For those of you who aren’t avid followers of Lolcats, Let me fill you in: ceiling cat is the lolcat version of ‘god’. I figured it would be a fun way to lead us into something that I saw in the news this morning.
AM NY ran a story this morning about the impending godlessness of our subway system—or at least on certain ads it’s running. All in all, I’m not surprised that there’s backlash, but I think it’s kind of ridiculous. For those of you who aren’t New Yorkers, you can take my word that most of the time the word ‘god’ is uttered below ground it comes with a ‘damnit.’ But there are frequently ads in the subway suggesting that I go to this church or that church and I’m frequently annoyed by them: can’t I have a day without ‘god’? Anyway, the important thing about this is issue is the content of the ad itself: “1 million New Yorkers are good without God. Are you?”
Yes, I absolutely am. I’ve been an Atheist for a while and I’m proud of the person I am, godless or not. It’s amazing, but I have actually had conversations with people where they ask me how I can do good in the world if I’m not a believer in god. As if there is no way to have a good fiber in your body if you’re not a bible reader.
The erosion of theistic culture in America is, in my opinion, a good thing. There is a giant hypocrisy to some of the religious elements of this country: they hate it when prayer is taken out of schools, but when a country like Turkey (which has a secular government, but whose population is predominantly Muslim) moves towards any religious affiliation, they are all up in arms—“they’re becoming a Muslim state!!! Ahhh!!!!”.
Let me be clear: I think religion is important in society, but not in government. I think it’s important for people to be able to worship however they want, if they want. I also think it’s important that I be able to live my life free from religious interference. (Ahem, DOMA supporters, ENDA haters and Homophobes of all stripes…your days of control over my life are numbered.)
What do you think? Do you think it’s fair to let atheist organizations poster the subways the same way that religious ones do?
Of course it is. The religious may protest that the signs interfere with their freedom of religion, but atheists have a constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of expression that's every bit as protected. Too bad that certain religious folks only think the constitution is worth reading if it justifies what their brand of God is selling.
ReplyDeleteMike...
ReplyDeletehave you seen this:
http://conservapedia.com/Conservative_Bible_Project
It's a rebranding of god, wholesale!
It would be funny if it wasn't so terrifying.
I think it's completely fair for them to advertise, and consitutional
ReplyDeleteI read the article too - I guffawed at the woman who was quoted saying something like 'how am I gonna explain this to my kids'. I dunno - maybe start with :
You see kids there's this thing called the first amendment which guarantees us a lot as citizens of the United States.
just a thought.
don't get me started on the church ads I see every day
Yeah Matt, I've seen it and I agree. It'd be funny if people didn't actually believe it. For starters? Based on the KJV, which is what? A thousand + years removed from the events? As if the KJV (itslef the product of multiple translations) is the Ultimate 'Word 'O' God.' Here's hoping that the latest "translation" will provoke more schisms and fragmentation.
ReplyDelete"You can safely assume that you've created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do."
Anne LaMotte
Even more interesting:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.americanreligionsurvey-aris.org/