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Tell Us What You Think
name: Jerome Mc Collom
email: jmcco422@uwsp.edu
Wednesday, 06-May-1998 17:57 PST
It is not amazing religous are paranoid, who wouldn't be when
your beliefs are based on supersition.
name: Philip A. Stahl
email: stahlp@ix.netcom.com
Thursday, 07-May-1998 03:59 PST
While it is plausible that most paranoia is fueled
by irrational fears, and ignorance - it is unwise to
generalize this to all. It is also unwise, I think,
to place the concept of government cover-up under
the rubric of paranoia, or pseudo-belief systems.
As a JFK assassination researcher, for over twenty years,
I have documented more than ample evidence that there has
been a cover-up. Those interested can see my 'Real FAQ' on
the newsgroup alt.conspiracy.jfk. Read it and consider it
thoughtfully before pre-emptively dismissing the concept
of conspiracy.
True, we may find a high 'chuckle-factor' embedded in the notion
of government (or other) conpsiracy. That, however, emphatically does
not mean they don't exist. And, if we need further proof - we need
only look at our history, including: Watergate, Iran-Contra, and
the BCCI conspiracy, and cover-up. Those who baldly criticize conspiracy,
or paranoia arising therefrom, generally have not done their homework, or
research - or, if they have, only superficially.
In the case of the JFK assassination, the ongoing release of documents
and files - through the 1992 JFK Records Act, and the Assassination Review
Board formed from it, shows the extent to which we have been deceived.
And yes, the extent to which key information has been kept from us.
Also bear in mind that a bulk of files, approximately equal to the height of
several Washington Monuments remains under wraps. This, despite a 1995 Executive
Order signed by President Clinton for full disclosure by 2000. Most of these
are squirreled away in secret vaults (the has been documented in the
Baltimore Sun, - 'Pentagon-CIA Ignoring Clinton Order to Declassify
Millions of Secret Documents,
March 6, 1997, p. 1A). These records reference critical information, to do with
the JFK assassination, as well as the assassinations of Martin Luther King, and
Robert Kennedy. It is our right, as citizens, to have access to our past
history,. And to know the truth - rather than be treated as infants.
Until we do, we will be condemned to relive the past, in various forms, and be
easily misled whenever someone has the audacity to refer to a conspiracy.
Until we do, we will not understand what actually happened in any of those
defining events. Hence, as the author of the Baltimore Sun article noted,
we must question this 'Culture of Secrecy'.
I think we owe it to ourselves, before adding conspiracy and cover-ups to the
pseudo scientific nonsense - such as astrology, to do our research.
It is a disservice to skepticism to conflate issues in a process that
undermines truth and objectivity, and obscures crucial distinctions. When
we do that sort of thing, we play into a game we can only lose.
name: Rich Andrews
email: Rich123@aol.com
Thursday, 07-May-1998 05:34 PST
I can't believe that 4% of atheists, agnostics and freethinkers think they
can contact or speak to the dead.
Moderator's note: It's obviously a secret
conspiracy. :)
name: James Dennis
email: jdennis@stic.net
Thursday, 07-May-1998 08:59 PST
The problem is that the social fabric of society has
changed. In the '50's everyone knew their place,
especially Blacks and others. The changes of the
60's caused many to fear things, especially when
politicians promised one thing and voted another.
The next problem is there is a need for huge churches
to come up with large sums of money to pay for large
buildings, and huge sums to a clergy that thinks
wealth is a requirement. They look into the community
and find that the Masonic Lodge has large buildings
from previous generations and has large networks of
hospitals and other charities and the first thing
they think of is how can we get control of this money.
name: eon sol
email: eonsol@hotmail.com
Thursday, 07-May-1998 09:40 PST
Some of these items are completely absurd. I freely
confess that I find the most absurd suggestions come
from religion; this is because the delusions are
held as truth merely because they are written in a book,
and not because the ideas are logically feasable. Some
others are a bit laughable, though still not impossible.
I'd never thought that AIDS might be a manufactured
bioweapon. If that is the case, then I'd think
that something went terribly wrong; that, and as a
bioweapon it would act too slowly and with terrible precision.
Aliens? I find it probable that they exist, but
do not believe that we have reason to believe they are
visting us.
The face on Mars? I must admit, when I look at it, I see a
bit more than just light and shadow. Granted, it
could be a trick of the light, but then again, who
is to say it's not an alien monument? Why not land
a probe right next to it to settle the matter once
and for all? It might have been interesting to add
to this poll a question concerning the discovery of
the "martian rock" which supposedly contains
evidence pointing to "life on mars". If we believe
that there were once microbes on Mars, why not more
advanced forms of life? As a side note, I was a
little disappointed with the poll because there were
no grey areas; either you agreed or disagreed. There
should have been an "I grant this as a plausible
possibility" choice..
eon
Moderator's note: Plausible possibility?
You must mean No Opinion.
name: Dave Smith
email: dsfender@earthlink.net
Thursday, 07-May-1998 15:54 PST
A rather simple little survey which looks like it
was designed to separate the superstitious from the
logical. However I am glad you are out there. I
particularly enjoyed your "outing yourself advice"
page. A word about that: superstitious people can
be dangerous when confronted with certain logical
concepts. I am inclined to merely poke my head out
of the closet once in a while. Thank you. - DS
name: Ed LaBonte
email: ed@labonte.com
Thursday, 07-May-1998 17:18 PST
I find it very weird that 38% of the people participating in this poll
define themselves as Roman Catholics (at this writing) while 0% believe that
God hears and answers our prayers. Call me paranoid ;-) I assume these
Roman Catholics are atheistic Roman Catholics. Once a Catholic always a
Catholic?
name: Michael Buckner
email: MEBuckner@aol.com
Thursday, 07-May-1998 18:47 PST
Not, perhaps, the most scientific of polls. (Straight disagreements here,
of course, and "atheist/agnostic/freethinker").
I'm also a little curious as to why such a large Catholic turnout.
Hmmmm...the American Atheists-Vatican connection?!?
Moderator: What? Did you hear something?
(looks around nervously.)
I have to agree that the large RC turnout
is suspicious. However, I don't intend to "cook" the results, so there
you are. This is NOT a scientific poll. Perhaps Catholics have
some sort of Papal permission to vote more than once? Hmmm.
name: Jack Lewis
email: jack_lewis@bc.sympatico.ca
Thursday, 07-May-1998 20:58 PST
Much info on the topics of this poll can be found at the website of SCICOP
(www.scicop.org). Skeptics are generally unbelievers in such unproven claims.
Another good source is the magazine "Skeptical Inquirer".
name: Hobart J. Crusenberry
email: JakeCrus@AOL.com
Thursday, 07-May-1998 21:36 PST
It is obvious when I look at the results of the survey that only we devotees
of the Atheist Newsletter are participating in the poll. Other surveys shows
that we are vastly out of touch, with the majority of Americans believing in
astrology, visits by Space Aliens, angels, and an interactive-anthropomorphic
God.
Sadly, much of this ignorance is grounded in Americans' poor knowledge of
science or scientific methods. Instead, they grasp as every faddish theory
that comes along in an effort to "explain" and predict the workings
of the Universe.
My personal opinion is that human civilization, both West and East, is rapidly
sliding backward into a Dark Ages of superstition and ignorance.
name: Curtis Smith
email: snoopy@utech.net
Friday, 08-May-1998 01:17 PST
Your poll doesnt make any since. How can 33% of those polled be Christian,
and 97% not believe in praying to god. Someone is playing with the numbers
here.
Moderator: We only count what our visitors
vote. Could this be the start of a rebellion within the RCC?
name: Joe Zamecki
email: JoeyJoJoJr@aol.com
Friday, 08-May-1998 08:18 PST
"What excellent fools religion makes of men!"
Ben Johnson
name: Larry Brandon
email: ac5ez@hotmail.com
Friday, 08-May-1998 12:24 PST
Looks like only free thinkers took the poll!
name: Mike Rice
email: m-jrice@juno.com
Friday, 08-May-1998 12:48 PST
paranoia, imho, brought about by not paying attention to the whole story,
or missing your dosage.
name: Eric Carpenter
email: Ericc@pythianet.com
Friday, 08-May-1998 14:18 PST
It’s amazed me that as we continue to learn and disprove our old
superstitions that so many people scrabble and claw for new superstitions
to own as crutches. The recent blossoming of UFOlogy, new age beliefs,
wiccanism, angels and so many other mystical crutches shows the unfortunate
side of humanity – it’s better to make up a new delusion than have
none at all.
name: Robert March
email: rmarch@nfesc.navy.mil
Friday, 08-May-1998 16:02 PST
The current trend towards non-science and oddball
theories disturbs me. I know intelligent people
(Master's Degree in Engineering, for instance) who
think that the U.N. is controlling U.S. education.
This sort of conspiratorial B.S., while amusing
(and I admit that I eat this stuff up! It's so
ridiculous it's funny!), scares me into thinking
that most people are just waiting for a really
charismatic person to lead them over the edge,
a la Heaven's Gate, or worse yet, Hitler (just
look at Le Pen in France and Jironovsky (sp? the
right wing Russian nut) in Russia. Sigh. Just
an aimless rant at people's malleability.
name: Ashley Watson
email: australopithecus@juno.com
Friday, 08-May-1998 19:23 PST
IMHO, the problem with the widespread of paranoia and irrationality is due
to a severe lack of the very basic critical thinking skills being taught in
this country. If we stress the importance of teaching the critical thinking
skills in, like I say, 4th or 5th and continue that up to 12th grade as a
good remainder, to the students so the number of rational human beings
increase gradually. They would be armed with those important skills to
distinguish the logical information from fallacies. The polls stating a
surprising high number of Roman Catholics didn't surprise me because I have a
close friend who is a life long RC, went to a great Catholic school and
learned all those vital skills from those science courses she took. Ok, when
you have a pendulum range with the atheists on the end and the fundmentalists
and other irrationalists on the other end, in the terms of agreement with the
scientific paradigm, that group of Roman Catholics are perilously close to
atheists' end. FYI, I am not a RC, I am a damn proud atheist! :)
name: Gary Parker ("Gary in Ohio")
email: gparker@cybergate.net
Friday, 08-May-1998 19:55 PST
If you get a lot less than 100% disagree on all
questions, I'd be surprised.
name: M, van der Veer
email: B.Smerald@worldnet.att.net
Friday, 08-May-1998 23:04 PST
I think it is wrong for you to assign Hoagland
as the spokesman for the "Face on Mars" phenomenon.
Contrary to your protestations of supporting true
scientific inquiry, denigrating what is currently
a serious, albeit controversial subject now being
investigated by many reputable, honest academics
by linking it with one of its worst exploiters
seems to me to smack of ignorance comparable to
the stupidity and paranoia so richly exemplified
by him.
name: Margie Wait
email: mdwait@mindspring.com
Saturday, 09-May-1998 09:57 PST
Maybe all these outlandish conspiracy theories which,
oftentimes, eminate from those who are promoting a
"greater" agenda (i.e. Robertson is working toward
a "Christian nation") are meant to keep the "fear
of the devil" and "fear of god's wrath" alive.
Without this "fear," many people would simply
adopt a certain complacency and not support the
"real" agenda. Perhaps the outlandish conspiracies
are simply part of a bigger conspiracy?
*a tongue in cheek comment, for the most part*
name: Walt Bailey
email: us@staffnet.com
Saturday, 09-May-1998 22:48 PST
Mother Nature cannot cause an accident.
"All" accidents are caused by "Human Error".
name: David Wimp
email: joliraja@ix.netcom.com
Sunday, 10-May-1998 20:37 PST
This is in response to a post on alt.conspiracy.jfk
Margie Wait wrote:
Religious and paranormal belief claims are proliferating; and
astonishing numbers of Americans believe that government isn't telling
the truth about Area 51, who killed the Kennedys and "The Face on
Mars." From Pat Robertson to the Art Bell Show, that old bugaboo,
Freemasonry, is now being fingered as the ultimate gang of bad guys.
We're tripping out on pop culture paranoia.
I wrote:
How do you manage to lump all these things together? The government isn't
telling us the truth about area 51, they aren't telling us anything.
I consider the Oswaldian version of the JFK assassination to be in the same
class as the face on mars and alien abductions.
Perhaps you should check things out and not summarily classify them as paranoid.
A really interesting poll would be one that correlates belief in god with
belief in Oswald.
I think that you will find that atheists disbelieve in Oswald even more than
the general population. Oswaldism is in itself a sort of religious belief.
name: Catlin Ryan Melvin
email: cat@attitude.com
Monday, 11-May-1998 00:13 PST
I suggest that you read Inventing the Aids Virus by Peter H. Duesburg published
by Regnery.
name: eric
email: kimneric@bendnet.com
Monday, 11-May-1998 19:22 PST
Don't get sucked into counterfeit realities. Creation Science has my vote for
#1 oxymoron. Don't forget, just because life seems to have no inherent
purpose beyond living, that doesn't mean that life has no meaning or that we
can't give it a purpose. But anyone who thinks that the U.S. govt has never
engaged in a cover-up isn't thinking critically. The conclusions of Bluebook
were that yes, UFOs do exist but are not a threat. And anyone with only a
modicum of scientific learning would know that if there are such creatures as
'little grays' in our skies, they are not ETs but are our relatives. Such
convergent evolution on different planets is unlikely in the extreme and
reflects anthropocentric notions.
name: Glenn Crawford
email: glennc@nelvana.com
Tuesday, 12-May-1998 05:53 PST
While this poll would be telling in the general public, it will be skewed by
the likely participants. I liken it to a sane man in an asylum. You would
find he consistently says "everyone in here is nuts!" While this
is true, it doesn't tell you much about the other asylum inmates.
name: Shawn M. Raiford
email: sraiford@bayou.uh.edu
Tuesday, 12-May-1998 12:56 PST
I guess I don't have much to say except that everyone is born an ATHEIST!
(grinning) The truth will show it's face one day!!!
name: Walter Mattingly
email: waltdakind@earthlink.net
Tuesday, 12-May-1998 13:12 PST
I feel that the categories for religious belief on the last question of the
survey were a bit limited. For example, it is certainly possible to be a
Buddhist and an atheist (if one only sees a buddha as an enlightened person
rather than a deity). Being a Unitarian Universalist my religion technically
falls within the realm of Protestantism, but there is no dogmatic restraint
within Unitarian Universalism to prevent one from asserting that s/he is an
atheist or an agnostic. Aside from that, this looks like an interesting survey,
and I am interested to see if correlations exist between certain religious
affilitiations and paranormal kookiness. It is too bad that the sample is
limited to people who are interested enough in atheism to be looking at the
American Atheist web page. I would be much more interested if the sample was
much broader. Maybe next time? Keep the faith, or lack thereof.
name: Jim Eastman
email: ducttape42@aol.com
Tuesday, 12-May-1998 14:55 PST
In reference to the question about UFOs, I do believe that extraterrestrial
(such a term is self centered) life exists in the universe I just dont think
it's stupid enough to visit us. AS to the conspiracy thing, frankly I think
the whole Mars conspiracy idea is BS. Although I do believe the gov't does
hide things from the public, I mean, what gov't doesn't?
name: John Pizer
email: johnpizer@juno.com
Tuesday, 12-May-1998 17:19 PST
This is a silly poll. Among your readers, who are all (or almost all) atheists,
everyone would have the same, Disagree, opinions to all these qyestions.
How could it be otherwise? So what is the point?
name: Fox T. FiZZ
email: ftfizz@yahoo.com
Tuesday, 12-May-1998 17:51 PST
It's a funny thing about New Agers, whenever they get backed into a corner
they either do two things: They 1) make accusations of closed-mindedness
(while in NO WAY considering other explinations for things they believe to
Extraterristrial Space Craft) and 2) claim there is a conspiracy against them.
And of coarse, many will accuse skeptics of being a part of this very same
consipracy. Just like when religious fundimentalists accuse non-believers
(Namely: Atheists and Agnostics) or being in leauge with Demons and Devils.
name: Mike Combs
email: mikecombs@aol.com
Wednesday, 13-May-1998 10:34 PST
If we refer to a paranoid individual as mentally
ill, how do we refer to a paranoid society?
name: Steven Bales
email: EVETS12@aol.com
Wednesday, 13-May-1998 18:24 PST
I find it sad that people accept so much as fact, without actually thinking
about the plausability of it. I think many people don't consider sources or
agenda when they hear things. They accept a TV show about aliens as truth.
I think a survey should be done on what sources or institutions are considered
trustworthy or truthful by americans. I honestly think some people are
incapable of thinking critically about ideas. These are the same people who
are perfectly happy spreading false notions or ideas.
name: Erik Meyer
email: erik@tiac.net
Wednesday, 13-May-1998 21:02 PST
cute poll. I can see where the leaning might
be with the questions. I found your site because
of the article about Pat Robertson's coverage of
the Freemasons. Someone had posted the link to a
newsgroup that I visit. Yes I am a Mason. I do
like the article. I do even like some of the views
professed here, quite likely for different reasons
than you have for them tho. ttfn
name: Diane Wahto
email: dwahto@prodigy.net
Thursday, 14-May-1998 07:14 PST
I think living in the age of anxiety motivates people to look for solutions to
their unresolved problems outside themselves. If they can transfer that
anxiety to a god figure or the devil or a face on Mars, they can displace
some of their anxieties. I love The X Files, but I also get a good laugh out
of it.
name: John Martin
email: Jmartin@bellsouth.net
Thursday, 14-May-1998 11:19 PST
Your poll wouldn't be just a little bit biased would it?
I find your poll to be way off from the national averages.
How can this poll be accurate when 75% of the American public claim to be
Christian?
Moderator's Note: We want to know what
our readers think. If we wanted national averages, we would just
read a newspaper.
Moderator: I was about to toss the next
two comments, as I do not intend for this to heat up into one of those
useless "label" arguments. However, they are somewhat on topic, and here
they are for the time being. Next time: 1) atheist, 2) other. :)
name: Tanya Horsfall
email: tanyah@wolverton.ca
Friday, 15-May-1998 12:23 PST
We do live in a paranoid society, however your poll results will contradict
this because you are reeping your results from an atheist's internet site.
I am disturbed by the tendancy to lump atheists and agnostics together.
From a true atheist's perspective it is insulting to be catigorized along
with moral cowards.
name: Holiday Del Mar
email: hahli@yahoo.com
Friday, 15-May-1998 22:19 PST
I was glad to see that you included Wiccan/Pagan as
a category for identification in your poll. However,
your questions about our degree of religious/
supernatural beliefs were stated from a completely
Judeo-Christian point of view! You spoke of God in the
singular, and asked if we believed that "angels"
could help us.
name: Dean W. Austin
email: wade2@prodigy.net
Friday, 15-May-1998 21:37 PST
It's refreshing to see that the topics of paranormal skepticism and religious
skepticism are finally merging. For too long, there has been an artificial
barrier maintained between the two, either by skeptics who denounced ghosts
and astrology, for example, yet were still clinging to childish notions of a
paternalistic god, or by those who couldn't stomach the ludricrous claims of
traditional religion, but were hard pressed to reject the pull of other
mystical mumbo jumbo. Recognition of this strange state of events by
American Atheists is welcome indeed!
name: Bridget
email: Atheistone@aol.com
Saturday, 16-May-1998 01:06 PST
I really think that God and many religions were at one point needed.
We humans are an inquisitive beast. We do not have all the answers, we have
more than before. I think that is why the belief that there is no
"GOD" is more in the open. We do not need myths to explain things.
We want answers that are concrete. We will always work to learn more. It
is our nature. We are evolving to not need this "easy reason" god.
We want real answers and now doubt the existance of god. Christians and other
god based ideas do claim to HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS (the bible) I just have to
say how arrogant and ignorant...............
name: Gordon S. Little
email: Gordon.Little@bull.com
Saturday, 16-May-1998 03:25 PST
Wrapping up "atheist" with "agnostic" (and maybe
with "freethinker" as well) is a con. Anyone
who considers themselves one of the other two
gets counted as an "atheist." Most of us are
getting pretty tired of this manipulation in
opinion polls.
Gordon S. Little gets the last word
on "labels."
name: Gordon S. Little
email: Gordon.Little@bull.com
Saturday, 16-May-1998 04:35 PST
Living in a hyperefficient technological economy that easily takes care of
our survival needs and much more has left many people in society with too
little to do--whether or not this includes a way to earn a living. As a
result, instead of doing something really necessary, which is based on truth
because it means having to perform and prove themselves in reality, far more
people have turned to "selling themselves" in numerous ways to
find roles in society.
This encourages lies, which often sell something or someone as well as
truth does. Over the past several decades, we have lived in an increasing
climate of lies: from corporate advertising, from politicians and government,
from the media, from leftists and especially feminists--who are the worst,
and also incidentally the worst at undermining science (though tobacco
companies have played a small part too). Because there are so many lies,
many people don't know what to believe. The resulting atmosphere of
insecurity is why there's so much more paranoia than there used to be.
I'm not sure if this is the whole reason for increasing belief in the occult.
Many humans seem to need some comforting belief, perhaps that "someone
is looking after them," even if it's irrational. Traditional religion
at least offers people practical guidance for running a harmonious society,
while the beliefs on which it's based usually impact emotions and behavior
in a positive rather than negative way, no matter that they're irrational or
even demonstrably wrong. When they lose faith in their religion, many people
seem to need to replace it with something else irrational.
What goes unnoticed here is that a lot of modern leftism (and again,
especially feminism) is based on comforting false beliefs. Even if it doesn't
call itself a religion, it is; and what's worse, the false beliefs do impact
human behavior negatively. Much of this is similar to the myth of the
"Perfectibility of Man." At least people who believe in Heaven
after death will never be disappointed if they're wrong. Those who believe
in Heaven on earth are headed for a huge disappointment, which many have
already been experiencing.
name: RicH Weinstein
email: mmyn30a@prodigy.com
Saturday, 16-May-1998 06:35 PST
I would like a follow-up (and philosophicaly wise) on the subject are
aliens visiting this planet -I jumped to the conclusion that there are aliens
but a large number of people said that there weren't but a proper scientific
view would be of no oppionion and I just don't think that all the atheists
responding are closed to open scientific investigation---but I think they
are in part fearfull of the tenacity of the cover-up of their(preists)
control of the people who are religious held by mental morality
thumbscrews & social ties but on its own basis isn't moral becouse they
control minds. (reminds me of the movie where pod people take over by molding
into look alikes when the real people fall asleep only it is all mental) All
my best, RicH-W
name: Don Fox
email: foxy@webtv.net
Saturday, 16-May-1998 08:22 PST
We've been taught so many untruths that it is difficult to believe much of
anything the governments tell us.
name: Delila
email: sab@erols.com
Saturday, 16-May-1998 11:35 PST
Even though I've never seen one, I do believe in UFOs and Extraterrestrials.
In fact due to a lot of independent research I have done over the years I've
come to the conclusion, that it was E.T.s who "invented" all of the
different religions for the sole purpose of keeping us disunited and fighting.
It's working well, isn't it? Even though I consider myself a "free
thinker" I do believe in a "spirit world" a dimension that is
not visible to us in our physical state. I believe in the immortality of the
soul/spirit and that spirits/angels do indeed watch over us. I feel that the
U.S. government and govs. of other countries as well conceil a lot of thinge
especially if they have to do with Aliens, like the face on Mars for instance.
name: Reuben
email: rmarcha1@san.rr.com
Saturday, 16-May-1998 20:13 PST
If aliens are visiting this planet maybe it's just for a picnic and we are to
them just squirrels from the forest watching them. A Russian Sci-Fi author
wrote a short book with this theme. You know the kids borrow the car/spaceship
drive/fly to the country/outer arm of the galaxy have fun with the
wildlife/earthlings. Oh well. A good book to read on religous beliefs is
"The Illusion of Immortality" by Corliss Lamont.
name: Darla
email: dnice@hgo.net
Saturday, 16-May-1998 20:36 PST
I would like to see the results of this poll after it
was posted on one of the Christian/Religious newsgroups!
name: Dave Brunt
email: DCB.LLT@Worldnet.ATT.net
Sunday, 17-May-1998 08:22 PST
It seems like it sings to the chior. Nearly all atheists disagree with every
statement you made.
Go to Poll/Results.
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