No True Scotsman

In college I took a philosophy class lead by a woman who made herself known within the secular community during the Dover trials. I loved learning from her and hope that I carry many of her lessons throughout my life.

One thing she wanted our class to be able to recognize and call out were the logical fallacies that surround us on a daily basis. I got pretty good at seeing them in everyday life on campus. I once had an argument with a open-air preacher about his use of circular fallacy. He didn't seem to care that his logic was flawed.

But here is where I feel that my professor missed a good opportunity: No True Scotsman. It's true that this particular fallacy can really fall under the ad hoc rule. But I feel it has it's own merits. Especially within the secular community.

Here's an example: Let's say that a man killed his wife. The police go to his friends and they say that the man was a good Christian and can't understand how this has happened. The report hits the news that a Christian man has killed his wife. My mother, sister or aunt may look over at me and say 'He wasn't really a true Christian then.'

When someone professes to be something, like a Christian, and other Christians think he has done something outside of the realm of Christianity then the person 'wasn't really a Christian'.  Happens all the time.

When a group of radical Muslims flew planes into a building or when individuals perform a suicide bombing, sure, they were extremist. This doesn't mean they weren't Muslim. The same goes for when Christians in this country kill people because of their skin color or sexual preference. They are still Christians.

The truth is that human nature sometimes rears it's not-so-civilized head and people do things that are deemed uncivilized or anti-social.  When someone who has been a devout Christian their entire life and they snap and commit a horrible act...it just proves to me all the more that there is no god.

Human nature is what it is. Some people have the ability to live normally in their society and follow the social rules. Others don't. Stating that because someone hasn't followed the rules they are no longer one of you is not helping.  Accepting that humans are, in fact, animals who have been able to MOSTLY control our animalistic needs and wants is helpful in being able to help one another and understand the need for medical and psychological help.

Praying to a god does not immediately resolve you of your basic needs.

Persecution Part II

Recently I was able to go to a spa for a day of pampering. It was lovely. I had a massage, a facial, and a pedicure. It was one of those spas where you could just lounge around a whirlpool or sweat in a sauna. Very relaxing.

I had been to this spa before and had a great conversation with the woman who gave me a pedi the first time. She happened to also be an atheist. When I returned over the weekend she was there and remembered me. I was happy to see her but she was, unfortunately, not going to be giving me my pedi this time. But, she insisted that the woman who would be providing the service was a wonderful woman. And she was. Until she started asking awkward questions....

I had previously told her that my boyfriend and I had met at an atheist convention. She then launched into a Q&A session with me about what atheists actually 'believe'. That's fine with me. Religious people tend to not really get atheism and the more questions they ask the more opportunity I have of changing their minds about atheists.

She asked if I believed in reincarnation. She asked if I believed in anything. Then she launched into a speech about how all of our unbalanced pH levels are the things that make us sick. (Did you know that drinking a glass of lemon water a day can keep cancer away??)  This woman turned out to be kinda 'woo'. (Is that how we are going to be writing that?) She said things like "It's all about energy" and "when something tragic happens, it makes you rethink life."

Then she started talking about how her niece had just died unexpectedly. And this is the part where the persecution comes in. Had I been a Christian and she an atheist I could have told her that this was all a part of God's plan and that I would be praying for her. No one would have batted an eye. She may have thanked me for her kind words. After all, I was just trying to say something to comfort her.

As the atheist in this situation, what could I have said other than 'I'm sorry' and sympathized and made 'sad noises' at all the things this young woman was now going to miss? I just had to listen to her go on about how her niece should have been the miracle child. Her niece's children will one day see their mom again. Her family needed many blessings now.

And I just sat there. Doing nothing. Getting more and more annoyed but awkward. Of course I feel awful that her young niece died. I'm not a heartless monster. I empathize with people when something bad happens. Can I tell them that I'm sorry this happened but I don't believe in that after-life nonsense? Of course not. I'd be a horrible person.

When something tragic happens to an atheist and religious people try to comfort them with that God bullshit and we fire back... we are now the hurtful, bitter and angry ones. We're not bitter. We're grieving. Telling ourselves that we will one day see our loved ones again is not 'moving on'. It's dwelling. It's tricking our mind into not accepting the pain but masking it.

Telling someone that 'god has a plan' when something bad happens is not helpful to an atheist. But Christians are allowed, by society, to say these things. An atheist is not allowed to tell someone that 'bad things happen because bad things happen'. We understand that the world is neither fair nor just. Things. Just. Happen. But, we're not allowed to express that.

All we can do is smile, nod a bit, and hope that the person with sharp tools around our feet dosn't 'accidentally' slip....

Social Court

Many of us have seen the work of  'social court' play out many times. In today's astronomical access to information at a moment's notice via social media it's difficult to say ANYTHING that won't offend someone. Our world has become so PC that we are all afraid to voice our unpopular opinions.

Here is what I consider a good guideline for becoming offended:
-- If I have a problem with someone's opinion that's my problem and I need to deal with it internally.
-- When a person's opinion becomes law/standard/physically harmful and directly affects my life then you have a problem and it needs to be addressed.

When the founder of Chick-fil-A made some statements about his opinions on marriage- I was pissed. I haven't eaten at one of the locations since. Do I think What's-his-face cares? Of course not. He has his personal opinions and I have mine. He chooses to think a certain group of people in our country don't deserve equal rights and I choose to think he is an ass.

When that Duck Dynasty character made some awful remarks about gay and black people I was outraged. I have NEVER seen one of their shows and I have NEVER had an interest to. I can't name the person who was in the interview nor can I pick him out of a line-up. It really just annoys me that someone in such a powerful spotlight would use that arena to say something so ignorant.

Recently, with this CEO person from Mozilla, we have seen the social court work it's charms. The CEO donated money to Prop 8.  HE believes marriage should be between a man and woman. He is like everyone else with an opinion. We all have them. He is allowed to his personal opinion. I don't care for his opinion. Big Fucking Deal. If he had been speaking on behalf of the company, sure, let's justifiably burn him at the stake. But he has donated his own money to a cause that he believes in. And, because of this, he has been charged and tried in the court of social law-- and he lost. The CEO of Mozilla stepped down because of all the media attention he has brought to the company over his opinions.

If I were to be run out of my work, town, community because of my beliefs or opinions I would cry foul and sue SOMEONE. (Because I'm a good American and we sue just because we can)

Why are we forcing people to change their personal opinions? And, if they don't, why do we persecute them? Is this really productive?

Here's an idea: how about we just be good to one another, try to persuade people instead of forcing and hopefully we can teach the next generation to be kinder to one another.

"I disagree strongly with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."- Voltaire

Working Atheist

At my job I don't usually but, sometimes, I will work directly with our clients. I work for a private vocational rehabilitation company. I do their vocational testing. It's not the main part of my job but I'm the main tester for the company. I enjoy it. It gives me a chance to talk directly with our clients. Plus it makes my day go faster. (And I slack off a bit)

Everyone in our small company knows that I am an atheist. It's not a secret. I have a Darwin Fish emblem on my car. I talk openly about all the secular groups I'm involved with. If I'm asked what I'm going to be doing for the weekend and I just happen to be going to an atheist social I tell them.  I don't shove it in anyone's face. I just don't hide it. I'm lucky that most of my coworkers are secular as well. This would not be the case down south, I'm sure.

Sometimes I happen to have a religious client. And that's okay. People have their means with which to get through life and injuries. The problem comes when the religious client wants to have a religious discussion with me. I'm usually pretty good at avoiding the subject. Sometimes they don't let me talk myself out of it.

I once had a client corner me. He had noticed my car emblem and asked me about it. I tried to dance around that one like Michael Flatley- it didn't work. He started to tell me that when I'm older I'll become more spiritual. He told me how I was such a smart girl and that one day I'll be able to see that evolution was wrong. I'll see the light.

My client today was very religious. He told me about some of his workers who were atheists. He called them criminals and gangsters. "They only care about themselves!" He then proceeded to  tell me that America should once again adopt 'Blue Laws'. No businesses should be open on Sunday. "That is church and family day. We didn't have crime back then. Everyone was with their family."

I'm usually able to handle myself in situations like this in any other setting. Catch me at a secular event, sure. Question me in a park- no problem.  Quiz me at work......what the hell, dude?? I can't fire back at a client about religion. That would be a disaster. I'm not going to suck up to them either. I mostly just smile and nod.

I hear a lot of religious people say that they are persecuted in their work place. They are in so much fear that they only wear their smaller cross around their neck, they only read their bibles during their lunch break, they may only invite you to church once or twice a month and they only put a short proverb on their e-mail signatures. They are so repressed.

Do it with me, everyone,...SMILE AND NOD...

Death of a Tyrant

Fred Phelps is the head of the Westboro Baptist Church. The WBC is a 'church' based out of Kansas that has become known for picketing military funerals, LGBT activities and basically anything and anyone they deem 'evil'.  The WBC has been banned in a few countries. They have been sued and taken to court over free speech rights. Because of the WBC many states now have laws restricting picketing at funerals. The WBC is largely made up of the Phelps extended family, Fred being the patriarch. They are the most hated family in the US.

And now Fred Phelps is in a hospice dying.

A few years ago I would have been overjoyed at this news. This man is the most hateful, angry and terrifying person I've ever known within my lifetime. The stories his excommunicated children and grandchildren have told of this evil man's ways of 'teaching' them is horrifying.

There have been many documentaries made featuring the Phelps family as well as the WBC. They are an average looking family who is also very intelligent. Many of them go to college and become lawyers. They are not stupid people. They just happen to all have grown up  under the same iron thumb of Fred Phelps. They have all been forced into believing the evil things this mad man has trained them to accept since birth.

I almost can't blame them. I feel sorry for the children. I feel sorry for the young adults. I feel sorry for the grown children of Fred. His daughter, Shirley, is the one I feel most sorry for. She is too far gone. She went to school and earned her law degree. She is not an unintelligent woman. She's a very strong and motivated woman. She was just raised to believe a horrible lie. Just like many religious people are. This family just happens to be more forceful with their horrible opinions.

Fred Phelps dying is not something I wish to celebrate. The suffering and death of another person is not something to be joyous over. I do not feel happiness in his dying. As much as he and his family are hated by others, he was loved and cared for by his remaining children, grandchildren and church members.

Just because this family was mean and hurtful to so many others doesn't mean that we are now allowed to relish in their pain. Many people are happy to see this man die. I'm not saddened by it. But, I have no wish to picket his funeral- if they even have one for him. ( I really thought he had died a few years back and they had just buried him in the backyard.)

The best thing to do is let this man die and not make it news. That's exactly what this family wants. More news and time in the spotlight. Let Fred Phelps die and perhaps the 'church' will go with him.

Selfish

 Ok. I get called a lot of things by religious people. A LOT. Not very nice things. But the one that I get most often is 'selfish'. 

I'm selfish because I don't want to take responsibility for my sinning. I'm selfish because I just want to sleep in on Sundays and not have to spend any time worshiping a god. I'm selfish because I'm not married. I'm selfish because I don't have, nor do I want, children.

I'd like to break some of this selfishness down.

Responsibility for my sinning/Sunday Mornings/Not worshiping your god:

You say I'm sinning. I don't believe I'm sinning. Your god says I'm sinning. I don't believe in your god. We're at a crossroads here.

I try not to break the laws of the country in which I live. I try not to go against the social norms in which I have surrounded myself. I try not to go against the social morals that most Americans, and humans in general, live by. Your god seems to think that what I do with my Sunday mornings and genitals are highly important to him. I don't care because your made up story about how the world works doesn't apply to my everyday life.

I'm not married/I don't have kids:
Nope, not married. And, seeing as I'm in my 20's, I'm ok with this. I'm not usually a patient person but I'm trying to not rush through my life right now. Marriage is one of those things that can be held off.

Kids? Hell no. I don't want them. I never wanted them. They are annoying, sticky, dirty, demanding, and disgusting. Not to mention expensive. I will never understand how I'm possibly being called selfish for not having children. I can't afford them, I don't want to have to take care of one, and I sure as hell don't want to have to ask the government for assistance in raising it financially. Personally, I feel as if I'm doing the world a favor by not inflicting another child on the populous.

Just because you were told by the bible to go forth and multiply doesn't mean it is something in which I must partake.  In fact, the product of you and another person squishing your DNA together is not something I even care about. I adore my best friend's kid. I'd do anything for him, just like I would my nephews. But they are all birth control for me.

Ok, so maybe I am a selfish person. But I'm ok with this. It's not a negative thing to be selfish. Everyone needs it sometimes. I do lots of things for other people. I do charity work. I donate time and money to good causes.  But, every now and then, I just want to go home at the end of the day and forget about the rest of the world. And it's not a sin. It's a mental health issue. I do it in order to be a happier, healthier and more productive person.

You're welcome.

Making Our Own Hope

Yesterday I had a discussion with fellow atheists and freethinkers about what secular people have to offer in the way of hope for others.

Religious people give hope to the masses by offering them mansions in the sky, no cares or problems, spending eternity with loved ones and happiness forever more.

Atheists offer nothing in the afterlife. If you think your life is miserable now just wait until you die! You become worm food and possibly forgotten.... Forever..... It's a hard sell.

It's the most humbling thing I have ever encountered. I never felt 'humbled' in the eyes of god. How could I? I was always told to follow god's law and I would be rewarded with the most lavish afterlife I could comprehend. I was promised a city in the sky, a golden crown, an eternity of happiness....

Very humble, indeed.

I was taught that this world is not my home. This Earth that god had put so much time into was not where I was supposed to be. I was meant for Heaven.

Being an atheist means that I had to accept that THIS is all there is for us. We are no more special to the universe than an ant. When I die, I may be remembered for another generation. And only by my family and friends. The world may not know my name. I may never do anything that is heroic or courageous. I may not go down in history for making a scientific discovery. I may never do anything worldwide with my life.

But I can try.

This is why atheists are coming together and working with one another to make this world a better one. This is it. This is the only chance we get. This is the only world we have right now. I want to do something to make my nephews' lives better. I want to leave this planet in better shape that I found it. I want societies that span the globe to have a better understanding of one another.

This is the atheists' hope. This is what we can look forward to. We are only here for the most absurdly brief amount of time. Destroying one another is not how I want to spend it.