The question I get asked by religious people all the time is, without God, what’s to stop me from raping all I want?
And my answer is: I do rape all I want. And the amount I want is zero. And I do murder all I want, and the amount I want is zero.
The fact that these people think that if they didn’t have this person watching over them that they would go on killing, raping rampages is the most self-damning thing I can imagine.
I don’t want to do that. Right now, without any god, I don’t want to jump across this table and strangle you. I have no desire to strangle you. I have no desire to flip you over and rape you.
Not just that, but I’ve yet to come across anybody who has actually refrained from doing the bad thing they want to do because of some fear of God. They might be afraid of legal consequences, but belief hasn’t prevented rape, theft, envy, murder, or anything else among even (especially) the leaders of the religious.
So no, not believing in God doesn’t make atheists rapists and murderers, and believing in God doesn’t prevent the devout from rape and murder.
-Penn Jillette
Not just that, but I’ve yet to come across anybody who has actually refrained from doing the bad thing they want to do because of some fear of God. They might be afraid of legal consequences, but belief hasn’t prevented rape, theft, envy, murder, or anything else among even (especially) the leaders of the religious.
So no, not believing in God doesn’t make atheists rapists and murderers, and believing in God doesn’t prevent the devout from rape and murder.