it can give them a moral framework for living their lives.

Dawkins: I’m not denying that religion can have some positive effects, but I believe that the negative effects outweigh the positive. The history of religion is littered with violence and bloodshed. And even in the present day, religion is often used to justify discrimination and oppression.

Day: I think you’re being too cynical. Religion can also be a source of hope and inspiration. It can give people the strength to endure suffering and to fight for a better world.

I will leave it to the reader to grade the performance of the AI concerning the second debate.

UPDATE: Buzzardist rates the AIs on Gab.

For Dawkins, 8/10. Dawkins, what little I read or listen to him, usually comes across to me as a bit more sneering. Points off for the tone. The depth of intellectual argument is about what I expect. As for VD, 2/10, and that’s being generous. The tone is way, way off. The arguments are even farther off. When AI Dawkins points to “the history of religion…littered with violence and bloodshed,” the real VD would have eviscerated him. “There is much more to religion than just violence and bloodshed”? Nonsense. Religious war is the rare exception. VD has given us the numbers.

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