NationStates Jolt Archive

Except that there was no before the big bang. The big bang is the creation of space and time. It wasn't one minute there was nothing and the next there was everything, it goes that one minute there was a minute.


And iirc, this is what Saint Augustin said - no atheist, I daresay.
When asked by someone about "what was before the creation" he answered that "time is a propriety of the created universe, hence there is no 'before the creation' ".

Yeah I do!:D

i believe in their being all sorts of nontangable forces AND beings, both great and small. i believe there is something big, friendly and nontangable that loves and wishes us well, about which, anything more then that, no system of organized belief knows its ass from a hole in the ground. and likewise lots of little friendly and nontangable spirit critters/people who love us and wish us well too.

ok, most likely a serious majority of nontangable awairnessess have never even heard of nor immagined us, any more then we have them.

what i don't believe, is that whatever else does exist, makes it any less up to us, to avoid screwing everything up for each other.

=^^=
.../\...

As with any disscution about a higher omni-present being, belief is for those that want the comfort of thinking there's got to be more to life than thier pittiful exsistance, for those otherwise there is the reality in which we live our mundane lives:sniper:

Define "god." Then I can tell you what I think about it.

As with any disscution about a higher omni-present being, belief is for those that want the comfort of thinking there's got to be more to life than thier pittiful exsistance, for those otherwise there is the reality in which we live our mundane lives:sniper:

Ahh first post huh! You can of course back this claim up, or is it just what you feel is the reason for people to have belife in God?

Define "god." Then I can tell you what I think about it.

The sentient creative force of the universe?

Can there be only one ?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/04/Highlander.jpg

There can be only one.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

The sentient creative force of the universe?

Can there be only one ?

To quote a well known physicist; "My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind."

Can there be only one ?

well I dare say there could be many, but it is my belife that there is only one.

The sentient creative force of the universe?
I am sentient and a creative force and I am of the universe.

I believe I exist.

I am sentient and a creative force and I am of the universe.
Perhaps all true, but you are not THE sentient creative force of the universe? If you are, I have 3 wishes. :)

I believe I exist.
I am quite sure you exist, at least my computer suggests that you do, although you could be a programme.

I am sentient and a creative force and I am of the universe.

I believe I exist.

heh ohhh sooo bloody pedantic huh Bottle!

Okay lets say that God is the sentient force that is responsible for the creation of the universe. I was rather hoping not to use as many words though, ya know wot I mean!

Perhaps all true, but you are not THE sentient creative force of the universe? If you are, I have 3 wishes. :)

I believe there are probably other creative forces to the universe, though I must admit that I do not have as much evidence for their existence as I have for my own.

heh ohhh sooo bloody pedantic huh Bottle!

Okay lets say that God is the sentient force that is responsible for the creation of the universe. I was rather hoping not to use as many words though, ya know wot I mean!
I have no reason to believe the universe was created by a sentient force. Thus, I have no reason to assume that God, as you define it, exists.

So I do not believe in your image of God.

I believe there are probably other creative forces to the universe, though I must admit that I do not have as much evidence for their existence as I have for my own.
I am glad we got that sorted out.....I guess that means I won't be getting my 3 wishes huh?

I have no reason to believe the universe was created by a sentient force. Thus, I have no reason to assume that God, as you define it, exists.

So I do not believe in your image of God.

Umm which interestingly leaves you open to ponder other 'images' of God?

well i have no idea what it may or may not have created, just that there's something big, friendly and nontangable that gives good huggs.

and i'm still not convinced ANYONE knows anything else about it.

=^^=
.../\...

i'm also convinced that immagining there can be nothing we don't already know, can't ourselves directly observe, is like an infant in it's crib trying to immagine that nothing other then its crib, and possibly the room that it's in, could ever possibly exist. of course that doesn't mean there has to be a god or gods as such, just that there's a damd good chance there ARE other rooms in the house, other awairnessess in them, and quite possibly other houses accross the street, road or wilderness.

and then there are these little furry invisible warm friendly creatures that curl up next to me on top of the covers too.

what we don't know isn't incapable of existing because we don't know it, it just isn't under any compulsion to resemble what we choose to immagine we know about it either.

=^^=
.../\...

Umm which interestingly leaves you open to ponder other 'images' of God?
Certainly. Many people do not share your definition of God. I would have to address them each individually.

For instance, a friend of mine defines "god" in terms of human emotion. "God" is the feeling of "being a part of something bigger than oneself," according to this fellow. I obviously believe that such feelings exist, having experienced similar sensations personally.

Bottle old friend how are you? :-)

I dunno.

I've struggled with this so many times that I've come to the reliable conclusion that I just don't know. I may never know, even if I do know, how would I be certain? There's so much in this universe that to try to comprehend God before figuring everything else out is like trying to learn quantum physics before understanding addition.

Why do you believe in god or don't?

I have no knowledge---nor can I ever know---one way or the other. So I just don't really think about it. I have my preferences, of course, and I would prefer that there be no god (the whole omnipotent & omniscient thing is soooo 1984), but I can't prove that there isn't.

Why do you believe in god or don't?

I have no knowledge---nor can I ever know---one way or the other. So I just don't really think about it. I have my preferences, of course, and I would prefer that there be no god (the whole omnipotent & omniscient thing is soooo 1984), but I can't prove that there isn't.

Why do you believe in god or don't?

I have no knowledge---nor can I ever know---one way or the other. So I just don't really think about it. I have my preferences, of course, and I would prefer that there be no god (the whole omnipotent & omniscient thing is soooo 1984), but I can't prove that there isn't.

Bottle old friend how are you? :-)
*SNOG!*

What up? I'm doing crappy because my doctoral thesis is evil and will not die, but as long as there is booze in the world I should manage to suffer through. :D

Yes.

I don't believe in god nor do I not.

Why should I waste time on something I can't proof it is in the cupboard or not?

And till now, I don't need a little mental cookbook of 2000 years old, to teach me how to behave, how to fill in my morality or how to find peace.

Since I was a child, I wished to live in an agnostic country. Currently, I’m doing it.

While ‘official’ 90% is Catholic in reality almost nobody is attending a church, except for the priests and nuns :)

And no, god isn’t playing an issue in the life of the average people. They just have their life and that's it. I enjoy this a lot.

I heard stories about a friend who lived for a few months in USA. He told me that people 'forced' him a little to join some church, any church.

We don't have that atmosphere here, the exception is a Jehovah’s Witness knocking on your door once in 10 year.

Btw: To get rid of Jehovah’s Witnesses, just insult them pretty hard. Say something as: 'if you ring my doorbell once more, I'll cut of your head, break it in pieces and will use it as food for my dog'.

Believe me, they will never ring again. They enter your behaviour in some database and they will avoid 'dangerous' people. :)

The question is totally irrelevant.

I believe I exist.
Is this a "faith" issue or a "proof" issue? :p

Not after a case I just read.

Essentially a man and his friend kidnapped a mother and her two four year old daughters. They raped her on the trunk of the car while the kids watch from the backseat, shot her three times, and drove off with the kids. They executed the two kids and chucked them over a fence.

You tell me where god was.

Btw: To get rid of Jehovah’s Witnesses, just insult them pretty hard. Say something as: 'if you ring my doorbell once more, I'll cut of your head, break it in pieces and will use it as food for my dog'.


My almost-mother-in-law once attached a sign to her door, reading:
"Forbidden to Jehovah's Witnesses. Trespassing Jehovah's Witnesses will be given a blood tranfusion." Guess what, it worked.

No, I dont... there have just been too many gods for me to think that one could be right, and I have moral objections to all established religions. Plus the universe is so awfully designed... Jesus must have made a shitty carpenter

Not after a case I just read.

Essentially a man and his friend kidnapped a mother and her two four year old daughters. They raped her on the trunk of the car while the kids watch from the backseat, shot her three times, and drove off with the kids. They executed the two kids and chucked them over a fence.

You tell me where god was.

Ohh this is one of them trick questions innit? Was God the bullet?

Yes, I believe in something that some call god. I believe this because of my mystical experiences.

Yes, I believe in something that some call god. I believe this because of my mystical experiences.

i believe in god, and i hope that all people who don't believe in god but are good people are forgiven and allowed to enter paradise.
btw im muslim

i believe in god, and i hope that all people who don't believe in god but are good people are forgiven and allowed to enter paradise.

A god that would demand worship (especially when backed with a threat of eternal punishment) instead of deserving it should be opposed, not followed.

Up to you to decide if your god is truly deserving ;)

And a few fake moon-landing videos.
A joke?
Almost. Beyond reasonable doubt, one may know/believe that man landed on the Moon. To know it beyond any doubt at all, one would have to have been standing on the moon, watching them land and erect the flag. Though even that wouldn't have accounted for the possibility of holograms or life-like robots :)

Not after a case I just read.

Essentially a man and his friend kidnapped a mother and her two four year old daughters. They raped her on the trunk of the car while the kids watch from the backseat, shot her three times, and drove off with the kids. They executed the two kids and chucked them over a fence.

You tell me where god was.

Tell me why the fuck a God would care?

So many people are stuck in the God = Christian sense of God.

Hence, the "define God" comment earlier.

Zaij;13128785']Tell me why the fuck a God would care?

Good question. But if he/she/it doesn't care... why bother to worship ?

Wow. Since when is the amount of atheists larger than the amount of religious people on this forum? That's a first..

I agree! The mass majority is usually Cristian, Muslim, Jew, etc. I personally am a Cristian and I do believe in God. Thanks for such a great topic, I'll be continuing to look at it.

Almost. Beyond reasonable doubt, one may know/believe that man landed on the Moon. To know it beyond any doubt at all, one would have to have been standing on the moon, watching them land and erect the flag. Though even that wouldn't have accounted for the possibility of holograms or life-like robots :)

Why couldn't one have watched htrough a telescope?

Holograms or life like robots created by who? For what purpose?

i believe in god, and i hope that all people who don't believe in god but are good people are forgiven and allowed to enter paradise.
btw im muslim

I don't think a belief in god necessarily makes you more moral. I have reason to believe that god wishes us to be moral, but I have no reason to believe that god wishes us to believe in him/her/it.

Good question. But if he/she/it doesn't care... why bother to worship ?

Why bother to worship at all, even if god exists? Do you really think such a powerful and majestic being really cares about the smell of incense and mumblings of dead languages? If god cares about us at all, then god probably has more important things in mind for us.

Zaij;13128785']Tell me why the fuck a God would care?

So many people are stuck in the God = Christian sense of God.

Hence, the "define God" comment earlier.

He does care, look at it this way. There is no such thing as darkness, only the loss of light, there is no such thing as cold, just the loss of heat. As such there was a serious loss of God in this situation. He doesn't allow it to happen. Take this example, A mother tells her toddler not to touch a fresh plate of cookies and take one, then the mother leaves the room. Does the child take one anyway? Of course, Does the mother know this? Of course. She explicitly told the kid 'Don't take the cookie' but he does anyway. Does the mother allow it to happen? No. Does the mother know it will happen anyway? Yes. In the same way God has given us rules, the Do's and Don't's of life. Does he allow it to happen? No, Does he know it will anyway? Yes, this is also where the free-will of mankind comes in. People are not forced to accept Christ as their personal savior, they are given that choice. Those who preach differently are faulty, and a bad name to Christians world-wide. Not every one is like that. I'm not and I think that people who are are just a big load of Hot Air. Really love this topic! Thanks:D

Yes I believe in God(s). For aesthetic reasons.

Almost. Beyond reasonable doubt, one may know/believe that man landed on the Moon. To know it beyond any doubt at all, one would have to have been standing on the moon, watching them land and erect the flag. Though even that wouldn't have accounted for the possibility of holograms or life-like robots :)

So ANY doubt and you have to say "We almost definitely landed on the moon"? So, similarly, we also have to say "There almost definitely isn't a teapot floating between Mars and Earth"?

I'm genuinely surprised by the high number of "yes" answers.

There is a ton of gods, in all shapes and forms. Whatever an individual spends the most amount of their time pursueing is their god. Job, money, computer, TV, staying fit, sex, alchohol, drugs, power, Jenna Jameson, well you get the picture. Each and every one is an idol, hence a god.

There is a ton of gods, in all shapes and forms. Whatever an individual spends the most amount of their time pursueing is their god. Job, money, computer, TV, staying fit, sex, alchohol, drugs, power, Jenna Jameson, well you get the picture. Each and every one is an idol, hence a god.

That is a silly and deliberately and unnecessarily broad definition. In the context of this thread it is obvious that God means some sort of a supernatural being.

Define Supernatural? If a modern man with a Rifle walked up to Cro-Magnon and Shot the tribal leader, boom instant God, Giver and taker of life. Or possibly a Demon to be rushed and stoned to death by the tribe. Is the guy with the rifle supernatural? No, he's a guy with a gun. Similarly life so in advance of us makes contact and drives a man insane, boom instant prophet/god. Not saying that there isn't a perfect all-powerful being out there, but I'm reasonably certain that he/she/it doesn't Damn people to burn for not being certain that he exists because we've never seen him.

No and, in my opinion, I think Christianity is silly. Now do not say that I know nothing about Christianity because I currently go to a Catholic school and my grandparents are Methodist.

Please consider the following questions...

If God loves everyone, then why would he allow us to go to Hell if he knows our fate before it happens?

If God loves everyone, then why is homosexuality condemned by the Church and even in the Bible itself?

No.

The only remotely useful role a church plays in a community is taking care of our dead...And even that could be improved alot.

As I have argued when this poll has come up before, the response "I don't know" is nonsensical. It isn't possible for a rational person to be unaware of whether he believes in God.

Either you believe or you don't. There's no middle ground.

If the question were "Does God exist?", then "I don't know" would be prefectly reasonable. I might argue that it's the only reasonable answer. But when askiong about belief there is no possible middle ground between yes and no.

Please consider the following questions...

If God loves everyone, then why would he allow us to go to Hell if he knows our fate before it happens?
By all appearances, s/he's a sadistic bastard.

If God loves everyone, then why is homosexuality condemned by the Church and even in the Bible itself?To be fair, "God" condemned every human pretty much right after the whole apple "incident", so no one is really any better off than anyone else.

Don't know, and don't care what the answer is.

I was told it was because he was 'mysterious' or somesuch.Too much speaking in tongues.
Oh yeah, and free will or something.While still enjoying the spectacle of suffering, as evidenced quite clearly in Job.

Didn't make any sense then, either.That's because sense isn't something that can be "made", it's something that must be sensed (yes, King Missile). :p

By all appearances, s/he's a sadistic bastard.


I was told it was because he was 'mysterious' or somesuch. Oh yeah, and free will or something.

Didn't make any sense then, either.

As I have argued when this poll has come up before, the response "I don't know" is nonsensical. It isn't possible for a rational person to be unaware of whether he believes in God.

Either you believe or you don't. There's no middle ground.

If the question were "Does God exist?", then "I don't know" would be prefectly reasonable. I might argue that it's the only reasonable answer. But when askiong about belief there is no possible middle ground between yes and no.

Was that supposed to be a joke by making a little pedantic rant over semantics or do you actually consider yourself quite the brain?

By all appearances, s/he's a sadistic bastard.Which appearances?

Which appearances?

Heh, you don't have to be coy. You know what i mean.
I've provided ample material on many on occasion.
Besides, weren't all accurate accounts provided by people who had their eyes burned out or something? :p

Heh, you don't have to be coy. You know what i mean.
I've provided ample material on many on occasion.For divine appearances?
Besides, weren't all accurate accounts provided by people who had their eyes burned out or something? :pOr dead people.

For divine appearances?Erm, perhaps "examples/demonstrations" is more accurate.

Or dead people.I hope not. I'm looking forward to the rest.
Fry: Bender, what was it like to be in that hole for a thousand years?
Bender: I was enjoying it until you guys showed up.

Erm, perhaps "examples/demonstrations" is more accurate.??

i trust in god, but i don't believe in the priest

Nope. No God or Gods, no proof, nada, nothing, end of story.

totally, how else would you silly atheists explain this:

http://a.abclocal.go.com/images/wpvi/cms_exf_2005/news/081207-eggplant-GOD-280.jpg

As I have argued when this poll has come up before, the response "I don't know" is nonsensical. It isn't possible for a rational person to be unaware of whether he believes in God.

Either you believe or you don't. There's no middle ground.

If the question were "Does God exist?", then "I don't know" would be prefectly reasonable. I might argue that it's the only reasonable answer. But when askiong about belief there is no possible middle ground between yes and no.There's probably two answers to that. One is that people tell themselves they're being asked whether deity X exists, and not asked whether they believe in it. The other is that most humans are pretty inconsistent. I personally know at least one guy who switches between theism and atheism every few weeks (and has the unfortunate habit of wanting to share the fact).

As to the topic: I'm an agnostic atheist. I know I cannot disprove I've got a six legged 5,000lbs goose stuck in my left nostril, but I just cannot make myself believe it to be the case. Perhaps it is because its farts are a hallucinogen, and being stuck in my nostril, permanently has me out of my mind. But I doubt it.

totally, how else would you silly atheists explain this:

http://a.abclocal.go.com/images/wpvi/cms_exf_2005/news/081207-eggplant-GOD-280.jpg

Photoshop.

totally, how else would you silly atheists explain this:

http://a.abclocal.go.com/images/wpvi/cms_exf_2005/news/081207-eggplant-GOD-280.jpg

GiD?
Apparently, GiD has the same spelling/spellcheck capability as many of his/her proponents here on NS!

??

I mean, of course, as examples of how twisted the entity appears to be. Not its visage.
Case in point: Malachi 2:3.
*waiting for the Brick Testament version*

Was that supposed to be a joke by making a little pedantic rant over semantics or do you actually consider yourself quite the brain?
I'm entirely serious. Over two dozen people voted "I don't know". Either they didn't understand the question or they're lying to us.

Why do you humans keep misspelling my name? My name is not "god"; it is Zod!

I quickly grow bored of telling you "NSGers" to spell my name correctly; if you do not start spelling it correctly, I shall shoot you with my eye-lasers, or "heat vision", as some of you call it.

Now KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!

Yes, but no one else should. Because believing in god is stupid and retarded. Anyone who believes in god should be shot. Or, at the very least, lynched.

Why the hatred toward God and those who believe in Him? That is a very bigoted and hateful statement. I just hope that NSGers who feel that way are in the vast minority. People of faith are just as worthy of respect as you would consider yourself to be.

Change your attitude toward believers of/in God. Accept and tolerate us. We are just as human as you are.

We tolerate YOU; there is no reason for you to have the attitude you have toward people who believe God exists.

And as for such belief being "stupid and retarded", we'll see just how stupid and retarded it is or isn't in the afterlife.

I'm not asking you to change your position/thought/opinion/belief/whatever about the existence of God; I'm only asking you to be more tolerant and accepting of those who choose to believe in Him. That's not too much to ask.

If you want to deny the existence of God, fine, but don't go about denying people who choose to believe in Him their right to do so, nor insist that they are "animals" or "sub-human" or that they "should be shot/lynched/whatever", or that their rights "don't exist" because they don't agree with you or for any other reason.

OmG!

Funny you should say that anyone who is religious ("believes in God") should be shot. Alot of guys said the same thing - Hitler, Stalin, Mao Zedong just to name a few. Are they better humans than me because they're aethiest and I'm not?

Funny you should say that anyone who is religious ("believes in God") should be shot. Alot of guys said the same thing - Hitler, Stalin, Mao Zedong just to name a few. Are they better humans than me because they're aethiest and I'm not?

You... can't be serious. Hitler referenced God and Jesus quite often in his speeches. Whichever priest told you this is a liar and you should tell him to fuck off.

You... can't be serious. Hitler referenced God and Jesus quite often in his speeches. Whichever priest told you this is a liar and you should tell him to fuck off.

Ok, fine. Even if Hitler wasn't an atheist (which he was), Stalin and Mao aren't so bad. And I'm ignoring the small ones like Pol Pot, mind you.

You... can't be serious. Hitler referenced God and Jesus quite often in his speeches. Whichever priest told you this is a liar and you should tell him to fuck off.
Do you have any sources?
Ok, fine. Even if Hitler wasn't an atheist (which he was), Stalin and Mao aren't so bad. And I'm ignoring the small ones like Pol Pot, mind you.
Same question.

Ok, fine. Even if Hitler wasn't an atheist (which he was), Stalin and Mao aren't so bad. And I'm ignoring the small ones like Pol Pot, mind you.
1) Stop shifting the goalposts. Your original claim was that Hitler had people of religion shot. This is patently false.
2)I will now reply to your new claim, that all these people were atheists, and, furthermore, that they killed people because of atheism.
Hitler was very probably not an atheist. Quoting from a speech in 1922:

My feeling as a Christian points me to my Lord and Savior as a fighter. It points me to the man who once in loneliness, surrounded by a few followers, recognized these Jews for what they were and summoned men to fight against them and who, God's truth! was greatest not as a sufferer but as a fighter. In boundless love as a Christian and as a man I read through the passage which tells us how the Lord at last rose in His might and seized the scourge to drive out of the Temple the brood of vipers and adders.

From Mein Kampf:"Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord." Throughout his career, he repeatedly made similar statements. I could quote more, but I don't need to, because, as I shall soon demonstrate, what his religious beliefs actually were isn't the important question.
(I found both quotes, I admit, in the God Delusion, but they're direct quotations from Hitler himself, not Dawkins's words.)
To be fair, he also made certain anti-Christian statements at times--probably showing that he was an opportunistic liar, like most politicians. However, it is far from clear that he was an atheist, and a complete lie that he had religious people executed for their religion. Indeed, do you know what Nazi belt buckles were inscribed with? Spoiler alert: Gott mit uns

But, let me, for the sake of argument, temporarily accept that Hitler was an atheist. It still doesn't matter, because there's no evidence that what he did was motivated by atheism. Both Hitler and Stalin had mustaches, does that make facial hair the cause of evil? Of course not!
In all the cases you mention, the evil done was not motivated by atheism, but by ideology-- ideology that was quite religious in nature, in that it had to be accepted on faith, instead of on reason, and if you disagreed with the dogma of the party, you were removed. If Hitler was an atheist, it's no more to the point than the fact that Hitler had a mustache.

Do you have any sources?

Same question.

See above.;)

Zaij;13128785']Hence, the "define God" comment earlier.

In the same sense that a parent would care for their child. I show more affection to a shitty three legged clay ashtray I made in second grade than god has to any single human.

I always knew god was going to be a disappointment, but at least mankind I had reserved some faith in. God, man, at least most animals were born without compassion.

1) Stop shifting the goalposts. Your original claim was that Hitler had people of religion shot. This is patently false.
True, the vast majority were gassed. Jews were only killed by shooting in the begining and the very end, along with a number of Catholics. :rolleyes:

2)I will now reply to your new claim, that all these people were atheists, and, furthermore, that they killed people because of atheism.
Annnnnnnnnnnnd... well, I see Hitler, whose beliefs are very much in doubt ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler%27s_religious_beliefs ), but what about the rest?

True, the vast majority were gassed. Jews were only killed by shooting in the begining and the very end, along with a number of Catholics. :rolleyes:
Did you even read Vatica's damn post? He claimed that Hitler had anybody who believed in God killed. And, as far as Jews go, he killed even Jews that were not religiously so: it was racism, not for their religion.


Annnnnnnnnnnnd... well, I see Hitler, whose beliefs are very much in doubt ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler%27s_religious_beliefs ), but what about the rest?

I addressed the rest briefly. Stalin was an atheist, yes, but he killed people in the name of a political ideology that was almost religious in the way they believed it. Note that I don't claim every religious person that does evil as a mark against religion, only people who do it in the name of their religion.

OmG!

Hey, didntchacatchthat up there? It's "OmZ!"

Funny you should say that anyone who is religious ("believes in God") should be shot. Alot of guys said the same thing - Hitler, Stalin, Mao Zedong just to name a few. Are they better humans than me because they're aethiest and I'm not?

In theory: yes.
In practice they however forgot to be consistent and honest within their own belief systems.

Before asking if someone believes in God, it would be helpful to say what you think the word God means. What is God? Are you talking about The Force, about Oral Roberts' 600 foot tall Jesus, about a fierce looking old man with a beard who holds thunderbolts in one hand and a pitchfork in the other, or maybe you think God is a spirit? Given that there's no definition given in the original post, no wonder a lot of people are choosing the "I don't know" option.

Yes, more than one actually.

Hey, didntchacatchthat up there? It's "OmZ!"
Like I read through thousands of pages of drivel.

Like I read through thousands of pages of drivel.

You do if you're committed to presenting only the finest and most discriminating of taste and tact in smilies.

i believe in things no one knows the existence of and in not claiming to.

(if one or more of them fit some discription of god, or a god, that's fine with me. but, as is at least reasonably likely, if something does, then i don't quite see how it's existence depends on my, or anyone else's belief)

=^^=
.../\...