Godlessness

A human rights committee in Maine will soon be hearing a case about a man who claims he was fired because he doesn't believe in god. Of course, I think this is atrocious. But of course, there are a whole bunch of crazies out there who think that this was a perfectly reasonable firing.

Last night on the radio a guy called in and said he was Jewish and felt that people who don't believe in a higher power should be fired because they can't be trusted. He said that if you don't have a higher power to answer to, then you have no motivation to be a good or honest person. He also claimed that when u go to court you have to swear on a bible, and if the bible doesn't mean anything to you then your word is worthless. This guy was absurd.

First of all, you do NOT have to swear on a bible in court anymore. You raise your right hand and "swear or affirm" to tell the truth. Second, how can this guy talk about religious motivation? Jews don't believe in Hell, or any kind of afterlife punishment - just an absence of reward. Jews are either good people & they are reborn when the messiah comes, or they are bad and they just stay dead. Personally, I'd rather not be disturbed! Anyway, I would understand a Catholic claiming you need punishment as motivation, but not a Jew. And finally, just because I don't believe in a god doesn't mean I don't believe in consequences for my actions. My motivations are in this life, not the next. And I don't have the unconditional forgiveness and saving of a god to redeem me. If I fuck up, I fuck up. End of story. I take the consequences as they come in this life. And those consequences motivate me to do good things and be honest. Plus, no god doesn't mean no spirituality. I believe in things like karma, and the unexplainable. And no matter what, belief in a god is certainly no guarantee of honesty. Plenty of people do evil in the name of a god, or even just inspite of their beliefs.

I know you all know this already, I just had to vent. It amazes me how ignorant some people are, and how hateful. The thought that I or my sister could one day be fired for our godlessness is unsettling. I know it's not legal, but just the idea that some people think it's rational. Grrr.