Why are atheists disliked in America?

[KanadaHye]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

What? You drive carelessly because you are insured? I'd like to see you try to get insurance if you are a bad driver ... they will make you pay up the rear AND a lot of times they won't even insure you. If nothing else, fear of rising insurance rates makes people BETTER drivers

Ahhhhh... but who'd be able to pay cash settlement for a totaled BMW if they weren't insured? I'm sure people would treat their cars like crystal if they knew one accident would put them in the poor house.

[KanadaHye]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

Let me just put a slight reality check in play here .. before the 1600s we didn't even know what a "cell" was ... it wasn't way until closer to the 19th century that we started to discover there is such a thing that we can call "virus".

You want to talk about how much they knew 2000 years ago? Try just 400 years ago

My argument is that although humanity as a whole has more collective knowledge, the average Joe is rather dumb compared to the general population in the "old world".

[Sip]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

The Greeks were more advanced in what we refer to as Western medicine.

This needs more explanation. On what do you base this statement? How were they more advanced? Did they know more? Did they do more? What?

... In the same way people drive carelessly because they are insured, a lot of people live carelessly because they believe any illness can be cured....

What? You drive carelessly because you are insured? I'd like to see you try to get insurance if you are a bad driver ... they will make you pay up the rear AND a lot of times they won't even insure you. If nothing else, fear of rising insurance rates makes people BETTER drivers

But back to the point that we are irresponsible since we think medicine can cure ... maybe but that doesn't change the fact that modern medicine can prevent and cure FAAAR more things than the ancients could. Lets not change the topic from one of knowledge and ability to one of choices. So far you have been saying the ancients were more knowledgeable but haven't in any way backed it up. What you have said, and I do agree, in that we tend to make poor decisions even when we have better knowledge (that's different).

[KanadaHye]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

http://www.utexas.edu/depts/classics...ents/Life.html
It took me 10 seconds and the very first google hit to find something other than your best guess.
Life expectancy at birth = 25 years

Edit:

Here's the product of another 30 seconds...

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/...3100/mortality ~28 years for Greece and Rome.

The Greeks were more advanced in what we refer to as Western medicine.

That's fine but this study which uses dates on tombstones has different results. According to this, the people in Rome lived less (15 yrs old?) than the outlying ruled territories like Africa where the average age was said to be 40. http://www.jstor.org/pss/2774113

I'm sure I can find different studies which show different results but none of them will represent the true figures. They are guestimates.

Definitely noteworthy. I thought it would just be ignored. See below. I guess without technology they understood enough to prevent disease?

Technology in medicine has become like car insurance. In the same way people drive carelessly because they are insured, a lot of people live carelessly because they believe any illness can be cured. People didn't have the luxury to leave their lives in the hands of professionals so they took it upon themselves to make sure they didn't develop disease and that was done through networking with locals and passing down knowledge from generation to generation. Preventative medicine is what's lacking in our society.

[Siggie]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

Let me just put a slight reality check in play here .. before the 1600s we didn't even know what a "cell" was ... it wasn't way until closer to the 19th century that we started to discover there is such a thing that we can call "virus".

You want to talk about how much they knew 2000 years ago? Try just 400 years ago

Definitely noteworthy. I thought it would just be ignored. See below. I guess without technology they understood enough to prevent disease?

They may have not had the ability to treat or the technology to diagnose but they sure as hell knew how to prevent.

[Sip]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

Let me just put a slight reality check in play here .. before the 1600s we didn't even know what a "cell" was ... it wasn't way until closer to the 19th century that we started to discover there is such a thing that we can call "virus".

You want to talk about how much they knew 2000 years ago? Try just 400 years ago

[Siggie]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

So you want me to dig through the internet and post "valid" information on Ancient Rome without years of research?

http://www.utexas.edu/depts/classics/documents/Life.html

It took me 10 seconds and the very first google hit to find something other than your best guess.
Life expectancy at birth = 25 years

Edit:

Here's the product of another 30 seconds...

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/...3100/mortality ~28 years for Greece and Rome.

[KanadaHye]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

Woah! Hang on there one sec darlin'... This be another distraction. Methods of estimating age from remains aren't different depending on whose remains they are...
Don't ask me a question to avoid addressing the 100000 criticisms of your arguments that have been raised.

So you want me to dig through the internet and post "valid" information on Ancient Rome without years of research?

[Siggie]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

I'm asking if you can find the life expectancy of American Indians prior to European settlers invading North America. If you can find reliable sources on Ancient Rome, you must surely be able to find facts about more recent people like the American Indians.

Woah! Hang on there one sec darlin'... This be another distraction. Methods of estimating age from remains aren't different depending on whose remains they are...
Don't ask me a question to avoid addressing the 100000 criticisms of your arguments that have been raised.

[KanadaHye]

Re: Why are atheists disliked in America?

You do realize that technology is also knowledge gained. You didn't mention libraries being 'cheating' (e.g. the one in Alexandria).
Even if we look at it your way and forget the general knowledge of the citizen... You're saying doctors and surgeons then and now had equivalent knowledge?

My whole point is general knowledge was taught in grade school. By the time you were 11 or 12 you knew enough about general medicine, biology, chemistry, etc. The standards of education have dropped since WW2 because all the information has been privatized. The reason for this is so the private industries can profit from ignorant citizens who have the need to see a doctor every time they sneeze.

Good convo.... has nothing to do with Atheism but it's been a real slice.