Comment by Dr. Bob on May 6, 2013 at 11:35am

Hmmm...

Well, I'm sure we theists (and men in general) can be annoying!  I'm not sure there's much of a correlation with intelligence one way or the other, but then I might just be stupid. ;-)

Now please don't take this the wrong way, and feel free to dismiss me as another unintelligent theist if you like.  It's meant only for reflection.

There are lots of people who will only date people like themselves.  Only date people the same race, only date people who are Catholics, or Muslims, ... or atheists, I suppose.   I will grant that working out cultural, religious, or philosophical differences in a long-term or married relationship requires some effort, and one should be thoughtful and open about such things up front.  People all over the place live wonderful mixed marriages, though.  It's very doable, and can be very rich and beautiful.

Besides, we're just talking about dating, not marriage.  I'd gently suggest that starting from a position of exclusion isn't going to be all that healthy, and really is something that reflects the worst of religious practice that you seem to be against.   Shunning others and all that just because of the groups to which they belong.    People can turn religion, or a philosophy like atheism, into a sort of idol, and lose site of good things, and good people, and even the God or philosophy they claim to follow.

Comment by Richard E. Robertson on May 6, 2013 at 1:21pm

I left comment directly on the FB thread. I'm just confirming my identity here.

Comment by Adam on May 6, 2013 at 1:25pm

I don't think anyone cares about your relationship status. They are merely responding to your inflammatory post condemning everyone of faith to be unintelligent.. 

Comment by TheyCallMeDave on May 6, 2013 at 1:49pm

@adam I wouldn't say hostile, post after post on that FB 'discussion' is about calling xians unintelligent which Elizibeth didn't do. They all focus on their hurt feelings that someone else would find them less attractive because they believe in invisible friends. Stay strong and remind them that this is only your opinion and it can't possibly harm them. :)

Comment by Stephy on May 6, 2013 at 1:58pm

If you want to have a fairly large, diverse group of friendly acquaintances, then saying things that alienate people who don't think the same way you do isn't going to make that easy. It does sound like you're calling religious people unintelligent, even if you didn't mean for it to sound that way. If you want to say what you want sans filter, you should probably be prepared to not make or keep many friends as easily. That's generally true in most any circumstance, not just where differing religious views are concerned. I don't think either alternative is wrong, but it's something to keep in mind, because it's damn near impossible to have it both ways.

Comment by Elizabeth Williams on May 6, 2013 at 1:59pm

Who would have thought so many people would be interested in what I look for in relationships! LOL :)

Comment by Logicallunatic on May 6, 2013 at 2:11pm

I know how that feels. Don't worry about these people. Life is too short. I tend to do a cost-benefit analysis when I'm about to debate or argue with someone. Ask yourself is there anything to gain by debating idiots online? Really is there? Sometimes the mental drain is just too exhausting and time consuming. Look at it this way, you can't save the world and as Bob Dylan said, you can only do your best and do it well.

Comment by Sophie on May 6, 2013 at 5:46pm

I silently deleted my facebook and have not looked back. Spending 6 hours or more on facebook ever day. Now that I look back, it really took a toll on me.

I went to your link and I automatically closed it at the first few few sentences of pain. The only thing I can do to help you is shoot you a friend invite on TA. : )

Comment by Alan C on May 6, 2013 at 6:13pm

An interesting study:

Science has shown atheists have a higher intelligence than people with a strong religious faith. The difference is 5.8 points according to findings in developmental psychology.

More members of the "intellectual elite" considered themselves atheists than the national average.

Only 7 percent of members of the American National Academy of Sciences believed in God. Whilst only 3.3 percent believed in God in the UK’s Royal Society. 

Several Gallup poll studies of the general population have shown that "those with higher IQ’s tend not to believe in God." 

2. Neuroscientists have conducted the most comprehensive brain mapping to date of the cognitive abilities measured by the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS), the most widely used intelligence test in the world.

The results show that the various factors that comprise a high or low IQ score 
depend on particular regions of the brain.

The WAIS test is composed of four indices of intelligence, each consisting of several subtests, which together produce a full-scale IQ score. The four indices are the verbal comprehension index, which represents the ability to understand and to produce speech and use language; the perceptual organization index, which involves visual and spatial processing, such as the ability to perceive complex figures; the working memory index, which represents the ability to hold information temporarily in mind (similar to short-term memory); and the processing speed index.

With the exception of processing speed, which appears scattered throughout the brain, the lesion mapping showed that the other three cognitive indices really do depend on specific brain regions.

For example, lesions in the left frontal cortex were associated with lower scores on the verbal comprehension index; lesions in the left frontal and parietal cortex (located behind the frontal lobe) were associated with lower scores on the working memory index; and lesions in the right parietal cortex were associated with lower scores on the perceptual organization index.

The study also revealed a large amount of overlap in the brain regions responsible for verbal comprehension and working memory, which suggests that these two now-separate measures of cognitive ability may actually represent the same type of intelligence, at least as assessed using the WAIS.

So whether the increased intelligence makes them atheist or being atheist makes them so much more intelligent, it appears their brains are developing faster and better.

Source(s):

Aarhus University
Ulster University
Gallup

2. California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
National Institutes of Health
Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina

Comment by Stephy on May 6, 2013 at 6:16pm

Sure. It doesn't make generalizing all religious people with a broad stroke of "you must be dumber than me" any more acceptable though.

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