Friday, August 10, 2012

How Big is Infinity? [Video]



How Big is Infinity? [Video]

FacePalm of the Day - Debunking Christianity: Solomon's Decision Was the Dumbest Judicial Ruling in History

I've got to wonder if John Loftus' crusade to debunk Christianity is motivated by emotional fear than by clear-thinking reason. It does not take much to see that given that he posts really shoddy logic like the following.

We all know the story told in I Kings 3. Solomon was given wisdom by God more than anyone else. To show us how wise he was Solomon issued a ruling involving two prostitutes who both claimed a particular baby was theirs. To settle the matter Solomon ordered that the child be cut in two, with each woman receiving half of him. This is supposed to be considered wise. I demurr. I think it was the dumbest judicial ruling in history, well, at least one of them. Here's why.

So let's look at what the Bible says that happened. Loftus makes it look like Solomon decides to cut the baby in half because he can't decide whose the baby's mother is. IF this was true, then maybe Loftus has a point. But before pulling the string revealing just how whacked Loftus' reasoning really is, let's see how he tried to develop his "point.

Just imagine Solomon’s so-called “wise” judgment in our day in a courtroom situation in a divorce child custody case.

How is a child custody case in a courtroom in anyway like the scenario in the Bible? In cases involving custody of children, the court knows the relationship of the people who are vying for custody to the child in question. And today with DNA, birth certificates, and all the documentation around today, it's almost impossible to not to be able to tell a child's parentage. In this case, Solomon was looking for the identity of the baby's mother given that two women claimed to be the baby's mother.

Go ahead. Imagine it. It was anything but wise. We would be morally repulsed if any judge issued such a judgment, for it was always possible that both women in Solomon's story might agree to have the child killed.

Given that people abort children without shame or conscious then maybe today both mothers could have an "as-long-as-she-doesn't-have-him "attitude, but I doubt it. I would think that a woman who goes through pregnancy and birth would so cavalierly give up her child. I mean there is that pesky little quality we call love. Even after 3000 years, I wouldn't count motherly love out. Solomon was wise enough not to ignore mothely love as a motivation for human action even if Loftus misses it.

Even the real mother might have wanted the child killed rather than have it raised by such a lying conniving pretender/thief. 

Why? Why would not a mother love her child so much that she would rather see him live than die.

If this had happened then the child would have been killed since that’s what Solomon said, and he could not back out of it, could he? Any civilized judge issuing such a judgment would be thrown out of the country it’s so utterly repulsive. It’s actually the dumbest ruling that was ever made.

I think the dumbest thing is that Loftus doesn't see that Solomon was wise enough to see that the real mother would love her son so much that she'd rather live without him than die. Don't forget that love is about sacrifice.

Unlike John Loftus, some atheists are honest. While I disagree with the conclusion the commenter draws on the Bible, he at least correctly states what the Bible does say..


I think you cut the story short, and missed the point. Before I explain, I'm an atheist, and I agree the bible is bullshit. But his ruling wasn't as "dumb" as you make it sound
The verse after he announces the baby will be cut in half is:
"Then spoke the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her heart yearned upon her son, and she said: 'Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it.' But the other said: 'It shall be neither mine nor thine; divide it. 27 Then the king answered and said: 'Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof."
He knew that he would be able to determine who the real mother was by the reaction they gave to his order. He never truly intended to cut the child in half.



Solomon was wise enough to know that in the situation he orchestrated he would not have to kill the baby because her knew the baby's mother would rather give him up than for him to die. It's nice to see that a person can be honest with the Bible although they don't believe it.  As of posting this, I have not seen any response from Loftus. I hope that he's own up and just apologize for his blunder. Not sure if he's wise enough to see that.

Debunking Christianity: Solomon's Decision Was the Dumbest Judicial Ruling in History
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The 10 Smartest People Alive Today

The 10 Smartest People Alive Today
Source: SuperScholar.org

Take a few minutes and think about what intelligence is and how you measure it? Bow ask: Is that how you would think God would define it?

The 10 Smartest People Alive Today