In general, do atheists believe that evil exists?

[ambush80]

I didn't mean to be flippant about the "teapot on the moon" analogy. Of course believing in God has a powerful influence on people's lives, more so than a belief in a lunar teapot, but only because of all the other ideas attached to it. People who believe in God but don't think they could possibly understand how he/she/it works or what he/she/it wants are still affected by the idea. It seems to give them a sense of order or transcendent purpose for their lives. That's pretty good.

So far I haven't felt diminished without any of that.

 

[CarolinaDawg]

Yes. Humans are material acting on other material. An apple falling on your head is material acting on other material.

Equal to who? Gold is more important to me than a horse, who might find salt more important.

Same as a horse how? What it's made of? What it's capable of? How combustible it is? You get where I'm going.....

Humans are different from every other “material” as you’ve defined it. What other material in the known universe can develop a complex language, invent the rocket and the mathematical calculations necessary to fly to the moon and back, develop schools, truly love another “material” , follow a moral code of conduct? Can we agree that humans are different?

 

[Newt2]

orthodox' atheist

What is an "orthodox" Atheist? Atheists simply do not believe in any god, Jesus, or anything associated with the myths.

 

[Newt2]

Just an observation to someone who said it seems only humans, not animals are evil (paraphrasing) What about a rabid animal? They have a disease in there mind to be evil. Do humans not show those same traits?

 

[ambush80]

Humans are different from every other “material” as you’ve defined it. What other material in the known universe can develop a complex language, invent the rocket and the mathematical calculations necessary to fly to the moon and back, develop schools, truly love another “material” , follow a moral code of conduct? Can we agree that humans are different?

Yes. By some metrics, humans are substantially different than other materials. That's what I was asking him to define. We're physically weaker than many other material arrangements. Boiling point; we are the same as an elephant and a pond. As far as "truly love another material", I can't possibly know. Maybe my dog loves in a way that I couldn't possibly achieve. I've heard people say that children with Down's Syndrome can love more deeply than the average person. Is their love more like a dog's. I dunno.

 

[ambush80]

What is an "orthodox" Atheist? Atheists simply do not believe in any god, Jesus, or anything associated with the myths.

That's not really a term, but I understood the gist of what he was asking, so I went with it. I'm assuming he meant it like "card carrying atheist".

 

[ambush80]

Just an observation to someone who said it seems only humans, not animals are evil (paraphrasing) What about a rabid animal? They have a disease in there mind to be evil. Do humans not show those same traits?

If by evil you mean the rabid animal is acting immorally, then, no. I don't think we can apply our morals to what animals do.

 

[bullethead]

Just an observation to someone who said it seems only humans, not animals are evil (paraphrasing) What about a rabid animal? They have a disease in there mind to be evil. Do humans not show those same traits?

In my opinion "evil" is a willful and purposeful intent to do bad things.
Rabid animals have a disease that makes them crazy.
They do what they do beyond their own control.
Now, if you see a fox laying under your vehicle loosening your brake lines....that would be a willful act with intentions to cause harm, chaos and death on purpose.

 

[ky55]

Humans are different from every other “material” as you’ve defined it. What other material in the known universe can develop a complex language, invent the rocket and the mathematical calculations necessary to fly to the moon and back, develop schools, truly love another “material” , follow a moral code of conduct? Can we agree that humans are different?

Seems like the same material to me.
Humans have just evolved to a different level maybe?
All of those developments you mentioned have taken place in a tiny fraction of the time that’s passed since our ancestors stood up and walked on two legs.

 

[ambush80]

In my opinion "evil" is a willful and purposeful intent to do bad things.
Rabid animals have a disease that makes them crazy.
They do what they do beyond their own control.
Now, if you see a fox laying under your vehicle loosening your brake lines....that would be a willful act with intentions to cause harm, chaos and death on purpose.

We call psychopaths evil, even though they have pathology out of their control that makes them do bad things.

 

[ambush80]

Seems like the same material to me.
Humans have just evolved to a different level maybe?
All of those developments you mentioned have taken place in a tiny fraction of the time that’s passed since our ancestors stood up and walked on two legs.

We are impressed by an arrangement of material (us) that's able to greatly influence other material. It's interesting how fast that happened. It would probably not be as impressive to a being that could blink things in and out of existence.

 

[bullethead]

We call psychopaths evil, even though they have pathology out of their control that makes them do bad things.

A rabid animal may bite you. Its condition will get worse until the rabies kills the infected host. A rabid animals progressively worsens.
A psychopath can live a long life. A psychopath can turn the psycho on and off most times. There is no infection slowly killing the host while causing the brain to act differently. A psychopath has neurological problems, ie: bad wiring. The majority of psychopaths can function and fit in and among the rest of society. The actions of psychopaths may range from mild to Evil. Not every psychopath is evil but every rabid animal is rabid.

 

[Artfuldodger]

At what point in time did man stealing food or killing another man for food turn from non-evil to evil? I say non-evil because it still doesn't seem "good" even for Co-Magnun man or even present day animals to do it.
Does intent make it evil? A fish stealing or killing for food might not be evil because the fish doesn't have that thought process. I guess at some point man developed it.

 

[Artfuldodger]

What about the crimes a drug user performs? They say the aren't wanting to or don't have evil intent. The would rather not steal pain meds from their sick grandma. They do feel the guilt. They have remorse.
Then again from a Christian aspect, we are born evil. Without intervention we are like the person with a drug addiction. So maybe intent doesn't really matter in defining evil.

 

[Newt2]

That's not really a term, but I understood the gist of what he was asking, so I went with it. I'm assuming he meant it like "card carrying atheist".

That's weird.

 

[Newt2]

If by evil you mean the rabid animal is acting immorally, then, no. I don't think we can apply our morals to what animals do.

Yet most people do.

 

[Newt2]

In my opinion "evil" is a willful and purposeful intent to do bad things.
Rabid animals have a disease that makes them crazy.
They do what they do beyond their own control.
Now, if you see a fox laying under your vehicle loosening your brake lines....that would be a willful act with intentions to cause harm, chaos and death on purpose.

To me, most believers think that satan is making them evil and god is making them good. It is their own decision to swing either way, No one else can sway their personal goals.

 

[bullethead]

To me, most believers think that satan is making them evil and god is making them good. It is their own decision to swing either way, No one else can sway their personal goals.

I would think that if two such entities like Satan and God existed, the manipulation of humans are petty parlor tricks.
It seems to me that humans are always looking for an excuse or a cause instead of owning up that this is what humans do.

 

[RegularJoe]

What is an "orthodox" Atheist? Atheists simply do not believe in any god, Jesus, or anything associated with the myths.

That's not really a term, but I understood the gist of what he was asking, so I went with it. I'm assuming he meant it like "card carrying atheist".

That's weird.

Gentlemen: i merely used the adjective 'orthodox' to be definitive to whatever the traditionally accepted views for atheists are
(as previously posted, i am trying to learn what atheism is and is not.).....
As per Dictionary.com for your consideration:
"orthodox" -
1. of, relating to, or conforming to the approved form of any doctrine, philosophy, ideology, etc.
2. of, relating to, or conforming to beliefs, attitudes, or modes of conduct that are generally approved.

 

[ambush80]

A rabid animal may bite you. Its condition will get worse until the rabies kills the infected host. A rabid animals progressively worsens.
A psychopath can live a long life. A psychopath can turn the psycho on and off most times. There is no infection slowly killing the host while causing the brain to act differently. A psychopath has neurological problems, ie: bad wiring. The majority of psychopaths can function and fit in and among the rest of society. The actions of psychopaths may range from mild to Evil. Not every psychopath is evil but every rabid animal is rabid.

The psychopathy might make him steal money from old ladies.

Maybe the Ohio State tower shooter is a better example. He had a tumor in his head that was gonna keep growing and eventually kill him.