What is the purpose of morality? (The Atheist Experience)

Ryan from St. Louis asks about the purpose of morality from an atheist perspective.

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[SlashDotDash121]

Wow....

Its 2012 and still people are so dumb....

[TheAsaoirc]

@dud898 no reason we can't take the halfway decent ideas and leave the bigotry/superstition behind.

[FrankLightheart]

I like how Matt is wearing black against a black background so that he looks like a floating head talking about the origins of morality.

[dud898]

so all your answers can be summed up to one sentence... "What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellowman. This is the entire Law; all the rest is commentary. Talmud, Shabbat 3id", " All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye so to them; for this is the law and the prophets.  Matthew 7:1"

[ergius1988]

Humans can't survive one by one. Any given human needs to obtain food, warmth, protection from NUMEROUS threats for himself AND his young. All this is impossible to do alone. It's much easier to, for example, obtain food for 10 people, then to obtain food, warmth and protection for even a single person. That's why groups of humans divide those tasks among each other, so that the work becomes easier. It's in YOUR interest to make sure, that OTHERS feel good, because otherwise, you'll feel bad too

[ergius1988]

@BellicoseBaarber I love how you censored out the G word :-D

[BellicoseBaarber]

Thank you for finally pointing out to these religious nut jobs that humanity has advanced its morality beyond the Bronze age. Do you religious freaks really expect us to sleepwalk back to an era of war, ignorance and human suffering? Use the brain G*d gave you!