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Manufacturer: Mariner Books Written By: Richard Dawkins
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Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 211 EAN: 9780618918249 ISBN: 0618918248 Label: Mariner Books Manufacturer: Mariner Books Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 464 Publication Date: 2008-01-16 Publisher: Mariner Books Studio: Mariner Books
In his sensational international bestseller, the preeminent scientist and outspoken atheist Richard Dawkins delivers a hard-hitting, impassioned, but humorous rebuttal of religious belief. With rigor and wit, Dawkins eviscerates the arguments for religion and demonstrates the supreme improbability of the existence of a supreme being. He makes a compelling case that faith is not just irrational, but potentially deadly. In a preface written for the paperback edition, Dawkins responds to some of the controversies the book has incited. This brilliantly argued, provocative book challenges all of us to test our beliefs, no matter what beliefs we hold.
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Customer Rating: Summary: Don't buy this book. Save your money as Richard Dawkins is wrong Comment: First off let me tell you that I am a Christian. Second let me tell you that Richard Dawkins is wrong. If you are wondering if God exists or not then please look everywhere until you find him. There are a number of good books and DVD's on Amazon that show proof of God. The first, of course, is the bible but if you want to do research outside of the bible then look at intelligent design. DNA and its complexity points to God (our creator). I recommend "The Case for a Creator" or even Ben Stein's "No Intelligence Allowed" (this DVD which has clips of interviews with Richard Dawkins). Either one of these should give you great concerns about believing Mr. Dawkins. The more you research intelligent design...the more scientific evidence you will discover supporting creation. God is not the Delusion...He is the solution.
Please don't be fooled by Mr. Dawkins. Look elsewhere for answers. Customer Rating: Summary: Shame Comment: Shame. Ignorance. Sad. Total lack of intellegence. Save your money and your eternal soul. Do NOT buy. Customer Rating: Summary: Excellent literary writing Comment: Richard Dawkins and his book, The God Dilution, attempts to test people's faith. I think it is impossible to analyze The Almighty One the same way you would any other scientific theory. It's like comparing apples and oranges. There will always be those people who are faithful, those who are atheists, and those who are on the fence as agnostics. It will all be made clear in the end. I had to give him four stars for his excellent literary writing and continuing the great debate.
I see from reading the reviews on this site some people have recommend my book, "The Enlightenment, What God Told Me After One Million Prayers: A Message for Everyone," and again I just want them to know how much I appreciate their recommendation, especially at such a excellent site. I wrote this book out of love and for the glory of God and Jesus, not for my own fame or fortune. I welcome people to read my book, I'm sure you'll find this non-fiction account of a loving God positive and inspiring
Customer Rating: Summary: Another angle....... Comment: 'The God Delusion' is an interesting, sometimes fun, occasionally irritating, and mostly antagonistic writing. As a practicing biologist, I find myself reading and reviewing from within the framework of evolutionary theory. But from the concern that this could be too myopic, I consider the likes of Vine Deloria Jr.'s "Evolution, Creationism and other Modern Myths" to be a worthy companion and recommend this to other readers.
I found 'Delusion' to be somewhat scattered at times in what it was either attacking or supporting. Sometimes it was sticking to 'God', but often drifting to religion at large without re-defining the breadth of this term. More accurate clarification of definitions and sticking within these confines would have helped Dawkin's arguments.
The focus in one of the chapters on Adolf Hitler's Catholicism as potentially motivating his efforts was, to me, not as convincing as psychobiographical literature that present an alternative hypothesis. The Swiss psychoanalyst Alice Miller and the psychobiographer Lloyd DeMause, to name just two, have written on the psychology of abuse in childhood and how it impacted the adult lives of many murderous dictators, including Hitler.
In fact, in comparing religion per se versus past child abuse and neglect (a strict and oppressive religious up-bringing can constitute child abuse) as a source of violent motivations in individuals or groups, I would wager that sustained abuse during childhood is more than just the spark that sets individuals down the road to violence. Detrimentally, some religions both promote and exploit the fear that becomes integrated into the child mind which can subsequently be fanned during adolescence and adulthood into the flames of interpopulation conflict. As any psychologist will tell you, these are not motivations which readily can be "argued away" using reason. It would be quite interesting were Dawkins to immerse himself in works following the psychobiological lineage initiated by Ian D. Suttie ("The Origins of Love and Hate") and developed into attachment theory by John Bowlby (the Attachment Trilogy books) and colleagues before addressing this topic anew.
Thoughtful writings that address not only the religious roots of violence to other humans but also to the planet in general that may be of interest to other readers are Paul Shepard's "Nature and Madness" and David Abram's "The Spell of the Sensuous". Customer Rating: Summary: Why Richard Dawkins is not honest about the "God Delusion" Comment: Richard Dawkins wrote a few very interesting books such as the Selfish Gene and Climbing Mount improbable. But he is flagrantly dishonest about his alleged atheism: in an interview to a Brazilian newspaper, when
asked if God is obsolete, he answered that "when science will be able to explain the universe as a whole, God will be obsolete". So, as science will not be able to explain the universe "as a whole" in a foreseeable future (probably never, I think) for Dawkins, God is not obsolete, and will not be for very long! He confirms this view in his book, when he discusses "The poverty of agnosticism", proposing a "spectrum of probabilities about the existence of God", featuring 7 classes of belief, class 1 being the churchgoing believer and class 7 the full atheist (!) and placing himself in class 6 as "very low probability but short of zero, "de facto" atheist". As weird as it may sound, can there be a "de facto" atheist, os is he just a "very weak believer"??? His claim the be "attacking God, all gods, and everything supernatural wherever and whenever it may or may be invented" sounds totally untrue, deceitful! So, when he shows himself "fighting against all sorts of belief" he is actually keeping (exactly like Pascal) the door "just slightly open" for something "else", turning his "crusade" into a pantomime! I wonder how nobody else, as far as I know, noticed this flagrant contradiction, as I never saw it mentioned in any of the books reviews. By the way, his claim to be fighting for the "liberation of humanity from all sorts of belief" seems extremely stupid to me, as the ambiguity of our human condition clearly requires "cruthes" and "cranes" and some sort of "hope" for the overwhelming majority of people, and it does help them to withstand their difficulties and suffering. Where are those many believers supposed to go? Oh yes, it is very important to keep religions out of government and education, but it is useless to do it in his rather intolerant absolutist way. Real atheists will always be a minority of humanity, not to be opposed...but Richard Dawkins is certainly not one of us! [...]
