X-Message-Number: 29564
From: "Chris Manning" <>
References: <>
Subject: Re: CryoNet #29559 - #29561
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 06:01:58 +1000

Just to let you know, Richard Dawkins was on TV recently here in Australia. 
He presented a two-part series about why he believes faith is harmful and 
religion is the root of all evil. Religion is clearly not the root of *all* 
evil; however, apart from that I agree with him, although I also agree with 
you that humans need a sense of identity/meaning. I don't think Dawkins has 
sufficiently acknowledged/addressed this fact.

I am often tempted to join my local Quaker meeting in order to obtain this 
sense for myself.

http://www.abc.net.au/compass/s1928351.htm

I am not familiar with Sam Harris and I have never heard of Daniel Dennett.

I was a member of the Humanist Society of NSW from the early 70s until I 
resigned in 1983.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "CryoNet" <>
To: <>
Sent: Sunday, June 17, 2007 7:00 PM
Subject: CryoNet #29559 - #29561


>
> Message #29559
> References: <>
> From: David Stodolsky <>
> Subject: Re: Sam Harris is brilliant, one of the finest thinkers of ou...
> Date: Sat, 16 Jun 2007 11:33:44 +0200
>
> On 14 Jun 2007, at 17:30,  wrote:
>
>> Sam Harris is one of three influential and articulate writers in
>> public
>> discourse currently.  The other two being my other heroes Richard
>> Dawkins  and
>> Daniel Dennett.
>
> It is not clear that these popular writers are in fact promoting a
> more rational view.
>
> Sam Harris appears to have an irrational acceptance of Buddhism and
> his aggressive denunciations of religion may strengthen religion by
> making it stronger as a source of identity/meaning.
>
> Daniel Dennett bases his analysis upon the 'meme' concept, which is
> useless from a scientific standpoint.
>
> Dawkins is the best of the lot, but has done a lot of damage by
> promoting 'memes', the 'selfish gene' and other nonsense.
>
> The efforts of these two also may backfire for the same reason as
> Harris's denunciations.
>
> Any attempt to overcome irrationality in society has to be based upon
> an understanding of the reasons for its existence. None of the above
> are qualified to do this. They don't have the background in the
> social sciences or history of religion required.
>
> The search for meaning / identity is crucial for human beings. Merely
> attacking the dominant sources is most likely to prove counter
> productive. Anyone serious about this problem should connect with the
> organizations that offer people the benefits of organized religion,
> without the irrationality. The American Humanist Association is one
> option, the International Ethical and Humanist Union is another. A
> good info source:
>
> http://humaniststudies.org/
>
>
> As long time readers here will recall, I have suggested that an
> effective program for promotion of cryonics would be best integrated
> into a comprehensive 'full-service' organization providing all the
> services of current churches.

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