I get asked a lot why I'm an atheist. Most people assume that it is because I was burned by a christian, I'm mad at god, because I'm bisexual, and of course my favorite one: I'm possessed. Atheists as a group are variously seen as evil, without morals, unpatriotic, violent, etc. If people weren't so serious I could laugh at this. The simple truth of the matter is I'm atheist because I see no evidence for a god , goddess, satan, demons, spooks, spirits, ghosts, fairies, angels, allah, zeus, zombies, vampires, or even the cherished IPU. As any intelligent person knows, here is no evidence for a God or Goddess. I could fill pages upon pages of evidence against there being Gods, but there is an overabundance of that on the web as it is. Suffice it to say, the assumption that I am atheist because I was burned by a christian is a rather arrogant one. Since when is christianity the only religion??? Of course, living in the USA, it is the religion I am confronted with the most. As for this Jesus character, he did say a couple of nice things, and a lot of stupid and nasty things. Then again, he was just human (if he ever existed at all), so what does one expect? All humans say and do stupid things I suppose. Of course, not everyone is stupid enough to claim to be "King Of Jews" and get their selves killed for treason. That Jesus...what a nut!

As for atheists having no morals, this idea is more than a little silly. The only thing an atheist has in common with another atheist is a lack of belief in gods of any kind. There is no moral code or behaviours associated with being an atheist. This makes atheists as a group difficult to define. If I do something 'good' it is because I feel it is the right thing to do, not because I fear reprisal from a deity or eternal torment. Nor do I do it to impress a deity so I can go to eternal bliss, ala Mother Theresa, nor do I feel the need to announce to everyone so that I will look good. The truly evil and frightening people are the ones who need a god, a book, or fear of eternal torment to keep them in line.

Now why I see something as right or wrong is another matter. It's a combination of social conditioning via peers, society, my parents, reward and punishment, etc. It's very dangerous to claim that the only requirement for being considered good is that you fall to your knees daily to worship a deity. And as far as the christian gods go, why waste your life worshiping gods that not only condone such horrid acts as rape and murder, but actually order them to be done? Absolutely sickening and disgusting. And to be totally honest, how many christians truly love these sick and twisted gods as opposed to just being scared shitless of them? If it weren't for the threat of eternal torment they would be just like me eh? Gotta love that christian religion. Only religion I know of that worships three separate gods and calls itself monotheistic.

As for atheists being evil or whatever, what rubbish. It seems many of the things that religious people feel are truly evil are on shaky ground anyway, such as being gay for instance. They are consenting adults who hurt no one, so what do they care?

Anyhoo, I'm starting to rant. In reality, I can't say there was some great event that made me a non-believer in gods or goddesses. I don't ever remember being a believer in a deities, although I may have been at a time when I was too young to remember. I mean, after all, I did once believe there was a Santa Claus and a tooth fairy, so a deity may have been thrown in there too. I do remember going to Sunday school a few times and just thinking they were full of b.s. My questions could never be answered to my satisfaction, it was always a matter of faith, which is something I don't do well. I also have a faint memory of being baptized at church one time and wiping the water from my forehead hehehe. I wasn't from a religious family though. Really, it seemed to be just for show. More like a case of doing it because that is just what you were supposed to do.

By the way, I would like to apologize to all the other religions. I realize up until now I have been speaking of disbelief of christianity in general, which is unfair. Fear not, I disbelieve islam and paganism (although, to their credit, pagans do have better stories and a better creed on life) and all other religions as much as christianity. Nor am I a satanist, although I must admit satan doesn't sound like such a bad guy. Just check out what this guy has to say about Satan. It's just that in the U.S.A., I don't have to deal with pagans trying to legislate me out of existence, so it doesn't tend to irk me as much. I'm sure you understand sugahs. 

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