Weekend Art: Lucretius & Atomic Theory in the Age of Caesar — NormanB (“Deviations from the Norm”)

Religious figures really can get away with saying anything about Atheists, can’t they?

The uproar by Americans as a result of the proposed construction of an Islamic community center near Ground Zero along with Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally in Washington, D.C. have pulled into focus the intense zeal that Americans have for religion. Undoubtedly, the characteristic of Americans that has been affirmed is the characteristic that Americans are dedicated to getting religion right.

Canadian Ali A. Rizvi makes the case that Obama is really a closeted non-believer.

Truth, so the saying goes, is a three edged sword – your side, my side, and the reality. That might be true, at least in the sense that there will always be a bit of room between our understanding of the universe and how it actually works. That doesn’t mean they’re equidistant.

If there were no religion, would there be no wars? It’s not a simple question to answer.

Beyond the sensationalist clash between theists and atheists, a more fertile and less dramatic third way is appearing. Apatheism (accent the first syllable) isn’t concerned with whether there might or might not be gods. If there are, they don’t show themselves in any persuasive ways. Meanwhile, there is life here and now, which can be lived fully and well with or without belief in deities.

Childish or inspired? How about both? (My art, I admit, is very bad)

It’s the first Thursday in May, and that means it’s designated Religious People Day in America… but for how much longer?

There a few places in my life where I am a minority. Being left handed, being blue-eyed and being an atheist. Only the last one is ever a problem, and while it is not the same as being gay or an easily identified ethnic minority, there is a level of discrimination that is often invisible to those not part of this minority.

The base state assumption in this country is that you have a religion. For the most part people don’t pry but if you mention that you have no faith, that you are confident the universe is a natural phenomenon then you very often become instantly the “other”.

"Originally posted at Squarestate.net"

Not being an aggressive atheist, I don’t put my belief that those who have a faith are deluding themselves out there very much. After all, as long as they are not hurting people with their faith why should I care? When they are hurting people with their faith (as in trying to deny rights to gay citizens or withholding medical treatment from children) fixing that situation is all about the harm they are doing. That it is religiously motivated does not matter in the solution at all.

Still there are a lot of things in our society that are like sandpaper on the skin of atheists. One of them is the National Day of Prayer. Every year on the first Thursday of May, the President issues a proclamation urging the people of the United States to pray. For those with a faith that involves prayer this seems pretty innocuous, but it is a real thumb in the eye for citizens without a faith or who don’t have prayer as part of their religious tradition.

It has actually been enacted by Congress twice, once in 1952 and once in 1988. Yesterday a Wisconsin District Court Judge ruled that is was an unconstitutional violation of the separation of church and state. USA Today reported that Judge Barbara Crabb wrote:

"In fact, it is because the nature of prayer is so personal and can have such a powerful effect on a community that the government may not use its authority to try to influence an individual’s decision whether and when to pray,"