Fire at Fred Phelps’ Place!

Check this!

Now if only it had been a lightning strike… I almost might start to believe in that case (not really).

Very Stupid People

The BBC has an article today about the Flat-Earth Society.

This is not how the Earth looks

Let me say a few things here.

1. These people are stupid
2. Continuing to believe something is true despite all the evidence that says it isn’t is a very unwise thing to do
3. Don’t be like these people

Some Advice to John McCain

Senator McCain -

I want you to lose in November.

This is probably no great shock to anyone who knows me. I’m about as Democratic as Democrats get, and I don’t really want you as President. If you win, I’ve no doubt you’ll do better in the Oval Office than the current jackass, but that doesn’t mean I want you there.

But much as I don’t want to see you win, I’d rather you not end up totally flaming out and crashing into obscurity. I’d like to see you fight the good fight and lose with dignity. Currently this doesn’t appear likely to happen, at least the dignity part, so I have some advice for you.

Lighten up!

Currently you’re frequently coming across as your basic grumpy old man. My great-grandfather, essentially, a man who was obsessed with all sorts of weird political beliefs and in his latter days basically morphed into Grandpa Simpson. Right now you’re going down a lot of the same roads as Bob Dole did back in 1996. That didn’t work well for him, and I don’t expect that it’s going to for you, either.

Grumpy old man! Also, no flag pin on the lapel... McCain hates America! ^_^

You need to lighten up, and for gods sake, make sure your running mate isn’t another old, white male. The last thing you want is John Stewart doing mock movie posters for Grumpy Old Men III: Cluster $%@! to the Whitehouse. Pick someone like Sara Palin, or Bobby Jindal. Two people who are younger and more vibrant than you.

But I’m sure you won’t heed (or read, for that matter), any of this advice, and that’s fine. Like I said, I want you to lose, and if you don’t want to do it with at least a little style and dignity, that’s ok. I’d just hoped for much better from you, on several levels.

With love;

Chris

“What If You’re Wrong?”

One of the questions most offen asked to atheists is the ever-popular “What if you’re wrong?”

It’s not a horrible question, really. What if I die, and it turns out that I’m up there at the Pearly Gates facing St Peter and having to hear why, even though I’ve lived a good life and done good works, I still get to be sent to Hell and punished for all eternity.

This birdbrain could be your judge!

But this question begs me to ask the theists out there, “What if you’re wrong?” What if you die and find yourself standing before Thoth, or you meet Charon, who wants to know how you plan to pay.

You might have to account for yourself to ole One-Eye!

Suppose you see the Allfather, who asks why you haven’t faced anyone in combat, so that you deserve to get into Valhalla. What if you die, and find yourself in the presence of Bhudda, telling you need to go back and try again? Heck, what if you find yourself in a black desert, standing next to a skeletal figure who says, I AM DEATH, NOT TAXES. I HAPPEN ONLY ONCE.

I could go on here, but the point is, yes, I might be wrong. There’s a slim, outside chance there could be an afterlife, and if that’s the case, and it’s the Judeo/Christian/Muslim afterlife, I’m well and truly fucked, because God is many things, but just and merciful he is not.

You might think this guy won't be judging you in the afterlife... but what if you're wrong?

Of course one of the hallmarks of the religious is they believe their version of the afterlife is the correct one, and their god(s) is/are the correct one(s). They are certain they are right, and are atheists to all deities but their own. They don’t stop to think, “What if the Hindus were right?” (unless they are Hindus, of course, in which case they probably think that fairly often).

The religious go about their lives assuming what they believe is correct. I go about my life assuming what I believe is correct. The odds of me being right appear to be greater than the odds of them being right, as they have no proof of their position. Given those odds, I think I’ll continue to believe I’m right, and if I turn out to be wrong, I’ll hope like heck that whatever I face after death has a greater sense of mercy and justice than God does.

Also I can’t help but wonder, what would most gods find worse? Someone who believes no gods exist, or someone who has been spending their lives worshiping the wrong god? From what I’ve learned of theology, I’m thinking they’d be more pissed at you than me.

And for those who would say, “Why not just believe? You have nothing to lose”, might I direct you to this little article? Enjoy!

(all photos swiped from Wikipedia!)