Paths to the truth | Atheist Experience

[@pdoylemi]

Matt hit the nail on the head. The moment a person invokes faith, they have admitted that they don't have enough evidence to back their claim.

[@pdoylemi]

+Mobius Trip Yes, I will be dead. That does not bother me at all. There is no welcome to eternity, because I am not eternal. What has that got to do with my OP? Other than to expose your own fear, that is...

[@bohenmerchant1]

Faith is just a cop out

[@pollypockets508]

@@mobiustrip1400 Whaaaat?

[@secularteejay]

Faith is a license to neglect thinking when reasons fail. - Sam Harris

[@Mathewmatic]

@3:50 Caller: "Well you have to begin somewhere, I mean..." Matt: "Yeah, I'd like to begin by addressing the question." Definitely one of my favorite Matt Dillahunty quotes.

[@LinkFanatic]

Yeah, dude got roasted there lol

[@GetMeThere1]

Wow! Matt was in top form for this one! Absolute bullseye points, articulated perfectly.

[@Multi1628]

~ Eight years later and still feel compelled to apologize for callers from Louisiana (New Orleans is a great city with many people that can actually think). Thank you, Matt and Russell, for encouraging critical thinking. And truth. Cheers, DAVEDJ ~

[@nerdtritiousnerd5233]

Religious organizations have a monopoly on education in the South. (lol, I suddenly feel compelled to apologize for callers from Lafayette. It's a city I miss terribly, but they don't party as hard as people from New Orleans during Mardi Gras.) While Louisiana is a melting pot of culture, religiuous organizations do harm to the state through tax exemptions and private schools.

[@FourDeuce01]

Not everybody from Louisiana is gullible enough to fall for the fairy tales.😜

[@nishbrown]

For some reason I am reminded of a question I asked when I was told I needed to confess my sins: If god is all-knowing, why should I tell you my sins? He would already know.

[@davids11131113]

'Well how do you explain how things are so complex other than the specific Old Testament God?' Nice argument from ignorance, but if things are so complicated that a God is required to design that...then explain what designed your vastly more complex God? If complexity requires a designer, then you can't just come to a full stop at 'God' because if you're honest then that requires an explanation as well and none of you even try to touch that ever.

[@TheGoldwingz]

This is fkn brilliant

[@steelty]

Thanks, I was hoping you were going to upload this clip.

[@michaelmcdonagh9594]

And here lies the problem!!! Education. This guy knows very little, and show utter lack of knowledge in his religions beliefs. Ignorance is bliss....

[@GodlessMorality]

Matt, you're diplomacy, logic, and reason are awesome! You have such a wonderful skill in challenging people to think without insulting them. You are a wonderful example for us all!!!!!!!

[@brucewilliams4152]

Matt nails it again

[@glutinousmaximus]

The place to come to hear callers opening their mouths and putting their collective feet in it...

[@ginafarina]

Fantastic patience from Matt !

[@paulnagelkerke3864]

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. The crew of the Enterprise follow Sybok, Spock's psychic half brother, who has received a message from 'God'. He converts people by mind-melding away their anger and pain, except for Kirk. They break through a barrier in space, land on a planet, and encounter a big, giant head... The head asks that the Enterprise be moved closer so that he may travel on it. A skeptical Kirk asks why does 'God' need a spaceship? 'God' is upset by the question, so he tries to kill everyone and escape his prison Sybok realizes that he has been mislead by an imprisoned entity, and has mislead others, so sacrifices himself to distract the 'God' until he/they can be destroyed by cannon fire. Message 1: Don't follow any messengers of 'God' Message 2: Stay angry (Kirk's pain keeps him balanced) Message 3: Stay skeptical (without pain or anger everyone else is a dumb sheep) Message 4: Beware of half-Vulcans bearing gifts...

[@nonamed56]

ok

[@jacibea]

Thanks for that! I have never seen star trek so I didn't get the reference 😊

[@djb6496]

Matt slayed this! Amazing how fast his mind works and how well he can explain someone's irrational thinking.

[@phektus]

@A5Hellcat there's always the special case line. Matt did the right thing by pointing him towards a website that explains most of the fallacies in many arguments, and he explained things properly on the other concessions of the caller, namely 'bible says so' and 'i have faith'

[@piRatCaptain]

Jacob needs to be a weekly call in. This is the funniest thing I'm watched in a long time!!!

[@neojoeytabornal]

I face palmed the same time Matt dropped his head in disappointment/ despair at 7:25. The patience these guys have with the infected is amazing.

[@captaincough2326]

"Priests dedicate their whole lives to saving peoples' souls." So I guess they've earned a couple of children, then? Yeah, this is TOTALLY different from a cult...

[@pallejensen9484]

couldnt have said that better my self 😂😂

[@coil311]

Matt Dillahunty's logic is like a speeding arrow: straight, swift, and flies right between the two brain hemispheres of theists out the back of their heads. Matt is one of the smartest people I've seen. I hope some day to make it to Austin and congratulate him. For what, you may ask? Congratulate him for spreading knowledge, skepticism of unsubstantiated claims, and free thinking that corrodes dogma. Why isn't this guy on national television? He's smarter than basically every person on US tv!

[@SlayingMinion]

I don't know if i'm just drunk but this is one of the best conversations I've heard in a while on this show...

[@norbarellis]

So true, the more patient Matt is the more effective this show becomes

[@KirkSH52]

I care deeply about my actions while on this planet and I am an atheist. It matters to me how I treat my fellow man. My life has meaning, it is the meaning I have given it. I was born and now my mission is to survive. I care about animals too and have a cat and treat her will love. I have been criticized by Christians but I don't do drugs and drink alcohol daily like them. I'm not the one with the drug problem and the people with these problems criticize me.

[@MrBluegrass1977]

Even if you did have a drug problem the fact that you care for your fellow man and treat animals with kindness would mean something. A lot of people struggle with substance abuse, but continue to carry out their lives in accord with the goodness in their nature, and that which was taught to them by caring people. Getting high or drunk doesn't make a person bad (people have been seeking "head-changes" for as long as there have been people), but your NOT doing it doesn't give YOU any superiority over believers. In my opinion, what gives you superiority over believers is your respect for reason and the continuing expression of your kindness without regard for Biblical mandate. You know what is right and wrong without having to consult a priest or a bronze-age book.

[@KirkSH52]

Merritt That is correct. I don't have any desire to do bad things to anyone. The Bible is a fairy tale.

[@KirkSH52]

Like the late George Carlin stated "It's all made up folks! It's all make believe. It's like Mother Goose, Goldilocks, The Three Bears!"

[@peterrivera8964]

KirkSH52 bravo my good man

[@brentbennett1387]

Former christian here. Your videos help me immensely. Thanks for applying your intelligence and for sharing all the hard work you do.

[@wayne7171960]

"Well, I mean... I mean..." Theists say this all the time when they call this show. And they never follow it it with anything that explains what they mean.

[@tim818]

I love how Matt have these callers running in circles using their own logic against them!

[@k45207]

Damn!!! Matt just pummeled this guy 😂😂 I just watched a murder

[@unclexbob]

the good ol' "tree's exist, therefore god!" It is amazing how often that comes up in these discussions (or something nearly as nonsensical)

[@itsuptoyou3526]

Every time an argument from ignorance. This is all they seem to have

[@RoDJ99]

The most important lesson I learnt in high school was from my math teacher. He told me the answer is not as important as how you got the answer. And this should apply to every claim made in life.

[@Mcfly88]

I love how the consistent callers who try and pull off a special play to catch Matt off guard and he owns them with hardly any effort/pause for thought as his retorts just flow off his tongue.

[@rsr789]

"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence." ~John Adams (Argument in Defense of the British Soldiers in the Boston Massacre Trials [4 December 1770])

[@Siddis33]

5:57 FAITH IS A GIVE-UP. That is a valid piece of truth.

[@gre107]

Really nice vid! He still didn't get it but hopefully will start investigating logic and reason... but I won't hold my breath.

[@wassholm]

I just love the argument that the caller presents from 6:25(ish) - "If we're absolutely certain that something is true (there would be no room for faith), (and if we don't have faith in something) then how can we trust it?". Fucking brilliant!

[@domomd367]

I fucking love the way Matt makes his points.

[@phektus]

@A5Hellcat you are correct. Which is why I'm perplexed at the amount of smarts our hosts have. They are obviously picking their words properly. I don't think I could handle that if I were in their shoes.

[@Tiptoetherat]

@rickuj I have family in your line of work, I am just as anrgy as you are when people thank Jesus over and over but never thank my UNCLE...who pulled them out of the car they just crashed. Thankyou for all that you do. ITs not much but its the best I can do at the moment.

[@johnjsal]

@Yay248 I agree. Plenty of Matt's answers are good, but this one wonderfully summarizes one of the best points an atheist can make against an argument for god.

[@Pitviper1979]

I loved the star trek reference.

[@gregyankee]

"i have a tree!" lol

[@vaskew]

"if you care about whether or not something is true, faith has no place because your faith is indistinguishable from the faith of people who disagree with you" Matt has the best quotes

[@snoopval]

@TheAtheistExperience well that is a good question. One those things were not mundane to me personally. I could barely walk somedays and now I can. I guess I attribute them to Him because I asked Him for those things and He gave me very specific answers that only He could know. I tend to be a skeptical person, I tend to be a negative person, so when I hear a voice within me telling me things specifically that are positive I tend to think it's Him.

[@RamiNajjar]

I knew the second he asked near the beginning do you care for the truth? and he said Yes, that that would be his downfall

[@Torwyn11]

I still say that Don and Phil should have a spinoff show. They're both Mr. Mellow, but never miss a trick.

[@tedgrant2]

Sometimes lies are good. If someone is dying, it is good to tell them that you think they look well. And as you leave, smile and tell them that you look forward to seeing them again soon. If you are religious, tell them that they will soon be re-united with their long dead relatives.

[@Yay248]

This video is pure gold.

[@Trancemaster2052]

Matt sure loves to quote Star Trek V hahaha.

[@StephenJohnsonissupasexy]

"If your source of truth is the bible ... then you have already lost!" -- That's a great statement

[@RobertStambaugh-l5r]

Jesus is the truth and he is alive today . Madalyn Mueeay O'Hair was a liar and she is deaed

[@andthereisntone1]

a pleasure as always

[@Poohmaniac]

Dillahunty smackdown 08:50 - 09:23 EPIC!!!

[@snoopval]

@TheAtheistExperience Certainly and I thank you for asking me :) He healed my foot (I could barely walk after I worked a day) He helped me get my job, and get the exact amount of hours that I wanted. This may seem silly but I love my cat more than anything (she's like family to me) and He helped me find her when she was lost. I don't say this to a lot of people and I feel odd saying it now but I was very depressed earlier in my life and suicidal and He helped me thru that.

[@kkme7]

I like this type of discussion once in a while. Listeners who have never asked themselves these questions get a crash course in thinking. We shouldn't assume that the audience has watched all TAE shows.

[@Bowmaj21]

"Everything exists, and Nothing can exist without a Creator!" It amazes me that so many Christians can't see the fault in that statement! If everything that exists needs to have a creator, and they are claiming that God EXISTS, then God must've had a creator as well!

[@Haywerth]

@RoDJ99 Exactly. And not only that, my high school math teacher taught me that even if you don't know the RIGHT answer, it's important to know the WRONG answer when you see it.

[@B2BCreditandCollection]

At minute 4, the caller a.k.a. Dumbo started to flail around. Talk about a caller crashing and burning.

[@metz3962]

Those questions are important to ask. Why so many people are denying questioning their beliefs?

[@Rob-fc9wg]

Faith: Easier than actually thinking about things.

[@IRGeamer]

"It ain’t supposed to make sense; it’s faith. Faith is something that you believe that nobody in his right mind would believe.” - Archie Bunker

[@Rob-fc9wg]

@@IRGeamer That's about it.

[@Dru2691]

"Faith is a give up." = The damn truth

[@wHisperis001]

@richterscale09 3 problems. 1) First demonstrate that it was a 0 to begin with. 2) You evaded the question with an answer who poses the exact same question. Taking the unexplainability of the existence of the universe and putting it on an unknown X doesn't explain or accomplish anything. 3) Show me how you get from "there must be some god" to "we know who exactly that god is"

[@BlckSbthMan]

9:14 This is a big weapon against a religious person in an argument. "You're an Atheist, too."

[@KachuaOnWoW]

could've abbreviated a good chunk of the conversation by asking what caused god.

[@koncorde]

@Poisinn I don't need to give an explanation at all for a non-belief in anything that has never shown itself to exist. The fact that I deny, out of hand, absurd and unfounded claims does not qualify as a "faith" or a "belief". Dis-belief (or absence of any knowledge of the subject matter) without evidence to the contrary is specifically not a "faith", it's the natural state of mind. To a lesser extent you are effectively espousing Pascals Wager., special pleading, petitio principii etc.

[@zendavesta1027]

9:12 I think all the former believers have gone through this and can now see how gullible they were…

[@lightofdamon]

"and on that note, I have to go on to other callers"... bah ha ha ha!

[@A5Hellcat]

@phektus agreed, whole heartedly. But I was under the impression the caller has no idea what logical falacies are. So if one that large was thrown at him, maybe, just maybe, he'd go to that internet site and learn more. Whether he remains Christian or not, maybe it would have triggered something

[@SouthernOregonOrgani]

@Xather15 Agreed, he seriously needs his own show.

[@HerricktheMildlyPerturbed]

At 4:36, is that the sound of his brain leaping from his ear to escape?

[@ivanmikhailov]

if you could combine the logical clarity of Matt's arguments with Hitchens' delivery and charisma, you would have an uber almighty god of wonder i would worship endlessly.

[@simbeau]

I was already atheist before this episode aired but this was the moment that I realized how small the box truly is for the thinking of those that do believe.

[@legacy917]

Matt is the man!!!

[@slickwick45]

Lol Caller: " Well we do have some evidence that there's a god" Matt: "What?" Caller:" That everything exists and-" Matt: * almost facedesk*

[@MauricXe]

I like how he just throws out: "Well everything that exist has a cause rit?"

[@JacksInn]

@Poisinn Actually, the claimer of the extraordinary is doing "just saying something" MORE than I am when I say the claim is not right. Because I can provide a reasonable stance on why it is absolutely useless to assume the possibilties of extraordinary claims to be true. Because the variable options can be endless, and if it's based on our imagination, it is absolutely and utterly useless. I can still be wrong, but as you pointed out, the ball is not in my court.

[@vladtepes7539]

from the trainstation it gets somewhat tricky.

[@gwen7205]

I love Don's laugh

[@VesusSheist]

Recently, I lost an item. Turns out it fell out of my car when I picked up a drunk friend. When I found it, my girlfriend's mom credited St. Anthony, who supposedly helps people find things. Personally, I credited the fact that I retraced my steps and returned to the spot where it fell out. No "miracles" necessary.

[@Violent2aShadow]

@Poisinn I'm one of those positive atheists out there and I don't see any conflict in rejecting the belief in a god and believing there is no god. I define belief as the psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true (Wikipedia).

[@Drecon84]

Some callers don't even seem to be trying anymore.

[@metz3962]

Those questions are important to ask. Why so many people are denying questioning their beliefs? If we just accept the fact that faith is gullibility, then religions would vanish forever.

[@Violent2aShadow]

@forestloves The one who submits the claim bears the burden of proof. All the info about the show is on their website, including the host lineup. They normally air on Sundays 4:30 to 5:30 pm CST. Their number is usually 00-1*-512-477-2255. Please let me know how it went!

[@superduperjew]

@koncorde Exactly, just because someone says something exists (in this case something so absurd and can be easily thrown out), doesn't give it +1 evidence and now we have to find -1 evidence to disprove it. It still goes back to the simple burden of proof.

[@Yay248]

@johnjsal This one is probably my favorite moment of Matt pwning someone. Not that his others aren't brilliant as well.

[@sorrysonofa]

wow, Matt, I love you!

[@wHisperis001]

"God does not exist, I can't prove that, but I have faith" - Pat Condell

[@juld55]

@Harizl lol, no. It just has a big rivalry with Lafayette College.

[@koncorde]

@Poisinn It's not even a remotely small conundrum unless you specifically intend to sit on the fence. In this case someone has postulated that the universe is either 1, or 0 1=God, 0=No God. Dillahunty, myself, and various other atheists would argue that 1 and 0 is no choice at all as it requires the presupposition that a conceptual being such as "god" is inside the realms of plausible, logical thought, yet outside our ability to detect. My argument is that the universe is 42.

[@KirkSH52]

I want to officially thank Matt Dilahunty again for his concise, logical clarity in understanding that we cannot assume anything to be true without evidence. Matt is a very intelligent person that is able to use critical thinking skills to determine fact from fiction. When or if people actually examine their beliefs they will find that in the case of religious beliefs that they are in serious question. How about this: Pray to the GOD of your understanding for hope rather than a fictitious book.

[@koncorde]

@Poisinn Correct, I cannot disprove it. But my lack of belief in your Grandfather does not consitute a "belief" and any argument I create to disprove your claim and lack of evidence does not constitute a "belief".

[@Sigrhofundr]

You can almost hear the clockwork going in the callers head. I've regarded Matt very highly for a long time, and while this caller wasn't exactly the toughest test, I think he's getting better and better. He needs to be exposed to a bigger audience.

[@AThagoras]

Matt is getting more patient. That's great. It gives him an opportunity to show just how bad their arguments are. BTW, Christianity is not the oldest religion to have a creator god. Brahman/Brahma is the ultimate creator in Hinduism. I found the difference between Christianity and Hinduism to be like the difference between Pooh Bear and Shakespeare. Hindu philosophy actually makes sense ,,, but it's not supported by any evidence either.

[@AThagoras]

@seeqer66 "There's a great deal of wisdom in the Hindu mythos, if you take the time to try to understand them." The main difference between Christianity and religions like Hinduism and Buddhism is that Christianity has an emphasis on faith. Christianity teaches people NOT to think or to ask questions. Thinking and asking questions are generally encouraged in Hinduism and particularly in Buddhism, so they thought deeply about the nature of mind and reality.

[@Poppa1950]

"Everything that exists has to have a cause, right" - Does the magic fairy have a cause?

[@TomMSTie1138]

@SohnoJam He did indeed say something to that effect.

[@1991stratplus]

Matt makes a very valid point starting at 08:48 to all the religious people out there, take note folks. refute it if you can.

[@keepdancingmaria]

@Auktoriserad I know your question was asked awhile ago. In case you never found out, and are still interested, Matt said to go to wiki (dot) ironcariots (dot) org. Good site.

[@seeqer66]

@AThagoras Couldn't agree more. There's a great deal of wisdom in the Hindu mythos, if you take the time to try to understand them.

[@JacksInn]

@Poisinn I can say it doesn't exist within the reasonable current understanding of our reality.

[@Cavenaggi29]

That was quick

[@HeresYourfrickinusername-lo7eg]

I don't know how they can be so patient with these callers. I would've called that guy a willfully ignorant moron and hung up on him a long time ago.