Astaroth

Apologies, it's been ages since I've been on Y!A and I'm not sure of this new "Ask a question" I do hope it puts it in the right category.

So, I've just treated myself to a brand-new bike and when I'm free-wheeling I notice that the rear cassette is sticking slightly producing some slack in the chain. I've never come across this before on a shiny and new, only on an old and decrepit and I would like to know if this is normal and the cassette will loosen as it wears in or is it a dodgy cassette and needs replacing? Many thanks.

If we are to believe that Christianity evolved from Judaism, how come there are still Jews?

Sorry, it's been ages since I've seen a "Why are there still monkeys?" and I'm getting withdrawal symptoms;)

My daughter plays LBP2 online with American Children and I've noticed an increase in her using the phrase "What the Heck?" Personally, I have no issue with this (at least she isn't saying WTF) but, because the American children can hear what she says, I don't want her saying anything that is offensive to them. So, from what I've seen, I have come to the conclusion that (some) Americans don't like "What the Hell?" Is my daughter likely to upset American children or their parents by saying "What the Heck?"

Thank you for your opinions on cultural difference between the US and the UK.

To me, it seems like a no-brainer, however, it may be that I'm guilty of a gross over-generalization when I said that most Atheists would become theists if they were presented with evidence. So, if you were presented with irrefutable evidence for the existence of God, would you believe that it existed? Personally, I still wouldn't worship such a cruel entity but I would have to accept that which the evidence points to. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=201111...

Thank you for your answers and opinions on this.

I'll start by saying I'm on a tight budget because photography is a hobby for me, not a profession.

My current set up is the Fuji S200EXR bridge camera which I really like as an entry level camera. I have three studio strobes and a single wireless transmitter and receiver which I plug into one of the strobes and set the other two onto slave.

I'm in the process of buying a YN560 flash. Now the dilemma. I would like to trigger all three studio strobes and the YN560 flash wirelessly. I have seen a set of receivers that have the hotshoe mount for the YN560 and they also have a socket on the side. Is the socket on a receiver likely to be an input (e.g. cable from socket on camera to receiver) or is it likely to be an output (e.g. cable from receiver into studio flash socket)? Ideally, I would like to be able to use all the receivers with hotshoes to speedlite when out and about but still be able to connect them to my studio strobes when indoors. Has anyone got any experience with doing this? Or am I just going to have to get separate receivers with hotshoes for speedlites.

On a side note, does anyone have any experience with using different brands of receivers and transmitters together? There are such a wealth of different budget transmitters and receivers that if they are not compatible, I think the only option is to buy everything at the same time from the same retailer to ensure that they are compatible.

Thank you for any help.

Here in the UK, our schools have a dedicated lesson on religion where a host of mainstream religions are taught. These range from Christianity through Islam and to Hinduism (Don't think my daughter has done Buddhism yet). I was just reading about how religion should be kept out of American public schools and was wondering if they have a dedicated lesson like we do in the UK which teaches all the different religions available (or at least the most common ones)

Whilst I am an Atheist, I feel that it is important for children to learn about the different cultures and beliefs that they may encounter in their lives.

Many thanks.

(Previously asked in education section but this section is more active and is kinda related)

Here in the UK, our schools have a dedicated lesson on religion where a host of mainstream religions are taught. These range from Christianity through Islam and to Hinduism (Don't think my daughter has done Buddhism yet). I was just reading about how religion should be kept out of American public schools and was wondering if they have a dedicated lesson like we do in the UK which teaches all the different religions available (or at least the most common ones)

Whilst I am an Atheist, I feel that it is important for children to learn about the different cultures and beliefs that they may encounter in their lives.

Many thanks.

If Atheists send themselves to Hell as is sometimes claimed, would it not be ethical for God to send rescue missions into Hell to rescue all those that have gone there unnecessaril?. If each of us are special, how can God not be equally tormented knowing that there are souls being tortured?

Why does the bible not mention any of these Black Ops into Hell?

I can only see three scenarios:

God knows that there are other Gods;

God knows that there are no other Gods;

God does not know either way.

With an omniscient God, I think we can automatically discount the last option. If God knows that there are no other Gods, then he would not need to be jealous. Which only leaves option one, that God knows that there are other Gods. Whilst I am Atheist (I believe option 4, there is no God as described), I would be interested in any Monotheist views on how to get around this issue.

Do you have faith? Do you REALLY believe?

The Bible clearly states that you should sell all of your belongings and give the proceeds to charity (Luke 12:33 http://bible.cc/luke/12-33.htm) This is not taken out of context because 12:36 goes on to say that this should be done in preparation.

So with this in mind, will you sell all your possessions and donate to charity and thereby show your true faith in your religion and this very special date? If not, why not? If you are unprepared to sell all your worldly goods, does this not show distinct lack of faith in your religion and your Bible?

I somewhat surmise that many Christians will have more faith in the possessions that they can see than the prospect of rapture which has been foretold.

Why do we pronounce Jesus as "Geezus." and not "Hey Zeus"? Or are there people that pronounce it the other way around?

I have already asked a similar question to Theists with unsurprising results (http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Am4Vy... So in the interest of fairness, lets open up the debate.

What would you accept as evidence of a God?

I am Atheist so for me it would be a planet without suffering. I would be grateful for all answers regardless of if someone has already posted a similar answer.

Many thanks for all polite answers.

I am starting to come to the conclusion that there is no evidence that can be presented that would persuade you that God is improbable thus when discussing theology with a Theist, the best I can hope to achieve is disprove the propaganda surrounding Atheism and help you understand why I can't believe in God. Am I correct in this surmise?

What would it take for a Theist to accept that there probably isn't a God? What evidence would you accept? I know that it is not possible to disprove the existence of an entity beyond our current understanding, but what would make you think that God is improbable?

I could list a number of things that would allow me to believe in a God, can you list one that would stop you from believing in a God?

Many thanks for any polite answers.

Here in the UK, our police officers do not routinely carry guns. We also have a high percentage of Atheists. From my limited understanding, the US is a "Christian Nation." which would indicate that they are more moral than us immoral British Atheists. So, why do US police have to carry guns whilst British police do not? From what I see on the news, images of Islamic countries almost always portray someone with an AK47 or an RPG slung over their shoulder. Would this indicate that these too are not as morally correct as they would have us believe.

If the US only has 2% Atheists (not sure of accuracy of this statistic), then why would a Christian want to own a firearm? Surely with only 2% of the population being immoral, the chance of being attacked is slim to none? By their very design, firearms are designed to put holes in living organisms with intent to change them into non-living organisms. This doesn't sound very moral to me.

In all the classical paintings depicting Adam and Eve that I have seen, they both have navels which would denote a mother. Even classical artists must have realised that you only get a navel from your mother. Surely by painting Adam and Eve with navels, the artists must have had doubts about their origins. Can anyone point me towards a painting that does not depict Adam and Eve with navels? Could it be that the great artists in history were in fact closet Atheists and this was their way of rebelling against the religion of their time?

I have just been reading the JWs November edition of AWAKE! and it concerns me that they rely heavily on the belief that Atheists think that the world, life and everything is a result of chance and luck. I appreciate that this is propaganda and the front cover looks more like a scene from Westboro Baptist Church but realistically, do Theists really believe this?

Personally, I don't see there being any luck involved at all. As an example, if you were to keep shooting at a small target until you hit it, is it luck that you hit it? Even if you were blindfolded with one arm tied behind your back, if you kept going until you hit it, would you still see this as luck?

This isn't a rant or intended to offend people, I'm just curious if Theists believe that Atheists think everything came about by luck.

Camille asked "Atheists: Do you ever get tired of being WRONG?" and I replied "If enough people manage to prove me wrong, I'll accept it. But until then, I can't be wrong. Christianity have had 2000 years to prove me wrong and failed. Good luck on the next 2000 years."

Is this worthy of being blocked? I didn't think so. It's not like I was emailing her with abuse. Is it because some people don't want answers that they don't like or did I do something wrong?

Let's start with this http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=201008...

I know that I do not believe there is a God, but I am willing to accept that beyond all probability, it is possible that an entity with God-like powers exists within our universe. I would have to accept that if it exists then it either does not know about man's plight or simply doesn't care.

I think that almost all Atheists will be of the same view that although improbable, a deity may exist, just not as advertised by the major religions. This has lead me to the conclusion that Atheist (I don't believe in God) and Agnostic (I can't disprove God) are two terms that can be used to describe the different views of the same person. Any intelligent views welcome. Any childish/uneducated views will be ridiculed. Blatant abuse will be reported.

I have had a quick look on Youtube at the debates between Atheists and Theists. These include details with regards to evolution and abiogenesis. From the comments made by the Theists and from my observations on YA, it appears that Theists do not understand the basic principles that are used to explain these two well known concepts. I turned to my wife and stated that I am amazed that they do not appear to understand to which she stated that it could be that they intentionally do not understand.

I accept that all the evidence in the world that supports Evolution will not be accepted by Theists that do not believe in it purely because they have been taught that it is a lie.

Is there any Theists here that will give me a reasoned and rational reason for disbelief in Evolution and abiogenesis whilst displaying an understanding of the core principles? Or is it a case that these Theists understand but choose not to display an understanding in favour of providing reasons like "The Bible says it's wrong." or the whole chance or monkey reasons?

I suppose what I really want to know is do you not understand on purpose or do you simply not understand?

Any citations from non-religious sponsored sites are welcome. The more unbiased the better.

I know why I believe in evolution. I know why it makes sense to me. After an afternoon on Youtube looking at the flawed arguments of people who do not understand evolution, I'm left with the opinion that people who do not believe evolution simply do not understand it. I'm sure that I am wrong. So, can anyone give me a rational, sensible argument against evolution that is not based on flawed logic or lies from creationists that will make me go "I didn't think of that."?