It Is Enough (A Blog Short)

It is enough.

The verifiable fact that we are star dust is enough. So many religious believers are not satisfied by the simple awe, question, and mystery that envelopes us non-believers who look into the cosmos and see it for what it is: a universe that (as far as we know now) isn't looking back at us; it isn't staring or caring back at us. Since I broke the spell religion had on my life over a decade ago my argument has always been a religious worldview totally robs us of the purity of our sense of awe and wonder at the cosmos.

Compare:

Two scenarios: Two different people are out star gazing in the middle of the Mohave Desert on a perfectly clear night. The Milky Way is crystal clear and the colors of the spiral arms of this galaxy are bright and near blinding in their brilliance. I'm sure we've all experienced some place so free of light pollution that the stars appear so bright they almost hurt your eyes. It always feels like you are in a dream, swimming like an astronaut among the stars flecked among the deep black. It is a very surreal experience. Something our ancient ancestors saw every night.

One of these people looking up is a pastor of a local church. He is staring up at the galaxy and thinking about a Father "out there", somewhere beyond and above the entire universe he created. This Father is outside of his creation looking right back at us with deep love for us. This night, with the galaxy coating all he sees, he is reminded of this Father's Son that is also the father too (with a ghost) that "wrote himself" into the story (his creation) that he began at the Big Bang. This is the story with an extremely long prelude-- where the Father waited patiently while giant reptile-monsters (dinosaurs) ruled for several hundred million years, five major mass extinctions killing altogether some 99% of the life he created on this planet, then several 100,000 years of painful early hominid species suffering/death to lead finally to Genesis and Adam and Eve in the Bible! - all of this to get to this one moment.

The moment of the pastor and his Father.

Beautiful right?

This pastor rejoices in this moment at the confirmation that it is the CREATOR of the universe that cares! This creator cares about our lowly species! How miraculous! This pastor then connects this thought of a Father God that loves him so, who created this universe with him in mind, who created this very moment with his only begotten Son(himself). This god-son that became man (one of his creation) fills this pastor with joy. He becomes overwhelmed with gratitude and peace when he reflects on all that pain and suffering experienced by the Son of God on that ancient cross. Hallelujah!

It wasn't just the torture. Many common criminals and zealots were nailed to this Roman torture device. The pain and suffering was a trillion times over due to the Son of God taking on all human sin! Did this sin-drenched pain and suffering hurt worse than all the living species pain and suffering in all five mass extinctions up until this day? Yes. It REALLY hurt so much! The pastor didn't remember if this was in the Bible but it probably was!

This pastor is reflecting on the cosmos through a Christian worldview. This night sky, this stunning beauty of a color-speckled galaxy full of billions of stars causes this pastor to reflect further on the "rules" of this cosmos. The rules that forced God to send his only begotten Son/himself. "It's all damned. All of it!"- The pastor thought. "It's all going down due to the 'first two humans' in a magical perfect garden." The first two of our species god created specially are the ones who fucked it all up. These first sinners pulled the whole future of the human race (and even somehow the other hominid species of the past) down with them. Yet before all of this, God's favorite angels rebelled against him and were cast out of heaven. The leader of these rebellious angels took the form of a snake in this magical garden to tempt these "first two humans", pulling the overwhelming majority of humans down to hell to burn forever.

All of this the pastor soaks in as tears roll down his face. This is the Christian worldview. You see, this beautiful spiral galaxy on full display above this pastor's head leads this Christian to ponder all of these things: Angels, demons, Satan, a magical garden, miracles, God's Son, a specific ancient Roman torture device, blood atonement, appeasement of a wrathful yet also loving Cosmic Father. This is all tacked on to the null hypothesis (- where the atheist starts its worldview). The Christian knows so much about the cosmos when looking up at it! It's amazing! So the creator of the moon, the sun, the stars, the galaxy does "care back" at stargazing humans! The Father who created it all, behind it all (even guided evolution of species) while also among it all (by his guiding hand in the natural world: prayer works obviously!), does care about our species. He cares so much!... Why?

Well, because dads cares, why wouldn't they?

The second person looking up at the night sky is an atheist. Like the pastor he/she may be very knowledgeable of cosmology and astronomy; he or she may know enough physics to realize physical laws in motion above. This atheist may understand enough about human anatomy to realize the mechanisms of our eye and how the starlight interacts with it. This person may understand the details of the evolution of how eyes evolved and their importance in early species.

This person may be transported back in time when we were fish moving in and out of water for food with our fins, or more accurately described as proto-limbs! This atheist reflects on the giant shells of geologic time that has passed not only above him but on the solid rock that makes up the planet in which he is standing on. Tears roll down the atheist's face as finally he/she realizes the genetic lottery that he/she won to even be here at all! The fact that the atheist is a conscious, big-brained ape that can understand the overwhelming evidence of the evolution of life on his/her home planet is mind-boggling. To the atheist this one life is all we most likely have. There is no evidence of afterlives. The atheist realizes in this very profound moment of awe and wonder while basking in the night sky that this very moment is all there is and time is somewhat of a puzzling substance.
 However, time has gotten the best of both of these two stargazers. The pastor and the atheist both, separately get into their vehicles and drive home, back to the light pollution cities they call home. They both go back to their loved ones, their friends and family. They both enjoy the social pleasures and friendships that create a meaning that is local while the cosmos exists above - cold, indifferent (as if it makes sense to attribute these attributes to an attribute-less entity)

These two stargazers: The atheist and the theist looking up at the night sky are ultimately robbing themselves in the end because they eventually are thinking about how the other one is thinking about the cosmos. The atheist is laughing and shaking his head at the childishness, archaic absurdity of the Christian worldview of the cosmos while the theist is wondering how the atheist can be a nihilist and still be filled with equal awe and wonder. If there is no creator then creation is meaningless - despite what the atheist says. Maybe one day we can fight the notion of being so dogmatic all we think about is worldviews and how they are wrong or right. As Carl Sagan said we should be delighted in the profound fact that a part of the cosmos (those species that are sentient and can contemplate the cosmos) has become aware and able to know itself. This is enough. No mythical creatures or gods required to make this powerful. It just is and that is all.

for now.

We the People... Are Shutting the Door to a Revolution

Like many Americans I've been going through something as of late. I'm going through a very painful broken heart. America has broken my heart and I'm not dealing with it very well. How about you? I know I'm supposed to fall in line and vote against my best interest, and the interest of my country but there was a revolution here. I saw it once on TV I think. Yes, it was brief and downplayed on TV but I caught it for a second. The revolution was vivid online but there are a lot of things online. Those closest to the revolution, those in the party of the revolution are the ones who shut the door to the revolution. Even though this revolution would give these fucking door-shutters a better life they were convinced by old, tired brand names (Clinton). They were convinced that we all must fall in line for the status quo. "Isn't it time?" Could that be more condescending of a slogan from Hillary. "Isn't it time?" No. It wasn't in 2008 and those of us progressives that clearly still have our brains and recent memories intact say "Fuck No!". It's STILL not time! Hillary has been and will always be far to right-wing for true progressives to accept as their candidate. Let me remind you she voted for the Iraq War and the Patriot Act!


Isn't it time ... To take this country to the right? This is what Hillary's logo indicates (the H with the arrow through the center pointing to the right). This door to the revolution was shut by the elderly that mostly laughed off the sincerity. At the same time they kill off the passion of the young that wanted to see what was through this door to a better life. Remind me when I'm a senior citizen, nearing the end of my life, not to be so stupid and selfish as to think that my narrow antiquated political philosophy should be more important than those young American citizens who have their whole life ahead of them. Fucking old people- so stubborn and bitter. Don't let people tell you the elderly are much wiser than you - they are not (clearly!) This election proved it. The old people often like to make fun of the younger generation and their naive passion. As we get older we all tend to look down at those younger than us. Is it jealousy? Sure. But mostly it's just stupidity. I'll be the first to admit this younger generation is much smarter than I was when I was younger. -- This is mostly due to the news they get is being more accurate than cable news (the news of the old fucks). The information is much more accurate from the New Media over the Old dying media.

Not only do I blame the elderly for shutting this door to the revolution but I blame old, religious African-Americans. Bernie Sanders was crushed in the deep south states. Why? Why would older black democrats vote for a woman who worked for a pro-segregation Republican in the 60's over a man that was arrested for marching for civil rights at that time? Why would older black voters vote for a woman that once called black criminals "super predators" that needed to be "brought to heel" over a man that has fought for civil rights in congress for his entire career? Is it a Jewish thing? The Jews did kill their Sky Daddy's son. Well, there are a myriad of reasons that should make any older black voter with half a brain vote against Hillary Clinton. Older black people in the south are deeply into their superstitious woo woo. They are heavily under the spell of their blood cult: Christianity. Hillary Clinton had the old religious deep south black vote on lock down from day one. The faithful flock, (AKA: dumb sheep) always follow their leader (AKA conman), their pastors. I can guarantee you that those fire-and-brimstone charlatan fags preached that "I'm with her" gospel all across those southern states. *I use the word "fag" here as slang for "closeted gay people who are bigoted against gay people".

I blame low-information voters and the media for shutting the door on the revolution. I blame poor voter turn out and suppression of votes (from precincts heavily favoring Bernie). It is a fact that when voter turn out is low Republicans win and the New Republican (or neoliberal) Hillary Clinton won in many of these low voter turn out states. I blame the elderly white and black blue dog democrats, the neoliberals, the religious, the low-information voters, and the media. My family is mostly Republican and Fox News has so warped their brains that they actually think that a fascist like Donald Trump would be better as President then a democratic socialist like Bernie Sanders. A Mussolini or Napoleon would be better than a Franklin Roosevelt or Jesus Christ. Jesus fucking Christ, the stupidity on the right is palpable! This is how twisted the world is according to Faux News viewers. Their brains have been succumbed to 8 solid years of Obama-bashing, blaming him for every problem (real and imaginary), and painting this country as a 3rd-world hellhole because of his presidency. The cult of Fox News and it's followers are finally meeting their Frankenstein creation after a decade of false narrative: Donald Trump. We can thank the dumbing down of our parents and grandparents for America's first fascist President!

But we had a revolution in our grasps! Many of us Bernie supporters saw the light through the door and how good the future could be if we just reallocated all this money to focus in on the health of our own country- the entire country, not just the 1%, not just wars with countries that never attacked us (something Hillary voted for). As with Obama the criticisms of Sanders are based in fact-free fantasy-land. The one thing we hear continually from the brainwashed zombies on the right (you know-- our family and friends!) is that Bernie is promising "free this" and "free that" and then they laugh smugly with their dumb hill-billy, slaw-jaw, faces. Of course, literally none of these mouth-breathers have taken 10 seconds to actually look at the details of Bernie's proposals. The mentally challenged haven't even attempted to look at the numbers, his tax proposals, or how he'll pay for all these "free" things. As they lean back, laughing as if they made some wonderful defeating argument I often want to grab them by their fat pink jowls and introduce them this concept of other modern, industrialized countries in the world that have already had these "free things" (like healthcare and college) for years. Unconscionable morons! There is no hope! I'm afraid we are drowning in an ocean of idiocracy.

Here's a cold hard fact we have to accept now: Bernie will most likely not be the Democratic nominee for President this year. Those of us with hearts and functioning brains have to come to grips with that. I originally never expected Bernie to make it this far. Not many people did. I watched a recent segment from Samantha Bee's new show called "Full Frontal" where she mocks Bernie supporters. She makes light of this idea of "a revolution" which of course feeds into what I've been talking about. She seems to either ignore or not fully grasp why this movement to get Bernie the nomination is called "a revolution". It's simple: Bernie is not for sale. The overwhelming majority of Bernie's contributions have come from small donors from average American citizens. Isn't this fact alone worth your vote. Do you really want another candidate that is bought out by special interests? Hillary Clinton has received millions of dollars from some of the same financial institutions that brought down our economy. This revolution is a glimpse of light through the door. This revolution is about overturning Citizens United and getting money out of politics so we, the non-billionaire, the non-Wall Street 1%er, the non-Koch brother can have a fucking say just as much as the rich do!

Hillary Clinton has refused to release her speeches to Goldman Sachs. Why? Of course she has something to hide. She doesn't want us to see, even though she talks the "tough talk" about Wall Street and special interest groups, that in reality, behind closed doors she talks fondly of her Goldman Sachs friends. Of course she shills to these people. They have her attention much more than the average citizen of this country. The majority of democratic voters have watched her squirm and make up absurd excuses and deflect from this in many debates and yet somehow this same democrat voter is fine with all of this. Democrats want to keep the status quo. Democrats want to keep electing liars that shift with the $ at the drop of a hat. Democrats want to elect someone that is not principled at all and can be swayed by the special interests. Democrats want to keep the door shut.

Well, thank the Holy Spaghetti Monster I'm not a democrat!

All of us who are informed and care about fundamentally changing the system (getting money out of politics at all costs and taking our democracy back) are faced with the grim fact of Hillary being the democratic nominee. We are to somehow magically transfer our passion for Bernie (feeling the Bern) into passion for "Isn't it time ... for Hillary?" Needless to say that will never happen. I'm not a "Bernie or Bust" person though know a hell of a lot of them. Hillary will simply just not win over a giant block of progressives. Her unfavorables are through the roof. Those of us who will be voting for her over Trump are doing so despite our emotions. Those of us that will be voting for her over Trump are doing so strictly based on rationality. I cannot express the high degree of torture and stress that this brings us Bernie supporters that must vote for Shillary. It's a hostage vote. Vote for this horrible human you do not want to be your President OR this fascist wins! We do not want to do this and find it near impossible to do so. All you so-called "progressives" that find it not problematic at all, not a conflict of conscious at all, to vote for Hillary are simply not real progressives or have not been paying attention all these years.

It's best to reword where I'll stand in the general election: My vote will never be a vote /FOR/ Hillary but a merely vote /AGAINST/ a fascist. Donald Trump, sufficiently diagnosed, will lead to the correct conclusion that this man is a cult of personality and thus a fascist. We can never elect someone like this as our President. It's not just about him being unqualified or idiotic. Trump is not an idiot at all. In horrible ways he's extremely brilliant. Trump will shatter the system we have (and not in a good way!) and electing him could spell certain doom for our republic in the United States. I don't deny people can know these things and yet still be a "Bernie or Bust" voter (voting 3rd party or not at all, even in a swing state) but these are the people we have to convince.

... In time... It's too soon for me. I haven't properly dealt with my mourning. I'm still dealing with my broken heart. I'm still mourning democracy, I'm still mourning shutting the door to a revolution. I am currently crawling under a rock to really soak in that America just passed on one of the best presidential candidates in this country's recent history. I may sleep this off for days... Wake me up when it's time to vote against that fascist.

Anti-Theism Rant 4/24/16

 

I'm going to die
... and people are going to keep believing stupid shit.
I like being a firebrand atheist. It bothers me deeply if someone were to misrepresent who I was when I die. I'm afraid my very religious family or friends will co-opt my death for their religion. I get it. It makes them feel better when grieving but it's dishonest to who I am. I used to be a Christian, sure but I haven't been for over a decade now and I'm very much an anti-theist. I do not believe in a God and think that if there was one that would be horrible. I wish to worship no one! or to be a slave to no master! Who the fuck wants that?! What is wrong with you people?! Especially a slave to something that's not even real! I chose autonomy and freedom. This is why I broke the spell years ago. I was indoctrinated as a child and kept in near isolation with other believers. Some even reading this may have been through the same mental child abuse. It is a form of child abuse.

There have been people die lately. Of course people die all the time but brutally and locally. Getting shot at this point is getting more and more common in this country. That's a price we pay for all these guns and we'll never give up our guns. But it's been somber as of late around me. People are sad and jolted back to the very stubborn fact that one day we're all going to die. And that day could be tomorrow and that death could be brutal and painful.

The very thing you that are religious are so afraid of - the pain, the death, the suffering, the earthquakes and floods, the Muslim terrorist... all the things that keep you terrified and keep you clutching your Bible is the very thing that make me feel at ease. Many that are religious are so concerned about what it would be like to embrace NOOOOOOOOTHHHHIIIIIIINGGGG! NOOOOOOO! There is Jesus or there is the void. That is all there is! And even if we atheists live a long happy life ... well, that point of "Jesus or nothing" isn't invalidated you see because where we can't be proven right or wrong .. the "afterlife" is where you will face the "nothingness!" How convenient.

But there is a freedom in nothing! That's what makes me laugh when I read something about the alternative to "the gospel" is nothingness because I get such comfort from this "nothingness". The control these people must have over their lives is astounding! They must not only be satisfied with all the science (well, some of the science! Not that icky human evolution science tho!) but they must know what's "beeeeeeeyyyyooooondddd the natural!" See, there must be a SUPER-Natural! They must know what's even beyond the cosmos. As if this cosmos isn't fucking enough to fascinate our ape brains!

I feel sorry for the theist. I feel sorry for the ones that must have answers to all the big questions- even if those answers are made up or found in an old magical book. There is freedom in letting go belief in magical gardens, noah's ark, blood sacrifices, resurrecting god-sons. There is freedom in just being a species of animal and stopping there and just letting that fact soak in. It is deep to be in the real world. It fills me with awe to not project any desires or feelings about what sounds nice or what would be nice or what my pastor says but to just be an animal. It feels freeing to look at my pet rats and realize we were once this small. We survived the dinosaurs by being this small. We have so much deep time and history. And we don't need to postulate sky daddies like our ancient ancestors because that's childish. We are growing up as a species and we're letting go of childish things (religion) as the polls are showing (in this country at least)

Hopefully someday you will join me in the sentiment of - I don't know what the fuck is going on with this cosmos and neither do you! You can believe in your gods, you gins, your fairies, your angels and demons you lambs washed in blood but do not pray over me. Do not co-opt my death for your religious nonsense. I have someone I've very close to that understands my strong anti-theism stance and promised me she would keep it on the real. I will not be remembered as a believer. That makes me feel good because I grew up over a decade ago. You should too!