Atheists, do you believe in air?

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Because I can feel it when I ride a bike or a motorcycle, or when I whistle. I can jump out of an airplane and have it support my entire 230lbs with a parachute. I can snorkel and blow air out of my lungs and watch it rise as bubbles. I can see what my body does when I hold my breath for too long.

Air may be invisible (mostly), but there are plenty of other ways to experience it and know that it exists.

Ignoratio elenchi

Air is transparent, and can be scientifically verified.

You don't even need science. Just blow out a candle.

ruveyn

Hmmm... Why do I believe in air? Well, because I can feel the air molecules hit my skin and move my hair and other objects around when the wind blows. I have to breathe it, and i can put it into a container(or let it out of one). I can blow up a balloon with it. Obviously SOMETHING is inside the balloon or it wouldn't get larger.

While you're at it, why don't you just ask why we believe in ANY gas? I don't know of any gas you can see...

There's more to not believing in god than the simple fact that you can't see him. I can't seem to communicate with him either, and the only clues of his existence lie in ancient books that are full of inconsistencies and downright contradictions. So at the very least I can conclude that the christian version of god(the one I'm most familiar with) either doesn't exist, or is a bumbling buffoon who isn't even capable of simple logic or telling a story that doesn't have more holes than swiss cheese. AND, despite all of these things, I'm told god is "perfect." Well how can something that isn't even capable of things the human brain can do be "perfect?"

Let's take the story of Jesus's crucifixion. Jesus was born as the son of god supposedly, and his purpose was to die for all our sins... Because god was pissed at all the sins we'd committed. So he sends HIS son(who I've also been told IS also god himself, like god is in 3 parts: the father, the son, and the holy ghost(by the way, wtf is the holy ghost anyway?)), or he sends HIMSELF to be tortured and crucified as PUNISHMENT for OUR sins. Wow, what a punishment. THAT'LL teach us! It didn't even effect us whatsoever. And also, if Jesus died for all our sins to be forgiven, and they WERE(otherwise it just didn't work, so again god is incompetent), then that also means that we can sin our asses off, and we get off scott free... So why even have any of the damn rules at all, if they can be broken with zero consequence? If there ARE still consequences, then Jesus suffered for nothing...

So let's recap... God punished himself because he was pissed off at all the sinning done by humans, which caused them all to be forgiven, yet I'm still warned that I'll go to hell if I commit a "sin." And this god is perfect... Yeah, okay.

We believe in air because there's proof that air exists. We don't believe in god because there is NO proof except for an old ass book that doesn't make any sense anyway.

have a look at http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2001SPIE.4183..864J

ruveyn

I don't think this question is valid, and I say this as a theist. Albeit a theist who rejects the idea of organized religion.

Atheism would seem to be a personal choice, though. I think people should respect that, as part of religious freedom is the freedom not to believe.

But sometimes I get irritated at some atheists who scream bloody murder about public displays of religion, especially this time of year. Is that really such an issue for atheists? That we have a holiday? If you want to participate in it, I don't think would anyone would mind. Trading gifts and eating turkey all that is fun, isn't it? I mean, people celebrate St. Patrick's Day and they aren't Irish, or they Celebrate Cinco de Mayo and they aren't Mexican, or Mardi Gras and they aren't French or Catholic. And then there's Halloween, which is based around a Catholic Holiday, but isn't a catholic holiday in itself and is peppered with mainly Celtic traditions from the old Druidic culture. Anyone met any Celtic Druid's recently?

My point being is that people doing their religious thing shouldn't bother someone who doesn't subscribe to it. Hell you could practice if you wanted to, or ignore it you didn't. So long as you aren't hurting any body, what's the problem?

The quantum state cannot be observed directly either as it can only be reconstructed indirectly by lengthy state estimation procedures. But that hasn't stop physicists from doing tons of physics.

Chlorine can be seen, although in such concentrations it's usually lethal. We can smell it, too. We can feel gases as they move past our skins.

Even though we don't need to see something for it to exist, if it can not be detected by our normal senses, or by the devices we used to enhance or extend our senses, then it is safe to say that the thing does not exist.

G-d can not be seen, heard, touched, tasted, or smelled. He imparts no motion to a compass needle, and he does not deflect an electron beam. His presence does not alter gravity, nor does it accelerate or ret*d nuclear reactions. Photons and neutrinos show no change of state, and chemical reactions proceed as expected whether or not G-d is present. Unexposed photographic film remains unexposed no matter how many prayers are said over it, rituals performed around it, or relics it comes in contact with. In fact, no known physical reaction shows any effect of G-d's presence.

So, if no one can detect the presence of G-d, then why does anyone believe in Him?

I can't speak for you, but I could say the exact same thing to all those christians who think there's a "war on christmas" because some people say "happy holidays" instead of "merry christmas."

Also, I wouldn't care so much about christmas if it wasn't for the fact that it's shoved down my throat year after year, starting on November 1st and not ending til halfway thru January if I'm lucky... All the stupid ads, the music that plays on the radio, the fact that EVERYBODY insists on FORCING me to participate in their stupid gift giving rituals, and hearing the christians piss and moan about the supposed war on their stupid holiday which isn't even theirs to begin with.

Now, I'm not one to scream bloody murder, and I acknowledge that atheists can be just as idiotic... Like, I remember there was a big stink when I was still in school about the pledge of allegiance having the words "one nation under god" in it, and there was another big stink they raised about "in god we trust" being put on our money.

Now TECHNICALLY, in a nation where church and state are to be separate, those things shouldn't be there. However, at the same time, the fact that they ARE there isn't the equivalent of forcing us to practice the religion. So, I really don't care either way on those two things. Oh also, they can't force you to say the pledge of allegiance anyway.

Because I can feel it. The End.

My feeling on the matter is that if you don't want to participate you shouldn't have to. But there's really nothing you can do about the media blitz, that's just good business because they know people are running out to buy gifts. Naturally vendors are going to take advantage of this and advertise to get sales up. In all honesty govt has nothing to do with that, nor should it. For me it's more about the atmosphere of the season than anything else, I never liked church and all that mess. But I do love the music, it's the one time of year the radio isn't inundated with hip-hop crap pop.

Oh and I don't pledge. I pledged once, why do I have to do it every day? That never made sense to me. I love my country, but not that much. I agree with you there.

I have absolutely no problem with public displays of religion, so long as my tax money is not going towards them/not on government property.

The Fear of Death.

ruveyn

Who says we can't question God? The people who gave you the ethical monotheistic God had the name Israel: "To Struggle With God" -- Abraham questioned God, Job questioned God, Moses questioned God, Jacob questioned God... I have no idea what you're talking about unless you are talking about an eastern religion or something other then the abrahamic faiths.

Air exists, and you can prove it. Force, energies, and time are not material, and therefore, without material evidence for their existence, they may be as easily dismissed as fiction if we follow materialist thinking, and the words of Hitchens. Until of course..., we find out what Time and Force are constructed of...

i totally had this argument with my priest and used this as evidence but he didn't buy it. (pfft science what's that ever proven?) i also made the point that not all gases are invisible to the human eye, that you could hear and feel gas and would probably die if you weren't inhaling certain gases or die if you inhaled other certain gases. air has a visible effect on life. futile argument.

Seriously? What a silly topic.