Why are Atheists afraid to insult Islam and Jews?

[robvalue]

Even if/when religion stops doing harm, I'm still going to think it is stupid. But I won't feel it as necessary to openly criticize what a terrible idea faith is and how religion is perpetuated entirely by oral myths, the placebo effect and confirmation bias.

There, I did it. I filtered religion down to three things, in an easy to remember format!

Think religion? Call a COP! Confirmation bias, oral myths and placebo effect.

Put your thinking COP hat on for an hour and you'll see that you've been indoctrinated by oral myths which you would never believe as true if you heard them for the first time as an adult. Your desire to keep those myths going, which have become your reality, is aided by the chemicals your body produces when it thinks something is going to help. And by the human's very strong desire to see patterns, even where there are none, to make you think causation is going on that really isn't. In really severe cases you will have actual delusions where you see things others don't, rather than just intepreting events to fit your oral myths. If this is the case, please seek professional help.

Here at COP, we understand that it is not your fault you were indoctrinated, and the idea that your parents, other family and friends have been misleading you is hard to accept. Remember, they were likely indoctrinated too so may well not have been aware of the falsity of the oral myths. Don't be too hard on them, but don't let their pressure hold you back from reality.

You've been living in a blur between reality and fantasy for far too long. It's time to take that first brave step into the world. It will be scary. It will feel as if you've been relying on an authority figure all your life who now isn't there. But don't worry, in reality he was never there in the first place, and you've done just fine up to now. The world is just what you would expect from a place with no magical being governing it. It's got some really good and really bad things in it. See what you can do to stop the bad things, but be realistic that you can't stop it all. Only a magical creature can do that, and as you have noticed, none have done so.

Your life is now yours to live as you feel is best. Do you feel the urge to kill someone just because you don't have an authority figure constantly looking at you? No? Didn't think so. That's your conscience, your internal moral compass. Up until now, you've been attributing it to myths and this absentee authority figure, but it's in you. It has always been in you. That's why you didn't act on the parts of the oral myths and religious texts which were obviously wrong. But now you don't need to make dishonest arguments about why you aren't doing them. Take credit for the good you do, and try not to do bad things, but if you do, take responsibility. Apologize and make amends to the harmed parties, not with an irrelevant third party. We're human, we make mistakes. But we are great at learning from them.

So go, my child, be free. Life has whatever purpose you want to give it. Accepting that this is the only life we will most likely have is scary too, but it's also empowering. Imagine getting to the end of your life before realising that, or never knowing it at all. Now you can make the very most of it, instead of looking at this as a dress rehearsal, a pointless series of tests before the main event. No, this is the main event. You get one shot at it so make it count.

You're not alone. The authority figure is not there, but that doesn't mean no one is. Even if your friends and family decide to shun you, that is their problem and their loss. Atheists around the world will support you, and you can make new friends who love you for who you are, not just what you believe. Go along and play. Now you don't have to worry about all those silly "sins" and "making God mad". If something doesn't hurt anyone, and you want to do it, then do it! You may feel a sense of guilt at first, but it will fade in time. Indoctrination and oral myths aren't let go of all at once, it is very serious psychological programming. Let it go in its own time, and you will be free of the shackles you could never see.

Never again must you worry about trying to explain a load of supernatural goings on that you have no evidence for, or worry why various aspects of the religion didn't make sense. It's man made nonsense designed to control people, nothing more. You're seeing the world as atheists always see it. As it is.

Now be good, or I'll kick your ass.