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?
{ 3 trackbacks }
{ 3 comments }
Great, inspirational post! As we speak out, more will join us. As they speak out, more will join them. And so it goes.
Ah, man! Succinct, to the point and very important. I am glad that you are one of the godless, and this is definitely something I want to add to the upcoming Carnival of the Godless. Thanks for submitting it.
Great post!
If atheists were simply rude for the sake of being rude, the church would have little to fear from us. Behind their sharp polemic against the rhetoric of Dawkins et.al., however, is a failure to really have a valid response to the issues these writers–and bloggers–are bringing up.
On the other hand, theistic rhetoric can be pretty rude too, and these people often seem like they would ban their opponents from speaking if they had a chance.
Free speach is a kind of use it or lose it thing, as far as I am concerned.
Comments on this entry are closed.