Why We Need Skepticism

Angela Donovan is a psychic who predicts by May of 2010, President Obama will cause the United States to stop using the dollar as it's base currency. Better start investing in gold and making other important preparations to keep your family safe. Her books will show you how.

Skeptical?

Jack and Rexella Van Impe predict that the next pope after Benedict XVI will became the leader and founder of the New World Order. Basically, that will either make the next pope a forerunner to the Antichrist or the Antichrist himself.

Skeptical?


Robert Tilton.
Enough said.

The-End.com claims that the End Times were set into motion back in 2008 and that by May 27, 2012 the "self-rule of man" will end. You need to get a copy of their book so you can be fully prepared. You see, terrorism will continue to grow until the United States collapses and WW III will commence. [Jesus enters stage right]

At least they provide their book for free. Maybe they are at least sincere.

But still . . . be skeptical.

• You need skepticism when a preacher tells you that depression is all in your head.
• You need skepticism when a preacher tells you that you can choose your sexual orientation through determination and prayer.
• You need skepticism when the bible tells you blasphemy of the Holy Ghost is unforgivable, yet that same bible cannot give you any comfort or assurance as to whether you're guiltless of this damnable sin.
• You need skepticism when someone tells you that Hitler could be in heaven had he only confessed Jesus. However, you will burn in hell for eternity if you fail to confess Jesus no matter how decent your life might have been.
• You need skepticism when you hear yourself "speaking with tongues" yet nobody can ever understand or translate what you're saying.
• Hell . . . you need skepticism even if someone does claim to understand what you say when you speak in tongues.
• You need skepticism when politicians speak. Regardless of party affiliation or super-star status.

Even when Obama speaks; Especially when Palin speaks.

• You need skepticism when scientists pontificate about the origins of life and of the Universe. As a matter of fact, many scientists would encourage that you do this.
• You also need skepticism when people claim magnets can make a perpetual generator that can bring your electric bill down to $0, even though perpetual motion seems to defy the very laws of physics!

Excited anyway? You still want to purchase one of these generators? Well, MangiWork* will only provide you with a DIY guide to build your own for the special discounted price of $49.00. They even encourage you to resell their technology if you get one of those generators up and working!

Say . . . why aren't they simply selling the generators rather than the DIY kits? They could be making a fortune building those things!

Now, are you skeptical?

By the way . . .

If you can write a simple letter like this one, you can make six figures.

Are you skeptical?

Does that guy in Nigeria really want to give me a cut from that million dollar trust that he just inherited by dubious means? Does he really need my bank account number to cash out that money?

Remember, you may be trading your hard earned money and good years of your life paying for someone's sports car and mansion. Worse, you may be buying some sort of snake oil that could actually endanger your life! Or, talked out of real help or denied a life time of happiness because you allowed someone else to forbid you to be your true self.

Skepticism does not mean that truth or trustworthy information can never be found. On the contrary, skepticism seeks out truth and trustworthy information. Skepticism is simply the act of sending a claim through a vetting process. Skepticism simply asks the claimant to provide some reasonable evidence before expecting you to take the bait.

Unthinking belief is exactly what charlatans and confidence men want out of you. After they gain that, the rest if pretty easy.

Are you still skeptical about the importance of skepticism now?


* By the way, the MangiWork site no longer exists. But with the power of Google, you can find some YouTube videos on the topic.

If 6 Were 9

Like good ol' Jimi Hendrix said in his song If 6 were 9:

I'm the one that's gotta die when it's time for me to die. So, let me live my life the way I want to.

Those sentiments remind me of some grocery store music that I recently heard. The song went like this:

I've got a right to be wrong. I've been held down too long.

I've got to break free. So I can finally breathe.

I've got a right to be wrong. Got to sing my own song.

I might be singing out of key. But it sure feels good to me.

Got a right to be wrong. So just leave me alone.



You're entitled to your opinion, but it's really my decision.

I can't turn back I'm on a mission. If you care, don't you dare blur my vision.

Let me be all that I can be. Don't smother me with negativity.

Whatever's out there waiting for me, I'm going to faced it willingly.



I've got a right to be wrong. My mistakes will make me strong.

I'm stepping out into the great unknown. I'm feeling wings though I've never flown.

I've got a mind of my own. Flesh and blood to the bone.

See, I'm not made of stone. I've got a right to be wrong.

So just leave me alone.

To me, that song said a lot to be grocery store music.

While at the self-check out, another song came on-- Let the Music Play, by Shannon. An 80's song. If you're not a child of the 80's then . . . well, just ask yourself-- would you sing along with an 80's song out loud in a public place?

I wanted to. And the self-checkout attendant did at the top of her lungs.

And she shook it, too.

Somehow, that was all quite liberating. I realized I wasn't the only one who wanted to cut loose.


After that moment, I finally realized a very strong desire for the citizens of Jesusland to let us atheists be and treat us like the normal people we are. That same right should be extended to anyone else who expresses individuality within Jesusland.

Give me the same rights that you claim for yourself.

In other words, just leave us alone.

Violence Against Women in the Military

The information in this BBC news story concerns me. Hopefully we can raise awareness.

Women at war: Sexual violence in the US military

Occam's Razor

I present to you a YouTube video by Evid3nc3. Here, he explains his de-conversion experience within the context of Occam's Razor.

I can relate to his experience very much.




If you watch it, feel free to post your reactions to this video.

Geaux Saints!

The province of Jesusland in which I live does not have it's own professional NFL football team. As a result, most of the population in my province cheers for the New Orleans Saints.

Geaux Saints!

Saints gear, such as jerseys, hats, and  shirts have become quite scarce. Bakeries have even started refusing new orders because they've been inundated with special requests for Super Bowl cookies and cakes which don the Saints name and logo.

Between advertisements, electronic billboards flash the count down to Super Bowl Sunday.

Geaux Saints!

When I arrived at work this morning, I was greeted with a smile and a humongous "Geaux Saints" button.

But . . . I'm for the Colts.

Just kidding. Actually, I'm ambivalent. I'm interested in the big game and I plan to watch it. However, the only outcome I care for is an exciting, overtime nail biter. I'd hate for either team to obliterate the other. That's football at it's absolute worst.

Regardless, I wasn't all that interested in wearing my company-issue Saints button. 

Another fellow stood nearby and said that he didn't like the Saints and refused his button. The person issuing the buttons exclaimed, "I can't believe you're not a Saints fan! We need to convert you; I'm going to convert everyone to be a Saints fan. This is just like us Christians against those non-believers. You need to at least support the Saints if you haven't chosen a side!"

Was this person joking?

Yes. 

And no.

I took a button, but I never put it on. Not after that comment.

And that's precisely the crux of the matter. The citizens of Jesusland think you need to be on their side. They are right. If you don't agree, you are wrong, dysfunctional, and perhaps the weakest link in Jesusland society.  When God decides to punish Jesusland and purge the sin, the fault falls on those pesky non-believers-- be they atheists, homosexuals, or political liberals.

And apparently in Jesusland, worshiping Jesus is not enough! You need to be a Saints fan, too.

Praise Jesus!

Geaux Saints!

Just for that . . . I think I'll start cheering for the Colts.

An Anonymous Atheist in Jesusland

Atheists can catch a hard time in Jesusland. As a result, many of us who live there keep quiet. I know atheists in my area who fear losing their jobs if they are open about their non-belief. Some atheists in Jesusland don't worry about losing their jobs. But when the "cat's out of the bag", they find that their co-workers often distance themselves even though no one threatens to fire them.

I'm tired of staying in the closet.

A few atheists that I've met have made promises to become open activists for atheism when they retire.

When they retire.

Hell, my spouse could lose her job if her employer knew I was an atheist!

I'll have to avoid becoming an active, open atheist until she and I both retire!

But what exactly does activism for atheism mean? Atheist activism simply means that we help the citizens of Jesusland realize that atheists are among them-- and no, we don't have horns on our heads and long tails coming out of our butts. We don't carry pitch forks and we don't worship satan. We won't eat their babies and we deserve to be treated like citizens just like any other citizen of Jesusland.

No. The citizens of Jesusland do not have a right to make us assimilate.

Why? Because, it's not supposed to be Jesusland in the first place. Last time I looked at a map, I lived in the United States of America.

The good citizens of Jesusland wouldn't want to be pressured into Islam, Judaism, or even an opposing denomination within their own Christian faith. So, why should we atheists feel pressured to believe in god?

I didn't think discrimination was Christlike.