Dawkins: The Root of All Evil

Richard Dawkins' television series The Root of All Evil is available on Google videos:

Part 1:



Dawkins examines the history of Christian myths. He interviews hypocritical televangelist Ted Haggard. (I don't object to the fact that Haggard paid for services from a male prostitute, it is the fact that hypocrite Haggard preached against homosexuality. Haggard was forced to resign because of his activities, evoking some truly idiotic comments of support from religious conservatives, "Where did this strange idea that hypocrisy is not a moral virtue come from?" Note the 'not'!) Haggard turns offensive, accusing mild-mannered Dawkins and scientists of intellectual arrogance in lieu of Christian apologetics. Dawkins moves on to Israeli Zionism and Palestinian Muslims, including an utterly illogical and hate-filled New York Jew who converted to fundamentalist Islam after emigrating to Israel. It is types such as this fellow who demonstrate Dawkins' point while flattering themselves that they are arguing against it.

Part 2:



Richard Dawkins examines the divisive results of 'abusive' religious indoctrination of children. (I agree with Gray that the scaring of children by threats of hell are indeed egregious, yet they do not rank in severity with genuine childhood abuse–not Dawkins' example of a single incident of fondling, but severe and prolonged sexual, physical, and emotional abuse.) Dawkins moves on to the fact that religions do not provide good guides to morality.

"The God of the Old Testament has got to the be the most unpleasant character in all fiction."


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