Get to know an Atheist Blogger - The Amiable Atheist

This week we meet The Amiable Atheist, a rare female atheist blogger! Similar to some of the recent interviews, she lives outside the States, but was raised here in the US as a Baptist. Read on for her story and advice to new atheists.

Q.Tell us a bit about yourself, where you came from, what you do now, where you're going. [Feel free to skip this question]

I am a 23 year female from Arizona. I am currently living in Germany with my German fiancé, learning the language, and wondering what I will do with my degree when I return to the U.S. I was raised Baptist and began doubting God’s existence when I was 18.


Q. What made you decide to blog about atheism?

When I was about 22 I became more interested in reading books and finding information about atheism. I began to engage in conversations online, out of curiosity and also out of a desire to hone my argument. I knew why I didn’t believe, but I couldn’t articulate it that well. Now it has become such a topic of interest for me that I felt I should compile my thoughts in one place.

The main reason that the topics of atheism and religion interest me is because I am genuinely worried about the way things are going in the U.S. and also in many other parts of the world. I am worried about our education system and I am worried about our freedoms, and I feel that both of these things are threatened by religion.

Now that I’ve had my blog for a while, I’ve begun to realize that I am mainly driven by a desire to confront the negative stereotypes that exist for atheists.


Q. How long have you known that you are an atheist? Tell us about that time in your life, and what led to that point.

I was baptized at 16 and I remember being disappointed because I didn’t feel any different. I remember sneaking onto the internet and googling “atheism”. I felt so guilty for even looking.

But I think the main change occurred when I went to college and began learning about the world. The first big thing was learning about other religions: they believed just as strongly as me, and had just as little evidence as me. What made my religion more valid than theirs? Wouldn’t I believe what they believed had I been born there?

The next big eye-opener was finally learning about evolution and the age of the Earth, which was, unfortunately, not taught at any other time during my school years. At first I tried to reconcile a looser interpretation of the Bible, or that science and religion could coexist, but eventually I realized that I just didn’t believe anymore.

Q.What excites you most about the current state of atheism, what are you optimistic about?

What excites me is the fact that I am even able to write this and put it on the internet. We still have a long way to go as far as negative stereotypes, but I feel like things are getting better in that aspect. Maybe it is because of the internet, or frustration with the current situation. But I am glad that atheists are able to have a voice.

Q. What are your favorite books on atheism?

My favorite is “Letter to a Christian Nation” by Sam Harris. It is so concise, and I wish I could give a copy to everyone I know.

I also really like Carl Sagan. I unfortunately don’t know a lot about science, not for lack of interest, but lack of education on the topic. But I think Pale Blue Dot is inspirational and it makes me want to go out and learn more about our world.

Q. Who do you most respect in the atheist community? Why?

There isn’t just one person to name here. I have respect for people who are out there voicing their opinions in an amiable manner. It’s what I aspire to. It’s so easy to become frustrated or let our arguments become personal, so I respect people that can stay rational and calm in a debate with religious people. I think this ability makes their message many times more effective.

Q. How has your blog affected your life?

I have learned a lot from my blog. I often make mistakes, but it is a huge learning experience. You learn a lot about how the words you say can be interpreted by others.

I think it’s a great outlet for my thoughts and frustrations on the topic of religion, and I like to think that in some tiny way I am helping. I don’t even hope to change anyone’s mind, I just hope to make them stop and think. If just one person sees my blog and is surprised that I don’t match their negative stereotype for an atheist, then I would be happy with that.

Q. What advice would you give those that are new to the idea of atheism, that aren't quite sure what they believe, and could use some direction?

I would say to go out and just devour information on the topic. Learn everything you can and talk to people. And, believe something based on the evidence, not because somebody else thinks it’s true, and never stop challenging that belief when new information comes along.

Q. Tell us why people should read your blog, and anything else you want to want to share with our readers.

I try my best to be honest and considerate on my blog. In the end, it is just one person’s opinion and not everyone is going to like what I think.

But if you appreciate attempts at courteous discussion on topics such as religion and atheism, then you might like what you see at The Amiable Atheist.

Thank you Ms. Amiable Atheist!

As always, head on over to The Amiable Atheist to learn more, or leave you comments for her here.

Get to know an Atheist Blogger - Ramon Garcia of Creative Century

Next in our interview series we bring you Ramon Garcia, author of Creative Century. Ramon is another foreigner, with a pretty interesting job, and a Christian wife (with whom he has an unspoken understanding to keep from trying to convert her, and vice-versa). He gives us a very interesting perspective on how atheism affects his part of the world, and some great advice for new atheists.

On to the interview!

Q. Tell us a bit about yourself, where you came from, what you do now, where you're going.

A: I am Ramon Garcia, born and raised in the Philippines. I am a web developer by trade but currently working with advertising in the *gasp* adult industry. I've also been working on some web projects which will, hopefully, keep the money coming in while I sit at home and relax.


Q. What made you decide to blog, and specifically to blog about atheism?

A: To be honest, I've put up a lot of blogs in the past, mostly these were traffic generators that would just collect money from ads. I never really cared what they contained and were based off topics I really knew nothing about. Those came and went and I stopped a couple of years ago. A few weeks ago, I found I still had a domain name that was lying around doing nothing and I put up a blog about whatever interested me on Digg.

I wasn't happy with that and I figured, maybe I should write about something I did know and was passionate about. After a little thought, a recent recollection of a rather funny (for me) event pointed to my atheism and how Filipinos viewed religion. So, a few weeks ago, I gave an atheism blog a shot. That also explains the senseless name, the name came before the blog.


Q. How long have you known that you are an atheist? Tell us about that time in your life, and what led to that decision.

A: About 23 years now, at least. I was in high school and it just dawned on me that I didn't believe in any god and I hadn't believed in one for a very long time. I'm even thinking it was as early as when I stopped believing in Santa Clause or the tooth fairy as I realized they were just made up stories. To be honest, I can't really recall exactly when this happened. It wasn't a conscious decision and it wasn't a big deal for me.


Q. What excites you most about the current state of atheism, what are you optimistic about?

A. I've felt for a long time that atheism has been gaining ground on theism in the Philippines. At least in my sphere of contact, people are less and less inclined to adhere to the admitted Catholic teachings and procedures. Things like going to church each week and observing such and such event based off this and that tradition. I've always hated how religions have such a strong impact on our government here to the extent that the only separation of church and state lies in their non-taxable status. Religious leaders influence almost every government decision. I'm hoping that the decline of people's adherence to their teachings will lead to a reverse of that. Though, admittedly, that's not going to happen any time soon.


Q. What are your favorite books on atheism?

A: I haven't read any. I planned on picking up The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins since it seemed so popular as I was doing preparatory research for my blog but I think that I'll hold off on that for a while. I figure that one must discover his atheism by himself, without any outside prodding or influence. I've only recently began discovering my true feelings and thoughts on atheism based off of my own observations of the community and have been coming up with my own conclusions based off these. I don't want to be influenced by anyone else, at least not at this point.


Q. Who do you most respect in the atheist community? Why?

A: I love PZ Myers, and am a fan of Pharyngula (www.ScienceBlogs.com/Pharyngula/). That's just because he seems like a pretty fun guy, the kind you'd like to hang out with during a high school weekend and be a nuance with. I'd have to say I respect Adrian Hayter (www.AtheistBlogger.com) the most. I wasn't around for the start of the problem but when he began questioning Atheist Nexus, it prompted me to question the organizations I was a part of as well. In the past, I was content to just keep my thoughts and opinions to myself but seeing him take on a whole community like that, with no allies, inspired me to do the same.


Q. How has your blogging affected your life?

A: I feel very philosophical right now. I've taken to analyzing things more deeply and expressing my thoughts on my blog. I'm more vocal as well. I've discovered that I don't have to take anyone's words as the truth and have to look to myself to find the answers I need. I may make a lot of enemies, but I don't care. Who knows, my ideas might be the correct ones, at least, for me, they are.

I've also stopped playing games, they no longer interest me. That's opened a lot of time for me to diversify my interests and learn more things, more importantly, has given me a lot more time to play with my daughter. I'm happier now.


Q. What advice would you give those that are new to the idea of atheism, that aren't quite sure what they believe, and could use some direction?

A: I'd suggest looking deep inside yourself and discovering what you really believe, deep inside. Take away all external influences, everything you were taught as a child everything your family and friends say and look inside yourself. Take away all logic and rational thought and just dig into yourself, "Use the force, Luke," as Yoda would say. When you discover what you really believe will be the only time you will be at peace with yourself in so far as your spirituality goes. It's a basic question, "Does a god exist?" Ask yourself and find the answer. When that's done, it's all up to you where you want to take your atheism or theism. I don't believe there to be any actual leaders for true atheism, there's certainly no require reading or code of conduct. It's a personal experience that differs from person to person. Once you've discovered your atheism, you're free, you are no longer bound by other peoples morals and ideologies.


Q. Tell us why people should read your blog, and anything else you want to want to share with our readers.

A: Tough one. I can't claim to be an authority or anything of the sort. I haven't studied or read up on anything on the subject. I'm just your average guy who just happens to be an atheist. If what you've read here interests you, though, you might want to take a look since I've already touched on everything I've answered here on my blog (it's kinda new, first post was July 23rd, 2008). It's also probably easier reading than most. I'm no scholar or intellectual. I don't cite passages from any books or base my writing on anyone's theories. It's just your average guy writing in average words about what he believes to be true. My beliefs are not structured and don't conform to anyone else's, my thoughts are entirely my own.

Thank you Ramon!

To get to know Ramon better, check out his site at Creative Century, or post any follow up questions in the comments below.

Get to know an Atheist Blogger - Adrian Hayter of The Atheist Blogger

Fourth in our series of interviews we get to know Adrian Hayter, The Atheist Blogger. He comes to us from across the pond, giving some surprising perspective on how atheism is viewed in England.

On to the questions!

Q. Tell us a bit about yourself, where you came from, what you do now, where you're going.

I am a 20 year old student currently living near London. I was born in Southampton (south of England) in 1988 and spent most of my childhood in the area surrounding Salisbury, a city famous for Salisbury Cathedral and Stonehenge. At school I expanded my interest in computing and managed to get into Royal Holloway, University of London where I am currently studying Computer Science with Information Security (REALLY not as boring as it sounds). After university I plan to emigrate to America and work in the computer industry, hopefully in either game design or for some computer security company. I am an Open Source advocate, and I use Gentoo Linux.

Q. What made you decide to blog, and specifically to blog about atheism?

I already maintained a personal blog, but rarely posted to it. I had just started renting a server with a friend and was getting more active with atheism, especially with my student group "Atheist & Agnostic Alliance". I decided the next logical step was to create a blog about atheism, and to be honest at that time I was not aware of the vast community I was entering into. The only atheist related blog I had read was Friendly Atheist, with the occasional glance over at Richard Dawkins' site. Still, I was very surprised that the domain "atheistblogger.com" and "theatheistblogger.com" were both available, and I quickly registered them both. The blogging community were on the whole very accepting of the blog though, and pointed me in the right direction in terms of finding the Atheist Blogroll, Planet Atheism, and The Atheist Spot.

Q. How long have you known that you are an atheist? Tell us about that time in your life, and what led to that decision.

The first time I actually called myself an atheist was when I was 11, although I suspect I had been one for longer. I was brought up in a Church of England family, but we didn't attend church that often and my beliefs were not enforced on me. I do remember attending church with my mother when I was quite young, looking up at her and telling her I "don't think I believe in God". She quietly told me that this wasn't really the place to announce such a thing. Looking back, I think it was the perfect place for revealing my doubts. Where better to see the flaws of religious belief than amongst its worshipers? At secondary school (high school for you yanks) I met friends who were openly atheist, and that probably persuaded me to become more active.

Of course a school that is quite literally in the shadows of Salisbury Cathedral is bound to be religious in nature, and we had regular religious based assemblies and monthly services in the aforementioned Cathedral. I joined the school choir for my interests in singing, and I reckon we probably performed religious songs 50% of the time. I didn't really mind though because at the end of the day, they are just words set to music. The beauty came from the sounds, not the meaning.

Unfortunately I was quite late into the militant atheist field, and I had already left school and got a temporary job before I bought and read The God Delusion, which pretty much tipped the scales for me. When looking at what religion has actually achieved for humanity, it deserves next to no respect at all. By the time I arrived at university, I was all set to unleash atheism on the campus, which we achieved as a group later that year.

Q. What excites you most about the current state of atheism, what are you optimistic about?

Even though I was a latecomer to the whole atheosphere thing online, it is still clear to me that its growth is exponential. Since I joined back in February '08, almost 200 new blogs have been added to the Atheist Blogroll, and that is always encouraging. It is also nice to see the growth of the number of young atheists online, because they will be the ones who have to deal with the next generations of creationists. Sites like Atheist Nexus are also going to be more important as the community grows. People who have remained anonymous online for their protection are going to be able to find other atheists in their area whom they could meet up or just talk with. Whilst many have compared organizing atheists to "herding cats", I think the overall attitude is changing. We might never all agree with each other (actually, I hope we never), but the closer we are as a community the more things can be achieved.

On a more local level, I am excited about how recent polls in England show an increase in anti-religious thought, and how more people are getting active about such ideas. I'm not sure whether Christianity in England will be dead in 100 years as the majority of people think, but I do remain optimistic. The younger generations do seem to be more open to new ideas and free thought, so only time will tell on that front.

Q. What advice would you give those that are new to the idea of atheism, that aren't quite sure what they believe, and could use some direction?

The main advice I could give would be to look up the individual definitions of atheism, theism, agnosticism, gnosticism, apatheism, deism, humanism, ignosticism, religion, and irreligion. Decide which apply to you before you go about claiming you are this or that. I often find people claiming to be agnostics because they were taught that it meant you were "unsure" of the existence of gods rather than its true meaning, which is that the truth value of certain claims is unknowable. I'm an agnostic atheist because whilst I do not believe in gods, I admit that I can never be 100% sure, since gods are supernatural (and therefore by definition undetectable) beings.

If you are truly unsure or do not care about the existence of gods, the definition of an apatheist is the most agreeable. You may even fit the definition of an ignostic, but that is for you to find out. As for finding definitions, every single dictionary seems to have a different way of interpreting words which is ever so helpful (note sarcasm). The best way to find a definition agreed upon by the general populace would be to use Wikipedia. It's not that good for accuracy in other places, but they seem to have the definitions sorted out quite well.

The issue of annoying labels now covered, I would send the new atheist (or whatever) off with instructions to immerse themselves in the communities, to make friends, to read philosophical arguments, but more importantly, to decide what kind of atheist they want to be. Not all of us are militant, and some of us have the utmost respect for religion. There are many arguments for and against all atheistic positions, but which side you wish to stand is entirely up to you.

Q. When someone asks you how you can be an atheist, why you don't believe in god, or anything to question your lack of faith, what's your single favorite argument for atheism?

The best arguments are the ones that attempt to put the theist in a similar scenario and make them think for themselves. When someone asks me why I don't believe in their God, I simply ask them why they don't believe in Zeus, Thor, or any of the other gods that have been before theirs. It really is quite astonishing how many people haven't considered the problem that other gods pose to their religion, or indeed how may gods they don't believe in either.

Often people wonder how I could even fathom the existence of a universe without a god, but in the entire history of humanity, we have never found anything that was eternal. Everything, even the universe, had a beginning. It takes a large leap of faith to go from literally no evidence of eternal objects to a eternal being who is all-powerful and all-knowing.

Q. You started an online Book Club for atheists where you discuss a new book each month on IRC and in online forums. What books have had the most influence on your life that you'd recommend others read?

The books that got me interested in science were (quite bizarrely) Douglas Adams' Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series. Of course the notions in the book are science fiction, but they opened my eyes to scientific learning and understanding, making me laugh at the same time. I think Douglas Adams' atheism shone through in each of his books as well, since there are quite a few references to God, religion, etc. One of my favourites is the Babel fish argument:
?
"I refuse to prove that I exist," says God, "for proof denies faith, and without faith I am nothing."
"But," says Man, "the Babel fish is a dead giveaway, isn't it? It could not have evolved by chance. It proves you exist, and so therefore, by your own arguments, you don't. QED."
"Oh dear," says God, "I hadn't though of that" and promptly vanishes in a puff of logic.

Philosophy is another subject covered in the books, which invariably led me onto my interest in the subject

Q. Living in England, you probably see how living without religion as a major force in society affects the country. First of all, is that true, is England as progressive as it seems on that front? Second, what do you think we in America can learn from the British in overcoming the shackles of religion?

Whilst it is clear that religion plays a smaller part in English society, I do not believe we are as progressive as many are led to believe. The religious fundamentalists are a minority, but they are getting very powerful. A recent documentary shown here highlighted the homophobic activity of certain groups, as well as the protests that led to the early ending of "Jerry Springer: The Opera".

It might surprise most people that my atheist blogging was actually illegal in the UK up until July of this year when the blasphemy laws were finally abolished. By any standards, the UK is still a predominantly Christian nation. Members of the royal family, whilst being completely useless and well overdue for abolition, have to be CofE Christian if they want the throne.

In reality, there is only one thing that America can learn from the British, and that is our refusal to allow Intelligent Design in science classrooms. It is almost a shame that the first amendment of the USA prohibits Religious Education in schools. I found that whilst growing up, Religious Education was a fascinating subject and I deeply regret my choice not to study Religion at A Level. In a country that is filled with religious bigots, the best way to educate children about other religions would be through a school subject.

Thank you Adrian!

As always, leave your questions for Adrian in the comments, or just head on over to his site The Atheist Blogger. We'll see you next time!

Get to know an Atheist Blogger - Db0 of Division by Zer0

The third in our services of interviews brings us Konstantine Thoukydidis, better known as Db0, who runs the site "A Division by Zer0 - Epicurean thoughts about life, the Universe and everything."

Born in Greece, he now lives in Germany, and has been in the tech industry most of his life. His site is not your average blog, ranging in topic from the his love for music to the immigration policies of Europe. His blog is an homage to how the power of technology to connect people and the pursuit of living a thoughtful life.

On to the interview!

Q. Tell us a bit about yourself, where you came from, what you do now, where you're going.

Right then. I define myself mostly thought my philosophy and that is a combination of Epicurism and the Hacker's code. I am also an open skeptic and a hopeless optimist. I mention these because I find such descriptions much more important than the all generic "Atheism" which can encompass anything from Communism to Objectivism and from Conspiracy theorists to Religion.

I came from Greece and am currently living in Germany working in the IT sector in a major banking institute. I left Greece because of the extremely limited opportunities for my sector of work and the severe exploitation of low class working people.

Where I am going, even I do not know. I am generally living my life and I hope that when I die I'll have managed to have left the world at least a little bit better than it was. At the end of the day, the best anyone of us can hope is a Wikipedia entry ;)

Q. What made you decide to blog about atheism?

I don't really blog about Atheism (am I disqualified now? :P) but since religion tends to get in the way so often, it's hard to ignore some times. Generally when I write about atheism or religion, I use The Antichristian Phenomenon which is a collaborative blog with many bright minds behind it.
The reason I blog about religion (and my necessary atheistic take on it) is because someone must write the antilogue to their propaganda and lies. If the Atheists stay silent, then people have even more reason to believe we don't have any presence at all.

Q. How long have you known that you are an atheist? Tell us about that time in your life, and what led to that point.

I've been calling myself an Atheist since I was around 15 (when I became an orphan). I was raised in a very religious country with a church in every corner and with an advertised 99% christian orthodox population. Hopefully, my family was not religious at all and while we attended religious events, it was never forced upon us as children...well, other than the school indoctrination of course.
I started calling myself an atheist mostly because I did not consider myself a good Christian so I found it hypocritical to describe myself as such. Fortunately, the atheists are not hated in Greece as they are in the US so there was not much problem there (other than an Aunt and Grandmother who almost had an aneurysm). As time passed and I read more and more about Christian atrocities I switched to calling myself an agnostic for I did not want to relate myself with their horrid history but I could also not be certain of the non-existence of god(s).
I still kept a dose of "spiritualism" and general woo-woo openness for a while until I moved to Germany and started interacting more with the Atheosphere at which point my last hints of spirituality dropped away and I evolved into my current mental form of agnostic atheism, or simply an Atheist.

Q. What excites you most about the current state of atheism, what are you optimistic about?

The only thing that excites me is that Atheists are more vocal now and as a group we generally tend to be the ones who rationally criticise everything that is wrong in our society without paying attention to silly concepts like political correctness.
Occasionally events and some bright minds of Atheism, really give me the impression that we are the only bastion of light which shines light towards all directions and drives away the encroaching darkness of mysticism, cynicism and organised religion.
I am also quite happy that the vast majority of atheists have socialistic and liberal tendencies.

Q. Your blog has a number of references to Epicurus. Tell us who he was, what he stood for, and how his philosophy has affected your views on the world.

I'm glad you asked (Seriously, I'm just shy of having a big button saying "Ask me about Epicurus" on the site :P )

Epicurus was, as you may have guessed, an ancient Greek philosopher. He lived in the Alexandrian years, in times of tremendous strife and brutal monarchy. The situations of the time made him conceive one of the greatest life philosophies Ev4r.

What he said can be described with his quote "It is fortunate that what is necessary, is easy to acquire and what is difficult to have, is not necessary". It is a philosophy of discarding unnecessary needs that bring you more pain than pleasure, of escaping fear and becoming happier simply by reducing the number of requirements you have in your life.
Because it was very focused on discarding fear from the human mind, it ended up minimizing the impact of gods. Epicurus himself was a Deist leaning towards outright Atheism.

The interesting part about Epicurism was that it spread like wildfire in the Classical and Roman times and as a philosophy it was the only thing that embattled the encroaching mysticism and dark ages. Thus there was none other more hated and assaulted philosophy than Epicurism. From Stoics to Christians, many wanted it extinguished and as a result, when the later came into power, the teachings of Epicurus where systematically destroyed and slandered (To the point of ending up meaning something entirely different). It is pretty much through luck that we have some of his works still.

Epicurism has not affected my life for I was a Epicurist before I read about him. However reading the actual philosophy and history behind it, allowed me to crystallize my thoughts (as well as find a great "role model"). I plan to start blogging more and more about Epicurism and how it can affect your life for the better using real life examples and analysis. AFAIK there's precious little awareness about this online and I find it a great shame. I hope my writing will intrigue people to find a bit more about it themselves.

Q. With your background in tech, how do you see technology helping the atheist movement going forward? What do you think the most powerful tools atheists have at their disposal that they may not be aware of?

The good thing about most free thinkers is that they are generally progressive and thus we tend to be more open to new technologies and services. Witness for example how quickly people have embraces scoutle once I blogged about it. Within 5 days, we had 30 new members and its still growing. Same thing with the atheist nexus and twitter. We jump to opportunities to network and connect with others like us for there are precious few of us and many of them might hide their true identity.

Technology can help up connect and organise a generally very disorganised movement. Nevertheless, we still need a lot of work on this front as I see people still quite difficult to act. Sometimes it seems that only Pharyngula has the critical mass to make people move off their lazy butts and click a button :P.

Another thing that many people do not realise is how close ethically we are to Free Software movement. Withs so many atheists having left-libertarian leanings, it is very easy to see how the mentality of creating something to be free and for everyone can be suitable for us. Not only that, but learning on how an extremely decentralised movement like this has managed to become so powerful, not only in software but in everything (Wikipedia is a testament to this) can give us ideas and methods to use our well..."herd of cats".

Personally, because I use the hacker's code as well, I love to spread my knowledge and experience with the rest of you. This is the reason why I write articles on how you can improve your blogging or your performance occasionally. I don't find simply saying "Here's a new service. Use it" any useful at all. The most important parts are the "Why" and "How" and the more people that explain these, the better all of us become ;)

Q. Being born in Greece, and now living in Germany, what do you think American's can learn from the relative success atheism has had in Europe?

The thing is that Atheism has always been more accepted in western Europe in recent times. I'm not actually certain why but I get the impression that Europeans are generally more tolerant. Of course, as we have seen recently with the slow Islamization of Europe, that is not always a good thing :S

The problem the US has as I see it, is that your current social security system (healthcare, welfare etc) is so weak and skewered that people's lives are always one step away from total ruination. Even with healthcare, a family may find themselves in bankruptcy and let's not even discuss what happens without it. You can be fired at any point, without excuse. You government will not really help you if you're black and poor etc. It is no wonder why all this instability in people's lives causes anxiety and fear. And what better way to calm your fears than by swallowing the delusion of religion for a better life after death?

If you want to take one hint from Europe, look at their social security. The more of it you have, the less the fear, and the less fear, the less you need Gods.
If the Atheists in US united and concentrated in increasing the social security, you would both be seen as doing something good and you would be indirectly destroying the foundations of theism.

Q. What's your single most powerful argument when someone asks you why you don't believe in god?

Which God?! :P

Seriously though, the best thing one can say when such an argument is presented is inquire on the nature of this god. As atheists, we do not (and should not) have any preconceptions on the nature of deities as this will only lead us to try and prove a negative.

If one asks you why you don't believe in the Christian god, claim ignorance and ask them to explain his nature, once they describe his nature of omnipotence and omnibenevolence, present them with the problem of evil. In similar ways, as someone tries to prove the nature of a god, you can bring in arguments that oppose it and you're not trying to prove a negative.
What you have to remember is that not all Arguments work against all gods. The Argument from Evil absolutely fails against the Dodecatheon for example ;)

If they end up asking you to prove that God does not exist, explain that it's not yourself who is trying to convince them ;)

This classic fictional story is a great example of how this could work.

Q. Tell us why people should read your blog, and anything else you want to want to share with our readers.

Ah the shameless plug part eh? Don't mind if I do.

Well, you should be reading the Division by Zer0 if you are interested in a more varied take of atheism. I rarely talk about Atheism explicitly, but you will be able to see the opinion of a shameless Atheist on many and various subjects as well as have a look at my "real life" if you care to.

If you do not want to read the same US-centric news or commentary, you might also like it since I avoid commenting on the same things 80% of the english speaking atheosphere does. I'm trying to be unique like everyone else.

I also do not know of any other Epicurean bloggers so...there :)

Thank you Db0!

As always, if you have any follow up questions for DB0, or would like to find out more, leave your comments here, or just head on over to A Division by Zer0.

Till next time!

Three ways to submit your stories to The Atheist Spot (including brand new sharing buttons!)

One of the most consistent pieces of feedback we have received over the past few months has been other site publishers looking for buttons they could add to their site to allow their visitors to submit and vote up their stories on The Atheist Spot. I'm excited to announce that the buttons ar ready to go:

http://www.atheistspot.com/howtosubmit.php#button

You'll also find on this page a couple other ways to submit articles to the site, at least one you probably hadn't been aware of (http://www.atheistspot.com/howtosubmit.php#bookmarklet).

If you have any suggestions for different colors or styles of the buttons, or need any help with the instructions, please please please let us know. We'd love to hear suggestions or recommendations on making the processes smoother and making it fit seamlessly into any site design.

P.S. We've been amazed how many sites out there have already added the sharing buttons on their own. You guys rock!

Get to know an Atheist Blogger - vjack of Atheist Revolution

For the second interview in our series, we will be getting to know a popular blogger nicknamed vjack. His blog Atheist Revolution is one of the most popular blogs in the atheist community, and also one of the most prolific (seems like there's at least one post every day!).

On to the interview! Here's vjack of Atheist Revolution:

Q. Tell us a bit about yourself, where you came from, what you do now, where you're going.

I am an academic psychologist involved in research and teaching at a state university in Mississippi, deep in the heart of the American bible belt. I've been here for several years but doubt that I will ever truly acclimate. Not a day goes by where I am not shocked by some expression of ignorance. Religion is so deeply infused into the fabric of daily life that it feels smothering at times. Then again, there are faint glimmers of hope.

I have recently become involved in trying to promote atheism in Mississippi by forming Mississippi Atheists (http://www.msatheists.org), a team blog designed to provide information and resources to atheists in Mississippi. It has been encouraging to discover that there are indeed other atheists right here in Mississippi.

Q. What made you decide to blog, and specifically to blog about atheism?

I started Atheist Revolution in 2005 because I was fed up with the oppressive nature of fundamentalist Christianity in the U.S. In the beginning, it was to be little more than my way of organizing my thoughts on religion and politics in American life. I called it "Atheist Revolution" because this summed up what I wanted to see for America: a new age of enlightenment where reason would triumph over superstition. I hoped to stimulate discussion and critical thinking in others, but the blog was really more for me than anyone else. At the time, I confess having little idea about how blogging worked. I was a true novice.

From the beginning, I wanted Atheist Revolution to focus on atheism and politics. I was equally outraged by religious fundamentalism and political neoconservatism. It did not take me long to realize that I was going to end up emphasizing atheism. I added the tag line "Breaking free from irrational belief and opposing Christian extremism in America," and the Atheist Revolution of today was born.

Q. How long have you known that you are an atheist? Tell us about that time in your life, and what led to that decision.

Like everyone else, I was born an atheist. I was raised by parents who believed in a fairly liberal version of Christianity. I was dragged to church every Sunday, placed in sunday school, and required to attend various "vacation bible schools" at the local Methodist church during the summers. My parents meant well but operated out of the misguided notion that this would somehow be good for me. I accepted it all, prayed regularly, and was appropriately terrified of the Christian god throughout my childhood.

There was no critical event that led me to atheism. It was a gradual process of education, my early fascination with science, and my voracious reading habit that made the difference. As a child, I absolutely loved reading books about mythology and the paranormal. I read everything I could find at the library on ESP, the Bermuda triangle, ghosts, Greek mythology, and the like. By early adolescence, I was questioning everything and realizing that all the paranormal claims which had fascinated me earlier had been thoroughly debunked. Science became increasingly attractive. As I learned to think critically, atheism emerged as what I saw as an inevitable consequence. I did not think of myself as an atheist until roughly 18, but I was well on my way by 16.

Q. What excites you most about the current state of atheism, what are you optimistic about?

It is very encouraging to see how the online atheist movement is taking off, fueled by the publication of high profile books on atheism and deep dissatisfaction with an American president who claimed to receive instructions to start wars from his god. The atheist blogosphere has exploded in numbers of active blogs and the quality of such blogs. Vibrant atheist communities are springing up and attracting new members. It used to take a bit of effort to find good atheist content online. It is now fairly easy.

The challenge ahead of us will involve translating some of the tremendous online developments into real world progress. It will not be easy, but I think we can do it.

Q. What are your favorite books on atheism?

Bertrand Russell's Why I Am Not a Christian holds a special place in my heart as the first book on atheism I ever read. It was exactly what I needed at the time to help me realize that my growing disbelief had a name and that I was not alone in the world. Another that had a real impact much later in life was Sagan's Demon-Haunted World. Of the more recent books written by the so-called new atheists, I enjoyed Sam Harris' The End of Faith the most. I have all my favorites listed in the sidebar of Atheist Revolution, and there are many.

Q. Who do you most respect in the atheist community? Why?

I respect absolutely everyone in the community who is contributing something of value. There are those who specialize in putting a friendly, personable face on atheism to show religious believers that we are not demons after all. There are those who blow the horn of activism, seeking to inspire and motivate meaningful change even if it requires sacrifice and confrontation. There are scholars and scientists, grassroots activists and organizers, educators and students, authors and bloggers, lawyers and philanthropists. All are vital parts of our community and have my deepest respect and admiration.

Q. How has your blogging affected your life?

It has helped me maintain some semblance of sanity in the rather insane environment in which I find myself. It gives me a forum for expressing what I can rarely express in my daily life. I have met some great people who inspire me and show me how much I still have to learn. The comments, e-mails, and online social networking really helps keep me going in so many ways.

Q. What advice would you give those that are new to the idea of atheism, that aren't quite sure what they believe, and could use some direction?

Be patient and give yourself time to do some exploring. Examine the central tenets of various religions and ask yourself whether you can believe them. Check out some quality atheist blogs, and consider joining an online forum where you can interact with atheists. Recognize that what brings many atheists together is not a specific philosophy or set of beliefs but a quest to find some sort of community which many lose the moment they question religion. Ask the atheists you meet to share their stories and discuss the difficulties they experienced. Most of all, ask them whether they would abandon religion again if they knew what they'd face. I suspect virtually all would say, "Absolutely!" I know I would.

Q. Tell us why people should read your blog, and anything else you want to want to share with our readers.

There are so many excellent atheist blogs today that it should be easy for everyone to find several that they will enjoy and that will provide exactly what they are hoping to find. If mine happens to be one, great! I focus on promoting atheism, encouraging critical thinking and the application of reason, and opposing Christian extremism. I take an unapologetically progressive political stance, and I continue to address important political issues, especially those which are intertwined with Christian privilege or involve church-state issues. I am also deeply committed to helping to promote atheism by assisting new atheist bloggers in the form of a "blogging tips" series.

Thank you vjack!

If you would like to ask any follow up questions, or would like to find out more about this blog, feel free to post in the comments or just head on over to http://www.atheistrev.com/.

Get to know an Atheist Blogger - Craig A. James

This is is the first in a series of interviews we will be posting where we try to get to know some prominent (and some not-yet-so-prominent) atheist bloggers. We hope through this process to help bring the atheist community just a little bit closer, and to help raise the awareness of some really great blogs you may not have otherwise had a chance to check out.

Today we present Craig A. James, author of the blog The Religion Virus. Craig is also in the process of publishing a book with the same name! He also just had a pretty controversial post on his hands recently titled "Atheists: Get out of the Damned Closet!"

Enough introduction, on to the interview!

Q. Tell us a bit about yourself, where you came from, what you do now, where you're going.

I'm a computer scientist who has spent my professional career writing scientific software for physicists and chemists. Currently my "day job" is as Chief Technology Officer and co-founder of a web site for scientists. In the mid-1980s while studying for my Masters degree in Artificial Intelligence at Stanford, I got interested in linguistics, evolution, and sociology, topics which led me to the Dawkins' ideas about memes.

I come from a liberal, free thinking family, but that does NOT mean all atheists. My paternal grandparents were very modern and intellectual, yet they were also deeply religious. (Several stories about them are recounted in my book). My interest in religion was probably sparked by my father, who was very bitter about the repressive Christian morals of his youth.

Q. Tell us about your book. What led to your writing it, and how you've seen it affect others.

I follow the Atheist ethic, derived from natural principles and rational thought, which demands that each of us do our part to make the world a better place. Sometimes you can see something so clearly, something original and important, and you just have to tell others. Call me an atheistic evangelical!

I discovered back in 1985 that religion is nothing more than a complex, evolving memeplex, that religious ideas survive and propagate because of their appeal, not their truth (where "appeal" can include both desire and fear), according to the evolutionary principles commonly called "survival of the fittest." It took twenty years, the study of hundreds of books, many long conversations with friends and family, and lots of deep thinking on my part, before I had a complete picture. Only then was I able to put "pen to paper" and write the book.

The book has been read by about two dozen people (it will be published next year). To the last person, they've all said it affected them in a positive way.

My favorite comment was from my Aunt Carolyn (the topic of a story in the book), who said, "I feel so much better now!" Carolyn had converted from very serious Christianity to Atheism relatively late in life. The Christian guilt memes, and the heaven/hell memes, are highly evolved, very infectious, and very hard to cure. Although she was convinced that her decision was correct, these memes gave her lingering anxiety.

Reading "The Religion Virus" completely cured Aunt Carolyn. Once she understood why the Christian religion memes are so infectious, she was able to purge the last of her doubts.

Another friend, a philosopher by education, helped me with the early drafts. He offered this thought: "I'm a member of a ... forum for atheists ... I've found recently that when the topic turned to the psychology of why people cling to religious ideas, I keep having two feelings: (1) This is obvious in an evolutionary sense, and (2) I wish I could just send a link to buy your book on Amazon and say, 'read this book!'"

"The Religion Virus" is intended to change your way of looking at religion. My step-sister, a former Catholic, said that when she first read it, she thought, "Well, that's interesting." But as the days and weeks went by, she realize that her whole world-view about religion had shifted. Things that had seemed mysterious, or "just one of those things people believe" were suddenly clear to her. Every news article about religion, every conversation where God came up, she saw it much more clearly, as though a veil had been lifted from her eyes.

That's what I hope to achieve for all of my readers: To shift your world view, so that when a question about religion comes up, you have a new way of understanding it.

You can learn more about my book, and read a couple of sample chapters, on my web site: http://www.thereligionvirus.com.

Q. What made you decide to blog, and specifically to blog about atheism?

I suppose every blogger is motivated by some combination of altruism, egotism and a desire to be part of a like-minded community. Blogging is a wonderful meritocracy: Your ideas get attention if you write well and present interesting topics.

But I wouldn't be honest if I ignored the marketing aspects of my blog. My book required years of research, and thousands of hours at the keyboard, but that doesn't mean the job is done. The next step is to promote it, and a blog is one of the most important tools for an author in today's web-based world.

Q. How long have you known that you are an atheist? Tell us about that time in your life, and what led to that decision.

There was no decision. I've always been an atheist. I went to one of the very last rural two-room schools in the State of California, in the mountains north of Soquel, which is near Santa Cruz (about 90 miles south of San Francisco). I remember very distinctly the first day of the first grade, we were memorizing the Pledge of Allegiance, and I realized I'd have to leave out the part about "One Nation Under God."

Q. What excites you most about the current state of atheism, what are you optimistic about?

Twenty years ago, when I first contemplated a book about The Religion Virus, it would have been very difficult to publish any book critical of Christianity. A noted scholar or highly-popular established author might have pulled it off, but a new author like me wouldn't have gotten anywhere. Even today, a remarkable number of book agents advertise "Christian Literature" as a specialty. Back in 1985 I'd guess that no agent anywhere would have taken on my project. If I'd gotten an agent, no publisher would have touched it, and if it had been published, few bookstores would have put it on the shelves.

Today, by contrast, you can find books like Dawkins' "The God Delusion," and Hitchens' "God is Not Great" on the shelves at Costco and Walmart. It's really a remarkable change.

Q. What are your favorite books on atheism?

There are so many great ones, I hate to single any out. However, I would like to recommend two books that are not about Atheism but should be read by every Atheist, and by every politician in America.

"Collapse," by Jared Diamond, is a remarkable book about why societies can make all the "right" decisions and still collapse into utter ecological self-destruction. It indirectly illustrates why faith is the enemy of rational thought, and why societies have trouble planning more than a decade into the future. It's really quite frightening, because today's world economy is repeating the pattern for collapse.

The second book, "Guns, Germs and Steel," also by Jared Diamond, answers the question, "Why did Western Culture spread around the world?" Many religious people have the Calvinistic idea that "God was on our side," that God favored Christians with wealth, health and power, and that the spread of Western culture, technology, and of course Christianity, was due to God's protection and favoritism. Diamond shows very convincingly that it was just good geographical luck, not God.

Q. Who do you most respect in the atheist community? Why?

Again, I don't want to single out individuals. Every author, every blogger, every Atheist who has faced persecution or been shunned, is a hero in his or her own way. It's a tough road.

Q. How has your blogging affected your life?

I just got started a few weeks ago; I'll let you know!

Q. What advice would you give those that are new to the idea of atheism, that aren't quite sure what they believe, and could use some direction?

Read, read, read! There is so much good information available. Of course, I'd like them to read my book, I think it will give them a new way of looking at the infectious memes that are in their brains.

Most of all, don't be afraid to mourn. One of the biggest problems with accepting Atheism is that you're really losing something that was very important in your life. Religion is very comforting, very appealing. It gives you a genuine sense of belonging, of hope, of purpose. When you realize that these promise are false, it's OK to feel a sense of loss. It's very much like grieving for the loss of a loved one, a person who filled a special place in your life, that you'll never get to see again.

Atheism is a life-affirming philosophy. It makes your actions in THIS world all that much more important. The life you have here on Earth is the one that matters; don't let false promises of rewards in an imaginary future deter you from achieving your maximum potential and happiness here, now, in this life.

Q. Tell us why people should read your blog, and anything else you want to want to share with our readers.

The blog will have to speak for itself! My goal is to provide a fun, but thought-provoking, series of blogs, from what I hope is a unique, memetic, evolutionary perspective.


Thanks Craig for being our very first interview! If anyone has any more questions for Craig or wants to know more, definitely check out his blog or just post them in the comments here.

Contact with AAI

Margaret from AAI returned my call last Friday! It was a weird area code, so I decided to let it go to voicemail. She has been busy getting everything all straight for the atheist convention. I called her back on Saturday and chatted for a bit about the up coming convention. It looks like there is high demand for exhibition tables at the convention (a good sign that atheism is gaining more and more traction), that they are opening up more space.

I was thumbing through AAI 2007 photos, it looks like they had some big names show up, Dawkins, Hitchens, Dennett. Looks like there will be a great showing this year as well! Not that Atheism is about the superstars, but its great to see and perhaps even meet the outspoken that have given Atheism a voice in decades past.

After I sent in the exhibition reservation check, I got a little anxious for the event. Usually I am the lone Atheist, come the end of September, I will be surrounded by Atheists. Don't get me wrong, the online Atheist community is great! But sometimes, it feels good to meet face to face. Hope to see you there!

Atheist Blogger Interview Series - Coming soon!

Starting next week we will begin posting a series of interviews we're conducting with bloggers in the atheist community. We feel that there are so many fascinating stories and backgrounds out there in the atheist blogoshphere, and so little that people really know about the writers, that we'd do our part to spread the word. In the end, we hope to help build a stronger community across the various sites out there, and get some good dialog going.

We plan on posting the first interview in this series this coming week. Stay tuned!

P.S. If you run a blog and would like to participate, we'd love to have you. Just leave us a note in the comments and we'll get back to you.

Exhibiting at Unsinkable Atheism

The rumor is out, we are trying to get a table at the convention.  For the past few weeks I have been attempting to get a table for The Atheist Spot at the Atheist Convention in Long Beach, Unsinkable Atheism.  However, getting a hold of AAI has proved to be a challenge. I've been making calls and sending emails to AAI in Pennsylvania, but have yet to hear a response. Anyone have any connections to AAI or Unsinkable Atheism, please send them my way jon %at% atheistspot.com? I would feel a little more comfortable chatting with someone or emailing someone from AAI, rather than sending in my registration fee blind.

It would be great to have a presence at the convention.  Many of the folks that use The Atheist Spot are pretty up to date with the latest technologies, ie social bookmarking/content aggregation.  I have a feeling that there are some Atheists (let alone non-Atheists) who never heard of any social bookmarking/content aggregation service, and would welcome it if they knew about it.  They typically stick to the tried and tested method of forwarding chain emails with interesting content.  Social bookmarking/content aggregation is an extention of that, sharing content, but doesn't clog your inbox!

I myself have never been to an Atheist Convention and am quite excited to meet up with other Atheists. I don't know about you folks, but I can count the Atheists I know personally on my fingers and thumbs. It would be great to be surrounded by like minded individuals.  Hoping (but not praying;) we get a table...

Avatars now live at The Atheist Spot!

We are happy to announce a pretty fun new feature...custom avatars! You can now upload an image, whatever you'd like, which will be used to represent you on the site. It will display along side any stories you submit and comments you make, in addition in your profile page.

Also pretty exciting, if you happen to use Gravatars, you can also use your existing Gravatar instead of uploading a custom image.

We hope that with this little bit of a personal touch, visitors can start to build a mini-brand on the site, especially if their posts end up making it to the front page.

To customize your avatar, simply click on your "Profile" link at the top right, click the "Modify Profile" button, and you'll see the option to upload an image or use your Gravatar account.

Have fun!


Lenny