Re: Carl Sagan

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: : I probably touched on a major point of contension in the humanist/freethought : : movement. That is, to what extent should we be pro-human vs. anti-religious? I : : agree that religion certainly has its fair share of dogmatism and harm. We see : : things like cults, pseudoscience, hatred, war, healing frauds, etc... But there : : are many secular forms of harm, credulity, and dogmatism as well. An example : : would be Stalinism. Stalinism is a secular system but it was responsible for a : : host of atrocities, persecution, and even pseudoscience (Stalin supported the : : Lysenkoism fiasco). : More wars and killings have been done in the name of one god or another than because of anything else. : Stalin was a product of his time and he was a socio-pathic monster who would use anything to his advantage. : : In the case of religion, although there are many Christians endorsing things : : like the Christian Coalition and young-earth creationism, there are many : : enlightened Christians who are more than happy to stand with us against them. : : Religion can certainly be harmful but it can be beneficial as well. Many : : religious people, including some friends of mine, are actively volunteering : : for the community. Many churches are involved in social justice causes (for : : example, things like human rights, environment, 3rd world aid, social security, : : and even things like fighting creationism, fighting the religious right, : : and supporting abortion rights). Overall, I think the enemy is not religion, : : but dogmatism. And we should oppose dogmatism in whatever form it may have, : : whether religious or secular. : Those of religion tend to view those not of them as being somwhat less than human, it makes it easier to burn them of the stake. : : I'm not sure if you live in the USA, but perhaps there is more anti-religious : : sentiment because fundamentalism is widespread there. Here in Canada, religious : : fundamentalists aren't as commonplace. And when I do find fundamentalists, : : they're not as pushy and their beliefs are even watered down a bit. : We Canadians are more laid back in regards to many things and will think something out rather than use force.

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