Your opinions differ from mine, so you are stupid!

a reply to: Destinyone

Another thing I've noticed in the past month or so. There are a few people I used to think of as foes...I find we are meeting more in the middle.

I am pretty sure some are not the same person but someone else using the account, they are just too different.

a reply to: beezzer

Some like to put olives in a martini. They are wrong to do so.

I can't understand how you can feel if they LIKE olives how can it be wrong? Unless they make one for you and you asked to NOT have olives...than the word wrong is appropriate.

originally posted by: KeliOnyx

originally posted by: Kangaruex4Ewe
a reply to: beezzer

What if it was bacon instead of brussel sprouts? What then?

Then it wouldn't be a question of stupidity. Anytime one says they dislike bacon the question is automatically "Are you even human?"

Yes true I get that all the time, even though I love pigs consider them very intelligent creatures, loving caring Mothers and can't imagine why anyone would eat one any more then eating their dog. A pig once saved my life.
To me he is not just a hunk of flesh and his body fluids not "juice.

a reply to: xDeadcowx

Anybody who embraces ignorance and refuses to accept common knowledge is by definition an idiot and deserves to be called out on it.

Lol if this were true there would be no airplanes or anything else acceptance of "common knowledge" is like saying never progress!
Todays
Common Knowledge" is always tomorrows ignorant mistake.

originally posted by: Char-Lee
a reply to: beezzer

Some like to put olives in a martini. They are wrong to do so.

I can't understand how you can feel if they LIKE olives how can it be wrong? Unless they make one for you and you asked to NOT have olives...than the word wrong is appropriate.

Olives are wrong.

The use of olives is wrong.

Olives are things that are wrong in the universe.

People who use olives just don't understand how wrong they are.

That's how bad olives are.

Olives are bad.

If olives drove a car, they would be running over people and cats.

originally posted by: beezzer

originally posted by: Char-Lee
a reply to: beezzer

Some like to put olives in a martini. They are wrong to do so.

I can't understand how you can feel if they LIKE olives how can it be wrong? Unless they make one for you and you asked to NOT have olives...than the word wrong is appropriate.

Olives are wrong.

The use of olives is wrong.

Olives are things that are wrong in the universe.

People who use olives just don't understand how wrong they are.

That's how bad olives are.

Olives are bad.

If olives drove a car, they would be running over people and cats.

Lol perfect example of many peoples arguments.

a reply to: Char-Lee

I don't consider you stupid though, for not agreeing with me.

a reply to: beezzer

Haha yes they do occupy our leadership overwhelmingly, and worst yet, they blatantly don't care anymore.

With those people though, they're not as much stupid from their opinion as they are from their blatant lying. And knowing they will get away with it.

I'll bet most of them don't even believe in their "official" opinion, it was an opinion that rang well with the opposing vote during their campaigns.

originally posted by: beezzer

originally posted by: Rikku

How about, instead, we say, "Your opinions differ from mine, so you are wrong. Let me explain."

thats just a patronizing way of calling someone stupid.

stick to your guns, some people need to be called stupid.

I'll use the martini analogy.

Some like to put olives in a martini. They are wrong to do so.

It doesn't make them stupid, and I don't feel it patronizing to call them on it.

If calling people "wrong" is patronizing, then people have been patronizing to me since I joined.

Drinking Martinis is wrong!

Drinking Gin is wrong!

Drinking something that tastes like a ground up pine tree is wrong!

Note: I didn't not call it stupid however.

Drinking Pine Sol....now THAT would be stupid.

Keep yer chin up Beezzer!

a reply to: beezzer

Yeah well your stupid too, it's just that my stupid is superior!

The hardness and power of my fail is heroic!!!

On the more serious side, there doesn't appear to be any reference or measurement unit for stupid.

I mean, without some standard to compare against, how would we determine when stupid becomes merely unwise or lacking in common sense?

Perhaps we could choose something demi-stupid and use that as a comparison?

a reply to: beezzer

Everyone deserves to be heard and express they're opinions. And they deserve the respect of others honest opinions.
But name calling and such is just childish in MY opinion.

I don't think anyone who disagrees with me is stupid.

I know other people have different opinions and they are free to have them.

What grinds my gears is when people try to argue their opinion and push whatever their agenda is and their argument
is purely made up statements and factually untrue.

Also when they spout off about topics they clearly are not informed on.

For example:

Your free to have the opinion that guns should be banned and confiscated. I don't agree but that's your opinion.
When someone claims that Automatic weapons are being used to mow down school yards full of kids then they are not being factual and they prove they don't know of what they speak.

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."
Martin Luther King, Jr.


And by God there's more than enough of that to go around!

a reply to: Destinyone

Now Des... Stop or you're going to make Beezzer cr.... oh wait...

a reply to: beezzer

You really need to define the meaning of the word stupid for this thread, because what is it? Someone can be stupid and completely devoid of critical thinking but hold an opinion that is 'right' etc ... [Insert philosophy essay Pinke can't be bothered writing here]

At the end of the day it's just an insult in the same way that calling someone a leftist or a fundamentalist usually is. Is why it's odd that so many persons can come into this thread saying 'you know, you're absolutely right!' in full knowledge that they're going to go two threads up the list four minutes later, and flail their arms over their keyboard rambling broad generalizations in their effort to demonize giant piles of complete strangers in this odd human behavior we call politics.

There is some Jesus thing here about having planks of wood jammed in your eyeball, but you know ... if I quote the bible accurately my demon skin burns, so not today.

a reply to: beezzer

One word (well two actually).

Face Book. Welcome to the unregulated internet of the new age. And many, many sites (even this one sadly) is on the fast track to becoming another bunch of random idiots with little clue and even less of any idea just jumping on everyone's ideas 'just for the lolz.'

While ATS does remain one of the last few bastions of intelligent discussion out there, you only have to look at how much people just LOVE to run others down by spending five minutes watching the comments on most social media sites these days. And the spelling...

The days of intelligent discussion and learning from others are over my friend. Dark days ahead....

Don't believe me?

this is what bugs me about it.

let's say the person who is being called stupid, is actually doing pretty good considering the place their life was in a year ago, or 10 years ago, or even as a teenager or child. maybe they had dyslexia, or had a complete life change from not caring if they learned anything, to suddenly learning and forming opinions on what they've learned. so they join a place like ats. can they spell? doesn't matter as long as they agree with whoever they are discussing with. can they write or use punctuation (mwahaha), doesn't matter as long as they agree with whoever they are discussing with. are they brilliant? doesn't matter, as long as they agree.

that's the whole thing in a nutshell. if you agree, you could be as dumb as a box of rocks but the person you're agreeing with will think you're smart. and if you disagree, you could be a genius but the person you're disagreeing with will think you're not too bright.

For many topics(OK, maybe all topics), it's uncalled for to jump to the "you're just stupid" claims.

However, I do think I understand where this comes from in the topic of religious beliefs vs. atheism.

I personally lack knowledge in a great many areas. I cannot grasp math beyond the basics such as fractions and basic geometry. I may have passed some intermediate algebra classes, but I certainly didn't grasp the knowledge. I only speak one language. My memory has always been poor and I can't pull specific information that I just read about hours if not minutes earlier. Even though I've worked on machinery to an extent, I have no comprehension of all things mechanical.

Yet, if a "genius" who excels at everything I've mentioned above and more were to tell me he/she was of X religion(especially Christianity for me, as that's the one that's the majority in my environment), I will immediately perceive this person as being an idiot. That factor alone signifies that while they might have the intelligence to glean from learning that I do not, that they have not truly USED their ability to think for themselves and do the modicum of research/logic required to discover that there is no such thing as a God. When one finally realizes just how ridiculous all the religious claims are, anyone that clings to those beliefs especially after years of experience in life appears pitifully delusional with a need to feel special or craving that unseen glorious authority.

Just as people will fiercely embrace a particular sports team because their father/peers inducted that loyalty into them, you see the brainwashing that has occurred, preventing them from sincerely seeking that knowledge themselves. The religious indoctrination that begins in early childhood is a powerful and cemented source of a person's young identity. Many decide that's what is real at a young age and the thought of breaking that anchor results in a complete re-questioning of everything they have ever been taught. Who are they if they question what they were certain they were?
It's too big. It's too much.

Then there are the ones who claim to have personally experienced God/Jesus/Other and that immediately suggests a sorrowful mental breakdown which they mended with coping mechanisms that offered them solace. Those are usually viewed as lost and pitiful individuals, but it's also understanding from an atheist's point of view that some people truly NEED that comfort to get by in this life.

So, while I, as an atheist, find it difficult to understand why so many people cannot make the transition to the reality that there is no God, I see that most of these people truly need that for guidance in their lives. The question frequently comes up to us of "Well, if you don't believe there's spiritual recourse, why don't you just hurt people/etc. ?" as if to say that's the only thing that prevents humans(or themselves?) from doing evil acts. This is a dumbfounding question for us as it's very, blatantly clear that we simply would never WANT to do such things. And even if some do, there's plenty of earthbound penalties to persuade folks against such actions anyway.

It's when the doctrine is administrated and when people stubbornly refuse to even consider alternative ways of thinking that we see stupidity. When they bring forth scripture from their bible and use that text as reason for their beliefs we see stupidity. When they say "But there is only ONE way, ONE god and faith rules all, we see stupidity.

We're actually very, very cool with agnostics.

a reply to: gottaknow

okay, let's set christianity over on a different table for a moment. if the person is into paranormal stuff, like esp, mind over matter, and so on, is the person an idiot? if the person is in an occult org like the ordo templi orientis, who believe they can open spirit gates to other dimensions and summon entities into individuals engaging in sex magic, are they idiots? are pagans who use earth magics, idiots? are wiccans idiots? how about hindus? if the person tells you they worship their spouse or the earth, are they idiots?

is everyone except atheists and agnostics, delusional idiots?
/shakes head

guys this "idiot" thing is starting to remind me of when the rcc tried to prove that only their interpretation of the bible was valid and everything else was fake, so they threw away 5000 + years of written history saying it was mythological. when archaeology was developed as a science, many of those old texts turned out to be historically accurate. too late though, cause not only are we ignoring their historical validity because some group of scholars says we have to, but these people are looking everyone else in the face, square on, and telling them they're stupid for believing what their own science proved. and if you push the issue with archaeological evidence, they start saying archaeology shouldn't be viewed as a science. le mew, le sigh.

it's like galileo all over again. holy atheist roman empire.