John Corvino, Ph.D., wrote an interesting post for 365gay.com titled "The Village Atheist." One part in particular got me thinking about atheism and the questions around if and how to promote it.

Frankly, there’s a part of me that feels a bit impolite even bringing up the subject [of nonbelief in gods]. I’m trying to get over that feeling, since I believe this nation could use a healthy dose of religious skepticism. A great deal of mischief gets licensed in the name of faith, giving people “infallible” backing for their prejudices.

Atheism for the good of society. I agree completely. We do need more religious skepticism in the U.S. It is not simply a matter of assisting others in the de-conversion process (although that is important to) but one of introducing skepticism toward religion into the public discourse.

As Dr. Corvino suggests, one of the most important things each of us can do to change the world for the better is to contribute honestly to the public discourse. We can "provide an example of a thoughtful, real-life openly atheist person to people who had never knowingly interacted with one." Like Dr. Corvino, we can stand for "truth, and courage, and integrity."

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The first time I launched WriteRoom, I wondered whether I would ever actually find a use for it. For those who have not yet made the jump to Mac, WriteRoom is a stripped down word processor that fills the screen with what appears to be a 1980s word processor - black background and green text with no menus to distract the writer. There is no bloat, and virtually none of the familiar formatting features with which we are familiar in modern word processing software. It really does feel like going back in time, and you know what, it is brilliant!

A reader sent me a link to a short film he made with his roommate, both of whom are atheist Jews. The film, Undoctrinate, represents their loss of faith. You can see it below.

Undoctrinate from Scott Lazes on Vimeo.

This sort of thing always makes me jealous that I have never been a particularly creative person. Short film is an intriguing medium with which to explore atheism, and I think it would be great if more people would try it.

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When idiocy is so pervasive and consistent, it may be difficult to spot even some of the most egregious examples. Case in point, "birther" website WorldNetDaily has somehow managed to go under the radar, never previously being honored in this series. That changes today with the selection of WorldNetDaily as Idiot of the Week.

I know atheists are routinely stereotyped as fringe liberals, socialists, or even Communists, but the reality is that there are plenty of conservative atheists. I've encountered Republican atheists, libertarian atheists, and all sorts of atheists who ally themselves with the political right. Once one understands what atheism is, this should come as little surprise.

There are a number of good atheist blogs written from a right-wing perspective. For an example, check out the Unreligious Right. And if you are a politically conservative atheist blogger and your blog reflects this perspective, please feel free to leave a link to your blog in the comments on this post. I'll repost this at some point with a list of right-wing atheist blogs.

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The Perplexed Observer has posted a story you will not want to miss. I urge you to visit his blog to read it in its entirety, but I will provide a brief summary here because it is too important not to.

Melissa Hussain, a Wake County (North Carolina) middle-school science teacher, has been suspended because she complained on her Facebook page about some nutty Christian students in her class. According to Newsobserver.com,

Hussain wrote on the social-networking site that it was a "hate crime" that students anonymously left a Bible on her desk, and she told how she "was able to shame her kids" over the incident. Her Facebook page included comments from friends about "ignorant southern rednecks," and one commenter suggested Hussain retaliate by bringing a Dale Earnhardt Jr. poster to class with a swastika drawn on the NASCAR driver's forehead.

Although this particular school district does not have a policy on social networking sites, the district indicates that Ms. Hussain's behavior violates their ethics code.

The Newsobserver.com article notes,

Teachers across the nation have been suspended or fired because of questionable material posted on their Facebook pages and other online social networking sites.

So much for the First Amendment, huh?

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Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) provides us with another compelling example of willful ignorance in the politicians we elect. I am becoming increasingly concerned over the degree to which blantant lying is now typical behavior for many Republican members of Congress and how little accountability there seems for those who repeatedly engage in it.

Rachel Maddow does an excellent job of setting Sen. Collins straight in this clip, but somehow that doesn't seem good enough. There has to be a political price to pay for this sort of thing, doesn't there?

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Those of us in the reality-based community are fond of pointing out that one is entitled to one's own opinion but not one's own facts. Aside from calling it out like Maddow did when people are caught doing this, I'm not sure what else we can do.

H/T to Dirigo Blue

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I remember the first time I was exposed to the idea of male privilege. I can't say I was initially receptive to the idea, mostly due to the accusatory manner in which it was presented. And yet, I now marvel that I ever had trouble grasping it. Part of what we mean by the various forms of privilege and how they work in society is that they tend to be virtually invisible to the group(s) that possess them. As a man, it was no wonder that I didn't immediately recognize male privilege. That's kind of the point. How about Christian privilege? Is it real, and if so, how do we help Christians understand it?

In case you missed it yesterday, Carnival of the Godless #136 can be found at the Barefoot Bum in the form of a special "Revolutionary Communist Edition." Be sure to check it out for some great godless blogging.

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