Anti-science Christians to Blame for Trump

I am unimaginably angry with Christians and Christianity today. They have delivered us into the hands of a greedy sex-crazed sociopath and con artist. Christians and Christianity are to blame, and if that is not immediately clear then I will connect the dots for you.

Way back centuries ago when science was a fledgling thing, some people figured out that the earth went around the star which we call the Sun. Unfortunately Christianity had assigned us a place at the very center of everything as God’s “special creation.” Christians and Christianity pushed back strongly against the basic observable fact that the moon is the only thing which goes around the Earth. But Christianity was eventually forced to surrender its place at the center of everything, and that should have been the end of Christianity. But through monumental pomposity and arrogance Christianity ignored the fact that in comparison to the vastness of the galaxy, our planet is but an insignificant speck. Astronomers later figured out that many of the bright lights in the sky were in fact other galaxies on a scale similar to our own – and that compared to the vastness of the universe our galaxy was also an insignificant speck. So our planet is an unremarkable speck near the periphery of a larger but equally unremarkable speck. Plus recent discoveries suggest that our planet is not unique. A spacecraft known as the Kepler Space Observatory has detected numerous planets orbiting other stars. In fact it appears planets orbiting stars may be the rule rather than the exception. Extrapolating the relatively small sample size to the entire galaxy and neighboring galaxies suggests there are billions of other planets and at least thousands of planets like ours. Yet here we are in 2016 and Christianity still arrogantly and ignorantly insists that it was all created just for us.

Now consider the major event in 1859 when Charles Darwin’s book “On the Origin of Species” was published. Not only did mankind stand upon a planet unremarkable in its insignificance, mankind himself was nothing remarkable. He merely sat at the end of one of the many branches of the evolutionary process. Christians pushed back strongly against this because it directly challenged their fairy tale of divine creation in the Garden of Eden.  A long running series of skirmishes ensued as Christianity has sought to protect its position of authority against the growing body of evidence supporting evolutionary science. History records the Scopes Trial and today we see the pretend-science of “creationism” and “sudden appearance theory.”

Let’s talk about evolution for a minute. White Christian Supremacists need to get a grip. They did not evolve from Apes. Black people did that for them. White people evolved from black people as black people adapted to inhabit northern climes. So white people are merely a sub-species or “phase” of the original people who were black and who evolved in Africa. The fossil record and DNA evidence both clearly speak to this. That means white people aren’t anything special. Everyone on earth descended from Africans, so Africans are the “master race.” White Supremacists are just a pale, greedy and aggressive “breed” of regular (i.e. black) people. White Christian Supremacists please get over your selves.  

Returning to the main theme of this writing, we see a pattern of Christians and Christianity pushing back against the increasing body of knowledge which we call science. The major component of this push back is to sow doubt regarding the veracity of scientific facts and conclusions reached after examination of scientifically collected evidence.  Stated another way, Christianity has been conditioning adherents to ignore inconvenient facts. Christians now believe that they are free to believe whatever they wish without any accompanying responsibility to base their actions on reality. This is a problem for democracy when they cast votes based on whimsy rather than reality.

Add greed to the equation and we a get a synergistically toxic brew. Christians and Christianity are greed enablers.

On the eleventh of January in 1964 the U.S. Public Health Service released a report linking cigarettes to lung disease. This threatened the profits of the nicotine industrial complex. Consequently the greed-driven industry set about sowing doubt about whether or not cigarettes were addictive and carcinogenic. The fact that cigarettes are both addictive and a leading cause of cancer is established scientific fact, yet you would never know it from what politicians say and what the public believes. This is because the seeds of doubt cast by the nicotine industry fell on well-prepared ground. The public was already conditioned to hold scientific findings as suspect – conditioned by their Christian leaders in the religion business.

The nicotine industrial complex and religion business would soon be joined in their attacks on science. Most notable among the greedy hordes were those who profited from fossil fuels and toxic chemicals. For example climate scientists are virtually unanimous in their conclusion that Global Warming is real, caused by humans, and an unfolding environmental and economic disaster. But thanks to people who discount science so they can believe in the fairy tales of the mystical Garden of Eden, people and politicians do not hear or believe the climate scientists. As the ice on Greenland and Antarctica melt most of Florida is going to disappear under the Atlantic Ocean, yet Florida’s Governor, Rick Scott, has forbidden any mention of “Global Warming” or “Climate Change” by state officials. When sea level rise inevitably swallows the cities of Florida Rick Scott has directed state officials that the inundation may only be described as “nuisance flooding.”    

Monsanto is a huge agricultural corporation which profits from the indiscriminate use of pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizers, and genetically-engineered crops. Their products and the farming practices they promote are suspected of many things. You may have heard something about Monsanto’s aggressive attack on the World Health Organization after researchers determined that one of Monsanto’s very profitable herbicides is likely carcinogenic. The rancorous debate over glyphosate was mostly ignored by the media as they pursued and promoted the spectacle of a conman running for President of the United States of America. This in itself speaks to an incredible dumbing down of citizens as science and critical thinking have been undermined by religion and chemical profiteers. The conman should have been challenged or ignored by the media. More time should have been devoted to his proposed policies which would loosen regulations governing dangerous chemicals such as those pushed by Monsanto and other greedy corporations. If they had ignored the con-man’s campaign then it would have starved from lack of free publicity as would have been fitting and proper.

Monsanto products are also implicated in the collapse of honey bee colonies. This is not getting the attention it deserves – generally for the same reasons causing us to ignore the facts surrounding the use of glyphosate. Honey bees are hugely important in the intricate web of life. These insects have evolved along with many plants such that each is entirely dependent upon the other. Plants have no way of their own to efficiently transport their pollen from one plant to other plants of the same species. But many plants have evolved to “trick” hungry insects into carrying pollen for them. In exchange the insects receive food perfectly tailored to their needs. Over the course of time the insects and plants have evolved together to form what is often call a symbiotic relationship. Unfortunately, our indiscriminate use of pesticides appears to be killing honey bee colonies across the country. This is bad news for all kinds of plants which rely on these efficient pollinators. This includes plants which are important to us such as apple trees, tomatoes, and virtually any beautiful flower which is displayed in our gardens and city parks. If honey bees continue to decline then many of our favorite crops will disappear along with the bees.

The increasing fact-resistance of the United States also provides fertile ground for crank economic theory. One such theory is called “trickle-down economics.” Statisticians and Economists tell us it does not work. I can paraphrase “trickle down economic theory” such that it becomes immediately obvious why it does not work. “Everyone will be ever so much better off if only we would allow the wealthy to hoard all the cash.” Of course proponents of “trickle down economic theory” would never use these terms, but my paraphrasing is a distillation of the crank economic theory which they are pedaling. More importantly we have evidence that “trickle-down economics” do not work as advertised. One need look no further than the formerly great state of Kansas where Governor Sam Brownback and his cronies have effectively turned the state into a festering petri dish of failed economic policy. Yet fact-resistant Christians merrily go along as the Republican Party proposes to take this failed experiment nation-wide. It is truly mind-boggling.

The ill-logic of Christianity and Christians is legion. For example they believe junk news seen in scandal sheets and gossip magazines. They believe the Obamas have somehow sullied the reputation of the White House. There is no reputable source or evidence to support this, yet at the same time they seem to believe that bringing a white man back in will restore the dignity of the institution – despite the language which the prospective President has used and that he is an adulterer accompanied by a gold-digging harlot. Where, gentle reader, is the dignity in that?

So today I have no patience or tolerance for Christians or Christianity. They value their fairy tales over the common good and have with their ill-informed votes brought us to the very brink of self-destruction. May the Flying Spaghetti Monster have mercy upon us all. Ra-men.

Confronting Christian Privilege

Don’t act so surprised. Christian Privilege is a very real thing. It has many things in common with “White Privilege.” Most obviously the beneficiaries of each are so accustomed to freely exercising their privilege that they are quite oblivious to the fact that they have it.

Before one can confront a thing one must be able to identify it. So let’s look at some examples.

Roy Moore was Chief Justice of the Alabama State Supreme Court. Then he decided to place a monument to the “Ten Commandments” in the rotunda of the court house. This was quite obviously contrary to the “Establishment Clause” of the Constitution of the United States. So he was challenged regarding the imposition of personal religious belief on visitors to the court house. The case was Glassroth v. Moore and resulted in the eventual removal of the monument. Now you may not think this sounds much like privilege, in fact Christians believe it was religious persecution. But consider for a moment how protracted the legal battle would have been if the monument had been dedicated to Atheism, or (gasp!) Sharia Law. The battle would have been over before it started.

Judge Roy Moore had his monument to the “Ten Commandments” installed on the first day of August in 2001. The monument was still there on the twenty-third day of August in 2003 when the other eight justices on the Alabama State Supreme Court decided they had best comply with Federal Court order that the monument was an unconstitutional endorsement of religion. Judge Moore was eventually removed from office over this ethics violation  – which some would categorize as persecution of Christians. But Moore recovered from this and was voted back in as Chief Justice despite his history of ethics violations. Consider if Judge Moore had brought Sharia Law into the courthouse. His career would have been over. End of story. I submit that the difference between the two possible outcomes is entirely attributable to Christian Privilege.

Like Roy Moore, Kim Davis believes it is her God-given right to assert her religious beliefs over other people’s religious beliefs. You may recall Kim Davis as the county clerk in Kentucky who refused to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian citizens. Her actions should have resulted in termination. Last I checked Kim Davis had spent a few nights in the slammer. But Kim Davis still has her job and even got tickets to attend Barack Obama’s Annual State of the Union Address earlier this year. As with Roy Moore I submit that the difference between the two possible outcomes is entirely attributable to Christian Privilege.

Roy Moore is actually a repeat offender. He engaged in shenanigans similar to placing the Ten Commandments in the court house rotunda when he was a circuit court judge prior to getting the job as Chief Justice of the Alabama State Supreme Court. If there were no Christian Privilege then Moore would have never been elevated to such a position of power in the first place. And Moore has not given up on basing official government actions on his personal religious beliefs. He was suspended from his position as Chief Justice on May sixteenth of this year for issuing orders contrary to those of the United States Supreme Court.  If history is any indicator then Moore will be back – his career again saved by Christian Privilege.

What can you do about Christian Privilege? You can start by calling attention to it whenever you see it. If the existence of Christian Privilege is denied then do what I did here and draw comparisons in outcomes if Islam was substituted for the Christianity. If there is a difference in outcome then Christian Privilege is to blame.

Delusions of religion: the fertilizer of all evil

1 Timothy 6:10 - For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

According to First Timothy 6:10 the love of money is the root of all evil. This seems to suggest that evil grows – and the last time I checked things that grow - particularly things that grow from roots – they do better with a little fertilizer.

Evil is growing fast. The evil weeds of greed are choking the boardrooms of our corporations. Metaphorical weeds of evil crowd the halls of power in our school boards, state capitols, and even the nation's capitol. All those weeds must be getting an awful lot of fertilizer!

I was hiking one afternoon recently. While hiking, I often ponder things or think about topics about which I might write. This particular day I was pondering whether or not I could support the statement “All evil can be traced to some combination of greed and religion” in an essay. I was having difficulty phrasing the question more narrowly to include only “evil” arising from the conscious actions of mankind. Things like evil arising from addiction were troublesome enough to make me abandon the original line of thought. But I had also been thinking about how extremes of greed are enabled by irrational beliefs. I had recently written an essay regarding how religion spills over to poison the public discourse. That line of thought went something like this: religion needs to protect favored fairytales, so religion conditions people to ignore science and to ignore evidence, and because religion is pervasive it has many opportunities to condition many people to believe what is comfortable rather than to believe what is scientific and factual.

Once people are conditioned to ignore science and facts then they are easy targets for opponents of environmental regulations. The fossil fuel industry is able to leverage people who have been conditioned to believe that which is comfortable to believe. So they are able to get people to believe that there is no global warming, that the Keystone tar sands pipeline will create jobs and lower fuel prices, and that there is such a thing as “clean coal.”

Once people are conditioned to ignore facts and simply believe that which is comfortable to believe then they will choose to believe the propaganda of “income redistribution” and “job creators.” The propaganda says that if taxes are kept low for the rich then the rich will invest and create jobs. The facts are that the alleged “job creators” will create a decent-paying job in this country only after all other options have been exhausted. People who have been conditioned by religion will also believe propaganda about “income redistribution” to lazy welfare recipients. The facts are that the wealthy have already redistributed income – from the poor and middle-class to the burgeoning plutocracy of greed.

People conditioned by religion are also susceptible to propaganda issued by the gun lobby. They are convinced not only of a “God given” right to bear arms, but are additionally convinced that we would all be much safer if more people carried concealed weapons and if military-style assault were more widely available.

Attacks on what is left of our democracy are often aided more directly by religion. Folks conditioned by religion are often single-issue voters. Politicians will leverage this by taking up the causes of protecting everything from “unborn babies” to “traditional marriage” and “traditional family values.” The facts often stand in stark contrast to the claims of the politician. For example if the politician truly cared about “unborn babies” then he would work to assure universal access to neonatal care.

These are but a few of the ways in which religion aids and abets evil. If we return to the metaphor then it is clear that the fertilizer of religious delusion has prepared a rich soil in which the love of money has taken root and flourished.

American Atheists Convention 2013

I’m attending the American Atheists Convention in Austin Texas. This year marks the 50^th Anniversary of American Atheists in the city where it got its start. There is a billboard campaign to go with the convention.

There are apparently at least six different versions because there are English and “en Español” versions of one featuring the CEO of the Catholic Corporation. I say it is money well spent! See more at http://atheistbillboards.com

A new way to help publicize origin-of-relgions.org

I have posted some files which you may print and distribute. The printable files are designed to get key ideas from origin-of-religions.org in the public eye. I have two pdf documents prepared for this purpose. religions_card and religion_poisons_card are intended for printing on 8.5 x 11 card stock. I print on both sides and then cut the card stock in half. If you are careful in orienting the paper for the second trip through the printer then the front and back of each half of the card will have different messages. If you find that Adobe Reader is causing a problem by printing with wide margins then I’ll be happy to share the original Microsoft Word .doc file on request.

Feel free to print and distribute wherever you like!

Carbon dioxide fairytales

I just watched the documentary “Greedy Lying Bastards” – a movie about how the petroleum-industrial complex has very successfully created doubt regarding the veracity of global warming. I don’t believe they would have been so successful if the religion-industrial complex had not conditioned so many people to doubt science. If you’re interested in that line of thought then click on over to my essay “Codependent irrationalities vs. the economy.” But that is not what I am going to write about this evening.

The movie included a lot of clips of “Climate Change Deniers” saying really dumb stuff – some incredibly so. It was made worse because it was dumbness wrapped around deceit. For example one of the “Climate Change Deniers” was blathering on about how “carbon dioxide is not a pollutant” and how “carbon dioxide is beneficial to plants.”

Well, I’ll tell you what else is beneficial to plants: bull shit. Cow manure makes a most excellent fertilizer. But you don’t want to bury your plants in the stuff. Too much nitrous waste will cause fertilizer burn – even if you don’t bury your plants in cow manure. The thing which “Climate Change Deniers” pretend not to understand is the concept of “too much of a good thing.” This is a simple concept. A little salt enhances the flavor of food. A plate overloaded with salt is an entirely different thing. Folklore carries this further with ritualized “salting of the earth” to symbolize utter annihilation of an enemy and their lands.

Carbon dioxide is an interesting thing. According to the National Climatic Data Center if all carbon dioxide were removed from the atmosphere then the average global temperature would drop from the current fifty-seven degrees Fahrenheit to around zero. But a little goes a long way. Carbon Dioxide accounts for only about 390 parts per million of Earth’s atmosphere. The activities of mankind have increased that from pre-industrial levels of about 270 parts per million.

Even more regarding disdain for evidence

The disdain for evidence instilled in people by the religious-industrial complex spills over to poison the public discourse. If you wish to read more about this then you’ll want to click on over to my essay “Codependent irrationalities vs.the economy.”

Speaking of disdain for evidence

The Abstinence Education Reallocation Act, introduced by Representatives Randy Hultgren (R-Ill.) and Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.) seeks $550,000,000.00 over five years. The Reallocation Act is intended to limit the information teens get about topics which make religious folks uncomfortable – contraceptives for example. However the evidence says such efforts are a waste of time and money. This should be enough reason to stop this bit of legislative trash. This is especially true in these times of endless yammering about cutting wasteful government spending.  Typical among the evidence is study by the Department of Health Services, University of Washington which concluded “Teaching about contraception was not associated with increased risk of adolescent sexual activity or STD. Adolescents who received comprehensive sex education had a lower risk of pregnancy than adolescents who received abstinence-only or no sex education.” The preponderance of evidence says “abstinence only” programs don’t work. But people are conditioned by the religious-industrial complex to believe what is comfortable to believe rather than actual facts. So there is a public debate when there should be none – and that debate is poisoned by misinformation churned out by the religious-industrial complex.

A prescription for leeches

If we consider “the economy” as a patient and Congress as the doctor then Congress has done the equivalent of prescribing leeches. Trouble is the economy was actually in fairly good shape when the leeches were first prescribed. The leeches which were prescribed have slowly and surely sucked the life out of the economy through holes – special tax-exempt loopholes which were part of the prescription. When the leeches inevitably made the formerly healthy economy sick then Congress prescribed more leeches. In this analogy each bit of legislation allowing a wealthy person who could afford to pay their taxes to avoid those taxes is another prescription for leeches. Doctor Congress stubbornly clings to the notion that enough leeches will cure what ails the patient. From this I conclude that the doctor needs to be fired for malpractice.

Now you might be wondering what this political analogy is doing in an Atheist blog. Well that is easy. The doctor in the analogy prescribes leeches despite overwhelming evidence that leeches are bad for the economy. This propensity to ignore evidence is engrained in the doctor by the religious-industrial complex. The religious-industrial complex does this to preserve fanciful tales such as the Garden of Eden, Noah’s Ark, and that whole thing with the omnipotent sky fairy. Unfortunately the religious-industrial complex does not draw a line when it is conditioning people to ignore evidence. The engrained disdain for evidence spills over to poison the public discourse on everything from “Global Warning” to the efficacy of “Trickle Down Economics.” Mix with a substantial portion of greed and the stage is set for economic disaster.

Is the NRA just another delusional cult?

Apparently there is a “Professor” James Tracy in Florida promoting the idea that the massacre of children at Sandy Hook elementary school wasn’t real. According to James Tracy and other “Sandy Hook Truthers” the whole thing was staged by the Obama Administration using “crisis actors.” This typical conspiracy theory claims the whole thing was staged as a pretense for taking away the guns and “Second Amendment rights” of law abiding citizens.
First of all I would find it far more plausible that the Republican National Committee orchestrated the whole thing. Their motivation would obviously be to energize a portion of the Republican “base.” Let’s say the means was perhaps to provide psychotic pharmaceuticals and weapons to someone they knew to be unstable. Then a few subliminal suggestions and they suddenly have a distraction from their failed economic policies related to the “fiscal cliff” as well as rallying point to energize “gun rights” segment of the Republican “base.” I would rest more easily if this “left-wing” conspiracy sounded less plausible.
The second important point is the similarities between the NRA and global warming deniers. Global warming deniers reject scientifically collected statistics and scientific conclusions derived from those statistics. NRA types similarly reject basic math. This is directly enabled by religion. That is because religion actively conditions large segments of the population to reject science and reason. This is done to protect religious fairytales such as those of Noah’s Ark and the Garden of Eden. Unfortunately the conditioning doesn’t just reject science which conflicts with religion – but conditions gullible folks to reject all science. This means religion poisons the public discourse regarding global warming and gun violence.
Then I hear NRA types referencing their “God given right to bear arms” – after which I can only conclude that the NRA is just another delusional cult.

Banner for LGBT Pride Parade

Designed this and paid for two 3’ x 10’ vinyl banners so we would have something eye-catching to carry in last year’s LGBT Pride Parade. There was a contingent organized by Atheist Advocates San Francisco and we were part of that contingent.

If “Christian” voters really believe…

Then there is no way they can vote for Mitt Romney. Many are put off by the fact that when he is not worshipping money then he allegedly worships some deity named Elohim. Mitt’s religion doesn’t just offer him a place in heaven – it offers Mitt a chance to be god of his very own planet after judgment of this one. Mitt wants to be more than President of the United States. He wants to be “God.” But that is not the worst of it.
Being as camels may more easily pass through the eye of a needle than Mitt Romney through the gates of heaven then it follows that Mitt Romney can only lead people to some destination other than heaven. One can’t lead to where one isn’t going. He is outrageously rich and the favored religious texts of “Christians” are quite clear and consistent about earthly riches weighting one “down.” So if one believes the “Christian” Bible then one must conclude that Mitt Romney can only lead the country to “Hell.” Let us hope enough “Christians” don’t want to be led there and vote “Hell no, we won’t go!”

The Reason Rally

Let’s make it a million Atheists march this March 24th! Now is the time to make you travel arrangements for the Reason Rally. I’ll be there!

Lets take away their special rights

It is high time to take away all the special rights granted to religion. Purveyors of religion will tell you religion has no special rights. “Christians” will even tell you they are persecuted - including a “war on Christmas.” It’s all lies! Religion gets special tax exemptions. Religion gets special privileges which allows the Catholic Corporation to shuffle pedophiles from one branch office to another. Without the special rights the managers in the Catholic Corporation would be required to report criminal activity just like any other responsible citizens. Perhaps the most disturbing special right granted to religion is an absolute pass on truth in advertising. Televangelists are allowed to ply the airwaves for cold hard cash which is used to lead lavish lifestyles. Of course they told all these imaginative tales about the good deeds which the cash would accomplish. I imagine most contributors would be appalled if televangelists were required to distribute an honest annual financial report each year.

Only You Can Prevent Santorum!

Preventing “santorum”: always start with a cleansing enema!

New Year's Resolution

No posts in a while. However, the idiocy being spewed by the Greedy Old Prudes running for President has motivated me to spend some time on militant Atheism. New Year’s resolutions included switching everything at origin-of-religions.org over to my real name. So far I’ve recovered a lot of passwords.

Atheist fundraising suggestion

Need funds for yourself or the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster? Here is a twisted idea for making a quick buck off “the rapture.” Unfortunately this idea will only work on May 21^st of this year. You’ll need shabby clothes, a King James Bible, and your best “poker face.” The basic idea is to convince gullible people they aren’t being “raptured” due to their accumulated worldly possessions. This will only work on May 21^st of this year because that is the date being hyped by a number of “Christian” websites and a billboard campaign. The shabby clothes are to give the appearance of being poor, so you will be the obvious and convenient recipient of all those burdensome possessions. The Bible will back you up if you know which verses to cite. Start with Matthew 19:24 “And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” This will be even more effective if you have the red letter version of the Bible – the red letters highlight the words of Jesus himself! Now move up a few lines to Matthew 19:21 where you’ll find these words: “Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven.” Make the case that your mark is not being “raptured” because of their worldly possessions. Do this while turning the pages to Mark 10:25. When you get there then point out that this camel thing is so important that God caused it to be included a second time for emphasis. “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Then back up a few lines just as before. This time to Mark 10:17 where Jesus is asked “What shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?” Then quickly skip to the following words in Mark 10:21 “go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven.”

If your mark has not broken out the titles, deeds and checkbook then continue! While keeping your best poker face, flip to Luke 18:25 where God has emphasized the point by including it a third time. “For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Once again – extra credit for cheap theatrics – skip up a few lines – this time to Luke 18:18. There is the question posed to Jesus once again “what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” And in verse 18:22 the answer is repeated “sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven.” If you can’t induce them to sign over all the worldly goods then maybe at least you can induce a crisis of faith as they realize they don’t really believe enough to put Jesus first in their heart. The book commands that Jesus be loved more than money. You can leave them with a final thought, this time the words of Jesus as recorded in Matthew 7:21 “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.”

Taxing “Christians” as an act of compassion

Let’s tax the “hell” out of “Christians!” We’d be doing them a favor – because doing so would literally tax the “Christians” out of “hell.” Here’s the lowdown on “hell” and “Christians” – according to their very own favorite book most of them are going to burn in “hell” for eternity. And who can stand idly by while that happens? Seems the “inerrant word of God” in their favorite book is quite insistent upon poverty being the way to “heaven.” It is a recurring theme with the following words of “Jesus” himself reiterated no less than three times. “And again I say to thee, a camel may more easily pass through the eye of a needle than a rich man through the gates of heaven.” This theme shows up repeatedly. In another passage a comparison is made with a merchant who finds a pearl of great value. The merchant then trades all his worldly goods for that single pearl of great value. Of course the pearl isn’t actually a pearl. The pearl instead represents everlasting life in “heaven.”

Unfortunately modern “Christians” have become extremely confused about this and have this bizarre idea that “God” is rewarding people for acts of charity and the like in this lifetime. The “inerrant word of God” promises rewards only in an alleged afterlife. But we could easily take care of the problem for all those confused “Christians.” We could tax the confused “Christians” into poverty. Being as poverty apparently removes a barrier to “Heaven” we’d be doing the “Christians” a huge favor. Plus we could then use the tax revenue to do all those good things suggested by the example of “Christ.” All that tax money would surely go a long way toward feeding the hungry, comforting the afflicted, and healing the sick. Who knows, “God” might even count the resulting good deeds in favor of the “Christians” on “Judgment Day” – although I imagine it would count for more if the “Christians” did it of their own free will.

Let’s tax the “hell” out of “Christians” because it looks like a win-win solution for everyone!

There is no god

There is no god and one may be quite secure in the knowledge of that fact. “Christians” and others infected with the evolving thought contagions of religion may say that it is impossible to disprove god. They are correct – to exactly the same extent and for exactly the same reasons that it is not possible to disprove that we are living like the people enslaved in the movie The Matrix.

If I assert that we are enslaved in pod towers to generate electricity for a machine society – just as is portrayed in the movie The Matrix, then it is impossible to disprove my assertion. This is because the machine society proposed in The Matrix is presumed to want to hide itself and is presumed to have the means to mask its existence. The gods proposed by Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are similarly presumed to want to hide themselves and are presumed to have the means to mask their existence. Because the gods proposed are presumed to have the will and the means to mask their existence then it impossible to disprove their existence.

Adherents of Abrahamic gods aren’t usually too keen on competition – most likely because their religions have evolved toward those most likely to win in the competition for control of minds. Consequently adherents of Abrahamic gods are likely to try to disprove or at least discredit The Matrix assertion. Their attempts would be very instructive.

The most obvious line of attack is to discredit The Matrix assertion by pointing out the provenance of the mythology. Modern technology makes it simple to learn the provenance of The Matrix. We know The Matrix was written by Andy and Lana Wachowski. We know the story was not widely known before 1999. This line of attack is instructive because it is applies equally to religion. The historical and archaeological records reveal the evolution of religions. We know the approximate dates when certain stories first appear and when particular features were added to those stories.

A marginally more sophisticated line of attack might employ “Occam's razor.” There are several interpretations of “Occam's razor.” It is variously stated as “the simplest explanation is most likely the correct one” or “entities must not be multiplied without necessity.” Let’s see how it might be applied to discredit The Matrix assertion.

In The Matrix each person experienced the world just as we believe we do. They had jobs, homes, families and friends. But it was all just a virtual reality world piped into their heads through a cable connected near their cervical vertebrae. They each believed they moved through and interacted with a real world but in reality they lay motionless in a pod plugged into a worldwide virtual reality game. From the perspective of a denizen of The Matrix there is no evidence or need for the pods, the enslaving machine society, or the worldwide virtual reality game.  For denizens of The Matrix, the proposition of an elaborate pod structure and enslaving machine society is a multiplication of entities and immediately fails the test of “Occam's razor.”

But the assertion fails beyond that. What physics would make it worthwhile for the enslaving machine society to construct and maintain all those pods and all that inefficient human respiration? Why wouldn’t they just employ their energy source directly? There are any number of questions which might be asked regarding the illogical motives of the proposed enslaving machine society.

The gods proposed by religion fail the test of “Occam's razor” for similar reasons. The laws of evolution and physics are sufficient to explain the world around us. Therefore adding an additional layer with undetectable gods, undetectable angels, undetectable demons, and undetectable souls is simply multiplying entities without necessity.

But the proposition of god fails beyond that. Why would a perfect god capable of creating perfect creatures instead choose to create flawed (sinful) creatures which can never live up to his expectations? Why would he fashion irresistible temptations right into our bodies and then get all uppity when we give in to the temptations? After doing this how could this god imagine himself to be just and loving? If the proposed gods are so perfect then why do they have this need to be constantly told how great they are? That need would seem to reveal deep-seated problems with self esteem.

Conclusion: there is no god and we do not live in a world such as portrayed in The Matrix. A rational mind must be equally certain of the inveracity of god and the inveracity of the enslaving machines of The Matrix.