Twitter, The Atheist And I

Reading D’Souza, I caught the following subtle but quite powerful question: “What does the atheist know that the religious believer doesn’t?”

It’s subtle because it’s simple and rather straightforward. It seemingly demands a correspondingly simple answer however, it also contains a wicked scorpion’s tail of a backlash for the unsuspecting and after asking this question on my twitter account (@fwoodbridge) on Monday, I got a bite. @Lachlan1116, Lachy Grant—Lachy? Yeah, this person is an Australian so all bets are off—replied:

@fwoodbridge they question the world and are willing to look at evidence over stories.

This “answer,” as it were, is to a question I didn’t pose. What’s more, the hubris of this guy who thinks only atheists “question the world” promises a tasty fight:

@Lachlan1116 That's not the question I asked.

Lachy replied, to his credit (although I find it interesting that he sidestepped the question in the first place, a tired straw man):

@fwoodbridge sorry I will answer the question, an atheist knows that they have a finite time on this planet and there is no afterlife. Believers could never know this.

So far, nothing interesting, just more hubris but he has made a categorical statement finally: Atheists KNOW they have a finite time AND that there is NO AFTERLIFE. Aha, let’s explore this a little starting with the assumption he’s made that religious believers don’t know they have a finite time on the planet, a laughable thought:

@Lachlan1116 so do believers re finite time. Atheists KNOW there's no afterlife? Prove it.

Unfortunately Lachy decided to take the lazy coward’s way out:

@fwoodbridge It's not my job to prove anything if there is you should prove it to me..

It seems they don’t teach elementary logic in Australia.

@Lachlan1116 Dodger. You made the claim: you KNOW there's no afterlife, now prove it.

I know he can’t prove this and it’s probably tearing a small hole in his head so instead of attempting any proof, he gets rid of the hot potato:

@fwoodbridge if there was an afterlife there would be measurable proof, has there been any presented? Nope. Same goes for god. What evidence have you for his existence?

Getting tired of this by now (I was typing this up on my Droid) so I take a shortcut and give him a reprieve:

@Lachlan1116 Again, no proof. I can't prove there is either, just a belief, exactly like you: faith-based belief not knowledge.

Followed by:

@Lachlan1116 difference b/w you and me: I have the humility to say I don't know, you, of course, KNOW.

Here comes the inevitable ad hominem, the last refuge of the intellectually bankrupt:

@fwoodbridge the difference is that I live my life on truth and facts and evidence. You are happy to live a deluded life. Where is your questioning? Your reasoning?

All right, he wants to continue the dance:

@Lachlan1116 like evidence and fact there's no afterlife? Well then prove it's fact.

(Cricket chirps …) Nothing … so I follow up with:

@Lachlan1116 thought not. Neither you nor I can prove our assertions, but I'm the deluded one. Hubris.

Finally, after about 15 minutes, he gets back with:

@fwoodbridge yes you are the deluded one. You choose to believe that there is an all knowing creator watching your every move changing the world around you as he/she sees fit. You believe that if you attend church every sunday you will be granted a spot in the sky ... So yes I believe you are deluded.

Dodge, dodge, dodgeball!

@Lachlan1116 ah yes, the arrogance of the atheist who can't prove what they believe either. Rest easy in your enlightened ignorance.

Lachy then performs the tweeter equivalent of thumb-sucking:

@fwoodbridge at least I have an open mind willing to accept fact and reason over a delusion.

Ooh, poor baby. At least he’s got an open mind, because you see, that’s the most important thing. Basing your life on a major assumption not provable or subject to any of the rules of evidence, no that’s not enough. He’s got an OPEN mind.

People who say they have an open mind usually have the opposite and this guy’s example number 50,0299,098,984,986.

@Lachlan1116 For the last time, which fact, which reason? If fact, present them to prove no afterlife, oh reasonable one.

You won’t believe what he throws up next:

@fwoodbridge the facts show that we are the evolution of primates.. I don't know how you ignore this information and reason that god dropped you on this planet...

Non sequitor, thy name is Lachy.

@Lachlan1116 Another dodge. I don't dispute evolution, I believe it. Now prove no afterlife.

Apparently after this, he sulks off to his Aussie bed. The number of astounding assumptions he makes are laughable although sad. He thinks he’s dealing with a crayon Christian who can only argue from revelation and when the point is adequately, logically made that his so-called reason and evidence is based on accepting assumptions based on faith like—in my opinion, worse than—mine because mine are at least … wait for it … reasonable (see Pascal’s wager), he folds.

He rather throw chaff in the wind than admit what must be a rather painful fact. For all of humanity’s supposed wisdom, NO ONE knows for a fact. We all believe, on faith, what we believe.

Including you atheists.