Straight Talker

Quite a lot of people on here, both atheistic and believers alike quite often say that it's a good thing to have respect for other peoples beliefs, even if you don't agree with them.

Fair enough. On the surface of it, that seems like a good thing.

But.... if a man believes he is Napoleon (for example), we try very hard to dissuade him of this notion, for the very good reason that it's ludicrous. If he will not be dissuaded, we lock him up in a secure facility and use therapy and drugs until he conforms to the accepted view. No-one thinks that this is wrong, and again, I would agree. However, if a person who believes something irrational like this is shown to be no danger to themselves or others, why do we insist on trying to change their view?

You know where this is going, and I won't disappoint you. The notion of a rational person subscribing to any of the religions seems at least as wrong to me as the person described above who believes himself to be the French Emperor. Religious people want others to consider them rational though. I have no actual problem with anyone believing anything about themselves or mythical deities, be it God, Napoleon or anyone/thing you care to name. I just object when they insist the rest of us take their beliefs seriously and can't understand it when they object to a bit of ribbing. The notion that their silly ideas be given special status (sacrosanct) is the funniest idea of the lot!

What say you all? Bow deference to the pious in the interests of getting along together or draw a line in the sand and erect a sign saying 'No crazy past this point'?

Personally, I don't believe in God, Vampires or anything else supernatural. However, since there are many on here ready to believe in both God and Satan, why so readily dismiss Vampires? Surely they are as likely as anything else you believe in to exist?

Please, enlighten me.

I postulate that the sort of people that open the box and throw the manual behind the sofa are the kind of people that don't need a dusty old book of nonsense telling them how to live their lives.

Conversely, those that read the manual carefully and pore over every line are likely to be the sort of people that cling fervently to their ancient tome of rules and regulations, happy in the knowledge that they don't actually have to work out anything for themselves.

I'm having a bit of fun with this, but maybe there is a correlation?

Discuss!