Hate Mail – I think?

I debated on whether or not I should post this email, because I really don’t want to give this person the satisfaction. However, I think it is important to illustrate the twisted mindset of the opposition we face.

Do I have your attention Mr Blogger dude???

Man dude – with all the problems in the world – THIS hate God vengence is your imp crusade in life?? Are you nine years old dude??? Please, God, let this blogger be just a mentally disturbed individual and not a “sane” product of society…

For instance, here is a list of the 12 World Problems…
http://www.mac.edu/faculty/richardpalmer/POSTMODERN/application.html

Pollution – of the air, the water, the soil. – do you really believe too many prayers are causing all the pollution? Do you drive a car or walk? Or do you just stay home all day and blog???

Removing every church, synogue, mosque, big budha statue, sticks and stones on every street corner will not rid the planet of all the nukes, dude! Are you on any strong medication when you post???

Population growth outstripping resources worldwide. I got an idea! Why not next time blog to rid all the Atheists in order to sacrafice our resources! Or, perhaps a little less intrusive to you atheists, let all of you be deported to your own little commune where you do not have to hear the mare mention of God – or Allah – or Jesus – or Big Budda! You can all enjoy your evolution stories together with never having to worry about that knock on the door from a Jehovah again!

Unequal distribution of financial resources – Now aside from the fat rich pope or the Arab Muslims and the wealthy Mega church preachers – most God believing people are not rich in fact most today in other countries are being martyred for their faith (and they dont even blog!) Most of the money sits in the hands of the Democrats who pretend to be for the little guy! I am still waiting to see of Pres Obama truly believes in spreading the wealth but I still have yet to receive a personal check from him in my mail box. (Are you rich, dude??) Maybe you should give to the poor in between posting your hatred of religious folks! You can give on the computer, you know, dude!

aNTISEMITISM (well, I guess you wouldnt be concerned there since they are “religious” at times. I hope you are not a fan of Hitler! He was into evolution and Darwinism too and hated the Jews. Where did you post you are from? New York? I hope all the jews take cover from your posting finger!

And as an American – are you so clueless about the nation’s current woes??? And you blame it on religion? Dude! Are you serious??? I bet you didnt give one dime to Haiti, huh, dude! How could you when you are so busy posting the world is coming to and end over God lovers?! You must feel so imp, dud!! Do you sign internet autographs?? I mean, move over Pres Obama and give this dude his due earings of your peace award!!

Dude!! You really need to get a life and stay out of others’ lives! What a perfect world that would be if everyone followed suit! Such busy bodies in this world when millions are starving and dying of horrible diseases! Why not spend your hours you devote to your useless Blog to visiting the elderly in the old folk’s homes instead? I bet you dont even call your mom and see how she is doing! Shame! Shame! Shame! DUDE!!! Wake up!!! Life is short! (Esp with your impression of no after life!)

Sincerely,
John (johnroe6551@yahoo.com)

PS I bet this all boils down to that bicycle you didnt get on Christmas morning when you were 4 yrs old, right? You know, there are couselors for this dude!!!!

PSSS and dont pls comment back on religious fundamentalism! What a lame comeback that would be dude! Better yet, why dont you go right this minute, buy an airline ticket – (one way only I might add) and go to one of those Arab countries and present your very imp Blog to the leaders over there who hate us Americans! Surely your imp Blog will make all the difference with wanting to blow us up again like on 9/11!!

And do not even bother to send a reply, dude! If I see it come through on my computer I will delete on command!!!

****Dear God – please let this dude forget to save all his work and have a power crash for us internet travelers!! What a total waste of my search engine!****

If you got lost at any point in there, I’m afraid I can’t help you with that. However, the central message(?) seems to be something along the lines of “How can u cumplainz abot religionz wen so much uther bad stuff is goin on?” That’s what I was able to decipher anyway.

I really won’t go on any more about it, but you can see for yourself what this person thinks is a palatable argument. Maybe you could turn this into a mini drinking game. Every time you encounter a logical fallacy, you take a drink. You might have to change the rules around depending on your tolerance for alcohol/your hatred of your liver.

Pastor Wiley Drake A Modern Sorcerer?

Pastor Wiley Drake is fairly new to my radar. I remember him being mentioned after the murder of George Tiller, but I never really did much research on him. This man is just as certifiably nuts as any of the other more “popular” biblical literalists. He and his “prayer warriors” use imprecatory prayers to wish harm onto those who invoke his ire. This is nothing more than a modern attempt to curse people. Yes, you read correctly – curse. The Wikipedia entry for “imprecatory prayer” even redirects to the page for “curse.” The same thing that Lord Voldemort does to those unfortunate enough to cross his path in the Harry Potter series is being done by an American pastor and former leader of the Southern Baptist Convention.

His latest shtick revolves around wishing death upon U.S. politicians, including the late Rep. John Murtha and Pres. Obama, for… you know… not doing what he would like them to do. While most of us would take the logical route and join a letter writing campaign, support the opposition in an upcoming election, or lobby our elected officials directly, Pastor Drake takes the traditional Christian easy way out and simply prays — for swift death. Lucky for anyone on his shit list, prayer is pointless, and thus, causes no harm. It should serve to illustrate how bat shit insane the man is though.

Listen to the audio below of Pastor Drake speaking as a guest on Alan Colmes’ radio show. (Video from CrooksandLiars.com)

North Carolinians Seek to Bar Atheist From Office

cecilbothwellHere’s the gist: North Carolina’s constitution says that no one denying the existence of god can hold public office. The US Constitution says that there shall be no religious test for holding office. Which one trumps the other? I think that should be fairly clear, but to the residents of North Carolina that seem to be stuck in the 1600’s, it is a fight worth fighting. Never mind the fact that Cecil Bothwell was duly elected to the Asheville City Council.

In an article in the Asheville Citizen-Times, H.K. Edgerton, former president of the Asheville NAACP said, “I’m not saying that Cecil Bothwell is not a good man, but if he’s an atheist, he’s not eligible to serve in public office, according to the state constitution.”

Wait wait wait. Someone who is affiliated with the NAACP, an organization that seeks to preserve the rights of a group of people oppressed for generations, is now wanting to deny rights to someone? Who cares if it’s in the state constitution? It’s forbidden in the US Constitution. How hard is this, people? There’s even case law to back this up. In 1961, Maryland’s religious requirement was deemed unconstitutional as it violated the first amendment’s freedom of religion.

I suppose what irks me the most is that Christians never give pause to consider how they would feel if they were the ones being barred from holding office due to their beliefs. But they don’t consider that because they are in a healthy majority and don’t have to.

Discriminatory Insurer Fined in Kentucky

kyflagKentucky just can’t seem to untangle itself from religion. From being home to the Creation Museum to housing a legislature that has apparently never heard of the Establishment Clause, Kentucky is slowly, but surely, making me feel slightly better about living in Alabama.

The most recent incident of religious boneheadedness concerns the extension of discounts to insurance policyholders who were churchgoers. Offering a discount based on religion is in violation of the Fair Housing Act, a federal statute that “protects” buyers and renters by maintaining their right to discriminate.

I hope I don’t lose anyone here, but hear me out. While I am not at all a Libertarian, the following part may make some of my Libertarian friends moist in their nether regions.

While it is generally a good thing to keep religion out of things like buying a home, there are certain places where the marketplace could course-correct and eliminate the need for Federal intervention. If I were to own an insurance company, of course I would gladly take the money of anyone that walked through my door, regardless of their religious beliefs. As an atheist, it would absolutely make my day to meet a fellow non-believer, and if I wanted to tip them a discount, I should be able to. After all, I would be doing no harm except to my bottom line. Hell, if I was in a progressive enough area, I might be so bold as to offer a discount on auto insurance to customers who show me their Darwin fish emblem. But none of these things are legal thanks to the Fair Housing Act.

What makes this a particularly sticky situation is that our current system is not sufficiently competitive to allow for consumers to have access to alternatives to such religious buffoonery, as was the case in Kentucky. There are many laws (particularly state and local laws) which prevent some properties from being insured by out-of-state insurance policies. This could be super sucky for someone living in Kentucky who may have no other choice but to purchase homeowner’s insurance from a fundy.

However, it would be nice if some brave soul opened the Atheist Insurance Agency and his or her loyal customers from all 50 states could enjoy discounts, great service, and truly be in “good hands”.