A matter of priorities? A matter of consistency?
True, but our entire planet is divised in countries, and while I agree it is trivial, if I can't be a part of them, where do I go?
Technically, you just live with it. I know it's not much of an answer, but that's kind of the way life seems to be.
While I don't give a shit if I'm concidered American or not, I do care if I have the basic human rights the country promises...
Well, that's the thing. I want these basic civil, human, and constitutional rights for everyone, as a minimum.
But in the present situation, for instance, listen to the fierce nationalism going on. America vs. Iraq, America vs. Terrorism, America vs. the World; Bush doctrine, pre-emptive defense, righteous anger, "God is on our side".
Okay, we can throw out the "God" part because I hope you laughed as hard as I did when Bush started throwing away our credibility like condoms at a frat house.
However--what I'm after is the notion that atheism necessarily restricts its principles to atheism. But what about the "atheists"? If someone says to me that they don't believe in God, or believe there is no God as a result of observation and a lack of evidence to support the assertion of God, that's fine. But when I look at that "person" and see them lusting over a national dispute--
that is why I make that point. There is no "Us vs. Them" objectively. We're
all human beings, and that is an objective
fact.
Religious people, as a natural result of religion, let their theism spill into their personal conduct. This is, incidentally, why many theists charge atheism with a lack of ethics or morals. Many theists perceive a connection between the rejection of God (including all it means to theists) and a certain unwillingness among atheists to extend their atheistic considerations into other parts of life affected by religion. Admittedly, atheism is a narrow assertion, but it affects a broad range of perceptions and conducts.
An atheist who also happens to be a "patriot" isn't really accomplishing much by his or her evidentiary rejection of the theistic assertion.
By saying what he did, Bush flat out said athiests don't deserve the basic human rights.
Welcome to my world. Okay, that's not useful. But most of my life I've heard someone prominent in society saying that various people shouldn't have basic rights, and I'm very often among the targeted crowd. I'm quite used to it. Thus, the only thing I can say is, "I never voted for Bush." I know that's not helpful, either, but like I said: I know potheads who vote
against legalization. I also know plenty of atheists who voted
for both Bushes. I can't explain it except to say that it's a matter of what's important to people. Atheists who vote for Bush obviously have reasons more important to them than their atheism.
During the election season we hear about the American "Bible belt", we hear about Jewish voters, and other such statistical projections. Is there any exit poll that accounts for atheists? I just looked at Google, and didn't see much describing voting trends among atheists. I'd like to know about how many atheists voted for Bush compared to the whole of voting atheists. If I find the number, I'll let you know. I think we'll all find it surprising. I think we'll find that atheism itself had little to do with how any pro-Bush atheist voted, and I think we might even find a voting trend that shows atheism among the lower priorities of those voters. They'll probably be more interested in warfare, economy, or other issues. I mean, has anyone challenged the South Carolina statute yet? Haul that one before the Supreme Court and atheists will have a bright day in the public eye.
thanx,
Tiassa
