Atheist Geek News

About And Contact Information

Aw, crap. Ya found it!

Yes, this is the Atheist Geek's "About Page." Atheist Geek News is supposed to fall somewhere between Austin Cline's superb web site at About.com and something more sarcastically evil like God is for Suckers. Please note that A.G.N. is not a declaration of war against believers or anything like that, though I'm sure there are things here that theists won't like some of the time. I will try my best to find positive stuff for secular readers to peruse, though that isn't always easy. There are a lot of articles being written on the web against atheists by people who don't get us in the least. That's why so many secular web sites tend to get overrun with the negative stuff.

I'm hoping to cast as wide a net as I can with A.G.N. So even non-atheist geeks are welcome here. I'm not trying to convert the world to atheism, though it would be great if I could inspire everyone to think more about the beliefs they have. Believe it or not, most atheists aren't interested in converting others. The main thing I want from my god-believing visitors is that they try to understand where atheists are really coming from. As someone who's been on both sides of the fence, I'll try to explore the differences. I know I'll annoy you from time to time, but I hope we can both learn to deal with the other's viewpoint together. Give me a little extra slack and I'll try to do my part too.

Atheism And Me

Since you're here, I may as well tell you a little about me and my evil, atheist ways. For starters, I don't believe in any gods. Not a single one. Like nearly every atheist I've ever heard of, I'm what you would call an Agnostic Atheist. That means I don't necessarily disbelieve in gods. Instead, I'm simply unconvinced that any of them exist. And yes, just like anyone else, I could always be wrong. So could you.

One thing that cheeses off most atheists is the stereotypes. I find that many people make some very conclusive (and offensive) assumptions about atheists based on little or no evidence. They don't mind sharing them with us, either. There's also the matter of why we become atheists to begin with. I'll be the first to admit that--unlike most atheists--some of my reasons do fit the odd stereotype or two. But before you go Ah Ha! let me point out that the part these issues played in my atheism isn't the one that many people seem to think. Let's hit the biggest one right now.

Bad Religious Experiences

I was one of Jehovah's Witnesses for nearly six years. As many ex-Witnesses will tell you, I got off pretty light. I know other "exxers" who didn't make it out until they were senior citizens. I've been told that being a former Jehovah's Witness has given me a unique perspective on things. So I don't regret my time in the Watchtower Society, though I can't say that I enjoyed it. I was never disfellowshipped, but could care less if I had been. I've considered disassociation on more than one occassion. This usually happens when a Witness I used to know decides to rack up some service time at my expense. Little do they know that they are only making things worse, not better.

I left the Watchtower Society because life as a Jehovah's Witness had left me utterly miserable. But even then, I saw no reason to blame God or any other deities. I want everyone to understand that being an atheist isn't about some temper tantrum against the Almighty for letting us down. I gotta tell ya that anyone who really believes this just doesn't know what they're talking about.

I knew even then that there were more than 1,500 denominations of Christianity in the United States. And there were plenty of other, non-Christian religions to choose from. Jehovah's Witnesses represented only one option out of thousands. As far as I was concerned, none of my experiences with them had anything to do with any gods. The thought of blaming Jehovah simply never occurred to me. Now that I'm an atheist, all I can say is that you can't blame something that doesn't exist as far as you know.

Like a lot of assumptions people make about atheists, I really think this one just doesn't make a lot of sense.

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How To Contact The Atheist Geek

Feeling brave, are we? ;-) Well, if you really know what you're doing, you'll find the contact button below. But I warn you: The Atheist Geek retains the right to post your email if he so chooses. That includes commenting on it for all the world to see. I will never sell your email address or give it out for any reason, but you must agree to these terms before your message will be sent. Clicking that little button constitutes your agreement to let me use your messages on my site, for now and forever. That includes any future correspondence between us as well.

So think twice before firing off that hate mail! It's likely to make a special guest appearance on A.G.N. Remember, this web site isn't intended to be a declaration of war against you. Don't take it too personally.

Please note that I may not be able to respond to every single message. I have a semi-real job and a website to run. Not to mention a life and all that. I have ~~little~~ no patience with attempts at conversion. In fact, I have a pretty harsh view of proselytizing all around and I know what I'm talking about. I was a practicing, door-knocking Jehovah's Witness for several years. I hope you understand.