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The New Atheism: Taking A Stand For Science And Reason (2009)

by Victor J. Stenger(Favorite Author)

3.8 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

1591027519 (ISBN13: 9781591027515)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Prometheus Books

review 1: I think this book was an excellent summary of the arguments against a personal God in the universe. The author uses science and philosophy to argue against the presence of God. He also discusses some of the atrocities committed by religions, and explains why the new atheists oppose religion so strenuously. Also interesting was his analysis of how less religious societies have fewer social problems and religious societies, fewer murders, less poverty, less violence and crime, etc. This neatly debunks the belief of so many theists that religion is necessary for morality. Some of the stuff I already knew, but I found some valuable information about science that successfully debunks many of the Christian apologists who claim that the universe is fine-tuned for life or that the... morere are so many gaps in scientific knowledge that God is the inevitable cause of life. An excellent book.
review 2: I read this book twice. The first time was back in the summer and I skimmed through it pretty fast. This time, I read it much slower and made notations throughout. I think it is sad that the "new atheists" are not taken seriously, especially by themselves! It sort of reminds me of how wimpy the Democratic Party was during (and after) the 2010 elections, but that's another matter.I totally agree with Stenger that atheists are not about eradicating religion, we just want to co-exist without being preached to. Stenger says, "Faith is belief in the absence of evidence. Science is belief in the presence of evidence. When the evidence disagrees with a scientific proposition, the proposition is discarded. When the evidence disagrees with a religious proposition, the evidence is discarded. . . . It is not the universe that is unreasonable or not. It is people that are unreasonable or not." (p. 239) I have made it my goal to not be "preachy" about my new-found unbelief but, alas, the believers tend to put me on the defensive stance. It should not be that way.Stenger says, "We are not trying to shut down religious institutions, but we have a right as citizens to object to the illegal and unconstitutional distribution of taxpayer money to these institutions and other special privileges they are awarded by cowardly politicians. And, we feel it is our duty to protest when government officials rely on superstition instead of science to make decisions that affect the lives of everyone on the planet." (pp. 239-240)One more statement that is important to the thrust of this book: "We see nothing wrong with asking the faithful to provide evidence and rational arguments for their faith, rather than us keeping quiet as do so many of our atheist and agnostic friends for fear of offending "deeply held beliefs."" (p. 239)I am inspired by Stenger, as well as Dawkins, Harris, Dennett, and Hitchens, to take a stand for science and reason. It seems like a reasonable and upstanding thing to do!-----Second reading started: December 1, 2010; finished December 6, 2010.Third reading started: May 6, 2013; finished May 12, 2013. less

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