I'd say atheist don't dismiss the possibility of mystery - we completely understand that there are things that science hasn't discovered yet and we also accept that there are many things that we fully expect that science will explain better in the future. We just don't accept that we cannot know or that we shouldn't try to understand and then attribute anything slightly complicated to a God.

Nope. Doesn't mean that. It DOES help to have a certain amount of confidence in your opinions, coupled with some open-mindedness to hear others explain their opinions without feeling everything is a personal attack. I think there are certainly others here who share the bulk of your listed opinions. I agree with more than half of what you listed. I must confess, I'm ignorant of what "LFTR" means. ??

@MikeInBatonRouge LFTR means in nuclear power terms: Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor. It leaves very little radioactive waste, Is very abundant fuel, does not produce weapons grade plutonium easily, is 99% efficient of fuel use, and can burn existing waste fuel of light water reactors. It burns at about 600 degrees centigrade, and has no cooling system. Google salt cooled reactors, or LFTR. It is amazing science, and the future if politics were not a factor. Look for Sorensen as a speaker. He explains this concept well. It has been proven since the 60's.

sounds good to me.re your set of beliefs. I am not sure what brought up your question. When I first got here I posted things that just got no response on different topics. I saw some posts that really upset ,me. I started to follow a lot of people that did have similar points of view and just block the people that got me upset. I am not sure if that was the difference but I am enjoying it here much more now

@btroje I have not blocked anyone, but have been tempted.

I am sincerely curious. Why haven't you blocked anybody, @Leutrelle? I get a vague sense that some people see blocking as a rude behavior. Is that how you see it?

For me, blocking somebody is tantamount to quietly leaving a party, or quietly removing people from my sight who I don't enjoy hearing speak for myriad reasons.

Like @btroje said and I agree, after blocking many people (over time) -- especially those I find combative or just ugly to people -- I truly enjoy being her almost ALL of the time. Blocking really does work.

Like @Mikeinbatonrouge said, I also agree with most of your positions, so maybe you actually do fit here, but you just don't like every person. Well, there is a very easy solution to that part and it doesn't entail your leaving.

@Leutrelle there are new people coming in all the time.Just in the past week I was thinking how the overall tone of the site had changed. Posts seem lighter. Earlier I felt I needed to have a degree in philosophy and be willing to write an essay to participate

@BlueWave thanks for saying what I was thinking. It is exactly like moving to another room at a party.Just quietly do it and no one is harmed.I think i was rude a few times when I got hooked by what some people were saying and responded whereas if I were face to face I would have just gone away.

@BlueWave I don't block because I haven't been pressured, or offended bad enough by anyone thus far

If you have read any of my threads, I really stress the need for responsible gun ownership. I think all gun owners should be throughly educated, and trained in use of guns. I am strongly in support of Physically responsible politics. Thank you for your support

@Leutrelle Exactly ... it should be possible to have a system where people can own fire arms for hunting, sport, home defence and for fun .... but limit ownership/access and to train owners to use them and store them safely. Also, I'd like to think that a modern society doesn't need assault rifles and high capacity magazines outside LEOs and the military but I fear that the US has so many of these in circulation that it would be practically impossible to prevent ownership.

@Leutrelle I'd also add to your original post that atheists tend to be free thinkers who look at the world and form their own opinions based on the best facts they can find. So it would seem natural for us to not lean to the extremes of politics and to dogmatically follow a particular way of thinking. So to have a mixture of views based on your experience and where you see your moral priorities seems like the right way to be, to me

@ChrisR Yes I agree that atheist tend to lean to extremes of politics. I do own a arsenal of AR's. Wether they are assault weapons depends on the owner. Mine are sport guns. I shoot paper, and I love to hit the bulls eye. If have to use them for self defense, then I pity those whom I have to defend myself or family from. They will have to be very good to survive. I have been in street battle, and it is terrifying.

@Leutrelle Actually I said we don't lean to the extremes because we take a more pragmatic, evidence-based approach But yeah, I was sad when here they banned a whole raft of guns which included a lot of sport handguns. I own an air-rifle for targets in the garden and to control pests and I'd probably be an active pest-control hunter on local nature reserves if owning a rifle wasn't so difficult here.

@ChrisR I don't think anything you or @leutrelle describe is "right wing" in terms of gun ownership. There is completely ban guns on the far left; all out free-for-all about guns on the far right. Responsible gun ownership, training, background checks, and on and on and on is middle of the road -- to me. I am completely liberal (but do not consider myself fanatical) and I am squarely in the middle on guns. I have a gun. For two reasons. Self protection within my home; and target shooting. Rape is not fun. And, anybody who thinks a woman can fight off a rapist in her home, with doors closed and insulated walls, already in a lying down position, without a weapon, is delusional. In my opinion.

I thank you. I am only hoping that I can fit in. I truly feel from many comments that I do't fit.

@diabhal oh yes we would

I agree except...people who have defied the norm regarding religion and instead thought for themselves probably aren't going to buy into the con man currently at the helm.

I'm interested in knowing from you (and maybe you can speak for other Trump supporters as well) how such avid support can be given to someone who has displayed such grossly unbecoming behaviour. As an intelligent person, I'm sure I don't need to list for you the hundreds of displays of misogyny, racism, immature egoism, stretching the truth, and just blatant lying.

These are not false accusations leveled by media trying to broadcast "fake news", but rather are incident upon incident documented on film and audio for anyone's review; there's no misinterpretation or re-contextualizing these displays - it's all in black and white so to speak.

Is it that he's the best that America can come up with? Is it that you'll simply back any republican, no matter the person? I'm truly curious.

@Hominid If Obama couldn’t couldn’t get congress to go along with him he just went around congress with executive orders and EPA regulations often illegally. Trump has undone a lot of Obama’s stupid regulations. In my community here in western Oklahoma people were so disgusted with the Democrats that Trump carried 87% of the vote and carried all 77 of the counties in Oklahoma, my Home state. Seeing as your Canadian why are you so concerned about Trump. You should be more concerned about getting rid of that liberal idiot Trudeau.

Thank you @Trajan61, I've heard all I need to...

but corvids

Please speak only for yourself...I am a savage.

@btroje what's a corvid?

@MST3K crows ravens and their kind. I play with words and have an odd sense of humor and say things that may not be that funny if you don't know me at times. I was just thinking about how a bunch of smart birds might act

@MST3K Corvidae a family of birds including Crows Jays and Ravens

@dahermit do you aspire to be a savage ? The adjective or the noun?

@Corvus The noun. My view is that it is not food, a tool or I cannot have sex with it, it has no purpose.

@btroje lol, I see

@Corvus "quoth the corvid,nevermore!"

@dahermit I see an extreme egocentric perspective, is an Idea or thought that inspires wonder and awe have a function?

@Corvus Change the word "inspire" to "stimulates" and "wonder and awe" to "a search for something useful", then yes, it has a function. Also, you are assuming an "extreme egocentric perspective". Consider your assumption from the perspective that I am a high-functioning Asperger's Syndrome person (you may have to do some reading) and you may find your assumption is not accurate.

@dahermit I make no Judgement whatsoever and making an assumption on a single sentence or two is unwise. I was just hoping for clarification, and received it thank you.

@MST3K Corvid doesn't roll off your tongue like Raven.

@MST3K Act like a dog. If you can't eat it or fuck it, piss on it and walk away?

@Corvus Yeah, I know.That was kind of the joke

@SherryMartin You may have mistaken a comment by someone else as mine... otherwise, I don't really understand why you said that.

Or maybe you misunderstood who one of my replies was intended for. I think I saw the post that offended you when I checked,and I was responding to someone else.

@MST3K I think you may be correct about who it was directed at but I wasn't offended- just being funny. And failing apparently LOL

@SherryMartin Oh okay I wasn't sure, but I scrolled and saw that comment, and I thought maybe you thought I had laughed at it

@MST3K A comment made by DeHermit reminded me of a saying I heard long ago: treat your problems like a dog would. If you can't eat it or screw it, piss on it and walk away.

@SherryMartin lol

I don't like political dogma! Religious people fear me so I have no problems with theist. If they mind their manners, then I mind mine. On this site when it comes to politics it can be nasty. I did a poll on this site and I found I am out number 20 to 1.

@Leutrelle Got you... stay a while. There is a reason why I don't vote and do not complaint about government much but I do take it as an offense when people believe a third party will make things better because suddenly politicians will become honest and do their job. They never had... They never will. They should study politics in South America with the third parties. America is a Young Country and do not have the headstart Europeans enjoy. And we shall not forget... a Young Country gave us 2 World Wars in the country first 100 years. Modern History.

I have to politely disagree on your last sentence. I find a lot more cordial, good-natured conversations and sharing of ideas and views, than I do actual debates. Yes, there are debates here from time to time. But mostly just friendly conversations, in my experience. I know that I, personally, am not at all here "about debate." I'm here for community -- hanging out -- being 'round like-minded peeps in one way or another. -She says with 187 cry face emojis because she lives in the middle of the bible belt red sea.-

You may right, I may crazy

@Leutrelle But it just may be a lunatic you're looking for.

Well done, I like frame those words

@Leutrelle In all cases your always welcome at my lodge

Agreed. A-theist can believe ANYTHING they want, they just can NOT believe in a god(s).

I have watch you fiercely debate Brovo

Thank you, I've spent years honing my craft.

@jayneonacobb Frankly I am not so sure what folks mean by those terms anymore. I used to, but not anymore.
Many Conservatives will speak the word Liberal with Venom, or twist it into something else like "libtard", when a Liberal is really a person who supports, endorses and defends the principal of Liberty; The ability to live ones life as one sees fit to live it.
Which strikes me as a conservative value.
Many Liberals will do the very same thing to conservatives, conflate Cons with Convicts with criminal with a lack of human compassion. When the term originally meant people who wanted to preserve American Social Values and demanded fiscal responsibility (not anymore in this GOP)

NOW it seems to me that news outlets and BOTH parties work day and night to keep Red hating Blue and Blue hating Red by turning up the heated rhetoric on certain hot topics, while ignoring their own core values. This only works to keep Americans fighting Americans, and is the core of a Divide and Conquer tactic. It is much easier for a wealthy Oligarchy to keep the masses in check if they blame each other rather than realize it is a tiny minority who is lording it over them all.

E Plurubus Unum terrifies modern politicians.

@Davesnothere I agree, modern American politics is a two headed snake. The difference between a liberal and a conservative is that the liberals tend to want a large government with a smaller military.

and a beard

You just want to grab me by my beard and kiss me. Admit it!@btroje

I am guess I was saying that politicly I have more in common with a theist, but I do enjoy this site, so it is really a non issue. I guess i wanted to see how it felt to come out of the closet

@Leutrelle Need sunglasses?

@Davesnothere Funny