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Thursday, March 10, 2011

Deb Roy: The birth of a word | Video on TED.com

One of the best Ted Talks I have ever seen. Having a 13 month old you never really get to see the progression of a word. With this you see it in amazing clarity and perspective. Truly amazing.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Best of Sam Harris

Sam is quickly becoming my favorite outspoken atheist. And for good reason. He is absolutely brilliant!




dreamhost promos

Monday, February 14, 2011

Glenn Beck Fail: Best Of Beck Clips

This is almost too easy. I know it would be easy to compile random clips and make any public figure look stupid, but Beck seems to have a knack for it. Enjoy my atheist brethren!

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Being a Secular Parent


When I was a child my schoolmates and I would often play a game of possibilities. This game had no formal name, but if it did it would probably be "What if." The game would be played out something like this: I would ask a mate "What if you could fly." They then would contemplate the things that could be accomplished given the parameters. Well, being raised in the church I was often asked "What if your son was gay." As if that was the worst possible affliction a child could have. This cruel line of questioning was abundant among the believing, and at the time I didn't second guess its absolutely cruel nature. What I find amusing now, is people ask the same sort of question to me with the presumption of my atheism. The wording of the question is changed however the message is the same. "What if your son grows up to be a christian," again as if this is the worst conceivable possible life choice my son could make. This question has been posed by Christians and atheists alike and most of them with children themselves. I will tell you why I have and always will hate this line of questioning.

The question assumes that I have some sort of choice over the matter, or at the very least assumes that I think I have a choice in my sons life's decisions. I understand that the parent has a role in shaping the mind and ethics of their children, but to imply that I may simply wish my child into my line of reason is missing the point. Richard Dawkins touches on this point many times in his books and his lectures and I tend to agree with it. The point is that religious children who are obviously too young to form an opinion on anything, none-the-less form an opinion on theology, often get labeled with the religion of the parents. When I was a child I was a baptist whether I wanted to be or not, simply because that was the church my mother happened to attend. The same could be said for my cousins who were labeled Catholics when they were still young. I do not wish this for my son, or for any child for that matter, and I think doing so certainly narrows the mind of a young child. When you have grown up in the church and have been labeled a "baptist" since you could remember you don't even think to question it, its the only world you know. Not being a baptist, to me, would have been absurd. Furthermore, questioning anything that contradicted the beliefs of my religion was absurd. And as we have it the complete closing of the mind was accomplished.

I do not wish form of child abuse on my son. My son is not an atheist or an agnostic. He is not a republican, or a democrat. My son is simply a child. My only wish for him is that when he does make up his mind on very important things like religion that he arrives at his decision rationally. If he decides to be an evangelist, a Marxist, a republican, or an atheist I want him to do so in a lucid, open-minded way. At the forefront of his decision making process I want him to know that whatever it is he chooses I will not treat him differently, and that I will always love him even though I may not support his ideology. I do not want the fear of my disapproval to be even a minute factor in any of his ethical decision making. The only time I will intervene is when I feel that he is a danger to himself or others with his decisions.

Being a parent is very difficult. It is a constant learning process for both the child and the parent. When I contemplated being a parent I would often think of the lessons I would instill into my children. So far this little bundle has taught me more about life than anything, or anyone. Being an atheist, or at the least a secular parent, makes it even the more difficult. I am under strict orders from my wife (who is also an atheist) to not use her or my child's name or pictures of them in this blog for the fear of social rejection. As the title suggests we live in the buckle of the bible belt. Her fear is not completely without merit however, there is a real rejection of atheistic parenting here. It is as if the faithful envisions the secular parent teaching their children to sacrifice goats (ironically enough this exaggerated misconception of atheists has it roots in the bible), or that Satan isn't that bad. Being in the backbone of this very religious part of the country makes it even harder to raise a child without religion.

What if my child turns out to be a christian? I will tell him why I disagree with his decision, however I will still love and support him. Deciding to be religious will not remove my love, nor will it shake the foundation of love I have. He will continue to be the most precious thing I ever had a hand in making. He will always be my little dude.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

A Facebook Evangelist!

Yesterday while checking up on my Facebook after work I noticed a message in my inbox. I usually do not get a whole lot of Facebook letters sent to me, as everyone who would send a note has my phone number and would just text me. I opened it and at first glance it looked like a spam letter from a random person. Well it was spam from a random person, however it was much better than regular spam. This "preacher" felt compelled to find me on FB and write me a rather long opening letter (complete with footnotes of scripture that was used,...yes I said footnotes) about how wonderful her particular god is. After about three sentences of babble I felt compelled to write her back. What ensued after my response is both comical and completely sad at the same time. The following are actual screen shots of the conversation. Other than cropping out my personal information they have not been altered, sometimes reality is stranger than fiction anyways. Oh and I realize some of you deal with digital media and are cringing at my lack of editing skills (pretty much MS Paint) but I have not a clue how to do any of that stuff, sorry!



This is basically her introduction. Poorly structured sentences and actual citations of the verses she uses at the bottom.


At this point in time she has already made me mad. She has assumed that I was born an atheist and that I had never "given god a chance."


Now she not only has assumed that I was born an atheist, but she now assumes that the only way for one to be a Christian and then become an atheist is if they have been "Hurt" by someone or that if someone has "Let them down." I actually had to stop and re-read what she wrote. I thought perhaps she meant it some other way, she couldn't possibly think that all former Christians had to go through tragedy to lose faith could she? The answer is yes. At this point I was ready to end the conversation. However I indulged her with a few more responses, and I am glad I did.



After telling her a broad reason for leaving the faith she then tells me that I wasn't a real Christian to start with. She told me that I worshiped an idea and not the real god. She seems to be very judgmental for someone who is taught by the bible to not judge people. How could she possibly know what god and Jesus meant to me when I had faith? She then quotes more scripture and more scripture to back up her judgments.


At this point I'm getting noticeably agitated at the question dodging via random bible verses and asked her to just answer my question straight up. What do you think I get? More babble! Who would've thought?


With all this bible thumping I decided to ask her a question about her beliefs. She then says that she can take some passages as literal and some as poetry or symbolism. I then ask a pretty simple question. Who gets to decide what Christians take as literal and as poetry?


Without giving her proper time to formulate a response, which seems to take a long time for her anyways, I give her a few passages that at one time were taken literally. Her husband then comes into the chat because obviously I wore her out. I can see why they are married, they both seem to have skills in babbling. He then tries to justify owning sex slaves, rather poorly might I add.


When asked directly again (it seems as if I have to do that to get a response) about what his views on the listed verses are, he then uses what every other Christian uses when confronted with the atrocities in the bible: context! I cannot believe this point is still used. Context? It clearly states that god stamped out entire cities because he had a temper tantrum, so on and so forth. He then said something that is a very touchy subject for me. The idea that everyone of us will be judged for what we do on earth. This has been a major argument for me ever since I decided to leave religion. If god is just and caring and loving how could he look down at a person like me and send them to hell? I live the exact same life as I did when I was a believer, except I do it without the fear of punishment or the prospect of reward. I treat people right, I try to do kind things to people, I show love to my wife and son, and I just try to be a decent human being. The righteous believe that I will burn in hell for doing all of that and simply disagreeing with god. This to me is absurd, and should be treated as morally deplorable. So at this point I knew I was done with the conversation and decided to say a few more sentences and then leave it be.


He leaves me with a Bob Dylan video link to youtube. That concludes one of the weirdest preachings I have had in quite some time. Ever since starting this blog I have gotten a few odd faith related e-mails however no one has done this kind of rationalizing ever. In one conversation this team of preachers has concluded that I was hurt by someone in my life, that I never was a real christian, and justifies genocide and the owning of sex slaves. It is people like this that give the decent Christians a very bad name. The point of showing everyone this is not to exploit and poke fun at Christians. It is merely to showcase exactly how hard it is to rationalize with someone who has a closed mind.

Friday, February 4, 2011

Q&A with Christopher Hitchens, Jan 23, 2011

If there is such a thing as a atheist "Jesus" for me Hitch is him. He has given me inspiration and opened me eyes. It is to him that I owe many of my arguments against religion. I can listen to him speak all day, his voice being soothing and deliberate. It is a shame this his time is near, and a bigger shame that I may never meet the man that has given me so much. His candle burned quickly, but what brilliant light it was!

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Living Behind a Mask



At any given time we all adorn a mask. For some, it is to hide a deep secreted vice. Some it is to shroud a part of themselves they are unhappy with, or to become someone they are not. My mask is quite different from those altogether. I suppose a little background is in order before I reveal what is the cause of my masquerade.

About a year ago after a hard day of refitting a new engine in a relatively new VW GTI I noticed a feint dull pain in my hands. It was nothing serious, it was the kind of pain you got as a child after writing 100 sentences out on paper for disobeying the teacher. Blaming this on being a mechanic and overworking myself as I often do, I shoved it to the back of my mind. The pain persisted but was far from being chronic so it was manageable. With much persuasion from my wife I decided to at least get it checked out by my doctor. A fifty dollar copay and two x-rays later he prescribed a steroid pack and sent me on my way. I knew just from the way he described the treatment that it was fairly common. He recited the risks and the treatment plan of my medicine as if it was the opening line of a telemarketers spiel. I took the pills I rested I got somewhat better.

However this dull ache returned and evolved into a serious pain in my hands radiating up to my forearm, only this time it was chronic. Many people who have not suffered chronic pain simply cannot "Know what I am going through." That phrase gets tossed about in similar ways to "Thank heaven" and those who are not afflicted by chronic pain have absolutely no idea what I am going through. Every decision I made to use my hands was a weighing out of the benefits of doing the action, to the consequences of those actions in terms of pain. The tricks that chronic pain plays on the mind are nearly as bad as the pain itself. The most dreadful thought of chronic pain is knowing that nothing you can do will take away the pain, and it is this that amplifies what pain is already present.

The only thing that alleviated the mental part of the equation was self-diagnosis. I was obsessed with symptom checking and the reading of articles of possible causes. Everything from Lupus to Lyme disease raced through my head. "Is it autoimmune?" "Could it be nerve related?" "Could it be related to a botched lumbar puncture?" The ladder question is referring to a procedure that many mothers are familiar with. A long needle is inserted between two vertebrae with a goal of puncturing a disc of fluid to test for various afflictions. It is similar to an epidural in practice, the way it differs in method is it is extracting something as opposed to injecting something. Perhaps my neurologist was having an off day because he proceeded to stab me eleven times into my spine in attempts to withdraw fluid. Each time like an electric wire that seemed to be infinitely hot, in and out, in and out. It took everything in me not to scream out in pain. At times I knew this was the cause for my pain, but now I know that was my brain drawing conclusions based on a traumatic experience.

It had been six months that I lived in chronic pain until I could see a doctor. The 90 day waiting period for insurance benefits to apply when starting a new job is the cause for the wait. Fortunately the doctor I saw was sympathetic to my pain, which oddly enough is rare in my experience. Doctors are apprehensive to start a treatment for an otherwise healthy 25 year old man who complains of pain. After his recommended full blood workup was performed and interpreted he referred me to a rheumatologist. This spawned a flood of future doctor visits and failed hypothesis for the cause of my pain. I saw neurologists, hand surgeons, orthopedic doctors, and diagnosticians. I was told everything from therapy to my diet was the cause of my pain. The most troubling pseudo-diagnosis came from a Vanderbilt neurologist who diagnosed me with depression. When asked if perhaps chronic pain was the cause for my blues this doctor was convinced that my depression was the cause for my specific, localized pain. I think doctors lose sight of the weight that saying something like that has on a pain sufferer. Most of the time I waited weeks to see these doctors, and each time I held the hope that just maybe one of them could help. Then, being told something like what I was told absolutely devastated me.

At least I had Dr. Meyer. He was my general practitioner and although limited in scope of assistance he could provide, he was the spark that started my diagnosis. He took it upon himself to speak to a second rheumatologist for a second go around with diagnosing. This time around my Prednisone regiment worked, and for the fist time in a year I had glimpses of what it was like to not wear my mask. The mask I wore was to cover up the severe pain I had been experiencing. When I told people that I had chronic pain most didn't even believe me. I was so good at hiding it I sometimes doubted the pain myself. I had to, I was not letting this consume me. I did not don my mask because I wanted to, I did it because I had to.

More tests and treatments later I have now (as of last week) arrived at my diagnosis: psoriatic arthritis. An especially painful autoimmune disorder, and in my case it is in advanced stages. The weight of uncertainty being lifted is enough to give me hope that one day I will live without without symptoms. New medicine that science has provided will allow me to be almost 80% pain free, and actually help fight the damage already done. I look forward to the day I can take off my mask and live life.



Sunday, January 30, 2011

The Challenge of Being An Atheist

So you are a new or recent atheist and you are trying to decide how to bring this news up to your religious family members in the least abrasive way. You want to make sure that your family knows that you have thought about this, weighed out the evidence, and reached a lucid conclusion on your decision to leave faith. As far as decisions go I cannot think of any that has affected my life more. I will submit to you that the delivery method I used to profess my atheism was a train wreck and a total failure on my part.

Two clicks is all it took to go from "Southern Baptist" to "Atheist" on my Facebook religion status. Little did I know that Facebook decided it was time to let the world know about my recent faith switch. Much like a young teen announcing to the world they have found the perfect mate and having Facebook publish their relationship status to "In a relationship" my religion status reported a change. Now it didn't directly say "Daniel went from being a loving Christian to an atheist scum" on my page, it simply reported that I changed my religion information. One would think that would go unnoticed in the tsunami of unimportant information that is regularly posted to FB. My one line of text reporting my change must have stuck out like a sore thumb to those that cared, because a few days later I got a phone call from my mother.

The phone call began awkward at best. Then the bomb was dropped. I don't remember the wording exactly but it went to the tune of this "What is with this atheist change on your Facebook?" My mother never being tech savvy and at the time she didn't even use FB (which would indicate that someone actually reported to her about my change, but I digress) so she had no idea about how innocently this announcement was. She was under the impression that I hit the caps lock button and began to post a status update telling everyone how awesome I was because I'm an atheist, and then following that with a generous amount of exclamation points. Little did she know that on the surface it didn't even show what I changed it to. One had to actually click on my personal information to see. If I could offer one bit of advice it is this: keep Facebook out of it. This is not the medium in which to manifest your new found love for evidence and truth. Facebook has done not one bit of good concerning my family and atheism. It never will because this is not what Facebook was designed for.

In the following month after my jumping ship about half of my Christian family wanted nothing to do with me, they were disgusted, they were disappointed. I was amazed how 24 years of memories and good times with various family members was thrown out like trash and the only thing that remained were our religious differences. My mother, by herself, with no monetary support, raised me and my older brother the best way she knew how. At family gatherings I would often gravitate towards my uncle to fill the hole that was left from my father walking out on us. My uncle was the religious pillar of our family. He always said prayer at Thanksgiving. Everything related back to Jesus or god somehow. He was slightly nerdy and loved the cosmos as I did. I considered him a father and a friend. This is why he hurt me the most when he said the words "No atheist will ever step foot in my house. You will poison me and my family. I want nothing to do with you." If I have ever been close to weeping from mere words it was then. I was shocked that he could say that to a family member he loved. I would expect him to say that to a stranger that decided to tread on his bible, but not me, his family. I began dropping family like flies. Soon followed my brother and and cousins. However as disappointed I was at those reactions I was even more shocked by my other family members reactions.

Out of everyone I never expected the reaction I got from my aunt. She said the single most loving and caring sentence anyone has said to me concerning my atheism. Being a devout Catholic she said and I quote "Daniel,... I don't care what decisions you make. You are the same person to me and there is nothing you can say or do that would remove my love for you." This comment came at the end of a storm of negative reactions I got from the rest of the family, and it was exactly what I needed to restore faith in my family. I then learned that my sister-in-law has a sister that is an atheist, and that at first it was difficult but as the years come and go everything gets better. The problem I am facing now is that the religious cannot divorce a person from their beliefs. To them I will always be an atheist.

The decision to become an atheist carries with it the weight of the world. Add in the belief that if you do make that choice you will burn in hell for eternity and it is no wonder why my family showed a spectrum of emotion. What's important is to show your family that your atheism does not define you. You will have to prove to them that you can still be good and do good to others without the fear of punishment or the benefit of reward. The bible tells them that if you are not for god you are against him. This line has been echoed in almost every conversation I have had with my family. This makes it difficult for them to not feel contempt about your new position. You have to understand that to them you have consciously decided to spend eternity rotting in hell, and they cannot understand why anyone would choose this. Nothing you say will ease this thought I have learned. The bible paints a vivid picture of hell and is very clear about who will go there and who will not. Here comes the bad news. Time is the only thing that will heal the wounds inflicted by your atheism. My mother is now talking to me on the stipulation that religion is not to be mentioned. My brother is trying to have a relationship with me. No major progress has been made on my uncle but he did send me a flashlight for Christmas so I guess that is something. It is a shame that most likely my son will grow up and not know my uncle. If I could offer any advice I would suggest to announce your atheism while in a serious face to face setting and remove any and all emotion you may feel from their reaction. Try to get them to realize that you may very well be an atheist but you are still family, and family should transcend religious affiliation.



'A Universe From Nothing' by Lawrence Krauss, AAI 2009



This is the video that sparked my free inquiry. It showed me that we did not need a creator to get where we are today. It seems almost humerous that I lost my faith via Youtube, but it is exactly what happened.



Friday, January 28, 2011

Apostasy: The Unforgivable Sin

There is only one thing a human can do in the Christian faith that he/she cannot simply say "oops! sorry god" and expect to be forgiven. Is it genocide? No, god seems to actually be in favor of that. Is it rape? No, that's not even important enough to list in the ten commandments. Child abuse? I'll leave that one alone, that grave has already been dug. What is this unimaginably hideous action that would guarantee a one way ticket to hell? Cheating on god. Now I have heard of some jealous girlfriends before, and they can make life seem like hell for cheating, but god really takes it personally.  Apostasy is mentioned twice in the bible (Acts 21:21; 2 Thessalonians 2:3) directly and seems to have an underlying tone throughout the old/new testament. I would imagine the one thing that you cannot be granted a pardon on would be emphasized a little more. Its almost as if god wants his followers to overlook it and get back to stories of a person living inside a whale. (Which is mentioned multiple times, in multiple books, by multiple people including Jesus) When I was old enough to learn about the bible very little was spoken on the subject and no one thought to inquire about it. Former Christians, however,  have it easy though. In other faiths it is not quite as easy to just call it quits.

Over eleven countries make apostasy illegal, you do not even have a right as a citizen to even dismiss your faith. Out of the eleven countries ten of them may punish by death if convicted, and the remaining country may imprison or flog. (a nice way of saying beat or whip within inches of death) The death in this case is not swift, or humane. Ridda which means "turning back" in Islam is thought to be the most profound insult to god. As one can imagine this is not taken lightly. Some of the acceptable (and I use that term loosely) forms of slaying of the convicted are: The cutting off of hands and feet, crucifixion, and good ole fashion stoning. After brutally murdering the convicted is then, and only then,  Islam and Christianity agree on what to do with the souls of such wretched people. Hell.

One could imagine that the weight of such decision would be enough to perhaps second guess doing it. However it is quite easy when you dismiss the whole hell thing. I imagined myself screaming from a church rooftop announcing my new position on faith. Like a triumphant sports team celebrating an important victory, cue the cameras, cue the confetti, cue the cheering crowd chanting my name. However in my usual anticlimactic fashion I decided to announce my atheism to myself while driving home from work. These two scenarios being so different still produced the same emotions in me. I felt light. I was happy. The faithful often ask me "Don't you feel empty? Don't you feel like you are missing something now?" My reply is simple. What was filled with fear and doubt is now filled with an insatiable hunger for learning and understanding. You will be amazed how high you can fly when you break free of your chains.



Introducing...The Bible Belt Atheist!

              Good evening ladies and Gentlemen. I would like to start off by telling you a little about myself and the intentions of this blog. I am one of three children born and raised in the church. I never questioned my religion, not even for a moment as a child. I loved Jesus, I wanted to be as close to him as possible. It wasn't until my early twenties that I started to question my faith. Some doubt their faith based on emotions, some out of anger, and some to rebel and go against the grain. I on the other hand started to doubt based on my love for the stars. As a teen I would always look up and praise god for the beauty he made for us. I stood in awe when I saw pictures of distant stars and planets, as anyone should. But when I looked at these marvelous spectacles there was always the thought that god created it and therefore it was stagnant, it was boring. There was was no mystery when ultimately everything ended up with the phrase "God created it." Little did I know one night that the next time I clicked the StumbleUpon button on my Firefox plugin that one video would change my life. This video was titled A Universe From Nothing by Lawrence Krauss and it was the catalyst that sparked the evolution of my reason, and ultimately led to the dismissal of my childhood love.

           Since that night I have been consumed by reason and evidence. I am compelled to investigate and inquire about the things I used to blindingly accept as truth, I became a skeptic. What didn't change is as important, perhaps more, than what did change. My core values were intact. I can assure you that the absence of god did not enable me to become divorced from my morality. I am ordinary, I am boring, I am not a foul ball in left field. I am a simple man who tries to do good to others without the fear of punishment or the motive of reward, I simply do it because it is the right thing to do. I do not need god or religion to make informed decisions on how to treat another human being, and it is an insult to imply that anyone does.

        I wish to inspire thought, debate, and promote cohesion to people of all faiths. That being said I will most likely say things that will offend some people of faith and possibly even atheists. It is not my intention to deliberately offend anyone, however I am learning that anytime religion is injected criticism is not tolerated. Please feel free to email me or even Gtalk me. I wish to be transparent and open to anyone who wishes to take the time to read what I have to say. That is all.