Digital Freethought Blog Webmaster: Larry S. Rhodes Fri, 27 Sep 2019 21:43:26 +0000 en-US hourly 1 On “In God We Trust” in schools Tue, 13 Aug 2019 14:37:05 +0000 Continue reading On “In God We Trust” in schools ]]>

There was a recent CNN story with the headline: “Public schools all over South Dakota are putting up mandated ‘In God We Trust’ signs, and this is happening in other states as well: Louisiana, Kentucky and soon, Missouri.

These aren’t tasteful little plaques situated over the drinking fountain either; not some motivational poster.  They are words painted in 3-foot letters on the main wall in the lobby of the schools, so that anyone that comes into the school are forced to see them.

This sign in schools sends a strong message to anybody who holds a different  religious view; a message that says “If you’re not part of the main religion in this area, THIS school will probably find some way to discriminate against you and your children”, and “Our students may bully your children if they abstain from prayers or religious gatherings” that are increasingly held there.

When will believers ever realize that the more they push their religion on children, the more they will resist it. The people who put these signs up are acting from an authoritarian bent (which is taught from the ground up by their religions) and think that they can force people to believe as they do. This has been the case all down through history as seen in the Crusades, the Inquisitions, the extermination and conversion of Druids, etc.

The religious politicians, who passed the “In God We Trust” ruling to make it the national motto, think that if they use the word “God” it will cover every religion except for atheists, but there are many religions, particularly Eastern ones, who don’t hold a god belief: Buddhists, Shintos, Confucians, Jains, Taoists, Scientologists, etc., don’t hold god beliefs.

And for those people who DO believe in gods (Hindu’s, Muslims, Sikhs), etc.)? They know that if they aren’t of a Protestant Christian religion, that those signs are meant for them as well. “JOIN US” the message says, “or be prepared to be stigmatized and sidelined by our school system”.

Schools are a part of the state and county government, and are overseen by the federal government.  Even if you ARE a protestant Christian of some flavor, aren’t you the least bit concerned about what version of Christianity they will teach? Your child may be taught things that are in direct conflict with your particular church’s teaching AND it will be mandated by the government! As a Conservative Christian, you generally want the government to stay OUT of your private business, but NOW you want them to teach your community’s children a particular version of Christianity? Do you really want the government to interpret the Bible to your kids? What if you’re a Baptist and they start teaching Church of God? Or Orthodox Christianity? Or Jehovah’s Witness theology? Or even Catholicism or Judaism? It all depends on who has the power to choose the curriculum?

Also, what if each state or district decides to teach a different religion? Utah’s majority Mormon government would almost certainly choose to teach Mormonism. They could literally arm themselves and fight the state and federal forces if challenged. They’ve done it before. Google search “1838 Mormon War” and “Mormonism: The Utah War”. We could soon have states breaking into geographic regions and fighting each other. NOTHING divides people like religious belief.

By the way, it wasn’t atheists that had that separation clause put into the constitution. It was the church leaders of that day. Why? Because they were very afraid that the Church of England would get power in the new American government, and that all their hard-won religious freedom would be for nothing. Remember most of those people fled England because they didn’t want to be forced to worship as the Church of England dictated.

No alarm bells going off yet?

Just take a moment and THINK about it. Whichever religion gets into the federal, state, county or even city government would soon pass laws limiting the power of the competing religions. If YOURS isn’t the one that gets to be in control, YOURS will be one of those that will be marginalized, or outlawed; and those laws could be enforced with the power of the police and the army.

Religious Freedom, which you claim to value so highly, belongs in church. That is, if it’s actually going to be personal and a free-choice. Secular education belongs in school. The Constitutional wall of separation between church and state protects your religion as much as it does your neighbor’s.

Religious belief is a personal decision. It can change over time, and can change many times in a lifetime. Do you REALLY want the government to take that choice away from you?

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Confused and afraid – Not ready for Atheism? Thu, 06 Jun 2019 14:21:24 +0000 Continue reading Confused and afraid – Not ready for Atheism? ]]> A Facebook friend just posted this about her decision to deconvert to atheism:

“I left my faith in April and had this cathartic experience, started dating an atheist and spending money on stuff I wanted without feeling bad that it wasn’t going to the church or to charity. My finances and my relationship are all well, but after the freedom wore off, I’m finding myself really depressed.  I wasn’t in the faith my whole life; I actually had an atheist upbringing and only practiced fundamentalism for about a year.  But I was involved in church and campus ministry and things like that.  I’m agnostic right now and I know I don’t want to be. Whatever I believe in I want to actually have decided on it, but I’ve been procrastinating on doing the research. I’m tired and irritable all the time, I can’t concentrate enough to read, and any content about God makes me anxious and I can’t handle it for more than 15 minutes or so a day, hence why I haven’t been too active in the comments of my previous posts. I miss praying. I’m afraid I’m wrong. I can’t get my mind to bend around any view point, it’s all so confusing and it feels like I’m too dumb to pick a religious identification. None of this is fun anymore. “- JS

My answer:

It IS disorienting when you leave your faith, whether it’s the only faith you’ve known all your life, or you’ve just been in it a few years. But luckily the answer is easy. You can believe whatever you want.  It’s always been that way. You don’t PICK or DECIDE your beliefs. You believe what you have become convinced is true.  Stay with what makes you comfortable. Pray if you feel like it. Go to church if you want to, but maybe find a church which matches your current “take” on religion. There are ALL flavors of churches out there. You might try the UU (Unitarian Universalists) church as it is accepting of all people, from atheists to believers of any and all religions.

My advice is to believe what comes naturally to you, but continue searching for truth. As you’re more and more convinced that your investigations are revealing truths about the world, you’ll naturally believe more  in the newly revealed world; and leave the old beliefs behind.  I firmly believe that the more you commit to searching for truth, the more you will gravitate toward atheism.  It has happened just that way for millions of us.  It wasn’t a “decision” we made; it was the natural result of an honest search for truth.

The only things you need to remember is:

1) DON’T go exclusively to religious sites for answers (any more than you’d exclusively watch FOX news. 🙂 )

2) Don’t take anecdotal (personal stories) as evidence. Real, testable, repeatable evidence MUST support the story. Evidence is everything.

3) BE SURE to study the scientific answers to the claims of your current religious beliefs. Seek information from all sides and examine that evidence with a skeptical mind. Truth has nothing to fear from investigation.

For the 3rd point, I’d like to recommend you watch The Atheist-Experience videos where real believers call-in to talk to real atheists (and have been for 20 years). You can even search for the shows that cover the specific topics you’re interested in. The videos are can be found here:

One of the best produced, and thorough, de-conversion videos I have ever seen was done by a YouTuber named Evid3nc3 called “Why I am no longer a Christian”  It is 9 videos (however there are more) broken up into 10 minute segments so you can watch them piecemeal if you’re overwhelmed by atheist information at this time. You can find the videos here:

The main thing to remember is to take your time! There is no rush.  Education is sometimes a slow process. So, “keep your feet” as the hobbits would say and enjoy the journey.

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Why don’t I believe in God? Fri, 22 Mar 2019 17:28:26 +0000 Continue reading Why don’t I believe in God? ]]> I guess the most common question I hear from believers on the Internet is: “Why don’t you believe in God!?”






Quoting the Riddle of Epicuris:

Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?

1) he can’t be all loving
or 2) he can’t know about it
or 3) he’s not powerful enough to stop it.
You can have 2 out of three, but not all three





  • Not counting 65 entire cities whose population is not given.
  • Not counting those that died from the His numerous Plagues.






Be sure to read my pages at:




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Circumcision is Unnecessary Genital Mutilation Wed, 19 Dec 2018 22:48:50 +0000 Continue reading Circumcision is Unnecessary Genital Mutilation ]]> America is the most “non-religious” pro-circumcision nation in the world.

I want to tell you why I’m against all infant circumcisions that are not deemed medically necessary to correct a birth defect, or to treat a medical condition. Circumcisions are an archaic religious tradition that needs to end.

No loving god would require it, and no loving human should feel obligated to do this to a perfectly healthy child.

Being born with a foreskin is not a birth defect.

Being born with a clitoris and labia is not a birth defect.

I don’t agree with the genitals of babies being intentionally mutilated, scalpels severing their nerve endings and intimate tissues being removed, along with the full ability to experience sexual pleasure, sexual arousal, and the intensity of the orgasms those nerves and tissues had the potential to give. Read that again please.

Babies deserve the same basic human right to bodily integrity that we are all born with, and the same rights we all fervently demand and defend as informed adults.

In some nations it’s just an expected religious practice, ex. Islamic or Jewish. So if you’re born in one of these religious places, you’re going to be cut wether it be in a hospital by staff or on a dirt floor by relatives.

But we are talking about America the land of the free here…we have laws to protect us right?

Yet, we knowingly take this future pleasure from an infant. We do it by force, without their consent, and without anesthetic.

Americans, regardless of religious affiliation, are very likely to hand our newborn boys to a nurse; who assists the doctor in an unneeded circumcision that will cut off some of the most sensitive parts of the penis.

Did you know that several doctors have also recently been cleared of all charges, so they will be free to continue performing female genital mutilations in America without penalty?

Why are our courts remaining on the side of adult oppressors and not on the side of child victims?

When will medical professionals who perform circumcisions own the fact that it is a violation of the most sacred oath we all take…DO NO HARM?

Continued injustice has also set a new precedent for continued abuses against the rights of children of any age who cannot legally give their consent.

I also don’t think a parent’s rights to religion should supersede the rights of their children to remain free from unnecessary surgical procedures on their genitals. Period.

Religionist parents will keep seeking these procedures and doing things that harm children claiming religious freedom and keep defending their faith.

They will never report against physicians doing their bidding, of course, and therefore it will remain another way society fails to protect our children from the harms that religion imposes.

I’m just expressing what I think about it, knowing we will all keep ignoring it, granting post-traumatic acceptance, and when reason fails, we’ll just sweep it back under the rug to halt any further scrutiny of the issue.

Nobody wants to admit it was really an inhumane practice, or wrong to do it in the first place, let alone talk about putting a stop to it.

Especially after most men and millions of girls have endured it and lived on. We just don’t talk about circumcisions, or about the bad outcomes, and the loss of sensation it causes. We talk about erectile dysfunction a lot though, everyone knows what Viagra is, so I think we can start now.

What would you even do with your circumcision regrets?

Most victims and parents immediately begin to make excuses for the only culturally acceptable torture of an infant. We do it because it’s uncomfortable to talk about.

Maybe it’s because so many of us had it done and allowed it to be done to our own kids. Our kids, the ones we love and are supposed to protect, and so we know it can’t be undone.

So to deflect from the ugly truth of it, we avoid the topic altogether or double down on our defense and rationalization of an irrational medical practice.

Pain is also the fifth vital sign, so why is it routinely ignored during this ‘accepted’ medical procedure.

Even nurses like myself and doctors, are given terminology to describe it so we just filed it under normal pediatric procedures.

If we used the same thought process as any other medical procedure, how could we ever really justify it?

I couldn’t get past seeing it done in nursing school, and hearing that baby boy screaming.

Circumcision is an epidemic of unethical, medically prescribed torture plan/procedure for infants.

We, the medical community, have allowed parents to continue making uniformed and flawed decisions regarding the most intimate body parts of our children, simply because we have accepted religious tradition over  scientific truths.

We have failed to even address this issue fully as a society, and I don’t think it’s being debated as a serious fallacy in pediatric practice.

We all were taught and accepted the written opinions from American Academy of Pediatrics and the pro-circumcision committee, headed by Edgar Schoen, as a trusted source.

We adopted circumcision as an accepted practice, and as a preventive medical practice, despite the risks it poses.

Every procedure should exemplify the BEST PRACTICE MODEL of care.

This means using the best scientifically accurate information, being current with the latest technology, using evidence-based practice, always applying the most comprehensive, data rich, and peer reviewed studies to improve patient outcomes.

No it’s not about hygiene. Since when is it best practice to cut off skin instead of bathing? No it’s not about appearance, we are born this way.

No it’s not about stopping penile cancer, that’s rare and a reach at best. If this was an acceptable best practice scenario to prevent cancers, would we then begin cutting off breasts without genetic assessment, since 1 in 8 women will get breast cancer?

See how ridiculous it begins to sound when you even try to justify the unjustifiable?

So no, circumcisions should not be endorsed nor supported by anyone in the medical community as a standard or a universal practice. In my opinion it’s surgical abuse, and it’s wrong no matter which excuse you use.

Elena Allen

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Why don’t courts accept religious claims? They used to. Mon, 24 Sep 2018 12:56:23 +0000 Continue reading Why don’t courts accept religious claims? They used to. ]]> Imagine this scenario: you’re in court because your insurance company refused to pay for your wife’s hospital stay.  Your premiums are paid, and up to date.  The doctors worked around the clock to make her better.  She’s Ok now, out of the hospital and getting better every day.  You believe it’s because you prayed to God for her to get better and that’s what you told your family, neighbors and business associates.

Well, it turns out the Insurance company policy states that they are also firm believers in god. They are a good Christian company.  In court, they say that since god actually healed your wife, then the hospital doesn’t have the right to charge them for the work they did. So they’re refusing to pay for their services.

The court agrees with them, and the hospital comes after you for $ 233,039 that they WERE going to bill the insurance company.  But, as expected in this new reality, this has set a precedence for future cases, and the court says you don’ thave to pay either.  God cured your wife.  Soon all insurance companies stop paying medical professionals for work done.  Hospitals across the nation start shutting down; doctor’s offices soon follow.  Before long the only recourse for the seriously ill is to go to a church and ask for their members to pray for them.  Mortality rates climb exponentially, and life expectation in American drops to what it was in 1800.

Seem far-fetched?  Why?  Did god cure her or not?  Didn’t the hospital staff work hard to save her as you pleaded them to? Shouldn’t they be paid?  For what?

It wasn’t so long ago that this could have actually played out in a real court.  Back before and during the Salem Witch Trials there was a form of evidence that was allowed called spectral evidence.  And people were killed because of it.  Spectral evidence is a form of evidence based upon dreams and visions, and it was based on the Christian belief system.


If your neighbor said that your spirit attacked him (or even was currently attacking him in the court room). Then that was enough for the superstitious people of that time to find a woman guilty of witchcraft, and take away her life or liberty.

Thankfully, Massachusetts Gov. Phips put an end to that in 1692.

“Phips eventually suspended the court proceedings, pardoned a number of people sentenced to death, and released more than 100 from jail, but not until after twenty had been executed.” – Wikipedia article “William Phips”

So consider what it would mean today if your religious claims were taken seriously in today’s legal system?

Should insurance companies refuse to pay for natural catastrophes?  Since they are considered Acts of God, and they wouldn’t want to stand in the way of God’s wrath.

If a person confessed to being an atheist should the courts assume they’re possessed by a demon, or maybe even by Satan himself? Should they be able to commit them to an exorcism?  Some churches do that today.  In America.  How could they tell if the exorcism worked?  What should they do if the person continued to be rebellious?  The Inquisition took those charges VERY seriously; to the point of torture, imprisonment and death.

If a neighbor had heard a wife say she wished her husband was dead, should she be charged with murder if he died?  Even if he died from natural causes, or in a car accident?  Many people believe that a wish is a kind of prayer, and a prayer is asking a supernatural being to act on your behalf.

If my neighbor says he has put a curse on me but won’t tell me the specifics of the curse, should he be charged with a misdemeanor or a felony?  Should I be able to sue him if ANYTHING bad happened to me or my family, even illness?

If a friend places a blessing on my enemy, should I be able to prosecute him the same as if he placed a curse on me?

WHY do you think it is that religions consider all of these things real but courts don’t accept them as evidence?  Have you ever considered that?  Why not?  Are there two realities?  Really?  Which one is valid?

Think! Would you really want the legal system to hold people accountable for your religious claims?  What about THEIR religious claims?  What about when they  come into conflict?

Then why do you press your legislator to pass laws based on them?

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American citizens (adult and children) who are Hindu, Muslim, Mormon, Sikh, Secular, etc, see this as a finger pointing straight at them saying “You’re religion is wrong, and you’re not going to receive justice from our justice system, or equality in our schools.”, and the messages is coming directly from the government of the nation they have come to call their home.





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The sword is forged in fire. You will be too.

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