sonic-hip-attack:

wizardsvsrobots:

The atheist community always seems to be full of white men who are kind of a bunch of assholes

So the question is

Do atheists tend to be white male assholes or do white male assholes tend to be atheists

We must do a study, for science’s sake

I tend to think that it has something to do with a complete lack of intersectional oppression, since rich white men don’t tend to have anything but privilege, so they’re ignorant of real problems and take it upon themselves to care about abstract lofty things like the philosophy of religion and the overall effect that they think it has on society.

And they come across like a bunch of pedantic, paternalistic assholes trying to prescribe what’s “best” for everyone underneath them, because that’s how they are with everything.

“Silly PoC, don’t you know that racism would stop existing if you’d just stop believing nonsense?”

“Silly women, don’t you know that sexism would stop existing if you’d just be more rational?”

“Silly non-gender-and-sexuality-conforming-people, don’t you know that homophobia wouldn’t exist if you stopped being Christians and oppressing yourselves?”

but that’s just my arm-chair sociology talking

Once again, sonic-hip-attack is dead on.

I would like to personally apologize to the rest of tumblr for my early angry atheist days. I’ve calmed down with it quite a bit. haha

(Source: these-cardboard-devils, via zenodotus5)

Couple to Debate Right to Distribute Atheist Material

helvetebrann:

Rene and Anna Chouinard, who have three children, have been fighting with the board for more than two years to have an age-appropriate publication — Just Pretend: A Free Thought Book for Children and Losing Faith in Faith: From Preacher to Atheist — distributed to Grade 5 students.

The couple, who are humanists and follow a religion-free way of life, took their case to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario on Aug. 20 and were granted a hearing on the issue. While no date has yet been set for the proceeding, the tribunal allowed the Ontario Human Rights Commission and Canadian Civil Liberties Association to act as interveners in two-days of hearings.

The fight began after the Chouinards’ refused to sign a consent form for their daughter to distribute Gideon International Bibles at her school.

They then unsuccessfully sought to obtain permission to distribute Just Pretend, citing other groups should be allowed to have their publications distributed in Niagara schools as well.

“This is a solid decision by the tribunal that is good for society,” Rene said after being granted a hearing. “We would like to see religion completely removed from the classroom.”

He said the Niagara school board should focus on education and not religion or other issues.

The Chouinards alleged they were discriminated against “due to creed” and that no material from non-Christian religions were solicited or distributed in the district.

“If they allow Gideon Bibles in the schools, then why can’t other groups distribute their material as well,” he said on Tuesday. “This is not fair for people who may believe in other religions.”

He said Jews should be able to leave Torahs and Muslims their Koran in area schools.

It’s funny how as soon as other materials, besides Christian materials, are to be distributed that the school districts clam up and no longer say that they are simply distributing material based on who wants to distribute.

Funny indeed. Kind of like that Louisiana congressperson who flipped out and retracted support for school vouchers after they found out people can use them for Muslim, as well as Christian schools. 

(Source: cnews.canoe.ca)

TN Governor Will “Probably” Sign Anti-Evolution Bill

helvetebrann:

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam (R) will “probably” sign a bill meant to protect teachers who allow students to question and criticize “controversial” scientific theories such as evolution, he told reporters on Monday.

The measure, which has been dubbed the “monkey bill” by critics who claim it’s a backdoor approval of religious teachings in public schools, passed votes in the state Senate and House last month.

Haslam addressed these concerns Monday, saying that his discussions with the State Board of Education had led him to believe that the law wouldn’t affect the current public school curriculum with regards to evolution.

But doubts remain for opponents of the legislation who claim it will allow for a broader denial of other popular scientific debates in Tennessee schools.

“It would open the door to creationism, it would open the door to climate change denial, and to other sorts of pseudosciences being introduced into Tennessee classrooms,” Josh Rosenau of the National Center for Science Education told The Huffington Post last month.

“The concern is that this sends a signal to teachers that certain subjects are controversial — subjects that are not scientifically controversial — things that are subject to political controversy, perhaps, but that in the science classroom are not controversial and shouldn’t be treated that way.”

Critics have also charged that the bill harkens back to Tennessee’s anti-science history of the Scopes trial, the 1925 case that drew national publicity to the issue of teaching evolution in public schools.

“The idea behind this bill is that students should be encouraged to challenge current scientific thought and theory,” said Republican state Sen. Bo Watson, the measure’s sponsor.

Great!  Encourage children to be skeptical.  Encourage them to think using the newest scientific data and studies.  But challenging science for the sake of religion is not educational, it’s dragging our students backwards. 

In short, go fuck yourself Senator Watson.

Looks like Tennessee is going to be spending even more taxpayer money defending this in court in the near future.

religiousragings:

ignorantatheist:

If you’re an Atheist and you live in America you must be retarded

Did you not read the part where it says, “One nation, UNDER GOD”

Yeah, that means God is real and he controls America, idiots.

We’re one nation under Canada.  Some people think Canada is God.  It was just a misprint.  Easy mistake to make.

Not to mention the “under god” part wasn’t even originally there until 1954.

(via skepticalavenger)

US High School Assembly Descends Into Religiously Guided Homophobic Rant

helvetebrann:

Kicking off with a hard rock performance, it was clear this was not to be your average assembly.

At first students at Dunkerton High School, Iowa, seemed grateful for this musical break from the norm - albeit with Christian-themed lyrics denouncing the evils of drugs, alcohol and violence.

But things took a turn for the worse when the event veered into an impassioned and unfocused rant against homosexuality, abortion and sex before marriage.

After his band Junkyard Prophet left the stage, drummer and preacher Bradlee Dean took the microphone, separating the crowd into boys, girls and teachers.

Mr Dean is the president of the ministry You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International, which is listed by civil rights organisation the Southern Poverty Law Center as an active anti-gay hate group.

Junkyard Prophet had previously visited the school without incident and staff were expecting them to return last week with a talk on bullying and making the right choices.

But instead, students found themselves faced with graphic images of aborted foetuses, while girls were instructed to obey their husbands.

Parent Jennifer Littlefield told the LaCrosse Tribune: ‘They told my daughter, the girls, that they were going to have mud on their wedding dresses if they weren’t virgins.’

Appalled parentscomplained to the school, which has since accepted responsibility. The district authority is trying to recover the fee paid to Junkyard Prophet, who aresaid to command a rate of $1,500 (£955) per show.

Wow.  Just, wow.

This is why religious groups should NOT be invited to public schools.

(Source: Daily Mail)

Dear Atheists

religiousragings:

marmoulak:

taketherain:

How do you not know that The God Delusion and God is not Great are objectivly terrible books? At least read Dennetts Breaking the spell or something

And for the love of the God you dont believe in how the hell do you think atheism is going to be attractive to most people when your poster boys are Dawkins, Hitchens, Stephen King and Ricky Gervais?

Dear Theists,

How do you not know that The Bible and The Koran are objectively terrible books? At least read The Origin of Species or Cosmos.

And for the love of the God you believe in, how the hell do you think theism is going to be attractive to most people when your poster boys are The Pope, Rick Santorum, Osama Bin Laden, Joseph Kony, and (as Dawkins puts it) your “jealous, petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak, vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser, misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic” God himself?

^^THIS^^

You know, I’ve never read The God Delusion or God is not Great…

(via skepticalavenger)

Alabama Bill Will Allow Churches to Teach Religion Classes to Public School Students

helvetebrann:

A bill in Alabama would allow churches or ministries to teach a religion class to public school students off campus, so long as parents and school boards give permission and the churches are responsible for transportation and any expenses.

State Rep. Blaine Galliher, a Republican, introduced the bill at the request of Joseph Kennedy, 84, who was fired in 1980 after he refused to stop reading the Bible or teaching creationism at a public school.

Under the plan, high school students could go off campus to study creationism and earn an elective credit. Kennedy said he wants to “give students good sound scientific reasons to support their faith in the seven-day creation.”

LOL  Anyway, continuing the article…

But Thomas Berg, who teaches constitutional law at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis, said the elective credits could raise concerns about public school involvement in religious education.

“Anyone challenging it in court will argue the motivation for it was religious,” said Berg. “A court is probably going to look at that suspiciously. There is a certain suspicion in the courts of Alabama legislators trying to promote religion.”

Why don’t we just keep the religion in religious buildings and schooling in school buildings?

It’s much simpler that way, folks.

More Alabama today. What the fuck Alabama???

(Source: The Huffington Post)

PSA: Saying that one loud mouthed, obnoxious atheist is representative of all atheists, is like saying the Westboro Baptist Church is the poster child for Christianity…

nonplussedbyreligion:

…or Pat Robertson, Bryan Fischer, Tony Perkins, Rick Santorum, and the rest of the Christians you like the distance yourselves from.

Sorry to deflate your fist-pumping moment of victory here.  I really am.

 ~ Kim

(via nonplussedbyreligion-deactivate)

Civil Rights Complaint to be Filed Against RI Local Florists for Refusing to Deliever to Atheist Teen

helvetebrann:

The Freedom From Religion Foundation will be filing a complaint with the state after several local florists refused flower orders for delivery to Jessica Ahlquist, the 16-year-old Cranston High School West student who recently won a lawsuit ordering the school district to remove a prayer banner in her school’s auditorium.

Annie Laurie Gaylor of the FFRF said the foundation will be filing a complaint that alleges one of the florists, Twins Florist, violated the civil rights act by denying service to Ahlquist based on her religion or lack thereof.

“We have basic civil rights standards in our society. A business can’t shun you because you’re an atheist,” Gaylor said. “You do not have the right to refuse to do business with someone based on categories and that includes religion. It’s as if they said ‘I will not deliver to a black person.’”

The Civil Rights Act guarantees: “full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of any place of public accommodation, without discrimination or segregation on the ground of race, color, religion, or national origin.

What these florists did was wrong both on an ethical and a legal level.