Freaky view of atheism in America

[Booko]

I'm impressed. I'm no good at winging it. I have to have my thoughts down on paper in order to speak coherently.

Yeah, well you've probably seen me go on one of my somewhat technical rants here. Haha...it just kinda comes out of the fingertips...what can I say?

My daughter didn't get her knack for performing arts from strangers.

Yes, it absolutely would! I'm serious. I really like the idea. I think the reverse -- how to talk to theists -- would be good, too. I'm just really pro anything that brings about religious tolerance. So many people don't know how to talk to each other. We so often offend or simply fail to communicate our thoughts because of the words we choose. I have always really believed that if a person sincerely wants to understand (not necessarily accept) even a point of view that is in direct opposition to his own, he can do so with effort. Being educated as to how to go about having such a dialogue would just help immensely.

You're right...the reverse would be good also. How many times have I heard someone make a blanket statement about theists only being such because we're all afraid of oblivion when we die. From where I'm sitting, "laughable" doesn't even cover it.

RF would be the perfect place to have a dialogue like this!

 

[Booko]

The other lady that said "Athiest should shut" up was just ignorant. She seemed to take offense the most. She seemed to loose her chain of RANT when she started talking about how she whish they didn't take prayer out of schools.

My approach to this is to ask the person whether they'd be okay if a Wiccan or Muslim child lead the prayer in class. That usually puts a hasty end to their protestations.

Too often, people who say silly things like that quite frankly don't get out much. If they did, they would realize that everyone is not just like them, and having prayer in schools means that *their* kids are going to be exposed to things they think are "devil worship." It doesn't mean only their variety of prayer will be there.

I thought she said that you could pick an athiest out of a crowd. if that is what she said then she is a true idiot. the couple that gave their interview had lready stated that the people in her town didn't even know they were atheist until after she told her landlord.

How could you tell an atheist from someone who's merely "unchurched"? Heck, I managed to hide my atheism from my mother for all those years because I simply didn't mention it. She just assumed I was fallen away, like a lot of young people do (like she did), and when I got settled down with a family I'd be back again.

The stuff didn't hit the fan until I actually joined a religion that wasn't Christian.

As for the lady who said "shut up" -- to my Christian Mum, those are words that you *never* say, right alongside the stuff you type in on RF that turns out all asterisks. She'd drop the f-bomb before she told someone to shut up.

 

[Kungfuzed]

I thought it was quite amusing. I especially enjoyed the remark that "Atheists don't believe anything". That might be a whole nother thread right there. Perhaps collectively there might not be a whole lot that 100% of us can agree on but I'm sure individually we each have beliefs in something.

 

[Booko]

I thought it was quite amusing. I especially enjoyed the remark that "Atheists don't believe anything". That might be a whole nother thread right there. Perhaps collectively there might not be a whole lot that 100% of us can agree on but I'm sure individually we each have beliefs in something.

Oh, I expect that among atheists there's a core set of ethics they have in common.

I've always found the assertion that atheists can't be moral because they don't believe in God to be...not too connected to reality.

 

[Ðanisty]

My approach to this is to ask the person whether they'd be okay if a Wiccan or Muslim child lead the prayer in class. That usually puts a hasty end to their protestations.

Too often, people who say silly things like that quite frankly don't get out much. If they did, they would realize that everyone is not just like them, and having prayer in schools means that *their* kids are going to be exposed to things they think are "devil worship." It doesn't mean only their variety of prayer will be there.



How could you tell an atheist from someone who's merely "unchurched"? Heck, I managed to hide my atheism from my mother for all those years because I simply didn't mention it. She just assumed I was fallen away, like a lot of young people do (like she did), and when I got settled down with a family I'd be back again.

The stuff didn't hit the fan until I actually joined a religion that wasn't Christian.

As for the lady who said "shut up" -- to my Christian Mum, those are words that you *never* say, right alongside the stuff you type in on RF that turns out all asterisks. She'd drop the f-bomb before she told someone to shut up.

I've been a Luciferian for almost 5 years and my father doesn't know and we even talk about religion!

 

[elwedriddsche]

Does anyone else, atheists only, actually encounter people like this and have to put up with this kind of attitude in your daily life?

I haven't peeked at the video, but even as an outspoken atheist, I've never encountered "people like this" in person. If I'd move to to hinterlands, that may change.

 

[gnomon]

Thanks for the responses. I'm surprised by the choice of "panelists" by CNN. Despite living in a supposedly backward, highly religious southern baptist part of the country I have never dealth with anyone like that on a personal level. I've actually faced more intolerance and hostility from counter culture "New Age" believers and general spiritualists due to my admittedly heavy skepticism.

I still hold to the hope that people who hold such beliefs of atheists as the two female panelists are few and far between.

 

[Majikthise]

Wait for it..................................

 

[Majikthise]

Oh man! These biddies would get along great with my mom!
I'd hate to be that poor guy.

 

[SenileAnimal]

Wow, that just ****** me off.
Fact of the matter is, this is not a 'Christian Nation'. 'One Nation Under God' wasn't added to the Pledge until 1954 because of the threat from the Communist Soviet Union and their restriction, if not elimination of religion.
This nation is not built upon just the majority of it's citizens, it is all of us, the athiests, musilms, buddhists, taoist, jews, pagans and anyone else. I was also unaware that Europe was falling apart due to it's godlessness. Apartly, I don't have any beliefs at all since I'm an athiest, where was this Karen Hunter when I was trying to figure everything out. It would have been so much easier had I known that I didn't believe in anything at all.
Athiest of America unite, we need cards and a PR rep!!!!

 

[Nanda]

I remember when this aired... I wrote a nasty letter. Did anyone else watch the rebuttal?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-jjDLKMswM Part one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2IAoMeygi4 Part two

 

[SenileAnimal]

Awesome, thank you for posting those. I feel a bit better now.
And Ellen Johnson totally pulled the abusing children card, classic.
I also find it funny how the 2 women in the video from the original post and the 'Reverend' in the second video from Nanda are the rudest most ignorant people I think I have ever had the extreme displeasure of hearing speak.
That e-mail they got was awesome, and I think it sums up the veiw of most Athiests.
Thanks again Nanda, made me feel a good deal better.

 

[Nanda]

Awesome, thank you for posting those. I feel a bit better now.
And Ellen Johnson totally pulled the abusing children card, classic.
I also find it funny how the 2 women in the video from the original post and the 'Reverend' in the second video from Nanda are the rudest most ignorant people I think I have ever had the extreme displeasure of hearing speak.
That e-mail they got was awesome, and I think it sums up the veiw of most Athiests.
Thanks again Nanda, made me feel a good deal better.

No problem. While we're on the subject, here's what I wrote about it on another forum:

[A Friend of Mine] can attest to the fact that I was seriously put-off by Part 2. As one commentor on Youtube put it, it was "Five minutes of unchallenged bigotry." I was shocked and appalled that CNN would broadcast a serious discussion about atheism and neglect to have a single atheist present at the discussion. We were not represented, did not have a chance to defend our position, and worst of all, on a serious news program, false statements were made regarding America being founded as a Christian nation. For every point the panel made about "In God we trust" on our money, and "under God" in the pledge of allegiance, any reasonably knowledgeable atheist could have countered with the fact that,

1. America is NOT a Christian nation:

"As the government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion..."

2. "In God We Trust" was not the motto intended for this country by our forefathers:

"In God We Trust" is the current national motto of the United States. It was declared as such by an act of Congress in 1956, displacing the existing national motto, E Pluribus Unum. ...

In 1956, the Cold War was in full swing, and the anti-Communist suspicion of the McCarthy era was at its height. Partly in reaction to Communism (which was officially atheist), the 84th Congress passed a joint resolution to replace the existing motto with "In God we Trust." ...
The first United States coin to bear this national motto was the 1864 two-cent piece. It first appeared on U.S. currency on the back of Florida National Bank Notes in 1863. However it wasn't until 1957 that the motto was permanently adopted for use on United States currency."

3. Likewise, "One nation under God" was not added to the pledge of allegiance until 1954.

When faced with the facts, it is incredibly ironic and hypocrytical of these people to say that atheists are trying to "impose their will" upon America by wanting "God" removed from currency and the pledge of allegiance. If anything, it's a desire for reform, to return to the principles on which this country was actually founded.

Then, after the rebuttal aired:

Last night was the rebuttal of last week's bigoted panel discussion on Paula Zahn Now with Richard Dawkins. I was pleasantly surprised, as I'd had a fairly negative view of Dawkins because of some of the radical things he's said in the past, but I think I'm beginning to come around. One thing that's not in those clips was a brief moment where John Roberts (who was hosting instead of Paula Zahn, and I find it interesting that she wasn't there, but I digress) said "After we first brought this topic out in the open, most of the e-mails that we received were from people who thought that we should have included an atheist in our discussion," which prompted a laugh from me. No kidding, John. Like many others, apparently, after I posted here last week, I copied most of my post and mailed it to CNN. Feels good to be the squeaky wheel sometimes.

 

[BFD_Zayl]

its not maddening its...well at this rate its pathetic, it just makes me feel sorry for those 3 people. i have seen atheists being verbally attacked here. thats one reason i keep my beliefes secret. if they verbally attack atheists, imagine how they will deal with me. heh heh

 

[Thales of Ga.]

Nanda, it lies with such as you to get the news programs to notice us and have us on their shows whenever they have believers in the transcendent- the suprenatural and the paranormal.

 

[Fredx10]

I'm old enough to remember a time BEFORE "under god" was in the pledge. My, how things have improved since then. Not.

 

[PureX]

And why was that discussion on CNN crushed into a two-minute segmant? Why did the panalists have to talk as fast as possible to try and make their points? Why did it end unresolved and with the barest introduction to the points of contention. Are we all going to die in a few hours, and so have to experience our lives as quickly and shallowly as humanly possible? What? What's the damn rush?

OHHHH!!!!! They had to get to another commercial! Well, as long as CNN has their priorities strait.

This is why I won't watch CNN or Fox or my local TV news shows. I stick to the BBC and PBS where the purpose of the show is the news, and the discussion, not the commercials in between.

 

[logician]

THere is a strong prejudice against atheists in the U.S., and the media in general pushes god-belief if not overtly, at least subvertly. Politically, our government has become MORE fundamentalist Xian in the last decade.

 

[yossarian22]

I'm old enough to remember a time BEFORE "under god" was in the pledge.

Damn godless commies...

 

[logician]

2 out of 3 theists on Paual Zahn's panel say,

Atheists shut up!
YouTube - Paula Zahn - discrimination against atheists part 2

I have not personally encountered too many people with such an attitude. So I have a question. Does anyone else, atheists only, actually encounter people like this and have to put up with this kind of attitude in your daily life? Or did Paula Zahn just scrape up the bottom of the barrel?

Personally I think the two ladies are victims of an extremely poor education.

I have met a number of people with such an attitude.