Atheists: what do you think of self-proclaimed atheist, Camille Paglia's famous assertion?

it depends on your perspective. god does not exist as anything other than an idea. an idea that gives ppl hope is great. one that allows charlatans to manipulate the masses with threats and mysticism is not.

I would say its an incorrect assertion - i think the internet is better than god for starters. The nintendo 3DS is pretty good to.

To get to the meat and bones of what she really meant, this concept of religion is one of the worst ideas to plague the planet. It is a tool of division, it is a tool of government to control the masses, it is a tool of abuse by those who are in charge (a good modern example would be Scientology, founded as a business to make money for its founder ron hubbard. Now, all his followers are deluded into thinking he had all the right answers and anyone who disagrees with them is part of some sinister group hellbent on stopping them from "freeing the planet" lol).

So thats how I take it. Its caused way more problems than it was ever meant to solve. Grow up people, dont be slaves to the powers that be...

"Greatest" in the sense of "most powerful", I can see where he's coming from. I can't think of an idea that's had a stronger effect on human societies than the idea that there's an all-powerful being up there and if you just do what the priests tell you to do he'll make everything all right.

I wouldn't say it's the greatest idea, though it has had one the biggest impacts on humanity. I'd have to say the greatest idea was agriculture which has had a great effect on the idea that deities can influence outcomes.

God is man's greatest mistake.

It set back human progress by millennia, and caused countless suffering and violence.

It is also a really shallow and self obsessed idea... "What created the universe?...Oh, It must have been someone like me."

of course God is man's greatest idea. However, don't you think God could've actually put that idea in all of humanity? All over the world religions believe in god(s) and those developed on their own outside of other influences

I disagree. Bacon is man's greatest idea. I don't think "god" was a good idea at all.

That's kinda like saying Thomas Edison is the lightbulb's greatest invention.

I don't think god was the GREATEST idea. One of the most useful ones, though, probably.

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She definitely has a point. The western concept of "God" was invented by males.