My Single Mom Life: The Categories

February 18, 2010

First Communion coming up.

My friend Nic is Catholic, she knows that I am an atheist, and we both respect each others views on the topic of religion, so much so, that Nic has asked me to help her pick out Communion cards for her daughter Leonna's First communion.

When we went grocery shopping the other night, this is one of the things that we talked about as we shopped.
She asked for my help because I am always on the internet and my computer works.
Her computer is totally messed up, one of these days when she has an afternoon off, I'm going to go over and do a fresh install of WinXp, and clean up her entire pc, it really is a mess, but anyway...

Leonna's communion is coming up within the next few months, I think she said it was going to be in May, (or was it June?) so she has plenty of time to find just the right Communion invitations and Communion thank you cards, and then get them ordered and shipped to her in plenty of time to get them all sent out to her family and friends.

I started looking at different card websites tonight to try and help her find just the right ones, and the best site that I found with the nicest selection of invitations was Storkie.com.
Their prices per card with the personalized customizations already included in the price per card, was by far better than any of the other sites that I looked at, and I looked at close to a dozen of them before going back to Storkie again because of the selection and pricing.
Their site was also the easiest to navigate.
Nic said that she didn't mind if she could only get gender neutral cards, but Storkie does them all kinds of ways, by gender, gender neutral, photo cards, magnetic cards, they even do customized napkins and cookies which I thought was pretty cool.
I've only been to a few communions for friends before, so I never really knew just how much went into the planning and finding of just the right kinds of invitations and party favors before tonight.
There are so many things that can be done for the event, and it is a pretty big deal in the kid's life, so getting things done up right is really pretty important.

Anyway, I really liked the cards that can be personalized with pictures and your own text as well.
I think a style like this is way better than a generic card with pre-printed generic writing on it.

They also have the matching thank you cards to go with each particular design too, so the one that I just posted above, has a matching thank you card to send out to family and friends after the communion party is over.

I've bookmarked Storkie so that I can show it to her when she has some time to come by this weekend to start picking out what she wants.
I've also picked out some of my favorite ones so that I can show her what I like, what I think would be perfect for Leonna.
I like the black and white, simple, crisp, and clean, but I also know what colors Leonna likes, so I'm going to go through and find a few styles in colors close to what she likes to show to Nic as well as the black and white from above, and hopefully she will be able to find just the right ones so she can get busy ordering them in time for the communion.

Kat posted at 01:52 AM on February 18, 2010 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

December 7, 2009

Only 9 days till Christmas vacation?!

Ack!
In just 9 days Sebastian will be on Christmas vacation, or winter break as they are now calling it so as not to offend anyone.
I really wish people would get off of that battle, there are bigger things to argue about than what to say to people, either Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays, it's no big deal.
I say Merry Christmas and I'm an atheist.
Oh my! The horrors!...LoL

I will be doing the shopping for the teens Christmas gifts next week.
I know, so late, but I am waiting for a few things to go on sale.
I'm so glad the boys are older, they know and understand the financial situation, so they don't ask for a million things anymore, and they also don't ask for super expensive things anymore.
I remember when they were little, every single commercial for a toy, they wanted that toy, they had to have it.
Little kids are just naturally greedy.
They don't mean to be, they just get that way at Christmas, they get excited because they believe in Santa Claus and want everything that they can get or think Santa will bring them.
Now that they are older and know Santa is not real and know that it's me, mommy, who buys all of the gifts, they know that they cannot ask for everything they see, but they do ask for just 1 big item that they would like to have.
They both want Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for the Xbox 360, and they also want something for the World of Warcraft game.
Something about a character transfer I think, I don't know, I don't pay any attention to that game at all, it bores me to be honest, I cannot understand why people get so addicted to playing it.
All I want is some more memory for my new pc to make it really fly and also be able to handle my Sims3 game way better.
It can handle it right now, but with 4GB of memory, it will be spectacular!

Kat posted at 09:35 PM on December 7, 2009 || Comments (1) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

December 4, 2009

If I had a nice yard, I would so have one of these.

When Sebastian and I took our nightly walk around the neighborhood last night, we could smell a wood fire burning and coming from up the street, so we walked that way to see where and what it was.
The new people (5 months new people) were sitting outside in their nicely done yard and had 1 of these kinds of outdoor fireplaces going.

It didn't have that dome cover, theirs appeared to be just a mesh screen type cover, I picked the 1 that I posted when I went searching for them online, found that awesome looking celestial cover, and then went to see how much they were.
The price isn't too bad, it's well out of my price range of course, (that is until I win the Powerball baby!!) but I just think that it looks really nice in a nicely done up yard.
If I had a really nice yard, maybe even fenced in, a lanai perhaps, maybe with a swimming pool too, I would totally have an outdoor fireplace or pit.

The people up the street just looked so totally relaxed and happy sitting outside enjoying the fall air and talking to each other around the fire.
A few weeks ago when Mark was spending the night with his friend Jeff, Sebastian and I went and hung out with some friends of mine who have a fire pit.
They got it going really good and it was so nice to just sit there on their wooden swing with the super comfy cushions, and chat by the fireside.
I sat with my friend Jen who is a couple months pregnant, and so swinging felt really good to the both of us.
We both got into a nice rhythm going back and forth, and talking about babies and weddings and stuff while the guys sat and talked sports and video games.
Sebastian was telling the guys all kinds of ways to get stuff in WoW, that game is still totally over my head, I know absolutely nothing about it, so once anyone gets talking about it, I just tune it out completely. haha
Jen and Rusty are getting married in February, so they are starting to plan things out, just a really simple wedding at the beach with a justice of the peace.
I've often thought about becoming an ordained secular humanist clergy-type person so I can marry my atheist friends and stuff.
I'd also be able to do things like baby namings, funerals, commitment ceremonies, affirmation of love ceremonies, invocations, renewal of marriage ceremonies, and holiday ceremonies.
All I would need to do this would be to get a Notary Public license, and then bada-bing bada-boom!
I could marry atheists and other secular individuals, or just couples who don't want the traditional religious ceremony done at their wedding.
I think it would be like a pretty cool little side job to have, and if gays ever get the right to be married in Florida, I could marry them and do those weddings too.
I think it's a pretty cool idea and so did Rusty and Jen, they asked me if I could possibly become a notary by February, so I said that I would look into it.
They don't want the traditional vows done at their wedding, they want to write their own vows, they want a peaceful and friendly ceremony, so I'm looking into it.
Pretty cool huh?
Me, an ordained clergy-type person. Ha ha haha!

Kat posted at 06:18 AM on December 4, 2009 || Comments (2) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

October 30, 2009

Bad day to knock on my door.

Around 11am this morning, there was a very loud knock on my door, I thought it might have been the mailman, I was expecting a package today, (got it Mom, thanks!) but it wasn't the mailman, it was 2 women selling god.
When I peeked out the door window, I saw the 2 women standing there and one of them was holding a big wooden box.
I wasn't sure they were god sellers at first, the big wooden box threw me for a loop, I thought they may have been selling some of those entertainment coupon books, or some of those pizza discount coupons, or maybe they were going door to door selling Rocky Patel cigars or magazine subscriptions, the wooden box really threw me off.
As soon as I opened the door and asked "May I help you?", I knew what they were selling.
One of the women had started to take out a Watchtower magazine, and because now is so the wrong time to be trying this crap with me, I snapped.

"Are you banging on my door trying to sell god?!" I shouted.
One of the women started to say "Ma'am, being the day before Halloween..." but I cut her off before she could even finish that sentence, "Get the hell off of my property right now!"
The same woman who had started to tell me that being the day before Halloween they felt the need to remind people about god, tried to protest, but I just kept shouting for them to get off of my property right freaking now or I would call the police.
They tried to go to the door on the other half of my duplex, but that unit is still empty, so I yelled at them again, "That apartment is vacant, no one lives there, so get the hell off of my property right now! Do NOT make me come outside, Do NOT make me call the cops, get your feet moving very quickly and get the hell off of my property right now!"

The 2 women were looking at me in complete disbelief, like how dare I yell at them to get off my property, how dare I threaten them with the police or make me go outside after them.
They were walking rather slowly towards the sidewalk, so I opened the door and yelled even louder, and had grabbed the 2x4 that I keep behind the front door.
Once they saw that, they started running out of the driveway as fast as they could.
I just wasn't in the mood to even try talking to them about their god, I didn't want to hear it, I didn't want to even be dealing with it.
I don't give a crap about tomorrow being Halloween, the one day of the year that the dead supposedly walk the earth, none of it, I just didn't want to hear what they were trying to sell me and all of the other people on my street.
They turned into the driveway to my left and my neighbor was outside with his dog, he had heard me yelling at them, so before they even got a few feet into his driveway, he yelled at them to get off of his property too.

I don't know what it is that makes these people think they have the right to go door to door all of the time, what makes them think they have the right to do this?
Would they like it if I came to their home and started telling them about atheism?
I bet they wouldn't, I bet they would do exactly as my neighbor and I did, and yell at us to get off of their property.
I'm just so over this kind of stuff, and I seriously pity the next person who comes to my door with this crap, and I bet someone will come back tomorrow morning.
They are always at it on Saturday mornings, and with tomorrow actually being Halloween, I bet there will be another team of them going door to door trying to warn people of the evils of Halloween.

Kat posted at 04:17 PM on October 30, 2009 || Comments (5) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

September 24, 2009

Will post the rest soon, trying to wake and deal with it all.

I didn't even go to sleep until 8am today, woke up at 11:30am, sore, oh man so so sore, and dealing with emails, voicemails, Twitters, everything.

I really don't want to offend anyone, but I'm getting an overwhelming amount of emails from a lot of people who believe in the big dog up in the clouds, every single 1 of them is saying that this is proof of his existence, that they followed the story here, read, read my blog, and were extremely disappointed to learn that I am an atheist.

take care and think about what has happened in your life in the past couple of days and consider that god played a part in this

Sorry, no.
It's all just coincidence, just the way it goes, it's totally awesome, but completely random events.
No religious miracle, no god did it or god chose this time of our lives to reunite us, none of any of that mumbo jumbo holy man nonsense.
It would take a whole lot more than this to make me suddenly fall to my knees and believe in a magical dude in the universe.
I appreciate all of the comments, I really do, but this was nothing more than random events, super awesome terrific random events, but completely random.

I really do appreciate all of the love, support, and comments, this has all been so amazing and overwhelming, and I'm still totally blown away by what has happened here, so much to tell you all, and I will, I just need to run an errand first and then I can get to explaining everything.
Run an errand ha!
Sebastian and I had like 5-6 hours to really explore Times Square and stuff, and my body is just now telling me that I am the suck, it hates me, and that I'm lucky my body hasn't let me drop dead yet.
I am in some serious pain today man, whoo!
My lower back, thighs, calves, and feet are on fi-yah!
We walked the entire length of Times Square at least 3 times, finding something we missed the previous 2 trips up and down each side of the street.
Walking to the bathroom and back to my chair is unbelievably painful. hahahaha
Ok, gonna go ~~run~~crawl that errand and then I'll be back to post some more.

Oh!
Aunt Sherri, Roe, Carolyn H., Pamela, Alicia, Mom, Dad, old and new family, (Pamela!!) old friends, I promise I will reply to each of your comments and emails, I just need some time to weed through the 1,200+ comments and emails in my inbox that started pouring in the second that I posted to my blog Tuesday morning, and have not stopped yet.
Magazines are calling and emailing wanting to do interviews, other tv shows calling or Twittering for the same, there's so so much going on and so time is definitely needed to rest, get a sort of grip on this whole thing, and be able to respond to everyone, but thank you all so much for getting in touch!

Kat posted at 02:01 PM on September 24, 2009 || Comments (8) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

July 9, 2009

Up not cut.

It was a very long, very quiet ride out there, I am still angry and hurt, tired of talking to people who refuse to listen, and so it was a very uncomfortable ride.
We got there and they had me fill out a bunch of paperwork, some were of the typical medical questions, but this is a drug rehab treatment center, they do in house and outpatient programs, and so 3 pages of questions that are so so not me and my situation, were horribly degrading to even have to answer.
Things like do I use needles for drugs, share needles, have I ever had sex for money or drugs, sex with an at risk person for money or drugs, just a lot of really horrible things that I have never, would never do.
I understand though that there are addicts out there who do those things, but none of it applies to me, not even in the slightest, so it was very hard to sit there and answer those questions without wanting to scream.

They called my name and I went in and spoke with the counselor/therapist, whatever they are called, and it went much better than I expected.
She still gave me the higher power speech, but once I told her that I was an atheist and refused to rely on any type of imaginary power to help me, she dropped the subject.

I told her everything that has been going on, about all of the surgeries, how much titanium is inside of me, what the original plan was, and where I'm at now that the surgery is canceled.
She listened, she just straight up listened.
She asked me a few questions here and there, like what are my meds, how often, do they work etc, and I told her everything that I am prescribed to take, how often I am supposed to take it, and that yes, I have had to double up on bad days and rainy days, and she said to me that my meds don't need to be cut, not at all, instead, they need to be upped.
She said if I'm having to double up, then they obviously aren't working as well anymore, and they need to be upped or something else needs to be tried, but stopping the medication for me and my situation was simply not even an option on the table, and she said it was ridiculous if anyone thought otherwise.

We talked about my pain manager doctor, I told her that this coming appointment will be exactly the 4th time I am seeing him, (I was switched from 1 pain doc to another because my 1st pain doc was a rehab specialist, and I am long term pain care) and he knows none of what is going on other than the surgery was canceled.
When I started seeing him, we were a go for surgery, so he kept me at the pain med doses I was at because I was going to be having another surgery.
By law, you can only see a pain manager once every 30 days no matter what.
It doesn't matter if you run out, lose them, or somebody steals them, the law is the law, so even if I called him up and told him what was going on, by law, I still cannot go in and see him, so I've had to deal with the cancellation of my surgery and the depression on my own since June 10th -12th when the surgery was canceled, it's been exactly 3 and a half weeks since the cancellation and my last appointment with him which was before the surgery was canceled.
When it got canceled, I had to call his office and tell them that I would be needing a July appointment after all, (surgery was scheduled for June 29th) so they scheduled me for 4 weeks out, which is July 14th.
He cannot see me any sooner by law, so yeah, all of this has been on my shoulders to try and cope with.
I told her that as soon as I saw myself starting to feel really bad, get really depressed, that I called his office and asked for extra time with him at that appointment because I need to speak with him about my meds and the depression, so they booked me for a longer appointment.
I was already on top of what needed to be done, I had the ball rolling, so all of this, yeah, just not good, it just added to the pile of crap I was already feeling and trying so hard to deal with.

She said that our plan of action was actually pretty simple, I would start going there once a week and talking with the therapist, they would work with me and my pain doc to increase my meds, put me on an antidepressant that will work with the meds that I take, and just have an hour a week to talk to someone who will just sit and listen to how I feel.
No one will be judging me, putting me down, telling me what I should or shouldn't be doing, and she said that given my circumstances, it's pretty amazing that I didn't fall apart much sooner.
She didn't judge me for anything, for any of the mistakes I've made over these years, she said that no one else will ever know what my life is like, but if people don't walk a mile in my shoes, they really have no place to judge.
It was so nice to hear that, to have someone at least try to understand how I feel and to not judge me for this screwed up life that I live but never asked for.

Quite a few people have come forward and offered their support, their friendship, and their understanding in all of this, and I thank all of you so much for that, I really needed that.
No, they don't know what it's like, but they didn't judge me either, they know that this situation isn't something I asked for, they know I hate it, and they know how bad I wish it wasn't like this, but they simply offered their support, their friendship, and a hug to let me know that I'm not fighting this alone.
All I needed was to be heard, to be listened to, for someone, anyone, to just shut up and listen to what was going on, what the plan in place was, and to just try and be patient while I worked through this with the help of my doctor who has to follow the laws.

I feel a lot better knowing that once a week I can go talk to someone who has a medical background, who deals with this stuff on a daily basis, who will listen to me, help me in any way that they can, who will not judge me, and help me work through all of the guilt, which honestly, I shouldn't be carrying alone.
There were people who promised to help after the surgeries, promised to take care of the teens, help me once I came home, and they never did, so the teens had to help me, they had to do it all because those promises got broken.
I needed the help, the teens should have never had to do so much, but they did, so I carry all of that guilt around with me all of the time, and it kills me inside to hear my sons tell me that these past years have sucked so much for them and it wasn't fair that they had to do it all, and they hate me for it.
I know that, I so so know that, and no, it wasn't fair, but what was I supposed to do?!
I had no one, the people who promised to help didn't, I didn't have anyone else, the teens didn't have anyone else, it was all on us to deal with, and I am so so so sorry that they had to do it all, so sorry.
I am so sorry.
I really wish it could have been different, I tried, I planned, people promised, I should have found others to help but I trusted that those promises would be kept, and when they didn't, it wasn't fair, and I am so so sorry, you have no idea how sorry I am that the teens had to do it all, just so so sorry.

The teens aren't home and won't be coming home for a few more days, and that's ok.
It's giving them time away from all of this, it's giving me time alone, a huge break from having to try and hold it together, I can just be alone and cry as I need to without people freaking out and thinking I'm going to do something stupid.
I don't know how the therapist's plan of upping my meds is going to fly in the face of the ultimatum I was handed, but I'm going to follow what the doctors tell me to do, it's what I need to do to be healthy and alive, and not in pain.
If what the doctors are going to do isn't ok with the ultimatum, there's nothing that I can do.
I've accepted that.
I love my sons more than anything, I would do anything for them, I would lay down my life for them, but I'm going to follow the doctors, it's what has to be done, it's what's right to do, and people may not understand that, they may not understand chronic pain and that even my surgeon has said that there is no hope for me, not for the foreseeable future anyway, and that I will be on pain meds for the rest of my life, it's what it is and they can either accept that and try to work with me or they can't.
It will hurt, it will hurt so so much, but my doctors have been saying this for a long time, and now the therapists are saying it too, going off the meds is not an option, it's not even being discussed.
I'm going to follow the new plan, talk to the therapist who will listen and not judge me, and do what I have to do to be out of pain and try to get my life back, well as much of a life as I can have being stuck like this.
I'm grieving for the loss of the rest of my life.
I will be stuck like this, in pain like this, for the rest of my life.
I am a prisoner in my home because of my body, I'm never going to have a normal life again.
Going out, going to the movies, trying to do fun things, eating in restaurant chairs, walking around the mall or a store, trying to find or have a relationship, all of those things cause extreme pain, so yeah, I'm grieving for the loss of a normal life and I need people to let me do that, to let me work through those feelings of loss, to try and find a way to cope with it, to accept it, that's all I'm asking for here, just give me some time to deal with and accept this.

Kat posted at 06:58 PM on July 9, 2009 || Comments (11) || Link || Health & Beauty & Fitness

May 31, 2009

What kind of ruler are you?

While we were sitting all that time waiting for graduation to start, my sister was showing Sebastian and I all of the stuff her Apple Ipod Touch can do.
Then she realized it had wifi in the arena, so there must be some really good cell towers around the Robarts arena neighborhood, because Sebastian went online, watched a few videos on youtube, and some other stuff.

But she had this wicked cool game on there, it's an app called Pocket God, and it is absolutely hysterical!
You are god and you are in total control of all these little islander people, and you get to kill them in a ton of totally funny ways.
Lightening, sharks, volcano explosion, and turning your ipod will make them fall off the island, and so many other funny things.
We were all just sitting there laughing our asses off over all the things you can do to the Oggs.
Check out the video below.

Kat posted at 12:52 AM on May 31, 2009 || Comments (0) || Link || Computers and technology

May 21, 2009

Toofs, food, and freebies.

Last night my sister and my girls (my nieces) came over for a little while, and my sister had called me on the way to tell me to have my camera ready for when they got there.
She said that Susan had a surprise for me, so I made sure the camera had freshly charged batteries, and we all went outside to wait.
Just about 5 minutes later, they pulled under the carport and they all unbuckled, sis told Susan to get out and to "Go smile for Aunty Kat!"
So Susan got out of her big girl seat and out of the car, and as she made her way to me, she was giggling all of the way.
When she got close to me, she stopped, and sis had motioned for me to be ready, and then Susan smiled a huge smile.
This is what she had to show me!

She lost her front tooth! Her first big girl lost tooth!
She was so excited about it, and then told me that mommy gave her $1 for putting it under her pillow last night. (Sis is also an atheist, and we both have raised and our raising our kids without made-up stuff, if you don't believe in 1 fairy tale, you don't believe in any of them)
Sis and the girls also stopped at McDonald's to surprise us with dinner, and the teens were totally happy with that, even though they also wanted what I was going to make for dinner.
When I went grocery shopping the other day, and Mark and I got to the meat department, Publix had packages of huge turkey legs on sale for just $1.99 per pound, so I bought 2 packages with 3 legs in each package, and my plan was to cook them up in the NuWave for dinner.

Well sis brought McDonald's, so I left the turkey legs in the refrigerator and planned on cooking them tonight, Thursday.
They were perfectly fine, as a matter of fact, they were still frozen solid.
My sister and the girls left around 6:45pm, and almost an hour later, Mark asked if I was going to cook them up.
I told him that I could, but they could handle being in the fridge for 1 night and that I would cook them Thursday night.
He gave me the ol' puppy dog, please mom, I'm gonna starve to death if you don't cook those look, and he really didn't have a huge meal like he usually gets when he goes to McDonald's with George or whoever, so I agreed to cook them up.

The NuWave comes with 2 racks, a 6inch that flips over to become a 1inch, and then a 4inch rack, so I grabbed the 4inch rack, and placed all 6 legs on it.
They were packed on a bit tightly, but they all fit in there.

I set the power level to high, and pushed the timer button...

Because they were still frozen pretty darn solid, I set the cooking time for 30 minutes per side, for a total of 1 hour of cooking time.

I didn't even think of wrapping the bony end of the legs in aluminum foil like I normally do when cooking a whole turkey in the oven, I don't know why I didn't, you can use aluminum foil in the NuWave.
As a matter of fact, you can use any type of utensil, foil, parchment paper, or cooking pan in it as long as it fits.
If it fits inside the dome, you can use it in the NuWave.
But I forgot to cover the bony ends of the legs, so of course the skin and meat pulled back, but they still came out so freaking good!

Look at that gorgeous golden brown color!
I didn't eat any, and neither did Sebastian, but Mark took 1 and we will reheat the remaining 5 for tonight, and I will also make the mashed potatoes and gravy that is supposed to go with it.
I took a tiny piece of meat off of Mark's so that I could see how it came out, and it was super awesomely good.
The meat was cooked to perfections, and totally tender and juicy.
I swear, the NuWave is actually making me be a better cook...hahaha

One of the benefits of cooking with the NuWave aside from how quickly and perfectly it cooks everything, is the fact that it drains off the fat.
The infomercial makes a claim that I didn't believe, I know, infomercials are all hard to believe, and I fell hook, line, and sinker, for the NuWave. (But the NuWave really does do what the infomercial claims as far as cooking goes!)
But they claim that if you cook with your NuWave at least 3 times per week, that because it cooks and drains all of the extra fat, greases, and oils out of the food, that you will lose weight and lower your cholesterol.
I've now had the NuWave for 4 months as of today, I received it on February 21st, and I have monthly doctor's appointments where they put me through the wringer and test for everything under the sun.
I'm always being weighed, measured, and tested for all kinds of things, so anyway, because I have only been cooking in the NuWave, and have not used the regular oven even once since getting it, my cholesterol has lowered, and I have lost 12lbs.
I think if I could get my hands on the most perfect and best diet pills for me and my body type, and continue to use the NuWave for every single meal, I bet that I could lose even more weight.
I was shocked when my doc told me that I had lost 12lbs.
She weighs me every single month, and sometimes she tells me if I'm up or down, but she usually holds out for a significant change before saying anything.
12lbs is pretty dang significant in my opinion.
W00t!

And I've been up all night again, insomnia, again.
So I made myself useful while I was up.
I went through the fridge and took out all of the food that was in there in its original packaging, not sealed up good, and was going to spoil if I didn't get them packed up correctly, and so I packed everything up nicely with a whole bunch of my new Rubbermaid storage containers.

I put the deli ham, cherry tomatoes, salsa, the sliced cheese, the block of extra sharp cheddar cheese, the leftover salad from Tuesday night, the tortilla chips, the Werther's caramel and chocolate candies, the leftover sour cream, everything that needed to be sealed up and stored better, into the new Rubbermaid storage containers.
Doing this had an added benefit.
The fridge now looks all nice and organized.

If you're new here or haven't heard about it yet, in the post directly below this one, you can enter to win your very own 20piece set of Rubbermaid storage containers.
Entering and getting extra entries is really easy, so if you would like your own set of Rubbermaid containers, go read the how to enter rules and enter.

And now I think I'm finally tired enough to go to sleep.
If you do enter, I will verify your entries when I wake up and send you a notice that you've been entered.
Please do make sure that you do the required entry or I'll have to disqualify you.
I am only saying this because I've now had 3 people fail to do that 1 thing, and it has disqualified them.
I was even really nice about it and emailed them letting them know that they needed to come back and do that 1 thing.
Oh well.
Good luck and later days!!

Kat posted at 08:54 AM on May 21, 2009 || Comments (2) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

April 2, 2009

No proselytizing at schools!

This is what was being handed out after school today at Riverview High school in Sarasota Florida.
They are allowed to do this, but they must stay on the sidewalks, public property, and not step onto school property at all.

The teens said that they were definitely on school property.
The school is doing a lot of construction and has built some sidewalks from the parking lot to the buildings, but these sidewalks are separate from the public sidewalk which runs the lentgh of Lords avenue in front of the school.
These people were on the school's sidewalks, the newly built sidewalks that go from the parking lot to the buildings.

They were yelling out to students to take one, Sebastian kept saying "No, no thank you, I'm an atheist, NO THANK YOU, NO", yet they continued to ask him to take one.
Mark took one to bring it home and show me what was happening.
I am NOT happy.

I called the school.
The secretary transferred me to the vice principal, I explained that they were on school property sidewalks, not the public sidewalks, and she asked me to hold 1 minute.
I was then transferred to the school police officer, who surprise (!) was not available, so I got a voice mailbox.

The school doesn't want to talk to me about this, they know those people should only be on public property, not school property, and they know that I know the laws regarding proselytizing at school.
As soon as the vice principal heard me say my name, people handing out bibles, and ON school property, she was all "uh, um, uh, hold please", because she knows that I am not going to let this drop.
I called back, demanded to speak to a person, not a machine, and they transferred me to the VP again.
I told her not to put me on hold again, she apologized, I said get them off school property, now, tell them to stay on the public sidewalks or I will come up there and film what they are doing the next time they are there, and take it to whoever it is that can make these people stop, and can also make you enforce the law to keep them off of school property.

I know that they have a right to do this, but NOT on the property, they cannot even step an inch onto the school property to hand out these bibles.
This kinda crap makes me so mad, it's just not ok with me that this is allowed at all.
Religion is a personal, private, family matter, and religion should never be pushed onto impressionable youths.
The students range in age from 14 to 19 at the high school, the only ones they can legally talk to are the 18 and 19 year olds, speaking to anyone under the legal age is not allowed, yet here they are, yelling at all of the students to take these bibles.

The teens said they have been doing this for the last few weeks, that is so not ok with me.

Kat posted at 03:25 PM on April 2, 2009 || Comments (8) || Link || School

February 20, 2009

WWJD at school?

The teens were sitting at their lunch table today, and another student came along and tossed this on their table and said "Hey atheists", and then kept going.
It's a religious tract for a Baptist church that offers a lot of teen and youth programs.
The student who tossed it on their table obviously knows that they are atheists, that's why they did it.

School is no place for this stuff whether it's done by teachers or students.
This is basically, harassment of students who don't believe, by students who do believe.

religion%20007.jpg

This is what it says on the inside:

religion%20005.jpg

And this is the church that distributes them to kids to hand out at school:

religion%20006.jpg

Kat posted at 09:35 PM on February 20, 2009 || Comments (6) || Link || School

February 12, 2009

My morals are good thanks.

I want to get away, or maybe send other people away, maybe to the Outer Banks or the far outer limits of space where they freeze up and die a painful death.

I just don't understand people sometimes and it frustrates me.
I don't understand the violence and abuse people do to each other, the neglect, the hatred, the killings, any of it.
I don't get it.

I'm often accused, because I'm an atheist, that I live my life without morals, that simply because I don't believe in a god, that I must believe in doing whatever I want whenever I want, hurt people, steal, kill, cheat on my significant other, all kinds of things, simply because I don't believe in a god.

But I do live my life better than most people do.
I don't lie, cheat, steal, kill, I don't intentionally harm others, I don't just live my life freely doing whatever I want whenever I want, I actually take other people into consideration.
I consider their feelings before saying or doing anything.
I spend countless hours worried about other people, wondering if they are ok, wanting to help them in some way, not just a thought or prayer saying I'm thinking of them, but really wanting to help if it's within my abilities to do so.
And it bothers me so much when other people don't, when all they care about is themselves, when they don't care who they hurt or trample on in an effort to the make themselves feel better.

I've spent hours tonight being hurt, being greatly upset by the actions and statements of others.
I try so hard to be a good person, to help people.
Sure, I talk a lot, I can't help it.
I've been unable to work outside the home since 2001, my kids are at school all day, I have no spouse or significant other to talk to, my blogs, the internet, forums, are ways for me to talk to people, so I am not so alone, not feeling so alone, and there are some out there who see that as a great fault, as something to attack me over, and say other things about me.
But it does bother me, and if that's what they were hoping to accomplish, I hope they are happy, that they will sleep better knowing they hurt someone.
I am upset tonight, hurt, but tomorrow, after I get home from the docs, I am going to do what is needed to put an end to it.
I allow myself some time to go through all of the emotions, and right now I'm a combo or hurt and angry, but mostly angry, and mostly determined to fight this crap.

It's all just so wrong, and it's cowardly, it's petty and childish.

Kat posted at 01:04 AM on February 12, 2009 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

December 20, 2008

Finally decorated the house.

Up until now, I really didn't feel like doing the house up for Christmas, but I've been feeling better so today we put up the Charlie Brown tree, the lights, ornaments, and all of the decorations in the living room.
If we just had some fig trees or pear trees, whatever kinda trees they are you have at xmas, it'd be complete.

We don't put an angel or star on our tree, that would be extremely hypocritical considering we're atheists, so every year we put our own special topper on it, Zero, Jack Skellington's ghost dog.

I placed my 2 Woodstock ornaments on the tree....

I put my 3 Winnie the Pooh light covers on....

And all of our favorite and safely stored away character ornaments.

It's all done and looking might festive in here, so when the girls come to see me tomorrow, they can see all of the lights and things at 'auntie kat's house too'.

Kat posted at 03:00 PM on December 20, 2008 || Comments (0) || Link || Holidays

August 20, 2008

Learn something new every single day.

Joana and I were on a forum we both frequent this afternoon, when the subject of Quinceanera came up.
Being from up north, I had absolutely no idea what that was, so I asked.
Joana posted a bunch of information about what exactly it is.

Basically, when a young girl from a Spanish or Mexican family/culture, is coming of age, the family sends out these beautiful Quinceanera invitations to family and friends to come celebrate the girl turning 15, the age at which she goes from being a girl to a young woman.
They are huge elaborate parties, and a special Catholic mass for her, and the whole thing is usually paid for by her godparents.
The girl wears a very formal dress almost as elaborate as a wedding gown with a veil, and she will have attendants, other girls who are also dressed in formal white gowns, and who will lead in for her at both the ceremony and the dance afterwards.
Most of the guests are family, some friends will be invited, but it's mostly a ceremony and function to announce the new young woman to society.

According to the information Joana posted, it's a pretty big deal.
I always enjoy learning new things about people and their cultures, their ceremonies and stuff, so thanks Joana for teaching me something new today.
I would have probably never learned about this otherwise as my sons and I would never have a reason to be invited to something like this.

Kat posted at 03:32 PM on August 20, 2008 || Comments (1) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

June 29, 2008

Migraines are truly the suck.

We had a really good time at Mindy's house yesterday afternoon and evening.
Good food, conversation, the kids all played video games while Mindy and I chatted and her husband leveled up on WoW.
I was way stiffened up by the time we got home, and laid down for about an hour or so, then I got up and dealt with emails and stuff.

I woke up this morning with a migraine from hell, and have been fighting it unsuccessfully all day and night now.
So seeing as I was defeated, I just laid around and watched movies for most of the day interspersed with going back and forth with a Bill Keller fan on a websites posting section.
There's nothing more fun than knowing more about the scriptures than the people who claim to live by them.
You all do know that no preacher is supposed to receive any pay for preaching the word of god right right?
Look it up, Corinthians 9:18.
The Keller fan has been refusing to acknowledge that little part of the new testament.
Keller has an income of $1million dollars at the end of the year, yet he tells his flock and tv viewers, that he only takes $60k as a salary.
He's a liar and a fraud, and it's time people start learning the truth about this very corrupt tv minister.

So anyway, today we watched the movie Funny Games (2008).
I just want to warn you that this remake starring Naomi Watts and Eli Roth, is absolute garbage.
I don't give a crap that it's a social commentary on our obsession with media violence, when at the crucial moment of the film, the bad guy picks up the tv remote and rewinds the movie to change the outcome, that's a complete waste of freaking time.

But we did watch a movie that we all really liked on Friday night, Otis, starring Jere Burns, Illeana Douglas, Daniel Stern, Kevin Pollak and Ashley Johnson.

After being captured and tortured by the psychopath Otis (Bostin Christopher), teen cheerleader Riley Lawson (Ashley Johnson) escapes and informs her parents (Daniel Stern and Illeana Douglas), who quickly sidestep the sluggish FBI and take matters into their own hands. But the Lawson's revenge plan hit a snag when Otis's unusual brother (Kevin Pollak) enters the picture. Jere Burns co-stars as the FBI agent assigned to the case.

This was a true dark comedy, so over the top, violence, language, sick demented humor.
Illeana Douglas was just awesome as the mom, a true mama wolf wanting to protect her baby daughter, and Daniel Stern as the father who's a little bit on the timid side, but deep down enjoys taking revenge on the kidnapper who may have de-flowered his baby girl.
It was a bloody good time!

I suppose I should get back to work now.
I have some stuff I need to do before I can go to bed.
I hope when I wake up in the morning this migraine has left.
It feels like my right eyeball is going to pop out any second.

Kat posted at 09:34 PM on June 29, 2008 || Comments (1) || Link || Entertainment

June 25, 2008

Bill Keller investigated by the IRS.

Poor Bill Keller, that's what happens when you run your mouth and hide under your religion.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - The Internal Revenue Service is investigating a St. Petersburg televangelist who criticized former presidential candidate Mitt Romney during the Republican primary.
Bill Keller hosts of a live television program on the Internet, and his tax-exempt status as a church prohibits him from endorsing or opposing candidates for public office. But in one broadcast, Keller said a vote for Romney was a vote for Satan.
Keller says his comments were based on religion, not politics. He says he took issue with Romney, a Mormon, telling people that he was a Christian.
Keller says he is prepared to fight if his ministry loses its tax-exempt status.

They should investigate him anyway, he's probably doing something illegal.
I've blogged about this idiot before, this guy is a fraud and a hate monger.

Since he began his Live Prayer Internet ministry in 1999, he has skewered Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses and Scientologists, calling them false religions and cults. He also speaks against abortion, calls Oprah a "new age witch" for embracing diverse religions and says megachurch pastor Joel Osteen is a "gutless wonder."
In May, Keller raised the ire of Americans United for Separation of Church and State when he wrote devotionals on Liveprayer.com saying that a vote for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney equals a vote for Satan. The group asked the IRS to investigate Keller for a possible violation of tax laws, which prohibit tax-exempt nonprofit groups from engaging in partisan politics. Keller, took the debate to a national audience on The O'Reilly Factor, where he sparred with host Bill O'Reilly, who called Keller's words "irresponsible, un-Christian, uncharitable and flat-out wrong."

I'm no fan of O'Rielly, but he nailed that one.
Bill Keller has also served time in prison for insider trading.
It's about time the IRS went after him, they should have yanked his tax-exempt status long ago for the things he says all under the black coat he wears called his version of Christianity.
This man is a bigot and hate monger, he spreads it all around Tampa Bay and all over the world on his internet site.

I even went back and forth with one of his flock who answers his emails, and just read some of this crap that he allows people to speak in his name.
This isn't a good person, he shouldn't even call himself a Christian.
He's nothing but a hate-filled asshole, and I personally, will be very happy the day the IRS yanks away his tax-exempt status and starts investigating his so called church.
I am willing to bet they find lots of interesting things in his financial record books.
Heck, he probably has two sets.

Kat posted at 05:58 PM on June 25, 2008 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

June 23, 2008

Here comes the 'he's with Jesus' stuff already.

I am still as shocked and saddened today as I was last night upon hearing the news that George Carlin has died.
Of course, people don't say someone died any more, they say they've passed on.
Carlin said that in one of his skits about words, soft language, it's wickedly funny.

But it's already started.
People everywhere in blogs today, and on the news, and there will be newspaper cartoons drawn up, about how he's in heaven now.
But no, he isn't.
George Carlin was an avowed atheist, and just because others believe in god and heaven, does not mean Carlin is with Jesus now.
That's those people's beliefs, not Carlin's.
People should just take a few minutes and read Carlin's bio.
All those jokes about religion weren't just jokes to him, it's how he felt, he really did not believe in god, jesus, heaven, hell, none of it, and by saying he's with god now is really disrespectful to him as a person.
Just watch this clip where he talks about death, it's not just a joke to him, that is how he felt.

There is no 'up there' he said, he really doesn't believe it exists, he was an atheist.
To say he's in heaven with god now is just disrespectful to him.
I mean, just imagine if after you died, if people started saying the exact opposite of what you believed?
How would you feel about that?
Well, you wouldn't feel much, you're dead, but do you like the idea of people saying the opposite of what you believed your entire life?
You wouldn't want that, you'd want people to remember you as you were in life, to say what you believed so strongly in.
If you believed in god, you'd want people to say that you are with jesus now right?
To be respectful of your beliefs right?
But if you didn't believe in it, you'd want people to say that, to let it be known that you didn't believe if people said you're with god now.
You'd want the truth to be told about you and your beliefs.

I've been reading blogs through my feed reader all day now, and so so many of them think all those jokes were just that, jokes, and they are saying he's with god now, he's at peace finally, he was such a troubled soul but now he's with god, and he'll be at peace for once in his life.
I don't think he was a troubled soul at all, he said exactly what he felt, what he believed.
He was at peace in his life, he battled his drug addictions and over came them without a higher power, he did it on his own.

Why is it that as soon as someone dies, everyone says they are with god now, they'll be at peace finally?
Why can't people respect the person who has died and what they believed in?
It just bothers me that so many people have no respect for his true beliefs.
They want to believe he's gone to the heaven they believe in, and that's not what he believed.
He's just dead.
He was here yesterday, and now he's not.

Kat posted at 02:34 PM on June 23, 2008 || Comments (2) || Link || Entertainment

May 27, 2008

Said by a man who calls himself a Christian

tonight on the local forums;

I hope there really is a "lake of fire" when we die where you burn and torture slowly for eternity, because I will definitely raise my hand and volunteer to push several of you into it and laugh loudly as you sink down into the million degree molten lava beggin for mercy.

Awesome huh?
That's such a Christianly response to the topic of do you believe in God.

It never ceases to amaze me how some of them just cannot wait for that day of judgment so they can watch all their enemies burn in the lake of fire.
They will sit by the side and watch, clap, and be gleeful over the pain and suffering of others.
I have a feeling this guy would get along really great with Ray Comfort.
The two of them can sit and judge others and enjoy the suffering and damnation of their earthly enemies and the heathenish blasphemers while sipping pina coladas.

Kat posted at 11:46 PM on May 27, 2008 || Comments (5) || Link || Religion

May 22, 2008

What does it mean to you?

Here we all are, scrambling through our individual daily lives, paying rent, mortgages, buying groceries and term life insurance, wondering how we'll pay for that next tank of gas, or the food or medication we need, and here we are, humans, together.

A recent High School graduate, Peter, had to come up with the answer to the following question;

What does it mean to be human?

This is what he did and observed to find his answer.

For a class project, I went into the street and asked 100 people what it means to be human. About 40 of them responded and were willing to be interviewed. Here are their answers.

This was brilliant and deep, and I loved it.
I especially loved the little girl who replied to her father, "I don't know, I'm 10."
How absolutely simple and honest.
I loved this video project.

Hat tip Hemant

Kat posted at 09:29 AM on May 22, 2008 || Comments (2) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

May 19, 2008

$3.5 million for the Boy Scouts.

Source

On May 15, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5872, an act "To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the centennial of the Boy Scouts of America, and for other purposes." The sale of the coins by the Secretary of the Treasury, with a surcharge on each coin sold to "be paid to the National Boy Scouts of America Foundation." In other words, this is a congressionally mandated fundraiser for the Boy Scouts.
With the act allowing for up to 350,000 of this coin to be issued and fixing the surcharge at $10 per coin, the Boy Scouts could receive as much as $3.5 million from their sale. Never before, in the long history of U.S. government issued commemorative coins, has this benefit been granted to an organization that promotes religion or discriminates based on religion.

Un-believable.
This is unconstitutional based on the Boy Scouts Declaration of Religious Principles.

The Boy Scouts of America maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God. In the first part of the Scout Oath or Promise the member declares, 'On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law.' The recognition of God as the ruling and leading power in the universe and the grateful acknowledgment of His favors and blessings are necessary to the best type of citizenship and are wholesome precepts in the education of the growing members. No matter what the religious faith of the members may be, this fundamental need of good citizenship should be kept before them. The Boy Scouts of America, therefore, recognizes the religious element in the training of the member, but it is absolutely nonsectarian in its attitude toward that religious training. Its policy is that the home and the organization or group with which the member is connected shall give definite attention to religious life.

It's religious discrimination!

A private organization can have whatever beliefs and religious requirements it chooses to. That's their constitutional right. But Congress can absolutely not financially aid the Boy Scouts in the promotion of their beliefs and enforcement of their religious requirements by legislating a fundraiser for them!

Kat posted at 12:12 PM on May 19, 2008 || Comments (4) || Link || Politics

May 1, 2008

Ribbit ribbit reason.

Today is the National Day of Reason.
It was started to raise public awareness about the persistent threat to religious liberty posed by government intrusion into the private sphere of worship.
The federally funded National Day of Prayer is also today, and so those of us who value the separation of church and state, want to see our government stay out of religious and spiritual affairs, keep religion out of government and schools, have come together on this day to share the voice of reason and encourage others to stand up and understand how important it is that the government stay out of our religious and spiritual affairs.
This day isn't just about atheists and secularists, it's about everyone, and the threat against the wall of separation of church and state.

Statement of Principles

We join with all people of good will to encourage the application of reason and tolerance in public discourse and to affirm the value of maintaining the separation of church and state. In so doing, we oppose the division of America along religious lines inspired by the National Day of Prayer. The National Day of Reason is intended to be a secular alternative to the federally-proclaimed National Day of Prayer, and shall draw attention to the fact that:

*Reason and the scientific method continue to be used to advance humanity and are worthy of recognition;

*The National Day of Prayer is an exclusionary, government-funded religious observance that violates the First Amendment principle of separation of church and state;

*Overtly and exclusively Christian prayers in government sanctioned events discriminate against those of minority belief systems as well as those without religion;

*Government funding of religious activities, programs, and personnel is unconstitutional, and constitutes an inappropriate use of taxpayers' money.

Kat posted at 12:01 AM on May 1, 2008 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

April 30, 2008

Sorry 'bout that.

I know posting about barf and then going out to eat a greasy blue cheese burger, all in the same post, was kind of nasty, but that's just how my brain was working at the time.
Sorry if I grossed anyone out.

Anyway, the teens loved their hot wings.
They were totally surprised and like OMG! Mom I love you!, and then we sat down and watched The Golden Compass while they ate.

I liked the move, a little long in some parts, but good none the less.
It also was an opportunity to discuss with the teens why so many people were pissed about the movie when it came out.
Mark brought it up when the movie ended, and he asked; "Why were people trying to get others to boycott that?"
I explained to him that it was because A) the book's author is an atheist, and B) because the things contained in the movie have an anti-religion, anti-government message.
The magisterium represents both the government and the church.
They were trying to keep people from learning about the other worlds and other people who lived in those worlds, by controlling the people by limiting the information that gets out, as well as controlling the people themselves.
Telling them what to do for their own good kind of thing.
The college was about free thought, the ability to freely learn, and pass on what they learned, about the other worlds and people, the "dust", so the people could think for themselves and not be controlled.

Mark had one of those "a-ha" moments, and then he laughed.
"So basically, the people who were attempting to get this movie boycotted, were attempting to control the free passage of thought and information, because the messages that may be learned are not what they feel is for the good of the people. How ironic."
I love that kid.

We also have another movie to watch tonight.
I'm going to introduce the teens to Patrick Bateman.
For those who don't know, he's the main character in American Psycho.
While it is very violent, it is also comical.
It has a very dry sense of humor flowing throughout the film.
The business card scene is perhaps the most well known, and most brought up at any meeting where people may be handing out cards.
Last summer was one of those times when I sat around a large table and one man started handing out his cards, then another, then myself, and then everyone with a card.
We all ooh and ahhed at the thickness of the card stocks, the luster, the fonts.
Someone even mentioned how they suddenly felt like they were Patrick Bateman, and then a couple of giggles followed by those of us who know the film.
There's always someone who has no idea, and then someone else explains it.
It's a really great scene in a really great movie.

Kat posted at 08:26 PM on April 30, 2008 || Comments (3) || Link || Entertainment

April 29, 2008

Senate rejects religious plate.

That proposed "I believe" plate I told you about a few days ago, has been rejected by the Florida senate.

A license plate that would become the first in the nation to prominently feature a religious symbol was not included in a package of legislation creating new license plates after a vote in the Senate.
Opponents of the plate said approval - whose proposed design included a Christian cross, a stained-glass window and the words "I Believe" - would have almost certainly faced a court challenge.

The bill's Senate sponsor said Monday, however, that the chamber's rejection of the plate could also generate a lawsuit. Florida already has over 100 different license plates and by allowing the designs the state has created a "public forum," said Sen. Ronda Storms, R-Valrico.

Great, now Rhonda is gonna sue over it.

Kat posted at 08:39 AM on April 29, 2008 || Comments (2) || Link || Politics

April 25, 2008

Florida takes two steps backwards.

There are currently two religious issues taking place here in Florida this week that I'm in shock over.

The first is the Evolution Academic Freedom Act.

Plant City Senator Ronda Storms introduced the Evolution Academic Freedom Act, which permits teachers to challenge the theory of evolution in science classes.
This comes months after a state panel voted to require teaching evolution in Florida. Storms says her law would protect teachers who want to offer other theories for mankind's existence besides evolution.
Tampa Senator Arthenia Joyner argued the law opens public school classrooms to debate on creationism, intelligent design and God's role in mankind's existence. Joyner said that debate belongs in church and at home, not in Floridas public schools.
The bill passed 21-17 and now goes to the House. That chamber is considering a version of the bill that would not just permit, but require teachers to present "critical analysis" of the theory of evolution.
The Senate rejected that version of the bill.

I'm totally ok with presenting other theories in science class, really, I am, but let's talk about what a theory is exactly.

A theory is based on empirical scientific evidence.
That makes evolution a theory, we have scientific evidence to back up the claim of evolution.
ID or creationism is not and can not, by definition, be a theory.
There is absolutely no empirical scientific evidence to back up ID or creationism.
All they have is the bible as the basis for their idea.
It's not a theory, it's an idea.

This whole thing just irritates me because just this past October, teachers in the state of Florida, were finally allowed to actually say the word evolution in classrooms.

Current standards do not use the word evolution -- long a controversial word in education -- but do require teaching evolutionary concepts in public schools.

Seriously.
We teach evolution, but were not allowed to say it.
Now we're taking a giant step backwards by allowing teachers to present an idea, not a theory, and teach it as though it were indeed a true scientific theory.
Rhonda Storms is an idiot.
When Storms was serving on the Hillsborough County commission, she spent a great deal of time being a wicked sarcastic and openly bigoted commissioner.
Just 2 of the things Storms did were to eliminate county-appropriated money for Planned Parenthood, and perhaps most publicized, her crusade for the county to officially abstain from recognizing gay and lesbian events held inside county lines.
She's now been a senator since 2006, and she's wasted no time in trying to push her agendas through.

The second issue is a new license plate up for legislation.
Florida has more than 100 specialty plates that drivers can have, but we now would be the first state in the nation to explicitly promote a specific religion.

The Florida Legislature is considering a specialty plate with a design that includes a Christian cross, a stained-glass window and the words "I Believe."
Rep. Edward Bullard, the plate's sponsor, said people who "believe in their college or university" or "believe in their football team" already have license plates they can buy. The new design is a chance for others to put a tag on their cars with "something they believe in," he said.
If the plate is approved, Florida would become the first state to have a license plate featuring a religious symbol that's not part of a college logo. Approval would almost certainly face a court challenge.
The problem with the state manufacturing the plate is that it "sends a message that Florida is essentially a Christian state" and, second, gives the "appearance that the state is endorsing a particular religious preference,' said Howard Simon, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida.

Wanna see the new plate?
Here it is.

ibelievplates.htm

All of Florida's specialty plates cost the drivers extra fees to have, and that money goes to a cause the plates endorse.
Luckily, we have a few legislators who realize that the plates clearly violate the separation of church and state.

The group asking for the "I Believe" plate, the Orlando-based nonprofit Faith in Teaching Inc., supports faith-based school activities. The plate would cost drivers an extra $25 annual fee.

So the money raised from the sale of the plates, would pay for faith based activities at public schools in Florida?
I don't freaking think so.
If I wanted my children to receive a religious education, or participate in faith based activities, I would have sent them to a private religious school.

If this passes, I hope that other religious groups step up and raise the signatures and the $60 thousand needed, to get their plates up for legislation as well.
Just picture it.
Plates with images of Mohamed, Buddha, Dionysius, Rah, a wiccan symbol etc.
There are 19 major religions, 40 different organized religions, plus the more than 270 different religious groups, and the 34,000 unique Christian groups.
Or how about a big giant scarlet 'A' for the atheists?

Wouldn't that be awesome?
Everyone could drive around with their religion and the words "I believe" on their license plates, for everyone to see.
We could all be driving along honking our horns at the other faiths we find complete and utter bullshit.
We think people have road rage now?!
Just wait till we can all drive around with our "I believe" plates with our distinct religion plastered on it, and know exactly who we disagree with, and more importantly, who we hate for being of a different faith.

Kat posted at 12:59 AM on April 25, 2008 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

April 11, 2008

I'm not anti-American.

Sometimes I get off the wall comments on posts that don't even have to do with my views on religion, but someone comes along, figures out I'm an atheist, and then says something really stupid like this.

"You're anti-God! you're anti-American! Get out of the US if you don't love the God this country was founded on you godless immoral heathen! We who love our God and savior don't want you here!!"

Ok Laura, calm the fuck down.
Being an atheist in no way makes me anti-American.
It simply means I don't believe in your God.
This country was founded by people searching for religious freedom, the freedom to believe in whatever God or Gods they wanted to.
They were being oppressed, so they left an started a new country where they recognized that all people had the right to choose what they believed in.
Yes, most of them believed in the Christian God, but when they wrote the constitution and the 1st amendment, they made sure that each person would have the right to exercise their rights to believe or not believe.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.
That doesn't say that we the people, all have to believe in the same God, it means free exercise to believe what we want.

We have all the 1st amendment to protect us from religious persecution by our government, not be forced to believe in any God by our government.

If I was anti-American, I'd probably post a lot more about how much I hate the government and our current president, how the war in Iraq is unjust, or whatever.
But I don't.
I follow politics, I vote.
I believe one vote equals one voice.
I know that it's a privilege to have the right to vote, so I vote in every local, state, and federal election.
I don't waste that right given to me.
I don't snub my nose at the 1st amendment, I applaud it, because it gives me and you, the right to believe whatever we want to believe, and to not be persecuted for those beliefs by an oppressive government.

Laura, your comment has not, nor will it be published.
It was not on topic to the post you left it on, so I junked it.
Sorry.
But if you'd like to have a rational discussion about being an American, and what the 1st amendment means, feel free to email me. There's a handy dandy button at the top of the sidebar just for things like this.
But if you send me an email full of hate, telling me to get out of this country I was born in and that I have respect for, call me names, be ignorant and disrespectful, I will not reply, but delete it.
I'll be respectful to you if you are to me.
And I respect your right to believe in your God, and even your right to say hateful things, but I don't have to reply to them.
Those are my rights.

Kat posted at 12:34 PM on April 11, 2008 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

March 25, 2008

I woke up thinking it was Saturday.

I woke up at 5:45am to get the teens off to school, then I went back to bed for a little bit more sleep, and when I woke up the second time, I thought it was Saturday.
I really did.
I came out of my room, expecting to find Mark still sleeping, and Sebastian already awake and playing video games.
I even had plans for "today", I was going to take the boys to the movies, to either see Shutter or 10,000 B.C.
The teens want to see the latter, and of course, I want to see the scary one.

But it turns out it's only Tuesday.
*sigh*
The teens are at school, it really is Tuesday, not Saturday.
Bummer.

After I finish my breakfast, I'll be hopping on my elliptical for 20 minutes, and then I'll get cracking on the housework I didn't do all weekend.

But I wanted to leave you with this video about "B.C." tours through a natural history museum.
The B.C. stands for biblically correct.
It absolutely blows my mind.
Radiometric dating is completely ignored, they claim that the T-Rex, with his claws and giant teeth, was actually a fruit and leaf eater, and only started killing other animals for meat after Eve ate the forbidden fruit.
At 7:29, at least they admit that there are several problems for the creationists.
This type of stuff makes me feel so sad for these children.
They are all home schooled, they are only taught what their parents and churches want them to know, and the facts about evolution are completely ignored.
They call the dioramas of how some dinosaurs lived, "artwork", not science.
It kills me when the tour guide says to the kids, "It's a great fairy tale, but it's not good science."
Really? All those bones are just a fairy tale, yet they have absolutely nothing to show the proof for their theory of creationism.
Baffling.

Kat posted at 10:06 AM on March 25, 2008 || Comments (2) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

March 15, 2008

The Saturday catch-all post.

A general run-down of my day.

First, when I was getting dressed after my shower, I can't explain how I did it, nor will I probably be able to ever do it again, but I injured myself.
Somehow, when putting my head through the neck hole of my t-shirt, I wrenched my neck.
Mark even heard the noise and came running to the bathroom door, thinking I had either fallen or dropped something.
Yes, the snapping noise coming from my neck was so loud, it was heard through the bathroom door.
I have been in agony all day because of course, I can't get it to wrench back the way it came.

I didn't save as much money as I wanted to at the store, Publix wasn't having a huge sale this week, but I didn't do too badly either.
Starting total before coupons and in store deals was $193.87.
Coupons and discounts applied = $53.79.
For a total having to pay of $140.08.
It's not too bad, but not my best either.

I had a lot of coupons for items I wanted to buy, but only if they were on sale.
I had wanted to buy and try one of those Febreze Noticeables air fresheners.
I had a coupon for $5 off the starter kit, but it was $8.99, and only comes with 2 scents in the starter kit.
2 scents I absolutely cannot be around unless I want to have a splitting migraine and be coughing all day long, vanilla and lavender.
I thought that perhaps I could buy a refill kit in different scents and dump the 2 offending scent bottles, I had a $1 off coupon on one of those, but they were $4.99.
Even with the coupons applied, I would have spent $7.98 + tax on a single non-essential item, plus I would have had to physically touch the vanilla and lavender fragrance bottles which would have caused me to be ill for the rest of the day.
Totally not worth it in my opinion.
Hey Febreze! How about making starter kits in other scents huh?
Not everyone in the world likes vanilla and lavender, just a suggestion.

I did get a really good deal on a new Venus Embrace razor.
My Mom is always sending me coupons, and she had sent me one for $2.00 off.
The whole razor kit, new razor, shower caddy, and extra blades, was on sale for $5.99, marked down from $8.99, so that was a really good deal in my opinion.

Then I needed to pick up a sympathy card for my Mom's Uncle Bill's wife and family.
This is quite the challenge as an atheist.
Everything is about the spirit, and being at peace now, and being in the loving arms of their father.
While I know his family are believers, it's hypocritical of me to buy a religious card, when I am not religious.
No the card isn't for me, it's for them, but sending a card with that theme, leads people to assume I am religious as well.
This is also why it takes me weeks, sometimes months, to find cards to send at Christmas.

After digging around in the entire card aisle for nearly 30 minutes, I finally found a nice sympathy card that made no mention of any religious type things at all.
I was surprised I found one, but really, there should be more cards that are not religiously themed.
Just a few of the nice words it said;
"but at this sad time, may it bring you some peace and comfort, to know that caring thoughts are with you every day".
If there are any greeting card companies or employees of one, out there reading this, you really should start a new product line for atheists.
We are out here, there are a lot more of us than you know, and we have money to spend on cards for every single type of holiday or need that you can imagine. *hint hint*

I've slowly been picking up around the house, taking some care not to aggravate my neck any further, because my niece Skye is coming to spend the day with Sebastian and I tomorrow.
I'll vacuum in the morning, I'll let my Roomba run while she's here, she finds it fascinating, and also do the dishes off and on.
I tried to do some today, but standing over the sink looking down at the dishes was just painful.
I've taken a soma, and I'm hoping between my pain meds and the soma, by morning the neck pain will be gone.

Mark will be going with my sis to where she works, because the woman my sister works for has hired Mark for the day to do some odds and ends types of chores.
Some bush trimming, some weeding, some window washing, stuff like that.
Instead of hiring a gardener, she decided to put a 16 year old who needs a job to work.

We all need to get to bed fairly soon, it's going to be a long day for all of us, but no one is tired.
That's the hard part.
Everyone is wound up and anticipating tomorrow, so no one is sleepy.
So once again, I will attempt to reply to emails, maybe write my reviews of No Country for Old Men and American Gangster.
Both excellent films, but AG ran a little too long I think.

Ok, off to do that stuff.
Later days.

Kat posted at 10:11 PM on March 15, 2008 || Comments (2) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

March 8, 2008

New age snake oil.

This is how biofeedback was described to me, this is the FAQ from the Mayo Clinic on what biofeedback is and does, and I do love how it says under the reasons it may appeal to people, It may decrease your medical costs.
Sure, at $35 a pop, I can totally see it decreasing my medical costs! My doctor co-pay for each visit is $17.65, so uh, yeah, that's definitely helping lower my medical costs! /sarcasm

The basic premise of biofeedback is this,

Once you begin to recognize that your headache is a result of tense muscles, the next step is to learn how to invoke positive physical changes in your body, such as relaxing those specific muscles, when your body is physically or mentally stressed. Your eventual goal will be to produce these responses on your own, outside the therapist's office and without the help of technology.

Maybe it's just me, but I think most people know when they are stressed out and have, for example, a headache, and how to relieve that stress and attempt to soothe the headache away.
Ya know, swallow down about 8 Tylenol and lay down for a little while.

I think what bothered me the most, and what reader Chris also mentioned, was that she didn't know my medical history at all, she didn't even know my name, and her approach, was a one treatment fits all perspective.
If she had bothered to ask my doctor for my file, he would have given it to her or at least clued her in to what my problem was, seeing as he's the one who recommended I try this, she would have known that getting down into that beanbag chair was going to be an issue, and the raw nerve feelings I have in my back are well documented in my file, so the "soothing" vibrations from music being pumped through that thing would have sent me over the edge with pain.

And that bean bag chair that she called specifically, a biofeedback therapy device, isn't even something I can find when doing a Google search.
I Googled biofeedback bean bag chair, biofeedback bean bag therapy chair, biofeedback music playing bean bag chair, and I can't find a god damn thing about it, nor is it mentioned on any of the pages about biofeedback
Heck, I can't even find it just using the term "music playing bean bag chair", so uh, yeah.

To me, biofeedback is another new age snake oil.
People in pain will try it because they are desperate for pain relief, and this kind of crap with it's little heart devices, and breathing devices, books, cds, and dvds to watch and meditate with, are just another way to empty the pockets of people desperate to be free from pain.
And just like most other new age cures, it relies on people to have a need for a belief in a higher power, and since most people do, most people will believe that this kind of crap works.
It doesn't have any real basis in science other than the devices which monitor breathing and heart rate, the whole idea behind it is to learn how to slow your breathing and heart rate down through meditation, and to use positive thinking to relive pain.

And as for prayer, a huge study was done, and it was found that prayer had no positive effect on patients.
1,802 patients at six hospitals who received coronary bypass surgery, were broken into three groups. Two were prayed for; the third was not. Half the patients who received the prayers were told that they were being prayed for; half were told that they might or might not receive prayers.
Analyzing complications in the 30 days after the operations, the researchers found no differences between those patients who were prayed for and those who were not.
The power of prayer and positive thought made absolutely no difference at all.

So yes, I was offended that this "therapist" went there.
I really was under the assumption that biofeedback was a scientifically proven treatment, and it's not.
It's an alternative therapy, a mind over matter, use your thoughts and will, to heal your own body approach that doesn't always work, and scientists can't even explain how or why it works for some people.
Sorry, but after all these years dealing with my spine issues, I prefer to stay to tried and true scientifically proven methods of treatment, not the hoaky poaky.

Kat posted at 09:51 AM on March 8, 2008 || Comments (0) || Link || Health & Beauty & Fitness

March 7, 2008

Biofeedback is crap.

So let's begin with my first Biofeedback therapy appointment shall we?
I arrive at my doctor's office, and a short Malaysian woman with not-so-good English, calls me back into her room, with just a wave of her hand.
It is a standard patient room, just large enough for a patient table, a chair, and the doctor's desk.
The patient table is cluttered with baskets full of relaxation cd's, books on positive thinking and prayer, and the room is sweltering hot, it had to be about 98 degrees in there.

She has managed to fit this large biofeedback beanbag chair in there as well, but in order to close the door for privacy, I [eyeroll] had to lift it up so she could close the door.
She doesn't know my name, so she doesn't know my case history, and asks me to sit down on this chair.
It's low to the floor, too low for me, but I manage to get into it.
It's vibrating to some tranquil rain forest music.
It's irritating the fuck out of the raw nerves on my back, so I get off of it.
This offended her, and I had to explain why I got off of it.
I have two titanium rods running nearly the full lentgh of my spine, and two 4 inch iliac screws in my hips, one of which is broken, raw nerves in my back.

She decides that it's ok for me to sit in the regular chair.
Then she puts some headphones on me and tells me to relax as she's wrapping a breathing monitor around my waist.
She tells me it's ok if I "nap" to the music.
I don't.
I breathe normally, we finish with that after 20 minutes, and then we move on to this heart rate monitor, which she explains in her very broken English, that will detect my stress levels based on my heart rate, like a polygraph machine.
She attaches this clip to my ear which has a cord, the cord plugs into the unit.
Breathe slowly, the light turns green and I'm "cohesive" with my body.
Breathe rapidly, it turns red, and I'm not "cohesive".
She would like me to be "green" for the next 10 minutes.
So I sit and keep it green for a few minutes, then I decide to have a bit of fun.
I increase my heart rate through breathing more deeply and quickly, the light turns red, then I slow it down again.
Rinse, repeat.
Cool, neat trick.
She doesn't understand why it's doing that.
Heh.

The whole time this test is going on, she's going on and on about how breathing techniques and relaxation can completely relieve my pain.
Completely.
The pain I feel is all in my head she explains, my brain controls the pain I feel, so I need to "tell" my brain what to do, to not feel pain.
She has a list of "cohesive" response words, which she will teach me over the next several months, (at $35 a visit) that will train my brain to not send or feel any pain receptions.
Pain is just a perception, and we can train our brains to not acknowledge pain.
Uh-huh.
Tell that to my broken iliac screw.

The more she talks, the more I'm feeling like I'm sitting with Tom Cruise, and he's telling me that drugs are bad, and psychiatry is evil, and that we are super beings who can do anything with the power of our minds.
The way she was going on, I fully expected her to break out into maniacal laughter.
Then she goes into the power of prayer, and I've just about had it at this point.
Power of thought, power of positive thinking, power of prayer, and training our brains to not feel any pain at all through these techniques she's mastered.

She begins talking more about the power of prayer for healing, and as an atheist, I'm starting to get really annoyed.
I go to the doctor because he's a man of science, he has studied the human body, how it works, and my surgeon studied bodies and how they work, and through science, both these doctors treat the human bodies ailments.
I do not go to doctors to discuss, or implement, the power of prayer and positive thinking.
Believe me, if the power of prayer actually worked to heal pain, all the years of my mother praying for me to get relief from my back issues, I would have been healed years ago.
It doesn't work.
She keeps going, I'm feeling more and more uncomfortable, more unhappy, stressed the fuck out.
Her little heart rate monitor is in the red and beeping wildly.
She actually placed her hand on my back, and began praying.
I spoke up, told her I do not believe in any god or gods, or prayer for healing, and that I was under the assumption that biofeedback was something totally different than this.
She is clearly offended, has this look of pure horror mixed with disgust on her face, but I politely asked her not to do that again.

At this point I glance at the clock, see that my 1 hour long appointment, has now run 20 minutes over, and I tell her I need to leave.
She starts handing me all these papers and pamphlets, instructional sheets on breathing and relaxation techniques, and workbooks to do over the next 15 days.
I'm supposed to go back in 15 days to do this kind of crap all over again.
I don't think so.
I will not be doing this again.
I know how to relax my own body, how to breathe properly, I managed to mess with her little machine, I think I know how to control my breathing.
But I am seriously not going to spend $35 a visit, to pray and think positive, and be told my pain is in my head, by someone who doesn't even know what I meant when I described what my ailment was.
The very real pain my brain is perceiving, is caused by a very real broken iliac screw, and titanium rods, and rheumatoid arthritis, stenosis, and severe nerve damage, and my bodies attempt to heal itself after major surgery for severe levoscoliosis, and thorocolumbar scoliosis.

I'm a skeptic, an atheist, and a realist.
I know what the real reasons for my pain are, and believe me, they are not in my head, they are in the full lentgh of my spine and pelvis.
And the power of prayer has not, and will not, ever cure what is wrong with my body.
Biofeedback is bullshit, and I will not be wasting any more money on it.

Kat posted at 07:59 PM on March 7, 2008 || Comments (4) || Link || Health & Beauty & Fitness

March 2, 2008

To see before I die, or he dies.

George Carlin.
I would love to see him at some point in my life.
The man cracks me up all the way back to his 7 words you can't say on television, to his new stuff.
And here is some of his new stuff, because what would a Sunday be, without a little religion?

part 2.

Kat posted at 08:45 PM on March 2, 2008 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

January 31, 2008

Cause I gotta have faith.

Yeah, I just sat through ABC's new show Eli Stone, so I could see the special LOST content commercial, only to reach the website under heavy server use.

I sat through that crapfest just so I could see the supposed golden ticket, find 815.com stuff.
The show, Eli Stone, irked me.
Not just because it's trying to be all religious prophety and bring in the Christian viewers, but because it was crap.
Eli Stone hears and sees George Michael singing the song Faith, and connects the dots between and old girlfriend and what he's supposed to do now.
Which is help her win a case against a pharmaceutical company that uses a preservative in their vaccines which gave her son autism.
And he might be a prophet.

He ends up being diagnosed as having a brain aneurysm which can cause auditory and visual hallucinations, and could also go kablooey at any point and kill him, or he could live a long and happy life.
But Eli Stone has spoken to some Chinese guy who says there are supposed to be prophets in every generation, according to a conversation between Moses and God, and why not a lawyer?

So on one hand, the show is using science to prove Eli's behavior, and on the other, we have faith as the reason for his behavior.
He might be a prophet.
The old science verses faith argument in a tv show.
But so far, it's a wee bit heavy on the faith side. The only science we have is the brain aneurysm discovery. Everything else has been George Michael singing that song a dozen times, (shut the hell up!) and visions of his alcoholic father, climbing a mountain to dump ashes, and being told he's a prophet.

The teens gave up on the show 15 minutes in, and I stuck with it the entire hour.
I'll never do that again.
It's all about faith changing who you are, making you a better person because this mysterious thing comes over you and tells you that you have this greater purpose for a greater being kind of reason.
Not doing good for the sake of doing good, but because something tells you to do this good deed.
People can and will do what is right without being told by a higher power to do so. We do not have to have faith in some higher power above us, we can simply do good because we want to.
Just because Eli Stone is some big powered lawyer, doesn't mean he has to live the life of an asshole, and only start being a good person because George Michael is singing on his coffee table.
It's a completely ridiculous premise but ya know what?
It will do great because there are millions of people out there that have faith that someday some higher power will speak to them and give them a purpose too.
Creating your own purpose, doing your own good things, never enters their mind.

Kat posted at 11:26 PM on January 31, 2008 || Comments (5) || Link || Entertainment

January 28, 2008

Anonymous to Scientology.

Have any of you been following the Anonymous messages to Scientology on youtube?
This is their first message.

Knowledge is free. We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. WE DO NOT FORGET. Expect us.

They have a new video out, a call to action. A worldwide protest outside of Scientology centers on February 10th.

Arm yourself with knowledge. Be very wary of the 10th of February. Anonymous invites you to join us in an act of solidarity. Anonymous invites you to take up the banner of free speech, of human rights, of family and freedom. Join us in protest outside of Scientology centers world wide. We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. We will be heard. Expect us.

I'm actually considering going down there just to check it out that day. It would be totally interesting. It would be better if I could get to their headquarters in Clearwater, but the local branch may see some action, never know.

There have been some DOS attacks on their website, complete take-down by hackers.
It's made the news quietly, but this is starting to get really interesting.
I'm wondering when mainstream media is going to take a look at what is going on.

Kat posted at 05:53 PM on January 28, 2008 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

January 25, 2008

Shirley Phelps-Roper loses it on air.

Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of Fred Phelps and loudmouth hate-monger of the Westboro Baptist Church, (that link goes to their site, be warned) loses it on the Kane morning show on 99.5 in Washington, D.C.

Shirley was being interviewed about her fanatical church's decision to protest the funeral and memorial for Heath Ledger.
She got a bit upset when the radio hosts brought up her illegitimate sons.

Hahahahah!
You can listen to it here.

Kat posted at 08:36 PM on January 25, 2008 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

January 16, 2008

The Tom Cruise Scientology video they tried to suppress.

Gawker has the video that has been passed around amongst reporters, showing Tom Cruise making the argument for Scientology.
The video shows Cruise in an even more scary light than his jumping on the couch on the Oprah show, and stranger than his interview with Matt Lauer on the Today Show.

In the video he says that as Scientologists, they are the only ones who help, the only ones who can, the only way to happiness.
That they can bring peace, and unite all cultures.

Gawker is hosting the video and is so far refusing to remove it, unlike the others who had posted it yesterday and pulled it down after only a few hours.

Most of the video is rambling, it's hard to make sense of any of it, in one part he rambles this like we're all supposed to just "know."

"We know...we just know...I don't know, but we just know...ya know, it's just it...we see things...whatever, we're here to help..."

Um yeah, ok Tom, I totally got that.
He goes on and on about SP's, suppressive person, people who are enemies of Scientology.
He has this wild look in his eyes, maniacal laughter every few minutes, he fidgets through the entire thing.
This video is about him receiving the Freedom Medal of Valor award from the Scientologists.
What that means, I honestly have no idea.
The whole religion is so bizarre to me, thetans, Xenu. It is not logical or rational, and perhaps that is why I cannot wrap my head around any of it.
But Tom Cruise, if he is the way they are recruiting, they may want to rethink that because in this video, he is clearly nuts.

"If you are a Scientologist, you see things the way they are, in all their glory, in all their complexity... It's rough and tumble. It's wild and woolly. It's a blast. It really is. It is fun. Because damn it, there is nothing better than going out there and fighting the fight, and suddenly you see -- boom! -- things are better. I want to know that I've done everything I can do, every day... I do what I can. And I do it the way I do everything."

Click the image to go see the video.

Kat posted at 08:53 PM on January 16, 2008 || Comments (6) || Link || Religion

January 8, 2008

Be submissive to your husbands.

My sis and I were talking on the phone a bit ago, about the upcoming presidential elections and the candidates.
One that both her and I agree needs to take a flying leap, is Huckabee.
During an interview he gave near the end of December, he defended his statements made to southern baptist crowds where he said "I hope we can answer the alarm clock and take this nation back fro Christ".

He gave the speech the same year he endorsed the Baptist convention's statement of beliefs on marriage that "a wife is to submit graciously to the servant leadership of her husband even as the church willingly submits to the headship of Christ." Huckabee and his wife, Janet, signed a full-page ad in USA Today in support of the statement with 129 other evangelical leaders.

Um, yeah, ok. Thanks, but no.
Sis and I talked about the candidates we would support, discussed some of the whacked out stuff all of the candidates have said, and are trying to find a candidate who is the lesser of all the evils.
Perhaps it's only the non-religious who can see it, but religious extremism comes in all religions.
I make no apologies for being a somewhat militant atheist, but I know where to draw the line in getting my views across.
I would never blow up a building, bomb or picket a health clinic, stand outside and scream murderer at someone taking care of their own health and body, go door to door attempting to save anyone's soul for my belief system.
This is my blog, a journal, it's shared on line, but I don't force it on anyone. Every reader who comes here has made the choice to be here and read what I write. If they find anything I say offensive, they are also in total control of themselves, and click away to read something else.
I hold no gun to anyone to force my beliefs on them.
This does all tie into our political discussion we were having, religion and politics go hand in hand.

Candidates will do everything they can to cater to, and get the votes of, religious groups in this country.
There are groups who are going out of their way to paint candidates in bad light, to say they are evil, non-religious, not doing the work of god.
There are people who believe it and will take actions based on their religious views, essentially becoming extremist in those actions.
One of the candidates that my sister and I feel stands a very good chance of being elected, we also feel stands a very good chance of having an assassination attempt made on their life if elected.
People are very afraid of change, afraid of anyone but the all powerful, conservative white man, holding the highest office in our land. Some of the things I have seen written on line about a few candidates scares the crap out of me, but also confirms my concern for that attempt on their life.

Sis and I then talked about a child we know, who is being raised in a very strict Christian life. The textbooks he has for school are frightening.
He attends a private Christian school where the science textbooks actually say things like evolution is the work of the devil.
That the people who believe in it, believe so because the devil makes them.
That fossils are satan's way of making people doubt the existence of god.
That's in a textbook. *shock*
We both wonder and worry about this child as he grows up and comes to live in the real world, outside of Christian education and possibly on his own away from family.
What if he attends a real university, not a Christian one, what will happen to this child's world when he finds no mention of the devil or god in his textbooks?
How will he handle those things?
Will his new classmates and friends, laugh at him when he says that fossils are the devils handiwork, and he's serious in his conviction?
Or will this country be "taken back for christ" by then?
I mean, there is actually a resolution that wants to change our nations history to be more religious.
See that? They want to change our history.
That's some scary stuff to me.

Kat posted at 12:58 PM on January 8, 2008 || Comments (9) || Link || Politics

December 29, 2007

Ray Comfort is some kind of Christian.

The hateful, hypocritical kind.

Now Kat, why would you say such a horrible thing about Ray Comfort, a man who loves god, preaches the word of god, is such a super nice Christian guy?

I'll tell you why.
On his blog, Comfort Food, Ray has some serious hatred for atheists going on.
Like deep seated pure hatred.
In this entry, he calls atheists greedy.

I'm not necessarily thinking of greedy atheists that read this blog, but families that are struggling. But if a greedy atheist runs with this, that's okay.

In this entry, Ray laments that atheists don't have missions or soup kitchens or reach out to the homeless. We have no shelters.
He has this crazed thinking that atheists are like organized religion, like churches, and we have missions to feed, clothe, and offer beds to people and then proselytize them to join us in being atheist.

Ray, atheists don't go around trying to convert people to our way of thinking, we leave that nasty business to you.
We also leave the hate, the rude comments, the ignorant statements, and name calling to you as well.
Atheists do help people whenever we come across someone who needs help.
We are kind, we have morals, and we care deeply for our fellow humans, just not on the whole setting up missions to do it level.

Ray asks if we are ever stuck in a lifeboat, who we'd rather be stuck with.

who would you rather be sharing the lifeboat with--a group of starving evolutionists who believe in "survival of the fittest" and have no moral absolutes, or with a group of Christians, who love their neighbor as themselves and fear God?

To be honest with you Ray, I'd rather be stuck in a lifeboat with the people who think survival of the fittest.
Why?
Because while the Christians will be sitting in the lifeboat praying for a god to save them, the survival people will be thinking of ways to save all of us.

No moral absolutes.
Come off it Ray.
Your absolute hatred and ignorance about atheists, shines through in every single post you write on your blog these days.
5 out of the 7 posts on his front page, are about atheists.
Is he stuck on that subject?
Does making rude, hate filled comments about atheists make him feel like a better Christian?
I could have sworn the bible said to love your neighbor as you would yourself, and to not judge lest ye be judged?
But Ray here obviously lives by a different set of standards.
He's obviously above the teachings of his lord and savior, he has his own rules and can be hateful and nasty to anyone he pleases.
Oh that's right, as long as Ray gets on his knees every night and asks the lord forgiveness for his sins, it's all good.

People often wonder why atheists have such a hard time with Christians.
It's because of the ignorant and rude comments like the ones Ray has made, that get said to us when they come knock on our door and we say no thank you, I don't believe, or we don't go to church, or whatever the case may be where a Christian and an atheist come in contact with each other.
It's not us who starts the name calling and hate speech, they do.
Just like Ray does on his blog nearly every single day, in nearly every single post.
He's some kind of Christian alright.
Not the good kind either.

Kat posted at 01:26 PM on December 29, 2007 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

November 27, 2007

Religious friends and celebrations.

Mark's big George is catholic, and one of his brothers kids is going to be having communion soon.
Mark is treated like part of their family, so they invite him to all the family celebrations.
I just went out and got the mail, and there were first communion invitations for all three of us.

All three of us went to George's wedding at St Marys church, Mark has been to a few other religious celebrations for their family too, so these invitations are not a surprise, but what kind of gift should I get the little girl?
I've only been to one first communion, and that was a long, long time ago for my childhood best friend Maureen.
I remember her white frilly dress and gloves, the little veil.
It's a pretty ceremony, but as an atheist, it feels odd going to these things.
I respect George and his entire family, and I love how they have taken Mark in and treat him as family, they treat all of us that way, but it still feels odd going to these things sometimes.

Kat posted at 01:28 PM on November 27, 2007 || Comments (7) || Link || Religion

November 17, 2007

Maybe I can has sleep?

Seriously, I'm hoping for a decent night tonight, wish I had one of those memory foam mattress pads or something.
After two days of laying on hard testing beds at the hospital, my back is spent!
It is so freaking stiff!

Anyway, the teens and I have been playing some Guitar Hero III tonight, and I noticed something.
There's no AC/DC and no Zeppelin.
What's up with that?
Two bands who had two of the greatest guitar players ever, and they are not in this game?
Crazy!
We heard a rumor there will be custom download song expansion packs with some tracks by at least AC/DC, and even some Queen.
That will be awesome.
We also read that there will be a Flyleaf song.
I don't know about that.
As long as it's not Cassie, I guess it will be ok.
I do not like the video I saw for that song, it is not the real video the band made, it is a user created video.
You can watch at your own risk.
But I warn you, it is graphic, it is footage from the Columbine massacre, put to the song by Flyleaf as they wrote it for the girl who supposedly said that she believed in God.
Ya know, I don't like Flyleaf anyway.
They came on the scene hiding the fact that they are a Christian band, and then used this girls tragic death, "to honor the people who stand up for God."
It annoys the crap outta me when bands hide that they are a Christian band.
If they are so damn proud of being Christian, just tell the people buying the music right from the get go.
Don't hide it in the liner notes, don't sneak stuff into the lyrics and dress all goth or do screamo so people can't understand the lyrics you're screeching out in God's name.

We actually had a conversation on the local forums about this the other day, how some bands hide it and don't tell the music listeners that they are Christian.
I just don't get the point of hiding something that they claim is such a huge part of their lives, the inspiration for their music, their saving grace, the reason they won a Grammy or MTV award ya know?
There are a lot of bands out there right now with a huge following and a lot of their fans have no idea they are Christian.
Like who?
Let me give you a small list.
Flyleaf of course, Norma Jean, As I lay Dying, Demon Hunter, August Burns Red, The Devil wears Prada, Maylene and the sons of disaster, Sinai Beach, Zao and Pillar.

Now I'm not saying these bands aren't good, they are, they have some great talent, but a lot of them hid the fact they are Christian. They play metal, death metal, screamo, and hardcore.
They have names that conjure up other imagery, they write most of their lyrics with no mention, they then have a song or two on each CD that is so clearly Christian, but it's never the songs that get released and played on the radio. The very songs that get kids to go buy the CD are not the Christian songs. It's the mainstream, played 20 times a day stuff, that gets kids to shell out money on the CDs.
Then they listen to the whole thing and realize they were duped.

Now Stryper, they came out, were right upfront and totally honest about it.

You knew immediately they were a Christian band. All their albums had religious names, bible verses, crosses in the design. Their latest CD is titled Reborn, so yeah, 100% honest about who and what they are.
I can appreciate that. At least I know if I see a Stryper CD in the store, I know exactly what I might be buying.
I know what you're thinking, Kat bought a Stryper CD?!
Well not a CD, but I did have a cassette tape of their very first album, and I even saw their very first tour right from the front row.
I have the pick and the bible they handed me, still.
Crazy huh?
I was 17, and that was the summer I saw every single band that toured the entire New England area.
I saw shows at the very tip of northern Maine, all the way down to Massachusetts.
All totaled, I saw 157 concerts from late April through the end of September.
I saw approximately 120 different bands, some of them more than once obviously.
That summer was the Aerosmith Permanent Vacation tour, and I saw them 7 times, Metallica 17 times, Stryper once, (hee hee) and countless others like Megadeath, Ozzy, and Queensryche.
Probably one of the best summers of my life.
I worked at the arcade just to have concert ticket money.
That was also long before ticketmaster started screwing people on prices.
No show was ever more than $17.50.
Yup, a single paycheck could pay for at least 8 shows, and some t-shirts.

Wow, I totally went off on that one eh?
Oh well, later days!

Kat posted at 10:59 PM on November 17, 2007 || Comments (9) || Link || Entertainment

October 25, 2007

The holiday season non-war begins.

Every year as the holidays get closer, the non-war of Christmas decorations begins.
Last year, the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport ordered that all the Christmas trees be taken down because Rabbi Elazar Bogomilsky asked to have an 8-foot-tall menorah put on display at the airport.
Rather than create a massive decoration war of all the faiths, the airport chose to take the trees down.
And no one can say there wouldn't have been a huge 'we want our faith recognized too' thing happen, the rabbi's own lawyer pretty much said all different religions needed to be recognized.

"I find the whole thing stupid," said Grad, who was prepared to sue over the menorah issue last year, though his client didn't want to. "My view is that there was a need for accommodations. This is a multicultural city, and the airport should have gone out of its way to recognize different religious and ethnic views. I thought they would address that this year, but they decided to sidestep the issue."

Emphasis mine.
See, if the airport had put up the menorah last year along with the trees, other religions and ethnic views, would have seen that as an open invitation to have theirs put up too.
The airport would have looked like ChristmasHanaKwanzaka, with decorations all over the place.

This year, the airport has opted for peace and harmony.

Instead, the decorations will be what designer Randy Trostle calls a winterscape, a collection of handcrafted birch trees surrounded by lights and nestled in a pseudo-snowbank.

And of course, someone is upset about it.
But the airport simply wants to avoid another debate over the issue.

Bill O'Reilly and some Christian groups have deemed a "war on Christmas." They are battling what they call a secularization of the holiday traditions.

A war started by the various religious organizations, not the secular people.
It's very important that everyone understand that the airport officials simply want peace, they don't want a battle over what gets put up and where

Secular people like myself, don't care what decorations are put up.
We don't care if signs say Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays.
It's a non-issue.
But there are religious groups out there like the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian legal-rights group in Arizona, who filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Washington.
They won the right to have religious displays at the Capitol building, and other government buildings, as long as the state doesn't promote any one particular religion.
Some of the displays they have planned for this year include a nativity scene which will be 4 feet by 4 feet, and include a stable and figures of Mary and the infant Jesus, on the third floor near doors to the House and Senate chambers.
A Christmas tree which has been placed in the rotunda of the Capitol building for years, is now being called a holiday tree, and labeled as secular.

None of these actions were started or done by any secular group. They were all initiated by religious groups, who want their religious displays placed in state buildings and airports.
It's all so incredibly silly to have these non-wars every year.
What is the big deal folks?
Again, it's not the secular people doing this, it's the religious groups.
We really do not care what is where.
I don't give a crap if there's a nativity scene down town, I don't care if there's a Christmas tree at an airport, I care about having a nice holiday, but every year, we have to hear about the "war on Christmas" that doesn't really exist.

The airport, rather than fighting a war they didn't start again, decided not to have any religious themed displays, no trees, no menorahs, because of the war they didn't start last year, just a simple winter display, and people are still complaining.
I swear, people won't be happy until every public and government building every where, is covered in every possible religious groups decorations from floor to rotunda ceiling.
Making all those displays a giant ugly eye sore of colors and blinking lights, and huge statues depicting the center of each groups worship.

Maybe just one year, they should let every single religious group, (there are 19 major religions, subdivided into 270 different religious groups, and 34,000 unique Christian groups**) all put up their displays in the same place, so everyone's ethnic and religious view is recognized.
I mean, if we truly want to recognize and accommodate all of them as lawyer Harvey Grad says we should do, then let's truly recognize and accommodate all of them.
Not just the Jews and mainstream Christians, let's let them all do it, and then they can all sit there and stare at the giant eye sore they've created.

Maybe then they will think having a winter display with trees and lights looks much better.
Think it will work?
Nah, me either.

Continue Reading �

Kat posted at 02:20 AM on October 25, 2007 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

October 22, 2007

Florida mandates students must learn evolution.

I was going through my feed reader a few minutes ago, catching up with everyones lives as best I could, well the people who blogged anyway, and I saw some really neat promotional pens on someone's site, like really neat.
I kept clicking through my feeds and saw on someone else blog a link to this news article about how evolution is now going to be a mandatory part of science classes here in Florida.
How did I miss this story that came out on October 20th?
Ok, so it was only 2 days ago, but still, how did I miss this?
But this is totally great news!!
Ok, slow down Kat, not that easy, it's never that easy.

Florida has written new standards for teaching science that for the first time say public-school students need to learn about evolution. The proposed science standards, released Friday, call evolution one of the "big ideas" that must be taught as part of in-depth, hands-on learning. Florida's plan is part of a larger push to improve science education but could set off a battle over beliefs.

Of course it's going to set off a battle over beliefs even though this is public education we're talking about, not a privately funded Christian school.

Current standards do not use the word evolution -- long a controversial word in education -- but do require teaching evolutionary concepts in public schools.

Yes, schools here do teach the concept, but for all this time, not allowed to say the word. Isn't that the most ridiculous thing you have ever heard? Now Sebastian being smart and being raised atheist and knowing and understanding the concepts of evolution, kept saying the word during class.
Several times the teacher had to ask him to stop saying evolution, and Sebastian couldn't figure out why.
Rather than explain why, the teacher just kept asking Sebastian to please not say it.
If he had explained why, Sebastian probably would have responded the same way I did when I learned that teachers can't say the word evolution in school, "What the hell is wrong with the word? Better yet, what the hell is wrong with the people in this state, that they would bar SCIENCE teachers from saying the word evolution when teaching evolutionary concepts?"
I swear, the majority of law makers and the people who write up the educational standards for this state, have been missing some really important cells from their brains for many years.

A group of teachers, professors and others started rewriting the science standards in May, aiming to beef up learning in a state where fewer than half of its students are proficient in the state's science tests. Florida students also lag behind on national tests, even as the United States lags behind other countries, particularly those in Asia.

Part of the reason they can't pass the science test portion of the FCAT (don't even get me started on that one) is because they don't actually teach science.
They teach kids how to build little wooden cars that use nitrous cartridges, and then spend a whole day racing them on the schools track. Or they teach them about really generic science like photosynthesis, but not much else.

"If we want to be competitive in the world, we have to do this," said Susan Brennan, a Seminole High chemistry teacher in Sanford who helped write the new standards. The revisions aim to give more-concise directions to teachers and more-engaging information to students.

It's about freaking time!

State officials say the draft is a step toward improving science instruction. They fear that without changes Florida students will be ill-prepared for college and for a technology-based workplace.

Gee, ya think? How can our students be prepared for college science courses which discuss evolution, if our students don't even know what it is because teachers can't even say the word?

In recent years, some have pushed for teaching "intelligent design," which holds that aspects of living things are best explained by "an intelligent cause rather than an undirected process such as natural selection." Others have pushed for teaching that the theory of evolution does not fully explain the origins of life. Fred Cutting, a retired engineer in Clearwater who served on the standards committee, wanted the new document to reflect that latter view and to let students know that scientists do not yet have all the answers.

Intelligent design.
Puh-lease.
If we use the intelligent design theory, and we have a creator, then explain who created the creator.
If something is needed to create something else, then something must have created the creator as well.
I agree with Mr. Cutting on wanting to stress the latter view that scientists do not yet have all the answers.
Because it's science and it tests and re-tests based on a constant stream of new information, of course it doesn't have all the answers yet.
Like I said in the series of discussions I am taking part in, science tests, it comes up with answers, and it is always testing and changing it's answers and theories based on new information that it (science) is always gathering.

Orange County-based TV evangelist John Butler Book took a harder line. "Evolution is an educated guess," Book said. ". . . That we came from an ape is absolutely ridiculous."

But believing that we came from an invisible man in the sky, is a much more acceptable answer right?
That humans always looked exactly as we are now, in his image, even though we have fossilized skeletons to prove that cro-magnon man existed, and evolved to our current form of upright walking humans.
Seriously people, stop, my sides hurt.

The new standards are only a good first step, officials said, and must be accompanied by lots of teacher training and a push to encourage science majors to pursue teaching careers. The standards will not make much difference if teachers do not know what to do with them, said Cottle, the FSU professor. "The next generation of teachers," he said, "that's critical to all of us."

Yes it is.
We need more teachers in our public schools who can actually teach our kids scientific theories, show them how to test them, and encourage a lifelong study and love of science, so that we as a people can find answers and find cures, and keep on improving ourselves and our quality of life.

Kat posted at 07:44 AM on October 22, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

October 21, 2007

Clearing up the confusion.

Craig has responded to my last rebuttal, but he misunderstood.
Craig started off like this,
"One of the big issues Kat opened up is the false pretenses of most religions. Among her complaints are:

* Organized religion is about money and expensive lifestyle.
* Organized religion is never open to new ideas."

Tenant 1: Organized religion is about money and expensive lifestyles.

I did say this;
"I despise organized religion for it's money grubbing, it's expensive lifestyles, but I blame the lack of answers for the main reason I dislike religion in general."
Craig thinks I meant churches, I never said churches, I said organized religion.
There is a huge difference to me.
The big organized religious churches and groups he mentions in his post is what I was talking about, not each and every individual church in America, because I do know that some churches are excellent in their communities, actually taking the money they raise from tithes and placing it back into the community through shelters and food banks, help and welfare programs.
I'm a huge supporter of the Salvation Army's kettle drive every year because I know the good that they do.
I meant the big organized evangelical groups on tv, the ones who sit in golden chairs, wear pounds of makeup and live in million dollar homes, go on evangelical cruises to celebrate their faith and raise money.
It's bull.
Them, the fakes, the frauds, the ones who pray on the devout and use them for their own financial gains.

And yes, let's talk about the hypocrites who do as I say, not as I do.
They talk the talk, but never walk the walk.
They claim to be Christian, yet every chance they get to judge someone, turn down their nose, they do it.
The majority of people who claim to be Christian are fakes.
They say one thing and do completely another.
Craig says, "I believe the real percentage of genuine believers would be several orders of magnitude smaller."
You got that right Craig.

The other thing Craig took from my rebuttal was this point,
Tenant #2: Organized religion is never open to new ideas.

This is what I said,
"That's why I like science. It tests, it comes up with answers, and is always testing and changing it's answers and theories based on new information.
Religion is the same exact answer no matter what the question is, no matter how much new evidence is thrown at it, the answers will always be the same."

Craig said this,
"Here, I have to disagree and say that while there are some sticks in the mud, this statement proves that you're not up on just how dynamic a field theology tends to be."

What I meant was, religion has the bible, that's it, that's it's center of information, the holy book of all answers.
That's where preachers turn to when someone asks a question, that's what the proselytizers use to convert the sinners, the book of all God's orders and answers.
Field theology is different, and I never mentioned field theology, and so it doesn't hold with what I actually said therefore, doesn't enter into this rebuttal.

I would like to ask Craig a question though.
I have noticed in his posts during these talks, that he never actually types out God, he types it out like this a lot, "G-d's and G-d".
Why?
Is there something offensive to actually typing out God?
I know people get upset when I don't capitalize god, but to not actually type it out at all has me confused.

Kat posted at 11:54 AM on October 21, 2007 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

October 13, 2007

But and rebutt.

If you were following along, you are aware that Craig and I have started a dialog between us on the topic of religion.
His opener, my rebuttal, and now his follow-up rebuttal.

I took a few days, ok, more than a few days, to post because Craig spoke of some personal things in regards to his religion and how it's viewed, and while that is all fine, as I warned him privately, posting personal information can open up commentators to attacking those personal things.
I don't want to do that.

In Craig's rebuttal, he brings up the regional aspect coming into play, that yup, I'm in the bible belt, and that probably does have a lot to do with how I view religion in general, but I grew up in a mostly democratic state, I was raised Christian. I became sort of an agnostic around age 11 or 12 when my grandfather died.
The churches lack of answers set me on that path, and had more to do with my being atheist today than one would think.
I despise organized religion for it's money grubbing, it's expensive lifestyles, but I blame the lack of answers for the main reason I dislike religion in general.
That's why I like science. It tests, it comes up with answers, and is always testing and changing it's answers and theories based on new information.
Religion is the same exact answer no matter what the question is, no matter how much new evidence is thrown at it, the answers will always be the same.

Oh and Craig, I'm far more conservative politically than liberal. There goes that theory that all atheists are liberal tards. *wink*

Craig brought up Jefferson's letter, the one I cited where the phrase, a wall of separation of church and state came from, and while Craig is indeed correct that it does not appear in the constitution, it is because of that letter that the first amendment came about.
Craig says that we atheists are free to promote that government have no say in religion, and even in his rebuttal, Craig made my point for me.
To be constitutional, a law must:
* Have a secular purpose, and
* Be neutral towards religion - neither hindering nor advancing it, and
* Not result in excessive entanglements between the government and religion.

He says our groups like the ACLU, are going out of their way to hinder religious freedom.
No, we're not.
We simply want the government to respect that government not interject religion into government.
That means, no 10 commandments in courthouses, no prayer in school.
Each of these things is a government funded and run institution, and by allowing religion into them, it hinders on the freedoms of everyone else's religious ideas.
Not everyone who steps into a courtroom is a Christian, and neither is every student.
These things must be taken out to ensure that every religion of everyone passing through those doors, is not infringed upon by the ideas set forth by one religion, Christianity.

Kat posted at 12:32 PM on October 13, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

October 13, 2007

I might be militant after all.

Good morning! I slept like crap because I slept on the couch.
Why?
Because my kids were gone and I nearly scared myself senseless watching 28 weeks later.
That damn virus is now in Paris! Ack!
I was actually fine after watching it until the cats decided it was playtime around 1am, and started chasing each other all over the house hissing and growling at one another, knocking things over.
Every time I went to check up on the noise, they'd all be laying on the floor and giving me that what look.
"What? We didn't do it, we've been laying here on the cold linoleum floor lady. You be crazy."

The wind was blowing, another palm branch fell from the front tree and hit the windows.
Yeah, I scared myself thinking RAGE had infected Sarasota.
Can you imagine all those old people walking around with their walkers gumming everyone and coughing up blood all over the place? Not to mention they'd probably lose all control of their bladders and bowels, rage coming out all open orifices.
Ack! Run away! Run away!

An advice column post and reply has been making the rounds on a few blogs, and from the places the Q&A both showed up originally, I hated the answers.
I'm debating whether to post my response to it today or tomorrow.
It would make an awesome Sunday Sermon here on my blog.
I totally disagreed with both the "professional" advice answers given.
I actually have really good experience with this subject, with my own kids, with my sisters step-daughter as well, and believe me, if a 5 year old can grasp it, that 13 year old daughter needs to stop her crying.
I'll stop there, because I do feel a wicked rant coming on about the 13 year old daughters behavior, and the advice columnists replies.

My friend Shell sent me the obit for a long time local town legend in Old Orchard Beach where we grew up.
John F. Riel Jr. passed away.
John had MD (muscular dystrophy) and I had grown up with him, went to school with him, he graduated the year after me, but we played together as kids.
He lived on Fern ave, we lived on Hill ave right behind his house.
I'd often go over there as a kid and play with him.
He was a huge fan of music as he grew up, becoming Riot Act's (local band) biggest fan.
He was welcomed at every show, everyone knew and loved him.
His nickname was the Sandman because he loved the song by Metallica, and Riot Act would play it for him at nearly every show if he was in attendance.
He always wanted a hug, a little gesture if returned to him would make his smile the hugest you had ever seen.
I remember him so very well, and he will truly be missed by all those who came to know him.
You could never pass John without saying hello and giving him a hug.
Just thinking of him now, I have the biggest smile, he was always so happy and loved music so much, he was a joy, a gift to those of us lucky to have known him.

Kat posted at 10:58 AM on October 13, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

October 12, 2007

Atheists, come out and playyyyyy!

The University of Illinois at Chicago Rationalists and Free Thinkers (RAFT) want to promote the idea of going public with one's atheism.

So if you're able and willing, please submit your name to their master list!

Your email stays private, but your name and location will be visible.

Hat tip, the Friendly Atheist

Kat posted at 09:17 PM on October 12, 2007 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

October 10, 2007

A friendly exchange of ideas.

While my newest blog friend Craig, is calling it an open debate, I've chosen to call it a friendly exchange of ideas.
Not all atheists are combative. *wink*

Craig and I came up with this idea from a thread on a forum we are both part of. While the thread itself did not start off as a religious one, it turned into one.
The thread was about personalized children's books and cds, and how a majority of them were religious in nature.
When I asked the forum owner if I would need to select one of those items, or if I could select a secular item, the conversation changed to religion. One simple question took the thread completely off track.
But the other forum members enjoyed our lively discussion, and asked if we would continue it on our blogs.
Up sprung this idea.

Our first debate or exchange of ideas, is on one of Sam Harris' most recent essays, Science must destroy religion.
Craig has posted his thoughts, his opening post, and now here on my blog, I will respond.
I don't really have much of an opening post other than to say, I am not a militant atheist, my views will not always match up with the larger atheist community, and perhaps it's that way because I was raised a Christian.
But let's get right to the meat of it shall we?

Harris says that we (atheists) have been far too polite, that we as rational thinkers must start fighting back with all the information we have at our disposal, and vanquish religion from the planet.
I would have to agree.
Religion has caused more wars, sent more people to death, and been more of a hindrance to the human population than it has helped.
Craig asks; "Since when have atheists been holding back anything?"
A lot Craig, a lot.
Perhaps because your life is faith centered, you are completely unaware of the constant bombardment of religion that we non-believers face every single day.
It's on our news with faith segments, our Sunday morning tv programs are live church broadcasts, our children are taught religious themed songs during the holiday season at school, and people come to our homes bright and early on Saturday mornings to try and save our souls because God told them to do it.
There's many other things too, but those are off the top of my head at this late hour.

Craig discusses the ACLU's battle to get the ten commandments out of courthouses (they should not be there) no prayer in schools, (absolutely no sanctioned by the school prayer. If kids want to hold hands outside the building before the bell, or say a silent prayer before they eat, fine by me) and two of my favorite history lessons, in god we trust on our money, and under god from the pledge.
Let's dig into those shall we?

It's a national lie that In God We Trust has always been on our money.
In 1782, Jefferson coined the phrase, a wall of separation of church and state, and E Pluribus Unum was added to our money, our coins in 1798, and in 1837, it became law that it was on all monies.
The motto stood for nearly a century until 1861, a of letter was written from Rev. M. R. Watkinson, urging for God to be recognized on our coins.
This letter set off a chain of events which caused a law to be passed in 1864, allowing the "In God We Trust" motto to be placed on one, two and three cent coins.
Congress caved in without any regard to the constitutional aspects.
Watkinson wasn't just after the money, he went after the preamble too, suggesting amending it to say "We, the people of the United States, humbly acknowledging Almighty God as the source of all authority and power in civil government, the Lord Jesus Christ as the Ruler among the nations, His revealed will as the supreme law of the land, in order to constitute a Christian government..."

Lucky for us, that one didn't fly.
But Watkinson was so successful in his bid for the motto In God We Trust to be not only added to our coins, but it became mandatory in 1908.
One Reverend was responsible for the motto, not our founding fathers, one guy.

In 1955, separation of church and state fell victim to the cold war and all those godless communists.
President Eisenhower signed Public Law 140, making it mandatory that all coins and paper money reflect an unconstitutional Christian state.
In 1956, E Pluribus Unum was pushed aside for the new Christian motto, and in the same year, under god was added to the pledge making it illegal for non-Christians to swear allegiance to their country under oath.
This program was also responsible for adding so help me god to the oath administered by judges.
For the more detailed history of under god and our pledge, I suggest you read this.
But as you can see, it was NOT our founding fathers who set this god stuff in motion for our country, but a few people.
It's been a national lie for centuries now to say that all our founding fathers were Christian, and this is a Christian based nation.
It's an outright lie.
So if you think atheists are attempting to remove things that our founding fathers established for us, you'd be very wrong.
We simply want to put it back the way it was, freedom of religion, to have our government respect the first amendment.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.
It doesn't say we must all be Christian, it says they shall make no laws respecting an establishment of religion, that means no one religion for this country, and giving people the right to choose any religion they want, or none at all.

In order to gain mutual respect of the believers and the non-believers, we must right these wrongs, we must give everyone the right to choose if they want to believe, and what they want to believe, with our government not siding with any particular one.
Our government has caused a great divide amongst us, they have chosen that we are a religious nation, a Christian nation, when in fact, we are not.
We are a melting pot of many, and our government must set this right.

As far as Harris saying we (atheists) are too docile and polite, and Craig saying we (atheists) are in fact very activist in our behavior, not all of us are, but if we are, it is because of the unjust proclamation that we are all Christians in this nation, it is a lie perpetuated for centuries, and we are fighting to set it right, like it once was, not just for us, but for you, and our future generations who will hopefully someday, not say stupid things in time of war like "God is on our side", causing an even further divide between the peoples of this nation who worship many different gods, or none at all.

Tag, you're it.

Kat posted at 01:42 AM on October 10, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

October 7, 2007

Sunday sermon #37

"Christian: A good-natured, simple fellow; a true lamb of the fold, who, in the innocence of his heart, persuades himself that he firmly believes unbelievable things that his priests have told him to believe, especially those he cannot even imagine. Consequently, he is convinced that three x's make fifteen, that God was made man, that he was hanged and rose to life again, that priests cannot lie, and that all who do not believe in priests will be damned without remission."

Voltaire

Kat posted at 11:16 AM on October 7, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

October 5, 2007

Read on the interwebs today.

"Please refrain from curse words on your website, it threatens my morality."

Bwahahahaahaha!
It was said in total sarcasm, and ya gotta love that.
I just read it, and nearly spit diet soda all over my monitor. (Yes, I did make it out to get some more. After my editing shift was over. Mouth was very dry. very dry.)
See, some people write they like speak, like sailors on a hot day with a bad case of crabs, or some other equally "rude" type person, and they got rejected for excessive profanity.

As someone who loves to say fuck, fuck it, suck it and die, I feel this persons agony as they were told they curse too much.
But unlike them and their decision to not fight this one, I'm relieved I don't deal with that bullshit anymore.
Sure, I get the occasional commentator here and there, telling me ladies shouldn't speak like garbage men, but hey, who said I was a "lady" anyway?
I'm me, whoever that is, and one of the small things that makes me smile, is saying some word that threatens other peoples' morality.
*laugh*
Really? Your morality is threatened because I said fuck?
Wow, I had no idea I held that much power, but thanks for letting me know.
I'll be sure to do it more often. Ha ha hahaha ha

Kat posted at 06:39 PM on October 5, 2007 || Comments (4) || Link || Blogs, forums, and internet

September 29, 2007

I was unprepared!

It's Jehovah season, and they caught me off guard this morning.
Dammit!
A knock just came to the door, Sebastian answered it and they started in with their pitch, and I yelled; "Sebastian! Tell whoever that is, to wait one minute! You are a child!"
*Start looking for my shorts, I wasn't dressed yet*
He tells them his mother is coming, and closes the door.
He starts giggling.
"Mom, I think it's those people again."
Me: What people Sebastian? *found shorts on top of dryer*
Seb: You know, those people who go door to door.
Me: Uh, Tupperware, Avon, Jesus? *putting shorts on and stumbling towards the door*
Seb: I am pretty sure it's Jesus.
Me: Fuck.
*Open the door*
Me: May I help you?
Two well dressed ladies carrying bibles and stacks of the Watchtower in their hands, are standing at my door.
Lady #1: Yes, we are going door to door handing out these...
Me: Not interested. Don't ever speak to my children again.
Lady #2: We are just trying to spread the word through the scrip...
Me: Really, not interested, don't ever knock on this door again.
Lady #1: But we are...
Me: *raised voice to drill sargent decibel* I AM NOT INTERESTED IN ANYTHING YOU HAVE TO SAY, SELL, OR GIVE AWAY. NEVER SPEAK TO MY CHILDREN AGAIN. YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE. THIS IS PRIVATE PROPERTY. YOU ARE TRESPASSING.
Lady #2: *eyes bugged out*
Lady #1: uh, um, uh, sorry. *grabs lady #2's hand and runs from the driveway, not even bothering to go next door*

I love Jehovah season, and had I been ready for it, I would have grabbed my camera, my bible, and gone outside to discuss this with them, asking their permission first, to place their photos on the internet.

I will be ready next Saturday when a new team is sent out, and they weren't warned about this particular house.
Hee hee.

Kat posted at 10:45 AM on September 29, 2007 || Comments (9) || Link || Religion

September 27, 2007

Keep it on your own site.

Every now and then, I get a wild, but passionate hair across my ass, and engage in conversations outside of my blog that I know will upset other people.
I don't engage in these conversations because I know it will upset them, I engage in them because I get more and more passionate about the subject matter as the conversation grows.

This leads to others becoming just as passionate, and before you know it, the conversation is so far off the original topic, it can't be brought back around unless parts of the conversation are deleted.
This happened, and it's now at that point people are upset.
I have apologized, but the conversation is still there, and will be, until someone decides to clean it up, or they may even let it stand.

But I'm seriously tired of people telling me not to be offended about stuff, when they are on the other side and have no fucking clue what it's like to live on this side.
Walk a mile or two in my shoes and then feel free to tell me how to react to shit.
I've walked in both sets of shoes, so I'm truly qualified to talk about it, and I'm just sick of all the advice giving that comes from people who just don't understand what it's like.

I'll elaborate more on this later, but right now I'm going to go lay down until the alarm goes off at 5:45am for the teens to go to school.
If I owe you an email, I'll get to it when it's officially daytime.
I'm pissed off and irritated, and I really need to sit and think this all through before I say anything else that is going to upset people.

Kat posted at 04:51 AM on September 27, 2007 || Comments (5) || Link || Blogs, forums, and internet

September 26, 2007

So if you are the christ.

The other night, the teens and I watched Jesus Christ Superstar.
They of course asked me why we as an atheist family, were watching this movie, it's the same question they ask every time I have them watch a movie like this, and my answer is always the same.
As atheists, you are going to come across people who tell you you can't possibly be atheist, that you've never read the bible, that you don't know the story, don't understand it, and you're only this way because it's how you were raised.
So I'm giving you the stories from all different viewpoints, I'm letting you see different versions, different stories, so you can decide for yourselves how you want to be.
JCS, is a classic movie from 1979, it was sort of modern day, sort of old way, it told the story of his end days through music.
JCS was and still is, a fascinating movie.

So they watched and enjoyed the music. They understood both Herod's and Pilot's predicaments, trapped by their people to decide what to do with this man who didn't listen to the warnings of his own followers, to be more careful, that he was going to get himself killed.

But they liked the music, same as me, they found Herod's song to be one of the best production numbers in the whole thing.
Herod, hugely flamboyant, wanting so much to see some proof that Christ was what everyone said he was, so Herod didn't have to give the order to kill him.
Upon seeing no proof in either direction, he tossed the decision back to Pilot.
But anyway, here's the classic and very enjoyable scene with Herod.

Kat posted at 11:05 AM on September 26, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Entertainment

September 24, 2007

Youth center arrest

That church youth center arrest I told you about on Friday, is finally on the local news site.

42 year old youth group leader, Martin Moore, had a sexual relationship for 4 years with a teen girl starting when she was just 13 years old.

Reports say the center's director Martin Moore met the victim at his home, at the center, his mother's house, the beach, even a car. When he was confronted, he felt bad. "He said he's made a mistake and was really feeling bad about it."

Riiiight. If he knew it was a mistake, he shouldn't have done it. He's a church youth group leader for crying out loud. Fucking child molesters make me sick, and this was right around the corner from me. Ugh.

Kat posted at 11:10 PM on September 24, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Locals

September 24, 2007

We're not the crazy ones.

Real Time with Bill Maher, has new rules, and in case you missed it, or don't have HBO like me, Truthdig.com has posted the video, and I'm sharing it with you below.

The last new rule says that non-believers or rationalists, as Maher likes to call us, need to start taking into consideration the religious beliefs of the candidates before we vote for them.
And really, shouldn't we all be doing that?

The constitution says there shall be no religious test for holding the office, or any office of government, but every single one of the candidates gets up during speeches or debates, and talks about their religious morality, their religious views, and like Maher, I'm pretty damn skeptical of any guy's state of mind who wants to be president, if he believes in magic underwear.
He's not getting my vote.

And also like Maher, I have a serious problem with any one who believes in talking snakes, burning talking bushes, huge boats full of every species of animal, walking on water, loaves into fishes, and all the other hocus pocus.
It really is like voting for someone who declares and is convinced, that Santa Claus or the tooth fairy are real.
It's time for rational leaders.

Kat posted at 11:06 AM on September 24, 2007 || Comments (3) || Link || Politics

September 24, 2007

I may have insomnia again but,

I have cheesy religious movies to keep me entertained.
Can you guess the movie?

Continue Reading �

Kat posted at 02:29 AM on September 24, 2007 || Comments (3) || Link || Entertainment

September 22, 2007

The Hubble Deep Field.

This is so amazing and beautiful.
Ok, it could have done without the cheesy numa numa kid, but man, all those galaxies, all those stars and planets.
How can we possibly think we are the only life that exists in ALL of those galaxies?
It's incredible, gorgeous, breath taking.
We cannot be alone, we simply can't be.

Hubble images set to Pink Floyd.
Awesome.

Kat posted at 08:54 PM on September 22, 2007 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

September 14, 2007

Today was a me day.

I just got done watching an old movie, Tuff Turf, and I remember how much I just loved Kim Richard's hair. It was beautiful, long, gorgeous.
James Spader was quite the hottie then too.
He still is. *fans self*

And then I checked my RSS feeds, and read something that just make me shake my head.
Kathy Griffin's speech at the Emmys, is said to be worse than what Imus did.
You can't be serious?
Oh, but I know they are.
Not everyone is a christian, not everyone believes in the father, son and holy ghost, and not everyone has to thank god.
And we're not sorry for offending you.
We've been offended by those speeches for years.
Oh but that's right, when we say our beliefs, we're persecuting you, personally.
My bad.
Go right on with your hatred of anyone who doesn't believe what you do.
Freedom of speech only works one way.
When everyone agrees with the religious right.
How quickly I forget.
Oh well, one less blog I have to try and keep up with.
Bye bye!

*EDIT*
Heh. I love the rational thinking.
Hat tip to the Friendly Atheist.

Kat posted at 01:40 AM on September 14, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || General

September 11, 2007

Kathy Griffin to be censored at the Emmy awards.

Source.

Instead of getting up on stage and thanking god like so many celebs do when they win any type of award, Kathy Griffin didn't.
But she did have a few words to say.

"A lot of people come up here and thank Jesus for this. He had nothing to do with this," Griffin said. "Suck it, Jesus. This award is my God now."

Because of what she said, her speech will not air.
"Kathy Griffin's offensive remarks will not be part of the E! telecast on Saturday night," the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences said in a statement Monday.
According to the TV academy and E!, when the four hour-plus ceremony is edited into a two-hour program, Griffin's remarks will be shown in "an abbreviated version" in which some language may be bleeped.

The comedian's remarks were condemned Monday by Catholic League President Bill Donohue, who called them a "vulgar, in-your-face brand of hate speech."

Hate speech? Excuse me? Where in any part of what she said, could be considered hate speech?
She did not say Christians suck it, or all you believers are full of shit, she expressed her thoughts, her freedom of religion thoughts.
She said Jesus had nothing to do with her winning the award, she tells Jesus to suck it.
That's far from hate speech, it's free speech.

According to the article, it's very possible that Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg's song, Dick in a box, may possibly be performed live.
The academy has said that "show elements are in the process of being worked out."

So they may possibly allow Dick in a box to be performed live, but will not air Kathy Griffin's acceptance speech, because it offended Catholic League President Bill Donohue, who asked the academy to "denounce Griffin's obscene and blasphemous comment" at Sunday's ceremony, but they have no issue with a dick in a box?
Are you kidding me?!

For years people have been getting up on stages and thanking gods and higher powers for giving them talent so they could win an award in front of their peers, but the second an atheist wants to say, no, I worked for this, no god had anything to do with all my hard work, and yes, even say suck it, that person will be edited out completely or be bleeped, so as not to offend the believers.
Have the believers even for one second, ever considered, that listening to all those thank you Jesus speeches, celeb after celeb, year after year, offends those of us who don't believe?
I know I'd like to say that they are a hard working actor or comedian, or musician, that they dedicated themselves to their craft, to get where they are, instead of saying oh, I don't have anything to do with it, it's all god's doing.

See, that's one of the core things of humanism and atheism.
That people are responsible and capable, for all that they do, that no outside force has any power over any good you do, or any wrong you do, that it is solely on the individual to be what they are.

I'm just so tired of people being offended so much by others beliefs, that they take steps to silence them.
She has every right to say she worked for that award, no god was involved in it, and yes, to even say suck it Jesus, because it's her right, her right to freedom of speech, her right to freedom of religion, and if every other celeb can get up there and thank god and say I love you Jesus, than she has just as much right to say suck it.

Kat posted at 03:11 PM on September 11, 2007 || Comments (8) || Link || Religion

September 8, 2007

When they still don't see the error.

"Our concept of the universe differs in blank contrast. So when I put something on you about your disbelief, the reasonable thing for an atheist is to say, "fine ****, okay, here's my morally constructed universe," then everything would be fine.

But you became very upset, and I'm sorry about that."

The person who wonderfully insulted me in this entry I wrote about atheists and Christmas, sent me another long-ish email today about him upsetting me.
Yes he apologized, but he is still putting the blame on me, on my reaction to his insults.
It wasn't that he had attacked my disbelief, it was that he was insulting me, telling me I am not worthy to give and receive presents, because Christmas means something to him, and because I don't share his beliefs, I have no right to have it mean a joyous holiday to share with my friends and family. That I have no right to give or receive presents.
That simply because I did not share his reasons for Christmas or his beliefs, I am not a worthy human being.

In his email, he clearly says he put something on me about my disbelief, and the reasonable atheist reaction should have been, according to him, someone who is not an atheist, was to tell him my morally constructed universe, and then let all the insults he flung at me, fall to the wayside, like they were nothing.
Like being an atheist means I have to be robotic in my emotions, and not care that I was insulted.

He still clearly does not understand atheism or humanism.
I believe in science and facts and people.
I believe that people can and will do what's right by their fellow man, without a higher power telling them how to treat each other.
Even with his higher power telling him how to treat others, he still thinks it was ok of him to throw insults around, and he's somehow morally superior than I am, and I should have simply ignored those insults, and let bygones be bygones, the subject title of his email.

He's only sorry because I became upset, not because he was rude and insulted me.
"If you're nice, you can give me room for being human."
I can give room for being human, as long as that human is willing to shift the blame from me, to themselves.
Don't apologize because I was upset.
Apologize because you were rude.

Kat posted at 04:39 PM on September 8, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

September 2, 2007

What if she's born again?

A few days ago, I wrote about a note I found in my son Mark's pocket from a girl.
You can read all the comments I got on it, and most of them were other moms saying aww, how cute, a new phase begins, what a sweet note etc.

But Tim from Florida Sun Dog asked me this question;
"What if she turns out to be born-again? *wink*"
I shot back a very quick reply;
"Good question. If she tries to covert him, she's outta here! LOL"
But I've been thinking about it since he left that comment yesterday.

I'm very serious about the whole trying to convert him thing.
But I know Mark, I know from everything I've taught him over his 16 years of life, about all religions, not just Christianity, that he wouldn't go for it.
Not even for that first kiss or piece of ass.

He's very smart when it comes to religions, we talk about them all the time when stories are in the news, and if things happen at school where a teacher or student says something to him about being atheist.
It still happens.
He had a teacher the other day get upset with him because he said god dammit.
She lashed out and said not to take the lord's name in vain.
He simply said, "I'm an atheist. I'm not taking any name in vain, because your lord is a lord I don't believe in."
She was quite upset, but dropped it. Other students however, said he was going to hell, the usual misunderstanding that atheists are satanists.

If Mark's new girl friend is a born again, and she does come over, they start dating, I'm sure he would lay it out for her, he is atheist, his family is atheist.
If she were to come over, if he invited her to dinner let's say, and she started to say grace before eating, I'd stop her.
I would respectfully tell her that this is our home, and in our home, we do not say grace before dinner, and I'd ask her to respect that.
If she invited Mark to her home for dinner and her family says grace, Mark would be respectful, and stay silent while her family prayed.

I'm sure that Mark and the girl would have no real issue with it if they truly like each other, but I would place money on it, that if her family were deep believers, they would take issue with him being atheist, and they'd probably call me up and ask why I didn't allow their daughter to say grace at our dinner.
My home, my rules, your home, your rules.
That's what it would boil down to.

I know it's not going to be easy for the boys to grow up minus religion. I know that there are billions of people who believe in some form of a higher power, and that those who don't, are in the minority, looked down upon, not trusted, called satanists etc etc.
But I know I've given them an excellent moral foundation without a gods rules attached.
I know that they are good and kind decent human beings, and will treat all their fellow man with respect regardless of what the other person believes.
I can't say they will be given the same respect in return.
People who believe, are always looking down on those of us who don't, he will have problems with other people on this issue.
He will have problems with this girl's family, or the next girl if she is also a believer.
It will be a lifelong issue when it should be a non-issue.

What someone believes or does not believe, should have no weight on whether or not they are capable of love, respect, and honor.
I know Mark would treat any girl he dated with respect, care, and kindness.
I've been teaching the boys since they were born practically, to respect women, treat them well, never raise a hand to them, to take any promises made to them as serious as they would any promise they made to themselves.

I guess we'll have to wait and see how this goes.
If they do get together, and what her background is.
I've not spoken to him about the note I found.
I folded it back up, and placed it in his backpack front pocket.
I'm not going to ask any questions until I see signs from him that there is a girl involved.
No one has called here for him yet, no one has called his cell yet, so no talks will be had until there are signs.
I respect him and his privacy, but I know that if and the girl do want to hang out at some point, he'll talk to me.

Kat posted at 10:57 AM on September 2, 2007 || Comments (8) || Link || Religion

August 30, 2007

1. I have a killer migraine.

2. The school called. Mark is going to get yelled at. I'm going to get the F-U face again.
3. I had the most bizarre dream last night. I probably should avoid large gatherings of people for awhile.
4. Michael Vick found Jesus. Of course some of us are not convinced. He's invoking Christ in hopes that people will forgive him for what he's done. It's amazing how many people upon fucking shit up, suddenly find God. It's like they think that somehow it makes it all better.
Where is personal accountability?
He plead innocent right up until he learned the other 3 guys ratted him out. He knew he was fucked, so he quickly finds Jesus, and hopes it will give him some sort of leniency in sentencing.
Depending on which judge he gets, it probably will.
5. I was hoping today would be an early payday like the last 2 weeks. So far it's not.
Bummer.
6. I'm still debating the Vegas trip in November. Between hotel room, airfare, and food and entertainment costs, I just don't think I can swing it.
7. I'm really tired and run down today.
8. I got a huge envelope of coupons from my mom in the mail today. Thanks mom.
I didn't get any of the things I was waiting on.
9. I really need to take a shower, but I can't move very well today. I just want to sleep.
10. The last day of Passions is quickly approaching. I hate you NBC.

Kat posted at 01:07 PM on August 30, 2007 || Comments (4) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

August 26, 2007

Bye bye Bill Keller.

So we all know Bill Keller is an asshole and a fraud, and Bill Keller has finally been kicked off of a tv station for being a fucking dick.
CW44, formerly known as UPN44, finally pulled Bill Keller off the air.
The station says it was a programming decision, made by tv execs and Bill Keller, but Bill Keller admits that it was because of pressure from CAIR, the Council on American Islamic Relations.

In a May 2 broadcast, the televangelist said Islam was a "1,400-year-old lie from the pits of hell" and called the Prophet Mohammed a "murdering pedophile." He also called the Koran a "book of fables and a book of lies."

"I'm saying nothing now that I haven't been saying for five years," said Keller, who plans to hold his last broadcast on Aug. 31. "Ultimately, it was pressure by CAIR that intimidated these people into taking me off the air. It was not mutually agreeable. They told me they were taking me off the air, period."

Aww, poor, poor Bill Keller.
Maybe if you weren't such a fucking douche, spreading hate about any religion that isn't Christian, or maybe I should say, Christian like you, you wouldn't have gotten your hating ass thrown off the air.
But I for one am quite pleased you're off the CW44.
And yes, you got picked up by a new station, TV38, at 7:30am every week day starting September 3rd, but if you keep preaching hate and stupidity, I have a feeling you won't last there long either.
I guarantee that CAIR will be watching, and if you spread more hate about Islam they'll get you tossed from TV38 too.

For those of you who have never heard of this so called man of god, here's some of the things he has done in just the 8 years he's been preaching the word of God.

Since he began his Live Prayer Internet ministry in 1999, he has skewered Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses and Scientologists, calling them false religions and cults. He also speaks against abortion, calls Oprah a "new age witch" for embracing diverse religions and says megachurch pastor Joel Osteen is a "gutless wonder."
In May, Keller raised the ire of Americans United for Separation of Church and State when he wrote devotionals on Liveprayer.com saying that a vote for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney equals a vote for Satan. The group asked the IRS to investigate Keller for a possible violation of tax laws, which prohibit tax-exempt nonprofit groups from engaging in partisan politics. Keller, took the debate to a national audience on The O'Reilly Factor, where he sparred with host Bill O'Reilly, who called Keller's words "irresponsible, un-Christian, uncharitable and flat-out wrong."

Watch Bill O'Reilly take on Bill Keller.

Bill Keller has also served some time folks.

While at Ohio State however, Keller began a successful computer sales business. After earning millions of dollars, Keller was eventually caught up in insider trading and spent nearly three years in prison.

It was during his stay in prison, that he decided to turn his life over to God, and he attended the Falwell University to become a preacher.
He's not a preacher of the word of God of the bible, he's a man filled with hate and rage, using the bible to justify his hate, and through his tv show, he spreads that hate to all who watch.
Just check out the video here on youtube, where Bill Keller spreads his anti-Muslim bigotry and hate.
Here is Bill Keller announcing the end of his show on CW44.
Let that be a lesson to you Bill Keller. Don't spread hateful messages about people, and you won't get tossed off the air.
I have a feeling though, that he has learned nothing, and will be right back spreading his hate on TV38 within the first month it begins airing.
**Please note the youtube videos are gone. Bill Keller claimed copyright, and had them yanked down.**
Guess he didn't want anyone else to see those episodes where he was a total bigot and hate monger.

Kat posted at 12:43 PM on August 26, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

August 25, 2007

Are atheists allowed to have Christmas?

I received a comment earlier that I have not published, because I know it was done to antagonize me.
I know this because it is clearly negative in tone.

Interesting how you extol "Christmas"
I had to read it twice to believe you had the nerve.
I still have hope for you. The smarter they are, the harder
they...whatever.

So I said to that;

What the fuck are you talking about? How I extol Christmas?
Atheists can't celebrate giving presents? Is that what you're hinting at?

All this because I posted about getting canvases done as Christmas presents for my family.
Yes my reply was 'in your face', but again, I knew this comment from this person was said in a negative tone.
Our email discussions for 2 weeks now, have been combative. What started out as pleasantry, has eroded into intentional jabs at me at every chance.
Religion, more specifically me being atheist, seems to be an issue this person cannot let go of, among other subjects.
My reply was followed by an email from them which basically started off by insulting me, and then asking me these questions, which I've broken down from the email, because some of it was just personal attacks and not worth discussing;

Let me ask you this, Ms. Atheist - what do you care about Christmas at all?
Are you just trying to find an association in time to make yourself feel good about yourself to give presents? You are the most self-contradictory person I've ever met.
Psst....why not extol March 11, or February 15, or May 2nd, or November 13th. What difference does it make to you? Nothing! So any response from you that accuses me - let it.
I never said you couldn't ride on the sleigh horse for giving presents.
For the rest of us, it is "Christmas." That means something.
If you want to celebrate, go ahead. Atheasts can give presents. Of course you're doing it for a purpose you don't believe. And if that offends you, the truth, well - there it is.
Think about why you are mad, as though you are not "deserving" to give presents for Christmas. Well - facts maam. You are not. The best I can say for you is that you condone it and arrange a mental yearly deep breath for the fake it all is - and yes, you can give presents too.

I shall do my best to answer all of this crap below.
I'm actually quite upset by this, have been for hours now.
This person seems to enjoy picking at how I celebrate the holidays, basically calling me a hypocrite.

Continue Reading �

My family, my sons and I, do not celebrate the Christian Christmas. We enjoy the gift giving of St. Nick. Not Santa Claus, but the real St. Nick who made and delivered toys.
We have a tree, we watch silly holiday movies, and sing about winter wonderlands and snowmen.

I'm not contradicting myself at all. I know what my family does, how we celebrate, and what traditions we do. Unlike you who is quick to make assumptions about someone you barely know.
Maybe instead of attacking and insulting me, you could have asked how we celebrate Christmas.
Wouldn't that have been a better approach?

As for the day I extol, I explained it above. Pagan holiday and St. Nick.
It does matter to us as well. It's our day just as much as it is your day.
As a matter of fact, it was OUR day first.
You don't get to own a freaking holiday even though you'd like to think you do.
I'm thrilled it means something to you, but you still don't own the day.

Atheists can give presents for reasons we believe. Pagan holiday, St. Nick again.
I don't believe in your reason for giving presents, but I'm not going to stop you from commercializing the birth of your savior.
If you want to get super technical, you should not get any presents for Christmas because the gifts were for Jesus, not for anyone else.
But now us pagans and atheists, well, we can buy any old thing we want and hand it to whom we want, because we are not celebrating the birth of any savior.
We like presents. Lots of them. Especially stuff we can play with.
And if you want some truth about your day, well here it is. And if that offends you, I'm not particularly caring at the moment.

Who the fuck are you, to declare that I am not deserving to give presents for Christmas?
Again, do you own the fucking day? Do you even understand the history of the day?
You celebrate it on that day because there is no evidence to actually support the day your savior was born, so that day was picked. More evidence points to Jesus being born in the spring, or even possibly September, the time when the census' were actually held.

I don't take a yearly mental deep breath for all the fake that it is. I know your story is fake, but the Pagan holiday, the feast of the Son of Isis, was celebrated on December 25.
Partying, feasting, and gift giving, were traditions of this event.
We also had the Romans who called their winter holiday Saturnalia, honoring Saturn, the God of Agriculture. This was celebrated many years before the birth of Christ.
In ancient Rome, they had people who went around costumed and singing, and dancing. They were called the Mummers. The tradition of caroling came from this.
The pagans of northern Europe celebrated their own winter solstice, known as Yule. Yule was symbolic of the pagan Sun God, Mithras, being born, and was observed on the shortest day of the year. As the Sun God grew and matured, the days became longer and warmer. It was customary to light a candle to encourage Mithras, and the sun, to reappear next year.
What day is that?
December 25th.
In 350, Pope Julius I, declared that Christ's birth would be celebrated on December 25.
It was done so it would be as painless as possible for pagan Romans who were the majority at the time, to convert to Christianity. They accepted this because it meant that their feasts and traditions would not be taken away from them.
The earliest recorded history of a tree being used in a Christian celebration was in 1521, in Germany.
The tree is the one symbol that unites almost all the northern European winter solstices. Live evergreen trees were often brought into homes during the harsh winters as a reminder to inhabitants that soon their crops would grow again.
The Druids used the tree as a religious symbol, holding their sacred ceremonies, while surrounding and worshiping huge trees.

So please, don't tell me I have to take a yearly deep breath for all the fakery. It is others who took the holiday from the non-Christians, and used it, because they had no evidence of the day their savior was born, and they needed to try and convert people over.
It is you who needs to understand the history of Christmas, and not go around attacking others who are not like you.

As for the rest of your email and your personal attacks, I already told you, don't contact me ever again.
Your comments if you leave them, will never be published. Your emails will be deleted.
And ya know what else?
I'll say fuck whenever the fuck I want to.

� Hide It

Kat posted at 01:40 AM on August 25, 2007 || Comments (7) || Link || Holidays

August 19, 2007

I almost fell outta my chair and

was thisclose to needing some incontinence supplies, when I read that Anne Rice had become a Christian.

Yes, that Anne Rice.
She was one of my favorite authors. I loved all the vampire novels, Lestat and Louie, Armand and Akasha.
Some of my most beloved characters were penned by Rice, and now, now she writes books with titles like Christ the Lord, out of Egypt.
She's a born again, and while that is her choice, it leaves me kind of sad.

I know people go through changes in their lives, and it's not my place to judge or even question, but I can't help but wonder what brought about this change in her.
She wasn't a devil worshiper by any means, she was an atheist who wrote some fabulous books about vampires, and kept us awake at night turning page after page.

I guess this happened a little while ago, but I just now heard, and well, it just sucks.
Not much I can say, and nothing I can do, it just sucks is all.

Kat posted at 09:50 PM on August 19, 2007 || Comments (10) || Link || Entertainment

August 19, 2007

It's time for a new shirt.

Go to Foul Mouth shirts, and help me pick out a new t-shirt to wear when I have to answer the door.

This is one of my faves, but I would actually like to pick up at least two new ones, so help me out!

Kat posted at 03:38 PM on August 19, 2007 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

August 11, 2007

Getting it out of the way.

It's difficult living life outside the flock.
A lot of people think being an atheist means I'm a heathen, that I live with no rules, I surely must lie, cheat and steal, ruin marriages because I have no respect for relationships, can't possibly be a good person because I don't have a higher power guiding my every move, and making me be a better person.

One of the things that always comes up in the beginning of a new friendship or relationship, is what my view is on religion.
It always comes up, somehow, someway, it always does.
Over the years I've learned to just get it out of the way, just have the talk and be done with it.
I don't like wasting my time or any one else's time, and they don't appreciate their time being wasted either.
I'm talking about time being wasted in the way that it does when this new relationship is starting out.
Two people meet, start talking, sharing stories, laughs, doing things and going places.
Days and weeks go by, and then the inevitable happens.
The religious discussion.
I don't know why it always eventually comes up, but I've never been wrong about the talk happening sooner or later, so I just get it done and over with these days.
Save both of us the time that could have been spent finding someone like ourselves.
Opposites do attract, but rarely on this issue.

While getting it out of the way does save both parties some time, it's usually quite a shock to the other person, that I am not a believer.
I usually get the 'wow' reply, followed by something along the lines of what their beliefs entail.
Sometimes, the other person can get past my lack of belief and still be able to have a long lasting, worthwhile relationship.
But usually, that doesn't happen.

I don't have the talk to offend people, I do it to spare us both the uncomfortable and awkward feelings that come up when it's finally discussed.
The pain of having to end said relationship, because we just cannot mesh after learning about where I stand.
Most people are probably thinking I'm full of crap right now, that this can't possibly be true, that no one would end a friendship or relationship over this, but it always happens.
I've lost countless friends, have had budding romances end abruptly because as much as he digs me, his family would never be accepting of someone who doesn't believe.
Which is partly true, but the real truth is, that he can't see himself with someone who doesn't share the same belief system as he does, and he would be embarrassed to have to explain to his family why his new girlfriend won't be joining them at church this Sunday or any Sunday.
Ever.

I've had the talk with someone recently, just laid it all out there, because it's pointless to go any farther with this friendship if it eventually is going to come crashing down.
I got the 'wow'.
The wow will probably be followed up with some kind of talk, and possibly even be able to talk for a few more days to a few more weeks.
They will try to figure out if there's some way I can be changed, some way they can look past the huge road block of not having this in common, and eventually the communication will just fade away.

I'm not going to lie and say it doesn't bother me that it ends, because it does bother me, but I cannot be changed on this.
I'm not going to lie and say it doesn't hurt me, because it does hurt me.
But it cannot be changed, and so it really is best to just have the talk, let it play out like it always does, and then close the door.

It would be so much easier to just believe like so many millions of people do, but I can't.
It'd even be so much easier to lie about it and just say yes, I believe too, but I can't.
So while all of this saddens me, and causes the both of us to lose out on possibly some great shared experiences, and the possibility of having a great friendship or relationship, it is what it is and I accept it.
I'm used to it.
Being used to it doesn't mean I like it, because I don't, but I accept it and move on.

Kat posted at 08:01 PM on August 11, 2007 || Comments (8) || Link || Religion

July 19, 2007

I found a way to relieve my boredom. La lala lala la.

Today's fun forum question is.. drum roll please....

"If Chris Angel could levitate, why couldn't you believe that Jesus could split the ocean?"

Now, you can only imagine how I've been passing the time right?
I find it amazingly funny that the people with no beliefs, know more about religion and mythology than the people who hold the beliefs as fact. Err, faith.

During the fun forum question of the day, it was brought up how the life story of Jesus matches the exact same life stories of several other sun gods, most notably, Horus.
They are identical.
Horus and Jesus were both born on December 25th, they were teaching at age 12, they were crucified, they were buried and rose from the dead in 3 days.

If you ( general you) knew anything about the sun gods, then you would know they all have the exact same origins in mythology.
They all follow the zodiac.
The bible is full of astrological symbolism based on the sun, the stars, the setting of the sun etc.
Dec 22nd through the early morning hours of Dec 25th, the sun sits still (always setting in the exact same location) directly beneath 3 stars in the northern sky. They are the longest, darkest days.
Those stars as known as the, da ta da! 3 kings!
On Dec 25th, the sun comes out of winter solstice and begins rising again shedding more light.
The birth of the sun, or as the bible says, the birth of the son.

There are so many identical things about Jesus and Horus, as well as 3 other sun gods, plus all the astrological stuff in the bible, that it has been drawn, that each age has it's own version of the sun god.
We are in the zodiac age of Pisces, this is known in the bible as the age of Christ. We will be entering the age of Aquarius on the zodiac time line soon.
Jesus said he would be with us till the end of his age, which is mistranslated in the bible as the word 'time'.
People believe because of this mistranslation, that when Jesus said that, it meant the end of the world.
It simply meant the end of his age, his age in the zodiac time line.

The debate went something like, 'I don't want to read about the sun gods because I believe in Jesus, he's not part of some sun posse'.
'But his life is identical to all the other previous sun gods of Egyptian mythology that were written thousands of years before christ, why wouldn't you want to educate yourself about the similarities of the various gods?'
'Because I don't need to, I have faith'.
'Okely dokely!'

See? I can always find a way to amuse myself if I try hard enough. *wink*

Kat posted at 03:19 PM on July 19, 2007 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

July 15, 2007

Sunday sermon #36

To those searching for truth, not the truth of dogma and darkness but the truth brought by reason, search, examination, and inquiry, discipline is required. For faith, as well intentioned as it may be, must be built on facts, not fiction, faith in fiction is a damnable false hope.
--Thomas Edison

Kat posted at 09:35 AM on July 15, 2007 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

July 13, 2007

Christian extremists disrupt Hindu Senate invocation

What a bunch of disrespectful people we have in the house huh?
It's tradition to have a prayer in the senate house, and these Christians can't keep their mouths shut to let a Hindu priest give the invocation.
I do not agree with prayer in the government, but even I have enough respect to be quiet during prayer.
Luckily, they were arrested.

Disgusting.

Kat posted at 06:27 PM on July 13, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

July 8, 2007

Sunday sermon #35

"I believe in honesty and truthfulness, not because I fear a god or a devil, but because I think it is the best way for people to live together. I believe in helping others because when we cooperate with our neighbors we make life easier for all. I believe in treating others as I want to be treated - but I certainly do not believe in turning the other cheek and the truth is, I never knew any Christians who did either."
[James Hervey Johnson]

Kat posted at 10:35 AM on July 8, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

July 1, 2007

Sunday sermon #34

Why assume so glibly that the God who presumably created the universe is still running it?
-- H L Mencken

Kat posted at 12:30 PM on July 1, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

June 24, 2007

Stem cell veto heats up the debate. Again.

I'm sure you've all heard by now that he (Bush) vetoed the stem cell research for embryonic cells again, and urges researching other lines, like adult stem cells.
He says he values human life, and pretty much every one who agrees with him on that, cites abortion as the reason why.

In the last few days, this debate was brought up in a few places I visit on line, and it got ugly, as it always does.
Lines drawn in the sand, people making accusations against one another, the word abortion tossed around as the reasoning for not using stem cells, and religion as the backbone for that side of the argument.

People were not interested in the scientific facts of when life begins, which the baby's heart takes it's first beat at day 18, and makes it's first brain wave pattern at day 40, they are staunch believers that life begins at the exact moment the egg is fertilized.
And I'm not saying they do not have the right to believe that way, they cite religion as the reason they are opposed to abortion and therefore embryonic cell use.
The embryos come from frozen, donated embryos, not from aborted fetuses.
But no one wants to hear that.
Life begins at conception they say, so even if it's a frozen embryo, it is life.

They say that even if the owners of the donated embryos, gave consent for them to be used for science, the embryo didn't.
The embryo can't because it is not a live being capable of making that decision, and will not be able to make that decision until day 40 when it's brain makes it's first wave pattern.
These embryos are frozen before the heart even makes it's first beat at day 18, so therefore, it is not alive and capable of any such decision at all, leaving the decision solely up to the owners who have donated it.

But then we always come back to abortion.
It will always come back around to abortion.

What I am going to say is going to offend and upset the religious right, the defenders of life who cite the bible as the reason they are against abortion.
I already know the arguments that will follow, because I've had this discussion multiple times now.
I know that the religious right are going to come in and say that the old testament was before, when God was a vengeful god, when he punished for every little thing, that he spoke in metaphors.
I hear that argument from the anti-abortion defenders all the time, the old testament doesn't count, he spoke in metaphors.
They say that the bible is not meant to be taken literally, yet this is the book they base their entire belief system on, so which is it?
Is it a true book, or is it a book we should not take seriously because he didn't mean the entire first half of it?

No wait, some stuff from the old testament is true, just not the parts where he's doing bad stuff.
My bad, forgive me.
I'm about to say some things that will anger people, so I'm putting them beneath the cut.
But I'm going to be firm on this and will hope that I can get a straight answer from anyone who wants to try to defend the old testament.
If the bible is true, then the entire bible is true.
There are no parts that are spoken in metaphors, there are no parts where what was said is not what is meant.
Either the entire bible is true, or none of it is true.
It cannot be both ways, it cannot be he spoke in metaphors, it cannot be he didn't mean what he said.
This book is the basis for billions of people believing in a God.
It either is, or isn't.

Continue Reading �

When people say that God and the bible are the reason for believing that abortion is wrong, then they obviously have not read the bible, or they think as I have stated above, that he spoke in metaphors, or he didn't mean these acts.

God is not pro-life.
Yes I now what comes now, the following bible verses.
One of the commandments, "thou shall not kill", and "I kneweth thou in the womb", and "When men strive together, and hurt a woman with child, so that there is a miscarriage, and yet no harm follows, the one who hurt her shall be fined, according as the woman"s husband shall lay upon; and he shall pay as the judges determine. If any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth..." Exodus 21:22-24

Those are the basis for the religious anti-abortionists.
But what about these?

Hosea 9:11-16 Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the murderer. Give them, 0 Lord: what wilt thou give? Give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts. . .Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no fruit: yea though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved fruit of their womb.
That is a God condoned, and performed abortion in mass quantity.

Numbers 5:11-21 This is a brutal ritual that was done on a woman suspected of adultery. There was an induced abortion to rid her of the other man's child.

Numbers 31:17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every women that hath known man by lying with him.
This includes killing every woman who is pregnant, which is also murder of the fetus. Abortion.

Hosea 13:16 God promises to dash to pieces the infants of Samaria. their women with child shall be ripped up
Again, God kills the children, the unborn, and their pregnant mothers.

2 Kings 15:16 God allows the pregnant women of Tappuah to be ripped open.
God clearly allows yet again, more pregnant women to be ripped open (abortion) and then murdered.

These are true and real passages from the bible, which is the basis for the religious anti-abortionists stance.
They believe God is pro-life and he is the reason they are against abortion, yet we clearly see that God not only allowed people to perform abortions, he did them himself.

But I know, he was speaking in metaphors, he didn't mean it, the old testament doesn't count.
I know the arguments well.
But my stance is, either the bible is true, or it isn't.
You cannot pick and choose which parts are real, which parts are made up, and which parts you think he didn't really mean what he said.
The bible is the basis for billions of people to believe in God, they believe the bible is the true word of God, but only certain parts of it?
No, you can't have it both ways.
It is, or it isn't.

So if indeed the bible is the true word of God, and he himself performed abortions, then saying that God disapproves of abortion, is 100% false.

And another thing, the bible, the true word of God says this;
Romans 13: 1-7

Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which god has established. The authorities that exist have been established by god. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what god has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he shall commend you. For he is god's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is god's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. There fore it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience.

This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are god's servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes, if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

It is the job of Christians to obey the laws. God has commanded them to NOT disobey, and the laws state that abortion is legal.

Now, maybe we can separate abortion from a frozen embryo, and get on with stem cell research .
What do you think?

*Bible verses and some quotes taken from Evil bible.com. The site is a bit harsh for most people, but the bible verses contained are true and actual verses as found in their respective chapters in the King James version.

� Hide It

Kat posted at 11:36 AM on June 24, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

June 17, 2007

The God who wasn't there.

What would Sundays be like at my blog without a little religion?

The boys and I just got done watching the movie, The God Who Wasn't There by Brian Flemming.

This movie asks the question of whether or not Jesus, and God, even existed at all.
By using a time line, it irreverently lays claim that Christ never existed.
Don't start yet, wait for it.
See, Jesus supposedly died around 33AD. The gospels were never written until about 40 years later, sometime around 70AD.
During those 40 years, Paul wrote some stuff, but the only mentions of Christ were his crucifixion, and resurrection, and ascension. There's no mention of his actual life, miracle works, the teachings, the temple, Pilate, the virgin birth, to Mary and Joseph, to Bethlehem, to Herod, to *any* words allegedly spoken by Jesus, to anything pertaining to Jesus' earthly ministry, none of the stories on the man himself, except for his death.
Then the gospels were written and they mention Paul, but Paul didn't know of Jesus except for his death?
That's odd.
There's no historical facts about the slaughter of the innocents either.

While this film will not turn any fundamentalist Christian into an atheist, it lays out the facts very well that Christ was a mythical God much like Oedipus and Dionysus, which if you ask most Christians, they have never even heard of, much less be able to make any comparisons to their lives, which by the way, are many.

The movie is quite funny in parts, the teens and I laughed at a lot of footage including some very early films from the 40's and even The Passion of the Christ, which is surprisingly, the most favorite movie version of the depiction of Christ's life ever, by Christians.
It must be the gore in the film.
I totally dug it too.

Flemming takes us to the school he grew up in and talks to the principal of that school. It's a Christian school, and it's obvious that Flemming needed to talk to that man and ask him why he would teach children that this is how the world really works (that you must believe, have a personal relationship with Christ, ask for forgiveness, or burn in hell) when he has absolutely no proof that it does.
I told the teens while this interview was going on to wait for it, any minute now, the principal is going to say "this interview is over."
It happened rather quickly, with the principal saying Flemming was dishonest when he asked for an interview.
Flemming asked him in an email if he could come back as a former student, and ask about the education that the students at the school received.
He was not dishonest. That was what he was asking.
He wanted to know why this school taught kids these things without any proof at all, and the principals answer was of course, the one we always hear.
"We don't have any, we have faith."

There were DVD extras including extended length interviews with all the people, writers, scholars he spoke to, and the links to all their websites.
One such website is called Rapture Letters.

After the rapture, there will be a lot of speculation as to why millions of people have
just disappeared. Unfortunately, after the rapture, only non believers will be left to come up with answers. You probably have family and friends that you have witnessed to and they just won't listen. After the rapture they probably will, but who will tell them?

We have written a computer program to do just that. It will send an Electronic Message (e-mail) to whomever you want after the rapture has taken place, and you and I have been taken to heaven.

How is this accomplished, you might ask. It's a dead man switch that will automatically send the emails when it is not reset.

Sounds pretty cool eh?
It's so cool, I sent myself a letter.
Yup, I want to see this baby in action, (It's not going to happen as the rapture is just another mythical story from a fictional gospel book of stories) so I sent myself a letter.
Seeing as the owner of the site believes that the rapture will happen in his lifetime, and he's in his late 40's, he says it will happen in the next 20-30 years.
I should still be alive then, so I'll be waiting for the dead man switch.
Of course, that dead man switch could just happen because the guy, (the web site owner) could die for a multitude of reasons any time in the next 20-30 years.
Like natural causes, or get hit by a bus.
I wonder how many people will get that letter and freak out. Hrm....

In closing, The God Who Wasn't There, is a very good film, any atheist will get a kick out of it, and be nodding along at all the scientific and historical data presented within it, but I doubt it will turn any true believers into rational thinkers.

Kat posted at 09:05 PM on June 17, 2007 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

June 10, 2007

Sunday Sermon #33

There is no excuse for deceiving children. And when, as must happen in conventional families, they find that their parents have lied, they lose confidence in them and feel justified in lying to them.
-- Bertrand Russell, Our Sexual Ethics (1936)

The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence that it is not utterly absurd; indeed, in view of the silliness of the majority of mankind, a widespread belief is more likely to be foolish than sensible.
-- Bertrand Russell, "Christian Ethics" from Marriage and Morals (1950), quoted from James A Haught, ed., 2000 Years of Disbelief

If fifty million people say a foolish thing, it's still a foolish thing.
-- Bertrand Russell (attributed: source unknown)

Kat posted at 11:27 AM on June 10, 2007 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

May 25, 2007

Humanism, what's that?

One of the other books I bought for my sis and the girls was Humanism, What's That?: A Book for Curious Kids.

"A conversation between Mrs. Green, a science teacher, and her students forms the basis of this thoughtful work. Starting with the historic concept of separation of church and state, the curious youngsters' insistent questions lead to a conversation of philosophic issues: When a fellow student is injured on her way to class, they wonder why they aren't allowed to pray for her in class. Why do some people believe in God while others don't? What gives life meaning? In the course of what becomes a parent-approved after-school discussion, Mrs. Green presents a humanist point of view, emphasizing science's explanation of life and freedom of thought."
--------

I love this book!
It helps to answer the questions kids may have about non-belief in a way kids can understand.
This book is designed to teach your kids HOW to think, not WHAT to think.
It gives them the tools to look at things using logic and reason to find the answers, not just a here, this is what I believe and so you need to believe it too way of looking at the world.
Another great book for free thought and humanist parents.
______________

And on this topic, the Creation Museum opens this Memorial day weekend in Kentucky.
" Next week, the religious right will take a bold new step in its campaign against science education in America. The creationist organization, Answers in Genesis, will open its $27 million "Creation Museum" in northern Kentucky. The Disney-like museum is dedicated to promoting the falsehood that science supports the notion of men and women cavorting with dinosaurs on a 6,000-year-old Earth.

From denying the facts of evolution to lying about the known age of the universe, the "museum" represents an assault on our children's basic understanding of fundamental scientific principles."
You can sign the petition to voice your opposition to the religious right's campaign of ignorance.

Kat posted at 03:07 PM on May 25, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

May 20, 2007

Sunday Sermon #32

I LOVE the way this guy thinks and speaks.
This is Pat Condell, a religious comedian of sorts.

"Too lazy and stupid to think for yourself? Welcome to Jesus country.
A writer and comedian with a new stand-up show FAITH HOPE & SANITY - A few jokes about RELIGION before it kills us all."

Kat posted at 11:40 AM on May 20, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

May 16, 2007

So the leader of the moral majority died yesterday.

Jerry Falwell died at age 73 yesterday.
He was the face of the religious right.
Some people say that the religious right simply means republican, but it means right, that they think they are right, and every one else is wrong.
He believed when he said that "the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this happen.'"
He blamed everyone but God.
See, the people who attacked us on 9/11, they believe that their God is right, Allah commanded them to do that.
Religion caused the attacks.

Continue Reading �

He supported racial segregation.
He thought a children's television show, was influencing children to be gay.
He seemed to have a lot of problems with gays.
He sued a couple porn magazines, and lost.
He accused Bill Clinton of orchestrating the deaths of several reporters and personal confidants who had gotten too close to his illegalities. However, it was subsequently revealed that the silhouetted journalist was, in fact, Patrick Matrisciana, the producer of the video and president of Citizens for Honest Government.
He lied, he made it all up.
Matrisciana admitted that it was "Jerry's idea to do that ... He thought that would be dramatic."
He was a liar.
I wonder how that lying thing is doing for him now, cuz ya know, lying is a sin, the ten commandments say so.
Do you think he repented yesterday morning right before his ticker stopped?

He was completely against public education, calling it a breeding ground for atheism, secularism, and humanism, which he claimed to be in contradiction with Christian morality.
Just take a look at his Christian morality.
Let's take a look at some things Falwell said over the years.

If you're not a born-again Christian, you're a failure as a human being. (*snicker*)

I had a student ask me, "Could the savior you believe in save Osama bin Laden?" Of course, we know the blood of Jesus Christ can save him, and then he must be executed. (Ok! God can save and forgive him, but then WE have to kill him. Got it!)

AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals. (Um, yeah)

Grown men should not be having sex with prostitutes unless they are married to them. (Ha ha! What?!)

I do not believe the homosexual community deserves minority status. One's misbehavior does not qualify him or her for minority status. Blacks, Hispanics, women, etc., are God-ordained minorities who do indeed deserve minority status. (That's right all you women, you are minorities to god. Sucks huh?)

Billy Graham is the chief servant of Satan. (Well I bet that will come as a shock to millions who hang on Billy's every word)

His legacy is one of hate and divisiveness.
He did more damage to the people of this country than he ever did good.
He made it ok for Christians to hate anyone who was not like them. He made it his mission to make his fellow believers hate homosexuals, women, and anyone else who wasn't a Christian.

I feel sad for those who loved him and lost him, his family, but this world is much better off without this man.

� Hide It

Kat posted at 12:16 PM on May 16, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

May 12, 2007

The whole debate is up.

I've updated this entry to include all of the debate between Rational Responders and Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort.
I've watched all of the debate, it is in parts, so it's fairly easy to watch one video, go do something else and come back to it again later.
Kirk and Ray were completely unprepared for this debate.
They had promised to bring evidence of gods existence, to actually debate, and they ended up invoking scripture, the ten commandments, and then failing at their own reason for a god.
They said that if we look at a painting, there must be a painter. If we look at a building, there must be a builder.
If we look at creation, there must be a creator.
But when asked who created the creator, they said that god is eternal and infinite, lives outside the realm of time.
If god is infinite and eternal, why can't the universe be infinite and eternal?
They had absolutely no response to the first law of thermodynamics or Occam's razor. They just sat there asking each other if the other had anything to say on it. Dumbfounded.
I was hoping they would have brought up the banana, that would have been fun. They do say it proves the existence of god, yet didn't bring it to the debate.
Hrm. Did they realize that the modern banana has actually been farmed and domesticated over thousands of years from it's original state, and know that bringing that up would make them look like uneducated idiots?
I really think there are better people who could have debated the Christian viewpoint so much better than these two.
Anyway, the whole debate is up for anyone interested in watching.

Kat posted at 01:05 PM on May 12, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

May 9, 2007

A note about the debate between RR , Ray and Kirk;

The youtube video I posted on this entry, is definitely cut. It was taken with a hand held camera by the Rational Responders.
ABC is at some point today, going to post the entire video of the debate.
I'm really surprised that Kirk and Ray agreed to it in the first place, and even more surprised they didn't whip out a banana, the atheists nightmare according to them, and argue that point.
When the full video is posted, I will edit my original post to include it, because it's only fair that the entire debate be shown.
While I am a supporter of RR, I believe that RR should have posted the whole video themselves unedited. They should not have put any graphics or anything in it, but let the debate stand on it's own. If the debate went so well, and had the audience applauding for RR as the winner, there should have been no reason at all to do any editing.

Kat posted at 11:53 AM on May 9, 2007 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

May 9, 2007

Which way was that master again?

Last night, Rational Responders were on Nightline with Martin Bashir as host, debating my two favorite banana lovers, Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort.
Kirk and Ray promised to debate using scientific evidence to prove the existence of a creator, to not invoke the bible.
Kirk and Ray failed miserably against logical, rational arguments for the existence of a god.
Freaking awesome!
You can watch the debate, if you want to even call it that, here on youtube.

Here is the link to the article on ABC.
The entire debate will air tonight on ABC's Nightline.

Parts 1 through 5 are now online. You can watch them here.

Kat posted at 08:44 AM on May 9, 2007 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

May 8, 2007

I'm ordering a bunch of books tomorrow for sis.

My sister is fortunate enough to be raising the girls in an age when there are books for atheists.
Parenting books, evolution story books, humanist books.
I really wish there had been books when my boys were little. There were so many questions the boys had almost daily because of things kids at school said, things teachers said, things people in the grocery store said.
It was difficult trying to raise them to have morals without having the fear so many other kids are raised with. The fear of eternal punishment if you "sin".
I know someone will chime in and say well kids aren't raised in fear with religion, but they are.
Simple bible stories create the fear whether parents realize it or not.
Jonah and the whale? I had the cutest little storybook when I was a kid about Jonah. It was beautiful. This little girl was learning the story of Jonah, and "God" was talking to her about it.
We all know how that story goes, but to me, a little kid, no matter how cute the story was told, no matter how pretty the pictures, a whale swallowed Jonah.
Whole.
Because he disobeyed.
I grew up in Maine, and every summer my mom would pack up a ton of kids from our own home and half the neighborhood, and take us all to the beach.
After learning the story of Jonah, do you really think I wanted to be anywhere near that water?
And yes I know, it was because he sinned, but I was a kid and I'm pretty sure I wasn't the best kid. I did bad stuff, my mom will tell y'all I did bad stuff.
I disobeyed many times, didn't finish my plate after being told to, didn't clean my room, had bad and angry thoughts. I was terrified a whale was gonna come and get me.
Just asking for forgiveness at night before bed, did nothing to kill my fears of that whale.
And don't even get me started on people being turned into piles of salt.

When I decided that my kids would not be raised that way, would not be taught the stories from the bible in order to learn morals and compassion for others, I had nothing to help me.
It was all up to me to teach them lessons about how to be good people.
It was rough.
Kids in their classes would tell them they were going to hell because they didn't believe in God. They were picked on, made fun of, teachers couldn't understand why I was so upset that they didn't intervene when the teasing happened.
I actually had one teacher tell me, "Well then maybe you should take your kids to church so they fit in."
Ugh.

Sis is lucky. There are so many great books to teach kids about evolution, humanism, how to raise them morally without any religion at all.
The girls are still quite young, but I found a few books I'm getting for them tomorrow for sis to read to them. Books that can answer the questions they will have as they grow up.
Here's a few of the titles I'm picking up for her.
Humanism, What's That?: A Book for Curious Kids, Parenting Beyond Belief: On Raising Ethical, Caring Kids Without Religion, Life on Earth: The Story of Evolution, and Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story.

Kat posted at 10:44 AM on May 8, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

May 7, 2007

Bible fight!!!

I saw this on a Christian blog, and to my surprise, they thought this was actually a good idea.
What is this?
It's Bible Fight!
You have your choice of characters to fight against the computer. You can be Jesus, Eve, Mary, Moses, Noah, and Satan. And if you win a few tourneys, you can even be God. Oooooooh.
Yes that's right, you can play as Jesus and kick the fucking shit out of Moses.
So I showed the teens the game and of course, they decided to play as Satan and kick the crap out of all the goody bible characters, but here's the funny.
You can play as a good bible character, and kick the crap out of another good bible character.
I played it. I chose to play as Jesus, and the computer picked Eve.
Uh, does anyone else just think this is so totally wrong?
I know how that just sounded, an atheist said a video game where Jesus or any other good character, can kick the fucking shit out of another good bible character, is wrong.
Maybe it's because I have actually read the bible, and even though it says an eye for an eye, in Matthew, Chapter 5, Jesus says:
38 You have heard that it was said, �An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.�
39 But I say to you, Do not resist one who is evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also;
40 and if any one would sue you and take your coat, let him have your cloak as well;
41 and if any one forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
42 Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you.
So basically, don't fight. Let there be love.

I admit as an atheist, it totally cracks me up, but why oh why, would a Christian blogger think that game is a good thing?
Is it because it would be played by kids and introduce them to the characters from the bible? Or maybe it's a way to get already Christian kids who play video games, interested in the bible more?
Who knows.
But I found it slightly blasphemous, and I don't even believe in the bible as the word of God! *laughs*
Wow.
I think I just find it crazy that a Christian blogger would think that game is ok.
But as for this house, it totally cracked us up.

Kat posted at 10:20 PM on May 7, 2007 || Comments (6) || Link || Religion

May 7, 2007

No more coffee? Boo hoo.

Michelle Incanno says she won't drink Starbucks anymore, because of a quote on her paper cup by another customer.

Printed on the cup was: "Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength and help? As cognitive beings, why would we ask something that may well be a figment of our imaginations for guidance? Why not search inside ourselves for the power to overcome? After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to endure."

It is attributed to Bill Schell, a Starbucks customer from London, Ontario, and was included on the cup as part of an effort by the company to collect different viewpoints and spur discussion.

Ok, so there's a quote on the cup. Big whoop.

"As someone who loves God, I was so offended by that. I don't think there needs to be religious dialogue on it. I just want coffee," said Incanno, a married mother of three who is Catholic.

A quote stops you from drinking your coffee?
Wah.
Does all the religious propaganda at my local Publix deli, stop me from buying meat?
Hell no!
Does it offend me that they have that rack of books sitting there?
Of course it does, but not simply because it's religious.
It bothers me because the only religion it caters to is Christian.
If it included book titles for people of all differing faiths, I wouldn't have a problem with it at all. But it only caters to Christians so it bothers me.

But Incanno said her Starbucks days are over.

"I wouldn't feel right going back," she said.

Ok, don't go back. It's really your loss isn't it Michelle? I mean, you are the admitted Starbucks coffee junkie, they have MILLIONS more who will still go back regardless of something written on a paper cup.
You can let Starbucks know what you think by going to www.starbucks.com/wayiseeit.
I don't drink coffee, but I applaud Starbucks for wanting to open dialogue about all kinds of different subjects.
People need to start talking and seeing other people's points of view instead of being so closed minded like Incanno here. She obviously thinks her way of life is the only right way. There are many other religions, there are people without religion, and this kind of closed minded ignorance and indignation, are why we have so many problems.

Kat posted at 03:38 PM on May 7, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

April 26, 2007

I would love to read this one.

I was perusing the site I posted earlier with the catholic gifts on it, and spent some time looking through the titles of their catholic books section.
This one in particular.
I've always been fascinated by the subject of the rapture.
I'm sure it's all a very real possibility to believers, but I've seen so many comical but well meaning movies on the Trinity Broadcasting Network, that make the entire thing just laughable.
There was one which had me rolling with tears.
All these people walking around saying things like where's my husband, my mommy's gone, my teacher just disappeared, crying, stunned people every where, and then all this other super freaky stuff starts happening like really bad cgi demons and stuff.
It was comical, so I'd like to read what the catholics think of it. Their opinions on things in the bible are interesting to say the least.

Kat posted at 08:49 PM on April 26, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

April 26, 2007

Catholic gifts for all? Of course!

I have a wide variety of friends in a wide variety of religions, most of them Catholic. They are a funny lot, they love to give me Catholic gifts for my birthdays or just because.
I have several copies of Catholic bibles, crosses, rosaries, books.
I got a copy of Catholicism for dummies. That was awesome.
I have awesome friends, they don't mean any harm by doing it, it's usually a gag gift. But it's all cool with me.

Kat posted at 04:40 PM on April 26, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

April 18, 2007

Parenting beyond belief.

Agnostic Mom has asked that her readers help spread the word on the new book, Parenting Beyond Belief: On Raising Ethical, Caring Kids Without Religion, because it needs some help being promoted.

Several parenting magazines are declining to review the book for fear of offending religious subscribers, and a few retailers are declining to stock the book, claiming there is no market for it. It is essential that we demonstrate otherwise, so please put all promotional oars in the water as soon as possible.

It's a terrible shame that magazines won't pop in an ad for atheist titles because they don't want to offend their religious subscribers.
I know there are more of them than there are of us, but come on, you don't see us ending our subscriptions to magazines over a small block ad for Christian book titles do you?
But there are people who don't even think book stores should sell atheist titles.
To quote Don Feder, writer of an editorial for USA Today, again;

"Oh, for the days when one could safely stroll into a bookstore without tripping over the latest atheist title."

Because book stores are the oh so wrong place to sell books. *eyeroll*

Please, if you are an atheist who wants to help spread the word about this parenting book, please post it on your blog.
As a parent who has raised my sons without religion in this religion filled world, a book sure would have come in handy.
Help spread the word so other secular parents can learn about this book, and have it a bit easier than I did trying to raise them without indoctrination in an indoctrinated society.

From Amazon;

It�s hard enough to live a secular life in a religious world. And bringing up children without religious influence can be even more daunting. Despite the difficulties, a large and growing number of parents are choosing to raise their kids without religion.

In Parenting Beyond Belief, Dale McGowan celebrates the freedom that comes with raising kids without formal indoctrination and advises parents on the most effective way to raise freethinking children. With advice from educators, doctors, psychologists, and philosophers as well as wisdom from everyday parents, the book offers tips and insights on a variety of topics, from "mixed marriages" to coping with death and loss, and from morality and ethics to dealing with holidays. Sensitive and timely, Parenting Beyond Belief features reflections from such freethinkers as Mark Twain, Richard Dawkins, Bertrand Russell, and wellness guru Dr. Don Ardell that will empower every parent to raise both caring and independent children without constraints.

Agnosticmom.com Parenting beyond belief Atheism

Kat posted at 10:49 PM on April 18, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

April 16, 2007

There is morality without god.

I thanked my dear friend Christine earlier for a gift she sent me.
I had the book Atheist Universe: The Thinking Person's Answer to Christian Fundamentalism, on my wish list, and she picked it up for me.
I cannot wait to delve deep into it's pages.
Especially after reading this today.

Oh, for the days when one could safely stroll into a bookstore without tripping over the latest atheist title.

Oh, for the days when I could walk into a grocery store and not be assaulted with Christian titles in the deli.
This poor guy, Don Feder, seems to think the book store is the wrong place for books.
They sell books Don, of all titles, ideas, words and thoughts. If the book store is the wrong place for atheist titles, then the grocery store deli is most certainly the wrong place for Christian titles.

What would a world without God look like? Well, for one, morality becomes, if not impossible, exceedingly difficult. "Thou shalt not kill" loses much of its force when reduced from commandment to a suggestion.

Commandments don't keep me from killing people, my own desire to stay alive does.
See, I don't kill people, because I don't want to be killed.
I treat my fellow humans as I would want to be treated.
If I want to be lied to, I will lie, if I want to steal, then it gives others the right to steal from me.
But that's not how I want to live my life. I want people to respect me and my things, my life, so I respect theirs.
A lack of a god does not take away from our moral duties to one another.
I know what argument follows next, that we can't have it both ways, that either there is a higher power that we fear, and that is why we do right by one another, or that there is no higher power, and we owe each other nothing.
Not so.
I say there is no higher power, but that we do owe each other the right to basic life. That if we want to live, then we must not kill, but grant each other the same right to live.
How hard is this to understand?
I do not fear a hell or any punishment, that is not why I treat my fellow man with respect, but it is simply because I want to be respected back.

Kat posted at 07:02 PM on April 16, 2007 || Comments (11) || Link || Religion

April 5, 2007

Statue bad, cross good.

ABC is reporting that a major controversy is taking place because of a 200-pound, 6-foot-tall and anatomically correct sculpture of Jesus made entirely out of chocolate. The art piece was made by Cosimo Cavallaro, who says; "I didn't go out there to make this offensive, Had I wanted to make it offensive, I would have done something completely different."

It was supposed to be on display at a gallery in New York during easter week, but officials at the gallery, pulled the plug after criticism from both Catholics and Christians.

"This would rank as one of the worst, most vile, obscene and blasphemous assaults on Christian sensibilities that I have ever seen," said Bill Donahue, president of the Catholic League.

Really? They're all bent out of shape over a statue that would be on exhibit, but it's perfectly ok to sell chocolate crosses in pretty little boxes, to stuff inside the baskets of good Christian and Catholic little boys and girls?
What makes a statue any more offensive than that?
Those kids, are gonna eat those crosses.

CHOMP!
Big bites, taken right off the side of the very object that symbolizes their faith.
The artist did send out invitations that read; "Come eat Christ", but again, it would be on exhibit, not to actually eat. But chocolate crosses in baskets? Eaten.
It's artistic expression, and people are free to create whatever they want and put it on display.
Others should be free to view whatever they want.
Forcing galleries to remove artistic work, is censorship.
It's not protecting your religion. It's not protecting your flock's religion, it's censorship plain and simple.
If I were these people, I'd be more pissed off at the millions of kids who walk around on easter Sunday, taking bites off a chocolate cross, than I would be at a statue on display.

chocolate jesus

Kat posted at 08:24 AM on April 5, 2007 || Comments (6) || Link || Religion

March 25, 2007

Sunday Sermon 31

I was using my Stumble Upon last night because I was bored and couldn't sleep with my shoulder the way it was, and decided to venture into the forums of a few groups I had checked off when I first joined Stumble.

I came across a posting that seems to make sense when it comes to why so many people believe in god.
You can agree or disagree, but this made total sense to me.

The best explanation of this paradox that I have read so far comes from Stuart A. Vyse's Believing in Magic. He points out that superstitions and other irrational beliefs are often associated with membership in social groups. From this point of view, the most important feature of a religious belief is not that it's believable, but precisely that it's unbelievable! To be a useful way of ensuring group loyalty, the belief must not be a conclusion you could have reached on your own. It must be absurd enough on its face to demonstrate your submission to whatever the group demands.

Humans are social creatures, we join clubs and groups, to be with like minded people, we as bloggers do memes and and blog carnivals, to be associated and accepted by like minded people. We have our close knit friends who are like minded, so it makes total sense to "belong" to one of the biggest social "clubs" there is.

If you read my review of the movie Jesus Camp, the mother of one of the kids says it very clearly, "There are two types of people in this world. People who believe in God and people who don't."
It's a group thing, a feeling of belonging, even if what they believe, has no rational basis for the belief, they belong and are accepted by every one else who shares the same belief.

And I never noticed it until just this morning, but the Stumble Upon tool bar has a little mailbox icon.
It has a little red flag that pops up when you have new mail.
And here I was just clicking it at random times to see if I had new mail. I could have just been watching for the flag to pop up.
I was totally born a blond.

Kat posted at 01:06 PM on March 25, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

March 19, 2007

I collect crosses.

I have a really nice collection of crosses, you can see some of them here.
I once sent a friend of mine a cross that she loved when I showed her my collection, and in return, she sent me rosaries.
I loved them. I still have them as part of my collection, and have admired some others since then.
I really like this sterling silver one.
While visiting my mom, she showed me a really old one that she found. It was beautiful.
I don't know why I collect them, I just do.
I have some truly ornate ones, some gawdy ones, some sapphire ones, I have one that when you look through the very tiny center, you can read the entire lords prayer.
It's really kind of cool.

Kat posted at 11:26 PM on March 19, 2007 || Comments (2) || Link || Religion

March 12, 2007

We have one. Will any more come forward?

Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.) is an acknowledged atheist.
He is the first Congress member in history to acknowledge his nontheism.
That is awesome.
He has been serving for 33 years, is elected till 2009.
You can check out his Wikipedia entry to find out more about him.
It looks like he's actually a decent, caring, moral guy. Looks like he's done some good things while he's been serving.
How funny.
Why?
Cuz ya know, that stereotype that all atheists are immoral, uncaring heathens.
Heh.

Kat posted at 05:24 PM on March 12, 2007 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

March 3, 2007

They must think I'm weak.

I'm talking about the bible thumping people who find my site and choose to try and save me.
Maybe it's because I appear to not have a brain, that because I post kid stories or song lyrics, that somehow, I'm not really an atheist, and just a weak minded individual who needs saving.
I know there are other bloggers out there like Stupid Evil Bastard, and Alan Mackenzie, whom these people would probably feel intimidated talking to this way.
So there's definitely something about the way I post that says, "Look! We found one! We can save this one!"

Yesterdays little fun with some of the religious, turned into an all day, all night email session to save me.
I want to stress that not all Christians behave this way. I am actually very dear friends with several very religious people on the net like CJ, who has never once in all the many years we have known each other on line, condemned me to hell for not believing in God.
I need to make it very clear, that the things I say to some of these people, and about religion in general, does not apply to all Christians. There are very good people out there who understand that not all of us need to believe the same things. They are open to true dialog on the subject, they can hear my side, ask me questions, I can ask them questions, and neither of us feel threatened by the other's views.

With that said, let's talk about Betty.
Betty found my site yesterday and has made it her mission to save me.
She's the one who asked me to take the test.
Betty is one very determined individual. I'll give her that much credit.
But what Betty doesn't understand about me is that I enjoy this back and forth. It passes the time when I'm bored. It makes me giggle.
Betty doesn't understand that I'm really not up for the saving she's offering.

Continue Reading �

There were 13 emails back and forth between Betty and I yesterday, and she has promised me more. She was tired at midnight and needed to go to bed. But she promised me she would be back.
I can hardly wait.

It started off with her telling me there was no fossil proof of evolution. So I showed her there was. That we have indeed found fossils of certain fish that through various fossil stages, had shown to evolve and go from strictly underwater creatures with gills and fins, to fish that contained both gills and lungs and legs and flippers with fingers.
They clearly spent time on both land and water.

We discussed who wrote the bible, how many years ago, how many continents it was written on.
Then we ventured into the traditional questions that Kirk Cameron loves to attack people with on the streets.

Do you consider yourself to be a good person? Ever told a lie? Stolen ? Committed adultery? Looked with lust? Used God's name as a curse word? Always honored your parents? If so, you've broken God's Law and because God is good, must punish you. That place of punishment is Hell. The Bible says each man will see himself good in his own eyes. It also says God alone is good. (morally excellent). Be honest, if you've lied, you've done it knowningly, against your conscience. God gave us a consciene (it means "with knowledge") When we break God's Law, we do it willingly.

To which I answered all of them honestly and finishing with my usual, those are God's laws, not mans, they don't apply to me.

Pretty much everything Betty asked me, I answered honestly and it was followed by her reciting scripture to me.
Over and over and over.
For many, many emails. Me, speaking like a normal human being, her speaking like a preacher on high shouting bible verses at me like it was going to eventually sink in and make me slap my forehead and start repenting.
Note to other thumpers. This tactic of just reciting scripture is yawn inducing. If it's supposed to save us, it's failing.

She kept asking me to take the test again and again. I did keep taking it. For fun. I kept changing my answers to see what different results I would get.
Some of them were kind of funny.

I digress.
I replied back to her, and she replied back to me. Her replies to me are quoted.

I took the test. No, I'm not good enough to go to heaven, but it doesn't matter anyway because there is no heaven or hell.

Where do you get that information? When you were in your Mom's tummy, were you aware that there was a big ole world out there? Jesus said you must be born again, what is born of flesh is flesh, but what is born of God's Spirit is spirit. This is eternal life, to know God, and His Son whom He has sent.

Did you not understand that about me yet? I am an atheist, and absolutely nothing you can say is going to change my mind, make me repent, ask forgiveness, and be a deaf, and blind, and dumb follower of a fictitious story.

What we believe does not negate reality. If I am standing in front of a train on the tracks, even if I don't believe the train will hit me...it is coming.

Again with the vehicle analogy.
By this time, I'm getting really bored with this game. I replied to her, but I admit, I was a bit testy with her now.
"Because the train is real Betty. Everything about that train is real.
I can't believe you all use the same tactics.
Oh yes I can, the way of the master tells you to use these on people to try and confuse them about what is real and what isn't.
The truck analogy. The train analogy.
Those things are very real and I can prove them to you. You can see the train, touch the train, feel it, heck you might even get to ride on one someday. I rode on one, my grandfather built the tracks from Massachusetts all the way to New England and up. It's 100% very real.
I have no proof of Gods existence. None, zero, zippo, zilch.
We can go around and around forever on this Betty.
You believe, great, happy for you. If it helps get you through your life, more power to you. You cannot save me.
I say there is no heaven or hell because that is what I believe. It's my right as a human being to think any way I want to. If we go by your gods book, he gave us free will Betty. Quit trying to take mine from me. It will never happen.
Go find a weaker mind to convert.

You are invading my time, my life, my right to live as I see fit under free will. You had a choice to read my site today. You chose it with your own free will. You could have clicked away, but noooo, you decided to try and save a person who doesn't want to be saved.
I've conversed a better part of my day with you, and you still keep coming around to the same points. You simply can't accept that there are people who don't want god. That we don't care one way or another. That life is what we make of it here and now, not in some fictional afterlife.
I don't want god. I don't want to be saved. I don't want to ask forgiveness. I don't want to believe. I don't need these things Betty.
I'm also not some nitwit who hasn't read the bible. I've been 100% honest with you about everything, the test, my thoughts, my feelings. What have you done other than speak at me like a preacher condemning me to fire and brimstone?
This is my choice Betty.
You must accept it.
Go pray on it every night and come back to me daily if you feel like it, to ask if all your prayers to save my soul have worked yet.
I'll bet you $1,000 that your prayers to save my soul will never come to fruition."
Then she comes at me with a reply to a previous email I sent her on the atrocities God performed and condoned in the bible. I had sent it to her hours previous.
She finally replied to that one.
I told her I was getting bored with this game, this tactic was boring. Anyone can recite scripture, I can too. Speak to me with your own mind and I'll be happy to continue.
That's when she told me she had to go to bed.

While typing this just now, I got two more emails from Betty. She must be wide awake and ready for the game to continue.
She wants my phone number. I don't think so.
Nope. No way. I have a feeling she'll talk so much the battery on my phone will die.

� Hide It

Kat posted at 10:06 AM on March 3, 2007 || Comments (6) || Link || Religion

March 2, 2007

Oh No! Not the eternal fires of hell! Whatever shall I do?!

I've stirred up some trouble with some religious folks again.
I wrote yesterday about the banana being the atheists nightmare.
I've gotten two comments on it so far. I think I may leave that post open even after the 5 day closing period in case there are more coming.
Basically, I was told that it's all tongue in cheek, but they did prove a point.
No, no it didn't.
By the way, bananas and humans share 60% of the same exact DNA.
Humans and bonobos, (species of chimp) share 95% of the same exact DNA.
What does that tell us? That we humans and bonobos evolved from the same species. We both branched off from the same species.

Now, I'm being told there is no scientific proof of evolution because of fossils.
"There are no transitional fossil forms."
Really? Then explain to me about the Ichthyostega fish, and the Acanthostega fish.
Please go ahead.

Then I was told I needed to take a test at Needgod.com. Ya know, to find out if I'm going to burn for all eternity in hell.
Ok, I'll take the test.
Well, I failed that one.
Then it asked me if I was concerned about going to hell.
I said no, it's the truth, because for me, there is no hell. I'm atheist. No heaven, no hell.

Oh not again with the truck analogy.
"Perhaps you feel safe because you don't believe in Hell. This can be likened to standing in the middle of a busy highway and shouting, "I don't believe in trucks!" Your belief or disbelief in trucks will not change reality. The same applies in this situation. Your disbelief in Hell will not cause it to cease to exist."
Um, trucks exist. That's reality.
We can see them, drive them, hear and see them whizzing by. Only an idiot would stand in the middle of a busy highway full of trucks.

Well that was fun. Please come back and play with me some more.

Kat posted at 01:18 PM on March 2, 2007 || Comments (11) || Link || Religion

March 1, 2007

Can't. Stop. Laughing.

This is video of Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron of The Way of the Master, discussing the intelligent design of bananas.

Bananas are perfect from God.
I can't stop laughing.
This is the atheists nightmare according to them.
They say that this is how bananas have always been. No. Not quite.
This is what wild bananas look like.
They were small and contained seeds.
After thousands of years of farming and domestication, they were changed, evolved.
Heh.
*chuckle*

Kat posted at 07:41 AM on March 1, 2007 || Comments (6) || Link || Religion

January 28, 2007

Sunday Sermon 30

"And by the time they took him, it was too late. To raise Peter and
Valentine in our faith. If you don't teach children when they're little, it's never really inside them. You have to hope they'll come to it later, on their own. It can't come from the parents, if you don't begin when they're little."
"Indoctrinating them."
"That's what parenting is," said Mrs. Wiggin. "Indoctrinating your
children in the social patterns that you want them to live by. The intellectuals have no qualms about using the schools to indoctrinate our children in their foolishness."*
[Orson Scott Card, Jan. 2001, "Shadow of the Hegemon")

*Emphasis mine.

*snort giggle snicker*

Kat posted at 09:04 AM on January 28, 2007 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

January 14, 2007

Rational response.

^Click it.^
I have no belief in the father, the son, or the holy spirit. I am not afraid.

Kat posted at 10:25 AM on January 14, 2007 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

January 14, 2007

Atheist rapper and new to me blogger.

I'm not much into hip hop and rap, I actually can't stand mainstream rap where it's all gang banging and glorifying drug using and selling, degrading women etc.
But here's an Iraqi war veteran who raps about Atheism and politics.
Damn good stuff Greydon Square.
Also check out his website.

No God Blog.

Kat posted at 12:26 AM on January 14, 2007 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

December 17, 2006

I am an antichrist, I am an anarchist.

"Antichrist FTL*. It gets annoying after awhile."
Oh it gets annoying after awhile? Welcome to our world then.
Let me explain.

Recently, a young woman I know is questioning her faith. To quote her; "I'm about 5 seconds from saying fuck god."
She said that god doesn't pay attention to the suffering in the world and all that jazz. She prays and prays and nothing ever changes.
I took that opportunity to talk to her about realities.
Before I did that though, I explained to her why we have suffering in the world according to the bible.
It all dates back to Adam and Eve. They chose to sin and not just live happy in god's paradise that he made for them. He tossed them out never to return. That means, none of their sons and daughters can return either until you die and your soul ascends to heaven, his new paradise.

She said she was afraid to live in a world without a god because it would suck.
I said to her, who says life without a god sucks?
Someone else chimed in that there is no god.
I was trying to keep her on track and not just slam her with reality. *sigh*
Anyway, this is exactly what I said to her;

How can they suck any more than they do now? Think about this.
Before, when times were tough, you prayed and you had faith that god was with you and it still sucked. Right?
In a new mindset, certain things will still suck but this time, you won't be thinking that some imaginary man is going to fix it at some point because you asked him to.
In a new reality, you would see that to make things un-suck, you have to take charge. You would have to see that you have some control over how things go in your life and that no outside force is doing anything to you.
If you choose path A, things will happen. If you choose path B, things will happen. And along either path, you will have more choices to make on your own, not just blindly follow their twisting turns.

And then this was said;

Ugh dont dwell on the sad times and embrace the good times.

antichrist ftl.
gets a little annoying after a while.

Really? It gets annoying after awhile?
Try being a person who lives without god, and everywhere you go, you are bombarded with god messages. They come to your home, it's on tv in shows, it's on the news with people fighting to remove Happy Holidays because Christ is what Christmas is about. Try having your kids, who you raise secular, taught about Hanukkah and other religious traditions in public schools. Try waiting for a bus and have someone come invade your time to save you.

Those of us without faith are bombarded daily by those of you with faith and you call our little talks with people annoying after awhile?!

SEB just got one of those types of emails that I don't get too often, but I do get them.
Why do you atheists talk about god so much if you don't believe in him?
Why can't we?!
Don't you believers realize how much god talk and imagery we see every day? Do you have any idea how much of it is out there? You want us to just shut up about it because it's annoying?!
Hey! People! Listen to yourselves!
You don't even realize how much god talk is out there because it's your belief system that's out there all the time.
You get all freaked out when someone says Happy Holidays. Ridiculous.
Oh, if Christ is the reason for Christmas, you're doing it all wrong.
You need to take down your tree, send back your gifts and just sit around and pray.
Why? Because the Christmas you celebrate with a tree** and gifts and Santa Claus is a PAGAN holiday. That's right, a holiday made by people who did not believe in God.
It was to celebrate winter solstice.
/off

To those of you annoyed with us atheists for talking about it, stop and think sometime just how much god stuff we see all the time, how much we hear all the time, before you tell us how annoying it is.
You really have no idea.

Continue Reading �

Kat posted at 09:52 AM on December 17, 2006 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

December 16, 2006

Let the bodies hit the floor.

Oh hahahah! This made me laugh so hard.
Benny Hinn to the song Let the bodies hit the floor.

Kat posted at 12:08 PM on December 16, 2006 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

October 12, 2006

"Find an Atheist, Humanist, Freethinker Elected Official" Contest for $1,000

The Secular Coalition for America (SCA) will award one thousand dollars ($1,000) to the person who identifies the highest level atheist, humanist, freethinker or other nontheist currently holding elected public office in the United States of America.* The SCA is an advocacy organization representing the interests of nontheists in the nation's capital.
Although our Constitution states, "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States," the religion of our elected officials figures prominently in America. As a nation, we have made progress in preventing religious bias from influencing some electoral choices. John F. Kennedy in 1960 was the first Roman Catholic to become President and Keith Ellison from Minnesota, if elected this November, would become the first Muslim to be elected to Congress. Members of other groups once precluded from the political arena because of prejudice (such as women, African Americans, Jews, Mexican Americans, Mormons and gay/lesbians) have been elected to public offices; however, atheists, humanists, freethinkers and other nontheists are invisible in the electoral arena.

Contest link

Found via Stupid Evil Bastard

Kat posted at 11:11 PM on October 12, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

September 17, 2006

For the sinner in your house.

HOMEGOODS - BATH - WASH AWAY YOUR SINS

Kat posted at 12:42 PM on September 17, 2006 || Comments (3) || Link || Religion

August 13, 2006

Sunday sermon 29

"God's will is directly proportional to public opinion."
[David Paul Gladden]

Kat posted at 11:50 AM on August 13, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

August 6, 2006

Sunday sermon 28.

"People, wake up
Figure it out
Religious fanatics
Around and about
The Court House, The State House, The Congress, The White House

Criminal saints
With a "Heavenly Mission" --
A nation enraptured
By pure superstition."

["When The Lie's So Big"-Frank Zappa, "Broadway The Hard Way"]

Kat posted at 11:08 AM on August 6, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

July 25, 2006

Live prayer with Bill Keller.

This show airs on UPN44 late at night here, like 1:30am. None of us could sleep and nothing was on so the teens and I tuned in to see Bill boy do his stuff.
His sermon last night was about the evils of pot smoking and it's perverted use.
See, God made all the plants and animals of the earth for our use, to benefit, live and prosper, but smoking marijuana is a perverted use.
He contradicted himself several times saying that pot is evil and toxic yet it does help people with disease.
How can it be evil and toxic yet beneficial at the same time?
What follows is email correspondence between myself and Mr. Keller.
If anyone out there in his national tv viewing audience believed in this guy and was considering sending him money to keep his show nationwide instead of being dropped back down to just the local Tampa market, think twice about that.
Mr. Keller is not a nice man.

Continue Reading �

My email to him:
Mr. Keller,

I have to disagree with you on your sermon tonight on pot.
You say it's harmful to the body. If so, then why do doctors prescribe
it to people with cancer, glaucoma and MS?

29 And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed
which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in
its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the
earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on
the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every
green plant for food." And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that
he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and
there was morning, a sixth day.

The marijuana plant does not yield fruit but it yields a power that
helps people with medical issues.
You say it's barely 10% that uses it for medical uses, I'd have to
disagree again and say it's much more than that.
And during your sermon, you quoted man's laws regarding pot, not
God's. God said to take every plant, every animal and every seed and
use it to live and prosper.
So which is it Mr. Keller, do you follow man's law or God's laws?
God was a vengeful God. He forbade certain actions and punished those
who broke his laws. But his laws are very different from man's laws.
For example, it is a sin to lust after someone in your heart and mind,
do not covet thy neighbors wife etc.
Both of these things are not forbidden by man's law. It's not a crime
to have an affair with your neighbor.
You cannot pick and choose which laws of God and which laws of man you
want to follow.

And another thing, you have teenagers who stay up late at night during
summer vacation and watch your program. You told them how to make a
marijuana cigarette. "You take the leaves, dry them out, go to the
7-11, buy a pack of zig zags and roll up the dried leaves and smoke
it."
Nice going Mr. Keller. Good thing I'm sitting here watching your show
with my kids.
That was totally irresponsible of you.

His reply to me this morning, just 5 minutes ago;

Bill Keller
to me:
First of all, you are a complete idiot...since anyone who defends smoking
pot has smoked so much their brain has deteriorated...any kid that watches
an hour of TV knows how to roll a joint...or has such an irresponsible
parent like yourself.....
less than 1% of the people who smoke MJ do it legally as prescribed by a
doctor...it has no healing powers only the power to numb the body from
pain...which is why it is prescribed to cancer and terminally ill people who
have major issues of pain...and yes it comes from a plant but it is a
completely perverted use of that plant..just like sex is a gift from God but
when you have it outside of marriage, it is a perversion of that
gift...anybody who would even try to defend smoking pot, has zero
credibility...oh and read Romans 13:1 about what God says about man's law..

You will be in my prayers, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
www.liveprayer.com

My reply back:
Mr. Keller, I cannot believe a man of god would call people names.
I do not do any drugs. I don't smoke, drink, or do pot but I know many
people who use it prescribed by a doctor.
I'm ashamed of you. A man of god who wants people to send him money to
keep his show on the air, calling his viewers names.
What were you thinking?
Heated moment? Didn't read what you wrote before sending?

Good thing I have a website and will gladly tell people how you really
are Mr. Keller.
Have a nice day. :)

I will update this if he replies again and this time, I included my website signature so he can see for himself I wasn't lying.
I hope he decides to leave a comment apologizing for calling his viewers idiots.
Nice man of God Mr. Keller. And don't give me any of that I'm only human crap. Last night he prayed for pot smokers, today he's calling them and defenders of medical use, idiots.

Update*

first of all..Dr. Keller wouldn't be wasting his time emailing someone who
is trying to defend the ILLEGAL activity of smoking pot..we get over 40,000
emails a DAY..there are over 700 of us who answer them..adn based on your
foolish email to US....the answer fits..Dr. Keller clearly said that there
is a VERY SMALL% of people who use it as prescribed by doctors..that is not
what he spoke of..it is the 99+% who use it to get high illegally..and Dr.
Keller could care less if you or anyone sends a dime..he is not going to
back down form telling people the truth like the rest of the spineless
ministers..just to get $$..you emailed US..sorry you didn't like the TRUTH
you received back..

You will be in my prayers, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
www.liveprayer.com

My reply:
So does Dr. Keller know that you are replying to viewers so rudely?
Do you think he would approve of what you are sending and calling
people in HIS name?
My my, I think I just might have to call Dr. Keller and tell him what
you do with the emails you get and use his name to respond.

MORE UPDATES*

sure..and let him know YOUR wonderful email ..sorry..we respond to people as they email us..on a plane they can understand..be blessed..and do yourself a favor..quit trying to defend something that is ILLEGAL..it gives you ZERO credibility.. You will be in my prayers, be richly blessed, Bill Keller www.liveprayer.com

Me:

First of all, I wasn't defending the illegal use if you had read my
very first email. I was defending medical use of the plant.
Man, are you that dumb that you can't read?
I was defending medical use of marijuana, go back and read it again.
And you can bet when I do call him, I will tell him my emails and
yours that you use his name to talk to people so rudely. And you call
yourself people of God.
Shame on all of you.

His people:

than you were wasting your time since you obviously don't listen..Dr. Keller
wasn't talking bout the less than 1% who use it medicinally..go in peace..
You will be in my prayers, be richly blessed'
Bill Keller
www.liveprayer.com

Me:
Then you weren't paying attention to him. He called ALL marijuana use
evil and toxic.

I am forwarding these nasty replies from supposed people of God to my
local station that airs this program. You should be highly ashamed of
yourselves speaking to people this way.

If you truly cared about getting Mr. Keller's message out to people,
you wouldn't speak so rudely. You would have stressed his points
without all the name calling and berating.
I am thoroughly disgusted that you work for Mr. Keller and he should
fire you for being so rude to his viewers.
You also said he doesn't care about money. Then why after every few
minutes was he asking viewers for money to stay on the air nationwide?
-------
The fun continued until the hysterica climax:

.do what you want..if you think anyone cares what YOU have to say..you are
a bigger kook than you come across....for every whackjob like you..who is
upset..there at 1000 who LOVE Dr. Keller's program.CHANGE THE
CHANNEL..nobody forced you to watch..and nobody forced you to email
US!...oh..go rewatch the program..it si on our website ...and than come back
and apologize for being WRONG..since he specifically talked aobut he less
than 1% who use it medicinally..guess the next time you sit down and send a
nasty email to people you don't know....you might think twice..you were only
responded to in a fashion you would understand based on YOUR email to
US>.now..go away..
You will be in my prayers, be richly blessed,
Bill Keller
www.liveprayer.com

Me:
Wow, you still don't get it. You work for HIM. He pays you to respond
to his shows emails in a prompt and courteous manner and all you have
succeeded in doing in name calling, berating people and acting
childish.
You could also use a spell checker.
------
Finally, I get this:
BANNED FOR HARASSMENT

Wait, they banned ME for harassment? Are they kidding? Where was I rude? Where did I call them idiots? I get banned from emailing them?
Hell fucking no.
I have 4 regular email accounts and an unlimited supply of Gmail accounts.
See ya tonight at 1:30am Dr. Keller.

� Hide It

Kat posted at 09:36 AM on July 25, 2006 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

July 23, 2006

Sunday sermon 27.

"Why has a religious turn of mind always a tendancy to narrow and harden the heart?"
[Robert Burns]

Kat posted at 09:43 AM on July 23, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

July 9, 2006

Sunday sermon 26.

"People whose history and future were threatened each day by extinction
considered that it was only by divine intervention that they were able
to live at all. I find it interesting that the meanest life, the poorest existence, is attributed to God's will, but as human being become more affluent, as their living standard and style begin to ascend the material scale, God descends the scale of respectability at a commensurate speed."
[Maya Angelou, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", p. 101]

Kat posted at 10:57 AM on July 9, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

May 21, 2006

Sunday sermon 25.

"The original sin was not in eating of the forbidden fruit, but in planting the tree that bore the fruit."
[Lemuel K. Washburn]

Kat posted at 11:33 AM on May 21, 2006 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

April 30, 2006

Sunday sermon 24.

"If the book [the Bible] and my brain are both the work of the same
Infinite God, whose fault is it that the book and my brain do not agree?"
[Robert G. Ingersoll, "Some Reasons Why", 1881]

Kat posted at 08:32 AM on April 30, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

April 23, 2006

Sunday sermon 23

What influence, in fact, have ecclesiastical establishments had on society? In some instances they have been seen to erect a spiritual tyranny on the ruins of the civil authority; in many instances they have been seen upholding the thrones of political tyranny; in no instance have they been the guardians of the liberties of the people. Rulers who wish to subvert the public liberty may have found an established clergy convenient allies.

James Madison (1751-1836) The fourth President of the United States (1809-1817)

Kat posted at 11:10 AM on April 23, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

February 7, 2006

Something amused me last night while I slept.

It was question 14 on the way of the master website.

Let's look at this shall we from the way an atheist would re-butt this question.
I so love how they turned this. It cracks me up.

They say it doesn't matter if the person they are witnessing to doesn't believe the bible because they will have to face god on judgement day.
If they don't believe the bible, they don't believe in judgement day. Duh.
They say to go after the laws of the ten commandments.
Again, if they don't believe in the bible, they don't believe in the ten commandments.
The example they use is to gently, in love, explain if the disbeliever walked on the freeway and didn't believe in trucks, his unbelief wouldn't change reality.

Ok, let's go.
Trucks are real. They are there. We can see them, feel them, smell the oil burning as it goes down the street, we can get in it and drive it around.
It is 100% real.

Now, the bible is a real book.
I can see it, feel it's bindings, I can read it's pages but as for believing in what's written in those pages, I can't.
Why?
Because what is written in those pages can't be proved to me.
Burning bushes, oceans parting, tablets of stone with stuff written on them, etc etc etc.
What can we prove out of the bible?
We can prove certain people did exist, I have no doubt that Jesus of Nazareth was a real human being but no one can prove he walked on water or turned water to wine or rose the dead unlike a truck on a freeway, we can see it rolling down the freeway. Everyone can. It does not take a giant leap of faith to prove to everyone that trucks roll on the highway.
Everyone can see them.
It takes a leap of faith to believe the stories written in the bible.

As for the conscience part, my conscience does speak to me. It does tell me what is right or wrong but not because of ten commandments in a book.
It is my own moral code of behaviors.
Do I steal? No. Why? Because it is against man made laws and you can go to jail for it. I fear prison much more than eternal damnation.
Do I commit adultery in my heart? Sure, I think everyone does but I have no partner to actually cheat on so adultery is a bit harsh....lol
Do I lie? I truly believe that everyone lies in small ways all the time. We all embellish stories or leave out facts when speaking to people to spare them hurt feelings.
Imagine if we all told the straight up truth to everyone all the time.
Questions like do I look fat would be met with daggers by wives while their husbands slept at night and so on.

Telling someone that doesn't believe in the bible or the ten commandments that they will suffer eternal damnation is like talking to a brick wall.
You can't just attack our conscience because we all have different moral codes and ways of living to make our lives easier to live.
You have to speak to our intellect and our intellect tells us that if we do not believe in what is written in the pages of the bible, the ten commandments have no bearing on us.

Keep using the truck analogy. I'm sure it works on the sheeples just fine.

Kat posted at 04:59 AM on February 7, 2006 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

February 6, 2006

You never want to be as smart as God.

"Once you learn to speak and witness to a persons conscience and circumvent the intellect, the subject of evolution never comes up."-
Kirk Cameron

"So, just be a dumb fuck and you'll all go to heaven. That's the subtext of Christianity."
-- Frank Zappa

I was flipping through the channels and I stopped on Way of the Master because it fascinates me how Kirk and his buddy ambush people on the streets and airplanes and stuff and "speak" to their conscience about the 10 commandments.
They avoid the subject of evolution like the plague.
Just for giggles, I'd love to see them ambush an atheist and actually air it.
I'm sure they do find those people when they do these things and I'm positive they don't air them.
I'm positive when they encounter someone who is strong in their beliefs that there is no god, they probably say thanks for your time and run away as fast as possible because if you've ever watched this show, they never, ever air those people.
They avoid intellects, they avoid talking about evolution and Kirk just proved that when he said the above quote.

Kat posted at 07:24 PM on February 6, 2006 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

January 15, 2006

Hahahaha! Oh my god, it's awesome!

JesusDressUp.com/Final Justice
I do love his dress ups but this one rules.
hahah, Gacy and Osama. Oh my, I hear the people getting pissed already...lmao

Kat posted at 11:13 AM on January 15, 2006 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

December 18, 2005

Sunday sermon 22

I am a demo religious meme which has been replicated here.
You will be blessed if you copy me and pass me on to infect the next mind.
And damned if you don't.

What do you truly belive in?

Kat posted at 08:44 AM on December 18, 2005 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

December 4, 2005

Sunday sermon 21.

I believe that there is no God. I'm beyond atheism. Atheism is not believing in God. Not believing in God is easy -- you can't prove a negative, so there's no work to do. You can't prove that there isn't an elephant inside the trunk of my car. You sure? How about now? Maybe he was just hiding before. Check again. Did I mention that my personal heartfelt definition of the word "elephant" includes mystery, order, goodness, love and a spare tire?

So, anyone with a love for truth outside of herself has to start with no belief in God and then look for evidence of God. She needs to search for some objective evidence of a supernatural power. All the people I write e-mails to often are still stuck at this searching stage. The atheism part is easy.

But, this "This I Believe" thing seems to demand something more personal, some leap of faith that helps one see life's big picture, some rules to live by. So, I'm saying, "This I believe: I believe there is no God."

Having taken that step, it informs every moment of my life. I'm not greedy. I have love, blue skies, rainbows and Hallmark cards, and that has to be enough. It has to be enough, but it's everything in the world and everything in the world is plenty for me. It seems just rude to beg the invisible for more. Just the love of my family that raised me and the family I'm raising now is enough that I don't need heaven. I won the huge genetic lottery and I get joy every day.

Believing there's no God means I can't really be forgiven except by kindness and faulty memories. That's good; it makes me want to be more thoughtful. I have to try to treat people right the first time around.

Believing there's no God stops me from being solipsistic. I can read ideas from all different people from all different cultures. Without God, we can agree on reality, and I can keep learning where I'm wrong. We can all keep adjusting, so we can really communicate. I don't travel in circles where people say, "I have faith, I believe this in my heart and nothing you can say or do can shake my faith." That's just a long-winded religious way to say, "shut up," or another two words that the FCC likes less. But all obscenity is less insulting than, "How I was brought up and my imaginary friend means more to me than anything you can ever say or do." So, believing there is no God lets me be proven wrong and that's always fun. It means I'm learning something.

Believing there is no God means the suffering I've seen in my family, and indeed all the suffering in the world, isn't caused by an omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent force that isn't bothered to help or is just testing us, but rather something we all may be able to help others with in the future. No God means the possibility of less suffering in the future.

Believing there is no God gives me more room for belief in family, people, love, truth, beauty, sex, Jell-O and all the other things I can prove and that make this life the best life I will ever have. - Penn Jillette

Kat posted at 07:51 AM on December 4, 2005 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

November 20, 2005

It's times like this a boyfriend would be handy.

"We have an *eclectic* tradition in the United States... Christians of
various stripes are part of this, as are humanists and agnostics, but
this does not make the United States a Christian nation or even a Judeo-
Christian one. We are a mixed accumulation of our past, and it is the
Christian dogmatists, not the secularists, who are the major threat to
our pluralistic democratic tradition."
[Vern Bullough, "Do We Have a Judeo-
Christian Heritage?" in Free Inquiry]

I mean that in the non-sexual way. Like I'm fucking sick man. I feel like hell. I could use a hand here. I need to do shit around the house and I can't and meals need to be made and I can't. I'm so feverish I swear I have pneumonia now. I hurt like everywhere. It hurts to breathe.
I swear she just gave me those meds to make me quit smoking or some shit. Here, let's make the bitches lungs hurt so bad she won't be able to smoke for 2 weeks and by that time, she'll have gone through withdrawals and be done with it.
I think she was scamming me man.
I was not sick until I started the meds. I had a sniffle but that was it.
Fucking psycho quit smoking people. Oh it's good for you, blah de blah. Fucking bite me asshats!
I really do think the meds were a conspiracy to make me quit. I have never felt so horrible in all my life.
Well wait, there was that one time with the stomach flu from hell that put me in the hospital for a few days but that was different. At least I could still breathe dammit!

The teens are only willing to do so much housework ya know.
Asking for much more may get me left entirely alone. They might just run outside and say screw you mom, you coughing, hacking, wheezing, fevery bitch.
If I had some extra cash today, I'd just order food all day so I didn't have to attempt cooking.

I'm not gonna use the inhaler today and see if that makes a difference. It's either the pills or the inhaler making me feel like I'm dying. Today no inhaler, if that's not it, tomorrow, no pills.
I'll test myself. I'll see why/which one is causing me to have so much trouble on my own.
Knowing my luck, I'm allergic to one of them and actually giving myself walking pneumonia or some shit.
If this keeps up, I'll be in the hospital by thanksgiving.
Ugh.
Someone take me out back and shoot me please.

Kat posted at 10:11 AM on November 20, 2005 || Comments (3) || Link || Health & Beauty & Fitness

October 30, 2005

Sunday sermon 20.

Choices always were a problem for you.
What you need is someone strong to guide you.
Deaf and blind and dumb and born to follow,
what you need is someone strong to use you...
like me,
like me.

If you want to get your soul to heaven,
trust in me.
Don't judge or question.
You are broken now,
but faith can heal you.
Just do everything I tell you to do.
Deaf and blind and dumb and born to follow.
Let me lay my holy hand upon you.

My God's will
becomes me.
When he speaks out,
he speaks through me.
He has needs
like I do.
We both want
to rape you.

Jesus Christ, why don't you come save my life.
Open my eyes and blind me with your light
and your lies.

TOOL

Kat posted at 10:14 AM on October 30, 2005 || Comments (4) || Link || Religion

August 28, 2005

Sunday sermon 19.

Today we are witnessing such a resurgence of religious bigotry that one cannot help wondering how long it will be before "equal time" in our schools is demanded for geocentrism and flat-earthism as well as for creationism.
-- Thomas Vernon

How are ya all doing today?
I am doing great. Had a great night, rested, relaxed, played on line and laughed at a lot of stuff.
I love my friends. They make me giggle.

Nothing much planned for today, just the usual housework and rest I suppose.
Tomorrow I have stuff to do and a friend might be stopping by to goof off with me for awhile and I have some stuff to give her.
I think. I have to look and see if I sold it at the yard sale. I might have. Need to go through the closet where all that stuff is.

Ok, gonna go play and start some house stuff.
Feel free to email me anytime and those of you with the private comment enabled blog, there is an entry up.

Later days!

Kat posted at 09:04 AM on August 28, 2005 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

August 7, 2005

I'm having a day. Again.

I've begun worshipping the Sun for a number of reasons. First of all, unlike some other gods I could mention, I can see the Sun. It's there for me every day. And the things it brings me are quite apparent all the time: heat, light, food, a lovely day. There's no mystery, no one asks for money, I don't have to dress up, and there's no boring pageantry. And interestingly enough, I have found that the prayers I offer to the sun and the prayers I formerly offered to God are all answered at about the same 50-percent rate.
-- George Carlin

There will be a private entry in about 3 minutes.

Kat posted at 10:42 AM on August 7, 2005 || Comments (1) || Link || Religion

July 24, 2005

She's going to hell.

My sister called me from church with our parents whom she's visiting.
She felt like sharing.
Better her than me.

Remember how I said I like to give people th benefit of the doubt and trust that some are fair minded etc?
Well, I totally had this ass pegged from day 1.
I knew what he was like.
If you're not all up kissing his ass, you can count on him to be a big fucker.

I was right.
Eat me.

Kat posted at 06:22 PM on July 24, 2005 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

July 7, 2005

Letting go.

Two traveling monks reached a river where they met a young woman. Wary of the current, she asked if they could carry her across. One of the monks hesitated, but the other quickly picked her up onto his shoulders, transported her across the water, and put her down on the other bank. She thanked him and departed.

As the monks continued on their way, the one was brooding and preoccupied. Unable to hold his silence, he spoke out. "Brother, our spiritual training teaches us to avoid any contact with women, but you picked that one up on your shoulders and carried her!"

"Brother," the second monk replied, "I set her down on the other side, while you are still carrying her."

Kat posted at 12:01 AM on July 7, 2005 || Comments (0) || Link || Religion

July 3, 2005

So much to do.

"Religion supports nobody. It has to be supported. It produces no wheat,
no corn; it ploughs no land; it fells no forests. It is a perpetual
mendicant. It lives on the labors of others, and then has the arrogance
to pretend that it supports the giver."
Robert G. Ingersoll

I have a lot to do today.
I have some jewelry I need to work on, some other web stuff to do, some housecleaning, some laundry, some rest.

I will be off and on I suppose.
Hope you're all enjoying your holiday safely so far.
Later days.

Kat posted at 08:22 AM on July 3, 2005 || Comments (0) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

May 22, 2005

Sunday sermon 18.

Here I swear, and as I break my oath may ... eternity blast me, here I swear that never will I forgive Christianity! It is the only point on which I allow myself to encourage revenge.... Oh, how I wish I were the Antichrist, that it were mine to crush the Demon; to hurl him to his native Hell never to rise again -- I expect to gratify some of this insatiable feeling in Poetry.
-- Percy Bysshe Shelley,

'O Spirit! centuries have set their seal
On this heart of many wounds, and loaded brain,
Since the Incarnate came; humbly he came,
Veiling his horrible Godhead in the shape
Of man, scorned by the world, his name unheard
Save by the rabble of his native town,
Even as a parish demagogue. He led
The crowd; he taught them justice, truth and peace,
In semblance; but he lit within their souls
The quenchless flames of zeal, and blessed the sword
He brought on earth to satiate with the blood
Of truth and freedom his malignant soul
At length his mortal frame was led to death.
I stood beside him; on the torturing cross
No pain assailed his unterrestrial sense;
And yet he groaned. Indignantly I summed
The massacres and miseries which his name
Had sanctioned in my country, and I cried,
"Go! go!" in mockery.
-- Percy Bysshe Shelley

Kat posted at 09:13 AM on May 22, 2005 || Comments (1) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

May 15, 2005

Sunday sermon 17.

"Science can teach us, and I think our own hearts can teach us, no
longer to look around for imaginary supports, no longer to invent
allies in the sky, but rather to look to our own efforts here below
to make this world a fit place to live in, instead of the sort of
place that the churches in all these centuries have made it."
[Bertrand Russell, "Why I Am Not A Christian"]

Kat posted at 08:26 AM on May 15, 2005 || Comments (2) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

May 11, 2005

Whine, whine, whine....lol

Today has been a better day in regards to yesterdays crap anyway.
I caught a head cold though. Snot, congestion, slight fever so took some Nyquil at like 8am and promptly passed out until sometime around noon.

Not much else has been happening really.
I called and spoke to Sebastians attorney, things are moving again.
Why do people evade subpoenas? Why do they run from the law man? Don't they know that that is actually worse for their case then just coming forward and doing it the first time? Sheesh.

I have to call my disability attorney at 4 and get an update on my hearing. This is one long process but in the end, I know it will be in my favor because I was denied an out of area surgeon in Miami. Got the letter today. The 6th one.
I cannot go to Miami University hospital for them to even look at my back. That probably means I can't go to Shands or U of Florida either. They will not let an out of area doc look at me and no locals will touch my spine with a 100 foot pole so I'm slowly coming to terms with what will be my future.
I cried a little bit but I haven't given up hope yet. I am going to keep pressuring the insurance company for help and maybe even get a state rep or two involved if I get denied again.
Lifetime welfare benefits are only 5 years and with the disability hearing taking so long, I could easily go past the 5 year mark. They would have to continue to support me and I don't think they want to do that. That would require a state hearing wherein I could go and show the state court exactly how many times I and my doctors requested a surgeon and how many times it was denied. That wouldn't look very good now would it?
It's so funny to me sometimes how our governor and legislature would get involved and try to take custody of a comatose brain dead woman which would have cost the tax payers of this state millions of dollars over her lifetime for care yet they won't let me see a surgeon in Miami so that I could work again and be self sufficient. My surgery wouldn't cost nearly as much as that would have. Not even close, less than $60,000, yet I can't even go down there for an simple evaluation.
Don't you all find that a little odd?
It amazes me whose quality of life is considered more important.
Maybe I should email Jeb, tell him I'm a good Christian mom and beg for his help. Think that would work?

So, on with my day.
Later days.

Kat posted at 02:56 PM on May 11, 2005 || Comments (10) || Ping (0) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

March 18, 2005

Alright, alright, I'm up.

I did not want to get up this morning.
So tired from rain and plunging and weather and just everything.

The kids are off to school and I need to take a shower and be ready to go. Tiffany and her hubby are gonna give me a ride so I don't have to walk and ride buses for half a day.

Sebastian has school lock in tonight. He will be coming home and eating dinner and taking his stuff back around 7:30 and then coming home around 8am tomorrow.
It'll just be me and Mark home tonight.
I have a free rental for movie gallery so maybe I'll go get us something to watch tonight. I'm so sick of repeats on tv.

In local news, the fight continues in the Schiavo case. It is supposed to be removed at 1pm today but the legislature is going to subpoena the people (health care workers) who are supposed to do that so that it can't be removed.
Aren't they over stepping their bounds? A court order is in place to remove it and they are going against a court order to prevent that.
Jeb is acting a little like Gov. George Wallace. Refusing to follow a court order and creating new laws to stop any court order that doesn't fit in with his views.
He says he's doing it because this is the will of the people of the state of Florida. But TBO.com did a survey and 58% of the people of this state say her tube should be removed, 32% say it shouldn't and the remaining people don't have an opinion either way.
How is that the will of the people of this state Jeb? More than half say to let her die with dignity. He and the state legislature have crossed the line with their faith based initiatives and stepping over families legal rights to which repeatedly has been said by judges who heard this case, that the husband provided clear and convincing evidence that this is what she wanted.

Don't like the way courts handle things in this state? Start a faith based initiative to get a new bill created that takes away the rights of everyone to save the life of one person who has been proved did not want to live this way.

It's a sad day here cuz any minute now, good ol' Jeb is gonna sign that bill and subpoena health care workers preventing them from doing their job so that the state can investigate this case again, and again, and again, dragging it through the court system for more and more time and what if another judge or even federal court upholds the rulings of the judges here that have already heard the case and they order the tube removed? Will Jeb and his band of merry right to lifers, create more new bills to over ride those rulings as well?
How far is this going to go?

So we sit and wait and wait and hope that they do the right thing and let her go. Terry died 15 years ago and nothing short of an act of a God can re-create her brain.

Later days.

Kat posted at 06:41 AM on March 18, 2005 || Comments (10) || Ping (0) || Link || Home, family, kids & finances

February 26, 2005

Ya know what I hate?

*WARNING*
The following post may be offensive to people who believe in god and the power of prayer. Feel free to skip. I'm just venting.

I hate it when in a debate of any kind having to do with life or death, let's say the terry case for instance, religious people throw something at you like; "I pray you never have to deal with that or I pray that you are never faced with a situation like that. Or I'm praying for you."
Why do they do that?
I don't need prayers.
I don't need them to waste their time praying for my soul to be saved.
Why don't they pray for their own?
How is praying for my soul gonna get your point across?
It just makes me think you've gone over the edge and that you think solely from a religious standpoint rather than a factual one.

Having been raised religious, (don't get upset mom and dad) I know that prayer is a huge part of that life.
I know that at church on Sundays, the preacher reads off names of the congregation members who are sick and asks everyone to go home and pray for them. Pray that god heals them. I know that you pray before meals and pray for this and that.
I know it makes people feel like they are doing something good and worthwhile.
But praying that I never have to live through something like life or death just pisses me off.
A few years ago, my dad was very ill. We almost lost him.
His church prayed for him. My mom prayed, lots of people prayed.
I wished for doctors to fix him.
I didn't pray for it.
I hoped that some doctor would find some new treatment for him and it would help.
And a doctor did.
Now allot of people would say that's because all those people prayed for a cure and I don't begrudge them what they think or feel.
I think to each his own. If you want to believe that your prayers were answered because a new pill was found and given to him, great, think that if it helps you feel ok.
I am happy that a pill was found. My dad is still with us.

But back to praying for me to never have to live through a life or death situation.
Screw you.
Screw you for your sarcasm and that is what it was. It was being sarcastic.
"I pray that you never have to live through something like that. I pray that you never have to face something so horrible."
Screw you.
It wasn't meant in the spirit of good will or prayer. It was meant in a sarcastic way. In a I'm better than you are because I believe that god handles everything and maybe he'll take care of you or maybe he'll let you rot in hell like you deserve bitch.
That's what that shit means.

Instead of praying, do something physical. Send flowers, send a card, send a couple of bucks to an already hurting family facing losing a loved one. Cook a meal if you live close enough. Help them with their housework. Do something that can be seen and used and needed.
Maybe prayers are what the family wants if they are religious but I'm sick of people also saying that when I get my surgery, they will pray my recovery goes smoothly and I recover fast.
Don't fucking pray for me!!!
Send me a card to lift my spirits, send me an email to cheer me up. Ask me how I'm doing. Ask me if I need anything or any help if you live close enough to do something physical.
I live alone with two boys and room mate who works all the time. My sister has two kids of her own now and works all the time. I will need physical help but I will attempt to do it all on my own. You know me, stubborn as hell. I'll push myself till I fall down.
I don't need prayers. I need cheerful emails and cards and jokes and half naked men to look at...lol

Prayer is for people who don't want to get involved.

Kat posted at 11:04 PM on February 26, 2005 || Comments (6) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

February 25, 2005

I'll believe it when I see it.

Judge allows Schiavo's feeding tube removed in three weeks.
On March 18th, Terrys feeding tube can be removed. That is if her parents don't get the appeal that they are surely going to place again.
One thing which I'm quite glad about is the the U.S. Supreme Court had declined to become involved in any aspect of the case which means this won't have to become a national waste of time like it is a statewide waste of time.
This battle has been going on for 7 years.
Today is the 15 year anniversary of her collapse when a chemical imbalance caused her heart to stop beating.

"If Mr. Schiavo legally succeeded in provoking the death of his wife, this would not only be tragic in itself, but it would be a serious step toward legally approving euthanasia in the United States," Cardinal Renato Martino, the head of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, told Vatican Radio on Thursday.

And just what would be so wrong with that?

Kat posted at 03:49 PM on February 25, 2005 || Comments (4) || Ping (0) || Link || Locals

February 22, 2005

Stop it. Just fucking stop the bullshit.

Emergency stay in Schiavo case.

They need to just stop this bullshit.
These last minute stays are just fucking bullshit.
I really don't care what either side has to say anymore.
Decisions have been made and many judges have said it's the husbands decision and then whammo bammo! Another judge issues a last minute stay and decides to drag this out for how many more years?

I swear to fucking god, if any of member of my family decides to keep me alive after an injury leaves my quality of life as shit, when I finally do die, I will come back and haunt all your asses in the worst possible ways!
Ya hear that family, unplug me. If I can't wipe my own ass or feed myself or speak or even know who the fuck is in the room, let me go.
It's not your life you're trying to save, it would be mine and I don't want that.

Kat posted at 05:08 PM on February 22, 2005 || Comments (2) || Ping (0) || Link || Locals

February 8, 2005

Proselytizers will be eaten on first knock.

It must be warm out today because they came pounding on my door like my house was on fire.
I jumped from my slumber on my couch and yelled "fucking christ!"
My windows are open.
I fling the door open and the church lady says "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't hear what you said."
"I said, fucking christ! Because you pounded on my door and I was SLEEP-ING! and I just knew it was you people.
"Oh."
"You here about god right? You hear to tell me he'll make my life better right? You here to spread the happy joyous news right?!"
"Well, yes ma'am."
"Well, I have no fucking interest in that shit now get the fuck out of my yard!"
SLAM went the door.

I hate those people with a passion.
I need a big sign on my front door that says the title of this post. Or sacrificed. Or carved up and fed to the dogs behind me. Or BBQ-ed.
I hate them. Hate them. Hate them.
I was sleeping dammit.

Kat posted at 10:27 AM on February 8, 2005 || Comments (13) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

January 2, 2005

Sunday Sermon 16.

I was indeed a prodigy of Early Impiety.... There was a time when I believed in the story and the scheme of salvation, so far as I could understand it, just as there was a time when I believed there was a Devil.... Suddenly the broke through to me and I knew this God was a lie.... I sensed it was a silly story long before I dared to admit even to myself that it was a silly story. For indeed it is a silly story, and each generation nowadays swallows it with greater difficulty.... Why do people go on pretending about this Christianity?
-- H. G. Wells

Kat posted at 08:08 AM on January 2, 2005 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

December 30, 2004

Pray for Satan.

So Sebastian and I are down waiting for the bus to go pay the damn bill and this bus stop is like in the middle of nowhere basically. On the side of an 8 lane road, nothing but warehouses and mechanics everywhere right, so there is no need for anyone to just like pull up at this location out of pure randomness.
They hunt for sinners I tell you!
This jehovah lady gets out of the car, (a full car mind you, at least 6 of them there saviors inside) and starts walking toward us. I think fast, grab one of my Normal Bob Smith pamphlets out and wait for the impending save your soul attack.
She walks up.
Jehovah lady: Hello. I'm sure you know who I am, we go everywhere but we can never seem to find people at home anymore, (Thinking to myself, I know why you interrupting must save all sinner people) so we have to go to parks and bus stops now to tell people that they can be saved by the word of God.
Me: Uh huh.
Jehovah lady: I see you have a young man with you today. I have some pamphlets here on how to make real friends with Gods help. (pointing at Sebastian)
Me: I'll take yours if you take mine. *holds up pamphlet so she can read that it says Pray for Satan*
Jehovah lady: Oh no no no! *runs away back to the car full of jehovahs*

You know, if she had just stayed or agreed to take it and read it, she would have seen that it says Luke 18:27
In Luke 18:27 it says all things are possible through prayer and the pamphlet goes on to say that if we pray for Satan, God would forgive him, Satan would be a nice guy again and all sin would vanish from the earth.
But nooo, they don't really want to pray for Satan because if they did and he was forgiven, all sin would be gone and churches would be out of business.

But the bill is paid, I'm home, started a load of laundry and am just gonna veg out and watch movies and crap.
Later days.

Kat posted at 12:33 PM on December 30, 2004 || Comments (13) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

December 19, 2004

Sunday Sermon 15.

"The book, called the Bible, is filled with passages equally horrible, unjust
and atrocious. This is the book to be read in schools in order to make our
children loving, kind and gentle! This is the book they wish to be recognized
in our Constitution as the source of all authority and justice!"
[Robert G. Ingersoll, "The Gods", 1872]

Kat posted at 07:55 AM on December 19, 2004 || Comments (4) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

December 12, 2004

Sunday Sermon 14.

Click for larger.

Kat posted at 07:56 AM on December 12, 2004 || Comments (5) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

November 30, 2004

Ring a ling, hear them ring.

It's that time of year again.
Time for the Salvation Army bell ringers with the red kettles to be outside your favorite stores ringing their bells.

I was on a forum last night and I admit that I got very mad at one of the posters because the poster was absolutely giddy with glee that Target stores will no longer allow the SA to stand outside of their stores which is fine, but her reasons for being so giddy were downright pathetic.
No amount of explaining the rules of a charitable organization helped.
She was convinced that the SA were nothing but a bunch of crooks and thieves.
All because they failed to help her one year.

Continue Reading �

She asked for money for an electric bill and they didn't have it but offered gifts and toys for her kids.
They simply didn't have any funds allocated to the electric department at the time she went in.
If any of you have been on the receiving end of this kind of help or even worked for a charity that hands out help, you know that funds are divided amongst all the programs the charity does and when that money runs out for that fund, then that's it, no more money in that department until a donation comes in or what have you.

There were actually two women in this forum who couldn't see past their own "no funds" experiences to see the good that the SA does.
They called the SA bell ringers greedy and pushy and thieves.
Never in my life have I ever encountered a pushy, greedy bell ringer.
The problem with these posters was that everyone was a greedy thief because they didn't get help.
They didn't, couldn't grasp that because of people like them who are not tossing that pocket change into the kettles, that the funds for certain portions of the SAs help would not have funds.
At this time of year they focus on Christmas.
Toys for tots and food baskets for the needy, shelters for the homeless and then they put away funding for bills.
They also get some funding for bills from the government but mostly from regular folks like you who add a few dollars to their monthly electric bill and check off the box that says "help those in need".

This time of year, as you pass the red kettle and hear the ringing of the bell, toss in a few cents from your pocket.
It adds up and helps so many and if you ever need help your self, you might be able to get it because you and others like you tossed some change in a kettle.

Yes I do know about the house in California from a few years ago and it's so easy to explain these things but no one ever asks, they just assume.
The church owned a home, it was on their property but it was falling down and needed massive repairs etc.
The house was located in a very well to do neighborhood so in order to keep the property value of the house up to the communities standards, they spent $1 million dollars to do so. This million was considerably less than all the other houses on the street were worth but it improved the property value and the value of the home therefore increasing the SAs assets.
The SA owns homes for their officers/clergy to live in and also for people in need.
I remember one year as a kid, a family in our SA church lost their home to a massive house fire right before Christmas and the church let them move into that house for as long as they needed.
We all gave them gifts from under our trees and people donated clothes and household items etc etc.

Compared to many other charities out there like the United Way, the SA actually does give back to the communities in which they are located in spades with shelters, housing, food pantries, bill and rent paying, furniture, clothes. They helped so much during the hurricane season from hell here and I'm sure funds are very low because of all the help that gave out so please, when you see the kettles, toss in some change. Your .35 cents gets combined with everyone else and provides help to the needy all year long.

I know, I've been a bell ringer and someone in need.

� Hide It

Kat posted at 05:37 AM on November 30, 2004 || Comments (11) || Ping (0) || Link || Holidays

November 28, 2004

Sunday Sermon. 13

Let us use our energy and our initiative to solve our problems without relying on prayers and wishful thinking. When we have faith in ourselves, we will find we do not have to have faith in gods.
-- Ruth Hurmence Green

Kat posted at 08:11 AM on November 28, 2004 || Comments (7) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

November 21, 2004

Sunday sermon 13.

Perhaps the whole root of our trouble, the human trouble, is that we will sacrifice all the beauty of our lives, will imprison ourselves in totems, taboos, crosses, blood sacrifices, steeples, mosques, races, armies, flags, nations, in order to deny the fact of death, which is the only fact we have.
-- James Baldwin

Kat posted at 09:18 AM on November 21, 2004 || Comments (1) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

November 14, 2004

Sunday Sermon 12.

Art is the Queen of all sciences communicating knowledge to all the generations of the world.

- Leonardo da Vinci

The Da Vinci Code is a fascinating book.
Thank you Terry for the loan.

Kat posted at 10:34 AM on November 14, 2004 || Comments (8) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

October 26, 2004

Heathens we are.

So 2 latter days saints come to the door and get scared.
I was hoping for more of a fight cuz I don't feel well and I like to argue, but man, they sucked.
They told me what they believe and I told them what I believe. I asked them if they believe in the laws of the bible and how they felt about the war between Isreal and Palestine.
They said God promised them that land so those people have every right to it if they lived their lives righteously.
Even if it means killing other people who currently live on it?
Yes because god promised them the land.
I talked about invasion of privacy and intruding on other peoples property and they didn't care.
They signed up for 2 years of service to go door to door and preach the word.
I mentioned to them that even Jesus Christ himself didn't go door to door, he walked in the streets and said people hear my words. If they wanted to listen, they went to him.
They talked of 1,000 years of peace and no death and no suffering.
ex-roommate and I were both tempted to ask what happens after the 1,000 years, like horrible death and massive suffering, but we thought better.
After 10 minutes of talking, I thanked them for their time and told them that I just wasted 10 minutes of their time that they could have been using knocking on other peoples doors because I felt so strongly about this door to door thing. They asked if I felt this strongly about commercials and I said yes and ex-roommate blurts out, you should hear her yell at the tv.
They said "We'll take you off our list."
Yeah, take me off the list and you suck at your job.
They didn't even try to save me.
I'm so bummed.

Kat posted at 12:30 PM on October 26, 2004 || Comments (13) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

August 29, 2004

Sunday sermon 11.

"The essence of the Liberal outlook lies not in what opinions are held,
but in how they are held: instead of being held dogmatically, they are held
tentatively, and with a consciousness that new evidence may at any moment
lead to their abandonment. This is the way opinions are held in science,
as opposed to the way in which they are held in theology."
[Bertrand Russell, "Unpopular Essays"]

Kat posted at 08:28 AM on August 29, 2004 || Comments (2) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

August 22, 2004

Sunday sermon 10.

This is a huge church near the center of town. It had many missing windows, part of it's roof was missing and the cross on top of the bell-tower was close to falling off.
The bell still rings though.
-------------------------------------

"God doesn't follow the linear projections of computer models," (Jeb) Bush told reporters here outside the emergency management center, whose roof caved in during the hurricane. "This is God's way of telling us that He's almighty and we're mortal."

*Nod to the fabulous Mark Lane for pointing out that gem of wisdom.

Kat posted at 09:04 AM on August 22, 2004 || Comments (4) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

August 9, 2004

It is very hard to discuss religion

with family.
I made a post on Sunday like I always do and I call it my sunday sermon.
I asked people to share their views with me on what they believe and it was not nor is it still, a way for me to argue or debate with anyone. I thanked everyone for their views or opinions and I tried to keep it civil.

Continue Reading �

Well, my dad commented. I know it says mom but it was my dad and I think I hurt his feelings a little bit and I want to clear it up if I can without making a bigger mess of things ok? ok.

My dad wrote: Kat, Thanks for the opportunity to tell you how I feel about God and the Bible.I believe God Is.....Almighty,without beginning or end....merciful....loving....full of grace....all powerful....all knowing....in control....appoints kings and presidents....has provided a way of salvation.
I believe that the bible is God's plan given to me as instructions on how to live my life. I do not pretend to understand it all but there is one thing that I am sure of that it is God's desire for me to follow Him and this is the only place that I can find fulfillment.

And I wrote back to him: Thanks Mom for your views and I don't want to argue or debate but I cannot believe that a thing up in the sky is responsible for presidents and kings because if that is true, right now, that thing up in the sky wants to destroy us all because he appointed very evil men to rule the world.
I find fulfillment in the little things like my kids being happy at the first day of school and a thank you from them when dinner is eaten. I find my happiness and joy in the here and the now, the solid and the sure, the seen and the felt of my everyday that I am here.

So he emails me back and says: kat, please understand that it was me who made that comment. i am glad
that the boys had such a good day and it brought some happiness i love
you DAD

Now, I hope I didn't make it sound like a life believing in god is not right nor fulfilling because I know from countless talks with people that it is very fulfilling to them and it is their everything. I was just saying that I find my joy in the here and the now.
I know that my dad has always believed and growing up I believed too and since an event when I was 11, I lost any belief that I may have had and I know dad, I can't let that go and no, I never will let that go. I was told lies in place of answers and I can't let it go.
I was just asking people what they believed because I found the persons blog post and the other peoples safe than sorry attitude laughable and I was just curious.
I am sorry if I offended you dad in any way. It was not my intention, I was just talking with you.

� Hide It

Kat posted at 08:41 PM on August 9, 2004 || Comments (4) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

August 8, 2004

Sunday sermon 9.

I read at a blog yesterday about someones beliefs or lack there of in God and then how they explained that it wasn't so much a disbelief in God but a disbelief in the bible.
So I got to thinking about that and then came to the conclusion that you can't have it both ways.
I know you think you can. Your mind tells you that the stories in the bible are pure poppycock and full of lies and myths but you want to believe that God exists.
Well, God only exists in the bible.
If the bible had never been written, the story of God would just be a myth, a legend, handed down from person to person or then again, maybe not.
Imagine that.
So here you sit in total disbelief of the bible, not falling for the parting of the seas and the burning bushes and the talking snakes and all the wonderfully scary stories of the bible but yet you will still believe in God whose only 'proof' of existence falls in it's pages.
Fascinating.
And I know people who only believe in God because they say it's better to be safe than sorry.
Ha!
That is so funny.
'I don't really know if there's a hell but just to be safe, I'm gonna say I believe because in the end, I don't wanna burn. Just in case.'
So if you're up to it, tell me what you believe without writing an essay. I mean you can if you want to but maybe you can just do it in a paragraph.
Like, I believe in both God and the bible because...
Or I don't believe in the bible but I do believe in God because...
Or I don't believe in either because...
I'm just very curious as to how many more people believe in God but not in the pages where that god was created.

Kat posted at 09:05 AM on August 8, 2004 || Comments (14) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

August 1, 2004

Sunday sermon 8.

The fact that a believer is happier than a sceptic is no more to the point than the fact that a drunken man is happier than a sober one. The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.

George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

Kat posted at 09:19 AM on August 1, 2004 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

July 29, 2004

Why is it

that when something really cool happens like a bunch of strangers help a person in need, that someone always says that god did it?
God didn't tell anyone to do anything.
People asked people and people came together and did the deed because people wanted to.
That big invisible thing up in the clouds gets far too much credit for things that real live human beings right here on earth are doing.

Kat posted at 08:57 AM on July 29, 2004 || Comments (2) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

July 25, 2004

Sunday sermon 7.

"The memory of my own suffering has prevented me from ever shadowing
one young soul with the superstitions of the Christian religion."
[Elizabeth Cady Stanton, "Eighty Years and More"]

Kat posted at 08:03 AM on July 25, 2004 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

July 18, 2004

Sunday sermon 6.

Those of us who were brought up as Christians and have lost our faith have retained the sense of sin without the saving belief in redemption. This poisons our thought and so paralyses us in action. - Cyril Connolly (1903-1974)
English literary critic, essayist, novelist

Kat posted at 09:41 AM on July 18, 2004 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

July 15, 2004

I love going shopping in the morning.

All those bright eyed and bushy tailed employees not expecting the terror that is headed toward them in the deli.
In the deli area, they have rack of books, all christian in nature and everytime I go, I make a point of either turning them cover facing in so no one can read the title or making a conversation, even if it's just to myself, about how only one faith is represented on the rack. All faiths should be represented because it's not just christians who shop for food here. I have seen other nationalities and we have a very diverse community here.
It's offensive to not include everyone.
It's a grocery store and not a privately owned one at that so why be so singular?
Well, I did it again this morning and the deli clerks just sorta looked at me like what? You mean you want us to cater to all faiths? They get this dazed, semi confused look on their faces like they can't believe that some shopper may not be a christian (oh the horror of a non-christian in the south!) but of another faith. I never come right out and say atheist, I always just let them know that there are those of us who are different faiths.
I once turned all the book covers around on the whole rack, every single book and a manager stood and watched me and then as soon as I left the area, he turned them all back around. I mean, what are they gonna say to me, ma'am, please don't turn all the books around, you're upsetting the christians?
Then of course I went to the pop tart aisle and they didn't have the pastry swirls for which I had a coupon so I bitched about that for two more aisles.
One of these days, they are gonna throw me right the hell outta that store.
Oh yeah, I found this fun link over at Yvonnes.
Click yes if you are a christian and no if you aren't.
I failed miserably but it sure was fun to hear Kirk Cameron get some passages of the bible all wrong.
Oh, and I think I want this book, God Doesn't Believe in Atheists: Proof That the Atheist Doesn't Exist. It's advertised on the site I just linked.
They wrote a whole book telling me I don't exist! I'm so excited.
I mean, wow. I have been alive all this time thinking that I exist but they can prove that I don't. How fascinating.

Kat posted at 12:08 PM on July 15, 2004 || Comments (17) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

June 27, 2004

Sunday sermon 5.

Science is like a blabbermouth who ruins a movie by telling you how it ends. There are some things we don't want to know. Important things.
-- Ned Flanders

Kat posted at 09:16 AM on June 27, 2004 || Comments (6) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

June 14, 2004

Son of Sam has a journal.

The website is set up and maintained by a church. The Official Home Page of David Berkowitz

Berkowitz has no web access at all. He types out an entry every month and mails it to the church.
Both Berkowitz and the church say that God has forgiven him for the murders he committed. He found god and has asked forgiveness and you know how it goes from there.
Well, the family members of some of his victims are outraged that he has the ability to express himself even though the constitution gives him the right to do so and no judge has ever told him he can't write letters or have things published.

I find it completely fascinating and totally understandable at the same time, the outrage the families feel.

This is one of those situations where it doesn't matter if you have found god.
People come to my door and stop me at bus stops and tell me that I need to be saved. That I need to open my heart and let god in and all my past sins will be forgiven and life will be anew.
If you are a killer, serving a life sentence, with no hope of ever getting out, all the saving in the world isn't going to make it all better.
People, no matter how strongly they claim their faith in god is, are still going to hate him and wish his death on morning news shows.

Thoughts?

Kat posted at 07:55 AM on June 14, 2004 || Comments (23) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

June 13, 2004

Sunday sermon 4.

"Salvation for credulity means damnation for investigation."
[Robert G. Ingersoll]

Kat posted at 07:56 AM on June 13, 2004 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

May 23, 2004

Sunday sermon 3.

"If you have a faith, it is statistically overwhelmingly likely that it
is the same faith as your parents and grandparents had. No doubt soaring
cathedrals, stirring music, moving stories and parables, help a bit.
But by far the most important variable determining your religion is the
accident of birth. The convictions that you so passionately believe
would have been a completely different, and largely contradictory, set
of convictions, if only you had happened to be born in a different place.
Epidemiology, not evidence."
[Richard Dawkins]

Kat posted at 09:38 AM on May 23, 2004 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

May 16, 2004

Sunday sermon 2.

"For god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, for whosoever beliveth in him would believe anything."-unknown.

Kat posted at 08:19 AM on May 16, 2004 || Comments (4) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

April 25, 2004

Sunday sermon 1.

"Lord, there's danger in this land.
You get witch-hunts and wars
when church and state hold hands."
[Joni Mitchell]

Kat posted at 10:16 AM on April 25, 2004 || Comments (2) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

April 18, 2004

Sunday Service 6.

We owe almost all our knowledge not to those who have agreed, but to those who have differed.
-- Charles Caleb Colton

Kat posted at 10:49 AM on April 18, 2004 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

April 11, 2004

Sunday Service 5.

"A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it."
[Oscar Wilde]

Kat posted at 11:10 AM on April 11, 2004 || Comments (0) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

April 5, 2004

The kids watched the Ten Commandments last night.

I watched it with them, it's been many years since I watched it in all it campy goodness.
They were utterly fascinated with this story and sat in bewilderment and asked me questions like, " People believe this stuff?"
To which I replied, "yes they do."
Mark being the most curious said things like but nothing like this stuff has ever happened ever ever again so how can people still believe it?
These are stories in a book mom how can people be so stupid.
I said that people have faith that these stories are true even though there is no evidence to back them up. They simply trust with everything they have that these things happened and follow every word.
Mark says to me, "Mom, Moses was on that mountain for 40 days and then he comes down with these 2 tablets with writing on them. How do we know he didn't carve those words himself?"
I said, "Mark, that is more than likely what happened but people would like to think that God took his time over a period of 40 days to write those words in stone yet they also believe that he created earth and all it's inhabitants in 7 days."
Then he said something funny and we laughed and I won't repeat it because it's a mommy son bonding moment to cherish.
The he said, "hey! Didn't Metallica have a song about the Pharaohs' son?"
"Yes, it's called Creeping Death."
The lights in his head fired up again and he started singing loudly, "So let it be written, so let it be done, to kill the first born pharaoh son
I�m creeping death!" with a little James-es-que growl going on.
He got a good giggle and some laughs over the seen with the burning bush and the whole I am speech.
He said "What was that Rufus said mom? you know, in Dogma?"
I said "he said 'We were sent by Him who is called I Am.'"
We laughed some more.
He went around during commercials singing in low baritone like Cam from Ferris Bueller, "let my people go."
Bwahahaha.

Please don't send hate mail.
It was a mommy son bonding moment that I won't soon forget.
What was Sebastian doing? He fell asleep around 9. Right before all the really good and funny stuff happens.

Kat posted at 01:08 PM on April 5, 2004 || Comments (10) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

April 4, 2004

I need one of these.

So when I do have to go out and ride the bus, the JWs will know for sure, that I am a heathen and they can approach.
Tee hee.

Kat posted at 12:48 PM on April 4, 2004 || Comments (6) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

April 4, 2004

Sunday Service 4.

All these people talk so eloquently about getting back to good old-fashioned values. Well, as an old poop I can remember back to when we had those old-fashioned values, and I say let's get back to the good old-fashioned First Amendment of the good old-fashioned Constitution of the United States -- and to hell with the censors! Give me knowledge or give me death!
-- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

On a different note, I hope you remembered to spring ahead or you're late for church or breakfast or your morning jog in the sun or getting the morning paper or feeding the pets or whatever it is you do on a sunday morning.

Kat posted at 09:14 AM on April 4, 2004 || Comments (9) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

April 3, 2004

When will parental guidance be good enough?

Laptop Lobbyists and the AFA and Million Moms have tried to shut down NormalBobSmith.com because of jesus dress up.
It's a funny little thing to do. Slap some clothes on Jesus. What is so wrong about it?
They say it's making fun of jesus. Not true. It's just having fun.
Are christians the only ones who get to do something with the horrid symbol of a man on a cross which is disturbing all by itself?
Apparently.
They throw that symbol around like we are supposed to be frightened of it and bow down to it.
If parents don't want their kids to play with the magnet set that Urban Outfitters will no longer carry due to the pressure of religious organizations, then parents need to monitor their kids a little better.
They also need to watch what their kids are doing online if they don't want their kids looking at Normal Bob Smiths site.
Why do they think that it's ok for them to try and shut down a site simply because they don't approve of it?
Because they think it's wrong?
There are millions of people who think that site is funny and entertaining.
They are spending all this time and money trying to shut down a really funny site when they could be doing some real good and getting porn off the net or make porn all in one place on the net.
I enjoy the site. It's funny. He's a character, he's great.
Go check it out now that he is back up. They actually got him shut down but he found new hosting and is back online.
The AFA group wants you to boycott MTV and stop shopping at 7eleven and wants you to support a ban on gay marriages and a whole slew of other things. They want you to not rent movies at movie gallery too because they rent some porn. *yawn*
The Million Moms want That 70's Show taken off the air due to sexual and drug innuendo. Uh, hello? If you don't want your kids to watch that show, change the fucking channel or better yet, watch tv with your kids so you know what they are watching. It's a great show.
They have an issue with McDonald's because I guess they support MTV. Don't want MTV in your house? Quit paying for cable.
They take issue with Fox Tvs new show Wonderfalls.
They take issue with a lot of things. Go check them out.
I feel a few nasty emails being penned by myself a bit later on their parenting skills.

Our ability to choose what we watch, listen to and do in our own time is being threatened folks.
Not just by the FCC but by groups who say they are better parents than you are.
I have no cable mainly because I can't afford it but when I was doing well, I had cable and then shut it off because I did not want my kids watching certain shows that were on certain channels.
I made that decision all by myself.
Can you imagine?
A parent making a parental decision about what their kids are doing without being told by some group of so called do gooders that we need to boycott something.
Support the petition to stop the fcc by signing it yourself and start making decisions for your family and what you watch, listen to and read by telling these so called groups to mind their own damn business.

Original story about Normal Bob Smiths situation found at Stupid Evil Bastard.

Kat posted at 03:51 PM on April 3, 2004 || Comments (3) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

March 28, 2004

Sunday Service 3.

In the Bullshit Department, a businessman can't hold a candle to a clergyman. 'Cause I gotta tell you the truth, folks. When it comes to bullshit, big-time, major league bullshit, you have to stand in awe of the all-time champion of false promises and exaggerated claims: religion. No contest. No contest. Religion. Religion easily has the greatest bullshit story ever told.
Think about it. Religion has actually convinced people that there's an invisible man -- living in the sky -- who watches everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he does not want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever 'til the end of time!
But He loves you.
He loves you, and He needs money! He always needs money! He's all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing, and all-wise, somehow just can't handle money! Religion takes in billions of dollars, they pay no taxes, and they always need a little more. Now, you talk about a good bullshit story. Holy Shit!
-- George Carlin

Kat posted at 08:12 AM on March 28, 2004 || Comments (15) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

March 21, 2004

Sunday Service a little late.

Bob: �I never believed in God. No, I didn�t even as a little kid. I remember this. I used to think even if he exists, he�s done such a terrible job, it�s a wonder people don�t get together and file a class action suit against him.�

Everyone says I love You

Filed under religion.

Kat posted at 02:57 PM on March 21, 2004 || Comments (2) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

March 19, 2004

So Tammy Faye has cancer.

MSNBC - Tammy Faye says she has lung cancer and people are happy about it.
What is wrong with all of you?
Maybe she deserves it like some of you say but come on, you're happy about it?
Do you honestly wish such a horrible illness on anyone?
I find that in situations like this, you see the true nature of some people.
I have read how happy people are about this on several blogs today and frankly, it makes me sick.
I don't even know what else to say except that it makes me upset that anyone at all out there would wish cancer on anyone.
No one deserves cancer people.
No one deserves the kind of pain and suffering it brings.

Filed under religion.

Kat posted at 05:50 PM on March 19, 2004 || Comments (17) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

March 14, 2004

Sunday service 2.

So, when Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, if you go for all these fairy tales, that "evil" woman convinced the man to eat the apple, but the apple came from the Tree of Knowledge. And the punishment that was then handed down, the woman gets to bleed and the guy's got to go to work, is the result of a man desiring, because his woman suggested that it would be a good idea, that he get all the knowledge that was supposedly the property and domain of God. So, that right away sets up Christianity as an anti-intellectual religion. You never want to be that smart. If you're a woman, it's going to be running down your leg, and if you're a guy, you're going to be in the salt mines for the rest of your life. So, just be a dumb fuck and you'll all go to heaven. That's the subtext of Christianity.
-- Frank Zappa

Filed under religion.

Kat posted at 09:32 AM on March 14, 2004 || Comments (12) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

March 10, 2004

Please go vote here.

The AFA, the same group who a few months ago wanted to know if you support gay marriage, has a new poll up about who you are voting for for president. Go here, the link it self dies I guess so copy and paste it in your browser. http://www.onlinepolls.net/pollv1/default.aspx?pid=10 to vote.
They have added a new feature, a small code you must enter after you vote, because after the gay marriage poll they had, they simply could not believe that that many people wanted gay marriage. They think it was a script or hack that put through that many positive votes.
No, the people are not as bigoted or hateful as you and the pres AFA.
So go vote, show them that you really do exist and it's not a script. Tell the AFA who you are voting for.

Filed under religion because they are anti-gay, anti-mtv, oh my gawd, they are so against so many things and they say it's all for god.
They want to ban the 'F' word. Pulease!

Continue Reading �

Kat posted at 06:23 AM on March 10, 2004 || Comments (9) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

March 7, 2004

Sunday service 1.

LOKI

Leaving 'Alice in Wonderland' aside, look closely at 'Through the Looking
Glass' - particularly 'The Walrus and the Carpenter' poem: what's the
metaphorical meaning?

NUN

I wasn't aware there was one.

LOKI

Oh, but there is - it colorfully details the sham that is organized
religion. The Walrus - with his girth and good-nature - obviously refers to
either the Buddha, or - with his tusks - the lovable Hindu elephant god,
Lord Ganesha. This takes care of the Eastern religions. The Carpenter is an
obvious reference to Jesus Christ, who was purportedly raised the son of a
carpenter. He represents the Western religions. And in the poem. what do
they do? They dupe all the oysters into following them. Then. when the
oysters collective guard is down. the Walrus and the Carpenter shuck and
devour the helpless creatures, en masse. I don't know what that says to
you, but to me it says that following faiths based on these mythological
figures insures the destruction of one's inner-being.

BARTLEBY sits amongst a row of seats by one of the arrival gates. He eats
popcorn and stares at...

A steady stream of TRAVELERS, exiting the gate, meeting loved-ones, family.

OC LOKI

Organized religion destroys who we are or who we can be by inhibiting our
actions and decisions out of fear of an intangible parent-figure who shakes
a finger at us from thousands of years ago and says "No, no!"

Bartleby smiles at the meet-and-greets, warmed. Loki saddles up beside him,
kneeling on one of the seats, facing the Nun.

LOKI

'Through the Looking Glass' - a children's tale? I think not.

NUN

(really dazed)

I've... I've never really thought about it like that...

(beat; shocked; off her cassock)

What have I been doing with my life...?'.

LOKI

Don't look back. Just get out there and taste life.

Filed under religion.

Kat posted at 01:19 PM on March 7, 2004 || Comments (9) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion

March 6, 2004

I was issued a challenge.

I was issued a challenge to read an online sermon found here.
This is very long, I apologize and feel free to skip this entry entirely. It was a challenge and I took it.
After all, he called me his favorite atheist.
I did and here is my response.

"DEATH

Because we are human, we will all die. But long before our hearts stop beating, we will experience other kinds of death.
The Apostle Paul put it this way in today�s reading from Ephesians: "In the past you were spiritually dead because of your disobedience and sins."

Spiritually dead because of my disobedience and sins?
Ok, let's talk about that.
I am not a spiritual person, this is true but I am not dead inside.
Who is it exactly I am supposed to be obeying and what sins have I committed?
I know that I am supposed to obey the law, which I do and I obeyed my parents because that is what you do when you are a kid and when I was young and went to church,
I obeyed the word of God as it was told to me.
I feared big fish swallowing me if I argued with my sister. I feared walking along and getting spoken to by a burning bush.
I feared lots of things.

Continue Reading �

One is a lack of closeness to God. Jesus, who had a very close relationship with God, did not understand that reality until he was crucified. But as he suffered the death penalty for sin, he didn't feel God�s presence and he cried out, "My God, my God, why have you abandoned men?" There�s a kind of spiritual death in us as well, when we ask, "Why, God, did you let this happen?"

In most Christians beliefs, they believe he was the son of God. I believe that Jesus was just a man like you and me who was a little misguided, maybe even "crazy". He had a mother and father but chose to believe that he was the son of something unknown up in the sky. He trashed a church during a celebration. He had followers. They captured him when they could and punished him for being a criminal. He was crucified in the style of death penalty they used at the time. Maybe that is the reason that no one answered him when he called out eh? There wasn't anything really up there.

Another is a lack of integrity and a lack of commitment to God�s ideals. In Ephesians 4:18-19, Paul says: "People . . . are against God. They don�t care about right and wrong. . . Their lives are full of impurity and greed." When people exhibit a lackadaisical attitude about worshiping on the Sabbath or speak disrespectfully about people in positions of authority or think cheating is OK because everyone does it, it�s a sure indication of spiritual dead spots in their lives."

Do you know what my ideals are? have you been in my home?
I live by rules that are a good way to treat all human beings not because I fear being punished. I teach my kids not to lie, cheat, steal, talk badly about others etc etc etc. Just because I am an atheist, does not mean I live my life all lackadaisically. Oh hey! Look! Food in the store, I'm an atheist. I guess I'll steal it. Oh hey! Look, my neighbors cute husband, I guess I'll sleep with him.
Please. Give me a break.

Still another is a lack of contentment and hope. Listen to the words of Job, after he had lost his herds, his family, and his health: "Cursed be the day of my birth, and cursed be the night I was conceived . . .Why is life given to those who have no future? . . . I hate my life." When a person always sees a glass as half empty or always points out what�s wrong with the world or quits trying when problems or challenges seem too difficult, you can bet that there�s a spiritual cancer at work in his or her life."

Anyone who knows me, knows the physical problems that plague me and don't even say if I just turned to God, it would all be well. That's bullshit and you know it. It takes medical doctors with years of knowledge to fix medical problems.
I am not un-content in my life even with everything I have that is not perfect. I am a single mother, I have a back problem that causes pain, I have financial problems. Are these things because I have no faith, no hope and no trust in God? No. They are because I was born with some medical problems, I divorced their abusive father and I have been unable to work for a year.
My glass is always full.
I have the best friends anyone could ask for.
I have great kids.
I have a great landman who works with me.
I have great parents.
I am content with the way my life is right now, right this minute. Today is a good day.

Sometimes there is a lack of self-esteem. When people have a low sense of self-worth, because they were never praised when they were young, or they feel people and God could never forgive them for something they�ve done, it�s evidence that something has died or is dying inside them."

My self esteem is really good thank you very much. I was praised much as a child.

Finally, there may be a lack of love and mercy. How many people in Jesus� day wanted to stone to death the woman who had committed adultery or have nothing to do with Zacchaeus, the hated-tax collector. When there is no room in our hearts to forgive others in the same way we want God and others to forgive us, then it�s a sign that we are slowly dying from a spiritual hardening of the heart."

I have much love to give and I do give it. I forgive those when my heart is ready to forgive them.
I don't really truly hate anyone even though I say I hate my ex-husband. It's his lack of commitment to his children which plagues me. I cannot change him but it upsets me. It's not a lack of love or mercy.
My oldest and I have been doing a lot of talking lately and much to my sons surprise, he discovered that his dad was the only man I ever, really, truly loved. The beatings changed those feelings but I honestly, have never felt another love so strong as what I had with him.

What are the spiritual dead spots in your life?

� Is it a sadness that won�t go away because of bad health or a relationship that has ended?

� Is it an addiction or a deeply felt grudge that you�re not willing to give up?

� Is it the tendency to worry excessively or a tendency to always complain?

I think I have already answered these above. I don't have any.

LIFE

The message of JOHN 3:16 and today�s reading from Ephesians is that God wants to remove the dead spots and give us something that will make us feel "alive" again. Listen to them again:

"For God so loved the world � Rollen Stewart, you, and me � that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him, will not perish � will no longer be full of dead spots � but will have a new lease on life."

"But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much that even while we were spiritually dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead."

This is one of the many things that disturb me about people who preach. Yes, this sermon was about Rollen in the beginning, but to change the words to fit what they want to say, bothers me to no end. Here we are more than halfway through the sermon and they think I won't be able to grasp the message.

Being scientific, let's take this apart shall we?
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but will have a new lease on life.
How do I know that this was Gods son? Where is your proof? You scientific proof that Jesus, the man, was the son of a ghost basically? Faith that he was is not a good enough answer thank you.
I take the second part of this, he will not perish but have new life to mean, that they will live forever in the house of god when the body dies and live happily on earth until then.
As I was growing up, I went to church, I mentioned this right?
I went and had to sit in the front 3 rows like all the children so that we heard the messages and paid attention.
My parents were and still are heavily involved in the same Church to this day. They knew many parishioners and we all knew each other.
I know many older parishioners who died. I know the cancers they suffered, the diseases that ravaged their bodies and all the while they kept their faith strong and prayed for mercy and healing. None came for some.
I will use my own families experience as an example. Mom, dad I know how you feel but please, don't be angry, just listen ok? You don't have to agree, just listen.
My dad was sick. He had basal cell carcinoma and when he went to have it removed, a doctor made an error and medications were not taken off before the surgery and blood started to pool in his body cavity.
For months and months he lost weight and was very ill. They didn't know why. They did tests and more tests and xrays etc. Finally, one test spotted it and a doctor gave him a new medication that fixed the problem. I do believe there may have even been another surgery in there. I can't really recall, it's been a few years now.
But during all this time, my family prayed and the congregation prayed for a "miracle" to save his life.
It was not a miracle that saved him. It was science. It was a sonogram or xray or ultrasound that spotted the mass and a surgeon who removed it and a scientist who invented a brand new drug to clear up the infection and the doctor who was wise enough and daring enough to try it on my father. It was not a miracle, but science that saved him. My mother says it was god who planted the ideas for the doctors to try the new drug. I say it was knowledge after years and years of study and hands on practice with other sick individuals that makes these doctors and scientists even smarter. Not miracles, not silent whispers, but science and knowledge.

Christ raised from the dead? Yeah. I don't think so. I think people were fanatical and hallucinated after days of not eating or sleeping but constant weeping. I know I see shit when I haven't slept for a few days. try it. Stay awake and barely eat for a few days and you too can have visions. As for the body being gone? Have you heard of grave robbers? There is no miraculous excuse for a human body to disappear. Remember, only the spirit rises to be with God in heaven. You can't have it both ways. If you say the body dies and the spirit rises, then that is how it is. You can't take his body and his spirit after three days. The body was stolen.

First, we are strengthened by God�s presence and the promise of a reunion with Him in heaven."
No, I am not. I get nothing from it at all.

Second, selfishness will give way to godliness. In 2 Corinthians, it says: "Jesus died for everyone so that we who receive his new life will no longer live to please ourselves. Instead, we will live to please Christ."

I do not do things to please myself. I rarely do anything for myself. My kids come first and foremost. The last time I bought myself new underwear was over a year ago. Why would I want to please a dead guy? What is up with that kind of thinking? He's dead. Please a dead guy who is dead. Uh, no. He's dead.

Third, pessimism and self-pity are replaced by an attitude of hopefulness and compassion. Look at Job. After complaining, Job�s attitude changes. He says: "I know that my redeemer lives. . . and after my body has decayed, . . . I will see God." Peter writes: "Because God raised Jesus from the dead, your hope can be placed confidently in God . . . So see to it that you really do love each other."

I have some self pity from time to time, we all do. I have hope and compassion but not because your god says I should. Like I said above, I don't believe he rose from the dead, I don't believe that he is a redeemer. I don't believe that I will see God. My body is not going to decay. That's grody and it takes up to much land. I am going to be cremated and tossed from the highest roller coaster in the world by my kids. They promised.

What qualities, that God offers through the gift of eternal life, do you need in your life right now?

� Is it an increased sense of worth or a clearer sense of purpose?

� Is it a renewed sense of humor or a desire to be a person of greater integrity?

� Is it a greater amount of patience or a deeper sense of inner peace?

Gift of eternal life? Bwahahaha. Oops, sorry about that. This stuff cracks me up sometimes.
My sense of worth is good thank you. I have a great sense of humor and I would have to say that my integrity is very good. I have patience. Boy, do I have patience. I have been waiting for a year to be treated for my back. Patience is my middle name baby. Ohm. Ohm. Yeah, my inner peace is good too.

In conclusion, I live my life the same as you Christians who would condemn me for not believing in God. I live a good, happy life. I live with morals and ethics and treat my fellow man as they want to be treated. I do it out of kindness and love and not because I fear whales or punishment or because I want to live behind some pearly gates. I live this way because it is how I want to be treated.
I don't believe that we need a set of codes to live by. I believe people can and will do the right thing if they choose. It's not Satan that pushes people to do wrong, it is their own desire to do wrong. I desired drugs and alcohol and stole money from my parents to do it. It was not Satan who drove me to do the things I have done in my life, it was me. I made choices, they were choices that I had to make and live through in order to grow and become who I am today.
No God saved me and helped me rise above my drug addiction. It was me. I went to rehab and got myself clean. I went to meetings and kept myself clean and yeah, they prayed at the end of meetings. I didn't because it was not God that pulled me from the depths of my addiction, it was me. I did it. I made myself want a better life, I made myself get clean and stay clean.
Human strength is overlooked. People look outside of themselves to God for strength when it is inside of them. It has always been inside of them but because they fear their own minds and their own strengths, they look to God to make decisions for them and give them courage to rise above and get through tough times.
I have always thought, and please don't take offense, that people who put so much faith in God and pray for strength and courage, must be weak inside. That they do not trust themselves. That it is easier to say that God will see you through then to get up off your ass and do it for yourself.
When I asked for help from the web community, people came and helped me. Perhaps some did it out of christian kindness but I think that people helped because if it was them, they would want someone to help them when they asked.
People ask God for all kinds of things, let me ace this test god, or let my doggie come home god or if you do this for me god, I'll never ask anything from you again and then they ace the test or their dog comes home and they swear to be better people.
You aced the test because you studied. Your dog came home because that is where the food is.
Put a little faith in yourself.

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Kat posted at 12:02 PM on March 6, 2004 || Comments (9) || Ping (0) || Link || Religion