Reply To: Burn Baby Burn

[David Boots]

We can all agree that different people are going to have different morals. And not believing in a god does not prevent one having morals.

Davis argues that there is no atheist morality; but I disagree, I think it has simply yet to be codified.

This is why. The very fact an atheist chooses to require evidence to believe in a god means they make a judgment as to what is right and wrong. Requiring evidence to support a claim before accepting that claim is a principle. It is the fundamental proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of non-belief.

It is a guide by which people judge what is wrong and what is right. An atheist says ‘I will not believe in this proposition without evidence.’ Accordingly it is quite proper to describe this principle as the first moral of atheism.

Humanism is a great attempt at developing a code but it is bulky and nebulous and impractical. You could read the 8 principles of the Amsterdam declaration for a week and still not be able to answer simple questions put to you by a theist. As a guide to making choices it is virtually useless.