Guys, fundamentalists are just mentally ill people who weren't diagnosed. I don't think reason is going to work, and being belligerent is just going to get them on the defensive, and they're going to stop listening to you. We need to be calm and fair-minded. And if they try to get our goat, let's be the bigger (wo/)man here. Kindness from the heathen will go a long way towards disproving the "religion means good" meme that society tends to believe.
One-liners are just soundbites, really. I don't think they're going to convince anyone. Like many others said, we need to explain, and possibly show, evolution at work. Everything else is just sinking to the crazie's level.
One-liner proposal
Moderator: Alyrium Denryle
Re: One-liner proposal
"The surest sign that the world was not created by an omnipotent Being who loves us is that the Earth is not an infinite plane and it does not rain meat."
"Lo, how free the madman is! He can observe beyond mere reality, and cogitates untroubled by the bounds of relevance."
"Lo, how free the madman is! He can observe beyond mere reality, and cogitates untroubled by the bounds of relevance."
Re: One-liner proposal
So you are saying we should use the shock and awe tactic, and info-dump the entire thread?Elaro wrote:Guys, fundamentalists are just mentally ill people who weren't diagnosed. I don't think reason is going to work, and being belligerent is just going to get them on the defensive, and they're going to stop listening to you. We need to be calm and fair-minded. And if they try to get our goat, let's be the bigger (wo/)man here. Kindness from the heathen will go a long way towards disproving the "religion means good" meme that society tends to believe.
One-liners are just soundbites, really. I don't think they're going to convince anyone. Like many others said, we need to explain, and possibly show, evolution at work. Everything else is just sinking to the crazie's level.
Humans are such funny creatures. We are selfish about selflessness, yet we can love something so much that we can hate something.
Re: One-liner proposal
Well, picture-dump, really. With simple explanations. Okay, maybe there'll be a lot of pictures, demonstrating evolution in progress in an undeniable fashion, but .
Wait, I think I misunderstood the OP.* You're looking for a short counter to the one-liner, right? What about
"No, evolution is a fact, it's Natural Selection that's the theory." Followed up with "Don't believe me? Look it up/[Do the picture-by-picture explanation suggestion]", and finish up with an invitation to verify by themselves. That ought to disarm them. And if they just say "I won't bother checking it out", then we point out their credulity, and the trouble it can cause.
*See, I was under the impression that it was in a face-to-face conversation context, not a discussion forum. My mistake.
Wait, I think I misunderstood the OP.* You're looking for a short counter to the one-liner, right? What about
"No, evolution is a fact, it's Natural Selection that's the theory." Followed up with "Don't believe me? Look it up/[Do the picture-by-picture explanation suggestion]", and finish up with an invitation to verify by themselves. That ought to disarm them. And if they just say "I won't bother checking it out", then we point out their credulity, and the trouble it can cause.
*See, I was under the impression that it was in a face-to-face conversation context, not a discussion forum. My mistake.
"The surest sign that the world was not created by an omnipotent Being who loves us is that the Earth is not an infinite plane and it does not rain meat."
"Lo, how free the madman is! He can observe beyond mere reality, and cogitates untroubled by the bounds of relevance."
"Lo, how free the madman is! He can observe beyond mere reality, and cogitates untroubled by the bounds of relevance."
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Darth Wong
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Re: One-liner proposal
Who said the answer should have anything to do with the specifics of evolution? The "evolution is just a theory" argument is dangerous because it takes advantage of a gaping hole in the average person's understanding of the scientific method itself, not just evolution. Pointing out that evolution is also a fact is a way of evading the implicit assumption that "just a theory" is a valid criticism (indeed, it almost seems to legitimize it), and I would prefer to tackle that assumption head-on because it's more insidious than anything they can say about evolution itself.
In short: if people have misconceptions about evolution, that is not nearly so dangerous or disturbing as people having contempt for the scientific method itself.
In short: if people have misconceptions about evolution, that is not nearly so dangerous or disturbing as people having contempt for the scientific method itself.
"you guys are fascinated with the use of those "rules of logic" to the extent that you don't really want to discussus anything."- GC
"I do not believe Russian Roulette is a stupid act" - Embracer of Darkness
"Viagra commercials appear to save lives" - tharkûn on US health care.
http://www.stardestroyer.net/Mike/RantMode/Blurbs.html