Re Rosemary McLeod's column: Humanity profited little from belief in rationality.
I notice the claim is not that humanity profited little from rationality, but that we didn't profit from a belief in it. So McLeod takes the post-modern, skeptical, nihilistic attitude and draws into question rationality itself. Don't you listen to the archetypal prophet of nihilism Friedrich Nietzsche? He spent the last decade or so in the insane asylum, largely in silence. At least he was consistent. Hear what he said when he was still talking: "I am afraid we cannot get rid of God because we still believe in grammar."
I can only assume you are not a true nihilist because you still expect us to read and try to make rational sense out of what you say.
Of course if we did take any notice of what you said then you might put yourself out of a job. To consistently deny rationalism is to cut off the branch on which you sit. I do agree with your appraisal of Dawkin's fundamentalist crusade along with other statements concerning atheistic communism and the like - but denying rationality is not a good move. Atheism, while pretending to be rational, ultimately, when driven to final conclusions is the truly irrational worldview. Why do you feel compassion is possibly irrational? Is what we stand to gain the standard for rationality?
