Why do I get so upset when I see people being willfully ignorant?

Question

When I read about atheists and theists attacking each other (ie atheists attacking the beliefs and theists attacking evolution) and see that neither understands that actual beliefs of the other and is utterly convinced that they do understand, I get very angry. Why?

What is the psychology behind my frustration?

jonmcn49,

Being an atheist doesn't automatically make a person smart any more than labeling oneself a Christian makes that person holy. Some atheists do not know how to think critically AT ALL.

Answer 1

You can't forgive yourself for not having the power to heal others. You can forgive others for their ignorance...but what makes you so special that you have to be so hard on yourself?

You cant control everything around you, nobody can. You cant change anybody, its not our place. All you can do is offer guidance to someone who is down and needs and wants it.

Answer 2

I think you are a kind soul that would like everybody to get along.You are frustrated because your expectation of peace among people is just a fantasy. You may be also frustrated by people's lack of tolerance, pigheaded-ness (is there such a word?), ignorance. Nobody is willfully ignorant, people are just ignorant and think they have monopoly on truth. They think they know but belief and knowledge are two different things. I learned to ignore such attacks and pseudo-debates and I'm not frustrated any longer. I wish you the same attitude. It brings peace.

Answer 3

How can atheists attack some thing they do not believe? I think you confuse critical thinking about religion as misunderstanding of belief. As an Spinozian pan- theist, I do not understand your confused dichotomy of frustration.

Answer 4

It's human nature to get frustrated at willful ignorance.
It's often hard to understand why people do what they do especially when they happily ignore facts and figures just to make an attack on someone else who disagrees with them.

People want to win the fight, they dont care how, and if that means playing dumb, or "over looking" a logical or rational explanation, well heck why not cuase I'm winning! I'm winning!

Frustrating as it is this is never going to stop. These are people you are dealing with. Best you can do is leave each to his own. Hold your own views and opinions and try not to kill the next oaf that tries to prove just how stupid one human being can be.

Answer 5

I'll tell you something. Being purposefully ignorant is even worse, and at the same tiome you're expected that they are not. It makes me depressed all the more because it's hard to deal with people like that. You might as well should yourself in the head, you know? Good enough, no?

Answer 6

Most people want to belong to something, be that it atheist, or Orthodox religion. Myself I swing on my own vine. But your anger is understood because we humans are inherently lazy in our brains to open more books, more questions asked and more trials and tribulations. That should come with age and that anger should subside or you will perhaps alienate and burn those bridges to stupidity. I did.

Answer 7

I feel your pain. I don't know about the underlying causes, but I think that hatred of ignorance is a good thing, for the species as a whole. The first step in fighting a thing is to get mad at it.

Answer 8

I get very upset with that category myself. These people are fighting a battle that no one can win. Individuals believe what they want to believe, and there is no sense in trying to tell them to do a turnaround--it is just not worth the time and pain. No one on Yahoo! Answers is going to change what they believe because of someone's question or answer.

Answer 9

Your frustration is you can not change their way of thinking no more than they can change yours. So change what you can and don't become a slave to changing others.

Answer 10

Zeek,
email me with your email address; I can't
get my email to enable so that I can send emails out; the stupid thing won't work. ah!
[e-mail]