The Dogma of Texts

Gang initiation today at Wal-mart...they have to kill 3 people...DON'T GO TO WAL-MART! An undercover cop just told us

This text message was sent to me a few weeks ago by a good friend. I'm quite sure I'm not the only one who got it; such is the nature of these sort of textual alerts. I was almost led to simply ignore it and carry on about my business. But far be it for me to pass up a golden opportunity to be a smart-ass.

ME: Question... If an undercover police officer knows that there's going to be a gang initiation at Walmart, why not just stop the initiation? What happened to "serve & protect"?

REPLY: Just passing along the message, man. That's my job.

ME: So then an undercover cop didn't actually tell you that, did he? Tsk, tsk... liar.

How like religion, isn't it? A message following no logic, designed to scare people into not doing something to avoid a horribly grim fate. And why trust the message? Because it comes from an unseen, secondhand authority figure who, if he really existed, would have the power to stop the madness altogether.

Even if it's so obviously bullshit, at least they care enough to pass you the message. That's the part that saddens me. They really do believe it, and they really do care enough to let you know. Even if they're skeptical about it, they still believe it's a possibility. Really... is it worth the risk? Is it?

Worth making me give up the freedom of living my life over some obviously made-up story? Absolutely. I appreciate the gesture... but in the future, keep your text messages to yourself.

Unless the gang-members are raping people too. I didn't want to go to Walmart that badly anyway.

David Mills: The Golden Age of Atheism

If you haven't read Atheist Universe yet, go buy it. It's a great introduction into the case against fundamentalist Christianity.

My Plans?

All you need to know for now:

1. I'm 24.
2. I'm an engineer.
3. I was a "born-again" Christian for most of my life; I grew up saturated in Christianity, being the oldest son in a pastoral family.
4. I am now almost certain there is no god.
5. If there is a god, however unlikely that may be, I am 100% certain that the Bible is not the word of said god. Neither is the Koran, nor the Book of Mormon, nor the Torah, nor any other book that would claim that title.
6. I plan on using this blog as a platform to help others who may be in the same position I was once in, to see facts and reason rather than accepting things on pure "faith" with no evidence or second thought. On occasion, this may come off as ranting... but that is unavoidable, since ranting is and has always been an inalienable facet of my writing style.
7. Anyone who disagrees with me has every right to do so. However, I feel that it's my duty as a human being to inform others of the truth. Religion is detrimental to the advancement of the human race. Our country has been run by religious fanatics for far too long, and it's high time we stopped electing officials who form their opinions and make key decisions based on juvenile and unfounded superstitions. If I keep offending you, just stop reading.
   

Because of my... situation, I'm sure you can understand my need for anonymity. At least for the time being.

"Inspect every piece of pseudoscience and you will find a security blanket, a thumb to suck, a skirt to hold. What have we to offer in exchange? Uncertainty! Insecurity!"
-Isaac Asimov