Richard Dawkins quotes - page 15

My decision to be a scientist was a bit of a drift really, more or less by default. (Richard Dawkins)
Disagreements between incompatible beliefs cannot be settled by reasoned argument because reasoned argument is drummed out of those trained in religion from the cradle. View quote
Richard Dawkins
How any government could promote the Vardy academies in the North-East of England is absolutely beyond me. Tony Blair defends them on grounds of diversity, but it should be unthinkable in the 21st century to have a school whose head of science believes the world is less than 10,000 years old. View quote
Richard Dawkins
In the case of Stalinism, people actually distorted science because it was for the good of the Communist Party. View quote
Richard Dawkins
Humans are just a very, very small part of the panoply of life, and it is arguable that in a certain sense, humans have emancipated themselves from Darwinian selection. View quote
Richard Dawkins
It's an important point to realize that the genetic programming of our lives is not fully deterministic. It is statistical - it is in any animal merely statistical - not deterministic. View quote
Richard Dawkins
The psychologist Elizabeth Loftus has shown great courage, in the face of spiteful vested interests, in demonstrating how easy it is for people to concoct memories that are entirely false but which seem, to the victim, every bit as real as true memories. View quote
Richard Dawkins
At least the fundamentalists haven't tried to dilute their message. Their faith is exposed for what it is for all to see. View quote
Richard Dawkins
I am one of those scientists who feels that it is no longer enough just to get on and do science. We have to devote a significant proportion of our time and resources to defending it from deliberate attack from organised ignorance. View quote
Richard Dawkins
I sympathize with politicians who have to watch every syllable they utter for fear it will be misused by somebody with an agenda. View quote
Richard Dawkins
Metaphors are fine if they aid understanding, but sometimes they get in the way. (Richard Dawkins)
Religious organisations have an automatic tax-free charitable status. View quote
Richard Dawkins
I think the world's always a better place if people are filled with understanding. View quote
Richard Dawkins
I have a strong feeling that the subject of evolution is beautiful without the excuse of creationists needing to be bashed. View quote
Richard Dawkins
It is possible in medicine, even when you intend to do good, to do harm instead. That is why science thrives on actively encouraging criticism rather than stifling it. View quote
Richard Dawkins
Scientists disagree among themselves but they never fight over their disagreements. They argue about evidence or go out and seek new evidence. Much the same is true of philosophers, historians and literary critics. View quote
Richard Dawkins
Many people want to send their children to faith schools because they get good exam results, but they're not foolish enough to believe that it's because of faith that they get good exam results. View quote
Richard Dawkins
If children understand that beliefs should be substantiated with evidence, as opposed to tradition, authority, revelation or faith, they will automatically work out for themselves that they are atheists. View quote
Richard Dawkins
Darwin gives courage to the rest of science that we shall end up understanding literally everything, springing from almost nothing - a thought extremely hard to comprehend and believe. View quote
Richard Dawkins
Discrimination is not liberal. Arguing against discrimination is not intolerance. View quote
Richard Dawkins
To fill a world with religion, or religions of the Abrahamic kind, is like littering the streets with loaded guns. Do not be surprised if they are used. (Richard Dawkins)
At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes. View quote
Richard Dawkins
The obvious objections to the execution of Saddam Hussein are valid and well aired. His death will provoke violent strife between Sunni and Shia Muslims, and between Iraqis in general and the American occupation forces. View quote
Richard Dawkins
The idea of an afterlife where you can be reunited with loved ones can be immensely consoling - though not to me. View quote
Richard Dawkins
I was brought up in a family which valued natural history. Both my parents knew the names of all the British wildflowers, so as we went walking the country, I was constantly being exposed to a natural history sort of knowledge. View quote
Richard Dawkins