Cornered.

No animal fights so savagely as when it is cornered and fears for its survival. This is Christianity in the face of ever growing reason and critical thinking.

Pay for contraception or child support....Pick one.

To those religious organizations who are adverse to paying for (indirectly) birth control for their female employees:
   Are you willing to pay for the child support for any children born out of wedlock? Are you willing to match the public aid required by those who are not able to otherwise support children who were conceived and born for want of birth control?

  I am sure that if you were equally financially liable as the father or government that is supporting the fetus you find so precious, you might just change your tune

   I should point out that this applies to abortion as well.

Church & State

   To those on the christian conservative right who want to put god back into government, be careful what you wish for. Once christianity is firmly entrenched in our government, then the real power struggle will occur.

   Whose version of christianity will be king of the hill?

   How deeply will the church's influence run? Will we become the christian version of Iran?

Another evolution observation.

   Here's another little challenge for the creationists. Please explain, in six thousand years or less, how we came to have on this earth:

   Caucasians, Hispanics, Asians, Indians, Africans, Aborigines, native Americans, and all the subsets of those groups.

   How did that happen? God works in mysterious ways?

Mini post - Evolution observation.

   Hey Creationists, you do realize that breeders have for centuries (millenia even) been engaged in evolution by design? By selectively breeding animals with certain desirable traits again and again, they create entirely new breeds. They have even created new species!

   What makes you think this cannot happen in response to environmental and survival influences in the wild? More importantly, what makes you think that humans were and are exempt from this process?

Church and State

   I'm all for the separation of church and state, that's a given. This is just a brief comment about what irks me the most.

   It's a one-way street. Christianity takes every opportunity to inject itself to our schools, government, and courts. Yet, if that same government or court system attempts to make religious organizations abide by the same rules as secular entities, they cry foul. Then the theists decide that separation must be maintained.

   So it's OK to display the lord's prayer or ten commandments in the state house, but how dare the government impose rules on religious daycare centers.

What is an Atheist?

I can't really describe the typical atheist, because he or she probably does not exist. Just like any other diverse group of people, there are more differences than similarities. In fact, our atheism is the only thing some of us have in common with each other, just as it would be in any large group that shares a common interest. Unfortunately, atheists are often subject to the same kinds of prejudice and bigotry as other minority groups.

Atheists come from all walks of life. Some were raised as atheists, some have made the transition late in life. Some are aggressive and militant about their atheism, while some are passive to the extent that they rarely give it a thought. Some detest religion and work towards its demise, while other are tolerant and content to take a "Believe what you will" attitude.

Some are very vocal about their views, while others have never told anyone they don't believe in god. Some see religion where it does not belong and are perhaps angered, while others will take action against whatever institution is forcing some religion on us (and these by the way, are the faces of atheism you most often see).

Some of us are organizers, the catalysts behind clubs, groups, rallies, and conventions. Others are the joiners who attend these meetings and events. But even more common are those who are stay at home atheists, perfectly content on their own.

There are doctors, lawyers, engineers, writers, students, accountants, mechanics, chefs, and even priests. They are rich, middle-class, poor, even homeless.

There are some incredibly intelligent and articulate atheists, as well as those who are rather low on the scale of intelligence and comprehension.

In other words, we're a lot like christians, jews, mormans, and muslims. I could re-post this with minor changes to make the same point about any of these groups. Many atheists came from those groups. We are your neighbors, your co-workers, and your fellow citizens. We are part of the diverse fabric of today's society.

With a bit of rational thought, we could even be you.

Debating the Good Book

   I'm with Richard Dawkins on this one. I can't be certain there is no god. Or gods. But as I read more blogs and articles by atheists, I'm struck by how often they attempt to debate the bible. This is a fool's errand in my mind.

   It's no different really than my son attempting to debate the reasoning behind a character's actions on a popular TV show. It's fiction!(1) Not only is it fiction, but in many places it is inconsistent, ambiguous, and contradictory fiction. Combine that with the christian tendency to shun logic and ignore facts, and you have an argument that you can't win.

   Unfortunately, it's fiction that they hold to be true. While they will tell you that the bible is their god's blueprint for the world, the reality is that the bible is the foundation for their religion. The same can be said for non-christian religions and their respective books.

   What I think is that god, if it exists, has never revealed itself to any person or persons. That this god bears no resemblance to those of any religion.

(1) Like many novels, the bible should have a blurb saying "This story is based on actual events." I'm sure that some of the events described in the bible really happened. But like a good historical novel, there is plenty of made-up fantasy mixed in.

Obama haters

   I've spoken to more than a few right leaning friends and acquaintances in the past few months about the upcoming election for POTUS. A couple trends seem to be at work.

   The first is that while it is easy for them to say that they hate (yes, that is the word most of them use) Obama, very few of them can give credible reasons. I mainly get comments like "He wants to turn our country into a socialist state", "He wants to destroy capitalism", "He is the worst president we've ever had", "He is destroying our country".


   The 2nd trend I see is that these people plan to vote republican in November, no matter how poorly suited the GOP candidate may be to lead our country. I suppose this doesn't surprise me, but it saddens me.

Disclosure: I've voted republican at least as many times as I've voted democrat. I even voted for George W Bush once.

Evolution

   Next time I debate a catholic on evolution, I'm going to use an example he can't argue with. The catholic church itself. Although my my kids will tell you I was around when dirt was invented, I'm really not that old. But when I think about the changes since I was a boy, I just have to shake my head.

   Mass used to be said in Latin. Women were required to cover their heads in church. Meat was forbidden every Friday, not just during lent. You were forbidden from touching the communion host with your hands. Lay people did not assist with mass. Priests and nuns did not wear civilian (for want of a better term) clothes.

   The mass itself has changed several times, adding and dropping elements along with changing the wording of prayers and responses. Lay people now  read scriptures and assist with distributing communion.

   There used to be a place called limbo, where unbaptized babies went if they died. I'm not sure if they've closed purgatory though, which is where you went if you were not quite evil enough for hell and not good enough for heaven. A kind of half-way house for souls.

   My point is that the catholic church has changed quite a bit just since I was a boy. The church has evolved for the same reason all creatures do. To adapt to the environment in order to survive and flourish.

Who am I?

   I am a non-believer. Call me what you will, I've not settled on a label for myself, and suspect that I may not ever do so. Most of the labels one comes across apply to some extent, some more strongly than others.

   I have also been a believer, though never fully sold on the whole christianity bill of goods. I've also been, for most of my life, purely apathetic, not thinking or caring one way or the other. Interestingly, before I became an atheist (for that label describes me best), the whole concept of atheism was repulsive to me. It truly was the last prejudice I carried.

   This prejudice / attitude towards atheists is so commonplace that I will be quite hesitant to associate that label with myself in public, at least for a while. While the noble thing to do would be to proclaim loudly to one and all that there is no god, I don't care to put myself or my family in a compromised position. I think this part is temporary though. Once my children are grown and no longer vulnerable to the repercussions of my belief, I will be much more willing to proudly proclaim to my mother-in-law that I am an atheist.  There are a few in my extended family whom I've told that I don't believe in god. Interestingly, while it really says the same thing, this is very different than telling them you're an atheist!

   Obviously (to me at least), there are many shades of grey when it comes to belief. There are those to whom their god is the alpha and the omega. There is no doubt as to his existence, his power, and his prescription for our existence. It goes without saying that we in the non-believers club are at the other extreme, even though many of us concede the possibility (however unlikely) of god's existence.

   I believe most people are floating in the middle. They don't think about it very much, if at all. They are not prone to prayer for the most part. If asked, they will identify themselves with the variety of religion they were raised with. This is interesting because they really are closer to an agnostic than a believer. But still, they consider themselves christian or jewish or mormon, whether or not they talk the talk, much less walk the walk.

  I've been in and out of the catholic church 3 times. First, as a child, I had no choice in the matter. As a young person, religion held varying degrees of interest to me. I actually came close to entering the seminary! Eventually though, once attending mass with the family was no longer mandatory, my faith was relegated to the farthest reaches of my consciousness.

   When asked in boot camp, I told them I was catholic. I married my 1st wife in a catholic church. All of my children are baptized catholic, the last almost 20 years after the 1st. I married my 2nd wife in a lutheran church, because the catholic church now shunned us because I was divorced. Oddly, if my my 1st marriage was in a lutheran church, the catholic church would have welcomed us with open arms.

   I came back to the catholic church twice as an adult. After my 1st marriage failed through no ones fault but my own, I began going to church to search for some inner strength and guidance. My church buddy at that time was my ex-wife's mother, who may be the most awesome christian I know to this day. After marrying my 2nd wife, we were decidedly non-practicing christians for nearly 10 years. We allowed my in-laws to take the kids to Sunday school and such, while I was oblivious to the subtle and ongoing pressure to "return to God" they were exerting on my wife.

   Once my wife returned to church, it was only a matter of time before the subtle and ongoing pressure was directed at me. So once again, I returned to the the catholic church. This time though, there was a difference. I was not a naive child nor was I seeking anything. I listened, really listened to what was being said. Not so much the scriptures, they have been the same for ages. I listened to sermons, because that is to faith as word problems are to math. This is how we relate the bible and the word to our daily lives.

   And what I heard had little to do with faith and morality. I heard instead about voting republican, giving more money to the church, and why stem cell research is bad. We were to pray for our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, but not for the end of the war. We were thrilled to hear about "real" planned parenthood from the parents of 14 children.

   So in April of 2009, I told my wife I'd had enough. I've been to church 3 times since. Twice for funeral masses, once for my son's confirmation. I'll be back to church in the future too, hopefully for more weddings than funerals. I don't mind going to church. I understand that is necessary to share in many of the important events in the lives of those I love. I'll also say the words at grace before meals as circumstances dictate and even say "under god" during the pledge at times.

   They're only words, and sometimes it's just best to get along with family and friends. This is not to say that I would not protest were the setting to be a courtroom or senate chamber or public school. In your house or club or place of worship, it's your right to pray or worship as you wish. I'm far more concerned with my actions as your fellow human on this earth.

   Ironically, while christians paint atheists as the amoral scum of the earth, I've found myself to be very much at peace with my own morality. I have always been an advocate of the Golden Rule. "Treat others as you would wish to be treated". Another philosophy I adhere to is to "put yourself in the others position". These are the tenets I've lived by for many years. These are the rules I set for myself many years before I ever contemplated the non-existance of god.

   So I'm sure some people will say I'm evil and damned to hell. But luckily for me, they don't get to judge me in the end. I'm the same person I was 4 years ago. Same ethics, same morals, same rules. I act no differently towards my fellow man. If anything, I hold myself to a higher moral standard now than I did as a christian. The only difference is that I've reached that conclusion that is infinitely comforting to me. No god. At least not as any religion I know of defines god.

What I think about Rush "The slutmaker" Limbaugh

   Rush is who he is. He has an act that plays very well to a fair chunk of Americans. He's an American citizen with all the rights that go with the title, one of which is free speech. He has the right to say whatever he wants on his show. But, like I tell my kids, there are consequences for everything you do in life. Sometimes those consequences are positive, sometimes not.

   We've already seen some of the consequences for his ill-advised tirade regarding Ms. Fluke. Advertisers are abandoning ship in hordes. Rebukes are raining down from the left and right. And don't forget the publicity. Though it may all be negative in nature, remember what the old adage says. There's no such thing as bad publicity.

   I doubt that many of his regular listeners have left him. More likely, he's picked up some new listeners who want to see (hear) what all the fuss is about. He hasn't lost listeners because of one simple reason. He preaches to the choir. They not only keep listening, but join in on the attack.

   These loyal supporters are why Rush will likely stay on the air. Yes, there will be a dip in ad revenue for everyone involved. But those loyal listeners are a valuable commodity for advertisers, and therefore radio stations. The fuss is already dying down, and I'll bet you advertisers are already jockeying for position.