Why Religion causes brain damage / mental illness / VIDEO

hitler was an atheist

 

Well, you don't have an ounce of proof they were wrong? Just your "belief"...your "religion"

 

LOL, typical.

 

We aren't even talking about them being wrong. We are talking about them sending young minds a scary message to live their lives with.
Who knows if they are right or wrong? They sure do think they are right and could very well be right off the wall totally but have tainted little kids minds with it anyway. What if they are wrong? Should they go to hell for tormenting innocent minds before they even get a chance to grow? Who are we to say things like that when really neither side knows for sure?
Let them prove it, then we will let them scare us into their beliefs. But then there needs to be one perfect religion because as far as religion goes, there are too many using very different versions of the same things depending on who headed each religion and it's mind boggling if anyone was to look into two or three of them, but yet many of them threaten their young with horrible thoughts pressed into the brain.

 

I remember singing songs about spitting out the devil if he gets down inside ya. LOL

What with all the depictions of the crusifiction and the whole communion thing, drinking the blood, eating the flesh of Christ ...
Christianity's a fucking creepy death cult if you ask me.

 

I'll leave it to you to figure that one
https://www.google.com/search?outpu...=538&dpr=1&cad=cbv&sei=0T1KU8r2KKbm2gXCr4DQDQ




whatever he was
none of my biz
my beliefs are private
and so should everyones be

 

Hitler also regarded Madison Grant's book on anthropology "The passing of the great Race" to be his "bible".

 

See, thats the thing...it's part of the the broad definition of evangelical religions that one of their central tenants is to try to convince people, convert them to their beliefs. It's why Buddhism isn't an evangelical religion, they have no mission to convince anyone.

 

Copout. You often are. You are doing just what you accuse them of. I'm not supporting stupid, that's what de-pop is for, but people get on here and say "indoctrinate them into (gay, commie, airhead fool) because a religious belief is just wrong!"
And it's just as much bullshit as their pointless lives are, they're just getting off hitting other baboons. That's you totally. A baboon calling one that washes a plate different "wrong" when hippies have the all-time worst example and record of parents there is, but live in violent denial of it because they won't admit they're just the same.
And I already said "gong" ahahaha!
Lets face it, your religion is living on welfare and dying off, just like das krauten boy said. You are the dead hitting your grave neighbors, which is good, because it keeps competition down.
The religious activist is among the most pointless - unless any individual comes to some good of it.

I always liked Lennon "One thing ya can't hide, is when you're crippled inside"
That's what all the religion bashers start out with "I blame Christianity for my angry handicapped state!" But it's a cause that will probably only gain you islam - at gunpoint. (Or welcome, as another raging baboon?)
It has no real or tangible value and is just stupid misery, like you say christianity is?

The pot denies it's a pot, calling the kettle black.

 

<< Let them prove it, then we will let them scare us into their beliefs.>>

Sal, I'm afraid the "scaring into belief" thing is about to happen...and I am afraid that if they had a choice, some religions would not look so bad compared to the truly large one that is rising without impedement.

I say people are going to be who they are going to be, and that times like these and those to come only encourage them more, until fear and oppression put all the lights out.

 

Okay, let me tell you what's wrong with the video. This is obviously propaganda, not just a report on a scientific study. "This guy", an atheist blogger, may be articulate, but his credentials are missing and his facts are bogus. His interpretation of the "scientific study", which is flashed past us in a photo of the article, is way overgeneralized and hyped--to the point of misrepresentation. According to "this guy" the study shows that: "religion can and does cause literal brain damage, and that that damage can be difficult if not impossible to repair if not addressed early in life." By reading closely as he flashed it by us, I was able to get the reference to the study. It was conducted by a respectable outfit, a research team at the Duke University Medical Center looking into hypocanthic atrophy in 268 elderly patients by means of fMRI brain scans. The blogger's interpretation bears little resemblance to the study itself.

The independent variable the researchers considered was the subjects' religious beliefs, which were classified as Catholics, "Born Again" Protestants, Mainstream Protestants, and "Others', including Jews, Eastern Orthodox, etc. A subgroup with no religion was analyzed separately. "Born Again" protestants were divided into those recently "born again" and those who've been "born again" longer. A separate category of those who claim to have Life Changing Religious Experiences (LCREs) was also analyzed and subdivided into recent and not recent. The data were subjected to statistical regression analysis.

First off, the findings did not show that "religion" rots the brain. Some groups did pretty well. The Mainstream Protestants , taken as a base line, had a b-value from the regression analysis of 0--as good as it gets. Subjects with recent LCREs, come next !!! (b=-0.15,-0.15). Then comes the "Other" category (b=.06,-0.05), Catholics did fair (b=-0.12, -0.22) The best group, on a par with the mainstream protestants, were those with “other” religious beliefs, such as Eastern Orthodox, Jewish or Muslim people (b=0.06,-0.05). Protestants recently "born again" were similar (b=-0.05, -0.21), Catholics fared okay (b=-0.12, -0.22). The “Born again” protestants who were born again for some time did worse (b=-0.15,-0.15), subjects who had non-recent LCREs did poorly, and subjects with no religion had the worst atrophy of all!! (b=-0.28,-0.20).

So what can we make of all this? First of all, notice that it isn't "relgion" per se, but instead certain forms of it and non relgion that seem to be associated with hypocanthic atrophy. The researchers think that the atrophy is a result of stress--specifically the release of the hormone cortisol in response to stress. They speculate that the long-term LCREs and the non-relgious subjects may be showing the effects of being unaccepted minorities in the general population of the United States.
Second, notice the size and quality of the sample--268 elderly American adults. This is hardly large enough to generalize about "religion" in the world or the United States. I could find nothing indicting whether or not the sample was random, i.e., scientific. Studies like this are at best "exploratory", providing hypotheses for testing on larger samples. There is also no indication that the study, published in an internet outlet, has undergone peer review--the sine qua non for scientific respectability.
Third, be aware that the weight of scientific research suggests that religion is conducive to, not detrimental to, good mental health. For a good review, see another Duke researcher, H.G. Koenig, Religion, Spirituality and Health, ISRN Psychiatry,Volume 2012 (2012), Article ID 278730,
http://dx.doi.org/10.5402/2012/278730


As for the atheist blogger, his presentation gives new meaning to the adage: " figures don't lie, but liars can figure."

 

:2thumbsup:

I absolutely hate junk science and wish more people were as astute at recognizing issues with stuff that purports to be "scientific fact".

Discernment and skepticism is just as important and valuable when it comes to science as when it comes to religion.

 

One - bravo! Nicely put -
Two - I nominate the last sentence for hip forums motto! Ahahaha!

 

Ha ha ha ha, you a real bag o' nuts buddy. I ain't gonna waste my time with you or Oky, ya'lls both too far gone. Go pray to your false gods why don't cha

 

my my how time flies... its almost prayer time..

 

Prayers from the heart that knows no emotion will never be heard.

 

And in this case, in a perfect world all other religions would quit calling each other wrong and calling non religious people down and all people would ban together to beat this possibility and conquer it.
What needs to happen is religions agree to agree and there wouldnt be separate reasons to go to one or the other or avoid them all. One big non denominational religion of every kind put together. Instead some christains must beat their wives, as other religions also believe, some religions are against you looking at your wife as, shall we say desired, but as a child maker, some beat their kids, some want a percentage of your pay cheque. So many things to consider if wanting a religion.
I think it's going to be similar the 40 days and 40 nights but this time in a much different way to see if one good band of people can get it together and do what's right. I am willing to join any band of people who won't tell me how to live or believe and that's not gonna happen is it. Divide and conquer isnt even necessary in this case, we are all divided as of many years back when everyone decided to read what they wanted to read and then added their ways of encouraging and even guilting people to follow Them.
Part of the problem is They, are populating at a huge rate and moving into other countries and no one is limiting the ways of their access or trying to keep our flags strong against some kind of take over.
Scare us? No we will be force and I will slit my throat before any religion forces me in. Guilt I can get past, it's just crap that needs to fall off the shoulders in short time. When will there be a religion where we can believe and yet be ourselves rather then be told to beat our kids or wives or don't bother joining?

 

Religion can be a mind-crippling disease, no doubt about it. I know lots of atheists who left the Christian faith because of emotional abuse--in which category I'd put religions that are constantly telling people, especially kids, that they're going to hell. The anti-science, anti-reason Bible Thumpers are in the same boat, in my opinion. In fact, based on my limited personal experience, I think toxic religion is one of the major causes of atheism. I think they're better off atheist than prisoners in that kind of environment. I think God would agree. I remember a kid on Hip Forums a couple of years ago who thought Satan must have made him, because he was gay and his folks told him "God doesn't make mistakes"! I remember thinking "Where is Richard Dawkins when you really need him?"

There are a some not bad Christian books on the subject: Stephen Arterburn and Jack Felton, Toxic Faith; and (by the same authors) More Jesus, Less Religion; and David Jackson and Jeff Van Vonderen, Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse. Warning: these guys are believers!

 

<< Ha ha ha ha, you a real bag o' nuts buddy. I ain't gonna waste my time with you or Oky, ya'lls both
too far gone. >>

I do not "believe" that. You can't help yourself. Ahahaha!

 

The brain damage claim does seem to be BS. I usually see religious people as the ones butchering science for their agendas but anyone can. And then there's just plain old BS science like string theory...

The neural connections in your mind are part of what makes you, YOU. The brain is always rewiring itself but of-course stronger connections are harder to break. The connections infants and children make are the strongest and most important for sure and the foundation for a healthy adult mind.

I guess if you're inclined to believe religion is a type of mental illness then childhood brainwashing could be a sort of bad wiring damage that is inflicted on them. As all learned behaviors get wired in and their strength depends on frequency of reinforcement. The brain isn't really damaged in the literal sense, it's functioning exactly as it was programmed.