Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact January 11, 2013 In Defense of Greta Christina No shoes Photo credit : Wikipedia I am going to keep this brief because I am attempting to minimize the time I spend on the Freethought Blogs Skepchick Atheism+ stuff . It has come to my attention that a handful of people opposed to this group are upset because Greta Christina spent some of the money donated to her on a pair of shoes . Some have even taken to calling this Shoegate . Greta Christina a talented atheist blogger at Freethought Blogs , was recently diagnosed with endometrial cancer . She asked for financial help via online donations and raised more than enough money to cover her mortgage and other expenses while
The term "None" has come to describe atheists, agnostics, and even those who believe in God without subscribing to a particular religious faith. It's one of those words we would never use to describe ourselves, but researchers and media types frequently use it to describe us.Wendy Thomas Russell spoke with Barry Kosmin, the man who coined the term to represent "[t]he irreligious, the unreligious, the anti-religious, and the anti-clerical":
Sometimes the local climate change deniers/sceptics/contrarians behave as if they aren’t on the same planet as the rest of us. Well, perhaps that’s a bit extreme – but they do sometimes seem to at least be in a different hemisphere. … Continue reading →
Our Daily Train | By Jeremy StyronVia Slate: Nielsen, the media-analytics and ratings firm, has published an important new study this week on the state of social media. Its insights are trenchant and wide-ranging, and they have given the media much to digest. You’ve got gender disparities in the amount of time spent on social media. You’ve got the rise of Twitter as a [...]
I don't know why Jesus complained about being in this position. Seems pretty comfortable to me:
It’s always other people who need to be open-minded.(source) 
Back in 2009, a research team at Kansas State created these maps of the 7 deadly sins per capita. Interesting.See more at Wired. 
dogmaticCURE brings together images and music with the words of atheists (in this case, Richard Dawkins).This video focuses on religious "morality," and whether it's really any better than anything we could come up with on our own:The last time the Secular Coalition for America sponsored a Lobby Day, it was right after the Reason Rally and very successful. Let’s keep the momentum going! This year’s lobby days take place April 24th-26th during the three-day Secular Summit (featuring speakers who help shape our issues in Congress): All the registration details can be [...]
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact January 7, 2013 Atheists in the Heartland Barn HDR Photo credit : little.tomato It may have been the title of Dan Denvir's article for Salon.com that first caught my attention , There really is a war on Christmas However , the article's tagline is what got me thinking and inspired this post : And it's being fought by some of the bravest atheists in the country , nonbelievers in rural areas and the heartland . No , this is not another post about Christmas . Instead , I'd like to take a look at Denvir's thesis that those wanting to find the angriest atheists will do so in small towns located throughout in the central U.S . rather than in big cities on the . coasts Here is
. Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact January 3, 2013 Preferences vs . Demands Television remote control Photo credit : Wikipedia Preferences One of the wonderful things about humanity is our diversity . And one of the places were you'll find the most diversity is in the realm of preferences . We like different foods , appreciate different art , listen to different music , and so on . Can you imagine how boring life would be if there was no variability and we all liked the same things When it comes to something like what we watch on television , we recognize that we are dealing with preferences and not much else . I love a show that you don't like , and your favorite is one I cannot stand . You do not
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 31, 2012 Atheist Revolution's Most Read Posts of 2012 Keyboard Photo credit : cheetah100 Based on the number of pageviews accrued , these were the 10 most visited posts at Atheist Revolution during 2012 : Why I Am An Atheist Atheist or Agnostic I'm Both Bible Commands Christians to Kill Nonbelievers How to Promote Atheism With Almost No Effort Atheism 101 : A Reading List As Catholic Child Rape Details Emerge in Court , What Are Catholics Waiting For Existence of Atheists Offends Christians Real Christians Do Not Have Christmas Trees Atheists , We Are Costing People Eternal Life Distinguishing Between Criticism and Attacks It is noteworthy that only half of
I know many of you out there think making holiday displays and fighting to have them displayed is a waste of time, but with the recent strings of vandalism against our property, not to mention the ridiculous reasons given by city officials for rejecting these banners helps highlight the fact that atheists are still a [...]
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 29, 2012 When We Oppose Science Ostrich Photo credit : LenaCorazon Many evangelical fundamentalist Christians are opposed to science because science provides compelling evidence that their superstitious worldview is inaccurate . Rather than modifying their worldview to bring it closer to reality , they dismiss science . As a result , we preach abstinence to our children , fight a war on drugs that is as ineffective as it is costly , and willingly surrender one of the most promising scientific finds in decades the promise of stem cell . research It may be uncomfortable to wrestle with the challenges before us . We may wish that climate change is a hoax or that
: Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 28, 2012 Obstacles to Atheist Activism : Infighting There is going to be some amount of internal conflict i.e . infighting in any large group , and the atheist community is certainly no exception . Some of us may be more rational than religious believers on the question of gods , but there is nothing like infighting to expose the flawed human nature we share with the religious . While a certain amount of internal disagreement , debate , and conflict can be healthy in a group or community , excessive infighting may be detrimental . This is particularly evident when the various parties involved in a disagreement stop listening to one another and regress to
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 27, 2012 Claims I Rejected in 2012 If claims can be questioned even those that are religious in nature , perhaps other ridiculous claims can be questioned , challenged , and even rejected . By criticizing President Obama , you are just helping the Republicans out to destroy him . You should be nicer to Christians on your blog because mocking them is only going to make them hate atheists more . If you aren't absolutely convinced that it is wrong for a man to ask a women back to his room for coffee in an elevator , you are a misogynist . Forming third parties or activist movements is a waste of time . We should just work within the existing system or wait for
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 25, 2012 Jesus to Send Christmas Tornadoes If the weather forecast for this area is to be believed , this part of the country could be in for some nasty weather today . Severe thunderstorms , hail , and tornados are being predicted throughout the area . Why they've even been telling people to remove all outdoor holiday decorations so they do not end up being projectiles At least I don't have to worry about . that I'll never understand why one of the most thoroughly Christian parts of the U.S . has some of the worst weather . Even if Pat Robertson is correct that his god is determined to destroy New Orleans due to sin , one would think that his god could aim a
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 23, 2012 Secular Alternatives to Christmas One of the things I find most tiring about this time of year is the shock , dismay , and even condemnation I face every time someone assumes that I celebrate Christmas and I have to explain that I do not . Given the large numbers of Christians I encounter online insisting that atheists should not be allowed to celebrate Christmas , one might think that at least they would be thrilled when I inform them that I do not celebrate it in any way . Even if this information might appease a few , it seems to upset many more . Worse still are the reactions of some atheists to hearing that one of their own does not celebrate
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 22, 2012 I Have Problems and Might Not Be Reincarnated as a Tree I could tell this email was going to be a good one because the subject field asked , Do you have problems Yes . Yes , I do . Thank you for asking . I have many problems , and while I do not want to bore you with them , I would feel remiss in failing to explain that I'm struggling with the worst cold I've had in some time . As I write this , my feverish mind is trying to cope with entirely too much cough syrup . I'm not entirely sure whether I am awake or still having those bizarre dreams that kept me up half the night . I think I must be dreaming , as I'm not sure how else I could feel too hot and
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 21, 2012 Atheist Divide Over Christmas is Trivial The mainstream news media in the U.S . really seems to love conflict and is not above attempting to amplify trivial disagreements to sell their conflict narrative . For the latest example , we turn to Dan Merica's post on CNN's Belief Blog , Christmas exposes atheist divide on dealing with religion I realize that you and I can read Merica's post and realize that the conflict it tries to create is little more than a a difference in preferred tactics . What worries me is that we are not his intended audience . When I try to imagine the opinion the average reader might form after reading this article , I have to
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 21, 2012 Real Christians Do Not Have Christmas Trees For those of us living in the U.S . we are told that the winter holidays are supposed to be a time for coming together and focusing on our similarities rather than our differences . I'd like to do that by sharing one of the things I have in common with real Christians . You see , I do not erect and decorate any sort of tree each year . I do not do so because I regard the practice as silly , wasteful , and have no particular emotional attachment to it . Real Christians do not engage in the practice either , as their bible frowns on this pagan practice Jeremiah 10:1-25 NIV that predated the time in which Jesus
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 20, 2012 Merry Kitzmas As Panda's Thumb reminds us , today December 20 is Kitzmas , the anniversary of the Kitzmiller v . Dover decision . In case you need a reminder , Kitzmiller was the 2005 case out of Pennsylvania in which teaching intelligent design in public schools was found to be unconstitutional . You can find detailed information about the case , including the full decision and even trial transcripts , at Talk Origins Finally , there's something worth celebrating this time of year And while we're on the subject of science education , please join me in thanking the Orleans Parish school board for their recent decision to ban textbooks that teach
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 20, 2012 Holiday Reading for Atheists I suspect I am not alone in having a bit of extra free time around the holidays . One of the things I almost always try to do with this extra time is get started on a new book . Naturally , this leads me to think about picking up a book or two I've been wanting to read for awhile . Here are a few I'm planning to pick up this : year Nonbeliever Nation : The Rise of Secular Americans In Freedom We Trust : An Atheist Guide to Religious Liberty The Age of Doubt : Tracing the Roots of Our Religious Uncertainty The Young Atheist's Survival Guide : Helping Secular Students Thrive Even if I don't end up with time to read them all
: Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 19, 2012 Obstacles to Atheist Activism : Myopia You can find the introduction to this series . here Myopia refers to nearsightedness , but I am using it as sort of a metaphorical nearsightedness here . One important obstacle to atheist activism is our unwillingness to look beyond our own personal experience . This can be a problem in many other areas but I am focusing here on atheist . activism So how exactly does our difficulty in looking past our personal experience adversely affect atheist activism I have written previously about how this has interfered with our ability to build a sense of community among atheists and has resulted in us attacking ideas with
Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism Pages About Disclosure Privacy Advertising Contact December 19, 2012 The Atheist Census Needs You Atheist Alliance International brings us the atheist census a project designed to collect some basic demographic data on atheists , humanists , freethinkers , and other non-religious individuals around the world with Internet access . Aggregate data are available but will only be useful if many more people complete the census . If you have not already done so , you can be counted here It took me no more than one . minute Once you have completed the census , please join me in helping to spread the word to others . Subscribe to Atheist Revolution Posted by vjack at 5:05 AM Email This BlogThis Share to Twitter Share to Facebook