An atheist being real about atheism

Just when you despair of the lack of self-awareness of the Dawkins style atheism machine gunning indiscriminately anything that looks religious and agnoring the list of difficulties that atheism shares with what it criticises, there comes someone who is honest enough to tell some of it like it is.

I find it fascinating that among the brilliant scientists and philosophers at the conference, there was no convincing evidence presented that they know how to deal with the basic irrationality of human life and society other than to insist against all reason and evidence that things ought to be rational and evidence based. It makes me embarrassed to be a scientist and atheist. There is no historical evidence whatsoever that scientists have a keener or deeper appreciation than religious people of how to deal with personal or moral problems. Some scientists have some good and helpful insights into human beings' existential problems some of the time, but some good scientists have done more to harm others than most people are remotely capable of.

Edge 198: Filed in: atheism, religion, secularism, critique