Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by dr kellie on March 26, 2010 at 12:39pm

I live in a smallish college town in Texas that is rife with religion. As an adult professional, I am active and well known in my community. If you asked almost any of my acquaintances to describe me, after a long list of other things, would come gay and atheist. I make it a point to be the face of atheism to the people I know. I am kind and gracious because that is how I am, but I don't take religion lying down, and I never will.

I think the most important thing is coming out. When some asks you what church you attend, don't just say you don't go to church. Say you are an atheist!

Viva atheism!

Permalink Reply by J.P.M. on May 18, 2010 at 1:26pm

I am quite outspoken about my atheism as opportunities permit. I don't seek out confrontation, but where I live, you don't have to look far to find it. I make no apologies for my contempt for all things religious. Some favorite comments:

Religion is NOT a substitute for education; it is a suffocating cloud of ignorance that impedes the intellectual evolution of the human race.

Don't pray in my school and I won't think in your church.

Religious explanations of the world are for those who are either unwilling, or unable, to think for themselves.

If God didn't create the sun until the third day, HTF did he measure the first two?

Why do you want to run your life based on a 2000 year-old mythology derived from the (translated) oral traditions of a bunch of illiterate stone-age peasants?

I only vote for politicians I believe to be atheists, because I am tired of seeing the world being run into the ground by the religiously retarded.

Without religion, we wouldn't have suicide bombers, would we?

Permalink Reply by SecularCortex13.x on May 25, 2010 at 7:43pm

TShirts. Exercise.

Permalink Reply by david hartley on June 27, 2010 at 8:34am

I have little or no contact with the people that raised me and have through their power and influence fucked up my life totally. Though some of our decisions are our own even when i feel i've made the correct decision they have fucked me up at every turn.
How can they do this; I once glanced at a web site for survivors of Freemasonary and the parallells are chilling. In the same way the bastards I was raised by affected my educational, employment and social opportunities through power, influence and a pernicious whispering campaign. Perhaps that's why the Godfather movies were so popular we all recognise such cancerous constructs within our own societies (f ing good movies as well though).
I was raised in a deprived neighberhood yet was recognised, so they tell me, as having the intellect and abilities to go further. Any chance of which was denied.
So i was raised in a sect within a much larger sect. Much of what i understand now is in retrospect as it is for any reasonable functioning adult,the retrospective view always has 20/20 vision, we learn from our own experiences so some things obvious were not obvious to me then.
So now I realise how much they hated me, yet at the time I was raised thinking that I was virtually revered my every opinion hung on etc etc..
So it would appear now that I was being raised to be some sort of 'messianic' figure within the cult within a cult. Think one of those T.V. evangelistic tossers and you get the idea. One bad, (for them) mistake they made though was that although they 'imprisoned' me within this sect within a sect I was not privy to the aims, ideals or motivations of this sect within a sect. These things were expected to be apparrent to me once I had accepted their ideals and beliefs as the only possible ideals and beliefs.
So here I am after a lifetime of mental, emotional, intellectual and in ways more subtle than outright sexual, abuse of my sexuality, social ostrezisation, financial and other abuses. Here I am responding to the different intellectual and philisophical views. Withstanding the poverty and social penalties.
Please do not think they do not know my views neither. Every chance I get I speak out against their beliefs until they make sure that the few conversations I do have the b's avoid the subject altogether. I have spoken to Muslims directly, without being strident, about the goatfuckers marriage to a child. This they assured me was a 'pure' marriage. I speak out on a regular basis against the people that imprisoned (raised) me and believe you me they know. It costs me but evey day spent alone is a day away from my abusers and there's a crumb of comfort there. And maybe just maybe another nail in the coffin of their perverse and evil belief system.

Permalink Reply by ryan cameron on July 13, 2010 at 9:27pm

I take every opportunity to assert that

- I am atheist
- god is imaginary
- faith = delusion
- Theism is a mental disorder.
- criticism is NOT the same as attacking a person, rather it is crucial to the survival of civilization.

Permalink Reply by Meitreya Mayako on August 16, 2010 at 3:18pm

I don't know what is "involved", but I regularly tell people exactly what I think about their religious claptrap. My partner and I confront fundies when we encounter them and as someone heavily involved in other "controversial" advocacy, confrontation involving simple logic and basic questions where their only answers seem to be that I wouldn't question if I simply had "faith". Well, that's not good enough. Accept it because I say so is not a valid argument. Accept it with no logic or evidence. No. As for their constant barage of shouting and shoving of literature in my face. Hmm.. it's a public venue. This weekend we discussed this and I think we will simply be giving them their own medicine. "I say no to preaching hate. I say no to preaching fear. I say no to preaching ignorance. I say no to people who poison children's minds. I say no to you." Repeat until they will listen or your lunch break is over.. whichever comes first.

Permalink Reply by Gary Cobb on January 10, 2011 at 4:35am

Have any of you read the narrative between Socrates meets Jesus? I've got to find this again. I used to be a manager of a half-way house. I would post copies of stuff like this at ever opportunity.

Permalink Reply by Alona Naga on January 29, 2011 at 6:29pm

Amen.lol

Permalink Reply by DanDare on January 28, 2011 at 6:47am

I am one of the leaders of the Australian Secular Lobby. I like to network people together, not just on the net but IRL. I have prompted the Brisbane members of the Atheist Foundation of Australia to have a "post flood" get together. I am constantly fighting the Australian soft theocracy, especially the religion in schools, with Ron Williams high court challenge, trying to push chaplains back out of schools, block the Gideons from handing out school bibles in public schools, get rid of Religious Instruction in public schools and, an even harder struggle, get rid of government funding for faith schools. Another fight in the political arena is to remove "promoting religion" as a charitable act, providing churches with tax exemptions in ludicrous ways.

 

My tools are networking with school parents, letters to the editor, public speaking, the occasional article in papers and at online opinion and lots of practice with debating the looneys on forums. My 15 yo daughter is also turning into a bit of a firebrand while doing exceedingly well at science in high school.

 

Good thing I have a day job too to keep the family fed ;)

Permalink Reply by TNT666 on January 28, 2011 at 7:14am

I remove religious propaganda from public billboards and openly discuss my absolute admiration of nature vs supernatural and mythical urban legends any chance I have. Urban legends are a pet peeve of mine cuz they are usually propagated by religious idiots who have no clue.

Permalink Reply by AtheistTech on January 28, 2011 at 7:28pm

I am a weak Atheist, a weak human, and a weak person. But I spend most of my time talking with my customers and expressing my views, beliefs, and opinions of something I dearly love: science and something I do not hate, but feel is very detrimental to forward progress: religion. I tell people that I respect their right to believe in religion, but I do expect them to respect my right not to believe. By telling them that, I empower them to be someone who is reasonable and worth listening to. This also lets me be their equal and they respectfully listen to me (but maybe not agreeing or believing me).

In the past, I have met and had conversations with religious people who from the start of the conversation believed and and acted like they were superior to me and I had nothing to offer them as beneficial information. They did not listen and only offered their opinion. I feel sorry for those people, because after all we are all Homo sapiens sapiens.

Permalink Reply by Alona Naga on January 29, 2011 at 6:23pm

I am very open about the fact that I'm an Atheist.I am Assertive/borderline aggressive. I grew up in an aggressive environment so I do not fear threats. I do not back down when challenged on the subject by ANYONE, immediate family & friends included. Example.
I have a very close circle or friends in my current location who I have known since I was 14. As I stated above I am very open about it, but I have been really lucky that none of my close friends have taken offence to my recent "coming out"... Or so I thought. The closest one to me out of the group decides (not even an hour ago) to ERUPT!!!!! Now mind you this guy can kick my ass up and down the street, and I grew up fighting so I can hold my own. So even as my calm, neutral (in my opinion) questions sent him into what I am going to nicely say was a "physically aggressive" posture. I never backed down. I made my points, and in his blind almost rage... He agreed to pretty much all of my points, but is so blinded by jesus he didn't realize it.

NEVER BACK DOWN.

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