I consider myself an atheist. My thoughts wander at times and it came to me, just what kind of a world would we live in if everyone was an atheist. Would it be a better world? A more peaceful world? Less crime? Fewer people? Or would it actually get worse? Wars, murders, hunger, etc.? What would the world be like? Any opinions or guesses?
Your thoughts, please.
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There is no guarantee. Atheists can be assholes too. A more peaceful world requires dedication to that goal not just lack of belief.
Well said. Man is naturally competitive and his belief systems are no less so. Removing the belief systems won't change his nature.
you know when I read Bertrand Russell the noble prize winner for literature he states in his famous speech on why I am not a Christian that the world needs basically 3 attributes and they are 1-knowledge 2-kindliness 3-courage if you have these 3 especially the attribute of kindliness then society can have progress.I also feel it Wouldn`t hurt a given society to have some virtues, Like love. Having intelligence and materialist qualities is simply not enough Germany under Adolf Hitler had these Stalin also.And after time these powerful countries folded.
It would still depend on the type of government. China is probably the least theistic country but I don't see people considering it a model place to live. Iceland and Denmark are some of the lesser theistic democracies and consistently score high in quality of life.
What it would be like? Better
There is nothing to suggest it would be better. Even if religion never existed in the history of mankind, people would have still found other reasons to do any number of things. Humans are a territorial species that isn't exactly known to be kind all the time. Atheist doesn't mean rational. It doesn't mean moral. It doesn't mean intelligent. It doesn't mean free thinking. It doesn't mean lacking superstition. Hell, with the way atheists talk about progress in science being "held back" by religion then we might have well destroyed our species by now with more impressive weapons than we could have now.
This idea of "If everyone would be atheist, we'd have a better world" is like saying "If everyone were communist, we'd have a better world".
A world where everyone were atheist would definitely be a world without Jehovahs Witnesses. I wonder what type of atheist would fill their annoying niche? Banging on your neighbors doors askng " Can we talk to you about science?" "Only if you are bringing a good wine or Scotch. Otherwise , fuck off!"
We have discussed before about religion being a means to control and as such, has been exploited by the rulers. I wonder if there are people out there who keep themselves in line because they truly think that there is an all powerful god watching and if they mess up they will end up in hell. How would such people behave in an atheist world? I guess Iceland and the Nordic countries are working through this experiment right now.
@Alembe: "I wonder if there are people out there who keep themselves in line because they truly think that there is an all powerful god watching"
Judging from the number of priestly pedophiles, that mechanism is clearly ineffective. If you're a believer, hurting children has got to be one of the surest ways to get damned forever. I think it's the promise of forgiveness and salvation that allows this kind of evil to flourish. That escape clause wouldn't exist in a world without religion.