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Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 24, 2014 at 8:01 pm
My brother is a relaxed person when it comes to his non-belief. He rarely finds the need to say anything or even relate every day experiences to it. On the other hand, my family describes me as an atheist activist in the making. We drink coffee and talk for hours when my brother visits. He asked me the other day. "Why do you feel the need to make your non-belief such a big deal? Why did you start a group? Why do you search for other groups so you could introduce your own?" Well, in other words. He also said, "You don't go around talking about how you don't have a thing for dolphins. Isn't your lack of faith in a god the same thing? There's nothing there, so why talk about it?"
Simple.
Religion has contaminated my space.
My son has felt anxiety in school and at family events due to discrimination. He has been bullied by his aunts and cousins (dad's side of the family) for not wanting to pray and hold a candle. He was told by a teacher that Jesus would come back and the world would end. It's this simple. People need to mind their own business. Religion needs to stay the fuck out of our schools and government. Period. I will speak up and I will promote awareness as long as I feel this place is good enough for my kids to feel free to believe, or not believe. I will speak up until people can marry freely. I will not just sit there and do nothing. I will be an example to my kids. They will learn that they do not have to take bullshit and say "thank you".
It's not just my space, either. It's not just the space of atheists that is being bothered. If you are not a part of the majority, you're screwed.
https://www.aclu.org/blog/religion-belie...-christian
Quote:My stepson started at Negreet in the same class as one of my children. By the end of the first week of school, he was having serious stomach issues and anxiety. We couldn't figure out why. In the mornings, my wife would pull over on the side of the road as they approached school so he could throw up. At first, we thought he was sick and we let him stay home. Soon it became apparent that this was not a cold, but something much worse. Our children informed us that their teacher had been chastising and bullying my stepson for his Buddhist beliefs.
The rest of that article makes me all kinds of angry.
Why make it such a big deal? Because it is a big deal. Stop contaminating my space.
Pointing around: "Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, you're cool, fuck you, I'm out!"
Half Baked
"Let the atheists come to me, and stop keeping them away, because the kingdom of heathens belongs to people like these." -Saint Bacon
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 24, 2014 at 8:14 pm
Holy shit that is perfectly worded. Very very well said, Ivy.
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 24, 2014 at 8:47 pm
(This post was last modified: January 24, 2014 at 8:50 pm by Simon Moon.)
(January 24, 2014 at 8:01 pm)Ivy Wrote: He asked me the other day. "Why do you feel the need to make your non-belief such a big deal? Why did you start a group? Why do you search for other groups so you could introduce your own?" Well, in other words. He also said, "You don't go around talking about how you don't have a thing for dolphins. Isn't your lack of faith in a god the same thing? There's nothing there, so why talk about it?"
Because people's beliefs don't live in a vacuum, they inform their actions.
There have been dozens of (known) witch burnings in Africa in the last few years by Christians, based on Exodus 22:18.
Female genital mutilation, persecuting homosexuals and passing laws preventing them from getting married (or worse, imprisoning or killing them), teaching pseudoscience in public schools, 'honor killings', impeding science, picketing funerals in a time of grief, are just a few of the real world, negative outcomes of people's theistic beliefs.
Doesn't your brother have any problems with any of the above? Doesn't he think speaking out about them is worthwhile?
You'd believe if you just opened your heart" is a terrible argument for religion. It's basically saying, "If you bias yourself enough, you can convince yourself that this is true." If religion were true, people wouldn't need faith to believe it -- it would be supported by good evidence.
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 24, 2014 at 9:52 pm
I'm certain that Western Christians deplore those things just as much as atheists. The problem is not Christianity but the pre-existing cultural context.
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 24, 2014 at 10:03 pm
I don't think my brother approves of those things, but since it doesn't affect him, he didn't see the harm in all its glory. He doesn't have kids either. He understood what I explained, but he remains relaxed. I just can't do that.
Pointing around: "Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, you're cool, fuck you, I'm out!"
Half Baked
"Let the atheists come to me, and stop keeping them away, because the kingdom of heathens belongs to people like these." -Saint Bacon
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 24, 2014 at 10:22 pm
(This post was last modified: January 24, 2014 at 10:23 pm by Whateverist.)
I tend to lean in your brother's direction. But when anything happens to your kids you've got to go after that, for sure. So far no one has talked about god to my dogs at the dog park. But I swear to gawd, if I catch them praying ...
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 25, 2014 at 8:16 pm
I'm pretty laid back and try to be accepting of people and their beliefs, but when it comes to things like what the OP posted I have to agree 100 percent with what she/he had to say. I still struggle biting my tongue when people talk about religion around me like it's truth, but when it starts contamination the world around you it's hard not to let your voice be heard.
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 25, 2014 at 8:23 pm
(January 25, 2014 at 8:16 pm)Asimm Wrote: I'm pretty laid back and try to be accepting of people and their beliefs, but when it comes to things like what the OP posted I have to agree 100 percent with what she/he had to say. I still struggle biting my tongue when people talk about religion around me like it's truth, but when it starts contamination the world around you it's hard not to let your voice be heard.
She. 
I bite my tongue when I have to. Talking about it at work wouldn't make sense. I try to keep it cool regularly, but there is a time for everything. I might not knock on doors to promote free thinking, but I sure will aim at the ones who have been taking over our space.
Pointing around: "Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, you're cool, fuck you, I'm out!"
Half Baked
"Let the atheists come to me, and stop keeping them away, because the kingdom of heathens belongs to people like these." -Saint Bacon
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 25, 2014 at 8:36 pm
(This post was last modified: January 25, 2014 at 8:37 pm by Mudhammam.)
(January 24, 2014 at 9:52 pm)ChadWooters Wrote: I'm certain that Western Christians deplore those things just as much as atheists. The problem is not Christianity but the pre-existing cultural context.
"Female genital mutilation, persecuting homosexuals and passing laws preventing them from getting married (or worse, imprisoning or killing them), teaching pseudoscience in public schools, 'honor killings', impeding science, picketing funerals in a time of grief, are just a few of the real world, negative outcomes of people's theistic beliefs."
Those are huge problems among Western Christians. The extent to which you can locate "liberal" Christians depends on how influential secularism has been in vicinity.
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RE: Why do you make such a big deal out of it?
January 25, 2014 at 11:07 pm
Reading this again makes me kind of worried about when my kid is old enough to go to school. We live in a very small town (like less than a thousand people), surrounded by other very small towns. Religion is pretty prominent. It makes me worry about my kid being subjected to religious bullshit through teachers.
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