Reasonable and Rational

Indivisible

There is an interesting movement afoot as evidenced by the proliferation across the country of the "Don't believe in God?...You're not alone" billboards. The group behind them, Freethought Alliance maintains they are not aiming at controversy but simply at organizing and energizing like thinking people around the country. Their aim is to "help America evolve into a more rational, less superstitious society." This evolution can be facilitated by groups who are "looking at the world through the lenses of critical thinking, rationality, and science, and excluding from their lives the influences of mysticism, superstition, pseudo-science and all else that can not be proven by scientific inquiry."

I've mentioned before that I don't like to debate with people about whether their point of view is better or worse than mine. I try to simply make sure that I understand what it is I believe. In that respect, it appears that atheists and agnostics do a pretty good job. As reported in the LA Times , a 2010 survey found that those identifying themselves as atheists or agnostics are on average more knowledgeable about religion than followers of major faiths. Nonbelievers scored better on questions about tenets central to Protestant and Catholic faiths. Only Mormon and Jewish faithful scored as well as atheists and agnostics (kudos, guys).

What I believe is reasonable, and it is rational. I would hope that if I was confronted, I would be able to make a reasonable and rational defense of it. Somebody could run up to me and say: Bernie, you're an idiot! When they do, I should be be able to confidently say: perhaps, but I know why I am an idiot.

Wait. I need to work on that defense.