(This is the 22nd – and last – question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
Yes, I have. To borrow the wisdom of Mark Twain: “I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it.”
And that does it for Brett Keane’s 22-question Atheist Challenge. Feel free to look back at all of my answers and see if they spark any new discussions – that’s what this blog is all about!
(This is the 21st question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
I’m not sure of the exact process, but I know it involves the brain shutting down, followed by all of the body’s organs and functions that it controls. After that, it’s all rigor mortis and decomposition from there.
I’m still a bit iffy on what this has to do with atheism…
(This is the 20th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
Simply put: Yes.
Not-so-simply put: If there was a way to lie, cheat, steal, or kill to spare the precious lives of myself and my loved ones, I would do it in a heartbeat. Otherwise, yes.
As for the “hell” portion of the question – thinking about which of the many hells from the myriad of world religions that I would go to would take way too long, and probably distract me from jumping in front of the bullet / knife / car / train / herd of water buffalo in order to save my loved one. So I’d probably skip it, for the moment.
(This is the 18th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
I used to strongly support capital punishment, but in recent years, I have begun to rethink my position. I have heard some pretty convincing arguments against it, and I am still considering them.
Since I can’t offer a definite answer at this time, I’m going to bow out of this one for now.
(This is the 17th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
I love animals, and I think we should try to save them from going extinct, especially in cases where human interaction has been the cause of their endangerment.
I’m not really sure what connection this has to my atheism, but that has been the case for the last few questions as well.
(This is the 16th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
I can’t imagine any situation in which I would approve of torture. I was raised with the understanding that torture is something that the “bad guys” do, and I have always tried my best to remain on the side of the “good guys.”
That may seem old-fashioned, but that’s the way I see it.
(This is the 15th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
Evil, no. Unfortunate, yes.
I would like to live in a world where abortion isn’t necessary, but I’m not sure we ever will. When we can permit ourselves to have good sex education for our young people, and make forms of birth control more readily available to help prevent unwanted pregnancies, there will be a great decrease in the amount of people requesting abortions.
Beyond that, as long as there are medical conditions that threaten the mother, and rape, we will always need to have abortion as an option. The former of these two can be eventually solved by medical science. The latter, unfortunately, will always be with us.
Lying about the abortion procedure to prevent people from having them – such as saying that the procedure increases the risk of breast cancer, or using the racial statistics of abortion recipients to make it appear as if it is some sort of eugenics practice – is pretty evil, in my book. But that’s just because I’m a big fan of the truth.
(This is the 14th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
Okay, let’s get back to these questions – it’s certainly taking me long enough…
Why is stem cell research so important? Because of the diseases it can cure, and the lives it can save. It’s important because it is a beneficial procedure that is being blocked because many people believe that it is immoral to perform it.
(This is the 13th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
If you could go back in time and kill Hitler or Stalin as babies so they never kill the millions in the future, would you do it if time travel was possible?
Kill, no. Prevent all of the destruction and pain that they caused, yes.
(This is the 12th question in Brett Keane’s Atheist Challenge)
How do you feel about government/politics?
I hate* politics**, and I am frequently let down by my government.
And in most cases, I do not discuss religion or politics with anyone. Both subjects are practically guaranteed to reverse the opinion that some people have about you, and usually for the worse.
Oddly enough, I’m a big fan of elections, however. Not the smear campaigns that invariably result, but the debates, the strategies, the predictions, the issues, the counting of the polls on election day – I enjoy those parts of it a lot. I figure that enjoy it the same way that most other people enjoy a big sporting event.
(* Yep, you caught me using the word “hate.” You may also notice that I never use it about people, only ideas and concepts.)
Ongoing discussion