An Angry Atheist...

Today, a friend commented on one of my Facebook posts. He started by asking why I've been in this mood lately and said that he didn't remember me being so aggressive about the atheist thing. Then he mentioned that I seemed kinda mad. It got me to thinking. Then I decided that yes. I am "kinda mad". I'm more than that. I'm just outright angry. Yes, I am angry.

 I am angry at the people who keep telling me that I'm going to hell and I can't live a moral and productive life without their god. I am angry at the fundamentalists that are trying to force their religion into our secular government. I am angry at the clergy, televangelists and all the like who swindle people out of millions of dollars a year in the name of god, then watch their people struggle to make ends meet while they are buying $3,000 suits and driving BMWs.

 I am angry at the people who deny others jobs and opportunities once they find out that they don't believe in a god. I am angry at the people who bully, harrass and degrade young atheist teens and kids in the name of god. I am angry at the people who fly airplanes into buildings, who kill each other, who abuse and murder their children in the name of their god. I am angry at the people who blow up abortion clinics and kill doctors in the name of god. I am even angrier at the cowards that stand back and piously agree with those actions.

I am angry at the people who belittle me, condescend to me and get all self-righteous because my opinion doesn't fit in with their views. I am angry at all of the "christians" who hear about the horrible crimes committed in god's name, but say "Well, they weren't REALLY christians". I am angry at all of the religious who preach to me that THEIR god is loving and kind, but still claim to believe in the bible because those two statement are not compatible and they know it.

Most of all, I am angry that this is all that I can do to change my world. All I can do is stand up and keep being angry, very loudly and hope that things change. I can join atheist organizations and work with them. I can write to my senators and congressmen and the president, but we all know that they cater to the religious.

So herein lies my dilemma. I can't do it by myself. But maybe, just MAYBE, if all of the atheists in America stand up and make their voices heard, we can change things for the better. We can make this part of the world just a little safer for the next generation. And that's all I really want. You can keep your myths and make-believe deities. Just keep them to yourself. I'll live my life with logic, thanks.