It also seems to happen with an elevated level of frequency on the poe network.

I'm not 100% sure if the difference between agnostic and atheist is what it's come to popularly mean, but based on the common usages of it, I like to consider myself an agnostic because it seperates me from dickheads like Penn Jillette and Richard Dawkins who take a militaristic stance on their disbelief in God. What the fuck do I care if people believe some guy created the Universe? It certainly seems to give a lot of people a sense of stability and happiness, and I don't begrudge them that.

Randal Munroe makes the next point rather eloquently: http://xkcd.com/154/

a lot of agnostics are atheists who just aren't big enough jerks to act the way self-described atheists act

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"Angela Lansbury Masturbates in a Tub"

"It always seems like human opinion humps the fuck out of black and white."

what the fuck are you talking about

The thing that specifically pisses me off about people who are *pointedly* agnostic is that NO SHIT you don't know, mastermind. You and everybody else. I mean it's an okay descriptor if you really, truly are on the fence - but it's sort of hard for those who believe differently to not to take it as a meaningful jab in the ribs - and the only common useage of the word is 'nobody can know!' which is about as obnoxious.

Anyway, fuck agnostics, fuck atheists, fuck deists, fuck theists and ESPECIALLY fuck pantheists.

whoops, that should be 'the only OTHER common useage of the word is'

usually when I say "I'm agnostic", i'm actually trying to say "i don't want to talk to you about religion, because you look and sound like a fucking psycho"

When someone is being pointedly agnostic, they are trying to get that "no duh" concept through everyone's thick skull. Yet the people they are talking about still want an excuse to treat another set of people like shit.

Also...this guy catches bullets with his teeth at the Rio.

Comparing Dawkins to Penn is pretty gross. Dawkins provides well-reasoned and articulate arguments against most religious beliefs. He is an actual scientist and, despite whatever image you may hold in your head, isn't out to purposely offend the average religious person nor do I think he wants to. Dawkins has long been a strong proponent of free speech and expression. He also supports loads of social, democratic, and liberal causes. He is a pretty decent dude.

Also note, "what the fuck do I care if people believe some guy created the universe" isn't really far off from the position Dawkins would hold more if it weren't for the exception that a good deal of those people who believe that some guy created the universe hold a lot of political and financial power that has been used to actively interfere with and subvert scientific learning/progress (See "Of Pandas and People", the Scopes Trial, Hovind, etc.) or to actively suppress human rights (Prop. 8 as a more recent example though there are countless more). It holds a position of power that no other belief system with the tendency in the supernatural does.

I don't really care for Penn because he tends to wallow in his own self-satisfaction and holds painfully bad political viewpoints, but the needless shafting of Dawkins as "militaristic" or a "dickhead" is endlessly tiresome.

i wrote all that and no one's going to read it, didn't i

I read it

Add 'libertarian' to the list of neckbeard properties, and you're right.

ponytail

why you mad syd why you mad?

dont cry syd

Hey man, I know what we were supposed to read for today but I've got this much more significant book right here and that's Atlas Shrugged. Have you read it? I think it'll change your life... *eats five dollar footlong*

haw haw haw yes i sure agree with/understand/have read whatever the fuck all these words say

stars for you sir

If my God commands me to kill my son and I dismiss it as an auditory hallucination, THEN you might say I am an atheist. If I interpret it as the voice of God then I must believe in God, now mustn't I?

Reminder: Penn is the guy who scoffs at Creationists for not listening to scientists, and then scoffs at Global Warming because you can't trust those scientists anyway.

hey Patton!!!!!!!! kill yourself?????

I'm glad I'm not the only one that turned my brain off at that wall-of-text.

Thanks futurebot and toenails. Glad you enjoyed the read. See you next video :)

If you believe the Babylonian conquest of Israel was motivated by an angry invisible sky-fairy, you're an idiot.

5 for this.

reinforced

That was one hell of a strawman argument, too.

All the patriarchs of the Old Testament were in the habit of arguing with God, and even about matters not involving their offspring. Penn fails again.

Agnostics are not that hard to define: if someone asks "do you think there's a god or gods", the three basic answers are "yes", "no", and "not sure". Agnostics are the third answer, and it's neither necessary nor helpful to come up with more convoluted definitions.

How about 'I doubt it'? It's more descriptive than 'I don't know' and in my case it's more honest. If I'm in a frisky mood I'll say 'I don't know, but I doubt it'. Redundant, but some people are stupid and need special attention.
Really I think all the -ist/-ic labels are pretty much bullshit - it takes less time to say exactly what I think than it does to muddle through all the stupid fucking misunderstandings that are associated with that crap.

Anyway, Penn Jillette is a fat fucking cow and a Randroid. Fuck him.

My answer is "I don't care'. Because I don't. If I'm a good person and there is a God, they will care more about whether I'm a good person than what statue I worshipped, and if there is no God, then I'm still a good person and hopefully left the world a better place.

It's a stupid game. The only way to win is not to play.

Sure sure, but if somebody asks me a question I try to answer as honestly and directly as I can. Even if it's a stupid question. Especially if it's a stupid question. Passive aggressive, avoidant non-answers are fun too though!

"I'm agnostic" is my polite way of saying "I don't know and neither do you, lets drop it". It means I don't want to START arguments.

Where would, "Not sure, but I *sincerely* doubt it" fit in?

It's called being a camwhore.

Oh, in case that sounds like I disapprove, I think it's actually pretty great.

put cheeseburgers in me!

STOP DESTROYING OUR STANDARDS OF NEUTRALITY

In my defense, I was pretty drunk when I submitted it.

That explains why you couldn't check the spelling on his name?

JUST TYPE IT INTO GOOGLE. IT SPELLS IT FOR YOU.

WEEPY VAGINA AHOY

Had I been sober, I doubt I'd have checked the spelling, to be honest.

I'm pretty sure Penn presented his beliefs in the title of the video when he presented it to others, Camonk is simply doing the same when titling his video exhibit. PoE is all about pointing and laughing.

The PoeTV Mission Statement is "Haha look at this"

that's the best way i've ever heard it put.

Because the "belief" is a source of misinformation, stubborness, self centered indulgence and hatred disguised as the Easter Bunny who makes you live in the clouds when you die if you collect all 120 stars.

five stars for finally using that comparative philosophy degree

I think you're missing the point. Being an atheist does not make Penn a boring douche. Penn makes Penn a boring douche whether he's talking atheism or performing mediocre, second rate, magic trick hand-me-downs.

I've watched a handful of episodes of his show Bullshit! and found them to be some of the most entertaining TV around, I enjoyed his short lived radio show a lot, and grew up with P&T's humorous magic act so I have to say I disagree with you, I think Penn's fucking brilliant. I will say that his political views are shit, but as far as his opinions on the biggest evil of human society being organized religion I'm right there with him.

Then you're just the kind of fatuous, uninformed, easily-lead atheist/libertarian doof that Penn likes. And good for you. I hope you two are happy together.

You are not an atheist just like Penn. Your explanation of yourself is way more eloquent and self aware. As far as the biggest evil on human society, I tend to think of nature as having the greatest potential to destroy us utterly, but as far as human created evils go, religion is most likely number one.

I agree with whomever said that Penn being an atheist is a natural outgrowth of Penn being a douchebag. His brand of atheists do discredit to everyone else, but they're fun to watch sometimes because they'll point at religious people and scream "GOD IS JUST MAKE-BELIEVE YOU PHILOSOPHICALLY RETARDED MORONS". I'd like to do that sometimes but I don't because I'm not a tremendous asshole of a person.

i might do it passive-aggressively in forum comments tho

I'm just messin' with you cause you write hella long paragraphs.

camonk! you rascal!