Feeling Downtrodden
Gary Sloan a fellow atheist and a retired English professor in Tuston, La. penned this article which started me thinking, and now I'm feeling downtrodden. Did you know that Sixty-six percent of Americans view atheists unfavorably. Sixty-nine percent would be disturbed if a family member married one, and forty-nine percent wouldn't elect an atheist to public office under any circumstances. Americans disapprove of atheists at approximately the same rate they approve of George Dubya; not surprising since George chooses to exclude atheists from active participation in our countries business. He believes our true strength comes from a belief in god, and Dick Cheney believes every meaningful achievement requires god. Well that's two strikes in a society where three strikes and you're out. So what does this mean for me. I won’t be marrying your daughters, not that my wife would approve. I certainly won’t be spending your money as an elected representative, and the odds are high that now that you know you’ll view me less favorably. Does it also mean that fewer will visit me here at onegoodmove? If I were a believer would more people visit?
Update: Well it looks like the atheists, all three of us, are in a reflective mood I just spotted this post by the LeftBanker
And here is another nice article by Gary Sloan on the ABC's of Atheism
Comments
It really amazes me that here in the 21rst century an American in public office cannot admit to atheism. It is perfectly acceptable to be a phony Christian but God help you if you profess to be a decent atheist. Somewhere after the Enlightenment we took a wrong turn. It's time to stop and ask for directions.
I stopped believing in God when I was seven. I was sitting in Catechism class (I was Catholic), and as my parish priest was explaining the Holy Trinity to my class, I was struck by how silly and ridiculous that concept was. Later, when I stood up in class and declared that Jesus probably wasn't God, I was immediately yanked out of the class and thrown in the "troublemaker" class, which was filled with mostly booger-eating sociopaths and retards who could not behave in a regular class. Apparently an intellectual debate about the central tenants of Catholicism was not allowed during a Catholic education. I realized then that religion is mostly propaganda and lies. One thing was certain: no amount of punishment and alienation from my peers would convince me of God's existence. I have never looked back since then.
I walked out on the Catholic Church at the age of 10, when my Cathechism teacher, a nun by a gender-confused name of Stefano, said that Buddhism is a superstition. I told her that was not what I learned at school. She was all over me. Soon enough I discovered that there were lots of more fun things to do on Sunday mornings than going to church.
I grew up in an Asian country which boasts a miraculous conversion rate to Christianity. There is one spot in its capital city where if you do a 360 degree turn, you can see 17 churches and 15 love motels. I said to my mother that it was kind of like going back and forth between heaven and hell. She quipped, "yeah, except it depends on which one is heaven and which one is hell."
Little did I know I was coming to a country where religious freedom meant religious freedom only for Christians