That Atheist Bitch

National Atheist Registry

2011-08-29T09:05:00.000-07:00

I just came across something kind of scary today. There's this fellow named Pastor Mike who wants all atheists put on a national registry like sex offenders!

Pastor Mike's blog only allows members of his blog to comment so I guess I'll comment on his blog post here on mine. As to why atheists don't want to be put on a national registry - why on earth would we want to be put on a conservative Christian target list? We already get threats galore from such groups. Some conservative Christian who is also mentally unwell is apt to start killing people on the list!

So, in case anything happens to me or any other outspoken atheist you know, please direct the FBI to Pastor Mike.

Update: It looks as if Pastor Mike began to feel shame for posting hate speech on his blog so now his blog can only be accessed by its members. So here's a link to someone who quoted a big hunk of the text of Pastor Mike's post and actually deserves to get views on his blog.

Agnostic Atheists

2011-06-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

You probably already know what an agnostic atheist is if you follow my blog. In fact, you may just be one yourself. However, I'm thinking about people who don't already know what an agnostic atheist is.

I created an experimental page on which I explain what an agnostic atheist is. What I'm hoping you'll do is read it and get back to me if you can't understand what the blue blazes I'm trying to say or if you can think of a better way to say it.

Here's the page: What is an Agnostic Atheist?

All of My Atheist Editorials, All in One Place!

2011-06-03T17:51:00.000-07:00

Well, they aren't just quite yet, but eventually, they will be. So far, I've organized about twenty-five of my atheist relevant articles and editorials on a Squidoo webpage. Links to the editorials and articles are arranged by topic.

As time permits, I will be adding more links to Kylyssa's Atheist Editorials. Please stop by and have a look.

Your feedback is greatly appreciated so if you have any suggestions for making the page easier to use or better looking please let me know!

What Has That Atheist Bitch Been Up To?

2011-05-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been pretty darned sick for the last few months so a lot of what I've been doing has been just trying to get by. I'm still fighting pneumonia and the whatever-it-is that causes my high fevers and severe muscular pain.

There is good news though and I'm starting to feel as if I'm on the mend. Little by little, my strength is coming back and my chest has healed enough from the torn muscles and ligaments that I can once again sleep on my back for short periods of time. I still need a spare pillow or two to buttress my chest when I lay on either side but that is getting better, too.

In other good news, I took on a client who seems to be the elusive and much desired best client ever in that they are great communicators and respectful of my expertise as a (retired) professional floral designer. They are also the only Internet floral delivery service I've ever found that actually saves people money and doesn't deliver limp flowers in a cardboard box! You can check out what I've written for them so far on their blog. I don't have to pander or try to sell specific things, I just use their product photos to illustrate the articles. I don't have to say anything I disagree with or find to be questionable. As I said- best client ever!

In other writing adventures, I've been slowly removing all atheist related content from Yahoo Contributors Network (formerly known as Associated Content) and re-working it into Squidoo pages. As some of you may already know, Associated Content appears to have fallen on the wrong side of Google's Panda update and into the realm of content farms. You can find almost every atheist relevant article I used to have up there on one of my atheist relevant Squidoo pages. When I'm finished (or nearly finished or just pretty far along...) I may create a page or blog post which identifies and links to the individual articles so they easier to find.

I've also been writing more short stories and doing a spectacular job of getting them rejected by every major science fiction and speculative fiction publication. Well, not every one, I've avoided submitting them to the big two, Analog and IASFM. I'm working up the chutzpah to give it a shot. One can't get anymore rejected than rejected so aiming high hurts no more than aiming low, now does it?

I've also been working on (and should get my charcoal dusted fingers back to ASAP) art for my partner's subversive, liberal, alternative rock/folk CD, due out a little later this year. There is much ado about mastering at the moment. You can hear an early version of one of the songs that will be on it here.

I have a doctor's appointment on the 31st at which, I hope, my test results from the last visit will shed some light on wtf is wrong with me. The doc was very thorough and apparently tested me for everything from HIV to malaria.

Atheist Chaplains, Really?

2011-04-29T09:01:00.000-07:00

I just started reading all the buzz about atheist chaplains. At first, I didn't know exactly what was being proposed. After a little research I got to the bottom of this weird sounding phrase.

It looks like atheist soldiers are pushing to get an atheist in as a member of the military chaplain program. You can read more about it in this article in The New York Times.

Apparently, while 70% of US soldiers identify as Christian, 90% of military chaplains are Christian. There are a few Jewish and Muslim chaplains, a single Buddhist chaplain and a few chaplains of other religions but the largest single minority in the military, those unaffiliated with any religion, is not represented at all. Having a non-religious chaplain to talk to, especially in the evangelism ridden setting of the US military, would probably be of great benefit to those unaffiliated soldiers.

To be clear, chaplains are not called "Christian chaplains" or "Jewish chaplains" or "Muslim chaplains" so the appellation "Atheist chaplain" is a bit odd. However, I think I understand why it is being used in this case.

I think that use of the term atheist chaplain is intended to get people talking. It's working.

Atheist billboards and bus ads have started dialogues about acceptance and tolerance of atheists in the general population; use of the term atheist chaplain is starting a dialogue about doing the same in the military.

Illness Update

2011-04-14T10:54:00.001-07:00

So I went to the med center yesterday. Apparently I've got pneumonia as well as torn muscles (on the outside of my chest cavity) and injured pleura. No wonder I've felt like crap! I've got antibiotics in my system so I should be better in almost no time. I was glad to learn that I hadn't cracked a rib coughing after all.

Back After an Illness

2011-04-05T07:56:00.000-07:00

Hello, folks, I just wanted to post a line to let you know I'm back at the blog after a bit of being sick. Other things were going on, too, but mostly I've been too sick to expend effort on any writing that doesn't pay.

Having autoimmune diseases sucks. Any little cold bug sets them off. The good news is that I have a doctor's appointment on April 27th. The bad news is that I think the latest cold invited in a bacterial infection who brought along a case of bronchitis as a date. I get testy when I can't breathe.

Anyway, enough of my complaining. It looks like I'll live. I'll be back here writing blogs full of atheisty goodness in no time.

An Atheist View is Recognized!

2011-01-10T08:36:00.000-08:00

It's just an on-site award but it means someone on Squidoo who had gotten an award themselves nominated An Atheist View for what is called a Purple Star and then a staff member approved it. Purple Stars confer a little lensrank boost to the pages they are on and are meant to designate a page that is up to a high standard of excellence. I've gotten a few of these awards in the past but not on anything about atheism. It speaks of a very open-minded attitude among the staff that they approved a page about being an atheist.

Squidoo also recently created a sub-category for atheism and agnosticism that is not under religion! My atheist relevant pages are usually a collection of editorials about atheism that I've written and placed on a single page. They do well in the rankings and now even have a non-religion category to be in. If you are interested in putting up your own page (atheist themed or not) you can easily join Squidoo. The payout for top tier lenses is getting quite substantial. Last month it was $30.95.

If you are feeling charitable, please visit my Purple Star atheist lens and maybe your views will bring it to the front page of Squidoo! You can also find links to more of my atheist relevant pages on the right sidebar of this blog.

Denying The Right To Dictate and Discriminate

2011-01-07T13:32:00.000-08:00

It seems like every other atheism related conversation I've been involved in lately touches on this one weird thread. This is not a new thought by any means but, why do so many people think that, by denying them the right to take away the rights of others their religious freedom is being denied? How is it that they can equate not having the right to discriminate against others because of their religious beliefs with persecution?

For instance, some Christian groups on college campuses call persecution when they are not allowed to discriminate against people who want to join. Others insist their freedom of religion rights is being violated when marriage equality legislation passes because they are denied the right to enforce the tenets of their religion on others.

What's up with that?

Atheist Condolences

2011-01-04T17:01:00.000-08:00

I was a florist for 18 years. I dealt with many grieving families as they ordered flowers for their loved ones. It showed me how much grief is set in a religious framework in our culture. This presents some difficulty to non-religious people.

While our friends and loved ones are grieving, we want to express our sympathies but there's a 900 lb gorilla in the room, at least for me. I believe death is the end but most people around me believe it is a beginning. It can be hard to support religious friends and family during times of grief and loss simply because the words used to express sympathy in a non-religious way are seldom heard. If we learn by example, who is the example for sharing non-religious condolences?

I know of quite a few atheists who deal with religious grief by staying silent. It gives the impression they are cold and uncaring even if their heart is breaking for their religious loved one.

To help non-religious people share their sympathy and comfort with religious people during times of loss, I wrote Sympathy 101 for Atheists. Please let me know what you think of it. I'd also love it if you'd share how you express your sympathy in non-religious ways.

Give Me Your Links!

2010-12-29T10:24:00.001-08:00

Yes, that's right, I want your links. I am compiling a couple of lists of atheist blogs and websites (free backlink, folks) to post on two or more Squidoo pages which will be permanent additions to Squidoo.

There's a slight catch, though. Squidoo is G rated. So basically I don't want any links to sites which contain adult content or excessive profanity. I link to That Atheist Bitch but I have to call it "That Atheist (Censored)" over there to keep my G rating.

If you have or frequent any wonderful atheist or atheist friendly sites or blogs please drop a link or links here in the comments. Those which have sufficient appropriate content will be linked to on one or more pages.

If you aren't familiar with Squidoo, here is an example of what Squidoo pages look like: An Atheist View. If your link is appropriate and a good fit, it may even end up on that particular page as well as on one of the list pages. That particular page usually stays in the top 2,000 of over a million pages so it gets some decent views, sometimes spiking with much more than decent views. The pages I'm proposing to create will probably stay in the top 10,000 out of over a million pages as that is how most of my other atheist themed pages do on Squidoo. They still get decent views, too.

An Atheist on Christmas

2010-11-27T10:54:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is over though the leftovers are not. The retail world switched to Christmas last month. So now is the time to turn our thoughts to the end of the year. Whether we talk about it or not, each "out" atheist is bound to hear a few snide words about Christmas. So here is my page on Christmas and a few snide words of my own: An Atheist on Christmas.

Yep, I'm a Soulless Autistic Atheist

2010-11-21T13:07:00.000-08:00

Earlier this year I was in a discussion about autistic people who are atheists. One person was saying that autistic people, no matter how high functioning, are too mentally retarded to "get" deep concepts like God. But another proposed the idea that autistic people, in general, have no souls. Several others jumped on the bandwagon.

I don't believe in souls but I didn't like the way the discussion was going. The statement that they don't think autistic people have souls is dehumanizing because the yahoos saying it do believe in souls. I was horrified to learn people I thought of as friends would believe such a thing, that some human beings are less human than they are. Of course, I "unfriended" those folks.

Why am I writing about this now if it happened earlier this year? Someone else mentioned something similar today so I thought I should record the phenomenon. Has anyone else heard of this or something similar?

I have bumped into quite a few atheists who are on the autism spectrum and I think it is possible that autistic people are slightly more likely to be atheists than people in the general population. But I have as theory as to why that might be. I think most autistic people live in a fact based world and are either unwilling or unable to play along with the pretend game that is religion.

An Atheist View could use a boost

2010-11-13T22:24:00.001-08:00

An Atheist View is one of my Squidoo pages on atheism. It has some new material added and it needs boost. It used to have a spot on Squidoo's homepage but its views have been dropping. So, if you have a moment, please stop by An Atheist View to help restore it to its place of pride on Squidoo's front page. While you are there, you may want to take a peek at some of the newer atheist relevant pages that I and others have put up there.

Thanks a ton, folks!

Don't Ask, Don't Tell - Why are we coddling bigots?

2010-11-11T10:11:00.000-08:00

Some people voluntarily decide to go out and risk having to kill someone or get killed themselves by joining the armed services. They risk their physical and mental health for something they believe in, our country. Due to these brave volunteers, America has not seen a draft since 1973. We owe them a lot.

So why do we care who they love or what bits get them aroused? What difference could a person's sexual orientation make in his or her ability to serve as a soldier? Not only that, but gays and lesbians are already serving and already have served in our military with distinction. DADT is a blight on our nation's honor.

A mere mention of a husband, wife, or partner can get a gay person discharged from service. A Facebook mention by the husband, wife, or partner of someone serving in the military can get that soldier discharged. So today, Veterans Day, the loved ones of soldiers serving in harm's way dare not post their messages of support or prayers for safety online for fear of getting that loved one booted out of the service he or she has chosen.

People against repealing DADT tend to focus on sex acts and seem to enjoy talking about them in great detail. But sexual orientation isn't just about sex, it's also about who we fall in love with. Centuries of love stories tell us that we can't flip our emotions on or off with a switch and we can't choose who we fall in love with.

The folks opposing the repeal of DADT are fantasizing about gays running amok and raping hetero soldiers while the rest of us have different images in our minds, perhaps of a man embracing his partner who is going off to war or a woman, child in tow, eagerly watching for her wife and her child's mommy to come out of the gate at the airport. Now which of those things seem perverted? The perversion exists in the minds of the bigots.

I repeat myself - there are already gays and lesbians in the military and they are doing nothing at all bad. DADT is asking them to be isolated and in the closet, as if their personhood and service and sacrifices are meaningless. We'd never think of telling a soldier he can't talk about his wife but some folks, for some perverse reason, think that a soldier ought to never mention his husband.

Folks who oppose repealing DADT also love to quote the Bible to underline their perceived superiority when, in fact, many Christians have no opposition to gays in the military or anywhere else.

Most of the people troubled by the idea of repealing DADT are bigots, bigots with a bunch of perverted ideas. So puzzle me this - why are we coddling bigots?

Does God Work People Like Puppets To Make Them Do Good?

2010-11-02T19:19:00.000-07:00

I write about my experiences with homelessness on Squidoo. On one page I bit back the pain and horror of the experience and wrote about how an amazingly brave and compassionate homeless man rescued me after I was raped and assaulted. Someone chose to use this knowledge to come to my main page on atheism and to use it to evangelize. I see this as evangelism because the comment did not appear on the page with the story about this amazing man, but on an unrelated page of mine about atheism. The person brushed off the actual man's role in saving me and brushed off his very existence, dehumanizing him, by saying he was an angel from God. He wasn't. Justus was a man, a human being who risked his freedom to bring a bleeding delirious girl to the hospital.

I think it is dehumanizing to give God credit for everything good people do and to, on the flip side, give all credit for any bad things people do to the people who did them. It's a statement asserting that humans can never do good, only evil. It demeans the sacrifice, compassion and humanity of people who choose to do good things.

I think that humans are responsible for both good and bad. I don't think that God controls people like puppets to make them do good. I suspect that even if I thought God were real, I wouldn't believe humans were not capable of good on their own. Why would they be worth saving if they weren't? Why would something that is only evil unless possessed by God something worthy of saving or even allowing to live?

Read More>>>

An Atheist on Thanksgiving

2010-11-01T11:06:00.000-07:00

Many people make the claim that Thanksgiving is strictly a Christian holiday and that non-Christians ought not to celebrate it. Others claim to feel sorry for atheists at Thanksgiving, based on the belief that atheists have no one to be thankful to and the belief that atheists are too self-centered to be thankful for anything.

I'm an atheist and I believe that Thanksgiving is a holiday for everyone who has something to be thankful for.
Read More>>>

Atheist Polls

2010-09-16T14:22:00.000-07:00

If you have a moment, please stop by my new page on Squidoo which is a collection of polls about atheists and atheism.

If you have any ideas for other poll questions, please post them here as I'd love your input. Please keep in mind that this page is not intended to be a study but was merely created as a conversation starter and to draw attention to some of the things people believe about atheists and atheism.

Yes to Free Market Economy , No to Personal Freedom

2010-08-30T09:41:00.000-07:00

I read several articles and blog posts dealing with the "unfairness" of regulating businesses today. It seems conservative businessmen are upset that they have to pay out a minimum wage, pass safety inspections, not hire children without regulation, apply for building permits, build according to city ordinances, and pay taxes, any taxes at all. They would like to do away with the FDA, the USDA and OSHA. In short, it looks like they are against any and all rules or laws pertaining to businesses.

So, if the conservative folks are against rules, regulations, and laws pertaining to the freedom to act of businesses, then why are they so fervently supportive of laws against personal freedom and actions?

If they want things many consider immoral, such as the repeal of child labor laws and the repeal of the minimum wage then why are they so hot to make illegal or get rid of things they consider immoral such as science-based sex education and equal marriage?

It looks like they don't want freedom for all. It looks to me like they want freedom for themselves and the freedom to control what everyone else does.

And after they make themselves clear about wanting to control what individuals do, they have the chutzpah to whine that businesses aren't given free reign?

Elections and Cusps

2010-08-25T09:17:00.000-07:00

I think that, in November of 2008, we stood upon a cusp. If the presidential election had gone differently I feel that even keeping a blog such as this (non-Christian, pro-science, pro free speech, liberal) would have become illegal within the next ten years or at least legal grounds for job discrimination.

We were saved by the fact that Sarah Palin is such an extremist that the majority of Christians, even those who would support a more theocratic government, couldn't support her in good conscience. I know more than one staunch Republican who voted against her, preferring a Democrat to a regime led by extremists. I speak of Sarah Palin because she spoke her mind on so many issues that her stance was crystal clear. We don't really know that McCain wasn't of the exact same thoughts on the same issues because he kept such opinions close to himself.

We were saved from a decline into fewer freedoms and a move towards theocracy - temporarily. It's not done, it's not gone. People are forgetting the last Bush years already and people are forgetting the Palinesque extremism already. They are seeing the recession which had its genesis even before George W's presidency and blaming it on the current administration. They don't think long term, they think that if the recession could be fixed or recovered from ever any president that hasn't fixed it yet is a bad president - even though the mess was almost twenty years in the making.

I don't think the danger of a theocratic push for power is over. There are more vocal religious extremists in America than at any other time in my life. And they are not treated as fringe elements, they are verging on mainstream. So we aren't safe yet.

So my advice is to remember that we aren't safe yet and may never be so enjoy to the fullest your powers of free speech and religious freedom while you have them. And don't become complacent - get out and vote in your local and state elections when the time rolls around again.

Random Thoughts on the Bible as A Reason to Object to Same Sex Marriage

2010-08-22T13:32:00.001-07:00

It never fails to amuse me that people bring up the Bible in defense of discrimination against adult consensual relationships and then equate same sex adult consensual relationships with pedophilia and polygamy. I find this so amusing and also ironic because the Bible speaks of and condones both pedophilia and polygamy with many of its primary characters practicing one or both. Perhaps the technical term for what is frequently practiced in the Bible, even by God, is hebephilia. Please recall that the Virgin Mary was a child by today’s standards, a child who really had no option to say no to her impregnation.

I don’t follow the word of the Bible which condemns homosexuality, the eating of shellfish, and the mixing of fibers in a fabric while condoning hebephilia, genocide, and slavery. I’m simply thunderstruck that such a book could be used as a moral absolute for anyone.

Shouldn’t we instead use the yardstick of compassion and harm? If something is the compassionate path and does no harm, how can it be wrong?

As a victim of sexual abuse I am outraged that anyone DARE equate to pedophilia something as beautiful and nurturing as a loving relationship between adults. There is NO love in pedophilia. I’m outraged that a person or a society would treat loving adult partners as equivalent to life-wrecking pedophiles. They discriminate against and demonize innocent, decent human beings.

Of all things in this world love is a thing we need to nurture and support rather than attack. I suspect one day, our children will look back and be sickened by our actions as we are sickened by miscegenation laws and segregation. I know I’m standing on the side of love and compassion, the side of no harm, so I have no fear of the future’s judgment.

Ponderings About The Quiverfull Movement

2010-08-21T14:13:00.000-07:00

Many Americans are riveted by the story of the Duggars and their nineteen children. Even with the serious difficulties involved in the birth of their 19th child they are praying to have another child. The Duggars are part of a fundamentalist religious movement called Quiverfull, or QF for short. Quiverfull is a movement to have as many children as possible so they can be raised up in the religion to serve as soldiers for the Lord.

I think it's a pretty kooky thing to do - to have as many children as you can until the mother either dies or can have no more. I think that each child ought to be treated as a gift - for real. It doesn't make a gift more valuable to bury it amidst a dozen newer gifts. I think each child deserves to be cherished as an individual, not raised in rigid conformity to be part of a movement without preparation for any other life.

What I find odd is that many mainstream Christians support people who are QF activists. They claim that as long as the children are not filthy or starving or being beaten a person has the right to have as many children as they can make their body produce before dying. They praise the Duggars and those like the Duggars and comment on how wonderful the children are and how clean and well mannered. In the same breath they condemn people with children who are on Welfare. It seems only certain people should have a lot of children.

They'll argue that while millions suffer and die due to overpopulation the Quiverfull people aren't a problem because their children aren't starving, brown children in poor nations are. You get the idea that there could never be too many Duggars in their eyes, that even if the whole world were suffering from starvation and choking on human waste the Duggars and other Quiverfull families still ought to have even more children.

There's this idea that the poorly educated broods being birthed and homeschooled by these folks are superior to the rest of humanity. Yes, the kids are polite but what will happen to any of the young ladies in the family if they choose to do something else with their lives? What if one of them wants to be a doctor? She's not allowed to go to college, even if she ran away her schooling wouldn't qualify her to get into college. The poorest of the poor in our country get a better education. So the girls' only choice in life is to continue in the fundamentalist religious group, to bear children unto her death or to escape from that fate and try to claw her way up in life without any tools.

But I also get this feeling, that if the world were overcrowded so badly that the Quiverfull Movement folks could see it, so that they were actively rather than passively competing for resources - I have the feeling that they'd keep having kids and make their children literal soldiers to make room for more of them. What do you think?

Currently in the news - 12 out of 19 Duggar kids have chicken pox. If they are all precious gifts from God then why the heck aren't they current on their vaccinations?

I Don't Believe in Miracles

2010-08-08T10:55:00.000-07:00

I've always figure that was a "gimme" so to speak, simply because I'm an atheist. With nowhere for miracles to come from, why would I believe in them? But some people are surprised and saddened to discover that I don't believe in miracles.

I believe that there are so many people doing so many things that something unusual is bound to happen to some people some times.

People have told me it's a miracle I didn't die on the streets, particularly after I was beaten into a coma, survived and got somewhat better and went back onto the street straight out of the hospital. Many people don't survive. Where are their miracles?

There are no miracles, just things that are rare pleasant surprises in the midst of awful possibilities.

Save Our Sam, Brother Sam Singleton Needs Your Help

2010-07-20T11:57:00.000-07:00

Roger Scott Jackson, alter ego of comedian/atheist evangelist Brother Sam Singleton needs your help. His wife, Cari, has been in a terrible accident and is currently in the ICU. Because Cari is in the hospital, Roger is currently unable to tour and earn money.

I know about hospital bills and I'll tell you now, even if a person has the best available insurance that person will still end up with a boatload of medical bills. In fact, excessive medical bills are the leading cause of bankruptcy in America, even among insured individuals. So if you are able, please help out Roger and Cari with a donation or by buying some merchandise from his site.

Unfortunately, I'm barely getting by myself so all I could do is put up his information and hope that someone will act on it. If you can't afford to help with a donation, you can get the code for a Save Our Sam button from episode 031 of Atheist News Podcast and post it on your own blog or website.

Time Keeps on Slippin'

2010-06-30T19:41:00.000-07:00

Wow, we're just hours away from July! I can't believe how fast things have been going. I haven't posted on here since April?!?

Well, I'm still an atheist and still thinking freely but I've been both busy and sick. And maybe the fact that I'm writing an atheist book has sapped away all of my clever little atheist thoughts.

I promise I will be better in July.

My Answers to a Question People Often Ask Me About Atheism and Homelessness

2010-04-30T12:32:00.000-07:00

People often attempt to connect and correlate my periods of homelessness and ill health with my atheism. But I don't think that being an atheist made me homeless and I know being homeless didn't make me an atheist. Since people so often bring this idea up to me, I decided to create an answer I can direct each new person who asks the question to.

Some religious people have told me that not thinking God is real caused all of my (well-deserved in their opinion) suffering. I believe that my difficulties were not a punishment from a God - since I don't think God is real, how could I think that? Many people who are devout believers have even worse lives than mine so that logic doesn't hold up. Additionally, if I analyze what happened in my life, I can pretty well see why things happened the way they did.

As an atheist, I believe that autism is a real thing. I ascribe to no ideology that causes me to reject the existence of learning disabilities and emotional problems as real. Having been diagnosed with autism, I tend to believe I am autistic. There is a known connection between inability to perform in social interactions and autism. In fact, that's almost the definition of autism. My autism was not properly treated when I was a child and, like almost every other autistic who receives no special assistance, when left completely on my own I experienced difficulties. I was a stranger in a strange land. I had no familial support and had formed only the most inadequate of friend support structures in school.

When this left me homeless, I was the perfect victim for predators. I was incredibly naive and socially inept. I had no "common sense" to keep me from dangerous situations. I reacted to harmful stimuli (beatings, rapes, and other frightening encounters) by withdrawing into myself instead of reaching for help as most people do. That entrenched me more deeply into homelessness - a shell-shocked autistic isn't the best at navigating the hard road out of homelessness.

So that's what I think was the reason I was homeless.

As to whether or not being homeless and suffering assaults and ill-health made me an atheist - that question is much easier to answer. I've never thought God was real so becoming homeless and getting assaulted, hurt, and sick didn't impact my absence of belief. In fact, being homeless and unwanted made me want to believe. Unfortunately, I am not able to believe in anything I don't think is real.

The Big Flaw in the "Everything Has a Creator" Argument

2010-04-29T14:16:00.000-07:00

It's a common argument used against both evolution and the Big Bang Theory - that everything must have an intelligent creator. It is also argued that no thing can come from nothing so God made it all. This is all presented as logic.

Evolution is a theory as to how speciation occurs. It puts forth no speculation on either the origin of life or the origin of the universe. The theory of evolution only describes change based on evidence found in the natural world. Although the argument is often used that evolution couldn't cause the origin of the universe, I won't bother to rebut it because the two are unrelated and evolutionary theory doesn't even speculate on the origin of the universe.

The Big Bang Theory is a good hypothesis as to how the universe reached its current state. It is based on observations of the physical universe and the laws of nature as observed by man.

But the argument put forth against both theories is that absolutely everything must have an intelligent creator. The problem with this broad statement is that those who state that everything must have a creator will not answer the question of "Who or what created God?" without countering their own statement that everything must have a creator. So either God was created and their logic is consistent or God was not created and their logic is not consistent.

Read More>>>

Without God, How Can an Atheist Feel Love?

2010-04-20T10:50:00.000-07:00

Some religious people believe that love and other emotions are part of humanity's divine nature, an aspect of being made in God's image. Because of this, as an atheist, I've been asked where, if God does not exist,
emotions come from. I have been asked "How can an atheist feel love?"

I think that emotions are part of our biological, chemical, and psychological make-up. There is ample evidence that animals also possess emotions of similar sorts to our own. There is also ample evidence that hormonal and chemical changes to the body produce emotional effects even if the subject is unaware of them. In menopause, pregnancy and during the menstrual cycle fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone affect womens' emotions. A deficiency of testosterone can not only reduce a man's sex drive, it can make him depressed and lacking in motivation. Physical stimulation or damage to the brain produces and affects emotions. Closed head injuries can cause depression and irritability - they can also change personality and alter emotional attachments.

Read More>>>

Hate Speech Comments - Almost Always Anonymous

2010-04-03T10:52:00.000-07:00

Have you noticed that when someone threatens your life, safety, or property or writes a comment amounting to hate speech on your atheist blog or article, they usually do so anonymously? Their name seldom links back to anything.

So, if atheists are evil liars that are destroying society and deserve to die then why are people afraid to say it using a recognizable online identity? If these people are not ashamed of their bigotry on some level, why are they staying anonymous? You'd think if they were proud of being bigots, they'd want everyone to know.

What are they afraid of? Do they think hate speech directed at atheists will harm their chances of getting a job? Are they worried about what people will think of them if they are somehow connected to their online bigotry? Are they concerned that legal consequences to their hate speech and threats will catch up to them?

What do you think?

Atheist Charity Feature - Atheist Centre of India

2010-03-10T13:55:00.000-08:00

Atheist Centre of India supports intercaste marriages and actively works to end child marriages and caste separation. The also provide aid to women in distress such as single mothers and prostitutes and promote equality of the sexes. Their education campaigns are designed to fight dangerous superstitions and practices such as witch hunts which can result in harm to innocent people.

Atheist Centre provides many services such as a Working Women's Hostel and a home for women with social problems. One of their programs, Vasavya Centre for Social Development, provides outreach services for more than 50 villages. The outreach program includes education, health care, advanced medical care including eye banks and corneal transplants, social programs, training for women, counseling and career guidance, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, sanitation facilities, drinking water facilities, sex education and contraception education, youth programs, and crèches for children along with many other humanitarian services.

Atheist Charity Feature - Kiva Lending Team: Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious

2010-03-01T11:04:00.000-08:00

Kiva Lending Team: Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious has provided $1,630,400.00 in loans to small business owners in the developing world at the time of this writing. They have helped 44145 business owners since the group formed in August of 2008.

They are a Kiva Lending Team, a group which provides small loans to people seeking to reach economic independence and to improve living conditions for their families and communities.

Atheist Charity Feature - Secular Humanist Aid and Relief Effort

2010-02-27T09:25:00.000-08:00

Now providing funds for medical care in Haiti

Secular Humanist Aid and Relief Effort (S.H.A.R.E.) provides general humanitarian aid, food assistance, and medical relief to disaster and accident victims. They have provided aid to Sri Lankan tsunami victims, hurricane Katrina survivors, families displaced by California wildfires and Tennessee tornadoes, and many others.

Currently, SHARE is turning all of its attention to aiding Haitian earthquake victims. You can donate to the Haiti Quake Relief through this link. 100% of your donation, with no administrative fees retained, will go to Doctors Without Borders operating in Haiti.

Atheist Charity Feature - EARTHWARD, Inc.

2010-02-26T12:34:00.000-08:00

Earth's Atheist Resistance To Holy Wars And Religious Devastation or EARTHWARD provides humanitarian aid to victims of religiously motivated violence. EARTHWARD provides aid suited to the victims usually in the form of food, clean drinking water, temporary shelters and medical aid.

Their mission is to help victims of religiously motivated crimes and violence whether committed by governments, individual terrorists, or organizations that claim religious justification for their crimes.

Bible Found in Home Linked to Fire

2010-02-24T14:47:00.000-08:00

Actually, no, the title of the article out there right now is "Atheist Book Found in Home Linked to Fire" in regard to the January arson of a Texas church. Other items found at the home included a book about demonic possession, guns, knives and a GPS.

I'm not sure how books or a GPS can be considered incriminating, really.

The atheist book makes headlines? Why not the demon book? Why any books at all?

There's allegedly something to do with an inverted cross in this case - so why focus on the atheist book when inverted crosses are traditionally a Satanic thing?

You know this is going to be made into a huge deal about all atheists being immoral.

So why is this any different than a Bible being found in a murderer's home?

Spiritual Experiences are Just Emotions

2010-02-24T09:31:00.000-08:00

Spiritual experiences are something people talk about as if they are unique to the religious experience rather than to the human experience. Wait - let me explain before you say, "That Atheist Bitch has gone all woo on us!" Most human beings have what the religious call spiritual experiences - we just don't think of them that way.

Spiritual experiences are just intense emotional experiences. Most atheists and many religious folks (of the not blinded by their beliefs and taking everything literally kind) recognize that those experiences are biological/psychological in nature. Emotional situations give us a particular sort of high which those so inclined interpret as supernatural phenomena. In fact, there's nothing supernatural about them.

A bit of electromagnetism hovered over the right part of the brain, a few puffs of cannabis smoke, or a temporal lobe seizure can produce the same effect.

I'm not sure why people are so apt to attribute emotions to supernatural sources when physical things affect them so intensely.

If they think emotions come from the supernatural, then why don't they pray instead of taking Pamprin for their PMS?

Atheist Charity Feature - International Humanist and Ethical Union

2010-02-18T07:49:00.000-08:00

The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) is a union which includes more than a hundred atheist, secular and freethought organizations from 40 different countries around the world. IEHU fights for freedom of expression, human rights, and separation of church and state. They support the victims of religious persecution and superstition. IHEU fights to end untouchability - caste systems which place people in abject poverty with no hope of escape due to accident of birth.

IHEU is very active in trying to help people convicted of religious "crimes" (homosexuality, women wearing trousers, loss of virginity, witchcraft, or similar accusations) from imprisonment, torture, and execution.

image by Billy Alexander

Atheist Charity Feature - Foundation Beyond Belief

2010-02-17T10:11:00.000-08:00

Foundation Beyond Belief is a brand new atheist charity which launched January 1, 2010. Each quarter, Foundation Beyond Belief will feature ten charitable organizations, one each in the categories of animal protection, child welfare, education, environment, health, human rights, Foundation Beyond Belief itself, peace, poverty, and The Big Bang Fund - a small charity with a big impact. Members can choose which cause or causes to support from the featured causes.

If you haven't checked out this wonderful new secular charity program, give it a look now. It seems well focused and supports such a variety of causes there's bound to be something there you can get behind.

Why Don't People Understand This??? How Do You Explain?

2010-02-13T19:12:00.000-08:00

I don't know how many times I've tried to explain why atheists care about religion but no matter how I do it, people just don't get it. They take it as an attack or some kind of persecution.

I tried (again) to explain why atheists talk about or stick our noses into religion (as they put it) even though we don't believe in God. I don't even feel like I'm writing English.

The comments are the interesting (read: frustrating) thing about one of my latest attempts at explaining why atheists are concerned about other people's belief in God. I don't know what editorial that one commenter read but I don't think it's something I wrote. If you are so inclined, scroll down that page and read the comments (the ones I didn't write in response) and tell me what you think.

But whether or not you read that or not, I'd be interested in how you explain why atheists care about religion.

Obama Uses the Word Agnostic and People Flip Out

2010-02-11T15:55:00.000-08:00

OK, so, today President Obama used the word agnostic to describe his thoughts on raising taxes for people making less than a quarter million a year. All over the Internet and presumably elsewhere, people are flipping out over it.

He's referring to being politically agnostic not agnostic in regard to God!

So what if he were, though? What if Barack Obama were to admit to being an agnostic about the existence of God? Would people push to get him impeached or what? I know that all hell would break loose, but what do you think would happen?

An Atheist Exclusive Club?

2010-02-11T12:52:00.000-08:00

A while back, I was asked the question - "I perceive atheists act (behavior wise) like religious people, in the sense they belong to something. And it feels somehow exclusive. Now, tell me objectively, have you noticed that?"

It may be the area of the country I live in but, until recently, I never even met a person who I knew was an atheist outside of my own family. When you might go a lifetime without meeting someone in person who admits they are an atheist, it's kind of hard to feel a sense of atheist community.

I'll admit that I was excited to meet him because it's really nice to be able to talk openly and not have to navigate a conversation laden with religious references that one must pretend to also believe to avoid offending anyone. But I get that kind of conversation with my liberal, non-atheist friends, too.

All atheists really have in common is their absence of belief in God. Beyond that, there's not too much held in common. Most atheists are upset by religious laws, religion based discrimination, and religious practices that infringe on human rights but then again most non-atheists are, too.

What I see among online atheists (the only type I interact with regularly) is more a type of understanding of certain situations atheists in America encounter rather than a sense of community. When I relate my experiences with anti-atheist bigotry to my liberal religious friends they express shock and sometimes disbelief but most other atheists I've conversed with have had similar experiences. They can relate to the problems of biting your tongue to keep your job or having friends or family disown you if you are "outed" as atheists. They can relate to the vandalism and the death threats, especially atheist writers. Even if they've never had the specific action performed against them, generally they've experienced something in the same spirit.

While this might not create a sense of community it does tend to inspire activism. When I see a negative behavior among people as just my own experience, I tend to just take the indignity or abuse without raising a fuss. But when I see that the behavior isn't against just me, and is deemed acceptable to my society, it outrages me. I think that is the something some atheists do belong to - a desire for positive change inspired by shared negative experience. But it is by no means exclusive.

You don't have to be an atheist to be part of it. Just speak out against unjust religious legislation - anti-gay laws and anti-science education laws (religiously motivated legislation to alter the teaching of evolution, geology, history, and/or environmental sciences in public schools) that are all in the legislative process right now. Speak out against religious discrimination against non-Christians in the workplace. Object when people slander homosexuals. Protest religiously motivated discriminatory child custody practices. Protest the medical and educational neglect of children. Any of these will make you a part of it.

Weigh In With Your Opinion!

2010-01-13T14:45:00.000-08:00

Share your opinion on these atheist relevant issues with your votes on these polls:

Are Atheism and Charity Incompatible?

Would You Support an Atheist Charity?

Should Atheists Be Allowed to Hold Public Office or to Testify in Court?

Is It OK for Politicians to Make Discriminatory Remarks Toward Atheists During the Execution of Duties?

Would You Vote for an Atheist?

This is Irrelevant to Modern America, Right?

2010-01-06T16:46:00.000-08:00

Seven States' Constitutions forbid atheists from holding public office or testifying in court. They are overruled by the US Constitution so this should not be relevant in today's society, right?

Apparently it isn't completely irrelevant. You've all probably heard about the fiasco in North Carolina where conservatives are threatening to sue over the election of an atheist to city council.

That's an isolated incident, right? 99.99% of Americans would not interfere with such an election, right?

Probably wrong. I put up a few polls recently and while response hasn't been huge, I've gotten enough votes already to show that some 21st century people would agree with those North Carolina conservatives and prevent atheists from holding office or testifying in court.

Religion Taboo Interfering With Addressing a Social Problem

2010-01-05T15:21:00.000-08:00

Many of you may know that I am somewhat of a homelessness activist. Over the years I have worked in shelters, soup kitchens, and literacy programs. I have taken homeless people into my home.

Lately, in trying to build empathy toward homeless people I've been writing some pretty frank pieces about what being homeless is like. I've pulled from my own experiences as well as my interactions with other people who are or have been homeless. I've dug into some pretty painful areas to give humanity and a face to homeless people, to show the reality and humanity of people simply in a bad spot.

But there's an aspect that I feel I'm not so free to write about. I touched on it briefly and altogether too lightly in Some Reasons People Become Homeless, but not in any depth and not with any real power. I'm a bit afraid to probe this aspect because I know that people will be cruel to me about it. Even as shallowly as I've touched on this aspect of the homelessness problem, I've already gotten some nasty mail. I know it's going to be painful but it's like a sore tooth I just can't stop fiddling with.

The taboo topic is the relationship of religious belief to homelessness in teens and young adults. If you doubt that there is one, consider this - as many as 42% of homeless teens and young adults are homosexual as compared to less than 5% of the general population. According to one study 26% of homosexual teens who come out to their parents are asked to leave the home.

You can read more about this phenomenon in An Epidemic of Homelessness.

If parents are not discarding their glbtq teens for religious beliefs then why are they?

Religious beliefs aside from religiously derived homophobia also impact teen homelessness. I only have anecdotal evidence for other religiously motivated discarding of teens so far, consisting of stories told to me by homeless teens and young adults. I recall a teenage boy of middle eastern descent who confided that he had become homeless because he'd decided to explore the Christian faith. He was completely blindsided by their decision to evict him from their home because he'd thought they were pretty laid back and reasonable. Other teens I met held Pagan beliefs counter to their Christian parents' beliefs which resulted in their homelessness. I also know of one case where suspected (but not actual) premarital sex resulted in a teen's expulsion from the home.

As you probably guessed I'm winding myself up to write something about this topic, something that will catch a lot of flack and abuse. I am well aware that sometimes I'm more thin-skinned than I ought to be so I'm just dipping my toes into sharkless water until I have all my studies and ducks in a row to stand up to full on attacks.

Wish me luck!

Illness is Not a Punishment from God

2010-01-04T08:34:00.000-08:00

A few online "friends" recently decided to get together and hold a sort of email/pm intervention about my illnesses. It's been going on since just before Christmas. The general gist of it is this - they sent me messages blaming me for being sick and accused me of doing nothing about it because I haven't asked Jesus to heal me. They said that God made me sick to force my hand because obviously, being in pain would make me turn to Him. It was followed up by accusations that I'm "avoiding God to stay sick" because I like not having to work.

First of all religious people of all stripes get lupus. So, belief in Jesus does not cure lupus. I left a lupus support group because of the number of times people suggested I'd feel so much better if I'd just pray. People there kept telling me I should see my illness as an opportunity and as a gift from God. No thanks, I'd prefer a laptop, I thought the bugger was supposed to be all-knowing.

Secondly, if I were mentally warped enough to enjoy being as sick as I often am, that, in itself would be a serious mental illness. I'm bloody fucking miserable at times and just miserable at others. I often feel like my muscles are made of ground glass encased in plastic wrap. Yes, sometimes I enjoy myself and sometimes I can ignore and suppress the pain to great degree. But I was once an active person who delighted in all kinds of play like biking, tickle fights, and athletic sex.

Third, I want to get back to work. I just have a problem finding an employer that will tolerate occasional loss of consciousness on the job plus frequent rests and sick days. Yeah, not very damned likely. So, in the meantime, I spend about 6-12 hours per day searching for online gigs and writing things to sell. It doesn't compare to the enjoyment I got from being a florist.

But here's the cherry on top. Years back I was homeless and during that time some really awful stuff went down, PTSD bad and then some. One "friend" had the gall to tell me that I deserved all of the trauma I suffered, even as far back as childhood. She said God was punishing me then but He'd make it all better if I could "stop being so arrogant and ask for his healing."

Yeah, even if I thought it were real, that's not the kind of thing I would worship.

I am not suffering from a terminal lack of Jesus, my physical pain is not a gift. I don't deserve to be ill because I don't worship God.

So I'm now replying to all their emails and messages with a link to this blog post. I hope maybe they'll see how nasty they are being.

Atheist Charities

2009-12-28T13:58:00.000-08:00

Wow! Thanks to all for giving me names and links to atheist and humanist charities! I have a pretty big list now and plenty to work with.

I started working on the page and decided to publish it before I have all of the charities summarized. This is simply because there are so many and it will be quite a while before I can write summaries for all of them. Some of them are so complex they will probably need a summary page of their own - the Gates Foundation is one of those. So I've published it with only seven charities and I will add more as I have time to write their summaries.

Check out what I have so far at Atheist Charities on Squidoo.

Seeking the Names/URLs of Atheist/Humanist Run Charities

2009-12-20T12:32:00.000-08:00

I'm looking for atheist/humanist run charities. What each charity gets out of it is a little free publicity. What I get out of it is a nice article page. What the community gets out of it is a nice list of atheist/humanist run charities.

So, if you know of any atheist/humanist run charities please drop me a line or leave their name and as much information as possible in the comments.

Three Churches in Michigan Leave Kalamazoo's Homeless Ministry Over LGBT Issues

2009-12-17T16:27:00.000-08:00

One of eight churches that participates in Martha's Table, a local homeless ministry which provides meals for Kalamazoo's poor and homeless population gave its nod of approval to this year's anti-discrimination bill protecting the Kalamazoo GLBTQ community from some types of discrimination. They also minister to anyone regardless of their sexuality. They ascribe to the idea of "hate the sin, love the sinner" which many Christian groups speak of. In my opinion, they did the right thing.

But the fallout from their tolerance is that three Kalamazoo area churches (out of a total of eight) are withdrawing from the homeless ministry and meals program. They are doing so to avoid sullying their reputations by associating with a church that doesn't support discrimination against homosexual, bisexual, or transgendered people.

I think this is insanely petty and it sickens me that people are that shallow.

You can read more about it at MLive.

Atheist Christmas Gift Idea

2009-12-16T18:13:00.001-08:00

In case you haven't checked them out yet, I thought I'd link to my "Freedom of Speech: Not Just for Christians Anymore" shirts, buttons and magnets.

More Interesting Search Terms

2009-12-16T17:05:00.000-08:00

Once again I was analyzing the views on my Squidoo pages and saw some interesting search terms landing people on my atheist lenses. Some are sad, some are mean, and some are just so weird I felt like sharing them. My sarcastic comments, written in italics, can be found beneath some of the phrases.

Enjoy.

do atheists have a faith system in anything

how do atheist name their babies
With baby name books like everyone else does, one would imagine.

when did america become atheist
America has become atheist?

how do you explain christmas to an atheist
Let's see. A long, long time ago, people called Pagans had winter festivals to celebrate the winter solstice. Then along came Christians who really wanted to force the Pagans to follow their religion. But the Pagans didn't want to give up their fun winter party so the Christians renamed it Christmas and said the Baby Jesus was born on that day. And now, people like to celebrate it by spending lots of money and going into debt to maintain their social status.

the day atheists see god
Is the day someone slipped something into their beer?

scientific way to find do you think the seasons would be any different in cincinnati if there was no
OK, I don't understand the relevance either but it was funny to me for some reason.

why atheist are thankful at thanksgiven
Maybe because people did something for them?

story of why atheist eat babies
What's to tell? Babies are more tender than grown-ups.

atheists do believe in something, becuz it takes alot of faith 2 believe in nothing
How could anyone believe in anything in a world where people enter text speak into search engines?

hypocrisy of being atheist
I'm not seeing it, really. I don't think God is real. Where's the hypocrisy?

evolution doesn't make people into atheists any more than climate changes
Nope, no it doesn't.

people believe in evolution because they don't want to believe in god
No, people believe evolution happened because there is evidence that it did but people don't believe in God because there's no evidence that it exists.

can't see feelings can't see god so god must exist
Oh, yay! This means unicorns are real, too, right?

origin of life in atheism
Um, only religions and other myths have origin stories, atheists just tend to try to find out what actually happened or leave the question alone.

everyone believes in one god no matter what they think
OK... so, even if I don't think God is real, I think God is real?

why dont atheist commit suicide
Because we're enjoying our one and only life?

how do atheist get born if they dont believe in god
Their parents have intercourse.

why dont atheist just pick a religion and believe
Just... wow.

how can I tell if someone is an atheist
They have no reflection. Wait, no, that's vampires.

atheists breasts

why do atheists follow laws if there is no god why worry about consequences

atheists shouldn't have kids

how to screw atheists
Obviously, I saved the best for last.

Why I am "That Atheist Bitch"

2009-12-11T09:39:00.000-08:00

I looked around on this blog and realized that I have never explained here why I titled my blog That Atheist Bitch.

Several days before I created this blog, I received a private message over on Associated Content, in response to one of my atheist editorials on the site. The person wrote some assorted nastiness about me burning in Hell appended with this question - "Are you that atheist bitch from TIBU*?"

At first I was a bit upset at the slam message. But I realized that my writing had provoked a strong response. It made someone, somewhere, feel something. That's pretty cool, even if what he felt was anger and a need to get mouthy, it's a heck of a lot better than apathy.

So I decided to proudly own the title of "That Atheist Bitch" and made it the title of my atheist blog. I'd been meaning to create a dedicated atheist blog for a while because over half of the posts on my old blog were atheist relevant anyway. This guy gave me the title and the motivation to do it.

Sincerely,
Your Atheist Bitch

*A now defunct writing website on which I had sometimes posted atheist relevant material.

A Very Atheist Christmas - 666 Words on How Atheists Can Enjoy the Winter Holidays

2009-12-07T16:38:00.000-08:00

Just as Christians have adopted many pagan traditions of the winter festivals such as decorating trees, giving gifts, feasting, and singing door-to-door some atheists also choose to adopt those pagan traditions and celebrate Christmas, much like many Christians do.

Since many Christians are upset when Atheists celebrate Christmas (or use American currency with "In God We Trust" on it) I propose that Atheists create their own version of the Christmas celebration. Christian Christmas uses such icons as reindeer, mistletoe, Santa Claus, snowmen and pine trees. The traditional Christian Christmas also lays specific claim to December 25th as the day Santa comes down the chimney. Since these are all respected religious tenets of Christianity I propose that we, as atheists, should avoid co-opting them for our own Christmas celebrations.
Read More>>>

Atheists Helping the Homeless

2009-11-29T13:11:00.000-08:00

Over the years I've done a bit of working with homelessness charities and even took a few homeless people into my home but it never occurred to me to start an atheist program to help the homeless. Some folks in Austin Texas are doing just that.

Check out their public service announcement video.

You can find their website at AHH - Atheists Helping the Homeless.

For suggestions some on what you can do to help the homeless, check out the links below written by formerly homeless person and atheist, yours truly.

From Your Hand to the Homeless - a list of easy to carry and very inexpensive things that would be appreciated by homeless people near you.

How You Can Help the Homeless Without Spending a Dime - a list of ways you can help homeless people in your community without spending any money.

What to Buy if You are Homeless - a list of items many homeless people could find truly life-changing plus some food for thought.

My Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

2009-11-26T07:54:00.000-08:00

Holiday foods are this atheist's major reason to celebrate the fall and winter holidays. There are some things people seldom make at other times of the year or which the ingredients to are scarce so I try to enjoy them while I can.

Today, I thought I'd post links to a few of my favorite holiday feast foods. These are all my own recipes because I love to tinker with food and take it to the next step.

Truffled Mashed Potatoes with Romano Cheese and Hollandaise Sauce
Bourbon Glazed Sweet Potatoes
Home Made Cranberry Sauce with Merlot
Basic Stuffing
Rosemary Roast Turkey

It's kind of a financially poor holiday for me so I won't be making any of these today but I can share the recipes with you.

For Thanksgiving

2009-11-24T20:32:00.000-08:00

Because Thanksgiving is almost here and someone's bound to suggest atheists can't celebrate it I'd like to direct you to my list - Ten Things One Atheist Is Thankful For.

It kind of gets on my nerves that people suggest that it's "sad" to see atheists around Thanksgiving because we have no one to be thankful to. I have hordes of people to be thankful to!

Feel the Love - New Anti Equal Marriage Ploy from Catholic Church

2009-11-12T19:36:00.000-08:00

I just had to link to this - Catholic Church Threatens To Stop Feeding Homeless Over Gay Marriage.

The bizarre thing about this is that all of the Catholics I know personally are not against equal marriage. In fact, several are staunchly for same sex marriage!

Squidoo Bus Ad Duel Updated

2009-11-10T19:16:00.000-08:00

I just updated my Squidoo duel on atheist bus advertisements. I added an explanation of why some bus ad sponsors might choose to be anonymous and an explanation as to why I think the ads say God and not Allah.

Check out the changes and weigh in on the duel module at Should Atheist Ads Be Allowed?

Why I Don't Need to Constantly Re-Examine the God Myth

2009-11-08T14:31:00.000-08:00

I was recently looking through my blog comments because I just realized I didn't have my blog set to notify me when I get them. A while back, I got a comment that I'd like to answer now.

Jonathan said...

Interesting post - I wonder though, what has lead you to believe that God is not real? Or, keeps you from examining whether or not God is real?

The same thing that has led you to believe Zeus and pixies are not real has led me to believe God is not real. Do you have to examine the idea of whether or not fairies are real on a daily basis? Or how about whether or not Bacchus is real?

What makes you think I haven't examined all sorts of mythology, including Christian mythology? Why do so many assume that the only way a person wouldn't believe exactly as they do is if he or she is either stupid, defiant, or has never been exposed to their particular mythology?

Think about why you don't believe in Islam or Norse deities - you can tell, just from their construction, that they are myths, legends - the stuff of fantasies. Am I right? This analysis is backed up by evidence in the physical world and in the very laws of nature. Those religions are little more plausible than Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. Did you need to extensively examine Santa Claus to determine his unreality or did it become embarrassingly obvious once you reached a certain level of maturity? Examine your mythology objectively and without dogma and see how it stands up. Or, if your belief gives you vital comfort and fulfillment, don't examine it because you will probably lose it.

Is your virgin born, resurrected Jesus all that different from virgin-born, resurrected savior gods such as Dionysus (Grecian), Krishna (Hindu), Mithra (Persian), or Tammuz (Sumerian-Babylonian)and several dozen others? Your own Bible references Tammuz in Ezekiel 8:14. Your myths are so similar to other myths which you have examined and found to be fantasy - how is yours so different?

I admit that it is a lot more difficult for religious people to see that their religion is based on myth. Their parents and/or other authority figures shore up their beliefs and support them as generations of parents and authority figures have. Those parents and authority figures are not lying, they've all been misled, too.

I was not born thinking God was real. If a person isn't taught that God is real while he or she impressionable then he or she will need to be convinced that God is a real thing rather than convinced that God is not a real thing. If you think about it, I'd bet you will see you were not born believing in the Christian God either.

If you truly feel a person must re-examine everything they don't think is real then why don't you do it all the time? Or do you? Do you re-examine Egyptian and Greek Gods and Goddesses, Bigfoot and Nessie, UFOs and aliens, Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny? Or was once or twice enough to make their unreality pretty clear?

Update on the Rape/Violence Threats

2009-11-08T12:17:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm pleased to say that "Bob" hasn't contacted me again.

Associated Content's response was to delete the messages and block anonymous comments from my editorials.

Religiously motivated abuse helped prepare me for life among the Fundies

2009-10-28T16:20:00.000-07:00

Recent comments I got on two editorials have made me think about this topic more than usual. I've gotten hate mail and death threats as well as many unpleasant comments on my atheist writing. I even named my blog after what a particular Internet "critic" called me - That Atheist Bitch.

I knew what I was in for, writing about atheism. I grew up in a small religious town and got the shit beat out of me by schoolmates after I was outed as the child of a non-theist. I was physically and emotionally abused by students and staff ever after, only not quite so severely. So I grew up knowing exactly how some American Christians feel about atheists. I'd seen it written in my own blood and bone and reinforced in words, kicks, and punches.

Even when I moved 90 miles from that small town, I knew enough to keep a low profile. All I had to do is listen to hear bigoted sentiments aimed at non-Christians in the workplace and even in the casual conversations of strangers overheard. So it came as no surprise to me when people reacted like screeching, scat throwing monkeys to my atheist writing. I already knew that people burst out of their civil veneer when they feel their religion threatened and behave in ways they'd otherwise never consider.

If I'd grown up in a slightly more civilized, slightly less religious place I might not have been prepared for the anger, venom, and hatred. Other people I've conversed with have been blind sided by the reactions they have received. So, in a way, I'm glad I grew up in one of the "bad pockets" without the illusion of a rational populace.

Anonymous Commenter on Atheist Articles Threatens Rape, etc.

2009-10-24T11:20:00.000-07:00

So today I got notification telling me of the new comments on my Associated Content articles. Two of the comments were stalker level.

Bob wrote:
I have to admit the you make a good case for me to just do "what I feel" with no fear of repercussion. Since now we both agree that God is not here to punish the wicked or tell us what to do I must confess that the things I am going to do now are rape,robbery,murder and bigotry. These are the things that I find exciting... so with no fear of repose let the games begin! Where do you live sweetie?

That was on my editorial entitled Do People Become Atheists so They Can Act Immorally?

Bob also had something to say on my editorial, Does Life Have Meaning Without God?

Bob wrote:
Assuming your world view is correct then you can sit there and indulge in your "love", while I on the other hand indulge my life's ambitions of rape, robbery, and persecution. Since there is no God to tell us what is right and what is wrong, then I suppose we get to decide for ourselves, and I think I'm gonna take a ride on your back little girl. Who's gonna stop me now that God is dead... and your weak pathetic cry for love goes on deaf ears. Get ready for some pain ^*&%$!

I've gotten lots of rather generic threats but these seem rather personal. I've reported the threats to Associated Content legal department and I'm waiting to see what they'll do.

Editing the Word of God

2009-10-06T21:33:00.000-07:00

Ladies and gentlemen, the days of needing to cherry pick the Bible to fit your ideology are coming to an end! What I am suggesting is not that you change your beliefs and practices to fit the immutable word of God. Soon you will be able to obtain the new and improved immutable word of God - now in complete harmony with your conservative and capitalistic views!

They’re taking out all of the inclusive namby pamby wussy language – the real Bible will be chock full of he, his, and him! They are removing that silly story of the adulteress which portrays Jesus as a gutless pushover. You won’t find any leftist peace, love, and forgiveness in the new and improved immutable word of God!

They’re also getting rid of any references to that Jehovah jerk and Yahweh yahoo – and changing them to Lord or God – good old American words - just like Jesus really used!

The new and improved immutable word of God will include more vivid, spine tingling Hellfire and brimstone. Soon you can get your new and improved immutable word of God from the Conservative Bible Project, now with more support of ruthless capitalism!

No, really, I’m not kidding. Click the link.

For All of You Out in Fundie Land...

2009-09-18T08:45:00.001-07:00

I have one thing to say to you -

SCIENCE IS REAL!

No Atheists in Foxholes?

2009-09-11T20:36:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, this subject has been beaten until dead. But people just keep saying it! I encounter this old hack at least once a week. I bumped into it again today over in the comments at Proud Atheists.

So why the do people still say "There are no atheists in foxholes!" when indeed, there have been countless atheists in foxholes? Are they unbelieving of the many who have raised their voices to say that they are both atheists and soldiers?

Do they think atheists would never decide to risk their lives in service of their country? Or is the general idea that mortal terror makes people think God is real? Neither of these rationales is very flattering to them or their beliefs.

One implies that they would only ever consider risking their lives for any reason unless there was some kind of out or "do over" available to them. The other implies that the only reason for their belief is their overwhelming fear of death. When people do things out of terror, they usually don't brag about it - unless, of course, they are talking about religion.

I've been quite reasonably sure I was facing death on more than one occasion and I can tell you, it didn't make me suddenly think God was real. At no point did I ever think, "Well, golly, I'm about to get snuffed so God must be real." It's not that I wasn't scared enough, I assuredly was completely terrified and bloody sure I was going to be killed. It just didn't change what I thought was real and what I thought was not. Why would it?

More Atheist Relevant Search Terms

2009-08-27T14:46:00.000-07:00

I use several tools to track views to my assorted internet articles and blogs. One of them records the terms typed into search engines that land people on my Squidoo pages. Sometimes I run across some search terms that land readers on my atheist relevant pieces that give me pause. I've posted some of search terms before but I've got an interesting new crop to share. I clipped off all of the non-interesting ones and left the odd or disturbing ones and those that I felt needed a flippant response. The search terms are posted in gray.

atheism = mass murder ...
Last time I checked none of the atheists I know had committed mass murder

atheism caused crimes ...
Don't atheists only make up less than 1% of the prison population?

atheism global social illness ...
If we were a social illness, wouldn't there be more of us?

atheism mass murders ...
Again with the mass murders?

atheism should not be allowed ...
How, pray tell, are you going to make everyone think at least one god is real?

atheist serial killers...
Well, at least they aren't accusing us of doing it en-masse in this one, serial killing is so much more orderly.

atheists should not be allowed to vote ...
I wonder which people you think should be allowed to vote?

atheists that don't believe in god ...
As opposed to atheists who do believe in god?

do atheist have souls ...
I don't think so, but I don't think you do, either.

god does not believe in atheists, so atheists don't exist ...
Ahem, wake up and read the bus ads. We annoy you, therefore we exist.

god's accuracy hatching eggs aetheist ...
I have no idea what this means but I found it oddly amusing.

moral depravity atheism ...
OK, we get it, you think atheists are all running amok and raping your grandmother.

murder rates have risen with the rise of atheism ...
Funny thing is, murder rates have shrunk in countries where atheism has increased.

why do atheist hate everybody ...
I don't hate everybody but what's with the singular 'atheist' rather than 'atheists'?

why do atheist think we come from fish ...
I don't come from fish, in fact, nothing about them turns me on one bit.

For Me, Belief Is About What I Think Is Real, Not What I Wish Were Real

2009-08-23T10:56:00.001-07:00

I hear it a lot - "Why did you choose to be an atheist?" I didn't. I didn't choose to be an atheist. Choosing would imply that I had the option to believe in God.

My answer to that question is usually followed by - "But it's so easy! All you have to do is accept Jesus as your personal savior and your reward will be eternal life."

I get eternal life in paradise, freedom from all suffering, ultimate justice – all for believing in Jesus? Cool! What’s not to like about that? It sounds great. I wouldn’t mind believing in that – if it were real. The not being real part gets in the way.

Fairy godmothers sound awesome, too. I want a fairy godmother! I want a beautiful fairy princess, a tame dragon, a magic wand, and the ability to fly, too. Just because I want them, it doesn’t make any of them real nor does my desire make me believe that they are.

Maybe it's a personal quirk but I just can't make myself believe in anything I don't think is real.

Then they bring out the nasty stuff. "If you don't believe in God you'll burn in Hell forever and ever!" Often the religious person will go on to explain how the suffering in the non-consuming fires of Hell is unending, that a person never gets used to it because the Devil is endlessly creative in coming up with new tortures.

That sounds pretty scary. Only the impact is somehow lessened by the fact that no such place exists. The person hasn't frightened me into believing, they've only annoyed me.

So, there are two points to keep in mind when wondering why I don't believe in God -

1) I can only believe in things I think are real.
2) I'm only afraid of things I think are real.

Thanks to Mark over at Proud Atheists for inspiring this post!

My Take on the Atheist Bus Ads

2009-08-19T09:18:00.000-07:00

Now, a Des Moines bus driver is getting suspended for refusing to drive a bus with an atheist ad on it. The ad is a sign that says "Don't Believe in God? You Are Not Alone" - which seems pretty innocuous to me.

People don't seem to get the whole point of these ads. The sign is just saying - "Hey, you, that guy over there that doesn't believe in God - you are not the only atheist in existence and not everyone wants you dead!" as far as I'm concerned. It's a message that needs to be put out there.

Atheists in America have been made to feel unwanted and despised for quite some time now. We've been hiding in closets to protect our jobs and families. We've been hiding to be safe from bigots. But that is ridiculous! It's wrong to just hide and take that crap in a country where we are supposedly guaranteed free speech! Not only that, the majority of Americans are smart enough and compassionate enough to see where religiously motivated bigotry is wrong if they just participate in some discussion and learn to see atheists as regular people.

Many Americans don't need to be informed that bigotry of any kind is wrong, they simply haven't noticed it because it isn't directed anywhere that they would logically see it. My religious friends were shocked by many of the stories and news items I've shown them. These atheist ads bring the discussion out. Plenty of religious people aren't willing to let the bigotry go on either once they know about it.

I think these ads will also embolden people to challenge other religiously motivated bigotry.

So my response to the atheist bus ads is this: Freedom of Speech: Not Just for Christians Any More

So I put that message on some items including t-shirts and buttons over at Zazzle along with a colored pencil drawing of a city bus, some in color, some in black and white.

Freedom of Speech: Not Just for Christians by Kylyssa

My Personal Health Care Crisis

2009-08-09T14:49:00.000-07:00

Today's post is not about an atheist issue, it's about a human issue. I'd like you to take a look at the page where I'm telling the story of my personal healthcare crisis and my dealings with government agencies. Things have sucked for me for several years now but recently another glitch catalyzed the writing of my story.

Part of it deals with my financial troubles but it all goes back to the health care system.

You can find my story at My Health Care Issues where I will continue to add more as life goes on.

I'm hoping to add a good cluster of links to resources to help other people in my situation so please contribute any you may have.

More Funny Stuff from the Mouths of Fundies

2009-08-05T13:57:00.000-07:00

As I've mentioned many a time, I live in a very fundieful area and I've worked with a lot of very conservative religious people. Sometimes, fundies say the darndest things. While looking through my old journal I was reminded of an incident I found rather amusing.

The store owner was South African and much more liberal than the average employee in his shop. He'd mentioned a number of times before that the constant playing of praise music was a bit annoying. We played satellite radio at the shop and it was almost permanently set on set on a Christian music station. One day he came in and chatted with us for a while when he noticed the radio was playing a mainstream song.

He asked, "Did someone finally change the channel?"

My co-worker (and manager) replied, "Sometimes this station plays sexual music between the Christian music."

The owner asked, "Sexual music? It's not Christian but isn't calling it sexual going a little too far?" After all, the song had been a Kenny Loggins ditty called "The House at Pooh Corner" which could not be construed as sexual in any way.

She replied, "You know how you have your Church life and your sexual life? Everything that is of the world and not of the Church is sexual."

She went into the cooler to get more flowers and I burst out laughing. The owner joined me. He laughed hard enough to tear up.

He asked me, "Should I tell her or do you want to?"

I replied, "Oh, I'm not touching this one."

For a short time after his explanation, she used the term 'secular' but eventually slipped back to using the word 'sexual' instead.

So every time I see or hear the word 'secular' I giggle just a bit.

Hehe, sexual humanists!

Atheism Does Not Equal Pornography

2009-07-28T11:17:00.000-07:00

I was doing some research and was looking for the University of Minnesota study on atheism from a few years ago as I couldn't find the copy I'd saved. So I ran across an about.com article about it which I thought was pretty slick. But then I saw that the StumbleUpon designation for the article was Pornography!

This is nothing new. It happened to numerous articles (and my blog!) a while back including several articles of mine and articles by quite a few by others. The articles and blogs in question were about atheist issues and GLBT issues.

It's a nasty thing to do - it counters the positive effect of social bookmarking and also makes the articles show up as pornography on search engine results.

I put out the word today to report the about.com article as not porn so it should be fine in a day or two. But if you have a StumbleUpon account, it couldn't hurt to check it out and while you are at it, check any atheist or GLBT articles you may have bookmarked to see if they've been similarly re-categorized.

UPDATE:
The category has now been changed to atheist agnostic.

Atheist/Atheism Searches People Make

2009-07-26T09:23:00.000-07:00

I have a tool on my Squidoo account which tracks where my page views come from. One portion of it is dedicated to search engine traffic. Every time a phrase is used in a search engine which brings a surfer to my pages, that phrase is recorded in that dashboard utility. I've been collecting some interesting ones on my atheist relevant lenses for the last month.

Here are a few of those phrases, unedited for your pleasure:

*atheist dont believe something came out of nothing
*atheist explain how the human race came to be
*i don't believe in god. so where did we come from
*an atheist's view on how we came to be
*atheistic views on the origins of the universe
*how atheists explain big bang
*an atheist`s view of the origin of evil
*atheism view of after life
*why atheist dont believe in god
*how many people in america dont believe in god
*non believer in god/denies god beliefs
*why do atheists have morals
*why atheist attack other religions
*atheist religion
*questions you would ask an atheist
*was hitler an atheist

Atheist Spirituality

2009-07-22T14:55:00.000-07:00

After getting in a few (heated) discussions about what spirituality is I decided to write a Squidoo page on it. So, I've created a Squidoo lens called Atheist Spirituality. It's a little rough yet but I'm hoping to show that the intense emotions often associated with belief are not exclusive to theists.

I think it's all a matter of how your beliefs frame your experiences. Religious people will likely find religious significance in life changing experiences. Non-religious people will have the same, profound experiences but won't attribute them to the supernatural.

Where Does Morality Come From If It's Not From God?

2009-06-30T08:22:00.001-07:00

I believe that morality in its most basic sense, empathy, is not just a social construct but a product of evolution as well. In extended families or tribal clusters as our ancestors must have lived co-operation would have been paramount to survival. Feeling a desire for your tribal members' survival and well-being was a survival trait of itself.

Millions of years ago our ancestors started walking upright at first moving a bit more slowly than other primates until the Achilles tendon came into the picture. Imagine you are a slow-moving, meter high person with very little defensive equipment in the way of sharp teeth, strong jaws or razor sharp claws. You aren't even strong enough to kneecap a lion even if you were large enough to pick up a big enough club. Your children are born quite helpless, unable to cling to their mothers' upright backs. While standing tall allows you to see predators from great distances away you really aren't as great at climbing trees as your distant ancestors may have been. You could probably yank loose a prickly branch from a thorn bush and wave it in a big cat's face but she or her family could easily circle behind you and your mama's contribution to the gene pool would end up as a light meal.

So how did something this frail and dare I say paw lickin' good survive or even evolve in the first place? Team work. The little fellows learned to look out for each other both from a budding advancement in empathy and blatant self-interest. A lone pre-human ( even a sturdy and healthy male massing perhaps as much as a young German shepherd dog ) would not do so well on the African plains amidst large predators. Every man for himself just doesn't work when every man is three feet tall and delicious.

Those little mothers also had to be very delicate with their large-headed, weak infants. Big brains made early hominids feeble, floppy fetuses even after birth. Those proto-human women had to coddle and cuddle their immature infants or they would have lost them soon after giving birth.

Everybody knows dead babies don't pass on their genes. Even early hominids likely had a long childhood requiring extra protection and help acquiring food long after most animals would have been self-sufficient. Thus empathy and even love were survival traits. As we evolved, so did our society. Survival, enlightened self interest, and love of family - even distant family - these are the roots of morality, conscience and civilization. They are part of our evolutionary makeup both from a social and biological sense - empathy appears to be inborn. I believe evolutionary psychology explains the origin of morality quite well.

Love really is all you need.

Cute Things Kids Say

2009-06-25T10:17:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, I was eating dinner with my friend, her son, my partner and three of his ex-girlfriend's kids. The three youngest (all boys - 7, 9, and 12) were being very naughty. I had been talking about abstinence only education earlier, with the youngest child's mother. While the boys were acting up, I jokingly said to her that maybe abstinence only education might work if all young teens were required to watch kids acting that naughty on a regular basis.

A few minutes later, the twelve year old asked what abstinence was. Not being the child's parent or guardian I told him that it means to abstain and that to abstain means to not do something, like to not have dessert would be dessert abstinence.

He replied, "Oh, I thought abstinence was a religious thing, like it means you don't believe in God."

Why Do Atheists Care About Religion? - Part Two, Society

2009-06-22T20:15:00.001-07:00

The dominant religions in America teach that only they are right and that any other belief serves their opponent, Satan. Their belief systems hold that those who do not follow that specific belief system are sinful, evil, and immoral. This leads to intolerance, not just of atheists but of people who don't share the same belief system or don't practice it exactly the way they do.

People's behavior is affected by their beliefs, sometimes even dictated by their beliefs. If people have beliefs that are different from mine and antithetical to mine, I have a great reason to be concerned. I believe in freedom of expression, human rights for all, freedom of religion, and separation of church and state. These beliefs are the polar opposite of the most visible Christian conservative beliefs.

Prejudice against homosexuals, people of other religions, and women often stems from religious belief. White supremacists and other such cults have a religious basis. We are all affected by bigotry, regardless of our belief or absence of belief.

Another piece in the puzzle is that, as human beings, atheists are concerned when other human beings are mistreated. There is a visible amount of religiously motivated child abuse in America - people who deny their children medical treatment, people who punish their children physically for perceived sins, people who deny their children an adequate education - all in the name of religion.

Because religious people are the majority in America, and some of those religious people try to use the weight of that majority to step on minorities, including atheists, of course atheists are concerned!

Update on Daniel Hauser

2009-06-20T10:51:00.000-07:00

Apparently, Daniel Hauser, the 13 year old boy whose parents denied him modern medical treatment for his cancer, is now doing well after getting the court-ordered chemotherapy.

The tumor has shrunk and young Daniel is on the mend. However, according to Dan Zwakman, a spokesman for the Nemenhah religious group to which the Hausers belong,"Everybody is pleased that the tumor is shrinking, of course. The goal is to get rid of the cancer, but they'd rather be doing it without the chemo."

Apparently, the family believes that the progress Daniel is making towards recovery has come from the vitamins and minerals he's been given to boost his immune system rather than from the conventional treatment he has received. The Hausers' belief system holds that the world was created with everything needed to heal the sick and to sustain the well, that the only remedies one should use are natural ones. Unfortunately, the Nemenhah religious group and others like them are unable to extend this to sciences and things they consider unnatural. It's bizarre that modern medicine would be rejected on these grounds as everything used in modern medicine comes from the very same world.

The Nemenhah religious group is not an actual Native American tribe, but a religious group founded by an ex-convict in 2000. The group is supposedly based off of Native American principles. To become a member one must pay an entry fee of $250 to be "adopted" into the "tribe" and then pay dues of $100 per year afterward. Not only does the religious group insist upon natural medicines, the group's founder sells them to the members.

The parents faced no real consequences for the psychological abuse and medical neglect of their son and they still have custody of the child though his mother tried to flee the country with him to escape the court-ordered medical care. Sadly, young Daniel Hauser will probably grow up convinced that modern medicine is evil and that he was healed by his church instead. But at least it now looks like Daniel Hauser will get to grow up.

Superstition can be hazardous to your health.

Why Do Atheists Care About Religion? - Part One, Politics

2009-06-19T20:52:00.000-07:00

Atheists in America care a lot about religion. This may be primarily because religious groups in our country have a great deal of political power.

Religious groups in America have successfully created religious laws which the entire populace, religious or not, must follow. These laws include the ban against same sex marriage, blue laws, and anti-cohabitation laws.

Christian religious lobbies are also trying to insert Christianity into public schools in place of science education. They have succeeded in getting "abstinence only" rather than science based sex education into public schools, paid for entirely with taxpayer money. Fortunately, President Obama has re-allocated the budget for religion based sex education to fund science based sex education.

Additionally, religious organizations are granted tax-free status even though they are politically powerful and often use their influence to create legislation or to support specific political candidates. While religious organizations do not pay taxes, they benefit from them. This means that people who are having laws passed to discriminate against them by religious lobbies are required to pay the taxes that benefit the very organizations behind the discriminatory laws.

Help Iranian Protesters from the Comfort of Your Own Home

2009-06-16T09:45:00.000-07:00

Check out some recommendations re-posted by Cory Doctorow on BoingBoing on how you can help Iranian protesters by doing a few simple things with your Twitter account.

Marriage Equality PSA Points Out Other Religious Marriage Laws

2009-06-02T13:51:00.000-07:00

I came across the loveliest video on YouTube after a tip from Will over on The Happy Atheist Forum. It is a public service announcement type skit about equal marriage.

As we all know, the vast majority of objections to marriage equality come from religious folks who take them straight from the Bible. This skit talks about the other Biblical marriage traditions we've let fall by the wayside in the name of humane behavior.

It seems to me that if we can so easily discard those other biblical laws regarding marriage, why not this last one - that marriage must be between a man and a woman? It makes about as much sense as any of the others.

Not only is discarding this Biblical law the humane thing to do, it's the thing any country that separates Church and State should do.

Ask an Atheist

2009-06-01T08:24:00.000-07:00

I've created a new page on Squidoo called Ask an Atheist in which I invite people to ask me atheist relevant questions. So far, I've gotten some decent questions and it looks like it will be pretty fun overall. I've set it so anyone can comment both in the Who's More Afraid of the Other, Atheists or Believers? duel and in the Ask an Atheist module but I've set it so all comments must be approved. Foul language, even in comments can get a lens re-rated into invisibility so I thought it would be good to filter them for this lens.

I Revamped My Atheist Page on Squidoo

2009-05-29T10:36:00.000-07:00

Last night I made some pretty major changes on my Atheist page on Squidoo, An Atheist View. I added some YouTube videos on topics including the Elizabeth Dole Atheist smear campaign, Illinois Representative Monique Davis' rant about atheists, and a Steve Harvey clip claiming Atheists have no morals. I've also added a short link list to articles about people who have been fired for being Atheists. A few days ago, I played with the photos and HTML and I'm pretty pleased with the result.

My next Squidoo project is an "Ask an Atheist" type page to get some interaction going.

Woman Fired for Husband's Atheist Blog

2009-05-25T15:47:00.000-07:00

I just learned about something despicable that went down in Texas. A young woman just back to work after surgery for breast cancer was fired from her job due to the Atheist sentiments expressed in her husband's blog. Apparently, her boss had tried to get her to accept Jesus into her life and she politely declined. It's a lot more complicated than just that but you can read about it here.

A few blog posts later Mr. Donaldson (Amanda's husband) posted an article published by journalist who called Amanda's employer and did a phone interview. You can find the article here.

This is an important issue, one we can't shut our eyes to.

I Saw Something Today

2009-05-25T10:43:00.000-07:00

Today, I saw and read something so powerful, I felt it just needs to be shared. It's today's journal entry in another Atheist's blog. The images and words are powerful and painful.

Which Kind of God is Yours?

Censorship

2009-05-25T08:57:00.000-07:00

This really isn't a post about atheism, it's a post about censorship though I suspect it may be religious misogyny and prudery that's responsible.

A page about homelessness I put up on Squidoo on 12/03/2008 has just been flagged for adult content. If you click on the link to the site a big Adult Content splash comes up and doesn't allow non-Squidoo users to even view the page.

First of all, the page is not adult content. I used the word 'rape' in the context of saying "After my first rape..." then explaining about the beautiful, heroic homeless man who saved my life.

It really irks me because this will send its ratings plummeting because it will no longer get any views from non-Squidoo users. Right now it is riding on its previous views and it's number 13 out of almost a million pages on the site.

It also really irks me that a friend sent a link to that page to everyone on his email list and he had to explain to his sister that, no, he had NOT sent porn to his 16 year old niece.

If you want to help me keep the page "alive" until I can get this flagging business resolved you can register for a Squidoo membership (it's free and relatively non-invasive, they never spam) and visit my lens. If you are feeling particularly magnanimous you can give it a star rating and favorite it, too.

You can find the page at What I Learned While I Was Homeless and I absolutely double dog promise you it is not porn. You can sign up for a Squidoo account here - I assure you that other than for some flag-happy parents it's a cool place to be. Of course Squidoo was created by Seth Godin who is da bomb and we love him.

Why I Live With Fundies

2009-05-21T07:18:00.001-07:00

I've gotten a few messages and emails lately asking why I worked with conservative Christians if I don't like Christian fundamentalism. One asked why I didn't "just find another f-ing job." A few similar, but more polite messages asked the same question.

There are some areas of the country where there is a large conservative Christian population. If you live in one of those areas, and would like to have a place to work, chances are that you will work with, if not for, Christian fundamentalists.

So why don't I just move to a nice liberal area where gay bashing and atheist bashing aren't popular activities? Somewhere where no one says Methodists, Lutherans, and Catholics aren't Christians?

I can't afford to move anywhere. I'm broke. Florists make crap wages anyway and then I got really sick - seizures, high fevers, chronic pain, loss of consciousness, and all sorts of other unpleasantness.

I am no longer working with fundies. I am a freelance writer. However, this isn't because I couldn't handle conservative Christians at work anymore, it was because I couldn't work an all day standing job (like a floral designer does) any more.

As to why I'm poor - it's hard to earn a living as a freelance writer and I'm still learning. Also, though I can write sitting down, I still need to take more breaks than a healthy person would especially since anything I write with a high fever ends up looking as if it were written in an alien tongue.

Religious Child Neglect Turns into Kidnapping

2009-05-20T08:25:00.000-07:00

Last week a judge in Minnesota ruled that the family of a boy suffering from Hodgkin's lymphoma could not refuse the child's chemotherapy for conflicting with the family's religious beliefs.

I was pleased with the decision because it meant one less child would die from his parents' magical thinking and spiritual beliefs. Last year we were all horrified to hear of poor little Madeline Neumann who died a slow, painful death for her parents religious beliefs. I thought the ruling in the Daniel Hauser case to be a great victory for childrens rights. Every child deserves medical treatment, no child should die of a treatable disease and no child should be denied treatment due to his parents' religious beliefs.

Hauser's mom believes in holistic medicine, herbalism, and planned to treat him with vitamins and herbs instead of proven chemotherapy. The judge's ruling now requires that the boy receive medical care including chemotherapy. Unfortunately, Daniel Hauser's mom is dead set on preventing her child from getting the medical care he needs to survive. Even after a doctor appointment which indicated Daniel is getting worse and his disease has progressed without treatment his mother ran off with Daniel into hiding.

13 year old Daniel's parents had told him that chemotherapy would kill him so I have no doubt he'll do anything to aid his mother in hiding him until it's too late to successfully treat his illness. If this results in the child's death, the family will feel justified and blame his death on the last ditch efforts of medical professionals trying to save a child treated too late.

This poor kid's parents talked him out of life saving treatment by telling him that chemo would kill him. This is not an adult we are talking about who may make an informed decision to die from a treatable illness if they want to, Daniel is a thirteen year old child with a learning disability.

In my opinion, the child's mother, Colleen Hauser, should be tried for kidnapping and attempted murder - or murder if the child dies as a result of delayed treatment - and his father should be charged for accessory to those crimes.

Update:
Now police suspect Hauser may be taking Daniel to Mexico to escape medical treatment of his illness.

Charlotte Allen Anti-Atheist Editorial In LA Times

2009-05-19T07:27:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago the Los Angeles Times released an anti-atheist rant by Charlotte Allen that clearly shows the lack of understanding many religious people have regarding atheism.

Charlotte Allen is bored of atheists? We're bored of the standard Christian arguments and hate speech - there's nothing new under the sun there.

Clearly Allen has apparently never visited a discussion board where atheists and theists debate with her insistence that "few of them [atheists] are interested in making serious metaphysical or epistemological arguments against God's existence, or in taking on the serious arguments that theologians have made attempting to reconcile, say, God's omniscience with free will or God's goodness with human suffering." Many atheists can play "God's advocate" and perform the arguments used by theists for the existence of God and can recite those theologians' attempts to defend God's goodness in the light of suffering and God's omniscience with man's free will.

When Charlotte Allen questions, "If there is no God -- and you'd be way beyond stupid to think differently -- why does it matter whether he's good or evil?" she forgets one major thing. The followers of God believe in Him. No matter what we believe, almost everyone around us believes in God. If those believers follow an evil God it will manifest in their behavior. It will manifest in excusing and fueling bigotry. Belief in the existence of and a desire to worship and obey an evil God or even a God of questionable ethics will manifest in hate crimes and hate speech, marginalization of people of other or non beliefs, and feelings of justification for these actions.

She needs to read some news and get into some discussions with real atheists. She belittles the problems real atheists face by saying, "My problem with atheists is their tiresome -- and way old -- insistence that they are being oppressed and their fixation with the fine points of Christianity. What -- did their Sunday school teachers flog their behinds with a Bible when they were kids?" She writes as if atheists don't get death threats from Christians simply for writing about atheism or talking about it in public. She writes as if we don't get our property vandalized by Christians if we get outed as atheists. She writes as if there are no parts of America where we could lose our jobs for being atheists. Allen writes as if completely unaware that Christians spend millions of dollars every year to put their religious beliefs into law - laws which everyone, regardless of religion or non-religion, will be required to follow. She writes as if Christians don't intimidate the children of atheists in attempts to convert them which sometimes ends up in peer violence visited upon those children.

Show me several million atheists trying to force their beliefs into law, trying to use legal force to coerce all Americans to follow their beliefs. Show me the school children forced to perform atheist rituals under fear of punishment from adults and peers. Show me the atheists protesting at funerals - and I might start to listen to you, Ms. Allen.

Stop the things we are "whining" about such as Christian laws, religion-based bigotry against gays, religious discrimination in the workplace, religious influence in child custody cases, remorseless atheist bashing, and evangelism - and we'll stop "whining" about them.

I Must Admit...

2009-05-17T11:30:00.000-07:00

I must admit that I was seldom "out" as an Atheist at a workplace.

I live in a strangely mixed area. There are a dozen Bible "colleges" in the city and hordes of Calvinists of varying sorts. But through the magic of the Internet, I've found the other part of our population. Unfortunately, few businesses in my area are owned by people who are openly tolerant of non-theists.

Everywhere I held a job when I was in the 9 to 5 world, God was a frequent topic of conversation and disdain for non-Christians and Christians of other sects was made abundantly clear. At one workplace, a co-worker was accidentally outed as a non-theist. Two days later she was canned but not before the valve stems were cut on all four of her tires in the employee parking lot. My own accidental outing by a friend who picked me up for lunch one day resulted in getting my car vandalized in a different way - profanity and threats had been scratched into it with a sharp object.

My co-worker was supposedly fired for being late in excess of three times. However, the last incidence of lateness had occurred over a year earlier and it was very minor. Michigan is an "at will" employment state which allows employers to sack a person for any reason at any time, so long as they don't express a discriminatory reason. They also don't need to give a reason, they can just terminate you with no explanation. So, for years and years I bit my tongue and remained in the Atheist closet, because I wanted to be safe and I wanted to keep my job.

Now that I'm disabled and working out of my home, it's not an issue anymore. I can be as out as I want to and not fear job loss. I am a bit ashamed that I wasn't out before.

It feels great to stop the lying by omission that being closeted requires.

That's Evolution Years!

2009-05-16T21:23:00.000-07:00

While working in a flower shop one's hands are busy all day but one's mind is not. This leads to lots of conversations with co-workers while all of you are arranging flowers. Being a bit of a science nut and having a tendency to go on and on and on about science news that interests me, usually beyond the tolerance of most mortals it's unsurprising that one day, when a co-worker was talking about dogs having a long history living with mankind, I regurgitated the latest tidbit I had heard on dogs.

I'd recently read that new DNA evidence from canine remains found in the Americas supported the idea that dogs had come out of Africa with human beings and crossed the Bering Strait with us some 50,000 years ago. I thought that was pretty cool and inoffensive so I shared that with my dog-loving co-worker.

What I got in response was, "50,000 years? That's evolution years!" as she looked at me, completely aghast.

What does one say to that?

It's the area I live in, unfortunately.

My Own Version of Fundies Say the Darndest Things

2009-05-14T13:18:00.000-07:00

Recently I was relating several stories about weird or funny things I'd personally heard hardcore religious people say. Since I've been slacking off on my Atheist blog in favor of trying to earn some money for my writing, I figured some of those stories would make good blog entries.

I was working in a flower shop amongst highly religious co-workers. I was always extra careful to keep my language clean and my opinions (aside from those on floral design) strictly to myself. Little did I know that my determination not to swear in front of customers might get me into an uncomfortable spot.

As sometimes happens in a flower shop, I lost my grip on a slippery glass vase. My normal inclination would be to paint the air blue with words relating to bodily functions or procreation. But, trying to keep it clean, I exclaimed, "Rut Ro!" (the appropriate expression often used by a certain cartoon dog) as the vase began to slip from my hand.

My co-worker asked, "What on earth was that?!?"

To which I responded, "Rut Ro. Haven't you heard that before?"

She replied, "No, is it from something?"

"It's from Scooby-Doo, he says it whenever something bad is about to happen."

"That's Satanic! That show is Satanic! It's from the Devil with witches and demons."

I quickly tried to explain, "But none of the monsters or witches were real, it was all smoke and mirrors - a rubber mask or a movie projector..."

"That show is just from the Devil, and I don't want to hear about it!"

I got the cold shoulder for from her the rest of the day and angry glares from her and another co-worker for several days afterward.

So, I guess Scooby-Doo is a big time Satanist.

Back After A Long Illness

2009-05-02T09:37:00.000-07:00

I've been sick as a dog for about a month now so my blog has fallen by the wayside. But I'm back and should be posting more again.

I just updated and edited my Squidoo atheist lens and realized that I haven't written much free thought material lately. So, I'm off to have some deep thoughts and should be typing away soon.

Have a fabulous day!

My Atheist Meanderings on Squidoo

2009-03-31T11:48:00.000-07:00

I've put up a Squidoo page, An Atheist View, to get more exposure and to get a few dollars for writing about things I am passionate about. It has some articles in common with this blog but it has a little bit of new material and a discussion in the comments that could get interesting.

I plan to add more to the lens once I get the time.

Support your friendly, Atheist Bitch by taking a look at An Atheist View.

Doesn't it Take a Lot of Faith to Be an Atheist?

2009-03-18T12:06:00.000-07:00

People often say, "It takes a lot of faith to be an atheist." This is usually followed with a statement like, "After all, you can't be 100% certain there is no God."

As an atheist, I can say that it has never taken me any faith at all to be one. Saying that being an atheist requires faith requires one to accept the idea that everyone thinks God is real, when in fact many people (called atheists) do not. It is the very definition of atheism. Atheists are people who don't think God is real.

The average person doesn't think the Chupacabra is real. How much faith does that take? It's an unlikely creature which can't be seen, heard, smelled, tasted or touched by those who look for it. It hasn't been caught on film. All information about it comes from legend; all reports of its doings come from speculation and lack of real explanations. The things people attribute to its actions can generally be traced to natural phenomena. The modern-day accounts of it come second hand from people who deeply wish or fear that it exists.
Read More>>>

Breaking Creation's Ladder - A Poem About The Falsity of Creation's Ladder

2009-03-04T14:23:00.000-08:00

A few days ago, I had a very high fever, something which isn't unusual for me. I went to bed, feeling dizzy, and had this bizarre dream in which someone was trying to convince me of the correctness of Creation's Ladder. No doubt the dream was fed by conversations I'd had about Social Darwinism, Creationist Literalism, and evolution due to Darwin's recent birthday.

Creation's Ladder is an ideology which holds that God put everything in its place in a hierarchy or ladder with the kings of man at the top. Creation's Ladder put the lion over other, weaker beasts and the nobleman over the poor man as the natural course of things. The Creation's Ladder explanation of the relatedness of animals through God's trains of thought may have simply been a ploy to get peasants to accept their lot in life and the domination of the wealthy and powerful.

Now in the dream, the faceless person tried to convince me of the validity of a six day Creation and Creation's Ladder by showing it to me in a weird physical form. This poem represents what I woke up feeling and is, in fact, the first thing my sleep muzzied, fever flushed brain produced when I sat up in bed.

Breaking Creation's Ladder

Pulling apart the Ladder of Creation
piece by piece
bones and beaks
break the rotten rungs
easily,
finding not solid gold
but a layer of gilt,
just thick enough to keep its shape.
Filled with stale imaginations
and rigid attitudes
the illusion remains
though the Ladder of Creation
can clearly hold no weight.
Battered by bacteria
and eroded by reason
all that remains is the the Ladder's shape -
shimmering, worthless flakes
held together by faith and fear.
Blinded by its reflection,
men quake and walk in circles
beneath it
unable to see wonders
just beyond its influence.
They hold their children tightly
in the shadow of Creation's Ladder
covering innocent eyes,
lest they see that
shining, spiraling,
built to last,
the truth twines through every cell -
All men ARE brothers
and cousin to all that lives.

What Evolution Isn't

2009-03-04T08:01:00.000-08:00

Here's your chance to sound off on what evolution is and isn't.

Some people in America have a lot of ideas about what Evolution is. They think it's a religion, an ideology, a moral judgment, or an evil plot to turn them away from God.

I've started what is called a "Duel" over on Squidoo. It contains areas where you can give your opinions on evolution. The page I created for it deals with what some people think evolution is and explains how those ideas are incorrect. I've linked to some of my articles and some other relevant pages.

I was kind of hoping to get more fundamentalists to respond, to get a real discussion and "Duel" going.

You can find the Squidoo Duel at What Evolution Isn't.

By the way, does anyone have any ideas on how to attract fundamentalists to the discussion?

Why I Think Christian Fundamentalists Hate the Theory of Evolution but Not Other Scientific Facts

2009-02-18T18:34:00.000-08:00

What do fundamentalist Christians and other religious fundamentalists have against the theory of evolution? Why do they seem so upset by the very idea of evolution? Evolutionary theory contradicts the literal story of Genesis as found in the Bible. However, a lot of scientific knowledge contradicts parts of the Bible. For some reason, scientific knowledge or facts which contradict literal interpretations of parts of the Bible other than those in contradiction to Genesis in particular simply don’t fall under fundamentalist Christian fire.

The Theory of Evolution evokes extreme emotions in fundamentalist Christians and other religious fundamentalists for some reason. They openly express disdain, fear and outright hatred of everything to do with the Theory of Evolution.

Fundamentalist Christians in America feel so strongly about the Theory of Evolution that they throw fortunes at getting it stricken from existence. The Christian Right in America lobbies aggressively to get evolution removed from public school curricula. Fundamentalist Christians have even created “Creation Museums” to counter the theory of Evolution at the cost of millions of dollars. The Christian Right in America is very upset with the Theory of Evolution.
Read More>>>

Exciting News!!! That Atheist Bitch on The Atheist Blogroll

2009-02-17T13:43:00.000-08:00

That Atheist Bitch has been added to The Atheist Blogroll! You can see the blogroll in my sidebar. The Atheist Blogroll is a community building service provided free of charge to Atheist bloggers from around the world. If you would like to join, visit Mojoey at Deep Thoughts for more information.

Mojoey's Atheist Blogroll now sports over 850 atheist, agnostic, and free thinking blogs. I find that to be extremely exciting!

I Don't Believe in Life After Death, I Believe In Life Before Death

2009-02-13T08:23:00.000-08:00

I am an atheist. I don't believe in God or an afterlife. I may not believe in life after death but I wholeheartedly believe in life before death.

Life is truly amazing. Making it a good life is all the reward I need. It's a shame so many people think that this life is just some kind of dress rehearsal or test for what comes next. But I do understand why people want to believe in life after death.

I understand how the yearning for justice can make people desire an afterlife. So many people live good lives, full of kindness and compassion, full of giving and love but they suffer, often worse than those who lead lives of cruelty. So many people lead cruel lives, preying on others and reap rich rewards in this life, never seeing worldly punishment for their evils.

It seems like it would be fair that those who do good and avoid harming others would ultimately be rewarded. It seems like it would be fair that those who do harm and prey on others would ultimately be punished.
View More >>

Do People Become Atheists so They Can Act Immorally?

2009-01-27T18:13:00.000-08:00

Many Christians and other theists will insist that atheists are immoral people who have decided to become atheists so they can behave immorally without guilt. I don't believe this to be true but I have a few ideas as to why some Christians and other theists believe it to be so.

First, there seems to be some confusion about what atheists are. Atheists don't believe in God but more than that, they don't think that God is real. So being an atheist really isn't a choice, once you don't think something is real you can't really believe in it. Until or unless something occurs to change your mind such as evidence or a personal epiphany you simply can't believe in things you do not think are real.
View More >>

Atheists Don't Believe in God - Atheists Don't Hate or Deny God, nor Do They Think God is Real.

2009-01-25T21:56:00.000-08:00

I've heard it far too many times, I think, the assertion that to be an atheist a person must first think God is real and then hate, or deny God.

By the logic that a person must first believe in something to think it isn't real every fundamentalist Christian believed evolution occurred before they denied it. That's not very likely; the fundamentalist Christian never believed evolution happened in the first place. People walk around every day not believing in things they've never believed in. I'd say it's far rarer to find someone who once believed in unicorns than to find someone who has never believed in unicorns.

View More >>

If You Can't Explain the Origin of Life Then Why Don't You Just Believe in God?

2009-01-12T15:13:00.001-08:00

A question thrown out often in debate between Christians and atheists is “If you can’t explain the origin of the universe and the origin of life then why don’t you just believe in God?” It is often followed up with, “Doesn’t it make more sense to believe in God because all those questions are answered in the Bible. All science has is theories but the Bible has the Truth.” I have answered this question so frequently that I decided to write an article about why the lack of a complete, exact and perfect explanations of the origin of life and the universe do not make it seem logical for me to just believe in God instead of seeking the real answers.

I accept the fact that I don't know the answers to the questions of how exactly the universe came about and how exactly, life came to be. There are many good, scientific theories supported by tangible evidence. It seems likely that eventually, scientists will come closer to answering such big questions as the origin of life and the universe with a great degree of accuracy and certainty.
View more >>