ToakReon's Profile

Want to know what percentage of the community believes in free will?

ToakReon comments on Jan 29, 2018:

After my silly 'joke' response I thought I'd give a real one. The concept of free will is fundamentally incompatable with the concept of cause and effect. If what you choose to do is the 'effect' of external 'causes' then it is not truly your free choice - if it is not then, by definition, you have 'effect' without 'cause'.

Want to know what percentage of the community believes in free will?

ToakReon comments on Jan 29, 2018:

I don't know who Will is - but unless he has been found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of an imprisonable offence, I hope he's free.

How did life originate?

ToakReon comments on Jan 29, 2018:

There is an enormous difference between the original origination of life, and the process by which it evolved. The actual origination of life was a far more random event than it's subsequent 'shaping' by evolution - but that's the beauty of billions of passing years. If you just kerp throwing the dice - time after time for billions of years - eventually even unlikely things will happen. It's not a matter of 'if' - just 'when'. Then you get evolution.

Question

ToakReon comments on Jan 29, 2018:

It is an indication of how closely agnostic.com thinks you 'match' with that person, based on the answers in your profile - or so I understand myself.

Do you think you understand the bible better than most christians?

ToakReon comments on Jan 28, 2018:

Hmmm ... 'understand' the bible more? This boils down to whether christians truly DON'T UNDERSTAND the bible (either they haven't read it or they're pig think) - or whether they UNDERSTAND it but choose to deliberately MISINTERPRET it (they're actively dishonest). I'm not sure which is true for the majority of christians.

Sex. And, then what?

ToakReon comments on Jan 28, 2018:

Surely it's undoing the handcuffs ...

Is it wrong to challenge the beliefs of the elderly?

ToakReon comments on Jan 28, 2018:

As life passes humans get more set in their ways, and have less time to benefit from change - so there is a 'diminishing return' from trying to change people's set viewpoints as they get older. I tend to feel that by the time the hair on someone's head is largely grey there really is little point.

Was I wrong to laugh in her face?

ToakReon comments on Jan 28, 2018:

The world is full of theists who honestly haven't a clue about what an atheist truly is. Their own belief in god leads them to believe that atheists must also believe, but are dishonest.

Could you do a 5-45 minute talk on why you're and atheist?

ToakReon comments on Jan 28, 2018:

Yes.

Feeling more connected with the people on this site than I do with people I have known most of my ...

ToakReon comments on Jan 28, 2018:

It's good to be allowed to think, Shelton. To be among people who aren't afraid to ask questions for fear of offending the non-existant.

How many want to bet the Evangelicals blame the flu on gay people and liberals?

ToakReon comments on Jan 28, 2018:

Or Obama or atheists ...

What do you give instead of thoughts and prayers?

ToakReon comments on Jan 27, 2018:

What do I give instead of thoughts and prayers? Actual help.

Forever atheist?

ToakReon comments on Jan 26, 2018:

I have never been religious. I had the good fortune to have trusting parents who allowed me to make up my own mind.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how annoyed are you when the religious try to mix science with belief!

ToakReon comments on Jan 26, 2018:

Sometimes christians say something scientifically valid - and when they do, their words are as sensible as anyone else's. The problem is that when christians try to use science to back their beliefs, when they almost invariably descend into nonsense and 'pseudo science' which is as invalid as the faith they are trying to support.

What Is Your Favorite Genre Of Music?

ToakReon comments on Jan 26, 2018:

None of the above. Classical - mainly ranging from Johann Sebastian Bach (1750s) through to Dmitry Shostakovich (second half 20th century) ... and a few outside those dates such as Thomas Tallis and Carl Vine.

Do old songs run through your head randomly....?

ToakReon comments on Jan 26, 2018:

The 'old tune' currently stuck in my head is the second movement of Beethoven's Piano Sonata number 17 - the 'Tempest Sonata'.

I thought this was just beyond funny.

ToakReon comments on Jan 26, 2018:

Even if you are crazy enough to believe you can convert lions to christianity - to do so you would have to be able to communicate with them. This is therefore stupid on two different levels. Firstly that lions can be converted to christianity - secondly that a man can talk to them.

How chivalrous are you?

ToakReon comments on Jan 26, 2018:

There is a difference between 'traditional chivalry' when a man's behaviour towards a woman is based on the traditional way a MAN (specifically) is supposed to behave towards a WOMAN (specifically) and 'good manners' which is the way a decent person (regardless of gender) should behave towards another person (also regardless of gender). If a man's behaviour towards a woman is dictated by GENDER then it is an outdated concept.

Hi how is everone

ToakReon comments on Jan 26, 2018:

Well, I don't know about everyone, but I'm OK.

What would be the definition of hell to you?

ToakReon comments on Jan 24, 2018:

HELL: (noun) A mythical place inhabited by ardent, god-fearing, evangelistic christians who believe they have a divine right to judge all others by whatever values of personal morality they, themselves, have and to hate gays, foreigners, heretics, and everyone else they choose to hate. For some obscure reason some people believe this place to be paradise - but personally I could hardly think of anywhere worse.

What does evolution mean to you?

ToakReon comments on Jan 23, 2018:

1. Are traits passed from parents to children? If parents are tall, does that make their children more likely to be tall? If parents are intelligent, does that make their children more likely to be intelligent? 2. Despite the above, are there 'random variations' in offspring? The three tall daughters of two tall parents may all have a tendancy to tallness, but do they still vary - some taller than others? 3. Can variations in physical aspects alter the chance of survival to child-bearing adulthood? If a child is stupid, or clumsy, or lives in an environment where they need to hunt for food, can their physical characteristics affect their survival rate? If the answer is 'yes' to 1, 2, and 3 above you WILL GET EVOLUTION. Simple as that.

Some say that the earth(modern civilization as we know it) has lived and died before.

ToakReon comments on Jan 23, 2018:

There is evidence of ancient civilization - ruins, art, records, graves, human-caused evvironmental change (deforestation for farming, and so on), etc. There is evidence of millions of years of life - fossils, dna records. So if there was a former 'intelligent life' that disappeared, don't you think there would be SOME evidence? Somewhere?

What political party do you consider yourself to be?

ToakReon comments on Jan 21, 2018:

I lean towards making ordinary peoples' lives better - which, I guess, means somewhat 'left of centre' (or, as US Republicans would say, a HOWLING COMMUNIST). However I have found no pollitical party that is active and meaningfully strong which does not pander to the wealthy and corporate business more than I would like to myself ... so I don't really associate with a party.

This one's about you?

ToakReon comments on Jan 21, 2018:

I tend to be honest. I tend to care. I tEnD tO bE a CoMpLeTe PaIn In ThE aRsE wHo SoMeTiMeS wRiTeS iN aLtErNaTe CaPiTaLs AnD lOwEr CaSe JuSt To PiSs PeOpLe OfF.

Hi. Here is a question: have you changed a cherished opinion you held based on new evidence?

ToakReon comments on Jan 21, 2018:

I must confess I don't really 'cherish' opinions. I have opinions, but they are not of themselves valuable, except in the way they fit and explain what happens.

Should money continued to being spent on a mission to Mars when so much money is needed for research...

ToakReon comments on Jan 20, 2018:

Yes - there are OTHER misuses of money, indeed many of them, but exploring and searching for new knowledge is not one of those misuses.

Do You Believe The World Will End, Or We Face Global Extinction?

ToakReon comments on Jan 20, 2018:

Of course all life will end. Nothing is permanent. Not the earth. Not the sun. Not life on this planet. It's just a matter of when.

How can there be global warming? It's cold outside! [livescience.com]

ToakReon comments on Jan 19, 2018:

How can humans be described as 'intelligent life' when people can't tell the difference between short-term weather and long-term climate?

Who are your favourite authors /poet's and why?

ToakReon comments on Jan 18, 2018:

For me the opening of 'Under Milk Wood' by Dylan Thomas is about as perfect as the written word in English can be. The First Voice's introduction, starting:- 'To begin at the beginning: It is spring, moonless night in the small town, starless and bible-black, the cobblestreets silent and the hunched, courters'-and-rabbits' wood limping invisible down to the sloeblack, slow, black, crowblack, fishingboat-bobbing sea ...' on to:- '... Only you can hear and see, behind the eyes of the sleepers, the movements and countries and mazes and colours and dismays and rainbows and tunes and wishes and flight and fall and despairs and big seas of their dreams. From where you are, you can hear their dreams.' For me those words are magic beyond belief. Haunting. Overwhelming. Words of extraordinary rhythm, power and image ... and if I hear them spoken well, by someone who understands them and knows how to make the best of them, they will instantly reduce me to tears of wonder.

Do you think atheists are actively seeking to destroy religion, as many religious people claim?

ToakReon comments on Jan 18, 2018:

Most atheists simply want people to think, and question, and base their lives on rational consideration of checkable evidence - the 'problem' for religion is that rational thought is incompatable with faith, so religion is 'attacked by proxy'.

The False Reality – Why Christianity Requires Ignorance

ToakReon comments on Jan 18, 2018:

Start with a belief that critical thinking would inevitably challenge. Then supporting that belief requires you to not critically think. It really is the simplest of questions.

Find an atheist for a good company

ToakReon comments on Jan 18, 2018:

Best of lick in the search Annya

What age should be the age of legal consent for sex?

ToakReon comments on Jan 18, 2018:

It's a compromise at best. There are some very mature, sensible young people who, even at an early age, would be QUITE wise enough to make decisions about their sexual activity. Then there are some who never reach that level of maturity even when their hair is going grey. The age of consent, wherever it is, will always fail to protect some whose maturity does not match their years while overly restricting others who are mature above their age. In Britain it's 16. My thoughts - not perfect, it never can be, but around there is probably 'about right'

Okay, tax exemption status for churches.

ToakReon comments on Jan 18, 2018:

A genuine charity should:- 1. Not be directly connected to any religion 2. Use it's collections for the benefit of the unfortunates it claims to help - admittedly charities have genuine administration costs, but their financial records should be fully open to public scrutiny and their charity status should depend on the genuine nature of the aid they give A church collecting money of which 'some' might, possibly, go to good causes - but some go to the church - and exactly what goes where is nicely hidden, is NOT charity.

If all male politicians were replaced by women we'd either have world peace or some really ...

ToakReon comments on Jan 17, 2018:

Really? I look at male politicians at the 'top of politics' and they seem very different creatures from 'ordinary men' - just look at Donald Trump, Boris Johnson and Vladimir Putin. I look at female politicians at the 'top of politics' and they seem very different creatures from 'ordinary women' - just look at Theresa May, Sarah Palin and Aung San Suu Kyi. I don't think a 'big difference' would happen if women replaced men - I think the big difference would be if we could get 'career politicians' of EITHER sex out of politics.

If the Bible Were Law, Would You Qualify for the Death Penalty?

ToakReon comments on Jan 17, 2018:

Yes - many times over. Worked on the sabbath, for example.

Why do you think that just because my boobs are big?

ToakReon comments on Jan 16, 2018:

The problem is that there are women who have earned fame through the size of their boobs and little else. That, then, leads people to assume that ALL women with big boobs have 'little else' - in invallid assumption. Yes, it's unjust - but you assess what is before you based on what you've already seen unless you have the wisdom to consciously recognise that danger and deliberately set it aside.

Tell me something random about you...

ToakReon comments on Jan 16, 2018:

I wove a 10 foot, Kangaroo hide, 16-plait bullwhip for my niece and her husband to be as an (unusual) wedding pressent.

What is your favorite kind of dog ?

ToakReon comments on Jan 16, 2018:

A friendly one. Character is more important than appearance - though I have to admit I like a dog to have a decent length of nose, so pugs, etc go down the list!

If you could live anywhere in the world except your homeland, where would that be?

ToakReon comments on Jan 16, 2018:

Somewhere with high mountains.

Is belief a choice?

ToakReon comments on Jan 16, 2018:

Belief might not, of itself, be a choice - but deliberately discarding the evidence that challenges it is. If you believe in Noah's Flood, and someone points out to you the absurdity of the tale (and there are many, many absurdities) then you choose to either genuinely consider those points or to discard them out of hand. That's where the actual choice lies. If you choose to consider the points, then I suspect your belief in Noah's Flood will be shaken - but that's not you 'choosing to not believe', it's you 'choosing to think rationally' and the loss of belief is the consequence.

How Well Do You Suspend Your Disbelief?

ToakReon comments on Jan 15, 2018:

I'm writing my second novel. It takes place in a society of subterainian elves, who are capable of sorcery, and who worship a goddess called Udyth. I have no difficulty generating fiction myself, or enjoying it. I 'know' it's not true - but neither is 'gritty modern drama' even if it is more believable.

How do you let people know you're interested in meeting them if you're a level one?

ToakReon comments on Jan 13, 2018:

Talk. Comment. Get involved. Post. Show yourself to be someone of views and interest - and within scant days you will no longer be a 'level one'

Why aren't churches taxed, after all they are "For Profit" organizations?

ToakReon comments on Jan 12, 2018:

Churches aren't taxed in the US because the American people accept that they should not be taxed. If the American people demanded the churches were taxed, and would not vote for anyone unless they agreed to the taxation of churches, then they would be taxed.

Men, what is up with the fascination of a younger woman ?

ToakReon comments on Jan 10, 2018:

It's the hard-wired 'breeding imperative'. OK - men don't always want to father children, but the 'gut reaction' to potential partners is driven by that 'biological aim'. Young women tend to be healthy, and are therefore 'prime breeding partners'.

Why do so many people in the US seek out therapy?

ToakReon comments on Jan 10, 2018:

Because many Americans are dingbats.

If you were God, what would be the moral thing to do?

ToakReon comments on Jan 9, 2018:

If I was god, what would I do? I would give a big, open 'Goodbye speech' in which I undeniably stated that I, as god, was retiring from all 'divine duties', that no further prayers were going to be listened to, that heaven and hell were shutting down and when you die you will be dead, that the definition of morallity is 'make life more satisfying and enjoyable for your fellow inhabitants of Earth' and the definition of imorality is 'acting in a way that causes harm or distress to your fellow inhabitants of Earth' (ie the 'two commandments' to replace the ten) ... and then, speech over, I'd sod off and never appear or do anything - other than keep reminding people I'd retired, by sending regular 'enjoying my retirement' postcards.

The Murderer/Victim Paradox

ToakReon comments on Jan 8, 2018:

What do I think? I think you shouldn't expect religion to actually make sense - so when it doesn't that is no surprise.

Why does it anger you when a person tries to convert you to their belief?

ToakReon comments on Jan 8, 2018:

It doesn't anger me as much as dissapoint. When a dellusional fool tries to convince me to discard rationality, discard the concept of understanding based on demontrable fact and testable evidence, discard logic, discard questioning thought, and replace all that with blind, unquestioning belief, then the response is sorrow and profound pity for that individual. In effect, 'How the HELL could your beliefs and fairytales be better than what I already have? A questioning, rational mind?'

How do you cope with the fact that any day you will die and that will be the end?

ToakReon comments on Jan 8, 2018:

How do I cope? Well ... easily. Without effort. I just know it to be true and accept it. It's simply not an 'issue'. In truth it's something I barely think about - and certainly something I don't worry about.

Can we please do away with the compliment button on the site.

ToakReon comments on Jan 7, 2018:

Damn - you mean there was a way I could be super creepy and compliment all the cute, early twenties girls ... And I DIDN'T NOTICE? ... And it's NOW GONE??? Curses! Foiled again!

OK... first post. Don't know what to say... Just talking haha Hi?

ToakReon comments on Jan 7, 2018:

Welcome to the world of people who are SO MAD that they don't actually believe in an invisible, bearded sky-fairy who loves us so dearly that he engaged in mass genocide by drowning everyone except one family, and will burn us for an eternity of torment if we don't love him. How can anyone be as insane as an agnostic, huh?

Church weddings?

ToakReon comments on Jan 6, 2018:

Yes - though I feel uncomfortable doing so. My feelings for the couple being married, or the individual being buried, over-ride my issues with faith. That said, when prayers are said or hymms sung I stand with eyes open in silence - respect but not active participation.

In his latest tweets - Trump said he was a "Stable Genius".

ToakReon comments on Jan 6, 2018:

No - not horseshit. Horseshit is SO much less foul than Trump.

Atheist Billboards in the Bible Belt (with David Silverman) - YouTube

ToakReon comments on Jan 6, 2018:

A couple of people talking a lot of sense.

Who here was never religious?

ToakReon comments on Jan 6, 2018:

Non religious here. Atheist father, 'mildly' Church of England mother - both of whom trusted their children enough to leave them in peace to make up their own minds. Result me - atheist. My eldest sister - seriously religious. My middle sister - mild, non-church-going, 'sort of christian'. My youngest sister - as atheist as I am.

Should the U.S. government remove all references to god on monuments, buildings, and money?

ToakReon comments on Dec 31, 2017:

No place for any connection at all between government and religion.

Atheism rubbing off on boyfriend?

ToakReon comments on Dec 31, 2017:

It seems you may be healing your boyfriend from his severe case of religious infection. Perhaps you should be re-named 'EmeraldTheMentalAntibiotic'. If you manage to complete the process that gentleman may have a great deal to thank you for - but beware, relapses are common when fighting religious infection ... and even when cured he might be delicate for a while.

“The banana is the atheists nightmare "

ToakReon comments on Dec 31, 2017:

I confess I don't like bananas - but my dislike is entirely a matter of taste and texture, not religious philosophy.

I have asked many religious folks to define "True Christian".

ToakReon comments on Dec 30, 2017:

Easy. A 'true christian' is no more and no less than someone who shares the same 'christian views' as the person describing them as a 'true christian'. A 'true christian' is the way a christian describes someone like themselves.

The End Christopher Hitchens - YouTube

ToakReon comments on Dec 30, 2017:

Christopher Hitchins was a genuinely 'great man' - unlike the showboating 'self-declared alpha-male types' such as Trump, who are all bluster, all arrogance, and in comparison to Hitchins utterly moronic and utterly uncivilised.

People tell me there is no such as atheism.

ToakReon comments on Dec 30, 2017:

If you READ the bible - and by that I mean actually take in those words and consider them - the only thing it convinces you of is that it's BOLLOCKS.

Single or Partnered, looking or not?

ToakReon comments on Dec 30, 2017:

So, ladies ... form an orderly queue, please ... ????

Personally, Was 2017 A Good Year For You Or A Bad Year? Explain Why.

ToakReon comments on Dec 30, 2017:

Neither - an average year

If you lived in the distant past, would you have been an agnostic/atheist?

ToakReon comments on Dec 30, 2017:

Live FAR enough in the past and there was no religion at all. Religion is only a temporary illness - I suspect we'll recover in time, if we don't wipe ourselves out first of course.

Does the lack of beleif in an afterlife bring you fear or comfort?

ToakReon comments on Dec 30, 2017:

It doesn't really 'bring me' anything - it's no great factor in my thoughts.

What do you think?

ToakReon comments on Dec 29, 2017:

I wouldn't say atheists must have read the bible to 'qualify' to talk about it - after all, many christians haven't read it either. For all people, however, speaking from a position of knowledge is better than speaking from a position of ignorance.

What are your thoughts about euthanasia?

ToakReon comments on Dec 29, 2017:

What are my thoughts on euthanasia? That a poor, deluded soul like Ken Ham desperately needs it.

So on Facebook I’m friends with 2 physicists Sean Carrol and Lawrence Krauss.

ToakReon comments on Dec 29, 2017:

I don't know Mr Carrol and Mr Krauss - but I have known great physicists who were vastly my intellectual superior, and those I have known were wonderful people who wanted to help, and explain, and were talented at doing it. Yes, they were my intellectual superiors - but they never made me feel 'inferior' ... just priviledged to know them.

Well, I guess my blathering about this and that earned me a 7. Woot!