Cheesus (Cheeto Jesus)

Cheesus on the cross...



His head is a bit small, but still...

No buying liquor on Sundays

Living in Indiana, whenever I go to the grocery store on Sundays I am reminded of how my rights have been compromised by the religious. I am unable to buy liquor on Sundays. While it may seem a minor inconvenience, it is a concrete and glaring manifestation of a failure of separate of church and state. To quote the wikipedia article on blue laws:

Many states still prohibit selling alcohol on Sunday, or at least before noon on Sunday, under the rationale that people should be in church on Sunday morning, or at least not drinking.

This law is outdated and needs to be changed.

-BT

Ali-G discusses Religion

How can you watch this and come away with any belief in religion at all, I wonder?



-BT

Will the UK get an Atheist Prime Minister?

There may be some distinct advantages to that - as outlined in this excellent article by AC Grayling in The Guardian newspaper.

-BT

Ex Preacher's Wife explains her De-Conversion

Religion and Freedom

Gentle reader,

Religious adherents should distribute according to the laws of thermodynamics. The degree to which they don't is a measure of their lack of freedom.

Let me elaborate.

Given that there is no verifiable proof of the correctness of any religion, one could make the naive assumption that they are equally likely to be true (or false).

If you accept that premise and given the easy spread of information via books, news and now the internet, if all things were equal it is not unreasonable to expect the number of adherents to the 3 major religions (Christianity, Islam and Judaism) to be somewhat equal in any given country. In a truly free country people should be free to switch between one and the other or abandon religion completely. So freedom also would lead to a significant population of atheists.


Again, very naively, you might expect the following (in alphabetical order):

Atheism: 25%
Christianity: 25%
Islam: 25%
Judaism: 25%

Three things that would prevent this process of equalization are:

1) Once you are in a religion, it is unlikely that you will leave it due to being told that it is "bad" to do so. So religion is basically a "land grab" situation, the one that picks up the most adherents ultimately wins. All 3 or the "major" religions have this element to them. In the case of Islam, it seems that this is punishable by death. In the case of Christianity, you are threatened with eternal damnation.

2) People already in a religion tend to try to "convert" others. To not be part of a religion is to be ostracized to some degree. If you don't think this is true, try being an atheist in a small town in the Southern United States.

3) The state sponsors a religion - so there are direct benefits to be derived from adhering to that religion.

All three of these items reduce the influence of free thought on a person's choice of whether or not to follow a particular religion. If a person does not have the mental capacity to question their religious upbringing, does not want to give up the social acceptance and group reinforcement of a religion or is simply coerced by the government of their country, they will remain in a given religion.

The existence of an East-West divide in terms of religion (Christianity/Judaism in the West, Islam in the East) bears witness to the influence of these three thought-stifling factors.

To me, a decrease in the religious polarization and an increase in the number of atheists (such as has happened in the United Kingdom and other Western European countries) is evidence that people in those countries are thinking for themselves and are not being unduly influenced by their government.

However, the fact that the United States and many Arab countries still remain religiously polarized seems, to me, to provide evidence of thought-suppression. The inherent need of a particular religion to be self-continuing has been allowed to take root and not be challenged vigorously. These countries may be guilty, each in in their own way, of providing an environment that does not allow people to make a truly free choice between the religions, or for no religion. The fact that a majority of people in a country believe in a given religion is not evidence that the religion is true. Conversely, it raises a red flag - these countries probably have less freedom than others.

Time for today's quote:

I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do
because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.
-Susan B. Anthony

Until the next time, gentle reader, I remain,

Your friend,

Buford Twain

Deep Down, You Already Know That Your Religion is False

Gentle reader,

When push comes to shove, there aren't many religious people who truly believe in their religion. The litmus test is how your feel about death itself. Assuming you are a religious person, allow me to ask you a few questions:

Firstly, how do you feel about your own death? Are you afraid of dying or are you looking forward to it? Does death seem like a wonderful journey? Or are you scared shitless?

How about any friends and family that you currently have that are dying? Are you happy for them? Do you think of that person lying at home or in a hospital bed, and smile to yourself? Or are you filled with a sense of dread and impending loss?

If you are sick, are you currently going to a doctor to get treatment? Or are you hoping to die as quickly as possible?

If you are religious, you should be happy to be getting sick, and happy for any of your friends
and family that are currently dying. It is God's plan. They will soon be nearer to "paradise".

Are you happy about death? If not, ask yourself, why not?

Please take a few minutes to think about this. It's serious stuff.

...

If you are in fact not looking forward to taking a dirt nap, could it be that deep down, you realize that you aren't really going to "heaven"? You realize that your religion won't really save you from death.

You are in good company. When Cardinal Joseph Bernardin of Chicago had cancer some years ago he went to the hospital for some (sadly unsuccessful) treatment. Was the Cardinal trying to give God a little bit of a hand with his master plan? "Oh, God must really want me to live longer, but just doesn't have the time to cure my cancer. Poor old overscheduled God."

Or perhaps the Cardinal was just terrified of dying - just like most of the rest of us.
A religious person going to a doctor - that tells me that their faith isn't quite as rock solid as they might have hoped.

One more question: Have you ever been to a funeral? If so, was it a happy or sad affair?
If it was a religious funeral, shouldn't it be a happy occasion - a time for rejoicing?
Funerals that I have attended have been sad. Naturally, we all know, deep down, that the person has died. They aren't coming back, and we aren't ever going to see them again as we remembered them.

In our hearts, if we are honest, I think almost all of us know the truth.


Time for today's quote:

"Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored."
--Aldous Huxley


Until the next time, gentle reader, I remain,

Your friend,

Buford Twain

Being Religious is Easier

Gentle reader,

I was raised (loosely) as a Roman Catholic. I went to a Catholic comprehensive school in London on the weekdays and church on Sundays. Well, most Sundays. One time I snuck away with my brother and we bought comic books with the collection money. That was fun! But over time I have become an atheist. As I grow older and spend more time thinking about life, I cannot not bring myself to stay religious. The more I think about it, the less I am able to buy into believing something without evidence. I am a scientist at heart. Moreover, there are some aspects of the bible and religion that I believe are harmful. For example, threatening people with hell to make them behave in a certain way. There are many other things.

I walked away from religion. However, I can see how absolutely necessary it must be for some people to have religion in their lives. Having given up on religion myself, I strongly believe that life is easier if you are religious than if you are an atheist. Here are some of the reasons:

1. If there is no God then what is the purpose and meaning of life? Anyone who ponders this question and has no religion is left with a huge, empty chasm. I personally spend some time every day wondering about this. If you are religious, this question is answered.
2. If there is no God, what happens to me when I die? It is daunting and unpleasant to think about this question, and imagine oneself underground, or being burnt in a furnace, with NOTHING afterwards. You will never get to see your loved ones again. How much nicer it is to believe that they will all be waiting for you in heaven. Or that you will have a bevy of virgins, or attain Nirvana.
   
3. If you are religious you have an instant social network through your Church. Without church you may have to work harder to find friends.
   
4. If you don't have a religion, you are completely responsible for your own life. There is no such thing as "leaving it up to God". If something bad happens (e.g. you lose your job), there is no-one to turn to but yourself. That can be a lot to handle. How much easier it is to trust God to do the driving.
   
5. You are responsible for your moral choices and you must live with your conscience forever afterwards. There is no such thing as going to confession and being completely forgiven. I would love to have all my sins forgiven. But it's just not an option for me.
   

Despite all of these disadvantages, I have no choice but to be an atheist. I simply don't believe in any God, or Gods. But I do understand why many others are religious and I do not hold it against them. It is more difficult for me now that I know (I am pretty sure, let's say) I am "alone" in the universe, than before when I was a believer. Which brings us to today's quote:

"Whatever gets you through the night...is alright...is alright".
-John Lennon

Until the next time gentle reader, I remain,

Your friend,

Buford Twain

Step by Step Religion Detox Program

Gentle reader,

Would you like to try to rid yourself of religion?

If so, here is a simple step by step program that you can use today.








1) Read Carl Sagan, on belief in the absence of proof, "the dragon in my garage" argument - http://www.godlessgeeks.com/LINKS/Dragon.htm

2) Read "Why Does God Hate Amputees?" - http://www.whydoesgodhateamputees.com/god5.htm

3) Read "Letter to a Christian Nation" by Sam Harris

4) Make like Winnie the Pooh and think...think...think

5) If still in doubt, take a walk, then go back to step 4

6) If *still* in doubt, read "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins (available from amazon.com)

7) If cured, CONGRATULATIONS! Please leave a post and tell me all about it.

8) If not, please leave a post and tell me why not.

Today's quote?

There are 100,000,000,000 stars in the galaxy. That used to be a huge number. But it's only a hundred billion. It's less than the national deficit! We used to call them astronomical numbers. Now we should call them economical numbers.
-Richard Feynman

Your friend,

Buford Twain

PS - If you have suggestions for additional steps (e.g. something that worked for you) please leave a post.