So, I had the Jehovah's Witnesses come to my door this week. This time it was two plump, old ladies with Jamaican accents, mon.
I told them straight out, I don't have time to talk. I'm an atheist. We're all atheists here. I wrote a book about being an atheist. I have a website about being an atheist. I've been an atheist for twenty years and even before that I didn't believe what you believe. It isn't going to work. Don't bother.
But they still wanted to talk. And when I finally shooed them away, they said they'd be back.
So there! All you snobs who keep telling me I'm mean! Just come to my door and you'll see how mean I am. I'm so nice it's stupid. I practically invited them in for tea and cookies. I pretty much told them to come back, even as I was telling them I wasn't interested.
It's all the smiling. It's the "well, good luck out there in the trenches" teasing. It's the "that's a pretty disgusting god you've got there."
Wait. Well, okay it's not that. But I get the feeling they've heard it ALL before. Nothing phases these people. They just keep saying what they've been programmed to say. Talking to them is like banging your head against the wall. So, naturally people are rude to them.
This must be why Jesus said his followers would be persecuted for their faith. He knew how arrogant and pushy they all were.
Here are my latest Examiner articles, both Rationalism, and Orlando Atheism:
Save the date! Jesus returns May 21, 2011!
Gainesville church declares 9/11 "International Burn a Koran Day"
Christianity on ballot in Kissimmee
Religious freedom, hypocrisy clash at Ground Zero
07/24/1010
So, you
should really
read the
articles
under atheism
about dicks.
Apparently there
was a convention
somewhere; I
wasn't there.
And this guy
Phil whom I know
from Facebook
(which means I
don't know him)
gave something
of an
accommodationist
speech telling
atheists not to
be dicks.
And then somebody from Facebook (see I know this guy so not well I can't even remember who it was) said something about dicks and angry vaginas. And I wondered how come the women are angry and the guys aren't. And he said it was the feminists at the convention who said "angry vaginas" which I thought was odd.
I'm not an angry vagina. I'm a dick. I can't help it if the word originated because of brutish male behavior and is so named after the main thing that makes them male.
I'm not an angry vagina when I'm being a dick. I guess the feminists don't like the word bitch. Maybe it's because they don't want to defame female dogs. Whatever, I don't mind being a dick.
The fabulous piece by Al Stefanelli totally speaks to and about me. Even before I read it today, I was on my way home from teaching a most wonderful Zumba Fitness class when I saw a car with praying hands on the back window; under it were the words: In Jesus' name. And I thought about how this country is going to pure shit, not just because of religion, but also the national debt and the corporatocracy and the insanity of both the left and the right. And I felt like I was living in enemy territory of a sort, in which I just had to keep my head down and try to eke out the best living I could while I had the time.
And then of course I just wanted to go home and start being a dick about it. So, if you contact me and I'm a dick, you've probably just pissed me off. It's hard not to get pissed off when your eyes and ears are really open.
I'm not an accommodationist in any way. I will not coddle you and pretend to respect what you think and believe if what you think and believe are stupid, nonsensical, and irrational.
So, if that makes me a dick, which it does, too fucking bad.
07/18/2010
Ooh,
somebody didn't
like one of my
responses in the
comment section.
He said I was
mean. LOL.
Remember when I
called my aunt
a....well, we
won't repeat it,
and my family
all the sudden
started reading
the blog! LOL.
No, I mean,
really: LOL. I
had to delete a
whole section of
blog posts
because of my
little tantrum.
But this guy
thinks I'm
supposed to be
the saint of
atheism.
I'm not.
But okay,
okay. To the
commenter who
likes to write
whole words as
single letters
and asked me the
questions: I
apologize for
being snippy. I
hope I answered
your questions
to your
satisfaction. If
you have more
questions, I
will be
happy
delighted and
eager to answer
them!
Am I coming off too rational? Is that it? Am I not showing my stupid side; I'm sure I have one lying around here somewhere. Am I not baring my soul enough? Because I tried that a while ago and I didn't think it worked. I don't think people want to hear about my personal life and how it's no different from anyone else's. You've got your own miseries to worry about, you don't need mine.
And besides, once I get going on a downer, I can be outright morose (which is a lot like the word moronic, isn't it?).
But okay, let's just get it out in the open: I am really tired right now. I'm tired from being just plain tired, yes. But I'm also tired of the stupidity, not just of the religious in the world, and in this country, but of atheists and freethinkers, too.
But we've been through this all before. I am an anomaly or something. I belong to a very small group (am I bragging or whining, it's hard to tell). I am a social liberal, fiscal conservative, Libertarian atheist. (I don't even always agree with the Libertarians, if you must know.) I know of, maybe, three other people in the world like me.
So, if I go and peruse my facebook page and come back here to a stupid question and get bitchy about it, too bad*. This is my space. This is where I get to do the talking. This is my rebellion!
Bwahahahahaha.
Anyway, maybe I should put the faq page up again. Where'd it go? Do you think that if I had the faq up, that commenter person wouldn't have asked those stupid questions? You're so right! Who reads faqs?
*I hope that this comment, directed at Jason and not at as yet unnamed spellophobic commenter, does not, in any way, negate my previous apology to said commenter. I am truly filled with a little bit of remorse.
07/17/2010
Florida televangelist plans "9/11 Christian Center" at Ground Zero
Roswell high school students want their fetuses back
07/16/2010
I'm back! I
got the cutest
darned comment
while I was
away. Check it
out on the
comments page.
Aren't
morans cute?
I published a bucket load of Examiner articles while I was away. Here are the best ones:
From the
Orlando Atheism
Examiner:
Atheism 101: Why
do atheists hate
God?
All right, I
really don't
think this one
is all that
good. I was in
too much of a
hurry. But
still...you're
dying to know,
right?
Florida school district sued for banning Bible give-away
And from the
Rationalism
Examiner:
Native American
boy granted
special rights
because of
religion
Conservative columnist tries satire, fails miserably
Pledge of Allegiance is unpatriotic
Paranormal "expert" finds proof of ghosts in Texas courthouse
75 years on, AA
gets more
respect than it
deserves
This one, for
some reason,
sparked a LOT of
comments.
I don't read the comments at my Examiner sites very often. Too many of them are cruel and I don't need that in my life. If you'd like to make a comment that I'll see, send it through this site.
06/24/2010
My latest
Examiner
articles:
Atheists of Florida new billboard promotes unity, celebrates Independence Day
World awaits God's response to oil spill prayers
Florida judge makes mockery of justice system (again) with "Psychic Court"
Orlando workshop will help teachers spread Christianity in public schools
Parapsychology exploits children, tarnishes psychology
Florida church donates to school in exchange for access to students, families
Malibu Bigfoot spotted vacationing in North Carolina
Tough questions Christians face finally answered this weekend
Crist vetoes abortion ultrasound bill
Commercial fortunetelling is now legal in Montgomery County, Maryland
06/23/2010
I'm going to
take a break for
a few
weeks...again.
So, instead of
cleaning out the
news, I'm going
to leave it all
there for you.
You'll have
plenty of time
to read it all.
And when I return
to the rat race,
into the
archives it goes
to make room for
new stuff.
Before I duck out, however, I'll try to post links to my latest Examiner articles.
06/22/2010
I've started
receiving
"Girlfriends in
God" emails. I
can't remember
how I came
across them, but
it had something
to do with an
article I wrote
for
Examiner. I
also get a
conservative (uber,
right-wing,
religious-nut
conservative)
newsletter.
(It's amazing
how angry people
can be.)
Anyway, my latest "Girlfriends in God" blog was strange, but very profound.
My new "girlfriend," Mary Southerland, started out talking about laundry and about how she and her family couldn't figure out how to work all the settings on the washing machine, so they decided to wash everything on one setting and in cold water and that solved the pink underwear problem.
This is a fine, dumbed-down, intellectually lazy solution to a problem of ignorance. Oh, how apropos. Does she realize, you think? Nah, I don't think.
She then inappropriately segued into a statement about the human condition:
"When a life crisis comes, we generally have an automatic and very human setting of fear and anxiety. The good news is that we can change that setting to 'peace' by counting on God."
Yes, Mary, exactly. God is a balm. (You put the balm on? Who told you to put the balm on? I didn't tell you to put the balm on. Why'd you put the balm on?)
Anyway. It's true. Humans are sentient creatures. The natural cautions of the animal kingdom (the fight or flight response, for example) are compounded in us because we know consequences and we know death. We are fearful, anxious, desperate animals, struggling constantly to ease those negative feelings.
We find and stick to what is easy for us; sometimes the easy road isn't a pleasant one, but we stick with it, because we're afraid of change.
So, Mary goes on to tell us about how we count on God and how he makes things all better.
We count on
God to be with
us.
We count on him
for direction
and guidance.
Count on God for
provision.
And, we can
count on God for
protection.
That's the
one that really
got me:
"God will fight
for us when we
are attacked.
When we yield
control to God
and follow Him,
God fights for
us but when we
pursue our
agenda, we step
out from under
His umbrella of
protection and
into our own
limited
strength."
So, when the psychopath gets hold of you, God is going to fight for you? You just let it happen and don't worry, God is in control?
Well, yeah, in the Christian sense God is in control all the time. His will is done and all, right? So, if you get Bundy'd, that was his plan. He probably had a reason, like, maybe your parents could go on a tour to high schools all over the country talking about how godly you were. So, you were murdered so that other kids could be converted. Nice.
See, I get the balm thing. I do. I understand how frightening the world can be. I understand the problem of death. I see how we need some comfort.
But we need real comfort, not false hope. The reality is that there is no god watching out for you and protecting you. Where was this god for Kathy Devine, Christa Hoyt, or Polly Klaas? Do you know how many Christian women are raped and murdered every year?
What about the children? If God won't protect the children from violent death, why do you think he's helping you drive your car?
(And what's the deal with the people who say God shouldn't be your co-pilot, he's the pilot? Please, people, please drive your cars and do not rely on a deity.)
None of it makes sense.
To combat the fear and anxiety of living, exercise your reason. Understand risk. Know safety and cautionary procedures. Use your common sense. Recognize death for what it is--the equivalent of your pre-birth state.
And if something awful should come your way? Fight like hell! Don't just lay there and pray! Fight your own fight, because you are the only one there to help yourself.
Don't be fooled into a false sense of security by a soothing, invisible balm.
06/12/2010
Possibly the
best piece of
writing on the
planet:
There is No God (And You Know It)
06/11/2010
My latest
articles:
The Courts' Ten Commandments lunacy
Catholic League says refusal to honor Mother Teresa is bigotry
130-ft cross coming to Longwood neighborhood
Florida Christian school shut down over abuse allegations
06/04/2010
I got really
skewered in the
comments on my
articles at
Examiner.
Most of the
really bad ones
recently came
from
this article
on my
Rationalism
page. I didn't
read very far
back, so there's
probably a lot
more abuse to be
had. But that's
why I choose to
not read the
comments most of
the time, though
Examiner
encourages us to
"communicate"
with our
readers.
People can be pretty severe. I didn't read them too closely, because I don't like to have my feelings hurt (who does?). But I recall words like ridiculous, idiotic, lame. And some people said I couldn't write and they wondered why Examiner hired me. Several times people tried to denigrate me by referencing my biography in which I say I have a BA in history and a lot of cats.
Well, I made the best of it. Maybe I'm getting thicker skin. One guy complained that he hoped I didn't get paid for that particular article because it was such rubbish, or something mean. So, I left a comment saying that I did get paid and that I was pretty glad that the thought of me getting paid pissed him off.
But Examiner wouldn't let me use the word pissed so I had to remove it. I still left the part saying I got paid. I'll just have to imagine that he knows how happy I am that he's pissed off.
Some people complained that I was using Examiner to tout my own views. But when I applied for the position, I sent in a sample article, and they said that was just what they were looking for.
So, go figure.
It's hard to put yourself and your opinions out like that, especially on the controversial subjects. But I try to remember that people forget that there's a real person on the other side of their remarks. It's very easy to say cruel and bitter things to people on the anonymous pages of the Internet.
I know. I still remember when I first found atheism and went onto the then-novel AOL and found a chat room for atheists. It was exciting to find I wasn't alone. But there were Christians in the room also and they said awful things.
My response, at the time, was to give back as good as they gave. Then I sought out other venues in which to argue with Christians and on both sides we were awful to one another.
So, I can understand immature people expressing themselves poorly. And I can understand otherwise good people doing the same, out of emotional torment or frustration. I've been there myself.
I like to think I've grown a bit. Or maybe I've just mellowed. (Which strikes me as funny, because I'm pretty sure one of the commenters called me a pothead.)
Of course, I can understand that some people really do think I'm an idiot and don't mind saying so. But I'm clearly not one. And I think I do have the writing skills, and the education, necessary to do what I do.
And I'm having so much fun.
06/04/2010
Happy
National
Doughnut Day! I
got a free one
at the Dunkin'
today. So happy.
And fat.
Here are some of my latest articles:
UFO expert
confirms aliens
landed in Angel
Fire, NM
That was a fun
one to write!
Think acupuncture's bunk? It still is
Federal judge rules against graduation in churches
Atheist wins appeal for "no god" license plate
Louisiana physicist has proved God's existence
Accommodationism movement is bad for science
Bill allowing teachers to pray with students on Gov. Crist's desk
Florida teacher accuses colleagues in holy water incident
Universal's World of Harry Potter stirs up old controversy
Voodoo insanity should be ignored, not aided, by police
A bit of sanity prevails (for now) in Florida
Gov. Crist adds to hate crimes legislation
06/02/2010
Check out
this guy "cleverly
disguised as a
responsible
adult." I
don't think so!
06/01/2010
I had a
great trip up
there in the
north. We went
to Minneapolis
and got a
picture of the
Mary Richards
statue downtown.
The Mall of
America was
amazing! I got
some chocolate
covered bacon at
one of the
chocolate shops.
It was okay.
We had some cheese curds in Wisconsin, both fresh and fried. And we visited a contemporary art museum for a lot of laughs.
Chicago was beautiful. We ate at the original Pizzeria Uno and took a trolley tour. If I had to choose a big city to live in, that would be the one. We did get "helped" by a local who naturally ended up asking us for money. We were discussing which way to go on E. Ontario to get to the hotel and he demanded that we follow him because he knew a faster way to get there.
It wasn't faster, or shorter, but he insisted it was a better way. Beats me why we didn't just tell him to bugger off. I guess you have to get used to being rude to people if you're going to live in the city.
Our last stop was St. Louis. We rode in a little pod to the top of the arch. We ate at Pappy's and visited the zoo.
There were some awful people at the zoo. One man held his small child over the railing at one of the exhibits as "discipline." And in another family, a man and his teenage son were banging on the glass in the herpetarium.
People, in general, are pretty gross.
05/20/2010
This is funny.
This 8th grader
gives his
teacher the
finger and they
call out the
cops and lock
down the school!
Then they ban
the kid
from--get
this--eighth-grade
graduation.
Give me a break. The world has gone completely insane.
05/11/2010
Yogi huckster in
the news again
Hitchens'
irrational
stance on French
burqa ban
Orlando woman
claims right to
what your
children can and
can't read
05/07/2010
More articles:
National Day of Reason a reminder of hope
South Carolina gone mad with religious fervor
Toxic fallacy: a response to willful misunderstanding
05/07/2010
We're in Season
3 of The Real
Housewives of
New York City.
Last night
America was
fortunate enough
to see Alex
"take Jill
down." People
often dish about
these women as
if they're
spoiled,
privileged divas
far removed from
the world of the
"every woman."
Not true. These
women, all of
them, exist in
every corner of
America. Every
circle of
friends has a
least two of
them.
There is always
a Jill. She
thinks she's the
nice one, the
one who rises
above pettiness
and ill-bred
behavior to show
others how it's
done. And yet,
she's the one
gossiping,
back-biting,
snarking, and
nit-picking.
She's a bully
with a smile.
She can say
anything to you
that she wants,
but you are not
allowed to speak
to her in a way
she doesn't care
for.
There's often a
LuAnn, a
Countess, who
thinks she has
superior
breeding and
manners. She can
tell everyone
else how to
behave but
hasn't quite
fathomed that
she is also
confined to the
rules she
insists make one
a fine and
proper person.
She's the one at
the restaurant
telling you
you're using the
wrong fork, the
epitome of
rudeness. But
she thinks it's
okay because she
smiles and calls
you darling.
There's usually
a Ramona--a
little batty, a
lot silly, and
generally
inappropriate.
Things just fly
out of her mouth
and she doesn't
think there's a
problem with
that. Until
something flies
out of your
mouth in her
direction. She's
the one who
expects everyone
to come to her
parties, love
her dress, and
bring her gifts.
But if she
doesn't have
time for you,
that's your
problem. She
cries a lot
because people
are so mean.
And, if you're
really unlucky,
you have a
Kelly. Kelly is
gorgeous and she
knows it. She
thinks she is
better than
everybody else
in every way.
But what she is,
is deluded. She
is so vacant of
any really deep
thoughts or
feelings, any
real insights
into herself and
the world, that
she can't even
hear herself
contradict
herself. Most
women only put
up with Kelly
because there
are men around.
And you have the
semi-sane ones:
the Bethenny's
and Alex's.
Bethenny will
tell you what
she thinks,
until she
realizes you're
a Jill or a
Luann and you're
not capable of
processing
anything that
reflects badly
on yourself. At
that point,
Bethenny will
apologize or
agree, just to
get away from
you. And then
she'll feel bad
about it later.
Alex will let
you walk all
over her because
she's truly
nice. She'll
never really be
happy in a group
of women because
she's never
really heard
unless she's
playing by their
rules. Alex's
best friend is
never a woman.
Clearly, too
many women are
so filled with
insecurities,
masked by an
over-inflated
ego, that they
appear crazy to
rational people.
But,
unfortunately,
even a healthy
dose of reason
can't erase many
of these
behaviors.
Women are taught
from childhood
by the other
women in their
lives, and in
society, that it
is important to
have the gossip,
to not be the
subject of the
gossip, to
spread the
gossip, but to
act as if you
would never do
such a thing.
Women are taught
to act as if
they are pretty
and proper, not
moral and kind.
Ugliness on the
outside is to be
avoided at all
cost. Ugliness
on the inside is
ignored because
so few ever look
that deeply into
themselves.
05/05/2010
I am now, in
addition to the
Orlando Atheism
Examiner, the
national
Rationalism
Examiner!
Here are a few of my recent articles:
Without National Day of Prayer we'd need "more jail cells"
John Hagee invades Orlando in June
Christian yoga threatens religion as we know it
Will the National Day of Prayer disempower religion in the long run?
Porn addiction
therapy for
women demonizes
masturbation
04/28/2010
This morning,
for some odd
reason, I woke
up already
boggled at the
idea that humans
today believe
that a
compilation of
writings by
ancient middle
easterners are
the sacred and
true words of a
god. I just
can't wrap my
head around it.
Yes, I get the psychology of religion. I see the emotional need of it. I get that it is a coping mechanism. But that's the comfort part of it. The part that gives you rules to live by, to order this seemingly chaotic life. The part that tells you you're special to a supreme being, that helps you give meaning to your existence. The part that tells you that life doesn't end, to ease the sting of death. I get it.
Clinging to all of that is okay. I have no problem with it.
But to persist in claiming that the Bible is in any way true, or sacred, or a complete and good moral standard is patently absurd! Why can't people have the good parts of religion without the utter nonsense that leads them to hate others?
That part I do not get.
04/27/2010
This is an enhanced version of my recent facebook note.
My childhood friend, Bitsy, unfriended me on facebook. she
was apparently upset over an
Orlando Atheism Examiner article I wrote about the
Atheists of Florida planning to sue the City of Lakeland
over their sectarian prayers at meetings.
Before she unfriended me, she posted a comment on the link that said: "You have got to be kidding! Let's worry about the state of our nation. Like feeding the hungry, the abused children, healthcare reform, jobs, etc. Not that someone said a prayer before a meeting. Which if I am correct we have the right to do."
This is a typical response atheists get from Christians when we complain about the erosion of our rights. There are so many more important things to worry about, they say. How petty of you to complain about prayer in government. In reality, this kind of response simply masks a rude belittlement of the rights and freedoms of people you do not agree with and do not want to hear from or about.
When I went to the post in question, thinking of a way in which I could phrase a response politely, I found the comment had disappeared and upon further investigation, realized I'd been unfriended. I struggled for a while trying to decide which upset me most: Was it that she'd dumped me rather unceremoniously, without so much as a good-bye or an explanation? Or was it that she'd dumped me before I got the chance to respond? Because, let's face it, I do like to be heard. That is often enough to get me unfriended right there. Too many people don't want to hear opinions that differ from their own. I can't say I'm all that fond of it myself. But I don't unfriend people for simply speaking their minds on controversial subjects.
I do unfriend people for several reasons, however. I unfriended one woman because she kept posting pictures of herself in bikinis. I should have just hidden her, but I hadn't really learned about that wonderful tool yet. And I unfriended another woman because she was just stupid, and kept posting stupid, stupid stuff. And I thought, if just seeing her profile picture elicits a cringe response, I should probably dump her. It's not like I knew her. She and I shared only one thing in common and that just wasn't enough for me. I would unfriend someone who turned out to be vulgar, violent, or a lunatic. Or someone that I just didn't like.
But when it comes to people I actually know, people I would recognize in person, whom I've talked to, and spent time with, well, those people would have to do something pretty awful for me to unfriend them. Granted, my link to the people of my childhood is tenuous at best, even to Bitsy whom I considered my best friend in junior high and early high school. Bitsy was my best friend, but I doubt that I was hers. She was my best friend because she allowed me to hang out with her, despite the fact that I was me. But I have fond memories of those times and of Bitsy's level-headedness.
It was clear from the beginning that we now had little in common, but having a connection on facebook was nice in that it kept me up to date on how she'd turned out, her kids and grandkids, etc. I like to know these little things about the people I grew up with. I suppose it's just nostalgia. Unfortunately, nostalgia can be a dangerous thing. It blurs reality and confuses us, leaving us open to yearning for the return of something that never was.
I'm sorry to have lost the connection with her and I'm sorry that I offended her. But there's nothing I can do about it because I was just being honestly me. If being honestly me is offensive, there's no apology to be made and no amends can change the situation.
I would have liked to have had the chance to discuss the issue with her, but clearly she didn't want to hear any more about it.
One thing that confused me was why she blamed me for what the Atheists of Florida were doing. It reminded me of a time when a friend of mine said, "I saw your leader on television last night." Huh? Turned out she was talking about the president of American Atheists.
I had to explain that atheists don't have churches and leaders like religious people do. She saw the president of an organization, not my leader.
So, perhaps Bitsy thought that I was included in the "Atheists of Florida" that I mentioned and didn't realize that was the name of an organization to which I do not belong.
Doesn't really matter, though. I still agree with what Atheists of Florida is doing and would support them.
As to her remarks, I have the following response for Bitsy:
"No, I'm not kidding. Yes, of course we should continue to work to improve the state of our nation, feed the hungry, help abused children, etc. Standing up for our rights in small things in no way disables us from working on the big things.
I don't think that's really what upsets you. I think you just don't like that atheists are demanding an equal voice in government. This lawsuit isn't about "someone" saying a prayer before "a" meeting. It's about government officials elected to represent the entire community, choosing to use that time to beseech a particular deity, thus lending an air of authority to that particular religion. Individuals have the right to pray any time they want, yes. Of course, there are rules about disruptive behavior at government meetings and in public schools, but prayers can be said by any individual any time. But this isn't about individuals praying on their own, this is about government-sponsored, government-authorized acknowledgement, and practice, of religion."
The sad thing about facebook for me is that just like in every other social aspect of my life, it has led to disappointment. I have learned in the last fifteen years that most people will inevitably disappoint me. People who are very religious disappoint me, especially those I expected to be more rational. People who are mildly religious, but refuse to acknowledge the rights of all people to secular government disappoint me. People who are unable to grasp the meaning of real freedom disappoint me. But I'm learning to live with disappointment.
04/27/2010
Here is the article I just wrote today for Examiner, as well
as the ones I wrote while I was away:
Public school ceremonies in churches violate separation of church and state
Florida's Christian Family Coalition throws tantrum over parental notification setback
Old Testament scholar loses job over his views on evolution
Christian God rescues lost Florida girl
Atheist billboard damaged in St. Augustine
Atheists of Florida plan to sue over city commission prayers
(This one lost me a friend; I'll blog about that in a minute)
Proposed amendment would repeal Florida's Blaine Amendment
Atheism 101: What do atheists believe? (Part two)
Florida Senate opening prayer crosses into politics
I had
no idea I wrote that much while I was away.
04/26/2010
I'm back. That was fun. While I was away we atheists had "A
Week" on facebook. We all changed our pics to A's so we could
see each other.
My friends list started filling with atheists and hasn't stopped. Not only is it overwhelming, I'm not sure it's such a good idea.
If you know me, you know I'm a socially liberal fiscal conservative. I think two of my new atheist friends share those views. Oy vey. I don't want to defriend my new-found, uber-liberal, anti-free speech, "friends." But I'm finding that I'm forced to hide a lot of them.
Unfortunately, I'm hiding a bunch of others too! I keep hitting "older posts" time and time again only to find I'm still only four hours deep into updates. I don't have time for it. So, I'm hiding perfectly fine, deserving atheists who want to tell me about their vegan diets and their dogs. Can't be helped.
04/02/2010
I'm going to go quiet for a few weeks. No news updates or
anything. Be back later.
04/01/2010
April Fools Day brings out the Pagan in all of us
03/26/2010
All too often a Christian will attempt to show evidence of
his religion's validity by pointing to the suffering and death
of Jesus' followers.
People wouldn't suffer and die for something the knew to be false, they say.
Well, that's not really true. There are certainly crazy people stubborn enough to do that. But most people, I agree wouldn't suffer torture or death for something they knew was false.
But they would do it for something they believed in.
So, the Christian says, the evidence for their religion had to be powerfully strong for Jesus' followers to be willing to die for it.
Okay then. I put it to you that the evidence for the Hindu goddess Kali must be overwhelming for Tekamdas Meghwar. He slaughtered his three daughters on Kali's altar before slitting his own throat, in an effort to please the goddess.
People don't do things like that without good reason, right? Kali must be real.
03/25/2010
Parents right to continue lawsuit against school board over
religious song
03/24/2010
Atheist billboard campaign arrives in St. Augustine and
Jacksonville
03/17/2010
Osceola County Commission invocations violate separation of
church and state
03/11/2010
Florida's specialty plate program lends government endorsement
to pet causes and beliefs at Orlando Atheism Examiner.
Check out my conversation with NJ Doolittle on the comments page. This is an example of why I got out of debating with Christians. They have no education in their own religion and you spend days explaining to them what they ought to know, just to have them call you a bitch and disappear. It's hardly worth it.
The wackiest news of late is the Chief Exorcist of the Vatican telling us that the Devil resides there. You've got to be kidding me.
Can you believe that in the year 2010, not only do people still believe in the Devil and exorcism, but there actually exists a Chief Exorcist for the Catholic Church?
How do these people get through the day with all the cognitive dissonance they must hold onto to function in the real world?
And this is the exorcist's explanation for the crimes of the Catholic Church: Satan. It's Satan. Of course. Because humans would never behave this way without Satan around.
Well, how about we lay the blame on Satan's creator? Why do we blame Satan? Like he has a choice, right? All God has to do, you know, any time now, is just get rid of the dude.
03/09/2010
Apparently a member of
Atheists of Florida was
dissed by Governor Charlie Crist yesterday. The atheists are
calling it an assault; I don't think they're helping their cause
with that. But clearly Crist acted like a petulant, spoiled
politician, instead of Mr. Middlebrooks' representative in
government.
03/09/2010
The Daily Show misses the point on Mother Teresa stamp
03/08/2010
Palm Bay: A perfect place (for Christians) to live
03/08/2010
American Atheists has
come out saying that they question the survey that says
atheists are smarter than theists. Their reason? Intelligence
"can be difficult to define and quantify."
Really?
The funny thing is that in the comments section accompanying the article, this little bit of difficult-to-define-and-quantify "smart" appears:
"While I know that they will never be able to prove that God does not exist because of His divine presence in the lives of so many, I am refreshed to finally see proof of [sic] atheists who are not so hate filled exists."
This is evidence of lack of intelligence right here. This is how you determine stupidity.
First, no one needs to prove the non-existence of something. Anyone who puts the onus on the nonbeliever is not smart.
Second, the reason given for not being able to prove God doesn't exist is this: because God exists. That's stupidity. It's not smart.
And finally, this person has FINALLY seen proof that atheists who are not "hate-filled" exist. Well, this person clearly has not taken any time at all to look around. That's not smart.
I appreciate that atheists don't want to appear snobbish and overbearing and smarter than everybody else. And yet, Dr. Ed Buckner, president of American Atheists, says this: "And we're totally against Atheists suddenly telling the world, 'Hey, look at us, we're right because we're bright!' "
Uh. Mr. Buckner...did you just get in a great big DIG at The Brights? Are you going to try to tell me you used the word "bright" just off the top of your head?
Snob.
The study in question poses a general observation. And in general, it is obvious that religious people are less intelligent than atheists.
This doesn't mean you. It doesn't mean I'm smarter than you. It doesn't mean I'm smarter than every religious person in the world.
If you think that's what it means, you're stupid and the study probably is talking about me and you, and how I'm smarter.
03/07/2010
Secular homeschoolers find Darwin on their own
03/05/2010
Atheism 101: Is nonbelief a belief?
03/02/2010
Florida bill would allow majority to promote their religion in
public schools
02/28/2010
I published my first article at
Examiner.com!
02/28/2010
I had to leave a comment at Lisa Derrick's blog yesterday.
In her article,
"Oh my moons and stars! Godless atheists invade White House!"
she starts off hinting at an apology for calling atheists
"godless." Now me...I'm a skeptic. I'm not so skeptical I won't
accept evidence. I'm not even so skeptical I will automatically
dismiss a proposal that sounds reasonable. But I am skeptical of
people and their intentions. And when someone apologizes for
something innocuous, I have to wonder why.
Why, if godless equals atheist, would she bother to apologize at all? And why, if she had some concern that atheists might not like being called godless, would she do it, only to try to explain it away?
It seems to me, that if you are going to apologize for something, but still do it, you're admitting that you're insulting someone, but refusing to refrain from it.
I should know. I do this all the time. Which is probably why I'm skeptical. But when I do it, I come right out and apologize for offending people, knowing full well I'm doing it. I don't attempt to tell them they shouldn't be offended.
I don't particularly care for the descriptive, "godless," because the opposite imagines there actually is a god to be full of. Oh, I think religious people are full of something, that's true. But it's not a god--an unseen, unknowable entity. So, no, I'm not godless. I'm without belief in gods. But not empty of something that other people are filled with, as that term implies.
But that's not why I commented on Derrick's article. It was the other little dig she had to work into it. Sure, she seems to say, atheists and agnostics have just as much right to meet with officials at the White House as any other people of faith, because, after all, atheism is a belief system too!
So, truly, what she's saying is that we ALL believe. We all have a belief SYSTEM. I can only assume that if she came to accept that atheism is, in fact, NOT a belief system, she would be heartily against atheists meeting with White House officials.
What has she left me to believe?
02/17/2010
Some time ago, someone said that she believes that her god
will reveal himself to everyone in his lifetime and then each
person will know the truth of her god's (aka: God--can you say
arrogant?) existence. The problem with this idea is that
inevitably, the fault of hell will lie, not with God, but with
the condemned. It ALWAYS turns out that way.
He's given you all the proof you need, they'd say. And you still refuse to believe in him. So, he's not sending you to hell, you're sending yourself there. (When people say that, I know they're too dumb to talk to.)
God must know what it would take to convince me of his (ugh--the patriarch deity) existence. The problem is that many Christians do not understand what it would take for a rationalist to accept the existence of some heretofore unseen, unknown, unknowable entity. It would take quite a lot.
The Bible certainly hasn't succeeded, and for many a Christian that is all it SHOULD take. Just look in that book! God's hand (?) is all over it. The prophecies alone, foretold thousands of years before they occurred (all told about in the same book, the same writings, in the same religious tradition, how odd is that?) are evidence enough of his existence, they say. And yet, the rationalist refuses to believe!
That's the whole point, people! If you have to believe it, something fishy is going on. And rationalists will always choose to refrain from "belief." We either know it, through hard, cold, ruthlessly objective FACTS, or we don't know. But we certainly won't believe it just because some other people (especially other people who wrote ages ago) said it.
So, what would it take? A whole hell of a lot.
Let's say this god wrote "I exist" in the stars. He literally rearranged the burning stars in the sky just so it would spell out, for those of us right here on the Earth, "I exist." And let's say this phenomena remained in the sky for a long, long time. Let's say the scientists were baffled and everybody except blind people could see it. No, wait, let's say all the blind people and all the people not of sound mind were suddenly cured and could see and understand the "I exist" written in the stars. And let's say God made the stars so bright, or dimmed the sun, so that we could even see it in the day time!
Would that convince me there is a god? Well, it would convince me that something very weird and scary was going on. It would convince me that some kind of conscious entity somewhere was sending us a message. But I wouldn't be certain it was the Christian God. Some kind of very powerful being or beings, yes. Christian God? I'd need more.
Hmmm. I think it would have to show its face in the sky and talk to us. To all of us. We could all hear it, in our own languages. And this god would have to tell us he is the Christian God and say something about Jesus and all. And then he'd have to do more. Yep. Because, for all I know, it could be some kind of weird trick. I mean, really, it's just a face in the sky, right? And sure, everyone sees and hears it, but you've heard of mass delusions right?
So, this god would have to heal people. And I don't mean curing things like cancer or sick people getting better. I'm talking lost limbs reappearing, people really really coming back from the dead. As in, already autopsied and embalmed back from the dead. Seriously back from the dead, you get me?
Then I might be inclined to accept it.
And then what?
What? You think it would just end there? You think everyone will just get down on his knees and praise the guy? Most people would, sure, I guess. And I suppose I would praise him a bit. I mean, wow, right? Big, powerful dude.
But then the questions would start, wouldn't they? Questions like, why now? Where the hell have you been? Why all the scary stories about hell and eternal torture if you were just going to show up out of the blue and settle it already? And why did you have to settle it, anyway? I mean, back to where the hell have you been? If humans are your children and you love them, why haven't you been around all this time in the hard, cold, factual form? Why all the mystery?
And wouldn't the Jehovah's Witnesses be pissed? Aren't there only supposed to be a certain number who end up believing and getting into the paradise that I think is right here on earth? Wouldn't they be, like, wait a minute, all of us? ALL OF US here on this little planet? Not what they were promised!
Those of us with hearts would have some serious questions for the big guy, too. Why do you let little children suffer and die? Why do you let your fans condemn anyone who doesn't act the way they think they should? Do you really hate homosexuality? If so, why are humans and other animals even capable of it? Are you really seriously trying to tell us that there's this OTHER god called Satan who is SO powerful he could corrupt your beloved creation and you just let it happen?
Why?
That would be the question(s) of the century. Why?
Maybe that's why. The dude just can't face the music of the shitty thing he's done.
Or maybe he just isn't there.
02/09/2010 again
The 'Best
of Penn says: Religion' DVD is now available at Amazon!
02/09/2010
I can't access my fan page on Facebook again! I'm getting a
little bit ticked off about it.
Anyway, one of my friends posted an update about Lucilio Vanini, a really good-looking Italian guy (if the picture on his coin is accurate) born in 1585. He was an atheist and dared to say so, even after being forced to write a book condemning atheism. And for his trouble he had his tongue cut out, was strangled at the stake, and burned. He was tortured and murdered by Christians on February 9, 1619.
So, I hereby declare Feb. 9 as Vanini Remembrance Day. I wish I could have had his love child.
02/08/2010
I created a contact form for the website and this blog. I
guess it's pretty rudimentary, but it's what I could figure out
with my limited knowledge of FrontPage (and I still needed my
husband's help).
I already got a comment! How cool is that? My reader said, basically, that God let's us pray, even for little things. We have to be quiet and wait for the answer. Of course, sometimes that answer is no.
You really have to hand it to the religious! They have rationalized the crap out of their beliefs.
If you pray, and you get what you pray for: Yay, God! God is GREAT! Just look at the awesome power of prayer! See how that is proof that God exists and loves us?
If you pray, and you don't get what you want, the answer was no. Yay, God! God is GREAT! Just look at the awesome power of prayer! See how that is proof that God exists and loves us?
Uh-huh. Right. Okay.
As to my friend's cell phone. I guess the answer was a big, fat NO. It died. She has to get a new one. And not one word about the miracle or the fact that all that praying did diddly squat. Do you have ANY idea how hard it was for me to keep my mouth shut on Facebook about that? Near impossible, let me tell you!
I mean, after the relapse I really wanted to know what happened to the miracle! Don't God's miracles stick? Was she supposed to continue praying? Or did she not express enough gratitude or something? If not, why didn't she just admit that there was no miracle, after all?
Or is it that all this prayer, god, and miracle talk is just so much a part of some people's vernacular that they don't even listen to what they're saying? Maybe her "prayers" were just her being upset about her phone and hoping it would be okay. Maybe when her silly friends said they'd pray too, they didn't really. Maybe just saying they will is an expression of concern and compassion.
That would be odd. But I'm wondering if that's the way it is...
So, now you don't have to email me your comments and risk me sending back a nasty response. (I'll just give a nasty response here or on the comments page!) If you want me to email you, include your name and email address and I might just do that. If you do not want me to publish that information, tell me and I won't, UNLESS you are rude, hateful, and insulting. Then I might just do it anyway. But I'm not especially out to hurt anyone, so I likely will honor your wishes even so.
02/05/2010
Well, my poor friend's phone had a relapse and she's (I
s%^& you not) asking for everyone to pray for her phone?
How do you people expect me to take this god thing seriously and stop picking on you when you do stuff like this?
How about we pray for the children dying of cancer? How about we pray for children being beaten and sexually abused? How about we pray for people suffering and wasting away toward death?
You want people to PRAY for your STUPID PHONE??????
And the worst part is that people are actually responding with promises to pray for the damn thing. Can people be any dumber?
And so much for the miracle! I guess God's grace doesn't adhere very well to iphones.
Speaking of dumb. Citizens of the great bastion of common sense and logic, the state of Georgia (I know, too funny, right?), can rest easier these days. The Georgia senate has passed a bill banning the implantation microchips in Georgia brains without consent--no matter what the Georgian's age. Whew. I feel better now. Wouldn't want those Georgians to get implanted and start doing the bidding of the evil master government or something. How horrible would that be?
You all know what this is really about, don't you? It's about religion and the Bible. According to Rapture Christ God's going to rescue all the true Christians before the forced implants go in, so I really don't see what the fuss is about. And it just seems to me that all the true Christians would be up in arms over the Georgia senate's legislation. Aren't they just attempting to forestall Armageddon and thwart God's will? Shouldn't God smite them or something?
02/04/2010
One of my friends on facebook posted this:
"I have a Miricle [sic] to report! Seriously! I prayed and
prayed about my iphone. I couldn't wait any longer to check it,
so about 20 minutes ago I tried to turn it on and......Its [sic]
now working! I did have to use a needle to pick out a piece of
rice that was stuck in the charging port. Thank you Lord for
caring about my cell phone!"
Where to start....
Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, what an
idiot, right? I mean, it was the rice that did it. But farther
down on my page I found that she'd dropped her phone in a glass
of water, so I don't know where the heck she picked up the piece
of rice, and it being in the charging port probably wouldn't
affect the phone.
But...is she serious? Is she seriously trying to tell us that GOD healed her iphone? God couldn't save the hundreds of children kidnapped, raped, and murdered each year, or the thousands starving and dying of dysentery, or the people of Haiti....but he cares enough to heal your iphone? I just can't get over the bizarre-ness of that.
If suffering and dying is somehow all part of the plan and gives us the opportunity to do good deeds, why isn't having to fork over mulah to buy a new iphone after you carelessly dropped it into a glass of water not an opportunity for a lesson?
Although, tell me what good deed you can do when a little girl dies of cancer? How does her suffering do anyone any good at all? What? It lets you take meals to her family? Give me a break.
But God will heal your iphone if you pray about it.
You know what, that's just disgusting.
02/03/2010 not again!
When I post more than once or twice in one day, I can safely say
that I've learned a valuable lesson. Today's lesson is this:
always continue to be polite, and attempt to find common ground
and acceptance.
I imagine that anyone reading this blog over the last several years might think I only encountered crazy/mean Christians. And I can see why they would think that. Those are the kinds I like to poke fun at and talk about. I have, a few times at least, reminded my readers that I know a lot of kind, loving, decent people in all sorts of faiths, including Christianity. Most of my family is made up of Christians and most of them are better people than I am.
But, when you're an outspoken atheist, you do tend to get some crazy emails from some angry people. And it's too easy, really, to make assumptions, when you get another one, about that particular person and what might be going on for them.
I'm really glad that my fellow Zumba instructor, who I introduced you to earlier, and I continued our dialogue. For one thing, I found out she's nice and normal. Unfortunately, I found that out just after I posted my blog about her email. (What a snarky brat I am.)
She was not happy about that, let me tell you. Fur was flying. But I think we have come to some kind of understanding. She wants me to let you know she'd had too much cough syrup when she wrote to me and might have a been a tad condescending. And, she said she did not mean that I would know the truth after I died (and would consequently get to BURN in HELL--muwahahahaha). No. She meant that she believes that her god will manifest himself to me at some point in my life. I assume she believes that will happen for all infidels. I mean, I'm not so special, right?
I have the greatest idea for another blog about just that very thing! But I've written too much for one day, so I'll leave it for another very soon.
Oh, and she also wants everyone to know that there is a third option for why Christians misspell so many words and use poor grammar when they write hate mail:
3. They're typing on their cell phones under the influence of cough syrup.
You heard it here folks. Never assume anything about anybody until you've exchanged at least five emails. Not to say we're the best of friends, but I wouldn't slug her or anything if I saw her in person. (Not that I'd slug anyone. Really. Really, I hit like a girl.)
I've added a LOT of mail in the last day or so. I put at least one under every heading except the "sanity" group. (Figures.) And I finally added back in some of the blog archives. I think I know where to find the really old stuff, but that will have to wait for another time.
02/03/2010 addendum
The vast majority of insulting emails that atheists and atheist
organizations receive are riddled with spelling and grammar
errors. Why is that? Is it because:
1. The majority of people who write hate mail are poorly educated? Or is it:
2. When people write hate mail they are so upset that they make a lot of mistakes?
02/03/2010
Well, the Zumba world is
at it again. A fellow instructor actually used the Zumba website
"contact an instructor" function to send me a personal insult.
(Yes, you too can insult me using the Zumba company! Just go to
the website and search for me. It'll be fun!)
I suppose I wouldn't have minded if the insult was something along the lines of: "You can't keep time." or maybe, "You really shouldn't wear that when you teach." But no. It was about this website.
She said, "I just wanted to tell you how sad I am for you that you have to devote alot [sic] of time and effort into convincing people there is no God. What an utterly un-fulfilling thing that must be. I will sincerly [sic] being [sic] praying for you."
First of all, of course, 'a lot' is two words and not one. And sincerely is 'ey'. And 'being' is just wrong. Now that the grammarian in me is content.
Why do Christians have to insult you before they say they'll pray for you? As if the praying will make up for the fact that they felt so much animosity they had to send you an email to tell you how sad they are for you and how 'unfulfilled' you must be.
She goes on (naturally): "I also find it extremly [sic]hypocritical [sic] of you that you accuse us of being close minded [sic] when YOU, yourself [sic] are so close minded [sic] about there being no God. One day, you will know the truth."
And there's the threat. There's always the threat, isn't there? One day, oh, one day, when you die, you will find out how wrong you are and BURN in HELL. That's really what she wanted to say, you know. That's really what they all want to say. BURN in HELL you HERETIC.
But instead, they offer you subtle insults and threaten you and then promise to pray for you. What would they pray about, I wonder?
Dear Lord, please protect Dianna when she teaches her Zumba class. Please watch out for her and her family and keep them safe. Please help her to see that I am really a nice person, despite the fact that I insulted her, used really poor grammar, and misspelled a lot of words in my email.
Nope. I can't imagine they'd pray something like that. I'm thinking, let me see...
Dear Lord, please make everyone believe in you so I feel better about talking to myself. He he. Right. Atheists wish.
So, you remember my high school reunion? If you've been reading long enough, you do. They always have to pray at my high school reunion. What IS it with Christians and this incessant need to make everyone in a room full of diverse people bow their heads and beseech their deity?
Do they just not stop and think? Yes, I would like to think that that's all it is. There's no intent to convert, or force infidels to take part. They just want to pray. And they just want everyone to pray with them. I can feel the spirit, yes I can.
However, if that were really true, once they learned that such prayer makes nonbelievers and people of other faiths feel uncomfortable, you'd think they'd stop doing it, right? But they don't. They just keep doing it. And that is why I guess I'm totally wrong! It's not at all about feeling in the spirit of good will and wanting to embrace their God and pray with a whole bunch of people (which, as I said, I get...I mean, there was just nothing--no thing--cooler than attending the Freedom From Religion Foundation's non-prayer breakfast and taking part in the Moment of Bedlam! Hundreds of atheists making noise. You just had to be there!)
But no. When they know it bothers other people and they do it anyway, they're doing it for one reason only: arrogance. This is a Christian nation, they like to say. The majority of us are Christians, and god-damn-it, we're going to pray to our god whether you like it or not. And you should really just stand there, bow your damn head, and be quiet while we do it. If you don't like it, just leave! Leave the reunion you paid to get into and be last in line for the buffet! Or leave the convention you paid a whole hell of a lot to attend and miss what comes next! Just get the hell out of our Christian country (that's what they really want to say, no doubt. Heck they DO say that!)
That is the loving (NOT), kind (NOT), hopeful (NOT), tolerant (NOT) Christian attitude that I am, unfortunately, most often confronted with. They turn their prayers into weapons. They turn their "I'll pray for you" into a weapon. They absolutely turn their "Merry Christmas" into a weapon.
They're mean-spirited people. And I'm pretty sick of
it. I was to the point where I was tired of writing about them
and their behavior. I only wrote about the Zumba Christians
before because I thought it was so funny...and hypocritical. But
now I see that I must continue to harp on the disconnect between
who they (and their more liberal allies) say they are, and who
they really are. I will continue to expose their behavior
here...and take the heat. (LOL. Get it? Take the heat? He he he)
01/26/10
Read
"Haiti and the hypocrisy of Christian theology" by Richard
Dawkins. Man, I love that guy. He can skewer nonsensical
thinking better than anybody. It's always fun to read the
comments he elicits, too. Are people THAT stupid? How can you
read something and then let everybody know you have know clue
what you just read?
People can be so stupid; it boggles.
I'm off to a writers' conference this weekend. Prepared for the usual: What have you published? And the inevitable responses that follow. Quizzical looks, pauses before exiting, turning away, gasps, that sort of thing. Funny thing is, there are quite a number of atheists in the room every year. I'm just not a good little keep-it-to-yourself atheist, I guess.
There are few atheists who are upset that the new Darwin movie didn't get a larger distribution. Are you kidding me? Are there any explosions or car chases in it? Is it a funny romance? Does it have any famous actors in it? Does it have a dramatic, suspenseful story that keeps you on the edge of your seat? No? And yet you still think every theater in the country should run it just because you want to see it? Do you not understand business at all?
Then we have the "Friendly Atheist" who claims that Indiana Christians oppose a bill that would help children, clearly attempting to cast them as neglectful of the welfare of children. I hate it when people do that.
I remember when my youngest went to a charter school. It was owned by a woman who one time told me that the Pledge was a non-issue because it could only offend atheists and how many of them could there be, right? She obviously didn't know who she was talking to.
Anyway, there was some scuffle in the school board; apparently they were trying to tighten the rules for charter schools. And this woman says, "And they claim to care about the education of our children!"
To her, if you didn't agree with HOW children should or could be educated, you didn't care about their education at all.
So, the Indiana Christians must be heartless child abusers for not wanting the government to step in and regulate church day care centers. This is typical of liberal atheists, though. More government in our lives. More control. They think they can force people to be tolerant of others by forcing them to hire people they don't want to hire.
In this case, of course, the government wants church day cares to hire only so-called "qualified" people...by the government's standards, of course. That's really rich, when you think about it.
It seems to me that churches feel they should be outside government intrusion, because of separation of church and state and all. Yes, as long as this "separation" thing works in their favor, they're all for it. But when it doesn't--when, say, people want them to get their religion out of public schools, oh, well then, there's no such thing.
I digress.
Just because churches don't want the government telling them who is qualified to work in their day care centers (because next the government will be telling them they have to hire gays and atheists, for god's sake!), doesn't mean they don't care about children. To even hint that they don't in your title is just weak.
On a happier note, the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, Doodlee under the great Doodler, has seen fit to bless us with proof of her existence by exposing her likeness on a potato chip. Gotta love these deities. They really know how to yank stupid people's chains.
01/12/10
Great quote in the LTE, "Don't push your religion on others,"
under "Religion" in the news:
"There are a lot of Christians who feel persecuted for talking
about their beliefs in public. The editorial displayed some of
those feelings when the author asked, 'How can there exist such
virulent anti-Christian venom in a majority Christian nation?'
There isn't 'anti-Christian venom'; there is anti-proselytizing
venom."
01/04/10
Okay, sensitive subject time. I'm not sure about the ethics
here...if I should or even can discuss this. I guess I'll have
to leave out some important information. Hehehe.
There's this new aerobic sensation out there, you may have heard about it. It's called Zumba. Zumba uses Latin rhythms and a LOT of booty shaking. Some of the younger, more, shall we say, fit instructors add a level of spicy to their classes that make them sizzle and draw men (and women because there are some smokin' hot guy instructors out there) like flies.
The music used is often reggaeton, kind of like Latin hip-hop, with very suggestive lyrics and cursing. But this is all okay, because Zumba is fresh and young and hip and nobody really cares. They just want to dance.
Well, somewhere--and I'm not saying where--somebody started up a discussion with: How do you use Zumba to glorify God? And a bunch of these Christians started talking about what songs they use and whether or not they tone down the booty shaking. Most of them seem to think the booty shaking is just fine with the big guy.
And my thinking is very simple: if you think hip circles and body rolls glorify God, you're reading the wrong book. Don't get me wrong. If these were people who were very liberal and worshiped, maybe, the UU god or something, I wouldn't have thought twice about it. But these were people who were saying the US was founded on Christianity and who were upset about people complaining that bringing religion into your fitness class might not be a good idea, while apparently it's okay to offend Christians with bad language and dissin' the big guy's son.
I almost--almost--joined the conversation at that point to clue that person in on the difference between religion and moral sensibilities, but I knew it would land on deaf ears (read closed mind).
But I can say it here.
We can be careful not to bring religion into parts of our lives in which we know not everyone is a believer. This only makes sense. People come to your class for a workout, not a prayer. But if the music you use in your class and the moves you do with your body offend someone, that is their problem to deal with. If Zumba was a Christian workout, I could see what the complaint is. But if Zumba was a Christian workout, it wouldn't be any fun.
You can't go around all day complaining when someone curses by saying they've offended you as a Christian. That's just ridiculous. And we live in a free society, where I can denounce your religion and make fun of your god. If you're offended, okay, go away and stop listening.
But none of that makes it okay for you to bring your religion into a secular class that I have paid for anymore than it would be okay for me to denounce your god in that class. Doesn't that make any sense at all?
Well, then they started talking about a song we use that appeared to be Christian! The lyrics they could understand were very religious. This is a popular song, but it is approved, shall we say, by Zumba.
My first thought was, ick. I don't think I want to use that song. It sounded so overtly religious that it could offend someone, given that they could understand Spanish. But, as it turns out, the song is a Santeria cleansing chant.
And I'm sorry to say that made me giggle with pleasure. What are they going to do now? Are they going to glorify God and stop using that song?
Somehow I don't think so. Somehow, I think they're hypocrites.
01/01/10
Another
year around the sun! The Solstice holidays are finished, I
feel full and fat, and we're starting all over again.
Something strange happened to me in the last week of 2009. I'm so embarrassed, I can't tell you. Seriously. I realized that I was still struggling with a hurt that was about ten years old! How does that happen?
I guess I've been very wrapped up in my immediate family and only dealing with those issues that I was able to deal with. I honestly didn't realize that an old problem was still bugging me until I made an arse of myself in my blog about it.
Not that I'm a stranger to making an arse of myself. Naturally.
So, I think I'm over it now. I mean, really, really over it. A lot of that has to do with the very kind and forgiving behavior of the other parties involved. (You know I don't mean myself. I'm not even sure I know what kindness looks like on my face.)
So, here we are on the first day of a brand new year. (Cue hubby in the background: "You know all the numbers are just man-made and therefore meaningless." Yeah, yeah, okay. But the tilt of the earth and the seasons and the renewal every year must mean something!?)
So, I feel renewed myself, and rejuvenated.
I'm going back to teaching Zumba and I have a weekly class, plus a half share in a Saturday rotation at a local gym. I am SO excited to be back! But being back has made me pull in a little with the atheism activism. This has happened before, so for me, it's a no-brainer.
I took the "Atheism is Myth-understood" sticker off my car and exchanged all of my atheism stickers for others that mean just as much to me, but aren't quite so in-your-face. Many of you may consider this some kind of cop-out, or compromise; but I don't think I agree.
It's one thing to be an atheist, to live free of dogma, to embrace science and the unknown, and to be honest with others about that, and quite another to broadcast it everywhere you go.
I mean, look at it this way. The religious people that I respect the most don't have Jesus fish on their cars. They certainly wouldn't put anti-atheist or homophobic emblems on their cars. And they don't talk about God and Jesus all the time, every time I see them.
So, I don't see how I am compromising by recognizing that it's not a good idea to insult people while I'm on my way into the gym to teach Zumba.
So, my new
bumper stickers are:
"Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large
groups." And:
"I'm feeling much better since I gave up all hope."
I still have my FSM, of course. And she [uh, yeah, I said SHE] says tons about what I think about religion and religious people in a way that most wouldn't even understand. It's like a fabulous private joke riding on the back of my van.
