It has given me one more place to act like a raving lunatic, trash talk other NFL fans(OOOPS, I used a copyrighted word). It has been one of my oasis's in a sea of theism.

My story begins with a priest that my wife knows.
We started discussing some things over e-mail... but he didn't have much time and eventually told me to read a book... Leo J. Trese: The Faith Explained. Useless to say, it didn't explain anything... just had the same old preconception: god exists and is the christian one.... why wasn't I surprised? Oh well, then I wanted to find out about the other point of view. Since I'd taken weeks to read that thing, it wouldn't hurt the guy to wait a few more, while I read something from across the fence, like Dawkins' god delusion, which was fashionable, at the time... I then got into a christian forum to get some experience debating them... got banned from there...
Got back to the priest and his lack of time just kept any conversation impossible, so I gave up...
With all this, I got introduced into talking about religion and how I don't believe any of it... So I googled "atheist forum" and this fine site was the first hit!
I think that, since then, I've come here almost every day that I have access to the net!

I like it here, the people are nice, funny, witty... the theists keeps us guessing what they're going to come up with next and I find it to be great fun just dismantling their arguments. I still remember fondly how every thing that Statler Waldorf brought forward to defend his creationism got countered... yet he still maintained his view... I find that persistence in falsehood, in the face of reason, amazing!

Well, I had been a regular over at AF.com, and every once in a while, I would see this site, too, maybe by typing in the wrong extension (.org), but then I'd go back to .com.

I think at some point, I became dissatisfied with the social culture over on that site. Either the conversations were too deep for my comfort, or it was just a bunch of people cracking jokes at eachother's expense. My sense of humor is just different.

I just feel more accepted here. It's less cliquish. I can be me and not try to be somebody I'm not.

Agreed, c172.

I started coming here because I enjoy the opportunity to find out what I think about things. I was a philosophy major but I honestly don't feel like there is any question out there that requires my engagement. So unless it comes up in conversation, I prefer not to think about it. This gives me a place to play at philosophy a little.

But then I've come to appreciate loads of folks who hang out here and I still keep up a with a few who no longer do. I must confess I'm deeply ambivalent about investing so much in cyber friends but there are people here who I am genuinely fond of and care about. Every now and again I'll take a break but I'll always be back.

Oh, and then there is the saucy talk. I have one colleague at work who gives as good as she gets from me. But you just can't freely engage in ribald talk in the work place anymore. So thank you ladies for indulging an old perv.

"I get a chance to find out what I think about things."

Well said. I never thought of it like that.

(November 16, 2013 at 11:10 am)c172 Wrote: Well, I had been a regular over at AF.com, and every once in a while, I would see this site, too, maybe by typing in the wrong extension (.org), but then I'd go back to .com.

I think at some point, I became dissatisfied with the social culture over on that site. Either the conversations were too deep for my comfort, or it was just a bunch of people cracking jokes at eachother's expense. My sense of humor is just different.

I just feel more accepted here. It's less cliquish. I can be me and not try to be somebody I'm not.

I started at AF.com as well and went through a 3 week period where I could not access the site at all. In looking around the web for info on it (I thought it had gone dark) I found this place, checked it out, spotted an old buddy from EvilBible.com and signed up. I later learned the problem with .com was on my end and that I could access it using a proxy server. But going back after having gotten comfortable here was impossible. The board software was lousy in comparison and the general level of discussion was spotty. Whatever problem I was having cleared up after a month or two but the damage was done. I'm definitely just a part timer at .com now.

(November 16, 2013 at 12:23 pm)Minimalist Wrote:

(November 16, 2013 at 11:10 am)c172 Wrote: Well, I had been a regular over at AF.com, and every once in a while, I would see this site, too, maybe by typing in the wrong extension (.org), but then I'd go back to .com.

I think at some point, I became dissatisfied with the social culture over on that site. Either the conversations were too deep for my comfort, or it was just a bunch of people cracking jokes at eachother's expense. My sense of humor is just different.

I just feel more accepted here. It's less cliquish. I can be me and not try to be somebody I'm not.

I started at AF.com as well and went through a 3 week period where I could not access the site at all. In looking around the web for info on it (I thought it had gone dark) I found this place, checked it out, spotted an old buddy from EvilBible.com and signed up. I later learned the problem with .com was on my end and that I could access it using a proxy server. But going back after having gotten comfortable here was impossible. The board software was lousy in comparison and the general level of discussion was spotty. Whatever problem I was having cleared up after a month or two but the damage was done. I'm definitely just a part timer at .com now.

And you think all of that happened through random chance? It just so happened you had a problem accessing the other site just long enough to get established here?

Obviously God wants you on here Min - I don't know why you haven't seen that. LOL.

I'd never done the forum thing before. But I was just browsing one day (one day not so very long ago) and found that, holy shit! these things exist for atheists!.

And I was hooked on the idea. I can discuss so many things with people around me, I was craving intellectual/off topic/random/religion discussions with people that would actually take it seriously.
So I registered here, and got impatient because it took someone a whole day to give me the email link to activate my account!

So I found a different one (can't remember which) that didn't make me wait for the email link. As I was unaware of the etiquette, I pretty much commented on the first thing I saw. And got ATTACKED by several people. Not a calm cool and collected 'that's now how this works' but more like a 'what the fuck, you're stupid and doing it all wrong'.

Bah.

And then the next day I got the email link to activate this account and poof! here I am.

In the scant few days I've been a member, this place has been for me much what it's been for the Salesman, in intellectual stimulant in a HUGE way. Not necessarily that I've learned from you guys (which I have), but more so, something about the discussions and links just makes me want more knowledge!

Here's a prime example: (and don't make fun of me for geeking out like this.... )
Could not tell you why, but a couple days ago I got this hankering for Chemistry. Like, I just felt like doing some chemistry homework. Which got me to thinking that I really don't remember a whole lot about that science anymore. I remembered my high school course and the fact that, much as I bitched about it, chemicals and elements and molecules and such actually excites me!
So I downloaded a college level introductory text and started reading. Fuck me, I even started taking notes! Before I knew it, I'd read about 70 pages worth of text and had taken about 15 pages of notes. And I STILL haven't gotten to anything of value, I'm still at the 'teach the dumbass the basics' parts.

Just the need for intellectual stimulation has been awakened since I started visiting this place.

I'm still reading Chemistry, but have also added introductory anatomy/physiology and algebra to my 'college book learning without the credits' classes.

So to all who've contributed to my newfound need,


THANK YOU!!!!!!

(November 16, 2013 at 11:10 am)c172 Wrote: Well, I had been a regular over at AF.com, and every once in a while, I would see this site, too, maybe by typing in the wrong extension (.org), but then I'd go back to .com.

I think at some point, I became dissatisfied with the social culture over on that site. Either the conversations were too deep for my comfort, or it was just a bunch of people cracking jokes at eachother's expense. My sense of humor is just different.

I just feel more accepted here. It's less cliquish. I can be me and not try to be somebody I'm not.

Your signature is a copyright infringement FYI.

Quote:Obviously God wants you on here Min

I'm pretty sure it was the FSM.