Speak now, speak loudly and speak often

Practically everyone who knows me knows exactly what I believe or disbelieve as the case may be. I’ve never have a problem with speaking my mind on much of anything. It surprises some, but I’ve gotten less pushback than most seem to expect.

The weird thing, perhaps, is that I owe my assertiveness to the Baptists I grew up with. So many groups seem to teach that we, as individuals, should always take care to fit in. I’ve never heard a Baptist say something like that and would be surprised if one did.

Growing up I was taught to stand up for what I thought was right, come hell or high water. The problems arose when I started standing up to the things they declared were “right”. Looking back, I regret not one thing.

I stood by one friend, a Jehovah Witness, to such a degree that I got my birthday canceled – permanently, while in grade school. By the time my younger sister was in high school, she had been dubbed “her sister”.

Why? See the title of this post. It’s something I very firmly believe in and a primary reason I’ve felt compelled to always speak my mind. The explanation for why it’s imperative to speak up is simple.

We should speak now, because remaining silent allows the opposition think they’re unopposed.

We should speak loudly, because speaking softly allows the opposition to think we are unsure.

We should speak often because while we may be few in number, we are not alone in our opposition to those who would prefer us to speak softly or remain silent.

Speaking is one of our species greatest tools. Why do you think so many are so angry about the surge of books by atheists these days? It’s not because the authors are collectively “rude”, but because they spoke and spoke loudly.

Sam Harris said faith was dangerous. Richard Dawkins called God a delusion. Daniel Dennett said it’s all in our head. Christopher Hitchens bluntly stated that God is not great.

Can you get any louder than that?