New Direction

This blog was intended as a place for longer, more thought-out discussions on various topics than would normally be posted to my regular journal. Many times it has been made painfully clear that the average person believes a variety of things about me (generally based on stereotypes about classes to which I belong), many of which are false. Some of which are bewilderingly false, even disturbing.

My hippie nature prevents me from holding any one set of beliefs or opinions above any other. My geek nature, however, leads me to hold facts and truth as paramount in all things. If your opinions are based on a web of flimsy lies & misinformation, I will discount your opinion, but not merely because you disagree with me. Those who attempt to mislead others with lies or just misleading presentation of information are the worst sort in my eyes, because hiding the truth is first step in enslaving others.

So the idea of this blog was to spread a little truth where misconceptions currently carry a lot of weight. And when it comes to misconceptions, the one area of my life where they abound the most is my lack of religious faith. For instance, did you know that:

- I never chose not to believe in god, so stop asking why I made that decision
- I do, in fact, have morals and live by them passionately
- I don't have proof that any god doesn't exist, but I have piles of evidence that mainstream gods don't
- If the Christian god (as I understand him, I'm not a theologian) did exist & proved it to me, I would still not worship him
- My atheism is not central to my life like your faith might be to yours, but the trust in myself & love of life that comes from atheist are important
- The odds are high that you don't really believe in the god that you claim, but rather a different concept of god that is not found in most mainstream religions
- I don't hate religion or want to see it abolished
- I don't hate people who are religious
- I think that religious faith is good for some people
- I don't worship science
- I think Richard Dawkins is a jerk
- I don't think you're a moron because you're religious, although you may be holding incompatible beliefs - not because you're stupid, but because many people with conflicting interests have conspired all your life to control your thoughts & beliefs
- If you've spent time arguing about religion on the internet, your perception of atheists is wildly inaccurate. The same would be true in reverse if I made the logical error of assuming online trolls are representative of all Christians (I'm not persecuting Christians here, I have never to my knowledge participated in or witnessed a petty argument between an atheist and anyone of any faith other than Christianity), but I know better.
- There is no one thing that all atheists agree on, so no, it's not a religion. There is no dogma.
- and much, much more!

Therefore, I have decided to change from Hippie Confessions to Atheist Confessions. This will probably invite even more trolling, but hey - someone's got to stand up for the truth. Hopefully this will lead to more updates (expanding on the points above, then other topics), but I'm not making any promises. Because even though I am not governed by the 8th (or 9th depending on your faith) commandment, I still have a policy of always telling the truth. Funny how that works.

Hippie Confession #1

#1: Yes, I am indeed a Communist.

I take great pains to be moderate and reasonable in my debate with others. Usually I can see the other side of almost any issue, using my secret hippie powers of Open-Mindedness and Compassion. But when alone with another hippie, we do hate America and talk about destroying capitalism.

What follows is an article written by my father to commemorate the start of the 2008 Olympic Games:

Chinese officials were proud to announce the successful completion and joyous opening of the VIP masturbation sweet as the Olympic opening ceremony took place this morning. Specially honored guest Henry Kissinger could barely deliver is appreciative opening statement. His tear-filled, choked message evoked deeply-felt memories of beloved former Chairman Mao Tse Tung.

"I remember how he used to kidnap busloads of young Chinese girls and force them to provide him with sexual favors," said the elder statesman. "He even offered some of them to Dick Nixon and me. Who else cared so much for effective leaders around the globe?"

Kissinger broke down and had to leave the ceremony for special treatment by his Chinese hostesses, but he did issue a statement a few hours later statiung that he had become overwhelmed by his memory of how Chairman Mao caused the death of 48 million Chinese by stavation during his "Great Leap Forward," crushed all forms of religious expression, destroyed Tibet, and still managed to import busloads of Chinese girls for good times. "What a man," he said.

After Kissinger left, President George W. Bush was specially honored at the door of the suite by Chinese President Hu Jintao. "We all bask in the memory of Chairman Mao and his heroic meeting with Comrades Nixon and Kissinger," he said. "Who can better represent the spirit of those times than George W. Bush?" He then presented President Bush with a two liter bottle of Jack Daniels and a Wal-Mart shopping cart, and placed Mickey Mouse ears on his head.

"What?" said the President, between gulps.

ABC news anchor, Charles "Charlie" Gibson, summarized the ceremony by pointing out how "good it was for business." "M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!" he exclaimed. He was last seen running through the entrance.

See what I mean?

We hippies also hate Henry Kissinger. This does not merit its own confession, as I doubt it's much of a secret. He is a fucking war criminal and we use his name like Christian folk use "Satan." He is to be mocked whenever possible, which works out to be quite often.