Paula Zahn - discrimination against atheists part 1

[Az]

Run time: 04:11 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiyJzWy3CDQ   Posted on YouTube: February 05, 2007 By YouTube Member: benjdm Views on YouTube: 102793   Posted on DU: February 17, 2007 By DU Member: Az Views on DU: 779

 
First of three segments. This is the setup piece introducing a family that lost their job and home when they were outed as atheists. It is interesting to note the absurdly low figure provided for the number of atheists in America.

[BayCityProgressive]

1. I am not sure

if I would consider myself an atheist as much as a "don't really give a shit" agnostic. I like the Wobblies old song "There aint no pie up in the sky, it's a lie it's a lie" lol. The discrimination against people who don't base their lives off of 10,000 yr old tribal laws is stunning though.

[Az]

2. Just ask yourself this

Are you a theist? If no then you are an atheist. Thats all the word means. I am an agnostic atheist. I do not presume to know the entirety of the universe but I do not happen to believe in any particular gods. Theist is an active state. Atheism is just not being a theist. Thats all the word really means. The prefix 'a' means 'not' or 'without'. Thus an atheist is just someone that is not a theist or is without theistic beliefs. Period.

[BayCityProgressive]

3. yeah

I basically think that no one can prove 100% if there is or isn't some "force" or "spiritual force" out there so I am not going to say there is or isn't. I am just going to go with what is known at this point in time. I am not going tosit around and live like the Catholics or the Jews or the Muslims tell me I need to, so that when I die I can have fluffy cotton candy and prance around with angels in heaven. I am going to work to improve the here and now, because that is the only thing we know for fact is real.

[Az]

4. The brain in a vat problem

We can't even know that this is real. This conundrum used to be known as the brain in a vat problem. What if you are a brain being kept in a vat and being fed false information about the world around you. Solipsism 101. These days most people call it the Matrix problem. How do you know you are not caught in the Matrix?

[Cobalt Violet]

5. Thanks for posting .

:kick:

[China_cat]

6. We lost a place we had been living in for 6 years

when someone told the landlord that we are atheists. Without a church affiliation we were turned down as foster parents.

But I've been told right here on DU that these things just don't happen. Go figure.

[knight_of_the_star]

7. Props to CNN for doing this piece

Hopefully they follow this up at a later date with one on Pagans, but I'm not holding my breath on that. Still, big props considering they probably got a lot of flak for this one.