Dawkins and Killers frontman clash over Book of Mormon

cedars

Here is the video... (the interesting bit starts at 07:30 or thereabouts)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjwsG36XTZ8

And here is the article covering it...

http://www.gigwise.com/news/76350/watch-brandon-flowers-rows-with-richard-dawkins-about-religion

In this brief encounter, Dawkins mentions the Book of Mormon and highlights the fact that it was written in the style of "16th Century English" despite being written in the 19th Century. He reasons that, on this basis, the work is a forgery and Joseph Smith is a "charlatan".

Brandon Flowers, frontman to the Killers (whose music I love) is a Mormon and gets quite agitated by this, at one point telling Dawkins to "do your research" in a terse exchange.

Despite this awkward moment, it was nice to see that the pair were able to part amicably with a handshake.

Cedars

BroMac

shame Brandon mimes at the end.

at the moment i cant say that i am in agreement with Richard Dawkins but who knows I may in the future, keep my options are open on that one. one thing i will say about him, he's seems a nice chap!

Ulrika ka ka

snare&racket

I saw this, I felt bad for him but then Dawkins is right in what he says, thought not perhaps the way he said it.

BroMac, may I humbly ask whether it is Dawkins you disagree with or the evidence he presents? Have you read "The Greatest Show on Earth?"

Snare x

sabastious

Flowers won the debate with the song which is pretty cool. Dawkins is running away from the real reason music moves him to tears. He's the one not accepting the truth, not the other way around.

-Sab

WontLeave

So much information is available to anyone with half a brain about the insanity of the Mormon beliefs, history, and "holy" books. The amount of cognitive dissonance required to accept the religion is ridiculous. The fact that Mormons prosper in industrialized nations is bizarre. Muslims prosper in deserts full of ignorant goat herders. JWs prosper in South American villages. Evangelicals flourish in Arkansas. I realize the Scientology proliferation among Hollywood sociopaths and their insane underlings. I don’t understand the degree of success with Mormons among educated, intelligent, middle- to upper-class people.

Qcmbr

It's got a much better story than other strands of xianity. Theologically it is much cleverer than traditional xian theology. It is much easier to understand. The culture is much more practical, useful and devoid of obvious xian crazy ( speaking in tongues, falling on the floor etc.) it has a mixture of all the fun parts of religion ( grand architecture, self improvement, strong cultural activities, competitive ethic, self sufficiency, education, pragmatism etc.)

Need I go on? I found it ridiculously easy to believe in. What I lacked was what all religious believers lack. We all know what makes our belief 'true' what we don't know is what would make it untrue.