Any religious person who thinks that their religion is necessary for a good, civilized society, or that only belief in an ultimate judging deity leads to moral behavior, should check out Society Without God, by Phil Zuckerman. It’s a study of what are probably the two most atheistic […]
I wish that an intellectual position had the same power as a religious belief. Religious beliefs get you special benefits, special exemeptions. Especially here in prison. And of course, the religious people snivel when something doesn’t go their way. For example, Jews and Muslims have succeeded in getting […]
It’s ubiquitous in prison. One way I’ve noticed is how religious sevices are treated. If you’re at work, and you have a religious service, it’s an automatic excused absence. Not even questioned. Oh, you’re going to Bible study, or Native American drumming, or Ramadan, or whatever? No problem, […]
So Bernie Sanders is apparently an atheist, which of course I’m all for. I would be amazed and pleased to see an atheist president. He’s also choosing as the centerpiece of his campaign to get rid of the advantages of the wealthy in America and look out for […]
I look around in here and see these young, impressionable kids arrive in prison, and the only people stepping up to pull them in (besides the gangs and other groups) are the religious people. Preaching the word. And so the battle for the (metaphorical) souls of young criminals […]
I’ve talked about this before, how the data suggests that atheists act better than religious people. Here’s something else. Where are the atheist crazies? I can’t find them. Whereas religion has plenty. There are no atheists who deny their children modern medicine (like Jehovah’s Witnesses and Christian Scientists). […]
There’s always the cliched expectation that religion can make a con’s life better. The first time I ever went to the Hole, shortly after I arrived in prison in 1997, it was exactly as I expected: a bare cell, metal toilet, mattress, and blanket, and you were there […]
One of the common misconceptions about atheism is that people think you choose it as a way of evading responsibility. Especially if you’re in prison. “Oh, you just want to avoid ultimate judgement,” they say, “so you refuse to believe it.” Nonsense, of course. I have no problem […]
In polls, atheists are often the least trusted minority in America. Why? The Bureau of Prisons just found that while nonbelievers make up about 15% of America, they only make up two-tenths of 1% of inmates. Christians, on the other hand, are 80% of the country and make […]
ABOUT ME: I’ve been locked up since 1997, when, at the age of 18, I committed a robbery and accidentally killed the man. Since that time I’ve dedicated myself to education and treating each day as an opportunity to improve in every way possible. And I’ve done this […]
Inmate Blogger 