Upgrade your browser!

Skip to Content

Videos / Random Videos /

Why We Believe in Gods

This talk is by Andy Thomson at the American Atheist 2009 convention in Atlanta, Georgia. Brought to us by RDF(The Richard Dawkins Foundation. RDF also provides this talk for download at http://cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com/c114612/video/2009/Andy-Atlanta-QT.mov . It is in HD720P .mov(Quicktime)format. OR the audio only at http://cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com/c114612/video/2009/Andy-Atlanta-audio.mp3 . MP3 Format. Enjoy!

  • Charnal
  • posted by Charnal
  • Date 10/27/2009 5:48:33 AM
  • Views: 3422
  • Teen
  • Teen
  • Offensive

Tags Tags: believe

Related Media

  • Video:Linus And Bush
  • Linus And Bush
  • Some Things Are Hard To Believe Even In A Punkin Patch!
  • Votes 4.08/5 - Views 3122 - Comments 3
  • Video:Halo 3 Believe
  • Halo 3 Believe
  • This is something i got off the web it's a highly detai. . .
  • Votes 3.54/5 - Views 5858 - Comments 21
  • Video:Believe in yourself
  • Believe in yourself
  • This philosophy has been followed by politicians for ce. . .
  • Votes 3.36/5 - Views 1150 - Comments 2

View All


Trouble playing the media? Click here to manually download it.

Rate This Video:
Rate it 0.5 Rate it 1.0 Rate it 1.5 Rate it 2.0 Rate it 2.5 Rate it 3.0 Rate it 3.5 Rate it 4.0 Rate it 4.5 Rate it 5.0

4.59 out of 5 based on 414 votes

Rating Results:
Earn XP by sharing this video!
learn more

Video URL:

Embedded Link:

Send This Video To A Cell Phone! Digg

15 Comments

Current View: 15 / Show all Comments

Sir spanks-a-lot : LVL 41: VP 4.9: said:

Sir spanks-a-lot

40 votes NegativePositive

27 days 15 hours ago...

you guys have NO IDEA how much I love spikedhumor.

it`s one of the few sites with brains left in it.

Gimli000 : LVL 35: VP 4.3: said:

Gimli000

10 votes NegativePositive

27 days ago...

^What he said.

DoctorRandomercam : LVL 42: VP 5: said:

DoctorRandomercam

15 votes NegativePositive

26 days 18 hours ago...

^ What I think he thinks he said

Neox : LVL 20: VP 2.9: said:

Neox

Hidden (Show Comment) -19 votes

26 days 18 hours ago...

alot of stupid ppl need to get there metaphorical swis army knifs.

2conscience1 : LVL 1: VP 1: said:

2conscience1

Hidden (Show Comment) -19 votes

26 days 17 hours ago...

Desolate is the life of the closed minded believer of science. Cognitive liberty comes about by recognizing the ephemeral nature of truth, not cementing yourself in dubious facts. Paradoxes abound and the douchbag remains sitting, the king of crap hill.

incognito1 : LVL 8: VP 1.7: said:

incognito1

7 votes NegativePositive

26 days 16 hours ago...

Finally something elucidating the underlying mechanisms of religious belief. Religion and science are incompatible, however studying religion as a confluence of many cognitive behavioral mechanism shaped by evolution is a science.

w1t3[house] : LVL 20: VP 2.9: said:

w1t3[house]

0 votes NegativePositive

26 days 16 hours ago...

MORE PLEASEEEEEEeeeeee =)

archentar : LVL 31: VP 4: said:

archentar

5 votes NegativePositive

26 days 16 hours ago...

Nice lecture about where religious beliefs come from. But wouldn`t it be wise, before eradicating religion, to answer a question "Is religion usefull in any way ?" ?
I read that religious people, had higher chance of withstanding and recovering after hard treatment (for example cancer).

2conscience1 : LVL 1: VP 1: said:

2conscience1

Hidden (Show Comment) -13 votes

26 days 15 hours ago...

@incognito1: I love how indoctrination seems like elucidation to the indoctrinated.

@achentar: You are right. If it wasn`t useful, it wouldn`t have lasted this long. That`s natural selection. Religions often have survival aspects to them, like the ever useful 10 commandments. But they also require a mechanism for replication. Read: pesky Jehovah’s Witnesses. It’s the unchecked mutinous replication that`s got people worried.

So eradicate the irrationals and on with rationality! Read: irony.

Vizreel : LVL 42: VP 5: said:

Vizreel

16 votes NegativePositive

26 days 12 hours ago...

OK, religion never did or will it ever do something useful (except for giving comfort to weak minded people). There is no evidence to support the fact that praying will lead one to a quicker recovery. Large scale tests were done that debunked this "theory" long ago, the fact that it`s still believed is something much like an urban myth.

Another argument is that by which religion acts like a catalyst, making bad people do good things. I`m sorry but this works both ways [place terrorist talk here] so then ask yourself which is worse: Religion stopping a guy from attacking you or religion making a guy become a suicide bomber? Then again, ask yourself if religion is such an effective agent inhibiting the gruesome nature of mankind why then priests, that are by default the most religious, still can`t stop raping young children?

"Religions often have survival aspects to them, like the ever useful 10 commandments."
I`m sure not taking the lord`s name in vain will save me from dying of hunger in the amazonian jungle. Please shut up, kid, and pick up a real book, a good book, fiction or otherwise.

You argument by saying that religion is useful because it has survived all these years (even though your religion, christianity, is only 2000 years old, so I guess you`re advocating hinduism) is inherently wrong. A lot of pathogen agents are much older than religion and are still here today yet they are not useful to us in any way. There`s really nothing we can do about it except protect ourselves against them. Religion is a germ of the intellect, you can`t stop it from emerging but you can stop it from infecting your whole system. It survived for this long the same as the flu virus was allowed to run amok a long long time ago. Now we finally figured out what it is and developed the appropriate vaccine for it. You allowed it to reek so much death and destruction around the world, now it`s our turn to clean up your mess. So stand aside and let history be made.

archentar : LVL 31: VP 4: said:

archentar

-5 votes NegativePositive

26 days 11 hours ago...

@Vizreel: I meant rather psychical endurance compared between atheist, and a theist. Theists can give some sense to pain, sickness, maybe not completly logical, but in that kind of situation it is something that helps withstand the hardships.
Or do you think about assigning psychotherapist to every very sick person ? And what that psychotherapist can say, about sense of sickness, or pain ? "Shit happens", "You have to get over it" ? I guess this wouldn`t make it easier to bear it for most people ?

anonymous_ : LVL 35: VP 4.3: said:

anonymous_

6 votes NegativePositive

26 days 10 hours ago...

awesome video! the irony is amazing: the process of believing in religion is an evolutionary process! 5/5

2conscience1 : LVL 1: VP 1: said:

2conscience1

Hidden (Show Comment) -11 votes

26 days 7 hours ago...

@Vizreel You`re retarded. I`m not christian nor religous in the least. Don`t be so butt hurt. It`s not my fault you`re stupid.

Let me translate what I was saying, since you obviously didn’t get it.

It is important to be critical of those who say they have the answer, scientists and priests alike. All things have their place, even viruses, even you. (Though I doubt anyone would miss you if you took a dirt nap.)

As for the 10 commandments, I was referring to the killing, stealing, ect… part. You know, the useful parts. But of course you don’t need morals do you. You`re above all things not scientific. Civil constructs should only apply to the bastards that raped your mom. Right?

Let’s jump to another conclusion. Perhaps one about your insecurity. Probably a small penis or loose vagina, whichever is the case.

LeighCedar : LVL 40: VP 4.8: said:

LeighCedar

3 votes NegativePositive

26 days 6 hours ago...

^ Chances are, 2conscience1 , that the bastards that raped his mom were in fact religious (most people are, and most criminals are).
The 10 commandments didn`t stop them, and most non religious don`t kill and murder without needing recourse to a holy rule book.

The 10 commandments are mostly useless, and the helpful ones are common sense that were around long before monotheism emerged.

archentar,

I know that the tests done on prayer showed it didn`t improve recovery from illness or surgery.
In fact it often had the opposite effect with those knowing people were praying for them doing worse or even dying (kind of a reverse placebo effect, as one who believes in god doesn`t think they need to fight to live).

blkazn4 : LVL 33: VP 4.2: said:

blkazn4

2 votes NegativePositive

26 days 5 hours ago...

this is perfect, I was just wondering today. "Why did a mind have to evolve to the point where it could get depressed, in what way was it beneficial?"

Post a Comment:

Avatar

The Spikedhumor Drawing!Drawing Coming Soon!
Prize
Entry Dates: 9/8/2007-9/14/2009

Recent Blog Posts

Gifs [11.21.09] / [11.22.09]

Gifs [11.20.09]

Couple Busted For Refusing To...

Pimp Calls Off Rabbi's Drug F...

Paedophile Scare Keeps Santa ...

Agents Seize 316,000 Bongs In...

Woman Leaves $40,000 At Shrin...

Baby Girl Named After Car

Hotlinks on Spiked

Motorola Verizon DROID review

15 Best Prison Movies

Worst DVD Bootleg Covers

The Top 10 Doomsday Prophecies

UFC 106: Ortiz vs. Griffin 2

Assassin's Creed 2 Cheats for the Xbox 360

Spiked Classics of 2006

Wedding Crashers - Ice On...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.7
  • 5
2913649
JayFitzgerald
View Profile
Level: 4
Voting Power: 1.3

Become A Smoker
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.2
  • 5
5527
GregP
View Profile
Level: 61
Voting Power: 5

MXC Japanese Gameshow
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.5
  • 5
379532
poonsie01
View Profile
Level: 42
Voting Power: 5

Bad Santa - Are You F#@ki...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.4
  • 5
186516
Assassinator666
View Profile
Level: 12
Voting Power: 2.1

Enrique Iglesias Can't Si...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.3
  • 5
5713827
DaVyWaVyBaBy
View Profile
Level: 65
Voting Power: 5

Real Time with Bill Maher...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.2
  • 5
435901
PorridgeGun
View Profile
Level: 50
Voting Power: 5

An American Werewolf in L...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.0
  • 5
296103
PorridgeGun
View Profile
Level: 50
Voting Power: 5

Bill Clinton vs. Fox News
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.5
  • 5
23258381
Swifty Escobar
View Profile
Level: 26
Voting Power: 3.5

Another Great Picard Mome...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.3
  • 5
336220
firstknightxix
View Profile
Level: 14
Voting Power: 2.3

System of a Down Live on ...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.2
  • 5
256480
OrgasmoTheMoose
View Profile
Level: 36
Voting Power: 4.4

Guy Attempts To Tip A Fox...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.5
  • 5
5229554
DaVyWaVyBaBy
View Profile
Level: 65
Voting Power: 5

Base Jumper Slams Into Bu...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.2
  • 5
4013131
DaVyWaVyBaBy
View Profile
Level: 65
Voting Power: 5

You Wouldn't Want to Mess...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.6
  • 5
5517344
Magster82
View Profile
Level: 3
Voting Power: 1.2

Olbermann on the Clinton ...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.5
  • 5
769512
laribo
View Profile
Level: 36
Voting Power: 4.4

The Winter Death and Spri...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.3
  • 5
8948377
EroticShaVingCrea...
View Profile
Level: 42
Voting Power: 5

Tough Referee Fights Back...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.3
  • 5
4512519
2real
View Profile
Level: 34
Voting Power: 4.2

Marriage Vows of 21st Cen...
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.3
  • 5
224777
Dannyboy
View Profile
Level: 30
Voting Power: 3.9

Wheelchair Murderball Hit
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4.2
  • 5
246792
murderballderrick
View Profile
Level: 6
Voting Power: 1.5