Just out of curiosity, what books are you referring to when you say "books like these"? I kind of think of this as a first, or at least the first time a book about the evils of religion is getting this much widespread readership. I haven't ever read any book like this, so I can't dispute what you say... but I have read essays by Dawkins before and think he's a sharp guy.
Mostly, I admire Dawkins because he's bold enough to say things that he knows will really piss people off, but they really should hear. I often feel like the whole religion thing has continued on long after its natural end, just because anyone who knows the truth is still kind of afraid to speak it, or at least to make too big of a stink about it, lest they be tarred and feathered. I don't think I'd have the balls to publish a book like this, worrying every night after whether some crazy fundamentalist is going to blow up my house. But I guess it helps that he lives in the UK, where religion is less of a problem. Especially since the arguments from someone like Dawkins tend to boil down to "Religion isn't compatible with the secular-scientific world-view," which isn't terribly surprising, nor is it a good argument.
I would bet he has much more convincing arguments than that. Of course, if you're hoping for the quality of argument you might find in a philosophy article/text, then of course... it's not going to measure up to your standards. The key here is to make arguments the average person can understand, in a down to earth way, and I think Dawkins is well suited for doing that effectively. There's no other way to change the world.
Speaking of down-to-earth arguments against religion that anyone can follow... this is a pretty nice one to forward: http://godisimaginary.com/video1.htm (of course, it's not an argument against theism itself, just the sort of insane biblical literalism taught in Sunday schools and churches around the world.)
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2006-10-19 03:48 am (UTC)Mostly, I admire Dawkins because he's bold enough to say things that he knows will really piss people off, but they really should hear. I often feel like the whole religion thing has continued on long after its natural end, just because anyone who knows the truth is still kind of afraid to speak it, or at least to make too big of a stink about it, lest they be tarred and feathered. I don't think I'd have the balls to publish a book like this, worrying every night after whether some crazy fundamentalist is going to blow up my house. But I guess it helps that he lives in the UK, where religion is less of a problem.
Especially since the arguments from someone like Dawkins tend to boil down to "Religion isn't compatible with the secular-scientific world-view," which isn't terribly surprising, nor is it a good argument.
I would bet he has much more convincing arguments than that. Of course, if you're hoping for the quality of argument you might find in a philosophy article/text, then of course... it's not going to measure up to your standards. The key here is to make arguments the average person can understand, in a down to earth way, and I think Dawkins is well suited for doing that effectively. There's no other way to change the world.
Speaking of down-to-earth arguments against religion that anyone can follow... this is a pretty nice one to forward:
http://godisimaginary.com/video1.htm
(of course, it's not an argument against theism itself, just the sort of insane biblical literalism taught in Sunday schools and churches around the world.)