“The modern believer is not suspicious enough, which is perhaps why, wh...” — Julian Baggini Quote

“The modern believer is not suspicious enough, which is perhaps why, when they try to construct arguments in their defence, the convictions are left doing all the work and reason, debilitated by neglect, weakly fails to prop them up.”

“You should protest about the views of people you disagree with over major moral issues, and argue them down, but you should not try to silence them, however repugnant you find them. That is the bitter pill free speech requires us to swallow.”

“The greatest moral failing is to condemn something as a moral failing: no vice is worse than being judgmental.”

“The very act of questioning whether you exist proves you do, because you must be there for the doubt to be entertained in the first place.”

“Whatever your religious persuasion, if you believe that that the universe is governed by benign forces, at some point you have to explain why there is so much suffering, misfortune and misery in the world.”

“And I used to assemble the family to hear because I thought that they were so good that even from the point of view of enjoyment people shouldn't miss them, and I got every word of his that I could, and I could see by hard argument there was only the one way for it.”

“In argument similes are like songs in love; they describe much, but prove nothing.”

“I've had some pretty good arguments with people, but I've never regretted it. I've had people come up where it's all emotion and no fact. That's always sad.”

“I grew up in a family that despised displays of strong emotion, rage in particular. We stewed. We sulked. When arguments did occur, they were full-scale conniptions, and we regarded them as family failings.”

“We had that horrible experience with 'Behind the Music' where they just made it all salacious. That's not about the band - that's a soap opera. If you're together with a spouse or a partner for 40 years, you're going to have arguments. But if you're with four other people, you're going have exponentially that many more things happen.”