oops can't see my post to edit it. nevermind
here is what cantleave and phizzy said in response to lost and others (page 5)
lost said: would you walk into an obscure african village and call them stupid ?
cantleave said : You are confusing ideas with people again.
and heres is phizzy's point which is spot on too
Ridicule is probably more feared by people with indefensible ideas than mere facts and truth.
Why do you think Totalitarian regimes have always stamped on the Satirists. the Comics and the Cartoonists ?
The more we ridicule these silly beliefs the more it is thrown in to bold relief just how daft they are.
humour like ideas can put some distance between the receiver and the poster and allow them to take a fresh revealing look at a problem. so I suggest that if a person is feeling attacked they can remind themsevles of the above and also that this is the internet and not a face to face confrontation or an individual one either.
the other point I want to make is that todays discourse is conducted via science which to me means that the questions about who we are, what is our place is in the world etc is treated quite differently from religous discourse. So we are bound to lock horns with those how who insist on describing their place in the world through religious means and this can then lead to impasse ideally rather than deadlock so that both parties do have the option of simply letting the thread die.
