From: joeb@arden.linet.org (Joe Beiter)
Newsgroups: alt.atheism
Subject: Re: iq<->religion: connection?
Date: 28 Dec 92 21:01:52 GMT
Distribution: world,public
Organization: The Courts of Chaos

In article <1992Dec26.220732.28497@prime.mdata.fi> iikkap@mits.mdata.fi (Iikka Paavolainen) writes:
>>
>>People tend to associate with others who share their values and outlook. So
>>Stephen Doe is correct, your anecdotal experiences are not statistically
>>significant.
>
>Yes, do tend to associate with people like me, intelligent people, and my best
>friends "happen" to be atheists. Some were previously strictly of Hindu faith,
>but when I showed them the pure logic of things concerning religion, they
>converted to atheism quite fast. It was just a question of realizing the
>situation.

Still rather weak support of your 'study'.  I've not seen anything of your
so-called study but these threads but I would be suspicious of the nature of
your "abstract thinking" test questions.  Like the other gentleman pointed out,
most people tend to associate with like minded people.  This is not the case
on this newsgroup.  I've seen very good arguments (and stupid ones) from the
'religion' camp here as well as good arguments (and just as stupid) ones
from the atheists.

Just to comment on your argument (and topic), I've consistantly found those that
need to point out how intelligent they are never are.

>>Where is your statistical study of this area of intelligence?
>
>On my desk.

(I thought it was a self proclaimed Einstein here rather than computer)

Tell me, does it take much abstract thought to conclude that prehaps a sample
of your questions, control group examples, and data might prehaps be helpful?

If you did already, I apologize and would like a copy if you have one and its
not a bother.

>>: Illogical? In absence of evidence it seems more like fantasizing.
>>: Of course one believes what one has most rational (this is where logical
>>: intelligence comes in) proof of. In an environment where Christianity
>>: has a stranglehold, other proof is basically unavailable. Thus, he/she
>>: will most likely become a Christian (correlation applies).

You obviously don't live in the States.  I'd hardly call a country where
they aren't currently killing Christians as being under a religious
stranglehold.
If reality were as you claim then why is it that homosexuality, fornication,
divorce, idolitry, and blasphemey aren't against the law (like it is in
Islamic countries)?

I further rarely see examples of your scenerio.  Most of the people that I've
seen in my life time tend to rebel against their environment.  I've also
known people that have grown up in Christian families with plenty of 
"other proof" and have rejected it as faulty.

>
>People tend to believe what they have most proof of. Intelligence is used to
>deduce which of the options is the 'most' correct.

So if the proof is insufficiant then their intelligence has little bearing on
their grip on reality.  You do not have sufficiant proof that there is no
God so I find your intelligence (or lack of) has little bearing on the valid-
ity of any religion (much less Jesus Christ).

I know a few atheists and do not consider them stupid but do not consider them
very intelligent either (having nothing to do with their religious opinions).

>--
> __/|_  ,  ,--------------------------------------------------------------,
>/o    \/:--| Iikka Paavolainen / iikkap@mits.mdata.fi, in Espoo, Finland  |
>\__~__/\:--| "I won't have a battle of wits with an unarmed opponent."    |
>   `    `  `--------------------------------------------------------------'

pssst! Your ego is hanging out all over the place.



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