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(no subject)
Sep. 4th, 2023 03:37 pmYou might think it’s contradictory that I say mean things about religion on the Internet while also wanting a truce with religion, but I think saying mean things is part of the truce. An ideal world doesn’t necessarily mean we like each other, or even particularly respect each other. An ideal world just means we don’t try to kill each other, and if your religion isn’t killing people, we can grudgingly accept each other’s continued existence.
Note that “the Internet” here refers to neutral ground. I don’t really mind if someone replies to my blog posts and calls me an idiot, but there are people who think of their blog as their personal space where they can say things without getting yelled at, so I try to remember not to get in their space. After all, I wouldn’t want to deal with the Westboro Baptist Church picketing at a private funeral.
Note that “the Internet” here refers to neutral ground. I don’t really mind if someone replies to my blog posts and calls me an idiot, but there are people who think of their blog as their personal space where they can say things without getting yelled at, so I try to remember not to get in their space. After all, I wouldn’t want to deal with the Westboro Baptist Church picketing at a private funeral.
(no subject)
May. 13th, 2023 01:18 pmThe fact I am an atheist is inextricably linked to the fact I’m queer.
The general fact that a person is an atheist, and the general fact that a person is queer, have no inextricable links to other facts.
The above two statements are linked.
There’s no gatekeeping for atheists. You don’t have to be an atheist the “right” way. Anyone who’s willing to proclaim that there are no gods is welcome. In the same way, you can be queer and never have to worry if you’re too gay to be bi or too bi to be gay. Queer is for everyone who’s ever been bitched at by people who think “asexual” isn’t a valid orientation or want you to clarify what “genderfluid” means. I choose the communities whose members choose themselves, and I’m proud to be there.
The general fact that a person is an atheist, and the general fact that a person is queer, have no inextricable links to other facts.
The above two statements are linked.
There’s no gatekeeping for atheists. You don’t have to be an atheist the “right” way. Anyone who’s willing to proclaim that there are no gods is welcome. In the same way, you can be queer and never have to worry if you’re too gay to be bi or too bi to be gay. Queer is for everyone who’s ever been bitched at by people who think “asexual” isn’t a valid orientation or want you to clarify what “genderfluid” means. I choose the communities whose members choose themselves, and I’m proud to be there.
(no subject)
Feb. 25th, 2023 07:10 amOdd complaint, but I feel frustrated with all this talk about “secular Christmas.” It goes back and forth between “atheists celebrate Christmas, so they’re secretly Christians” and “atheists celebrate Christmas, but they’re still atheists.” Meanwhile, I don’t celebrate Christmas.
There’s a person in the notes who thinks folks like me refuse to accept that anything could be greater than them. They’re right, but their take is incomplete. I refuse to let you pretend anything is greater than you, too. I will not participate in your self-debasement, because you are a person, and nothing is more valuable than that.
(no subject)
Feb. 8th, 2023 02:36 pmSometimes folks say “Christians are assholes” and other folks say “Hey, I’m a Christian, and I’m not an asshole.” I don’t hang out in social spheres that regularly call Muslims, Hindus, etc. assholes, but I would assume Muslims and Hindus would do the same.
When folks talk about asshole atheists, the expected thing to do would probably be for me to go “I’m an atheist, and I’m not an asshole.” Thing is, I kinda am. So what I’d rather say is “don’t blame atheists for me.” It’s not their fault I’m like this, and I don’t represent them.
When folks talk about asshole atheists, the expected thing to do would probably be for me to go “I’m an atheist, and I’m not an asshole.” Thing is, I kinda am. So what I’d rather say is “don’t blame atheists for me.” It’s not their fault I’m like this, and I don’t represent them.
(no subject)
Sep. 19th, 2022 05:23 pmThere’s a Tumblr post from someone who tried to point out that people who think they’re anti-bigotry often use anti-bigotry as a way of validating their bigotry, claiming whichever group they don’t like is composed of secret bigots who need to be discriminated against.
They later complained about how so many of the people who reblogged it also claimed to have identified groups of secret bigots who need to be discriminated against. “This post is about you.”
I don’t know this for sure, but I think OP is one of the people who thinks my atheism makes me a secret bigot who needs to be discriminated against.
They later complained about how so many of the people who reblogged it also claimed to have identified groups of secret bigots who need to be discriminated against. “This post is about you.”
I don’t know this for sure, but I think OP is one of the people who thinks my atheism makes me a secret bigot who needs to be discriminated against.
The World I Need
Jun. 13th, 2021 09:31 pmA follow-up to The World You Need. Hat tip to @lb_lee who got me thinking about this.
I think my need is to believe that everything is mortal. I see the idea of something that can't be killed or defeated, and I rage like an infant. I latch onto any idea of how it can be destroyed, no matter how impractical or how much collateral damage, and I fantasize about doing so. I make mindless iconoclasm into the core of my selfhood.
I don't know if this is a "flaw" or something. I certainly don't want to change, because changing would involve not hating the idea of something that can't be killed or defeated, and it nauseates me to think I could stop hating. But I also don't want to end up pointlessly hurting other people for the sake of my own weird mental architecture.
(A certain Tumblr post once told me this is "white atheism," as opposed to "POC atheism" where you've been personally traumatized by Christians. You can call it any color of atheism you want, as far as I'm concerned.)
I think my need is to believe that everything is mortal. I see the idea of something that can't be killed or defeated, and I rage like an infant. I latch onto any idea of how it can be destroyed, no matter how impractical or how much collateral damage, and I fantasize about doing so. I make mindless iconoclasm into the core of my selfhood.
I don't know if this is a "flaw" or something. I certainly don't want to change, because changing would involve not hating the idea of something that can't be killed or defeated, and it nauseates me to think I could stop hating. But I also don't want to end up pointlessly hurting other people for the sake of my own weird mental architecture.
(A certain Tumblr post once told me this is "white atheism," as opposed to "POC atheism" where you've been personally traumatized by Christians. You can call it any color of atheism you want, as far as I'm concerned.)
"You say you're an atheist now, but you haven't unlearned any of the bigotry and hatefulness from when you were a fundamentalist. You have no real respect for other genders, sexual orientations, or for that matter, religions. Frankly, you still think you're better than everyone else, and that comes out in how you treat other people."
"You say you're trans-inclusive now, but you haven't unlearned any of the bigotry and hatefulness from when you were a TERF . . ."
"You say you're trans-inclusive now, but you haven't unlearned any of the bigotry and hatefulness from when you were a TERF . . ."
On Hating Gods
Dec. 8th, 2018 06:47 pm There’s a scene in The Matrix where a character explains how to bend a spoon. The trick is to remember that you’re in a computer simulation and the spoon doesn’t actually exist. It’s just sensory input to your brain. You’re not bending the spoon so much as you’re “bending” yourself, changing your perception of how the spoon is shaped.
I’ve concluded that this is a decent enough metaphor for my thoughts on religion. I don’t hate gods, because I don’t think gods exist. But I believe that you have a conception of what your gods are like, and I believe that conception is based on your own nature and desires. Thus, when I hate your gods, I’m really just hating you.
