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DECEMBER 2007 BLOG ARCHIVE

For current and ongoing blog entries: http://www.thrillfactory.com/

DECEMBER 23, 2007

GET YOUR CRAZY ON!

Survey finds most Americans believe Jesus born of virgin.

DECEMBER 19, 2007

For those of you who missed the e-mail from the Factory, click the image for our holiday greeting.

Now, as an atheist, I always get the If you don't believe in God, why do you celebrate Christmas? question. The answer is simple: much like you, I make virtually no association between the holiday and the birth of an immaculately conceived prophet who almost certainly died a miserable death about 1,974 years ago. The real question is: if you believe in God, why don't you celebrate Christmas in the way the church dictates? Or even better, why not just skip the whole affair, which is a Pagan rite anyway?

I guess I'll take the opportunity to address the whole atheism thing here and now, since there seems to be some confusion on the part of the readership as to how my "conversion" came about. My mother-in-law, apparently, believes it has something to do with despair over my MS ("Has he lost all hope?"). On the contrary, if I am ever going to be normal again, it will be science -- not God -- that will be the agent. Still, I gotta love her concern. She's the best.

I was baptized Catholic in 1970. My family was not devoutly religious, so none of the other sacraments were encouraged or performed during my formative years. Interestingly, these folks seem to be the most confused by my atheism, while having done little to thwart it.

Anyway, I picked up the church again in 2000, after meeting the woman of my dreams. She was going through a spiritual reawakening of her own at the time, and I went along for the ride, believing our love for each other to be God Manifest on Earth (ah, romance!). In order to marry her in a Catholic church, I embarked on a twelve-month adult bible study course, which was a prerequisite to completing the aforementioned sacraments. This gave me a golden opportunity -- twice a week, for a year -- to explore scripture to a degree that far surpasses that which most so-called Religious People ever attempt. Never let it be said I didn't give God a fair shake.

The wedding went off without a hitch, and was wonderful. Yay, God.

In 2004, my new wife and I worked for the Presidential campaign of John Kerry, which solidified our convictions as not only liberals, but neo-socialist anti-conservatives. Needless to say, we became very incensed when our parish priest (the guy who married us) used the pulpit to endorse the anti-abortion, anti-homosexual, anti-stem cell politics of Kerry's opponent. We quit the Catholic church on the spot. They broke the rules -- not to mention federal law.

Thus began an exploratory period. We test drove more progressive alternatives (United Church of Christ in 2005, Unitarian Universalist in 2006, etc). During all this, I did my best to grin and endure for the sake of my wife, but deep down I couldn't seem to shake a growing intellectual discomfort with the very concept of a supernatural god.

I had questions. Why hadn't any of my prayers ever, in actuality, been answered? Is it possible that Adolph Hitler (a devout Catholic, often erroneously classified as an atheist) could be spending eternity at the right hand of God if he had truly repented prior to his death? Where exactly was my soul prior to my conception? What was the difference between a dream, a hallucination, and a vision from God? What makes my God the right God? Are Buddhists fucked? Would I be fucked if I were born in Nepal? Is it truly a virtue to maintain belief in something for which there is not a shred of evidence, and for which there is overwhelming evidence against? Why?

Needless to say, no Religious Person I questioned had any answers. In fact, most were annoyed and offended by the very notion of being asked, since faith (for whatever reason) is exempt from such inquisition to a degree that does not apply to any other subject. Of course, there is also the more likely possibility that they simply didn't know. Believe it or not (LOL), this is, in fact, a core tenet of the Catholic faithful. "Ignorance is Bliss" is official policy, put forth by no less than St. Augustine himself:

There is another form of temptation, even more fraught with danger. This is the disease of curiosity. It is this which drives us to try and discover the secrets of nature, those secrets which are beyond our understanding, which can avail us nothing and which man should not wish to learn.

Once I determined that religion had no answers, I looked elsewhere. I read Karen Armstrong's matter-of-fact A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, which dilated my mind to the very ordinary origins of the Creator of the Universe. I was then body-slammed by a bootlegged copy of a UK TV program called Root of All Evil?, produced by Richard Dawkins, a name which should be quite familiar for any regular visitor to this site. The 2-part film, shamefully unbroadcast in the US (so far), can be seen in segments via YouTube (although I recommend just ordering the DVD from Dawkins' website). Once I saw Dawkins' appearance with right wing tool Bill O'Reilly on Fox News (see video below), I knew I had to rush out and get his book, The God Delusion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bA66lP2GkiE&eurl=http://www.thrillfactory.com/

My consciousness was not just raised by the book, it was catapulted upwards into a new and fascinating understanding. My ties to the supernatural -- what little remained of them -- were obliterated.

And what's more, I'm happier. I know where I came from, and where I'm going. Darwinian Natural Selection elegantly answers every question I have about life, the Universe and everything. I can actually reach out and touch living examples. Actual proof. Everywhere. What religion could possibly compare?

Some have asked "Hey! Why rag on religion, man? What's so bad? Doesn't it make people feel good? And what about soup kitchens, and food drives, and bringing food to (insert destitute country here)?"

This is an evasive tactic. There are plenty of folks who do wonderful things in the name of religion, but if you do the math, you'll see they are outnumbered by folks who do equal good in the name of all sorts of things. Religion has no monopoly on altruism.

As far as feeling good? If I had terminal cancer, I suppose being told that I didn't, and that everything was going to be just fine, would make me feel good -- until I was doubled over in pain, at which point I think The Truth (and some painkillers) would come more in handy. Once stabilized, I would most likely kick my doctor's lying ass.

My problem with religion is that it was created and fostered during a time in human history when we lacked answers about our world. We now have those answers. God has nowhere to hide. Science has exposed him as a phony, like Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. And I believe that now, more than ever, is the time for atheists to "come out", end the bullshit, and move humanity forward. Now is the time.

Look around.

A Mormon (who believes that American Indians are descendants of Israelites that God cursed with dark skin, and that the actual Garden of Eden is in Jackson County, Missouri) is a serious contender for President.

The current President was re-elected despite having admitted that he attacked Iraq on the advice of Jesus. He also claims to believe the literal word of the Bible, which states that cataclysmic war in the Middle East is a necessary precursor to the return of Jesus. Do I think he actually believes this? Of course not. But the people who voted for him definitely do. It's their war.

Stem cell research, which could potentially revolutionize all known medicinal practice, has been stymied by fundamentalists on preposterous moralistic grounds.

More than 85% of Americans actually believe there is an invisible man in space who created everything, listens to their private thoughts and wishes, intervenes in their daily lives (sometimes in the form of miracles that can never be verified scientifically by anyone, ever) and will grant them some sort of eternal life after death as long as they apologize, however insincerely, for their "sins".

Maybe you're one of these people. Ask yourself:

- How did I come to believe this?

- Why do I still believe it?

- Would I believe this if my parents didn't believe it?

- Where did THEY get it from?

- Do I believe homosexuals should be stoned to death?

- If so, why am I such a dick?

- If not, why not? God does. Why is He such a dick?

- Who decided that I didn't have to believe that?

- Will God understand this when I die?

- How come I don't feel good all the time?

How would you feel about a man who claims that God speaks to him in morse code through the patter of raindrops on his roof? Would he seem "weird" or "crazy" to you? Could you describe to me the difference between him and you? (answer below)

If any of this pisses you off, you could be an atheist waiting to happen. For your sake, I hope that's it. D'oh! The baby's crying. Off I go. Anyway, I hope that clears everything up. Merry Christmas!

Answer: the difference is, he can actually record his messages from God, you can't.

DECEMBER 13, 2007

Been pretty tied up with the baby and a few other things the last few days. Finally got five minutes to do an update.

The Duran Duran mp3 this week is a ripping semi-acoustic version of "Notorious" recorded during a special free gig in the parking lot of Tower Records on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood back in '93. The bass break on this one slams, and I dedicate it to Willie, who I know would appreciate it more than anyone.

BAM! We got us an Indiana Jones teaser poster.

Should have some new videos and stuff up in a day or so.

DECEMBER 5, 2007

What the f@#k is this??

Notice the headband. Ah... 1985.

If this is true, it could be the coolest movie news since the announcement of the new Indy Jones. Apparently, Ray Park (Darth Maul his bad self) has been cast as Snake Eyes in the forthcoming G.I. Joe movie. Details here!

Now... if they can just get Jet Li as Storm Shadow... my spine!!

Heads up for the Factory's newest feature: due to demand from my Duran Duran Superfan friends around the world, I will be mining my monstrous DD library (152 discs and counting) to present a weekly downloadable mp3 rarity. Huzzah!

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