I think that relegates the word to an unreasonably narrow realm of application.
Poll for Atheists
- Thread starter Jack
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I think that relegates the word to an unreasonably narrow realm of application.
Which word?
Not that it matters. If you doubt something then you don't truly believe it. I don't have a problem with someone who is 90% sure that the Christian god exists calling themselves a Christian but they cannot claim to truly believe if they have doubts.
If we played a game where you had to guess how many fingers I'm holding up and after 50 games i had held up 3 fingers each time. It would be reasonable to guess that i would hold up 3 fingers the next time. It would be foolish however to truly BELIEVE that i would hold up 3 fingers.
That is the difference here. A strong suspicion and a strong belief are two different things
"Believe." I don't know why you're defining the word so narrowly. Dictionaries and common usage allow for doubt.
What word would you use for that huge range between 100% certainty and ambivalence?
I'm not defining any word narrowly. I'm talking about a concept not the definition of a word. Words mean different things to different people and it depends on the context. It's not that important what the dictionary says unless you want to get all anal about people using words "correctly". Please don't be that guy. Nobody likes that guy.
If you doubt something then you do not TRULY BELIEVE it. I can't understand how you can disagree with this. There is an important distinction to be made between an absolute certainty and something which is probably true. Call it what you want. It is the distinction that is important not the symantics of what you call it as words mean different things to different people and there is no way to ensure everyones definition of a word is exactly the same
There is no escaping this. Peoples brains work in different ways. It is impossible to force the exact same definiton onto everybody as people generalise, distort and delete information in ways which cannot be controlled definitavely. We also have different preferences for visual, auditory, kinesthetic, olfactory and gustatory ways of storing memories and ideas and words prompt different representations in different people.
The dictionary is and always shall be a rough guide whose main use is official documents and the "rule book" on countdown. Everyday language is constantly shifting
Whatever your word is for an absolute, 100%, unarguable, certain, indisputable, truely held belief is. Thats what I was talking about.
Note my frequent use of "true" belief in this and my other posts. This is what I decided to label an absolute certainty as. I may call it something different tomorrow. Maybe one of the words in the above paragraph. Who knows. They all convey the concept of the belief being held 100% with no doubt.
If you doubt something how can you believe it 100%
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Is it possible that a god exists?
Sure.
Do I believe it?
Not even remotely.
What evidence do I have to not believe?
In the great infamous words of Christopher Hitchens...
Sure.
Do I believe it?
Not even remotely.
What evidence do I have to not believe?
In the great infamous words of Christopher Hitchens...