I read a few blogs each day. Lately while in search of new content, I stumbled upon the blog, The Atheist Conservative, which is largely aligned with my personal politics.
There are conservative atheists out there, but we are few and far between, and subject to excoriating abuse by most other atheists. I'm not sure why this is, since the only criterion for atheism is a lack of belief in god. There are no requirements beyond that simple one.
Nevertheless, it's refreshing to encounter an atheist site that largely agrees with my politics. I doubt we'll agree on everything, but I'm happy to start with a shared belief in small, limited government. We can move on from there...
I often hear the claim (usually offered by fellow non-believers) that religion is nothing more than a response to the fear of death. The point being that religion began as an attempt by humans to explain and overcome their fear of mortality.
While I accept that religion often seeks to explain the meaning of death, I'm certain that the causes of religion are far more numerous and complicated.
For starters, I think religion is in part the result of a desire for power.
Amid new revelations of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI's job ratings for handling the scandal have plummeted. Only about one-in-ten (12%) say the pope has done an excellent (3%) or good job (9%) in addressing the sex abuse scandal; 71% say he has done a poor (44%) or only fair (27%) job.
This is a question I ask believers in online forums a lot. So far, I haven't been convinced by the answers I get. Not even close.
I think the question of the existence of the soul is one of the most important questions a person can ask the universe. After all, if it is true that our existence is bound to something other than our bodies, and because of that we are able to live forever, such information would certainly be good to know.
So far, the only explanations I have been offered involve either touchy-feely reasons tied to emotions and subjective rationalizations ("I felt a stirring deep inside that could only be my soul" etc.), or "proofs" that consist of verses from whatever sacred writings are important to the author.
