N.C.’s recently passed Amendment One is terrible. It prohibits gay and lesbian marriage, and functions as an amendment to the State’s constitution. We already had a damn law here prohibiting gay marriage, so it was a superfluous slap in the face to the LGBT community.
The vote was closer than many of us imagined – 61% For discrimination and 39% against discrimination. As you may imagine, the more rural counties voted ‘for’ it (for restricting marriage to heterosexuals.)
Statistically, one county has to be the most discriminatory. That ‘honor’ goes to Graham county – For: 2313, Against: 290 (88.86%)
Drew Epstein just sent me a message about his new MMAtheists effort. You know you like to click on things – ‘like’ this thing on Facebook!
Mixed Martial Arts training is a standard part of military hand to hand combat readiness.
As the US Military (the Marines in particular) advertise directly toward the Mixed Martial Arts community, I thought you might understand my position on this issue.
We have many “foxhole” atheists in Mixed Martial Arts, and most of them are afraid to come out for fear of social and physical detriment. The majority of fighters, especially those of Brazilian descent, are feverishly religious; many say prayers before entering combat events, and many thank Jesus after an event (win or loss).
As MMA is the fastest growing sport in the world, I want to make sure that atheist athletes have a place to communicate and realize that they are not alone, and let the world know that not everyone brings a bible with them to Fight Club. That is why I have created MMAtheists on Facebook.
This page will be dedicated to highlighting MMA figures who have pointed out that Jesus doesn’t belong in combat sports, or any other organized sport. As a practicing mixed martial artist, I will also author product reviews, training techniques, and other practical suggestions.
At some point soon, I would like to start offering sponsorship to the ranking and upcoming MMAtheists around the country, helping to counter the overwhelming influx of capital that flows in from the religious right.
I would like to ask your support at this very early stage as I attempt to launch and grow the community by “liking” or “sharing” this community page, to get the word out.
If this is an inappropriate request, I apologize. As the Military arm of American Atheists, I thought you might understand better than most. The MMA community stands very firmly behind the U.S. military and many of the best mma fighters in the business came from military backgrounds. Please help me find those fox hole MMAtheists and let them know there is place for them.
Thank you very much for your consideration, and have a great day!
An anonymous foxhole atheist at Fort Jackson sent me this.
If you seek it out, remember do not start flame wars, and always be respectful. Don’t feed any trolls that may pop up. I’m going to Fort Jackson in a few weeks – trying to keep pitchforks and torches out of this.
If you must, leave your comment on the post itself. Don’t click on the picture to leave a comment. The picture is secular and comes from some other unit that didn’t say anything about god – you’d be speaking to the wrong people.
We need quality control, and that’s what Martin Wagner’s blog post was all about. I just disagree with him for his sloppy aim, misdirecting his valid criticism. He praised an American Atheists billboard(that he didn’t realize was from AA)(EDIT: Michael from the Mid-Ohio atheists explains how we were both wrong about this in his excellent post - the message of this sign is more complicated than we realized), as an example of what AA billboards should look like (instead of ‘fail’ and ‘embarrassing all of us’).
You’ll notice from my initial response to Martin Wagner that I didn’t even see that this next billboard may sound illogical to people. I pointed to this one because it had AA logo on it, and was part of the same campaign that Martin praised.
But then people left comments, rationally explaining how they interpreted it. Now, that illogical statement is staring me right in the face. “There is no god” immediately followed with “Don’t believe the thing you just heard”.
I mean, I still think it’s pedantic. If you take things this far, why not go one step further: you don’t ‘hear’ billboards. However, it’s plain that a lot of people instantly thought this, therefore it’s not as effective as it could be. This is far from a disaster, but I personally would have conceded the point and voted against this one. I do like the visual appearance of it, but I’d change the wording (or scrap it). [UPDATE: There is a really interesting back story to this particular billboard. I am now in the 'voting for it' camp...]
See? Criticism worked, instantly! However, nobody said it at the real life meeting about this billboard. I always try to surround myself with people who tell me I’m wrong (and are logical and reasonable about it). Many local leaders haven’t learned this lesson just yet – but they will.
Now for the titular photograph
I’m sincerely grateful that the online community gives enough of a shit to be fearlessly critical. There is room at the table for that criticism in real life. That table has a lot of empty seats with your names on them – in every city. Maybe take some of the burden off the heavy lifters, write some clever billboard campaign slogans, or reuse and re-purpose existing ones that you thought were successful. Give these suggestions to your local group’s leadership at the meetings. Those well-versed in the internet atheist subcultures on blogs, reddit and Facebook have a familiarity with the subject that translates very well to real life activism.
Turn the highway into reddit
Wouldn’t r/atheism addicts love to see that clever image plastered 20′ x 60′ on the side a fucking highway? Well, make it happen! The internet is hording all this goddamn talent. I’m a reddit junkie too, but real life atheist activists are So brave. (for those not familiar with the ‘So brave’ meme)
Perhaps even try to be willing to be the ‘billboard guy / girl’. Take on the logistics of the task all by yourself – sniffing out funding, researching the law, contacting the local billboard companies… you could do this in a single day if you were part of a meaningful community. You’d already largely know the ropes and how to make it happen. The learning curve is not that steep, and there is ample opportunity for creative input / output.
Even if you don’t want to take charge – there is a spot for you in your local community. Vote on issues, tactics, policies. Show up to goofy little protests, movie nights, speaker meetings, pub crawls – it’s all there. You will ‘level up’ if you become active in your local atheist community. I wouldn’t have believed it until I tried it.
You have a booger on your face
At the very least, help us with quality control (more than [valid] criticism after the fact on the internet). I want to know if I have a booger on my face… don’t let me walk around all day with that shit dangling there. Be helpful, let your local group know if they’ve got boogies too. Show up to the meeting!
We are even trying to take the conversation to the internet. American Atheists are funding 30 billboards soon. We got 8 submissions last time we asked and most were unusable. Dig through your saved images, or some other source. Read the rules I explained at the end of this post. Send us something!
Why are we even still doing billboards?
The first billboard campaign was revolutionary. New ones aren’t. They are actually still very important, because they actually work! They are not really designed to ‘de-convert’ religious people or ‘de-stigmatize’ the atheist community – though some may do this. The real power behind them is their demonstrable effect on the local atheist community.
Billboards are a recruitment tool, aimed at uncommitted or otherwise inhibited atheists. Even a failed billboard message still shows others that there are indeed more people like them. A better message would accomplish this better but the lesser message still reaches some. Every single city that runs them reports the same drastic effect on their local group’s membership (UP!)
So what! Who cares about growing a local atheist community?
You care. Or at least I happen to think that you should care.
The rapid uptick in community-building breeds a whole new front in the greater conversation. Activism, litigation, social interaction, visibility (beyond billboards) – all of this is exponentially more likely to happen with a solid base.
It’s arguable that right now the tangible front of the movement in this nation is resting on the shoulders of a hundred or so local leaders. They aren’t perfect at everything, and they have a fierce support system of other people who aren’t perfect at everything.On top of all of that, they are overwhelmingly outnumbered, outfunded, and often out-maneuvered by their more experienced and more ruthless theist rivals. Local leadership is spread so thin, and wins so rarely, sniped at from all angles (even within)… some don’t last very long.
The leaders who stick around long enough to put up a billboard deserve some fucking medals. That being said, if you are reading this right now – join and/or start a group.
For the last few years, American Atheists have been throwing billboards up around the country, and pretty much all of them have been a preposterous fail. Setting aside the often poor and flat-out amateurish graphic design on most of them (bad choice of colors and ugly fonts), they have either made the mistake of thinking that a billboard was an appropriate format for launching a philosophical argument; or they’ve made baseless, idiotic assertions that have simply left themselves wide open to snarky theistic ripostes; or they’ve just been muddled and borderline incomprehensible (remember that the message of a billboard needs to nestle firmly and swiftly in the brain of someone driving past it at 65 mph); or they’ve clumsily attempted to make statements about religiously inspired racism, only to trip over their own execution and faceplant, with the result that they were interpreted as racist themselves.
Seriously, guys, stop this shit. You’re embarrassing us.
Why AA always manages to get something that should be so simple so flamboyantly wrong is a mystery. (Perhaps effective billboard advertising is an area where they’d rather fly their Dunning-Kruger flag instead of spending a few bucks hiring a media consultant or PR firm.) But in future, maybe they should consider playing to their strengths, like organizing conventions and rallies, and leave campaigns like these to people who know what they’re about.
Whoa whoa whoa…
I ‘work’ at AA. I totally agree that our first round was visually lackluster – to put it mildly. When I came on board here, the relevant people were unaware that their billboards were so unanimously hated in the ‘internet atheist crowd’.
I said “They think you make billboards in MS Paint.”
They said “We never hired a person to do them, I see your point.”
So we have a different situation than many might assume. What is actually going on is volunteers doing what they can, maybe when they shouldn’t have. Keep in mind, this may be a past-tense problem… more on that in a bit.
In defense of American Atheists (and our network of volunteers), we have been doing a lot of good. FYI – the ring leader behind the Reason Rally that Martin praised was David Silverman, President of American Atheists. We probably aren’t always going to put the best possible billboard out, but hey – we are listening. I’ll pass along Martin’s article to the leadership at American Atheists. Some of the things you say needed to be said at some point.
Just remember – you’re dealing largely with volunteers in a somewhat nebulous environment. Many on the crew are not used to the quality control and self-reflection that the internet hate machine provides. I’ll even post this on the American Atheists Facepalm page despite the butthurt it might generate. It’s easy to get defensive even when your critics are right. On the other hand, American Atheists has publicly available phone numbers and are very approachable. Nastygrams like this are not necessary.
Pro-tip: the billboards you praised are from American Atheists
Martin praises the Mid-Ohio Atheists for their amazing billboards, rightfully so. Unfortunately, he fails to realize that the Mid-Ohio Atheists billboards that he praises were in fact American Atheists billboards. Yeah… not sure what to say about Martin’s ‘pro-tip’ now.
Here’s another billboard from the same campaign he praises as being much better than AA’s billboards.
Pro-tip: check to see if your pro-tips are, in fact, ‘pro’ and/or ‘tips’.
Despite all this, we could definitely use some help! American Atheists is too awesome of an organization to ignore these criticisms – albeit they are speaking of our earliest billboards for the most part. You can help though! We’ve got a massive campaign for Pennsylvania.
We’re trying to draw attention to the state House’s recent designation of 2012 as “The Year of the Bible” Fuck everything about that – help us! Here is how you can help with the new campaign:
Pick a (short) passage in the bible that’s ridiculous. There are many. New Testament, even better!
All artwork must be creative commons or original design.
The very bottom sliver must say “American Atheists – Reasonable since 1963 – Atheists.org” (or very similar)
Dimensions must scale to 20′ x 60′ (USA – ‘feet’!) – it’s best to send in a web version like a .JPG and a lossless high quality version like a .PDF
Submit high-quality graphic design concepts to the right person. Please also leave links in the comments section so that others can see your awesome work.
‘Like’ us on Facebook to get the word out about our ‘good’ billboards. (whatever that means)
I’ll even sweeten the pot. If your billboard is used you’ll get a free t-shirt and a one year AA membership. Please spread the word. American Atheists runs towards the gunfire. Even if it’s fellow atheists firing.
Violets are red Roses are blue Analyze what was said Don’t fall for it too
Be a skeptic. Question everything you’re told. Answer that question with empirical and repeatable observational data. Before you share your findings, try to prove yourself wrong. Especially when you’re right.
Previously, I have called for Christians to start policing their own – wondering where these ‘moderates’ were all hiding. Why not put some distance between yourself and ‘punch your gay kids’ pastor Sean Harris, or the oligarchy in King, N.C.? Quality control involves kicking extremists to the fringe.
My plea ended like this:
Ridicule them, chastise them, teach them… do something!
WTFaith’s Daniel Mitchel accomplishes all three, and even avoids the No True Scotsman fallacy. Here are some excerpts, but you really should check out Daniel’s whole post.
Anyone who says that the Bible is “crystal clear” on the subject of homosexuality is, in my humble opinion, not researching this shit. I use the word “research” deliberately, because many people do not know that there is an argument against the sin nature of homosexuality. But there is.
Now, I have, in the past, mentioned that Jay Bakker got flack for taking a “radically inclusive” stance that basically states that homosexuality is not a sin.Well, much of Jay Bakker’s position on homosexuality is influenced by Rev. Mel White, who wrote this extremely helpful pamphlet about it. And while I do not feel that White has definitively answered the “gay” question once and for all, I think he presents data sufficient to cast doubt on the traditionally-iron-clad assumption that homosexuality is a sin.
Some people don’t see it that way, of course. The day after the article about the North Carolina “go ahead and beat your young flamers” pastor came out, Billy Graham made the news by publicly supporting Amendment One. Because he loves me, and he loves giving me things to poke fun at, Mr. Graham used my all time favorite catch phrase about the scripture.
“The Bible is clear — God’s definition of marriage is between a man and a woman.”
What I find so funny about the phrase “the Bible is clear” is that it is never used about things that are actually clear. Nobody ever says, “Dude, stop murdering people, the Bible is clear on that.” Idolatry - that is a sin the Bible is crystal clear on. Not taking care of the poor is definitely poo-poo’d. These are things for which the above statement can be appropriately used.
…snip…
When that guy in North Carolina talks about punching your sons if they act in an effeminate manner, I’m not upset because he’s just some asshole. I’m upset because he’s an asshole pastor.
“I’m gonna set back the church fer decades, YEEEEE-HAWWW!!”
Honestly, it’s time like this that I wish I had a mega-blog – not because I have an ego (although God knows) but because I wish I could be a loud voice in speaking out against this kind of anachronistic nonsense. I wish that anyone cared how I feel about Sean Harris’s hate-filled sermon. I wish more people knew that there is good, solid room for doubt about how the Bible addresses homosexuality. If you don’t know why that is, and you didn’t read the link I put up about Mel White’s pamphlet, seriously, read his pamphlet. Maybe you won’t agree with it one hundred percent, but it can’t hurt to see an opposing viewpoint, right? At least it could start a positive conversation.
…snip… (note: avoiding ‘No True Scotsman!’)
And I know that Sean Harris isn’t really a bad guy. Neither is Billy Graham. Both of them are people who have dedicated their lives to doing a very difficult job, and they are my brothers in the Body of Christ.
But here’s the thing – part of a brother’s job is to tell people when they are being an asshole. It’s especially important now, because all those little kids who might get their wrist “cracked” because it was “limp”, they’re my brothers and sisters, too. And I love them just as much.
So, Pastor Sean Harris – I love you, brother, but you have some reading to do.
More like this, please! WTFaith also satisfies a rule I have – I don’t trust people who don’t swear. To clarify, I don’t trust people who say things like ‘frick’ instead of ‘fuck’. I know what they meant to say, so they are still swearing… and on top of that, they just frickin’ lied about which word they want to use.
Though, I must say that I have no empathy for awful people like Billy Graham. Sean Harris went on the defensive, attempting to convince everyone that he was taken out of context. He wasn’t! In case you didn’t see it yet, I interviewed him. After we got through his rehearsed answers to the easy questions, he said this:
He said it again!
Other reporters were there, one TV crew was even filming this exchange. However, every single bit of journalism I saw framed the issue as “Oh hey, we were wrong about this dude. He apologized and said he wouldn’t beat kids.”
He gets a free pass because all of those reporters decided what their story was about before they even got there. They read his retraction and believed it. Lazy and unethical journalism, clearly. Hopefully their false ‘redemption stories’ never grabbed the same headlines as his initial blunder.
Anyway, I really enjoyed the post at WTFaith. You should check it out and leave a comment!
Say what you will about PETA – but say it somewhere else. I think we can all rally around this cause. It’s time America gets rid of traveling zoos, circuses with animals, and any other ‘amusement’ where animals are psychologically tortured because of cramped cages. Large animals simply require bigger areas.
Your city almost certainly has an ‘attraction’ featuring caged animals. This one is in my area, and I’m absolutely shocked. This needs to stop.
Shut these awful places down!
After last week’s successful protest against the ‘punch your gay kids’ pastor, Sean Harris, many of us went out for pizza. At one point Pamela started talking about her activism in getting Jambbas Ranch shut down. I’ve long been against this, but was unaware it was happening here in Fayetteville. So I pressed her for more information. It was eye-opening stuff, but as soon as she mentioned PETA as helping, some people sort of ‘shut down’. This is similar to what happens when we say ‘atheist’, isn’t it? I’m not a fan of PETA either, but it’s clear that they are on the right side of this issue.
It’s not like this is even a ‘PETA issue’, 1600 people have added their voices to the Facebook page maintained by the local activists. They got Bob Barker to speak to the city officials, got National Geographic involved, tracked the countless legal citations against Jambbas Ranch Tours. The Shutdown Jambbas group has funding for their pending litigation, and are building a local community of watchdogs.
Jammbas have many more animals that are injured, physically and psychologically.
Rusty barbed wire.
Foxes need more than a few feet of concrete and bizarre random objects.
This Bison has several open wounds.
They’re doing a great job, but they need help. They need visibility. Don’t get distracted, don’t look away because it’s unpleasant, do whatever you can to help out. Share their videos on your Facebook page. ‘Like’ their page. Look for similar places in your area – get involved in efforts to stop them. If there is no local effort, begin one.
I started caring about these issues when I read this amazing article in a defunct zine a decade ago. If you’re still unsure, take a look at “Cruelty Under the Big Top” That article will screw you right up.
Excerpt:
The circus is no fun for animals. They don’t choose to ride bicycles, jump through fiery hoops, stand on their heads, or prance around on their hind legs in silly costumes. Circus trainers use whips, muzzles, electric prods, and other torturous devices to force them to perform these frightening, dangerous, and demeaning “tricks” that they cannot comprehend.
When animals aren’t performing, they are kept in cages or chains. They are deprived of their basic needs to exercise, roam, socialize, forage, and play. Big cats, bears, and primates are forced to eat, drink, sleep, defecate, and urinate in the same cramped cages. Elephants are chained by the legs for hours at a time. They often suffer crippling injuries from the constant chaining and physically difficult tricks. Veterinarian Sara Winikoff, who has experience with both captive and wild elephants, reports that “chaining their feet, restricting their access to natural exercise patterns and behaviors impedes their health dramatically.”
In large circuses, animals are often forced to perform night after night for 48 to 50 weeks every year. Due to the substandard, stressful conditions, many animals exhibit stereotypic behaviors such as swaying back and forth, head-bobbing, pacing, bar-biting, and self-mutilation.
Smaller and poorer circuses often do not even provide animals with adequate water, food, and veterinary care. Regardless of the size of the circus, the animals inevitably suffer under the big top. Take a look behind the scenes at some of the circuses that use and abuse animals for human amusement.
…
Look at Jambbas website’s picture for their bear. They’re not even trying to hide the problem, because they’re not aware of one. It’s insane. They’re asking for donations for a bigger cage – but a big enough cage can’t be built there. Sanctuaries exist, but Jambbas is not one and never will be one.
In addition to releasing the full version of the video, I’ve clipped out this horrifying scene from Pastor Sean Harris’ interview with me. He had been retracting his statements like this all week long in the media, and in that very interview.
Then all of a sudden he said this:
Justin Griffith: “But you wouldn’t literally use a rod would you?”
Sean Harris: “No, of course not. We may use some instrument of discipline in a careful and appropriate way. Depending on the age of the child, depending on the weight of the child…”
Sorry for ruining your day – but somebody has to get the word out. Stay tuned, we’ve got another local pastor saying the same stuff. Except Mark Rowden isn’t even ‘fake apologetic’, and the media hasn’t picked up on him yet.
This is one of the more gratifying moments of being out front in the military’s overwhelmingly misunderstood atheist community. Right from the get go, this recruit is a shit-kicker, like Megan Hurwitt (who just graduated from boot camp on her birthday!)
Justin Griffith,
Hi, it’s the atheist Marine recruit that you helped out a few months ago. I know that you’re a busy man, but I just wanted to give you a quick update on how I’m doing.
This afternoon I took the oath and formally enlisted in the Marine Corps. My package still says “Atheist” – I checked! I didn’t say “so help me God” when I swore in – the Captain who administered the oath was very polite and clear in the briefing before that we didn’t have to.
Since I’m traveling from the west coast to Parris Island on the east coast, I spend the night in a hotel and get up very early tomorrow morning to catch my plane. I was designated the group leader, so I get to make sure that all four female Marine recruits shipping with me make it to the east coast. Next goal is to make sure my dog tags say “Atheist” and to pass the initial strength test so I can get picked up and start boot camp. I’m equally excited and scared, but I am ready for this.
Thank you again for your help and support, not just for me but for the online atheist community. As someone going into the military, I find your blog to be not just a great informational resource, but a source of comfort. It helps to know I’m not alone.
I have to give up email access in a few hours until I graduate boot camp, so if you send a reply (I’m not expecting one) I may not see it. Good luck with recruiting duty, and I’ll send you a picture of my dog tags as soon as I’m able, which won’t be for 13 weeks at the earliest.
Justin Griffith is the Military Director for American Atheists.
Justin is spearheading Fort Bragg's 'Rock Beyond Belief' atheist festival, and demanding equal treatment for foxhole atheists - including local groups who are currently banned from even meeting on post. After failing the Army's mandatory Spiritual Fitness testing, the remedial training told Justin he could improve his Spiritual Fitness by starting an 'online blog'. You may have heard about it. :)
"*Foxhole atheists are fighting for your rights. Please return the favor.*"
The free festival on Fort Bragg's Main Post Parade Field was a massive success! Expect updates, highlights, and other footage over the next few months.
UPDATE: A second festival is in the works for Camp Pendleton - a large Marine Corps base near San Diego, CA. Summer 2013
Like us on Facepalm
The painless way to support Rock Beyond Belief is to 'Like' us on Facebook. It takes 3 seconds. You do support the troops... don't you?
Even more Facepalm
A really awesome Facebook group, American Atheists Military is uniting service members, veterans and supportive civilians. This is where a lot of important issues are first discovered, and brought to light. There is a constant stream of foxhole atheists correcting their dog tags to say 'ATHEIST' and putting them up on the wall. Throw yours up there! No 'anti-war' or 'anarchist' trolling, please.
For those of you wanting to connect directly with Justin Griffith on facebook, there are still a few spots left.
Medal of Honor recipient retires after 44 years of service: http://t.co/GFlYDEoQ "I have 3 rules - but god only had 10 so I'm doing well!" 23 hours ago
.png){kind=logo}
May 15, 2012 at 7:54 am 
Justin Griffith 
Recent Comments