101. Sextuplet parents take B.C. to court over baby seizures

Comment #20398 by Linda on February 2, 2007 at 7:31 am

Deist hypocrites never cease to amaze. Those who for superstitious reasons are anti-abortion, against conception control and actively deny others the right to die with dignity embrace artificial reproductive technologies when the old fashioned methods fail to result in pregnancy. The artificial methods often result in multiple eggs being fertilized. We never hear from that sanctimonious group who discard fertilized eggs in favour of having one chance at a healthy birth. It seems that in some cases it's ok to abort.

The JW couple in question here did opt for reproductive technologies, refused to abort the extra fetuses saying that it was up to the gods to let them live or die and that there could be no scientific intervention made to save the surviving babies. Has anyone bothered to remind the pair that it was technology that resulted in the pregnancy in the first place?

102. 'God Is Not a Moderate'

Comment #20227 by Linda on February 1, 2007 at 6:52 am

Andrew Sullivan To: Sam Harris 1/25/07, 3:54 AM
"Thank you very much for your latest post. It was clarifying for me - and forced me to think hard about how to respond. I even communicated with my Imaginary Friend about it." A.S. you are talking to yourself in that conversation so how about being honest about it?

At least Harris is getting somewhere with Sullivan who has admitted to having an "Imaginary Friend". I wonder if Sullivan has a collection of plush toys that he has named and talks to animating them as pets. He does go on at length though saying absolutely nothing that proves the existence of gods.

Sullivan's intellectual integrity is diminished when he expounds on superstition seeking to validate something that to date there is no evidence of. His astute political observations and comments are rooted in historical facts as they must be for credibility. Surely the god question deserves the same scrutiny.

This conversation between Harris and Sullivan seems like a mutual publicity event mirroring Donald and Rosie.

103. Durham Council Votes To Continue Saying Lord's Prayer

Comment #19668 by Linda on January 29, 2007 at 7:20 am

Richard Dawkins is a unique individual in that he is a composed, articulate and competent public speaker who has the ability to quickly think through and present responses when in forum situations. Dawkins communication skills are supported by a lifetime achievement of incredible academic and publishing accomplishments. Few humans are as talented as Dawkins. It is therefore not really very fair to criticize others who in trying to further the cause of intellectual enlightenment dares to participate in media events growing out of public interest in the topic of anti-theism. The one person in Ontario that comes to mind, as an excellent speaker on humanist issues is Dr. Robert Buckman:
http://www.drbuckman.com/index.htm

Broadcasters select very aggressive speakers from the other side who are well trained in the art of deflection while refusing to answer direct questions. Hosts of TV or radio shows quit halfway and never persist in demanding that the pro-religion fanatics answer direct and clear questions.

Kudos to you Mark Robinson for doing the city.tv show.

104. Stephen Fry and Christopher Hitchens debate blasphemy

Comment #19552 by Linda on January 28, 2007 at 8:51 am

New York Public Library - LIVE presents
Christopher Hitchens:

God Is Not Great -Monday, May 07, 2007

"Taking on possibly the greatest issue of our time—the malignant force of religion in the world—journalist Christopher Hitchens makes the ultimate case against religion through a close and learned reading of the major religious texts, citing numerous historical instances in which sexual repression and outrageous acts of violence have been committed in the name of God. He argues for a more secular life based on science and reason, in which hell is replaced by the Hubble telescope's awesome view of the universe, and Moses and the burning bush give way to the beauty and symmetry of the double helix."

https://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?showCode=CHR9

For those who accuse Dawkins of being too critical and intolerant of the religious surely Hitchens will upstage the mild mannered and gentle professor and go for the jugular on this issue. I'm buying a ticket to NYC for this one. Sadly the Galapagos trip w/Dawkins is sold out ah but maybe next time.

105. Durham Council Votes To Continue Saying Lord's Prayer

Comment #19431 by Linda on January 27, 2007 at 6:53 am

jonovision_man - If you live in Durham did you attend the protest on Wednesday or at least call and voice objections to your local (elected) councillor or even send an email to Roger Anderson's (conned a job for life) office?

It seems from a CBC piece on the National the other night that the bigger fight will involve removing superstitious practices from opening Parliament and the provincial legislatures. I'll write yet another letter to Premier McGuinty who does eventually send stock replies. It's funny that Harper doesn't even acknowledge receiving written comments then again he must be angry at me insulting his god. Perhaps it's time to send the PM a copy of the God Delusion and a link to that very fabulous discourse between Fry and Hitchens, it's a keeper. How bizarre that executive committee meetings in corporations are not called to order by invoking imaginary friends yet when it comes to groups deciding on how many parking spots to allow at a mall this absurd activity is perceived as normal.

I wonder if all the ceremonial mumbo jumbo associated with government stems from ties to monarchies. Also does anyone know if the same rituals apply in Quebec? The laws in that province are not rooted in English Common but rather French Civil and perhaps the people there are more likely to be free of superstition.

Writing letters to politicians does help the cause. We cannot be complacent.

Please financially help the Secular Frethought Centre:
http://www.secularfreethought.ca/

106. Durham Council Votes To Continue Saying Lord's Prayer

Comment #19375 by Linda on January 26, 2007 at 5:29 pm

This is a tragedy and an intellectual setback for the people of Canada.

"God is the Supreme Being. Period. Full stop," declared Oshawa Mayor John Gray, who said he'd received "countless emails and letters" urging council to keep the Lord's Prayer."

http://www.thestar.com/News/article/172326


City councils and every other aspect or agency of government are empowered to operate and maintain infrastructure and not to dictate what people believe if anything. There are plenty of shrines about for those who wish to practice religion, which does not belong in a place of business.

107. She told them the boy was dead

Comment #19351 by Linda on January 26, 2007 at 11:08 am

Preying on the poor and delusional means that people like Benny Hinn can fly around in his private jet.

Let the bodies hit the floor:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Ok4Hv0LQiIA

108. Former exec in Irvine says he was fired over religion

Comment #19291 by Linda on January 26, 2007 at 5:45 am

Employers in Canada can only ask potential employees in interviews about their work history and qualifications. Subjects such as beliefs or not, marital status, children etc. are off limits and frankly none of the employers business.

Americans do not hold the same community based social values as Canadians or Europeans hence it is the only developed nation that does embrace universal health care for all citizens. It is curious that a culture in which 90% of the population claims belief in gods refuses to embrace the concept of the common good. What a tragedy that offering dignity to all citizens is in the minds of many Americans viewed as communism and the concept of socialism is derided in the press there daily.

109. Ruth Kelly, her hard-line church and a devout PM wrestling with his conscience

Comment #18981 by Linda on January 24, 2007 at 7:06 am

"Kelly must face her tragic end - to resign on principle" http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,1062-2562544,00.html

This issue highlights why practicing religion should be discouraged and the ideologies not respected. It's about time to start weaning religious organizations from the free tax ride and or the support of the public purse. Does the BNP receive funding or tax relief to brainwash members and further it's anti-social agenda?

A few years ago Mexico moved to retake all Holy Roman Empire properties and now rents back the facilities to clerics to hold their theo-tainment events:

"The constitution of (Mexico) 1917 highlighted and institutionalized many of the nineteenth-century secular reforms. The new constitution included at least five articles that affected all religious groups, regardless of denomination. These articles, which remained in effect until 1992, appeared to preclude any national role for the Roman Catholic Church. Article 3 forbade churches from participating in primary and secondary education. Article 5 prohibited the establishment of religious orders. Article 24 mandated that all religious ceremonies occur within church buildings. Article 27 gave the state ownership of all church buildings."
http://www.meta-religion.com/World_Religions/Articles/mexico_religion.htm

As to the influence of Opus Dei a group that is predicated on self-flagellation and corporal punishment it and the wretched Vatican are the primary cause of so many unplanned, unwanted and yes suffering children. Putting the church in charge of abandoned kids is like giving the tobacco industry control of lung cancer wards.

The sooner religions are shuffled to the back burner of history the better it will be for all of us. For those who continue to whine and rant saying that without religion up pops another Hitler etc. He was a practitioner of the Holy Roman Empire religion. Gee so are Ruth Kelly and Cherie Blair: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article2180786.ece

110. Activation Of Brain Region Predicts Altruism

Comment #18866 by Linda on January 23, 2007 at 9:55 am

Why cite Mother Teresa as an example of altruism?

Christopher Hitchen's wonderful essay 'the Missionary Position' exposes MT as a person who seemed to enjoy the suffering of others as well as the media spotlight for herself. No one has yet accounted for the millions she bilked from so many while proselytising. Hitchens rightly accuses her of "crimes against humanity". Was she a card-carrying member of Opus Dei?

If MT is an example of altruism then the word needs redefinition.

111. 12 Year Old Girl Prodigy Paints Pictures of God

Comment #18839 by Linda on January 23, 2007 at 6:23 am

Yes the child is a talented high realism painter who hopefully will attend a fabulous school perhaps the Chicago Art Institute in order to grow intellectually and to develop further technical skill.

The story doesn't give any background as to what in her environment provoked this expression. It is surely TV, community, school and peers.

Perhaps she missed reading this BBC piece: "So what colour was Jesus?"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/3958241.stm

The portraits she paints of Jesus are copies of the standard issue Sunday school material that is kind of hard to miss as they are commonly seen on PTL (Praise the Lord) TV.

112. Ruth Kelly, her hard-line church and a devout PM wrestling with his conscience

Comment #18487 by Linda on January 21, 2007 at 7:17 am

Perhaps Kelly and Blair should get out a bit more and discover that abandoned and abused kids are the by-product of incompetent heterosexuals and hence the need for child protection agencies.

Those who are flapping around defending dying religions and have given up on trying to prove that gods exist have sunk into using a banner of 'god is love'. Where is the evidence for love in the intolerance of those who use those empty words?

113. Dispatches: Undercover Mosque

Comment #18267 by Linda on January 19, 2007 at 7:52 am

Apparently that apostasy is a death sentence too.

Suggesting that any aspect or religion is benign is ridiculous. The only way to stop this is to outlaw participation in religion except for consenting adults. Tobacco companies rely on hooking children in order to maintain lifetime addiction and so do religions. In most jurisdictions children are not allowed to have sex or use alcohol yet societies turn a blind eye to the emotional and physical abuse perpetrated by clerics who of course are funding their pension annuities.

I'd like to see some clear-headed discussion of circumcision, ritual bloodletting that is performed on child victims without their consent. Imagine if circumcision is only declared legal for consenting adults. The outcome would be that few if any would opt for it and ultimately religion would fade away when blood rituals are viewed through the telescope of human rights.

There is an interesting radio show on the topic of Circumcision here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/beyond_belief/
Hit the drop down menu to Listen to previous programs for the link to the broadcast.

Moslems and Jews continue to engage in ritual genital mutilation of children, which is essentially a form of branding. It is horrific for both genders:

Boys: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/ethics/malecircumcision/

Girls: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/ethics/femalecircumcision/

I wonder if the political and social reality of the ME would improve if this primitive and cruel practice were outlawed without mature consent. Has anyone yet studied sexual dysfunction and circumcision?

Now segue to Toronto, Canada. Oh yes the image of Canada is one secular freedom yet this story from the Greater Toronto Area is really disturbing:

Durham praises the Lord
http://www.thestar.com/News/article/172326

The city council in question here is empowered to operate and maintain infrastructure and not to dictate what people believe if anything. I was really steamed yesterday when asking a friend who lives there to phone his city counselor and remind the person that municipal council is a place of business not a shrine and that superstition has nothing to do with making sure the busses run on time or the garbage is collected. My friend won't do it as he doesn't want to make waves and is afraid of more ignorant jerks spouting racist remarks towards those who are not Christians. Yikes.

114. Dispatches: Undercover Mosque

Comment #18263 by Linda on January 19, 2007 at 7:25 am

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/topstories/tm_method=full&objectid=18442715&siteid=94762-name_page.html

115. 'God Is Not a Moderate'

Comment #18129 by Linda on January 18, 2007 at 1:19 pm

Iraq is the arena for the Islamic Civil War that is Sunni vs Shia. GW Bush simply facilitated it.

116. 'God Is Not a Moderate'

Comment #18122 by Linda on January 18, 2007 at 12:30 pm

I wonder if Andrew Sullivan's absurd defense of religion and the supernatural is in effect self-protection. He is an out of the closet homosexual and would most likely be ostracized from his family or even professional activities if he came out as an A-theist too. Someone did recently raise the point in regards to US politics that homosexuals are more likely to be accepted in public office but A-theists not.

Sullivan is intelligent and articulate on the subject of American politics but when he starts talking about the world of imaginary friends defending superstition he sounds completely irrational making me shudder. I rather feel sorry for him.

Was Sullivan fiddled about with as an altar boy? That of course was the traditional recruiting method for the Roman Catholic priesthood.

117. Religion's Real Child Abuse

Comment #17877 by Linda on January 17, 2007 at 7:07 am

Stockholm Syndrome & the spread or reinforcement of religion

Watching that news report last week of the boy from Missouri found after missing for 5 years thanks to luck and police work and not a miracle (US news reports) made me wonder about why he didn't simply go home. It seemed that he had a cell phone and mobility and surely there isn't a parent out there who has not taught their children to memorize name, address and phone number. Some of the psychoanalysis of the mindset of the captive suggests that the captor uses terror to spook the mind of the child implanting in them the belief that their parents aren't looking for them and don't care that they are gone.

This then seems to be the effect of imposing religion on young minds through the use of terror. Stories of hell fire, damnation and threats of a violent, monstrous invisible man loosing his temper and condemning children to eternal misery after death are extremely mean and cruel yet illustrate why it is so hard for kids to quit religious early childhood brain washing. The fact that the parents are ignorant and have only thought through eliminating tales of enchantment like Cinderella etc. but can't realize and let go of the religious ones is the primary cause of generational religious manipulation.

Religion offers dangerous ideologies and superstitions and like sex and alcohol should be off limits to children. I do not support banning anything when it comes to consenting adults though.

There is no reason to either respect religion or to allow superstition peddlers to continue manipulation of the emotionally immature or influence governments.
The Stockholm Syndrome by definition describes the behaviour of kidnap victims who, over time, become sympathetic to their captors.

118. No religion and an end to war: how thinkers see the future

Comment #17871 by Linda on January 17, 2007 at 6:01 am

I read the above article in the Guardian newspaper while flying home to Canada from London on New Years Day and was exhilarated by the news. How disconcerting to read in this report on January 15th from Spiegel Magazine:

"THE SPREAD OF FAITH
Religion, Born Again by Rainer Traub
Amid wrenching change worldwide, people are returning to old-time religion. In the name of God, terrorists are happily maiming and killing; in the United States, the Christian Right has a stranglehold on government. On this increasingly God-fearing globe, only Western Europe looks like the last bastion of secularism - or are the faithful here too returning to the fold?"
http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,459500,00.html

It's as if we take one step forward only to slip and slide back to the bottom of the pit of superstition.

119. Beyond Belief 2006 Videos

Comment #17678 by Linda on January 15, 2007 at 12:59 pm

One of the people in the audience defending religion while trying to draw an analogy with regards to alcohol prohibition as a warning about banning religion seems to have missed the point. No one has suggested a ban on religion but rather a moratorium on the promotion and protection of superstition within the culture. It is also important to realize that religion is something that should be practiced by consenting adults, as it is immoral to use abstract or even physical threats against the developing minds of children to make them believe in the unproven supernatural. Just as it is illegal and immoral to give alcohol to children so is it to indoctrinate their developing minds.

I would consider religious conditioning of children as an example of the Stockholm Syndrome a term which describes the behaviour of kidnap victims who become sympathetic to their captors. Children are essentially a captive audience and have little recourse against the terrors and nightmare scenarios implanted in their imagination through religious myths.

This is a topic of discussion on the BBC MB:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/mbreligion/F2213237?thread=3804382

There is a link on the thread to one section of the series:
http://beyondbelief2006.org/Watch/watch.php?Video=Session%209

120. Atheists challenge the religious right

Comment #16162 by Linda on January 5, 2007 at 5:53 am

Wafa Sultan is courageous. Thanks for the link MelM. It would be good to see more responses from the imam though. Those guys hate losing their annuities as what else can the do for work?

121. Executing Saddam Hussein was an Act of Vandalism

Comment #16013 by Linda on January 4, 2007 at 6:45 am

The morally correct action would have been to put Saddam into a cell in the Hague and give him a tape recorder or even a pc with a video cam to make his own You Tube performance. That would have been pretty darn delicious.

Dead men don't talk or wear plaid.

122. I'm an atheist, BUT . . .

Comment #8488 by Linda on November 21, 2006 at 11:37 am

Re: Comment 8429

My concern is that atheism is going to end up as a mood in search of a movement, as was said of 60's radicalism - many good ideas, but no cohesive center.
I think we need to stop looking at Xtianity as a religion and begin to look at it as a business, which is what it has become. "Jesus Saves," "Pray for Peace," "Saved!" etc. are advertising slogans, as recognizable as "It's the real thing," or "Good to the last drop." Modern day religionists understand their product (Jesus) and have learned to package it and promote it to their target market. This is a multi-billion dollar, tax-free industry. We are like a new burger chain trying to break the McDonald's grip on the market, and promoting ourselves with our own arsenal of slogans and campaigns is not unthinkable.
Or look at it this way: What we are trying to do as atheists is the equivalent of turning Red Sox fans into Yankees fans. Why are people Red Sox fans? Because they're born in Massachusetts. Because their family are Red Sox fans. Because there was one player they admired years ago. Not usually logical reasons. But try to turn a Red Sox fan into a Yankees fan, and forget it! Even when the Red Sox are losing, their fans just get more rabid. This is the same mentality we're dealing with when we address xtians. They call themselves xtian for much the same reason: they were born into it, it's the family religion, etc. Ask most Protestants the history of Protestantism and they'll give you a blank look. Most xtians don't even understand what they're committing to. I believe more atheists have read the bible than xtians. Yet, the reality is the more we tell them "no," the more rabidly they're going to defend their "team."
Another example: When I was in high school, I remember watching a dreadful little film about psychologists conducting tests on baby monkeys to prove their attachment to their mothers. They nursed the babies through wire frames they called "wire mothers," and the baby monkeys learned to cling to these wire frames for all their maternal needs. Even when later the good doctors electrified the wire mothers, covered them with spikes or did other awful things, the baby monkeys still clung because they'd been conditioned to regard these frames as sources of security. We must understand that when we ask people to turn from xtianity, we're asking them to give up their super-best friend or Fantasy Father image - Jesus as "lovey," the eternal security blanket. We're asking people to grow up and stand on their own two feet. That's not going to be easy.
While I hope people have more intelligence than baby monkeys, the model still works: people have been conditioned (some would say brainwashed) into viewing their religion as a source of comfort and security, and no matter how hard you try to show them that it's false or harmful, they're still going to cling.
There's a lot more work to do for atheists than simply bashing religion. We need to address the issue from a business angle and from a psychological angle. If we don't provide an appealing alternative, it's not going to catch fire. It's going to remain the apparent bastion of upper class, educated white males (although I'm a middle class, educated white female) and not have the universal appeal of xtianity. And it will fade away again under the shadow of superstition. I think Dr. Dawkins and others have opened a door here. It remains to be seen if organized atheist movements will truly be able to take advantage of this.

123. I'm an atheist, BUT . . .

Comment #8421 by Linda on November 21, 2006 at 7:24 am

I'm an atheist BUT... my husband is a Christian. However, of course, while he's allowed to play his Xtian music and hang a cross in the window, I have to stay quiet or else be accused of sabotaging his faith. *sigh*. However, in the few conversations we've had, the appeal of his religion (for him) has become very apparent to me. It's the warm, cuddly, Holly Hobby aspect, the "everything IS going to be all right," the comfort you had when you were a kid and mom and dad paid your bills and provided for everything.
Religion is people's attempt to get back to that child-like state of mind where they feel someone (now Jesus) is paying their bills and taking care of them. Lack of maturity? Sure. But it does have its appeal, the same appeal that winning the lottery and not having to ever worry about work or bills has.
This new push for atheism is excellent, BUT if you want to attract modern Xtians, atheism as a movement needs to provide something positive, not just be an institution that stands against something (religion). We need to be FOR something - and science doesn't cut it. It's cold, clinical and ever changing (which is fine by me, but it doesn't take the place of a pastel Hummel Jesus). Reality doesn't cut it (at first) because most people feel threatened and overwhelmed by reality, especially by the reality of their mortality.
Atheism needs some chintz and gingerbread, LOL - I'm laughing, but I'm actually quite serious. THe American Atheists should hire an advertising firm to create some catch phrases that rival those batted around by Xtians - Jesus is Love, God only gives you what you can handle, etc. These Hallmarkisms are extremely appealing to people overwhelmed by modern society who yearn to get back to something simple - a great appeal of religion.
I'm not suggesting atheists become Hallmarxists, as I call Xtians (especially televangelists raking in $$ in the Jesus Industry), but I feel strongly we need to project a more welcoming image. I Believe in You bumperstickers, perhaps? A Welcome Home movement for disenfranchised believers?
We also need something to counteract Santa Clausism -- that childlike appeal of Xtianity that if I'm a good boy or girl, I get the gift of heaven. Another poster mentioned he was uncomfortable with the notion of just being dead and not going on. To me, this notion is supreme hubris and self-importance- the idea that I'm so important I can't possibly just go away! Imagine! LOL Yet what can atheism offer to overcome Santa Clausism? Perhaps a "circle of life" notion that our immortality comes in the form of the good we do in this lifetime and in the children we leave behind? That's the reality - we need to phrase it in an appealing manner to ease ex-religionists into acceptance.
If we are serious about attracting new people to atheism, I believe we need to take a serious look at what makes religion so appealing and come up with some pro-atheist equivalents, or else it'll be back in the closet with us.
Just my thoughts on the matter.

124. Reading of The God Delusion in Lynchburg, VA

Comment #6121 by Linda on November 12, 2006 at 6:32 pm

I recently read The God Delusion and happened across the Cspan program tonight. Having been raised in an evangelical family, it took going to a secular college to open my eyes to the "programming" I received. But I always clung to the "agnostic" label, thinking that I couldn't be sure if there was a god or not. Dawkins has helped me cross over and acknowledge what I know deeply to be true. He has also helped me to realize that I can keep the "good" values I was raised with, without attributing them to a gray bearded (male) god in the sky. It was wonderful to see the students and faculty at Virginia Macon applauding him. We just don't hear presentations like this much on TV and I hope many will listen.

125. Controversial Religious Summer Camp Closed

Comment #5435 by Linda on November 9, 2006 at 12:01 pm

Dear CFI - I am a Guardian MB junkie too and constantly had to re-register nicknames for after being banned for making jokes about Islam. The GU allowed posters the opportunity to say pretty much whatever they liked about Christianity or the Pope but dare say anything about quirky, kinky Judaism or Islam and the boot was swift. I once tried to start a debate about women's issues in fundamentalism including Judaism and Islam and it was shut down. Apparently we just don't want to know or talk about domestic violence or that those closed cultures prohibits teaching evolution, higher mathematics and science.

There is a religious nut on CNN that gets all gooey when that lady from the Jesus Camp is on his show. How utterly irresponsible that CNN gives Glenn Beck a forum allowing him to terrify the American population further when they are already sick from the disease of religion and barely able to function as an emotionally mature culture.

Has any asked the Jesus Campers if they believe that the Flintstones is a documentary?

May I ask if anyone else is visiting bookstores seeking the God Delusion? I did a search of chapters.ca and found that only 1 store in Toronto has 3 copies today. Is it the publishers holding back or the store owners?

126. Controversial Religious Summer Camp Closed

Comment #5397 by Linda on November 9, 2006 at 8:35 am

Why thank you Hank Fox for the tip sadly that is not the law in Canada.

127. Controversial Religious Summer Camp Closed

Comment #5390 by Linda on November 9, 2006 at 8:05 am

Grouchie in Toronto

A funny thing just happened. I am working in my home-based office and waiting for some service technicians so was not surprised to hear the doorbell. I answered via the intercom and heard a man's voice say that he and his friend want to leave some material in the mailbox. I asked about what and the guy refused. My gods-dar went up so I asked them again to tell me or not leave junk in the mailbox. The guys refused. I went to the door and checked the box to find a flyer or the end true religion and was rather pissed off. I then went out on to our quiet street and noticed a car parked there that was not familiar. I couldn't see the men but ran quickly back to the house, grabbed a Dawkins God Delusion flyer and waited for the god-pushers to appear. When they did I walked up to them holding their flyer. They had big goofy false smiles on their faces and I offered them my Dawkins flyer. They wouldn't take it. How odd that they insisted on dumping their material on me but didn't want to receive my good news back. That seemed unfair so I grabbed their folder, stuck the flyer in and suggested they read the God Delusion.

This is a tough neighbourhood for the gods pushers to crack as most of the people who live around us are atheists. In fact one of our older neighbours was here for dinner a couple of weeks ago and walked in the door asking if I had seen Religion is the Root of All Evil. He could not stop talking about Dawkins.

I'd like to think that that pair of gods pushers were themselves rattled by me.