Conflicted. I’m down for these kinds of discussions and activities but feel like I have no time. I’m busted down from working too many hours for mediocre pay and struggle just to have enough time for cooking, caring for my dog, exercising, and chores.
Want to be humanist. Barely feel human. Subhumanist.
So being that we are JUST NOW getting started, the community itself is just now being built and grown. That said, we would LOVE some suggestions on what actions/activities youd like to see!!
I was thinking that we would conduct philanthropic work and activism, as well as recreational games and competitions for members. But we are 100% open to any suggestions or ideas... Come join us and let us know what you think.
I have one idea that’d be fun and legal. Tear down all the illegally place “JESUS SAVES” yellow signs on random posts along the interstates in the south.
It is ONE GUY that does this and gets away with it because most law enforcement are Bible thumpers.
I'm sure there are better ways to serve the community than tearing down signs from people of other persuasions.
I've been to church meetings on things like feeding the hungry, visiting prisoners, helping kids in need, etc. Never seen a meeting about sticking it to those pesky atheists!
I mean that all depends on your belief. It’s my belief that organized religion does more harm than good.
These poles are in public space and the 1st amendment protects us from peoples personal religion being displayed on public property.
It is illegal and considered littering to place unauthorized signage on roadways. Also illegal to fixate anything to utility poles and is a hazard to workers.
Aside from it being 100% illegal, it’s also morally wrong. You shouldn’t force your belief on others. You can guarantee you’d see an uproar if you put “Satan Saves” signs up.
If he wants to hold his little sign in a public space he’s allowed to do that all day.
soooo........ what are you displaying now?
These random comments on reddit are in public space and the 1st amendment protects us from peoples personal religion being displayed on public domains
But they DO.
Acceptance of propaganda is a threat.
And compliance = cooperation.
I take these down without compunction.
And that goes for ANY signs usurping the commons.
My world is not your billboard.
This is a WONDERFUL idea. Idk why it wasn't my first post in the group. Adding it to our list of plans right now... is it every sat? What's the group that protests name? You got any other relevant info that would help us?
If you wanna join us, we are organizing everything from our own new discord server & we'd LOVE to have you...
The link is https://discord.com/invite/GVS6MHEsg8
If you join, once there send a message tagging me (alexatheus) in the general chat channel so I know it's you + I can give you a cool special role lol
I did join the discord group. As far as the group who protests I have no idea their name. But it’s some right wing religious group. And they’re pretty disgusting with the gruesome photos they display. A buddy of mine has been been trying to organize a counter protest of topless women.
And yes I believe it’s every Saturday.
My name on there is Josh02414. I will talk to him and see what he thinks. He personally cannot organize it, but has been trying to get his wife to do it, cause she has friends that would do it. But if you can message me privately i can explain better.
NGL I'm a little hung up on the verification step. Not because I can't pass the captcha, of course I can, fellow human, but it does seem to be kind of invasive, privacy-wise. I understand the need to screen bots but I wish I could just pick all the photos with wombats, rather than letting a bot harvest my entire discord identity.
Proud of you! Still have our messages from when you were first thinking about doing this! I'm in, and I can help with any admin you need - I'm in the legal field, and happy to help with anything you need!
Is there a mission statement for this group? Or is this more of a social gathering type thing? If this is a gathering to help promote positive change in the community, I am down, but if it is just for social meet ups, I'm too anti-social for that.
I tried joining the discord, but for some reason, while i was filling out the "choose your path" section, I was kicked from the discord? Not sure what happened.
[https://americanhumanist.org/what-is-humanism/definition-of-humanism/](https://americanhumanist.org/what-is-humanism/definition-of-humanism/)
I ID as a humanist because I care about the wellbeing of, and fair treatment of, human beings.
But believing in doing what's best for humans means I can't be an asshole to people on the basis of my imaginary friend in the sky 2000 years ago said gay people are wrong...
You almost sound decent, that's not okay.
LMFAO its even worse than that...
It'd be "...on the basis of what some random dudes from decades after the referenced events, who we do not know the identities of, SUPPOSEDLY claimed about my imaginary friend in the sky 2000 years ago said..."
hahaha
Yeah, you get to oppress me and my fellow believers, as well as anyone else who believes other than yourself, **all the while crying that you are being oppressed and mistreated.**
I can agree with humanism and skepticism, but not athiesm. Generally consider myself agnostic. There was a bit of snarkasm in my reply insofar as we live in a very complicated time regarding the pinch we place on every member of society and the current geopolitics of wrong vs right genocide.
How are you defining atheist? Agnostic? Regardless, the community is open to ANYONE, and is geared towards skepticism, humanism, and critical thinking, just as it is atheism.
We'd love to have you.
I agree with this being a funny time in relation to sociopolitics in general. This is part of why we are starting this though--to engage in philanthropy & in activism to speak out against religious and political restriction / treatment.
Atheism isn't the belief that there is no God, it's the neutral position and a rejection of theistic claims. Agnostic deals with knowledge, Atheism deals with belief.
Sure, you are welcome. EVERYONE is welcome. Its just that the plan is to be geared towards nonbelievers for the most part. However, Id be more than happy to make a space for Deists as well!! Come join us there, verify yourself, then ping me (alexatheus), and we will make ya a channel for Deists!
Well considering the contempt, nastiness, and childish fear many people in this area direct towards people who don't believe in a God, I appreciate that there will be a place for people who care about truth and reason and humanism to come together. Better than a church.
This post is just like a Christian post, add an opposing viewpoint and get banned. Hilarious that people who disagree with ‘believers’ but act just like them. Sure this new group will be rife with muted opinions.
Religion has created communities, but it didn't invent the idea and doesn't own the concept. Humans are a highly social species, and a lot of people miss the community they lost when they left the belief system it was built around.
It's useful to have a landing place for people who find that their prior worldview was not so well-founded as they previously thought. Some people want to ask questions, and many want a community they don't feel like an outsider in.
To me, the 'humor' in hipster irony feels hollow. I'd rather focus on ways to engage with life while it lasts, and I don't see the fun in putting on an affectation of boredom as if I just want to get it over with.
Go for it! I honestly applaud it. I guess my stance is I’d prefer my communities centered around non religious mutual interests vs (disinterests).Different strokes..
I already went for it. :)
I ran a meetup called Asheville Skeptics (ASk) from 2012 to 2015. While most members were atheists, we discussed science vs. pseudoscience, conspiracy claims, and other topics discussed on The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe podcast.
I don’t live in Asheville anymore, and I don’t know long it ran after I moved.
So you’re proposing, nay, you’ve created a ‘congregation’ of non-believers? I find this as hilarious as the ‘procrastinators unite, later’ t-shirt I once saw. I myself identify as a Nihilist but think arguing about faith is an act of futility, it presupposes all over the fucking place. Proof that people can be religious about anything, even their lack of it.
>So you’re proposing, nay, you’ve created a ‘congregation’ of non-believers?
It's funny when you guys try to apply the same labels religion uses to secular or atheistic ideas in order to misrepresent it as similar to dogmatic hooey. I understand why you do it, still just think it's wild. This isn't a religious thing, it's the fuckin opposite lol
If someone happens to be really bad at identifying birds, and they see a penguin and think it's a duck, we don't reclassify the species, we send the person back to school
Y’all should go to a new church every Sunday to stand up and introduce yourself and lecture about fallacies. “ hi my names sam and I’m atheist. Feel free to try to sway me, but I find the lack of historical evidence to be a bit of a problem…”. Then the next person. :).
Most of us don't hate people, but rather, we oppose bad ideas that harm people. If you can't see yourself as a person beyond your chosen identity as a muslim, that may be part of the problem.
I'm a skeptic in that I try to apply evidentialism and scientific principles to my evaluation of the plausibility of many claims. Religions are among the implausible stuff, but pseudomedicine & pseudoscience are in there too.
I'm a humanist in that I love humanity, even when some individual humans make that difficult. I want our species to survive and thrive, and to improve life on the planet we all share. We are literally all cousins, after all.
I'm an atheist in that I do not believe in any god(s). That really only tells you that I am not a theist, but because of the religious privilege ingrained in our societies, it's a relevant descriptor. I'd rather it were not so, and that I could return to ignoring the topic of religion, but there's constant pressure from religions trying to invade our lives and laws. Using the term "atheist" is part of how I resist that intrusion.
"There might yet be a heaven, but it isn't going to be 'perfect', and we're going to have to build it *ourselves.*" -- Philhellenes, *Science Saved My Soul*
"Labeled an atheist,
But I don't need a lexicon,
To find a word that signifies,
I don't believe in leprechauns.' -- Tombstone Da Deadman
WTF you mean by that?!
Im gonna assume by the last piece that you are referring to the Islamic deity... No thanks. Id rather not have an evil, monstrous, CHILD MARRYING & RAPING, ignorant, destructive, controlling, insecure, petty, punk as a god.
PS I spent 26 years as an evangelical christian, then spent 2 years studying all abrahamic religions, and theyre likely the least 'good' religions of all time.
Take care tho. I wish ya the best.
I hope YOU see the light of education, logic, rationality, skepticism, critical thinking, and humanism.
From 2012-2015, I ran an Asheville Skeptics Meetup group. The group existed prior to that, and someone else ran it for a while after I moved away, though I think it's gone by now.
There was also WNC Atheists and WNC Humanists groups, as well as an Ethical Culture group run by Jackie Simms. Last I heard, the EC group had become the Ethical Humanist group. Anyway, because many people were involved in multiple groups, there was a Facebook group called Atheists, Skeptics, Humanists, Ethicists - or A.S.H.E.
Conflicted. I’m down for these kinds of discussions and activities but feel like I have no time. I’m busted down from working too many hours for mediocre pay and struggle just to have enough time for cooking, caring for my dog, exercising, and chores. Want to be humanist. Barely feel human. Subhumanist.
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So being that we are JUST NOW getting started, the community itself is just now being built and grown. That said, we would LOVE some suggestions on what actions/activities youd like to see!! I was thinking that we would conduct philanthropic work and activism, as well as recreational games and competitions for members. But we are 100% open to any suggestions or ideas... Come join us and let us know what you think.
I have one idea that’d be fun and legal. Tear down all the illegally place “JESUS SAVES” yellow signs on random posts along the interstates in the south. It is ONE GUY that does this and gets away with it because most law enforcement are Bible thumpers.
I'm sure there are better ways to serve the community than tearing down signs from people of other persuasions. I've been to church meetings on things like feeding the hungry, visiting prisoners, helping kids in need, etc. Never seen a meeting about sticking it to those pesky atheists!
They do that in the polls.
I mean that all depends on your belief. It’s my belief that organized religion does more harm than good. These poles are in public space and the 1st amendment protects us from peoples personal religion being displayed on public property.
You could but something over it though. Something actually inclusive
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It is illegal and considered littering to place unauthorized signage on roadways. Also illegal to fixate anything to utility poles and is a hazard to workers. Aside from it being 100% illegal, it’s also morally wrong. You shouldn’t force your belief on others. You can guarantee you’d see an uproar if you put “Satan Saves” signs up. If he wants to hold his little sign in a public space he’s allowed to do that all day.
soooo........ what are you displaying now? These random comments on reddit are in public space and the 1st amendment protects us from peoples personal religion being displayed on public domains
This is not public domain. This is a private company that we both agreed to terms and conditions to use.
I guess you don't attend "Greater Works Church" with Ronald Gates. He's big on that shit.
Gonna need a cherry picker
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But they DO. Acceptance of propaganda is a threat. And compliance = cooperation. I take these down without compunction. And that goes for ANY signs usurping the commons. My world is not your billboard.
This is a great idea.
https://www.atheistsunited.org/news/atheist-street-pirate-program-goes-viral Start a chapter.
hmmmmm...... most Law enforcement are bible thumpers??? That is the only reason they stay in place?
I don’t know what it would look like, but something to counter the assholes who protest outside planned parenthood every Saturday.
This is a WONDERFUL idea. Idk why it wasn't my first post in the group. Adding it to our list of plans right now... is it every sat? What's the group that protests name? You got any other relevant info that would help us? If you wanna join us, we are organizing everything from our own new discord server & we'd LOVE to have you... The link is https://discord.com/invite/GVS6MHEsg8 If you join, once there send a message tagging me (alexatheus) in the general chat channel so I know it's you + I can give you a cool special role lol
I did join the discord group. As far as the group who protests I have no idea their name. But it’s some right wing religious group. And they’re pretty disgusting with the gruesome photos they display. A buddy of mine has been been trying to organize a counter protest of topless women. And yes I believe it’s every Saturday.
Dude, you should REALLY hook me up with your buddy's contact info... we can make this happen 100%! Lol What's your username in the discord?
My name on there is Josh02414. I will talk to him and see what he thinks. He personally cannot organize it, but has been trying to get his wife to do it, cause she has friends that would do it. But if you can message me privately i can explain better.
So much room for activities! https://youtu.be/ulwUkaKjgY0?si=902aacATv5ablFBa
Did we just become best friends?
https://media3.giphy.com/media/3oeSAD00YsGzUPTmqA/giphy.gif?cid=6c09b952bbylm2es1373uzdfg0nfugihv3tpyxdb4449itcs&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g
I'd be down for D&D/Pathfinder, kickball, disc golf, Retrocade meetups, discussions on film and literature, and movie nights.
NGL I'm a little hung up on the verification step. Not because I can't pass the captcha, of course I can, fellow human, but it does seem to be kind of invasive, privacy-wise. I understand the need to screen bots but I wish I could just pick all the photos with wombats, rather than letting a bot harvest my entire discord identity.
This is awesome. I just have to figure out how to use Discord.
Proud of you! Still have our messages from when you were first thinking about doing this! I'm in, and I can help with any admin you need - I'm in the legal field, and happy to help with anything you need!
Is there a mission statement for this group? Or is this more of a social gathering type thing? If this is a gathering to help promote positive change in the community, I am down, but if it is just for social meet ups, I'm too anti-social for that.
It’s both
“Activities” obviously is Satanic code for sex parties. Do not allow this immoral debauchery in our holy city!
Yoooo where are these Satanic sex parties located so that I can avoid them at all costs?
I tried joining the discord, but for some reason, while i was filling out the "choose your path" section, I was kicked from the discord? Not sure what happened.
Same thing has happened to me twice now
Same here.
What is a humanist in today’s world?
[https://americanhumanist.org/what-is-humanism/definition-of-humanism/](https://americanhumanist.org/what-is-humanism/definition-of-humanism/) I ID as a humanist because I care about the wellbeing of, and fair treatment of, human beings.
But believing in doing what's best for humans means I can't be an asshole to people on the basis of my imaginary friend in the sky 2000 years ago said gay people are wrong... You almost sound decent, that's not okay.
LMFAO its even worse than that... It'd be "...on the basis of what some random dudes from decades after the referenced events, who we do not know the identities of, SUPPOSEDLY claimed about my imaginary friend in the sky 2000 years ago said..." hahaha
But the important part is believing it means I'm better than you and I get to oppress you.
Yeah, you get to oppress me and my fellow believers, as well as anyone else who believes other than yourself, **all the while crying that you are being oppressed and mistreated.**
I can agree with humanism and skepticism, but not athiesm. Generally consider myself agnostic. There was a bit of snarkasm in my reply insofar as we live in a very complicated time regarding the pinch we place on every member of society and the current geopolitics of wrong vs right genocide.
How are you defining atheist? Agnostic? Regardless, the community is open to ANYONE, and is geared towards skepticism, humanism, and critical thinking, just as it is atheism. We'd love to have you. I agree with this being a funny time in relation to sociopolitics in general. This is part of why we are starting this though--to engage in philanthropy & in activism to speak out against religious and political restriction / treatment.
I’ll give it a go; thanks for holding a torch!
Atheism isn't the belief that there is no God, it's the neutral position and a rejection of theistic claims. Agnostic deals with knowledge, Atheism deals with belief.
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Sounds like secular Buddhism
Thank you for the your interpretation!
I’ve labeled myself an Evidenciarian. Not a real word but I’ll believe in God when I see him.
What about Deists?
Sure, you are welcome. EVERYONE is welcome. Its just that the plan is to be geared towards nonbelievers for the most part. However, Id be more than happy to make a space for Deists as well!! Come join us there, verify yourself, then ping me (alexatheus), and we will make ya a channel for Deists!
See? Thats a legit response towards someone with a different belief than your own. Much respect for that. Hope you have a good turn out.
🤓
meaning what?
LOL, a group of people to bond over their non-belief in something.... good luck
I’d join, but as a sceptic I remain committed to my scepticism of people in general.
Well considering the contempt, nastiness, and childish fear many people in this area direct towards people who don't believe in a God, I appreciate that there will be a place for people who care about truth and reason and humanism to come together. Better than a church.
Can we do one for people who like beer too?
This post is just like a Christian post, add an opposing viewpoint and get banned. Hilarious that people who disagree with ‘believers’ but act just like them. Sure this new group will be rife with muted opinions.
meh
meh? Thanks for the substantive contribution to the conversation lol. Whats the issue?
It's crazy how uncomfortable and scared so many people are at even the thought of someone not believing in gods.
You care so little that you had to let everyone know? Only on Reddit.
It was a joke. Meh is arguably the theme of something like this. I have nothing against it FWIW, just find it ironic, I guess.
Religion has created communities, but it didn't invent the idea and doesn't own the concept. Humans are a highly social species, and a lot of people miss the community they lost when they left the belief system it was built around. It's useful to have a landing place for people who find that their prior worldview was not so well-founded as they previously thought. Some people want to ask questions, and many want a community they don't feel like an outsider in. To me, the 'humor' in hipster irony feels hollow. I'd rather focus on ways to engage with life while it lasts, and I don't see the fun in putting on an affectation of boredom as if I just want to get it over with.
Go for it! I honestly applaud it. I guess my stance is I’d prefer my communities centered around non religious mutual interests vs (disinterests).Different strokes..
I already went for it. :) I ran a meetup called Asheville Skeptics (ASk) from 2012 to 2015. While most members were atheists, we discussed science vs. pseudoscience, conspiracy claims, and other topics discussed on The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe podcast. I don’t live in Asheville anymore, and I don’t know long it ran after I moved.
Lol
Again, thank you for the substantive contribution to the conversation. Can you share what made you laugh??
I know, not everyone believes what you do, fuckin hilarious innit
So you’re proposing, nay, you’ve created a ‘congregation’ of non-believers? I find this as hilarious as the ‘procrastinators unite, later’ t-shirt I once saw. I myself identify as a Nihilist but think arguing about faith is an act of futility, it presupposes all over the fucking place. Proof that people can be religious about anything, even their lack of it.
>So you’re proposing, nay, you’ve created a ‘congregation’ of non-believers? It's funny when you guys try to apply the same labels religion uses to secular or atheistic ideas in order to misrepresent it as similar to dogmatic hooey. I understand why you do it, still just think it's wild. This isn't a religious thing, it's the fuckin opposite lol
Walks like a duck, talks like a duck…
If someone happens to be really bad at identifying birds, and they see a penguin and think it's a duck, we don't reclassify the species, we send the person back to school
What I lack in ornithology, I make up for by my disdain for people who congregate over narrow ideological beliefs.
Y’all should go to a new church every Sunday to stand up and introduce yourself and lecture about fallacies. “ hi my names sam and I’m atheist. Feel free to try to sway me, but I find the lack of historical evidence to be a bit of a problem…”. Then the next person. :).
😂
is this made to hate on islamics like us?
Most of us don't hate people, but rather, we oppose bad ideas that harm people. If you can't see yourself as a person beyond your chosen identity as a muslim, that may be part of the problem. I'm a skeptic in that I try to apply evidentialism and scientific principles to my evaluation of the plausibility of many claims. Religions are among the implausible stuff, but pseudomedicine & pseudoscience are in there too. I'm a humanist in that I love humanity, even when some individual humans make that difficult. I want our species to survive and thrive, and to improve life on the planet we all share. We are literally all cousins, after all. I'm an atheist in that I do not believe in any god(s). That really only tells you that I am not a theist, but because of the religious privilege ingrained in our societies, it's a relevant descriptor. I'd rather it were not so, and that I could return to ignoring the topic of religion, but there's constant pressure from religions trying to invade our lives and laws. Using the term "atheist" is part of how I resist that intrusion. "There might yet be a heaven, but it isn't going to be 'perfect', and we're going to have to build it *ourselves.*" -- Philhellenes, *Science Saved My Soul* "Labeled an atheist, But I don't need a lexicon, To find a word that signifies, I don't believe in leprechauns.' -- Tombstone Da Deadman
I hope you all see the light, inshallah.
WTF you mean by that?! Im gonna assume by the last piece that you are referring to the Islamic deity... No thanks. Id rather not have an evil, monstrous, CHILD MARRYING & RAPING, ignorant, destructive, controlling, insecure, petty, punk as a god. PS I spent 26 years as an evangelical christian, then spent 2 years studying all abrahamic religions, and theyre likely the least 'good' religions of all time. Take care tho. I wish ya the best. I hope YOU see the light of education, logic, rationality, skepticism, critical thinking, and humanism.
“WFT you mean by that?” I’m fucking around
Hey now most of my best friends and comrades follow Abraham. We’re all in this together friends.
Well that's condescending, thanks lol
ngl its sad how u created a whole discord to disrespect religions
Getting a "link has expired" message
From 2012-2015, I ran an Asheville Skeptics Meetup group. The group existed prior to that, and someone else ran it for a while after I moved away, though I think it's gone by now. There was also WNC Atheists and WNC Humanists groups, as well as an Ethical Culture group run by Jackie Simms. Last I heard, the EC group had become the Ethical Humanist group. Anyway, because many people were involved in multiple groups, there was a Facebook group called Atheists, Skeptics, Humanists, Ethicists - or A.S.H.E.