A Bible Study by the only people truly qualified to study the bible — those who don't believe.

We're such bastards!

Yesterday, my 12 year old son, my nephew and I drove the 189 straight and flat miles to Fargo, North Dakota to attend the first annual ( I sincerely hope) Project 42 freethinkers convention.  I must tell you, by the unholy shit of Darwin people, we had a blast.  For the first time in my 43 years of existence, I felt I was among like-minded people, someone who, if not like me, at least thinks in the same general direction.  I know that sounds overly dramatic, but I have been swimming against the local current for a long time.  Many of you cannot understand the rarity of free-thought among people of Bismarck, ND, people I love but none-the-less. For example, we spent about two hours one day hanging posters in every grocery store and coffee shop in Bismarck and still not a single Bismarck atheist showed up.  Not one.  WTF!  There were atheists from a dozen microscopic ND towns, but any  from our fair capital?  No! Sigh! At any rate, the convention was well-organized and attended, in fact, was so well attended the room was packed to capacity.  The venue was small but comfortable, and the speakers lined up were of excellent quality.  I was so impressed.

The first up was August Berkshire.  His presentation on what it means to be atheist was funny and to the point with many facts and personal witticisms mixed together so well that the information flowed flawlessly.  This was a well polished presentation and a great opener for the rest.  Mr. Berkshire laid out a magnificent primer on atheism and the attendant arguments.  He would be a great one to call on to promote atheism to those who are unfamiliar with the concept. He lays out our case very well and you’ll find his site here. At noon, we three went to lunch with Mr. Berkshire and had some great conversation.  I admire his knowledge and wit, not to mention his ability to chow down plate after plate of chinese food, an ability close to a fat guy’s heart.

Second came Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Her presentation focused on the women’s rights movement and the prevalence of free-thinkers in their ranks.  She based her talk on her book Women Without Superstition : No Gods – No Masters, a book I tried to buy, but all those selfish and godless atheists before me had purchased every last copy.  Evolutionary altruism my ass!  This was not a funny  or humorous talk, but it was quite informative.  It emphasizes well the fact that freethinkers have led nearly every revolution of human progress, and theism has generally opposed us.  We have repeatedly pulled the world into the light.  In short, we rock man!

Third came Dan Barker, former evangelical preacher and current co-president of the FFRF along with Ms. Gaylor.  His talked focused on what the FFRF has done in the past and what its current battles are including the fight over the National Day of Prayer.  This was fascinating, but the truly great part of this was his journey from  an evangelical preacher to atheist and the mindset of each.  He clears up any misconception people may have about the fundamentalist not really believing.  He and they believed, absolutely.  He just moved on and they remained mired in the same old superstition.  Why though?  What a great question.  I feel a strong need to understand this.  To further this, I purchased his book, Godless: How an Evangelical Preacher Became One of America’s Leading Atheists, and I promise to review it later.  Time, time, I need more time!

After lunch with Mr. Berkshire, the great P.Z. Myers of Pharyngula fame took the stage.  His talk focused on the natural alliance between atheism and science, and how a firm belief in science must eventually lead to atheism.  Looking at the 93% of members of the Academy of Sciences who are atheist or agnostic, it’s hard to argue the point.  Myers then went on to relate that great science is asking great questions and focused on how real science must work on very small questions and rarely make cognitive leaps that alter everything.  He outlines his own work on the development of grasshopper brains and how the big questions must be answered incrementally; a vast series of small steps will add up to big leaps. This part of the presentation should be required viewing in our schools.  Perhaps, a real understanding of how science works could begin to diffuse through the culture and combat the growing scientific apathy so prevalent there.  P. Z. was a humble and funny presenter with a serious knowledge of whatever topic he faced.  Obviously, he would be a terrible opponent in a debate.  Outside of the presentation, however, I was surprised at how quiet and humble he was, mostly just hovering about the back of the room enjoying the spectacle.  He seemed almost shy, so shy in fact, I was reluctant to approach him for a picture.  I overcame it, of course.  I mean, c’mon!  It’s P. Z. Myers for a lack-of-Christ’s-sake, who wouldn’t.

On the opposite of the shy scale was the last speaker, Brian Keith Dalton aka Mr. Deity.  I’m going to tell you people that for all of the bumbling of his fictional creation, this man’s razor sharp wit could easily slice an opponent to ribbons.  Thankfully, his witticisms were always aimed at either encouraging conversation or making a point, but the intelligence behind them was apparent.  What impressed me most was his sheer knowledge of history and science. This man is incredibly well read and can present that knowledge quickly and easily and in a hilarious manner.  The focus of his talk was the progress civilization has made since religion started to fade into the background some 500 years ago.  To paraphrase him: the Christians had a thousand years to make the world a better place, a thousand years when they were in absolute control.  We call that period the dark ages.  It’s now time we freethinkers step up and claim credit for the work we have done improving the world.  The presentation and he were brilliant.

The day ended with a round table question-and-answer period with everyone participating.  This went on for an hour and a half, at least, and would have continued longer had the organizers not kept it on schedule.

Overall, I must admit that this was one of the better experiences of my life.  I don’t mean to sound so melodramatic here, but this infused me with new purpose and energy, a resolve to ratchet up the work I do both here and other places.  We’ll definitely be returning for next year’s convention, and to those of you who have never been to an event like this, I urge you to go.  Too many of us feel like some lone wolf prowling the very edges of society, but affairs like this show you that we may be rare, but we are not alone.

And now the pictures.

Mr. Barker

Mr. Berkshire

P. Z. and me. I'm the cute one.

Ms. Gaylor and myself. She's the cute one.

Mr. Deity, my son, and myself. My son's the cute one.

How many Atheists does it take to get the projector working. Uh... I don't know, but You pick the cute one.