The God Delusion

[Ray]

Has anybody else read that act actually finished it?
I dropped that book after the first 5 pages. The author came across as completely egotistical and self centered. I though it might have been his writing style but I just heard him interviewed on NPR. And guess what? IT'S TRUE!
The book is lame. Don't waste your money.
/end [rant]

Edited per Janiece..

[taustin]

Dawkins has always had an awfully high opinion of his opinion. And he doesn't seem to grasp that his atheistic beliefs are every bit as much a matter of faith as any theist. Very full of himself.

[Janiece]

Do you mean "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins?

I've read the whole thing, and I heard the interview on Fresh Air.

Dawkins is pretty pompous and dismissive of people who don't see things his way. I consider him to be the atheist version of the screechy evangelicals (a la Pat Robertson). The idea that you can disagree with others without attempting to completely crush them appears to be foreign to him.

I don't care much for fanatics, of any stripe.

I found Sam Harris' books to be more accessible and respectful.

[ora]

Do you mean "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins?
Dawkins is pretty pompous and dismissive of people who don't see things his way. I consider him to be the atheist version of the screechy evangelicals (a la Pat Robertson). The idea that you can disagree with others without attempting to completely crush them appears to be foreign to him.

Here here! Dawkins is just rabid and ignores some pretty hard facts along the way. He's faaar too close to biological determinism for me.

[ethyachk]

Dawkins, the grumpy atheist, can certainly come off as arrogant and annoying, but he makes good points if you care to slog through his rhetoric and pomposity. And he's definitely the antithesis of Pat Robertson and the like as Janiece said. In some ways he gives atheists a bad name as he's so confrontational, but, on the other hand, he's somewhat necessary if we are to have a full spectrum of religious vs. non religious people, we need some people who are apparently angry and raving on both sides of the fight.

[Antony B]

Dawkins, the grumpy atheist, can certainly come off as arrogant and annoying, but he makes good points if you care to slog through his rhetoric and pomposity.

I agree. I haven't read The God Delusion as it'd be preaching to the converted in my case. It certainly wouldn't surprise me if the majority of people who finish it are those who are already atheist. A shame because, as already mentioned, he is capable of making some very good points.

Personally, when it comes to Dawkins, I recommend 'The Blind Watchmaker'. It's a fantastic book that gave me my first real insight into the beauty of evolution. I also like 'Unweaving The Rainbow' for its enthusiasm in promoting the creative inspiration we can gain from science.

[Ray]

Do you mean "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins?

Err..ya thats what I meant.
:)

[Laen]

I enjoyed it. Where the book comes from has a lot to do with why it was written. In response to letters he received. His other books are far less confrontational. Of course I like Christopher Hitchens so confrontational doesn't bother me.

[Jschmus]

I flipped through it, but I much preferred Christopher Hitchens' God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.

[Zalandris]

I enjoyed the first half of the book, he rambled a bit after that but I hung in there. And he was certainly preaching to the choir in my case.

I'm not a big Hitchens fan. He strikes me as more Trollish then anything else. An intellectual bully.

On the other hand, I adore Sam Harris' writing and will happily recommend "The End of Faith" and "Letter to a Christian Nation"

[Antony B]

I flipped through it, but I much preferred Christopher Hitchens' God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.

These titles have begun to remind me of the trilogy of controversial blockbusters mentioned in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, namely Where God Went Wrong, Some More of God's Greatest Mistakes and Who is this God Person Anyway?

[elenuial]

I used to take issue with Dawkins, but from the way I see it, he's aggressive because he feels like he has to be. Athiests get a lot of hate, and in mainstream discourse, people who strongly advocate atheism get treated the same way cult leaders get treated: as if what they say is automatically a joke. When you're arguing from that position, I'd say you almost have to be strident just to not get relegated to the corner and ignored. And if there's something Dawkins has done, he has really started the process of mainstreaming the idea of even talking about atheism as a legitimate alternative to religion. Overton windows ftw.

[jaredrourke]

I find it interesting that people find Harris to be less offensive or easier to read; to me he's as abrasive as Dawkins, and slightly less educated. Harris does make some great points throughout his book, and I generally agree with his anti-theism stance, but he lost me at the pro-metaphysical bull at the end of "The End of Faith". "Letter to a Christian Nation" is a better book, although the fact that he had to write a response book to "The End of Faith" shows that he's probably not the best at getting his point across. That being said, "Letter..." is a great source of facts about the negative effects of organized religions.

"The God Delusion," and Dawkins in general, relies more on science to make it's point. A lot of people find Dawkins to be too abrasive and confrontational, but I think it's justified.. And, I think, to a certain degree he deserves the right to be as abrasive as he wants. Atheists, who generally base their beliefs and world views on scientific fact rather than mythological hearsay, find themselves to be an incredibly small minority who happen to be armed with... the truth. Being in that situation tends to ruin someone's tactfulness. You try making a rational argument with someone who responds "I don't care, it's just what I believe". Frustration ensues.

And this is my first post, here. It should make me some friends.

-J

[Nikitta]

Personally, when it comes to Dawkins, I recommend 'The Blind Watchmaker'. It's a fantastic book that gave me my first real insight into the beauty of evolution. I also like 'Unweaving The Rainbow' for its enthusiasm in promoting the creative inspiration we can gain from science.

I echo your recommendation of The Blind Watchmaker and add "The Selfish Gene" as a good book of his. I haven't read "Unweaving the Rainbow" yet, but it's on my shelf of books I haven't gotten around to yet, as it "The God Delusion".

[QueenGeek]

A lot of people find Dawkins to be too abrasive and confrontational, but I think it's justified.. And, I think, to a certain degree he deserves the right to be as abrasive as he wants. Atheists, who generally base their beliefs and world views on scientific fact rather than mythological hearsay, find themselves to be an incredibly small minority who happen to be armed with... the truth.

Hear! Hear!

Atheists are so maligned (especially here in the US), and one of the reasons why is this notion that we're "abrasive" and "confrontational". When one doesn't have decent counter-arguements, it's always easy to call the person making the arguement "strident", as if that actually undercuts the arguement. It doesn't. In fact, it's an attempt to disarm the atheist before he or she actually has made an arguement. (The first poster on the thread told me a lot more than he intended to. After five pages--five pages!--he was content to say that Dawkins was full of himself.)

Simply writing a book The God Delusion (which was a deliberately provocative title, as is god is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything) is going to antagonise people whose minds are already closed to the arguements contained in them. I've read them both; I liked Dawkins' book immensely. Some things in the Hitchens tome really pissed me off. And the tone in both of them is debiratively argumentative.

And that's a very good thing.

[acheron]

I flipped through it, but I much preferred Christopher Hitchens' God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.

These titles have begun to remind me of the trilogy of controversial blockbusters mentioned in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, namely Where God Went Wrong, Some More of God's Greatest Mistakes and Who is this God Person Anyway?

Plus his follow-up, Well, That About Wraps It Up For God.

(reply 7 months later FTW..?)

[Wonko]

This was a Dawkins read I pick up on audio book and having listened to it and digested the whole thing I did get something out of it. Its also important to note the this book is essentially a collection of responses to letters and writing written to him over time. If the tone seems confrontational that because it is. If you don't like it because you think Dawkins comes off high handed then I suggest you try the Devil's Chaplain.