Seattle Atheists are starting a bus-ad campaign

[Are_grits_groceries]

For so many years, they said, they hid the fact that they were atheists.

It was the looks of horror or incomprehension they would get, or the people asking them how they could live that way.

Plus, said some of the 50 atheists who gathered at a Seattle public library recently, they had gone for years without meeting others who did not believe in God.

And that, said Seattle Atheists president Paul Case, is why his group is running a bus ad campaign for eight weeks starting Wednesday.


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008942258_atheists29m.html

And away we go...

[rd_kent]

1. Thats good!

Kinds destroys the argument that the Founding Fathers were evangelical xtians, huh? But we already knew that.....

[sarcasmo]

2. Kick back to the top. When ever my the fundie in laws want to bring up our fore fathers

I always quote Thomas Jefferson and then they shut up. On edit: I can also quote myself, keep your religion out of my life.

[Kalyke]

10. OK - but keep your name-calling sneers regarding religion to yourself as well

It works both ways.

[sarcasmo]

11. When it's thrown in my face at family functions I don't keep it to myself and this was a public post

[Kalyke]

13. The Jefferson quote is not the usual callousness that comes out

of atheists mouths (or keyboards), though.

It's usually and "I'm smart, you're dumb" comment that has no more place in intelligent conversation than fundies attempting to hijack the truth regarding the founding of this country.

I don't care what you believe or don't believe - don't worry about what I may or may not believe. Deal?

[sarcasmo]

14. Deal, but don't Generalize, all of us Atheist don't use one comment.

[Kalyke]

17. You just proved my point downthread.

So, thus far, in the generalization department, I'm batting a thousand.

[Goblinmonger]

21. Nice broadbrush

If I has said anything close to the same about theists, you would be bitching about oppression. We atheists don't all look alike, you know.

[EvolveOrConvolve]

30. Oh cry me a fuckin' river

Did some big, bad atheist question your sacred beliefs? Did they use things like facts, evidence and proof to question those beliefs? Did it hurt your feelings when they acted all logical and stuff? Well too bad - cry me a fuckin' river, you are sooooo persecuted by the evil atheists/agnostics/nonbelievers - you and the other 80%+ of Americans that make up the largest majority group in the U.S.

Don't expect that just because you consider your beliefs sacred doesn't mean that I have to be held to the same silly standard, or that myself or any other atheist has to be quiet about the bullshit that surrounds us everyday. Respecting your right to maintain irrational and inconsistent beliefs isn't the same as respecting the belief itself.

[Pastiche423]

3. Bring some of those buses down here, please!

[JI7]

4. very nice, i don't see how those who believe in some higher being

can have a problem with this quote. in fact it's one of those where if they do complain about it, it kind of proves the point of the quote.

[Hissyspit]

5. I have NO problem at all with quoting a Founder.

Does any other American?

[Arugula Latte]

6. We need more of this.

[Sanctified]

7. As a Christian I support this Ad and find it to be in good taste. n/t

[Lydia Leftcoast]

64. I have no problem with it, either

In fact, I'm part of a tradition that believes in "Scripture, tradition, and reason."

[pnwmom]

8. They had gone for years without meeting another atheist? In Seattle?

They couldn't have been looking very hard. Seattle has the highest number of atheists in any major city in the country. And the largest percent of "unchurched."

[Fumesucker]

35. I'm sure they have indeed met another atheist...

But being aware of it is another story.. Most of us atheists have learned to keep a low profile about our lack of belief, it's generally not something one advertises, you just get too much grief for it when you let it be generally known.

I'm almost sixty and have been basically an atheist since my early teens, I don't recall ever meeting anyone who described themselves as an atheist to me.

[pnwmom]

36. Maybe you just don't get into that kind of conversation. Young people around

here freely state that they are atheists, including ones in my own family. Though among older adults, the group that I've had more conversations with along those lines are people who say they are cultural Jews, but atheists.

[Fumesucker]

53. I doubt that my "here" is the same as your "here"..

The most common question upon meeting someone in my "here" is "what church do you go to", closely followed by "what do you do".. Both of which are an attempt to determine your social status.

[pnwmom]

54. They they must get a lot of "I don't go to a church" or "I'd rather hike on Sundays"

"we go to our cabin on Whidbey." The Pacific Northwest has the highest percent "unchurched" in the country.

I don't think I've ever had someone ask me what church I go to when I've just met them. And I would never ask that, either.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2002552768_harrop11.html

The Bush administration's dance with religion doesn't have much of a partner in the Pacific Northwest. This is the least-religious part of the country.

Ask people here, "What's your religion?" and 25 percent say, "I don't have one." Almost 63 percent don't belong to a religious community. Nationally, only 14 percent claim no religion and 41 percent join no church.

[Name removed]

9. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[sarcasmo]

12. Being Gay is not imaginary, your fictional god is imaginary not even close to compare the two.

[Name removed]

15. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[sarcasmo]

18. Now your the one name calling not me.

[sarcasmo]

19. I don't believe and you do, why don't you leave it at that?

[muriel_volestrangler]

45. You already called atheists (in a general phrase) 'fascists'

I don't think you're going the right way about demonstrating what a liberal does. Following it up by calling a fellow DUer a 'smarmy prick' is just getting worse. If you're going to poison the conversation the moment you arrive, you've got to expect to have your ideas called names too.

[Goblinmonger]

20. Why is it fascist for me to say that your god is imaginary?

Is it fascist for you to say you believe in a god?

This, to me, strikes of the same "you atheists are fine as long as you shut up about the not believing in god thing." You claim to be this wonderful liberal and deride those that you think fall short but yet you can't allow us to say what we think. Why is that? I know, I'm one of those smarmy pricks. But, really, why is my statement of your god being imaginary so threatening to you and why do you elevate it to being fascist.

[Matariki]

22. There's a difference between saying "I don't believe in something" and "what you believe is false"

and that difference is tolerance and courtesy.

[Raineyb]

27. Considering that Christians like to tell people of other religions how false their religion is

I'd say they're not in a position to bitch about it.

:shrug:

Regards

[hfojvt]

28. there's not a huge difference

"what you believe is false" is just a statement of somebody's opinion. It's not like everybody who is not super-polite is a fascist or even an a$$hole. The whole "imaginary friend in the sky" thing is not that objectionable to me even if it is a little bit provacative and argumentive.

[Smith_3]

48. Would you be "tolerant" of someone who ran around claiming that the sky is pink?

I guess I would tolerate it but still think that that person is a whacko. Answer me this: If believers are so sure in their belief, why do they get so pissed if people voice their doubts about this belief? Shouldn't they just be smiling, knowing to themselves that the other person is deluded and will be shown that they are wrong eventually?

[Catamount]

24. We might ---if we didn't have religion jammed down our throats ...

Whenever possible!
Some of us learned religion from an early age and learned that more crimes are committed in the name of god (insert your own version...here)than in any other way.

I find ads that feature "Christian services to bring Good Christians together" highly offensive.

[hfojvt]

29. Where did you learn that?

Because I find that to be offensive, false, and, of course, unproveable.

"more crimes are committed in the name of god (insert your own version...here)than in any other way."

So of the 30,000 homicides in the US and the 600,000 rapes, how many of those are "committed in the name of god"? And how many of them are committed by people who don't believe in God, and thus can be their own god?

[Catamount]

43. If you learn something

about history...you'll find that most wars have been fought in the name of god...going back as far as you can go. Therefore the most deaths as a result.
If you find truth offensive ...that's your problem.

I was brought up strictly religious and was forced to study it for many years.
Now I believe in nature....that may also be religious in a way, but it works for me.
I don't go around knocking on people's doors to try and make them believe in nature, and I find it offensive when people do that to me.

I also find it offensive when I see huge advertisements on the side of the road promoting Christian values and Christian dating services and implying that any other point of view is wrong.

[Skittles]

26. fuck that

I have to read quotes on boards outside every piece of shit church I pass on the road - why is it that atheists get so much grief for a simple ad campaign?

[EvolveOrConvolve]

31. It's not snarky to point out the obvious

Without any empirical proof or hard evidence of your deity, he/she/it is just that - an imaginary friend. Go ahead and continue your communication with this special friend, just don't expect us to pretend that it's rational or logical.

[BlooInBloo]

38. Oh hush. I'm busy massacring Cambodians.

[orleans]

46. why are some defensive christians so obnoxious? n/t

[Smith_3]

47. Oh sure. Atheism per definition is anti-christian and therefore a violation of freedom of religion.

:crazy: Damn am I sick of hearing this bullshit.

[varkam]

51. I don't think facism means what you think it means.

But, hey, when you start getting people come bashing on your door to tell you what you believe is wrong - let me know.

[Ladyhawk]

16. Go, Seattle atheists!!!! nt

[Matariki]

23. It's as annoying as fundies putting Jesus ads on public buses would be.

I don't want your religion in my face particularly.

Although I appreciate the quote.

[Goblinmonger]

34. Religion is in the face of atheists daily.

It's on our money, in our pledge, and all over the place. But the atheists putting up a sign that is a counter argument to the thousands of instances out there, they are just as bad as fundies? Wow.

[Matariki]

39. Yeah, it's as bad.

And I also think that references to 'God' should NOT be on money, in the pledge, on government buildings, used in courts and so forth.

Belief or non-belief is a personal thing and I don't see any reason to shove either into other people's faces.

[Goblinmonger]

56. Then we agree on much.

But I don't think the Pollyanna attitude that it shouldn't be public and it is private reflects the reality. The reality is that the religious messages ARE everywhere. The reality is that many, MANY atheists feel alone in society (rightfully so, many times, given the U of Minn study that puts us as the most hated minority group). This ad campaign, and others like it, are an attempt to put out a message amid the myriad of religious ones, that there are actually other atheists/agnostics out there and that it is OK. IF things were as you--and I--would like them to be, there would be no need for these ads. But to say that such ads that attempt to reach out to a minority that often feels powerless and alone are akin to what the fundies are doing is, in my opinion, pretty heartless and misses the point.

[Catamount]

25. Finally---- someone speaking up for "thinking people"....

Even though it's only on going to be on the inside of the buses--it's a good start.

K&R

[rucky]

32. sounds more agnostic to me.

but that message is way more marketable than busting out a Nietzsche quote

[liberalsince1968]

33. Love it but get ready for the onslaught of Christian paranoia. They LOVE to feel persecuted.

[BlooInBloo]

37. I've been here for 20 years. I never hid it.

[Matariki]

40. You're in Seattle?

I had no idea.

[BlooInBloo]

41. Yuppers. Since 1979 (not inc. a 5-6 year grad school tour).

[pnwmom]

49. Isn't it kind of hard to believe the statement in the OP

that some of them had gone for years without ever meeting another atheist? In Seattle?

[Goblinmonger]

57. The real world isn't like DU.

Most atheists are pretty quite about it given the reactions they usually get from people in society.

[TechBear_Seattle]

61. Speaking as a Seattle atheist, no

In my professional circles, religion is a non-issue: by convention, it is considered uncouth to discuss religious belief of any kind, including non-belief. And until the formation of Seattle Atheists a few years ago, there was no community in which to discuss atheism.

[IDemo]

42. The first line of that quote would look good on a billboard as well:

"Shake off all the fears of servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched."

[jmondine]

44. My goodness people...

Can't we all just get along, sit down together, watch some Joseph Campbell?

[crikkett]

50. In other news, there's atheist money in Seattle for bus ads

I wonder if the bus system is desperate for ads (it's odd to accept this media buy) and if so, if the rates have gone down low enough for even small groups to afford them. It would be fun to see "Marry me Sue" or "Congratulations on your Retirement Fred"

[Romulox]

52. Interesting that fundamentalist atheists have the same need to proselytize that xtians do.

[Goblinmonger]

58. Oh, Jesus.

Let's start at the beginning: Please, coherently, explain to me what a fundamentalist atheist is. What, exactly, are they being fundamental to? What document is it that they have a rigid belief in?

[varkam]

65. Has anyone ever given a coherent explanation for that one?

The best explanation that I have seen seems to indicate that "fundamentalist atheist" is meant to be taken as a synonym with one who is dogmatic or strident in their opinion - which seems a rather sloppy use of the language. Methinks that people who use that terminology know that it's sloppy use of the language, but don't want to let that get in their way of the fine art of douchebaggery.

[cosmik debris]

62. How is quoting Thomas Jefferson an act of proselytizing?

And why do you feel the need to create an insult that has no meaning?

[varkam]

66. Because proselytizing is distasteful, and since some regard this ad...

campaign to be distasteful, it is therefore proselytizing. Don't you see, cosmik? It is so simple:

All A are B
All C are B
--------
Therefore, All A are C.



Oh, wait a minute...

[rd_kent]

68. "fundamentalist atheists" - WTF?

There is no such thing. Please do not try and compare logic and reason to the corrupt and deadly musings of any "fundamentalist" religion beleiver.

[Union Yes]

55. Oh Lord, protect me from your followers.

This gay athiests only prayer.

Peace

[Goblinmonger]

59. pssst

it's athEIst.

[TechBear_Seattle]

60. I think an ad campaign with quotes from many different Founders would be great

My favorite quote is by Thomas Paine: "My religion is to do good."

[anonymous171]

63. God dammit.

Shouldn't we (theists, atheists, deists, agnostics,etc) be doing something more productive with our money and time?

[Evoman]

67. My proposal: Atheists and Religous people stop putting ads on buses.

Instead, the money goes into creating big robots. Or buses with guns on them. And then the atheist and theist robots or buses fight until there is only one left.

Robots fucking rock.