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submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) by jaschop@awful.systems to c/techtakes@awful.systems

archive of the mentioned NYT article

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[-] lath@lemmy.world 1 points 2 months ago

A state of mind that's unfortunately quite common. See religion for example, magical kingdom ruled by an all-powerful being that lets you in if you behave accordingly. But you have to die first. Yet people gobble it up and even do bad things to other people just for the case that maybe it might be real, even if it likely isn't.

[-] gerikson@awful.systems 9 points 2 months ago

In this case it sounded like a bunch of amoral assholes on 4chan tried to trick a vulnerable individual to kill themselves. A religion that operated like that would not be able to sustain itself and spread.

[-] HedyL@awful.systems 5 points 2 months ago

I would argue that such things do happen, the cult "Heaven's Gate" probably being one of the most notorious examples. Thankfully, however, this is not a widespread phenomenon.

[-] lath@lemmy.world 1 points 2 months ago

Yet, amoral assholes tricking vulnerable people with tales of magic is how religion spreads.

[-] gerikson@awful.systems 10 points 2 months ago

No it isn't you idiot. But please continue to spout 90s era New Atheism propaganda as if it will change anyone's minds at this point.

[-] self@awful.systems 9 points 2 months ago

of course they’re one of these

how did you imagine this was gonna go?

  • you show up in a community you don’t participate in and post low-quality edgelord atheist horseshit that doesn’t have anything to do with what you replied to
  • one of the regulars calls you out on your weird bullshit
  • you report them for breaking a rule that doesn’t exist and I go “uhhhh ok!” and they’re the one that gets banned for some reason???
[-] blakestacey@awful.systems 9 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Nit: "New Atheism" was the decade after that. Gary Wolf coined the term in a Wired story from 2006.

[-] gerikson@awful.systems 8 points 2 months ago

Thanks for the clarification. I kinda missed that entire thing online during the time.

this post was submitted on 23 Oct 2024
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