If I were to be asked the question ‘if you could have dinner with three people in the world (living) who would they be’ my answer would be unequivocal: Larry David, Sir Alex Ferguson, and Richard Dawkins.
For some people I think this to be a fairly frivolous question, but for me I think it genuinely encapsulates a great deal of my personality.
I’ve foreshadowed the inclusion of
Larry David by placing Curb Your Enthusiasm at the very top of my television tree. More than just being an enjoyable show for me,
Larry David (both the character and the person) gives an excellent insight into the way I think about everyday occurrences within our world.
I’ve also explained my devotion to football, with the strongest constant surrounding that devotion being the management style of
Sir Alex Ferguson.
But, aside from a referential piece I wrote called ‘
The Poker God Delusion’, I have yet to discuss in this blog my other hero
Richard Dawkins.
I have always been an Atheist. Not just an Atheist, but a passionate Atheist. I deplored the belief in supernaturalism in all its forms from a very young age, although growing up in a non-religious home I can’t claim it to be that impressive a feat. Rather, the fact that I view my own development of a ruthlessly logical mind as so banal an achievement is what drives much of my fascination with the subject of supernatural belief, and in particular religion.
Neither of my parents were/are religious in any way at all, and I am very thankful for the blank slate this provided me. However, my mother did show a fairly strong interest in the likes of astrology and crystals (in a mystical rather than chemical sense), and my immediate rejection in that case of what was seemingly so obviously illogical leads me with the unmistakable feeling that had I grown up in a religious household I would have been able to overcome it.
The terrifying truth is that, if my parents were complete fundamentalists devoted to nothing but a particular holy book, I very well might not have been able to. It is not a case of simply what people think, but rather how they think that has led to the continued proliferation of religion. Without a significant influence in allowing such affected individuals the opportunity to even contemplate a different way of thinking, they will almost always go on believing what they have always believed and, more importantly in an evolutionary sense, instilling those same faith based ideals in the minds of their children.
There is no need for me to write an essay on the abhorrent nature of faith (blind faith, requiring no evidence) as a concept, as I think that the vast majority of members of our little sub-society of online poker share my general sentiment. As primarily young males forming a career by playing a logic based game, I would certainly hope for nothing less. But we are still, staggeringly in my view, the vast minority on a world stage.
What Richard Dawkins represents in a larger sense is the idea of militant Atheism. As I say I am fairly confident the majority of you when pressed would express a similar overall thought process, but I am equally confident of a large number of you being very laid back towards the whole issue. This I’m sure is particularly true of those of you in the United States which, despite a very definite trend towards science and reason in the last decade, still maintains a clear majority of god-fearing citizens.
If you have grown up in a religious household, surrounded by religious neighbours and religious teachers, for you to internally rebel against it is an impressive achievement in itself. To ask you to take an active opposition against many of those you love might be asking too much. But that is exactly what I am encouraging.
Looking beyond Poker, I feel that this is a field I could very happily spend a career in. When always surrounded by like minded individuals, it is easy to forget that there is even a debate about such issues as evolution. Evolution is a scientific fact, and yet there are still a horrifyingly large amount of schools in the world where it is not taught as such. I feel very strongly that this is a travesty, and is something that will be deeply corrosive to our chances of a better future society. If throughout my lifetime I could open up the minds of a significant amount of individuals to the wonder and beauty science can provide, I would feel like I was making a very real and important contribution to the world.
Until then, I urge those laid back agnostics among you to investigate Richard Dawkins for yourself. During High School, years before I was introduced to him, I engaged in several enthusiastic debates with religious friends of mine. I was already a stout protector of scientific truth over superstition, but engaging with the work of Dawkins reinvigorated my involvement with the subject. Watch one of his documentaries, read one of his books, and see if you too can ignite an active passion for science, logic and reason.
Till next time.
2010 Pokerstars VPP Count: 345,322 VPP
