Yesterday, I was interviewed by a reporter who was concerned about those aggressive atheists who were putting up offensive billboards in New Jersey, saying horrible things like that religion is a myth. Have we gone too far? Aren’t we turning people off with such rudeness?
I had to ask her if she’d ever looked at Christian proselytizers with that same critical view. I wish I’d seen this story about Brother Dean beforehand.
“I believe there are certain qualities that may be worthy of rape,” the street preacher added. “If a woman dresses proactively, gets blackout drunk, and is wearing really revealing clothing, then I would say that she is partially responsible for the rape.”
Or watch his approach.
I am getting a little tired of people who accuse mild-mannered atheists who think people are better than their religion of being fanatics, yet can live in a world where Christian loons are standing on street corners, yelling hatred at passers-by, and other Christians seriously propose disenfranchising atheists, and these people simply take that as a matter of course. I guess if it happens constantly, it’s not newsworthy. An atheist clearly states their disbelief, though…Shock. Horror. How dare they?
Just to let you know, the video starts to autoplay from the Pharyngula home page…
He needs to chase more of his signs which blow into traffic.
Brother dean, get off the cross we need the wood for the fire.
OK, maybe my first comment was a bit harsh. I’ll just wish his signs to blow into gardens and for him to step in dog shit as he chases them.
Had a friend tell me the “Good without God” billboards are throwing it in the face of Christians. Guess the 1000 Christian billboards to every Atheist one are ok, though. Who is the aggressor here?
Do you feel you changed the reporter’s perspective on the story, or did she stick to her predetermined narrative?
What could possibly be more arrogant than to believe that our little speck of dust, lost in the vastness of the universe, is the center of attention of that universe’s supposed omnipotent Author?
Deanne @5, I think that a persecution complex has never ceased to be an inextricable part of Christianity. And it’s not not just fundies. You’ll even find UU Christians who are butthurt about not getting what they feel is their due respect from UU humanists.
But HE is omniscient!!1!1! He knows where every little subatomic particle is and its exact momentum at every moment. Heisenberg is just a human with a limited brain so everything is uncertain in his model. And all that omniscience is LOVE so of course he cares about what we do and is deeply offended by those who deny him the reciprocal love. All the contradictions in that Book he commissioned, are simply transcription errors of that radio-like signal he formed in the writers’ pen hands. But of course we’re the center of His attention; cuz in infinite space every point is the center. ^_^
Nah, 99% of all Christians will look at your examples and say, oh, no, that isn’t representative of *my* Christianity so the comparison isn’t fair.
My go-to example is this. Oh, so saying that there probably isn’t a God is extremely offensive, yet you, mild mannered lamb of god, smile at me while worshiping a god that will condemn me to eternal torment for the sin of doubt. Which is more rude?
Most–possibly all–of the xians I know are utterly incapable of introspection and/or empathy. Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes? Nope.
throwaway @ 2 & 4 I was going to say you were right the first time but then I thought, “That’s just mean, why subject some poor innocent motorist to the trauma of accidentally running over his stupid ass.”
Now if I was driving…
petemoulton @11, I’ve tried to get even very liberal Christians to own the privilege that Christians have in this society, and to acknowledge that on their own professed principles bashing a despised minority like atheists is not OK. The result is always blank incomprehension followed by butthurt.
Guess we gotta do it more.
(just, you know, please no more billboards with pictures of slaves on them)
Naw.
Who is turning off people with hate, lies, hypocrisy and sponsored terrorism are…the fundie xians. They created the New Atheists!!!
And they have the numbers to prove it. US xianity is losing around 2 million members a year.
That is nothing compared to the xian message. Everyone is going to hell and get tortured forever!!!! Except people who join our cult.
Then there is the claim the morality comes from god and atheists are evil. The fact is, you can be a good person and be a xian. It just makes it a lot harder.
Add in the usual attacks on science, scientists, women, gays, nonwhites, nonxians, other Fake xians, college students, public education, and fundie xians have alienated most of humanity.
Support for the Tea Party, their political arm is at a record low of ca. 22%.
Well, remember, Christians are now the most oppressed people in the history of ever. Just drive down I-81 from Winchester, VA to Bristol, TN. In addition to the 51 crosses along the highway (I may have missed one or two), and all the billboards with 800 numbers offering the Truth!!, I saw three billboards which stated, in no uncertain terms, that not allowing prayer in school (I assume they mean teacher-led prayer) and allowing gays to get married is a plot to destroy Christianity. I assume Virginia has truth in advertising laws, so they must be right, right? But, of course, no arrogance there on the part of any of the 40,000 or so sects of self-proclaimed Christians.
No atheist billboards, though. I still have never seen one. Not one. Now that’s arrogance.
Maybe the atheist billboards are homeopathic? The fewer there are in relation to Christian billboards, the more effective they are?
My best friend’s mother, back when I was in high school, was very worried about me. I had not accepted Jesus as my personal saviour and was in danger of spending eternity “suffering in a burning lake of God’s love.” She used that phrase.
And I suspect she would have freaked out if she ever saw a billboard with one of those arrogant and over the top atheist messages.
Blarg – did anyone get more than 28 seconds in to this video? That was how long it took me to put down what I was doing and find the pause button. Why was this guy deemed worthy of a 10 minute video segment?
This might make an interesting billboard message by itself:
“Everyone is going to hell and get tortured forever!!!! Except people who join our cult.”
Back in the old days the masochistic monks used to spend their lives living in filth and squalor, deep in a pit, or on top of a pole (eg Simon Stylites). Brother Dean probably won’t reach that level of self-degradation, but he certainly seems to get turned on by words of ridicule and looks of disgust from those passing by. I wouldn’t be surprised if he is like a fetishist; that he goes home at night, concentrates real hard on the days events, and actually manages to reach an orgasm without touching himself. [I could be wrong]
Telling you, via billboard, that “Hell is real!” in big, bold letters, is not aggressive. But saying that religion is a myth or that one can be good without the fear of Hell is aggressive. Well, perhaps a laughable fantasy is harmless but the truth hurts. So maybe Christians really are being persecuted and tortured by those billboards.
That’s horrible! Need brain bleach now! :-D
Why can’t all Christians be like Father Rod, rather than Brother fucking Dean?
I’d just like to say that a) I regularly dress ‘proactively’*, and b) I’m becoming increasingly disillusioned that I haven’t been recognized for this yet in the weekly status report.
(/*Insofar as, yes, I generally do get dressed before leaving for work.)
petemoulton @11:
Hm, that doesn’t match my experiences at all. I’ve met a lot of christians who were capable of both introspection and empathy.
****
marcus @12:
Wishing harm to others is not cool (even if joking).
wishing harm to others is not cool?
tell it to the preachers who threaten with eternal damnation.
Who spend there time judging everyone for things that are do not concern them nor effect them in any way. Who think the greatest evil that can be done is a thought crime which they condemn to the lake of fire for ever.
I could not watch very much of that vid either. I find that watching lost suffering painful people that desperate to hard to bare.
no need to wish him pain he is already involved in a way too complicated pain and guilt involved life already that he has chosen himself.
uncle frogy
I felt bad for that guy buy the end, it sounds like religion has ruined his life even more than he can ruin others people’s lives. At least until he has a kid. Or sways some other dolt. I really wanted to know how many people he thinks of as friends.
Also it’s annoying that so many people are so deeply offended by an absence of belief, it’s not like it was my choice even, to not believe, there’s just zero supporting evidence and an overwhelming amount of evidence against each of the many gods and goddesses.
I go to the same University as this fuckwit, and have to hear him screaming on a regular basis. I miss this time last year, when we had frequent (and often inspiring) counter-protestors.
He doesn’t believe the universe is terribly vast. He’s a creationist, and of the rarer “I think astronomers and NASA are in a giant conspiracy to make the universe look like it’s bigger than the solar system” variety. He’s called me and other astronomy students “suppressors of truth” on that basis before.
Tony!@ 26 Your concern is duly noted. :p
marcus #30
Noted.
I had to stop watching when he started screaming “You deserve rape!” A sick, sick fuck.
This guy makes some Taliban look warm and fuzzy.
I think he’s doing a spectacular job of showing people just how damaging, disgusting, and dangerous religious ideals are. You know that saying about how the bible is the nonbelievers greatest tool for deconverting the faithful? Well I think we can add brother dean to that now.
Tony! and chigau Just to be clear IMO joking and wishing are actually two different things entirely.
Plus, truth is, while I wouldn’t wish it on him, I really wouldn’t care much if this asshole got run over by a bus. Not cool? I’ll accept that.