In the "Life on Mars" thread we were discussing how the Hatrack populus divides along theist and atheist lines. I was told that it was obvious that theists outnumber atheists on this board. I was not so sure myself, so I thought I would conduct a bit of "research".
For simplicity's sake, I will not include "agnostic" in this poll. The definition varies far too much from person to person.
But many agnostics don't like being labeled as atheists either, so I am not going to use the word atheist.
I just want to know, do you believe in a Supreme Being/s or not? (I recognize that there will still be people that don't really fit into one category or the other. I can have an "other" category.)
Edit: How 'bout Yes=believe in Supreme Being/s No=don't believe in Supreme Being/s Other=somethin' else
[ February 17, 2005, 09:33 PM: Message edited by: beverly ]
Posted by Corwin (Member # 5705) on :
No.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Yes.
Posted by The Rabbit (Member # 671) on :
Yes
Posted by JaimeBenlevy (Member # 6222) on :
Can there be an undecided category? Otherwise, yes.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Yes.
Hobbes Posted by MichelleEly (Member # 6737) on :
Yep. Michelle
Posted by Alcon (Member # 6645) on :
Heck no.
Posted by newfoundlogic (Member # 3907) on :
Yes.
Posted by Book (Member # 5500) on :
*takes out coin*
*flips coin*
I believe in tails. Whatever that means.
Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :
Usually no, sometimes other.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Yes
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
quote:*takes out coin*
*flips coin*
I believe in tails. Whatever that means.
I think that's a "no".
Hobbes
[ February 17, 2005, 09:43 PM: Message edited by: Hobbes ]
Posted by Bob the Lawyer (Member # 3278) on :
Don't care.
Posted by NinjaBirdman (Member # 7114) on :
Other, cause I don't know.
Posted by Space Opera (Member # 6504) on :
Other, I think. The whole idea of a Supreme Being is starting to get weirder and weirder to me. (Not to step on others' beliefs - it's more of a lamentation that I can't seem to figure out my own)
space opera
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
Yes.
Posted by Glenn Arnold (Member # 3192) on :
No.
But I'd be really surprized if theists didn't outnumber atheists. Probably by at least 6 to 1.
Also, this poll is self selected, so it may not be accurate.
Posted by cyruseh (Member # 1120) on :
Yes
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
JaimeBenlevy, would you put yourself in "yes" or "other"?
Posted by Ryuko (Member # 5125) on :
Yes. Usually.
Posted by imogen (Member # 5485) on :
No/Other.
Posted by Book (Member # 5500) on :
A correction.
I believe in
3.14159265358979323
along with
42.
Posted by Leonide (Member # 4157) on :
No.
Posted by Eaquae Legit (Member # 3063) on :
Yes.
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
Yes/Other, depending on how closely your definition of supreme being means "like Christians/Jews/Muslism and not other religions mean".
If you want it simple, yes.
[ February 17, 2005, 10:10 PM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
*abstains*
*the other option*
Posted by Brian J. Hill (Member # 5346) on :
Yep.
Edit to include results so far (if you voted for two, you got two votes, so there's more votes than replies)
Yes--14 No--7 Other--4
Tails--1 Don't Care--1 3.14159...--1 42--1
[ February 17, 2005, 10:24 PM: Message edited by: Brian J. Hill ]
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Exactly what Squick said.
Posted by margarita (Member # 6856) on :
Yes.
Posted by HesterGray (Member # 7384) on :
Yes.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
MrSquicky -- I'm pretty sure that what you said qualifies as a definite yes.
Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
Yes.
Posted by King of Men (Member # 6684) on :
I should stay out of this thread to get more martyr points as a minority... But what the heck.
No.
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
AC, I would never use the words Supreme Being to describe my concept of the divine and I've found that many of the more orthodox Christians are more disturbed by my thinking than by vanilla athiests. For the purposes of what we're doing here (which, after I went to check out he thread in question, seems to me to trying to tie down a religious equivilent to the "Hatrack is full of conservatives/liberals") I feel like I'd almost belong in the other column, as I don't belong to either faction really.
edit: I noticed you in a couple of threads and you don't come across as a newcomer. I was pretty sure who you were and you on this thread confirmed my suspicions. Are you not telling people who you are or is it permissible to guess?
[ February 17, 2005, 10:47 PM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by Synesthesia (Member # 4774) on :
Can't decide, because I don't believe in god in a conventional, easy to explain way.
Posted by Fitz (Member # 4803) on :
Yes'm.
Posted by mothertree (Member # 4999) on :
Yes, but I'll add that I don't expect the "no"s will exceed the "yes"s or even come particularly close. It's just that the less some people believe in God, the more omnipresent they seem to be.
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
AntiCool is out of the closet as mr_poriero_head.
Posted by Beren One Hand (Member # 3403) on :
Yes.
I believe there is an entity that has powers which we would describe as "god like". Beyond that, I'm not quite sure of anything.
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
Yeah, I just saw the thread. That was my guess, but I don't expect people to believe me now.
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
Other
Posted by EarlNMeyer-Flask (Member # 1546) on :
Heck No.
Posted by JaimeBenlevy (Member # 6222) on :
quote: JaimeBenlevy, would you put yourself in "yes" or "other"?
Yes
Posted by mothertree (Member # 4999) on :
Welcome to Hatrack Mr. Flask. How is Florence these days? :tries not to laugh at own wittiness:
Posted by Lucky4 (Member # 1420) on :
Other
Posted by EarlNMeyer-Flask (Member # 1546) on :
Mrs. Flask is alive and well.
Posted by breyerchic04 (Member # 6423) on :
only if god is stryker
Posted by J T Stryker (Member # 6300) on :
When did i find out i was god? When i started praying, and realized i was talking to myself.
On a serious note, yes I believe there is a God, however he and I aren't speaking at the moment.
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
It is difficult to make a perfect tally because I don't want to count more votes than people. I am having to make some judgement calls. But currently, believers outnumber non roughly 2 to 1.
Posted by Brian J. Hill (Member # 5346) on :
Because I don't have any qualms with counting someone's vote as two if they said two things, and I'm too lazy to make judgement calls, here's my 1st page tally:
Yes: 22 No: 9 Other: 6
Tails: 1 Dont care: 1 3.1415...: 1 42 : 1 god-as-stryker: 1
Posted by Jay (Member # 5786) on :
Yes
Posted by twinky (Member # 693) on :
No.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
I think an interesting poll question would be if you see your faith/believe in a Supreme Being as an integral part of who they are (no believe being a no, as well as not an integral part being a no).
Hobbes
[ February 17, 2005, 11:34 PM: Message edited by: Hobbes ]
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
Hey buddy, this is my poll. I'm the boss here.
Edit: That was to Brian, not you Hobbes
(((Hobbes)))
[ February 17, 2005, 11:41 PM: Message edited by: beverly ]
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
(((((Bev)))))
Hobbes Posted by Puppy (Member # 6721) on :
Yes
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
If I did another poll, it might be how many LDS are on the site. (Though I seem to remember someone trying that before, CStroman?. IIRC, Hatrack was not particulary cooperative. ) It was proposed on the other thread that Mormons on this site outnumber the a-religious. From the results here so far, I find that difficult to believe--though not impossible. But the results so far do lean strongly to believers outnumbering nonbelievers.
And yes, that would be an interesting poll, Hobbes.
Posted by IdemosthenesI (Member # 862) on :
No. Sorry, Jesus.
Posted by Jesus_ (Member # 7396) on :
It's okay, dude. You up for some Street Fighter later tonight? (woot, woot!)
[ February 17, 2005, 11:47 PM: Message edited by: Jesus_ ]
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
Yup.
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
Jesus (even with the _ weighing him down) totally kicks butt at Street Fighter, but he's weak against Chun Li.
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
Yes.
I don't believe in most of you, though.
Posted by Morbo (Member # 5309) on :
"God is an iron"--Spider Robinson
Posted by IdemosthenesI (Member # 862) on :
Thanks Jesus. Just cuz' you can beat Tycho, though, don't expect me to roll over for you.
Posted by Brian J. Hill (Member # 5346) on :
Bev, I had no intent to barge in on your poll, instead to keep some sort of running tally, as imperfect as my methodology is. Since there were about 10 "judgement call" posts, and this isn't my poll, I just gave up and counted them as two votes. (((Bev)))
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
I am already surprised by several people's responses to this thread.
Keep 'em coming, folks! This is interesting. Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
quote:I am already surprised by several people's responses to this thread.
rivka, I wasn't saying Jesus was a pushover. He's still diesel when I'm playing Chun Li, it's just that I can every once in a while take him to the third round.
[ February 18, 2005, 12:26 AM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by twinky (Member # 693) on :
Posted by Goody Scrivener (Member # 6742) on :
No because I don't think there's a being per se... it's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together. Posted by Strider (Member # 1807) on :
No.
Posted by Coccinelle (Member # 5832) on :
yes
Posted by Miro (Member # 1178) on :
No.
Posted by Da_Goat (Member # 5529) on :
Yes.
Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :
Heck yes.
Posted by hansenj (Member # 4034) on :
Yes! Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
The "no's" have made a small gain. Still approximately 1:2.
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
No.
(((beverly)))
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
Yes.
Posted by Kama (Member # 3022) on :
other. not sure.
Posted by gnixing (Member # 768) on :
yes.
as an aside, any vote that is not a yes or a no is technically an "other."
Posted by punwit (Member # 6388) on :
My heart would love to say Yes but my brain keeps demanding proof. I'd have to say "other"
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Yes.
quote:vanilla athiests.
If you dump fresh strawberries on them, and mix them up in a blender with some ice cubes, they become strawberry smoothee athiests.
Tastee!
[ February 18, 2005, 06:47 AM: Message edited by: Scott R ]
Posted by bunbun (Member # 6814) on :
Smoothie Atheists. Pretty sweet.
As for me, I think the answer is, yes. I need God, I love God, I pray, but I like punwit's answer, too. My faith is really not what it could be and sometimes I am really scared.
Honestly, I am impressed at the diversity of faiths/non-faiths here. I think it says alot for Hatrack, and Hatrackers.
Bunbun
Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :
yes
quote: Because I don't have any qualms with counting someone's vote as two if they said two things
"two things"
Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
Yes.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
Other.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
The answer to the question doesn't matter to me, because I would behave the same whether or not I believe.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Wouldn't we all.
Posted by Bokonon (Member # 480) on :
I'm with punwit.
Other.
-Bok
Posted by St. Yogi (Member # 5974) on :
Other.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
quote:No. Sorry, Jesus.
IDemosthenesI:
In the last year, you have been breaking all the stereotypes I had of a boy from a small Texas town (stereotypes formed, in part when I met you at Amka's before Endercon).
That's what I get for stereotyping.
at myself Posted by Heffaji (Member # 3669) on :
Negatory.
Posted by Shan (Member # 4550) on :
. . . what was the question again . . .
oh, i dunno - somedays yes, and somedays not sure, and somedays proofs are demanded with great vociferousness . . .
mostly though - yes, as in Supreme Being, no gender or body shape attached - so maybe that actually counts as "other"
. . . what was the question again?
*wanders off to make coffee*
Posted by Lupus (Member # 6516) on :
yes
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
Yes, sometimes to my own surprise.
quote:yes I believe there is a God, however he and I aren't speaking at the moment.
*hug*
Posted by Clincher (Member # 7395) on :
Bananas are yellow
Posted by zgator (Member # 3833) on :
Yes.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
quote:Wouldn't we all.
I would hope so. Posted by lem (Member # 6914) on :
quote:And you’re there on your own and you’re lost in your life And you think there’s someone’s gonna make you feel so good You better lose control you better watch your step For there’s something inside you, they call it
Rock gives courage, a way to win the trust Rock gives lover a way to win or bust
You don’t need anybody in this complicated life You crossed over the river
Rock gives courage, a way to with the trust Rock gives lovers a way to win or bust
Rock gives sisters a way to speak their mind Without this gift of rock and roll We’d all be wasting time
it’s so hard to grow They say we’ve got it made, they say we gotta light Where is the man with all the great directions
They say we gotta win, they say we gotta learn But in the end it’s just the same damn reason
They say you’ve gotta run, they say you gotta jump Don’t really need to know which way we’re going
They say we gotta push, they say we gotta shout Is this the way to keep our bonfires burning
Sick feeling, sick reasoning, sick challenge you la la la la You can’t imagine it, how hard it is to grow You can’t imagine it, can you imagine
The order of the universe
I believe in ROCK!
[ February 18, 2005, 10:36 AM: Message edited by: lem ]
Posted by dkw (Member # 3264) on :
quote:yes, as in Supreme Being, no gender or body shape attached - so maybe that actually counts as "other"
I would hope not, since then a large portion of Christianity would have to be classed as "other."
Posted by twinky (Member # 693) on :
ImI_
Posted by IdemosthenesI (Member # 862) on :
Sorry Ela! Although, I think maybe I cheated. Does it help any that I was actually a kid from Montana who was homeschooled for three years? I only moved to Texas for my second year of high school.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
Hmm, well, that explains it.
Yeah, I do remember that you said you were homeschooled.
Like I said earlier, I shouldn't have been stereotyping.
[ February 18, 2005, 10:49 AM: Message edited by: Ela ]
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
duh
YES
Posted by ctm (Member # 6525) on :
Yes
Posted by JaneX (Member # 2026) on :
quote:The answer to the question doesn't matter to me, because I would behave the same whether or not I believe.
What Ela said.
~Jane~
Posted by jeniwren (Member # 2002) on :
Yes, in my good moments.
Posted by David Bowles (Member # 1021) on :
No. I believe in the power of the idea of god, but that's it.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Toss me in as "other," for the moment.
Posted by ssywak (Member # 807) on :
There you go again, Bev. Sneaky, sneaky, sneaky!
quote:Do you believe in God, or do you not believe in God?
Either way, your question presupposes that there is a God, and either I believe in Him/Her/It, or I don't.
I believe in no-God. I believe that there is no such creature as God.
I guess that counts as "other"?
[ February 18, 2005, 12:58 PM: Message edited by: ssywak ]
Posted by Jim-Me (Member # 6426) on :
lem, that album is awesome.
and "yes".
Posted by saxon75 (Member # 4589) on :
No.
Posted by MattB (Member # 1116) on :
I'd like to, I think.
A couple of weeks ago, a good friend told me that, contrary to what I believed, I am a spiritual person. I've always defined myself as religious but not spiritual (I happily identify as LDS, but have for years been lacking in faith). That threw me, and I'm still trying to assimilate why she believes it.
Anyway, provisionally, in a Power, yes.
Posted by mothertree (Member # 4999) on :
:updates little black book: Posted by Dread Pendragon (Member # 7239) on :
yes, absolutely.
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
The yes' are definitely above the 2:1 yes:no ratio, but not by a lot.
ssywak, if I phrased it that way it wouldn't account for the people who don't believe that there is *no* God, but don't believe there *is* one. Sorry, buddy, you just happen to be on the far side of the spectrum. I can't cater to every individual nuance when I am trying to find out how many people are on either side of a certain line. I put the line where I wanted it since it is my poll.
Ideally, I think there would be more "no" votes in this poll if people were actually voting that way. The "no's" are simply those who *don't* believe in a Supreme Being/s. This includes many if not most agnostics. But I am also allowing people an "out" to vote "other" if they choose.
Posted by digging_holes (Member # 6237) on :
Yes.
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
quote:Either way, your question presupposes that there is a God, and either I believe in Him/Her/It, or I don't.
Her question does not presuppose that, any more than asking someone if they believe in Santa Claus presupposes Santa's existence.
Dagonee
Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
Good question.
Fundamentally "No" although that answers a bit more complicated than that.
Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :
Most days, yes. I actually sympathize with punwit--I want to believe, but sometimes my mind has trouble.
Posted by Alucard... (Member # 4924) on :
I believe in Morgan Freeman as God.
Posted by Alucard... (Member # 4924) on :
I do not believe in George Burns as God.
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
[ February 19, 2005, 03:34 AM: Message edited by: aspectre ]
Posted by Danzig (Member # 4704) on :
For the most part, yes. And if the general theological concepts I held in high school (and still hope are true) are correct, I even retain my get-out-of-hell-free card.
Posted by dread pirate romany (Member # 6869) on :
Yes
Posted by Corwin (Member # 5705) on :
*bump*
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
[rant] Plurals DO NOT have apostrophes (except VERY rarely). [/rant]
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at myself ![[Embarrassed]](redface.gif)
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