Right now my estimate leans more towards religion having a net positive effect, for now, at our society’s current level of rationality and general sanity.
My own estimate leans the opposite way, primarily because I see the overall chilling effect that religion has on critical thought (as we discussed elsewhere on this thread) as having a massively negative utility. Yes, the effect is relatively mild compared to some of the other things religion does, but it’s everywhere.
I don’t think getting rid of churches would get rid of superstition, something would spring up in its place...but slowly getting rid of superstition might naturally lead to churches becoming more and more similar to secular organizations in their scope and goals.
Agreed; plus, I should probably mention that no one in their right mind would advocate “getting rid of churches” by force (even by force of law). Coercive tactics like that have a very poor track record, and besides, they’re pretty evil.
That said, one thing I’d like to see is a diminished respect for religion in general. In our current world, if you said something like, “Bugmaster advocates banning consumption of meat”, most people would probably just shrug. But if you said “Reverend Bugmaster advocates banning consumption of meat”, people would sit up and take notice. But why ? There’s nothing about being a “Reverend” that makes me somehow more competent at making decisions—no more than being a 10-th level Conjuration-specced Wizard, or president of my local Twilight fanclub, or whatever.
I don’t have the power to single-handedly eradicate organized religion.
If you had that kind of power, you’d be a god, and then you’d have to eradicate yourself :-)
They already know I’m an atheist, and that I’m ok with their being religious, but if I wasn’t ok with it, I’m not sure how our friendships would fare. And I value those friendships.
That’s fair enough; no one is expecting you to become some sort of a righteous anti-paladin of atheism (well, I can’t speak for Richard Dawkins, but I know I’m not). Still, I think it’s possible to disagree with a person, even on a fundamental level, while still respecting that person. That all depends on the person in question, of course.
“Bugmaster advocates banning consumption of meat”, most people would probably just shrug. But if you said “Reverend Bugmaster advocates banning consumption of meat”, people would sit up and take notice.
I’m pretty sure these two statements would have exactly the same effect on me...i.e. proportional to how much other information I know about you and how many reasons I already have to respect your expert opinion. I do have a lot of reasons to respect Dawkins’ statements on a lot of things. He knows more about biology than I do, and so if he says something about biology or evolution, I’m prepared to take it at face value. I don’t think he’s studied religion in depth, though, or really undergone a non-biased process of weighing its pros and cons. I have no reason to conclude that his religion arguments are more valid just because he’s a good biologist.
I’m pretty sure these two statements would have exactly the same effect on me...
Right, but as far as I can tell, this isn’t true of the population in general, where religious figures command a certain level of trust and respect simply due to being religious. You and I are probably outliers.
My own estimate leans the opposite way, primarily because I see the overall chilling effect that religion has on critical thought (as we discussed elsewhere on this thread) as having a massively negative utility. Yes, the effect is relatively mild compared to some of the other things religion does, but it’s everywhere.
Agreed; plus, I should probably mention that no one in their right mind would advocate “getting rid of churches” by force (even by force of law). Coercive tactics like that have a very poor track record, and besides, they’re pretty evil.
That said, one thing I’d like to see is a diminished respect for religion in general. In our current world, if you said something like, “Bugmaster advocates banning consumption of meat”, most people would probably just shrug. But if you said “Reverend Bugmaster advocates banning consumption of meat”, people would sit up and take notice. But why ? There’s nothing about being a “Reverend” that makes me somehow more competent at making decisions—no more than being a 10-th level Conjuration-specced Wizard, or president of my local Twilight fanclub, or whatever.
If you had that kind of power, you’d be a god, and then you’d have to eradicate yourself :-)
That’s fair enough; no one is expecting you to become some sort of a righteous anti-paladin of atheism (well, I can’t speak for Richard Dawkins, but I know I’m not). Still, I think it’s possible to disagree with a person, even on a fundamental level, while still respecting that person. That all depends on the person in question, of course.
Now I know what my next D&D character is going to be. Well, right after I get done playing that transhumanist warlock I’ve been thinking of...
I’m pretty sure these two statements would have exactly the same effect on me...i.e. proportional to how much other information I know about you and how many reasons I already have to respect your expert opinion. I do have a lot of reasons to respect Dawkins’ statements on a lot of things. He knows more about biology than I do, and so if he says something about biology or evolution, I’m prepared to take it at face value. I don’t think he’s studied religion in depth, though, or really undergone a non-biased process of weighing its pros and cons. I have no reason to conclude that his religion arguments are more valid just because he’s a good biologist.
Right, but as far as I can tell, this isn’t true of the population in general, where religious figures command a certain level of trust and respect simply due to being religious. You and I are probably outliers.