Archive for February, 2012

I seem to be peddling a lot of t-shirts lately, but I cannot resist this one. At this rate, I either need a couple of torsos or need to cultivate a habit of changing my shirt every hour.

There are a multitude of reasons that I’m an atheist. With the exception of a brief time as an “angstheist” when I was a teenager, none of those reasons include denial or anger. Rather than focus on the negative, I’d rather focus on positive and start from the beginning. I am an atheist because I am fortunate enough to be a member of an order of apes that evolved intelligence. This evolution may have wired us to see patterns and believe the absurd, but the intelligence we’re gifted with also allows us to overcome this shortcoming. I am an atheist because there were men and women before me who refused to believe that the mysteries of the natural world were to forever remain unknown. Collectively, they developed the most reliable means available of uncovering these secrets. I have no doubts that I would be dead (a severe impediment for being anything beyond compost) if not for this scientific revolution; let alone capable of writing this letter. I am an atheist because I’m not afraid of questions to which I don’t have answers. Instead I am, like many before me, driven to embrace the search for truth, regardless of what strange, frightening or fantastic truth that search my unearth. I do not require fairy tales to reassure me and push an illusion of purpose. I have been fortunate to have parents that cared more about my well-being than about indoctrinating me into their faith. They taught me to be a decent human being without the fear of divine retribution. I was taught to appreciate the truth and to discard any falsehoods I may have acquired. Perhaps most importantly, that is why I am able to say that I am an atheist. AJ Champlin

I’ve got a class to teach in an hour and a mountain of snow to clear from my driveway and sidewalk, and the morning was looking rather grim. And then I saw this cartoon and laughed, so I feel better now. Mormon Heaven is going to be a much more interesting place now, especially since Stephen Colbert had all the dead Mormons converted to Judaism, so they’ve been sucked right out of the place and presumably sent to Sheol, instead.

Russell Blackford read de Botton’s latest book, and has an interesting take on it. I read Religion for Atheists on my flight over to the US – this is the new book by Alain de Botton. Verdict? Well, just quickly what I got out of it is that religions are comprehensive, totalitarian systems in which everything (art, architecture, music, the order of everyday life) is integrated and bent to a single purpose, with no room to manoeuvre except what the system itself provides. In other words, religions are even scarier than you thought. The last time I picked up a book by a religious apologist for a flight, the results weren’t pretty. I’m bringing a cancer text with me instead. Far more optimistic and enlightening.

I know exactly what you’re thinking right now. The Reason Rally is less than a month away, and you have nothing to wear. You want to be fashionable, and you also want to declare your allegiance, affiliations, and your weird obsessions publicly. Whatever can you do? Go to the Pharyngula store. We have new stuff! It will be ready in time for the rally (although you might have to pick them up at the event). First, look at this t-shirt. You must have it. It’s like the emblem Batman should have chosen. It will inspire fear and curiosity and weird monkey-like happy thoughts in all who behold you wearing it. And then, you know, you’re going to be hanging out on the Mall, listening to raucous music and ferocious firebrands, and you’re going to get thirsty. Do you have your travel mug with you? You need it! It will be awesome and thirst-quenching! There are other options. If you favor a more subtle, muted look, you can still purchase the lovely octopus t-shirt, and if you’re on a budget and can’t afford the full glorious PZ regalia, you can always get the button. There. Your apparel needs are all taken care of. Buy now. Even if you can’t attend the Reason Rally, you can wear these and hold the mug as you watch us vilified on Fox News from the boring safety of your home. Hmmm. I think I need to buy one of those shirts for my mom.