My friend Fred described a weak atheist as a person who simply doesn't believe any sort of God exists, while a strong atheist wants to get in your face and tell you why you're stupid for believing in an invisible man in the sky, or some such nonsense. I liked those helpful definitions, and knowing the distinction. You might believe that, having written a book titled Counterargument for God, I relish every opportunity I get to argue with every atheist who I might happen to encounter. But you would be wrong. In fact, you couldn't be more wrong, and always remember that there are gradations of wrong. There's simply no reason to argue with a weak atheist. He or she isn't spoiling for a fight, and it would be rude to goad them into one by insulting them or calling them names. I have no interest in flaunting my faith, and it most certainly isn't my place to judge somebody else and tell them they're going to Hell for not believing exactly as I do. Isn't that fun to hear! For that reason among others, I'm still quite reluctant to invite strangers to church because I don't want weak atheists to feel like I'm trying to shove my God down their throat. In my opinion, it requires the mutual interest of two people to maintain a dialogue, and my interests are far from limited to theological discussions. Now, if someone is interested in polite conversation about what I personally believe and why I wrote the book, I'm more than capable and happy to accommodate, if returning three times to the same radio show to be interviewed by the same atheist friend serves as … [Read more...]
Pure Evil
Writing horror and detective novels requires research into some very dark subjects. The writer must always ask his or herself, why do people intentionally hurt or kill other people? What was the motive for the crime? The villain in my novel Secondhand Sight was the embodiment of pure evil, a sadistic person who derived pleasure from the suffering and pain of others. Do people that sick and twisted really exist? Absolutely! My imagination isn't anywhere near that dark or fantastic to conjure up a serial killer without any inspiration from real life. My dreams are of rescuing puppies, not beheading them. I can't comprehend nor want to contemplate the sort of evil, twisted mind that could compose a letter to a young mother suggesting that she euthanize her autistic son. We all know that such evil exists. That is inarguable. History is replete with accounts of evil people committing atrocities for various reasons or flimsy excuses. The only remaining question to consider is whether or not pure evil exists, which has been defined as the idea that bad people inflict intentional harm on others for no rational reason. Do Satan and his minions actually exist? Are real demons present in the natural world? I say yes. Professional skeptic Michael Shermer reported that Florida State University professor Roy Baumeister proclaimed that the concept of pure evil is nothing but a myth, asserting that any act of aggression can be sorted into one of these four categories: Instrumental violence -- meaning violence with war-like purpose of conquest and … [Read more...]
Travesty of justice: Kolton Houston versus the NCAA
Full disclosure: I am a graduate of the University of Georgia, class of 1983. I bleed red and black. It is fair to say I am an avid Georgia Bulldog fan. Nevertheless, I'm quite sure that my school allegiance doesn't color my judgment in this matter, based on the available facts, not emotion. That caveat aside, I will say that it is nothing less than a travesty of justice that Kolton Houston remains ineligible to compete on the football field. And that's not just my admittedly biased opinion. ESPN's Outside the Lines told the basic story, a rather depressing tale of how one young man has been forced by this monopoly that controls every aspect of collegiate sports to pay, and continue to pay, for the mistake of a medical professional made almost four years ago. The NCAA has unchecked power over the lives of people such as Kolton Houston, a young man who reportedly dreamed of wearing the Bulldog uniform since he was four-years-old. And as Lord Acton famously said, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." Once upon a time, all the way back in 2010 a high school athlete was injected with a forbidden anabolic steroid to facilitate healing from shoulder surgery. No doubt, somebody made a bad judgment call. Compounding an error in judgment into a tragic mistake, the injection went into fat instead of muscle, causing Houston to test positive years after that one-and-only treatment. As a result of that error, Houston has become the most tested athlete in the history of college sports. The evidence remains incontrovertible -- … [Read more...]
