There’s a pretty big story making the news in that a self-proclaimed atheist murdered three young students in North Carolina who were Muslims. I’ve written a number of times about the nature of fanatics and the underlying cause of violence.
I think I’ve been pretty consistent about my thoughts on this subject but they’ve come in a variety of posts over the last few years and these terrible murders made me suppose I might clarify my thinking on the subject in a single post.
What I see, and have seen in the past, when someone of a particular religious or non-religious persuasion murders people there is pretty much instantly a round of the blame-game.
I’ll state my position clearly. The blame goes to Craig Stephen Hicks. He was clearly suffering from a tremendous case of frustration which lead to rage and then to violence. I wrote about how frustration is often the underlying cause of the expression of rage through violence in another post. The fact that Hicks is an atheist has no bearing on the subject any more than if he was a Christian. I know that people will think I’m just saying this because I’m an Atheist myself but I’d urge you to read through my other posts on this subject. Let me explain my thinking to save you all that reading.
People who commit such murders are generally acting out of either extreme frustration or fanaticism and often both. People who are frustrated in life find something on which to focus their rage, be it religion or the lack of courtesy when others use parking spaces not assigned to them. When we get frustrated with things in life it leads us to anger. When the frustration persists eventually to rage. In those who lack the ability to control themselves, for whatever psychological reason, eventually to violence.
Today I blame the murderer not the religion or lack thereof. Tomorrow I’ll do the same even if the murderer is a Christian or a Muslim. Those who kill like to latch on to something to excuse their behavior. Religion is often a good excuse as is political affiliation. It doesn’t mean that religion has anything to do with it. The blame is clear in these cases and it will always be so.
I don’t blame Atheism. I don’t blame Muslims. I don’t blame the media stoking such rage with nonsensical news stories designed to inflame. I don’t blame the victims taking up parking spaces. I don’t blame the lack of laws restricting access to firearms. I blame the murderer.
We make our choices in this life. As a Libertarian I think people should have great freedom. With that freedom must come responsibility.
We make our choices and we should be rewarded or punished appropriately.
Tom Liberman
Sword and Sorcery fantasy with a Libertarian Ideology
Current Release: The Black Sphere
Next Release: The Girl in Glass I: Apparition
Had the victims were Jews, would you still have the same opinion?
I doubt it. As a member of the tribe, Antisemitism would have been your first response. You would have joined the mainstream media in their parade-repeating the story about spreading antisemitism 100 times a day for a few weeks.
You are claiming that that criminal killed 3 people execution style because a conflict on a parking spot. this is idiotic.
I would have exactly the same opinion. Believe me or not.
Thank you for the comment,
Tom
Here’s a list of atheist murderers (has footnotes):
I’m sorry but no links. That list is largely false as well.
Thank you for the comment,
Tom
You took off the link? All right then, google “atheist murderers” and you should find it eventually. Also, why is the list “largely false?” Every item on it is footnoted very thoroughly. If anything is false on it, please do tell.
Most of the people on the link were heads of state and thus not relevant to the discussion.
Even those were wrong. Hitler was not an Atheist which was the most prominent name but it was the inclusion of Emperor Hirohito that made me decide to remove the link. He is listed as a Buddhist when in fact he was Hinto, neither of which is Atheist.
Thanks again for the posts,
Tom
Murderers are still murderers no matter what their job is, heads of state or otherwise. In any case, the list provides lots of atheist murderers who are not heads of state (especially toward the bottom). Also, the list gives a compelling reason why Hitler was, in fact, an atheist (what’s your evidence to the contrary?). Also, Emperor Hirohito was not on the list. Hideki Tojo was on the list, and he was indeed Buddhist, and there are indeed many who consider Buddhism a form of atheism, since it doesn’t acknowledge the existence of a god (the list provides a source to a Buddhist website explaining this).
Hey, tired and bored. Hitler was not an Atheist, Wiki covers it pretty well, likewise the Wiki article on Buddhism. This post was about people who kill other people, not heads of state of who order people killed or assassins who kill people for political reasons.
I appreciate you have your point to make. I hope you can appreciate this is my website and decisions I make are final.
Thanks again for the posts.
Tom
Hey, I understand this is your website. No argument there. I would say though that simply invoking Wikipedia as a counter argument isn’t much of an argument. And at the very least, you weren’t at all specific regarding what to look for on Wikipedia. Also, heads of state who order people to kill other people are still people who kill other people. That’s why Hitler, Stalin, and Mao can be said to have “killed people.” Also, bringing it back around, you said the list was “largely false.” You just cited a couple examples. Are you seriously saying that most of the list is false? Maybe Hitler and Tojo are debatable exceptions … but most of the other ones don’t fit the bill either? Just trying to clarify what you said because I’m curious what you meant.
Most of the people on your list are heads of state and that is not what this article is about. Have you read it? If you have a comment that is pertinent to this article I’ll be happy to talk about it.
Your list basically includes anyone who ever made an atheistic statement. Mussolini for example. He was pretty much a church going Christian just like Hitler. Yes, he made some Atheistic statements. You seem willing to include anyone on the list who ever once made such a statement. That’s fine. It’s your list. I disagree with the majority of people on that list. Only a few of them actually identified as Atheists. Therefore, most of the list is wrong. That’s my opinion. You disagree. Fine. You have your agenda.
Another point is that anyone who is the head of state has ordered the murder of someone else. So the list itself is largely false in regards to this blog which is about people who physically murder another person.
Again, if you want to make a comment that is pertinent to this post, which I suspect you have not even read, please do so. Otherwise I’m done.
Thanks,
Tom