In yesterday’s Wall Street Journal, Ricky Gervais wrote a 1,600-word essay on why he’s an atheist. It’s not a humor piece, but an earnest one. “My point being, I’m saying God doesn’t exist,” he writes. “I’m not saying faith doesn’t exist. I know faith exists. I see it all the time. But believing in something doesn’t make it true. Hoping that something is true doesn’t make it true. The existence of God is not subjective. He either exists or he doesn’t. It’s not a matter of opinion. You can have your own opinions. But you can’t have your own facts. Why don’t I believe in God? No, no no, why do YOU believe in God? Surely the burden of proof is on the believer. You started all this. If I came up to you and said, ‘Why don’t you believe I can fly?’ You’d say, ‘Why would I?’ I’d reply, ‘Because it’s a matter of faith.’ If I then said, ‘Prove I can’t fly. Prove I can’t fly see, see, you can’t prove it can you?’ You’d probably either walk away, call security or throw me out of the window and shout, ‘F—ing fly then you lunatic.’” This should make for some really comfortable Golden Globes banter! [Speakeasy/WSJ]
