I have finally managed to finish Vox Day's The Irrational Atheist. I think it took me a long time because I am a cheapskate and got the free version and because I am often more fond of playing video games than reading, it took me longer than if I just had the book. And believe me, it's not like I wasn't interested in what he had written either (well, the last part got a little dry, but it's interesting when someone has the balls to call Socrates intellectually dishonest). But that was the appendix. Being a software developer myself, I did find it interesting on his explanation of God as a game designer. It is probably closer than most other people have been able to explain an entirely mysterious cosmic being would sacrifice His own Word to redeem our pathetic lives.
But one of his overall points, besides countering many of the more foolish arguments from the New Atheists, is that these New Atheists, as he calls them, are looking for nothing more than a global, one-world government. In effect, they have replaced that longing we all have for God with a longing for secular government. For this reason, I believe this is why many atheists also happen to be Socialist or left-leaning anyway. You can't deny it. We are all lacking something good (yes, I've just paraphrased lyrics from Third Eye Blind's Darwin). And this is the New Atheist way of coping with the void they have.
I'm probably just talking out my ass here, but I may hit a nerve on some people. Probably the Low Church Atheists. The High Church ones would simply laugh that reality off and continue to delude themselves into believing that lightning striking the primordial ooze is more believable than a God who loves them in spite of all they've done.
But, as Vox says, their souls are not my responsibility. And frankly, I'm not interested in arguing with people who can't even admit they are often more prone to statements of faith than most Christians. Those who are convinced against their will are of the same mindset still. So while I applaud those who have the greater intellectual capacity to challenge these dolts, I have no interest in dealing in matters of faith with them.
But political movements are another thing entirely. When the New Atheists seek to change the world into a one-world, secular government, that's when I start to confront. And apparently, that's what Vox was doing as well. He didn't bother with too much theology, but focused on historical fact, economic realities, and the true nature of human beings to debunk the various arguments made by these Prophets of Naturalism. And the underlying fact that many of the New Atheists support their own version of Plato's Republic scares me.
No human is a perfect. We all do things that are wrong. And don't give that "what's the definition of right and wrong?" philosophical bullshit. Some things are just wrong and you know it. It doesn't matter how accepted it is by society, it's just plain wrong. Guilt is a way of knowing what is wrong. Another thing is the bad consequences that inevitably follow. And because no human is perfect, no one person, or even a small group of people, should be allowed to have unlimited power over everyone else.
If you just read up on Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, or Red China, you'll see that I'm right. Utopianism is the belief that human beings are inherently rational and good people. Unfortunately, if that were true, than there would be no such thing as murder. I believe what Bender Bending Rodriguez believes, "Everyone's a jerk. You. Me. This jerk." I was in my teens when I figured out that communism wouldn't work because 10% of the people would work (turns out, my hunch was right given how the Soviets ran things). It's not a hard concept to grasp. My wife was only recently enlightened to this concept when I did a Bible study on The Fall in contrast to the popular thinking of the day. That's what happens when you're taught from Kindergarten to 12th grade stupid hippie crap from the people who were below average performers in college.
But the New Atheists are seeking to repeat what has happened in the past century while fooling themselves into believing that they won't. Talk about stupidity. But the dangerous kind, not the funny kind. They believe that with their reason and their science, they will solve all the world's problems. Oddly enough, so did the UN Secretary General just before he was replaced by aliens in the movie Godzilla: Final Wars.
To the New Atheists, both High and Low, I have to say this: God was not a definition of good government. Morpheus was wrong (even though that was a fun game to play). Now please, go and buy an island or something and create your own version of Utopia. I prefer to find my own happiness and peace here with God. Because ultimately, we'll all die anyway, so God or not, it really doesn't matter, does it?