My First Atheist/Humanist Conference

I had wanted to attend an atheist conference for a while, but most were outside of my price range, distance range, and approval from my family.  This time all three conditions aligned and with the approval of my incredible my wife I was off to the Pennsylvania Atheist/Humanist Conference in Philadelphia, PA.  The event was coordinated by the PAnonbeleivers, Brian Fields, Margaret Downey, and a host of volunteers.  Thank you to all.

Upon arrival at the hotel, I checked in, then went up to the bar, I then met the first of many atheists that I have come to know and love, Dan Fincke, of the blog Camels with Hammers.  Dan is an awesome man and one of the friendliest people I have ever met.  By chance, he was drinking with a long time blog “idol” J.T. Eberhard of the What Would J.T. Do blog.  There he was sitting in his teemo hat, I was laughing to myself.  How could this get any better?  The first 30 minutes of the conference and I have met two guys whose writing and opinions I respect greatly. 

The first night of the conference had a Friggatriskadaekaphobia party, where superstitions would be cast out forever (wishful thinking).  Walking under a ladder to join the party in the room, you were greeted with tables referencing different superstitions.  Around the room, histories of different superstitions, why is a horseshoe lucky?  Why is it good luck to kiss the Blarney Stone?  And there was a chance to tempt fate, a raffle to smash a fairy (piñata) into dust, smash a mirror for seven years bad luck, throwing your horoscopes in the trash where they belong.  Doctors and nurses were on hand with black cats to cure you of your superstitions.  I recognized so many people and could hardly wait to hear them speak the next day.

Saturday, totally unaware of what to expect, then came the first speaker, James Croft.  Wow!  Just wow!  Who was this Brit?  A humanist who spoke so passionately, if this was the start, it could only get better.  Next, J.T.  speaking about being a firebrand atheist, having a hard time finding the medium between being a firebrand and Phil Plait’s “Don’t be a Dick”.  J.T.s talk was why I became a fan of his blog, despite this, I am still struggling with being a firebrand and not a dick. 

The second part of the morning was even more impressive, David Tamayo, a Hispanic American, and president of Hispanic American Freethinkers, touched me with such a great story of his change to atheism. He talked of HAFREE and the talks they give to the Hispanic youth in the high schools in Virginia; I said to myself, I must get them to speak at my school.  I have not yet contacted David, but I will be doing so shortly.

Little that I knew that a speaker would have my eyeballs sweating (those are not tears), as Tracy Lockwood shared her story of growing up in a Christian cult in upstate New York.  Oh the things people will do in the name of religion.  So sad, but it is these type of stories that must be told for change to happen.

Dave Silverman, president of American Atheists, spoke about the importance of being an atheist, not agnostic, not humanist, not any combination of those.  I am an atheist and will say it proudly and loudly.

After Silverman, something interesting happened, I was getting tired and told myself, I’ll just listen to the next speaker for five minutes, if no good, I’ll go take a nap.  For the love of the FSM, none of the speakers sucked!  I was exhausted.  But oh it was so worth it.

The night ended with the comedy of Jamy Ian Swiss, Steven Hill, Dave DeLuca, and a wonderful musical performance by Shelley Segal.

Sunday, came the authors I had been dying to see and meet.  Jerrry DeWitt, author of Hope after Faith, spoke like no one I have ever heard.  I had seen evangelical preachers on television praising the lord, but Jerry, was speaking to atheism.  He had the audience laughing one minute, the next thing you know, you were sitting almost crying.  It is not hard to see how this man could have been such a power influence in the church.

Amanda Kneif, author of The Citizen Lobbyist, spoke to Faith Based Initiatives by the federal and state governments.  You have no idea how much of our tax payer monies are going to churches without any oversight.  Really, it is a disgusting display of how the religious are helping head towards a theocracy.

Overall, my experience was fantastic, met so many wonderful people.  Confirmed my feelings about bloggers, I am glad I’m such a good judge of character.  I can hardly wait to see some of these people again.  It also reignited the fire to join the Beltway Atheists again, and become more of an activist.

Thanks to all at the conference, organizers, speakers, and volunteers.

-SB

Girl Scouts kicked out of Church

I have never been a big fan of scouts.  The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) with their disdain for the LGBT community and total shunning of the non-religious, puts them in my eyes as a hate-filled organization.  No, not the boys, but the leaders.  On the contrary, there are the Girls Scouts of America (GSA), who appear to accept the LGBT community and in fact all member of society, regardless of religion (lack of).  My wonderful daughter, the Madster, had some great times with her troops, and I am glad for that.  I still had in my mind that they were still a little to right wing for my tastes, overall, I never saw any animosity towards any part of society.

This brings me to the topic of this discussion, a Catholic church in Arlington, Virgina, just a dog-sled ride across the Potomac River, felt it was necessary to kick the local girl scout troop out of their building.  You can read about it here. The reason? 

In recent years, the Girls Scouts have accepted gay and transgender children into its ranks. They have also provided age appropriate sexual education sometimes in conjunction with Planned Parenthood.

Really?  What are the Catholics afraid of?  Some young girl might use contraception before marriage?  Oh for the love of the flying spaghetti monster.  They are teaching the girls about being safe.  About being responsible? Would we rather have teenage girls running around getting pregnant, getting STDs?  And do not think that Catholic teenage girls are chaste, the Catholic School girls when I was growing up were always great (wink, wink, nudge, nudge).  My virtual blogger friend J.T. Eberhard, sums it up quite nicely.  “Want to know the fastest way to get kicked out of a church of the most loving religion?  By failing to discriminate”

What I would like to see are my religious friends in this area talk to their church leaders and ask them to denounce the message of the Catholic Church.  Usually, I just say it is their wacky religion, but in this case, they are harming children…knowingly.  And I refuse to not say anything about it.

-SB

Healthy Lifestyle 3.0

It was inevitable…it has happened in the past and will probably happen again.  My Healthy Lifestyle 2.0 came to a crashing halt around the end of December.  Binging became the norm.  Daily calorie intake of up to 10000 was happening.  Eating Binging had become the norm.  Same thing that had happened in the past, happened again.  I even stopped biking to work every day, was more like twice a week.  In addition, I was going through a period of no sleep, for over a month, I would only have 2 hours of sleep at most, yes, I was in bed, but no sleep.  I was depressed!  I would start crying for no reason.  I wasn’t sure what was wrong with me.  Perhaps the eating habits had screwed me up, who knows? 

I did research, because that is what I do.  Was I having mental issues?  It sure seemed that way.  First thing, off to the doctor for a physical.  Heart rate - 58, freaking awesome (I think doc was surprised), blood pressure – perfect, weight (well, I knew the answer to that), he said “you have to lose a lot of weight”.  I said “no shit!”.  Blood tests, all good except triglycerides a little high, I figured it was the 10k of shitty calories/day that was causing that.  So, it was definitely nothing physical causing the depression.

Next step…and this was the difficult one, I had to talk to a psychiatrist.  Ugh, one of the most difficult things I have ever done.  After an hour of talk, he suggests that I may be clinically depressed (I’m thinking…no shit!), what can I do?  I have not made a second appointment.  I feel I should, but it is so subjective and not objective.  Why can’t there be a blood test? Give me a shot and boom it is gone.

In any case, today I have started Healthy Lifestyle 3.0.  I hope to get back with Team Awesome and continue a good physical routine as the weather starts to get nicer. I need the support of everyone as this continues, please help me.  It is not like me to ask for help, but with this, I truly need help!

To my friends, family, coworkers, I am so sorry for being the prick I was during my depression.  I just could not come out of it.  I feel terrible.  But you are my friends; I will do anything for you and hope that you will help me as I struggle with this.

-SB

Getting the Gay Out

A couple of years ago I was handing out report cards and part of the material I was asked to distribute were some fliers for an organization called PFOX – Parent’s and Friends of Ex-Gays.  (Warning! Not safe for intelligent, reasonable people).  In any case, I read the flier was totally disgusted and somehow that handout accidentally slipped into the recycling bin. What a tragedy.

Fast forward to early November, we are handing out report cards again, and there are the PFOX fliers.  However, the outrage was not only with me, but with many of my fellow teachers. PFOX is based on junk science, why are teachers asked to hand out such trash?  Well, that is an interesting question. 

First, let us see about PFOX and why they are dangerous.  PFOX feels that through therapy a person can change their sexual orientation from gay to straight.  Here is what the APA says about it:

All major national mental health organizations have officially expressed concerns about therapies promoted to modify sexual orientation. To date, there has been no scientifically adequate research to show that therapy aimed at changing sexual orientation (sometimes called reparative or conversion therapy) is safe or effective. Furthermore, it seems likely that the promotion of change therapies reinforces stereotypes and contributes to a negative climate for lesbian, gay, and bisexual persons. This appears to be especially likely for lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals who grow up in more conservative religious settings.

Helpful responses of a therapist treating an individual who is troubled about her or his same-sex attractions include helping that person actively cope with social prejudices against homosexuality, successfully resolve issues associated with and resulting from internal conflicts, and actively lead a happy and satisfying life. Mental health professional organizations call on their members to respect a person’s (client’s) right to self-determination; be sensitive to the client’s race, culture, ethnicity, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, socioeconomic status, language, and disability status when working with that client; and eliminate biases based on these factors. </blockquote>

Now here is what PFOX says:

The scientifically reinforced fluidity of sexual orientation and gender identity may help to explain why, as even the APA has acknowledged, thousands (if not millions) of people have “altered their sexual orientation” with “varying degrees of satisfaction and varying perceptions of success.” It is no longer open for serious debate. Despite tremendous political pressure to find otherwise, even the left-leaning APA has been forced to acknowledge that for people with unwanted same-sex attractions, “change is possible!” It’s not always easy, but change is undeniably and conclusively possible.  emphasis mine.

Hmm, a little different I would say…but now, let us look at the backers of PFOX.   The link for their statement of principles takes you to PATH (Positive Alternatives To Homosexuality).  The list of groups that back PATH/PFOX are from every denomination, from Catholic to Evangelical, from Mormon to Judaism.  What I found surprising, they have secular groups, being a little suspicious about this, I check the link to their “secular” groups, not quite as secular as they claim.  Yes, they are not affiliated with a church; however, there are strong links to the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank with deep pockets and deep religious (Evangelical) ties.  Now that we know where PFOX is supported from, it is not surprising it is backed by religious and conservative groups.  This I have no problem with.  What I do have a problem with is PFOX using the school system by obfuscating their religious/conservative background.

PFOX targets schools that have active GSA groups (Gay Straight Alliance) and support “Days of Silence”.

1) Choose those high schools where you want your flyers to be distributed. Printing flyers costs money, so choose only those schools that need your services – schools with GSA or other gay clubs that celebrate Day of Silence or other gay events, etc. These are the schools that need to hear about the ex-gay message. Check each school’s website under Student Clubs or Student Organizations to see if they have a GSA (Gay Straight Alliance), Tolerance, Diversity, or other such club. In addition, also check your state at http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/student/student/index.html to see if the high school has a GSA club.

Now, if PFOX is supported by good science and good intentions, why are they only targeting these schools?

Now as a teacher, what are my obligations to hand out junk science?   I see nothing in my contract saying that I must hand out these fliers.  I would love to have the time to discuss the issues associated with PFOX and bring in an alternate point of view such as PFLAG, (Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays).  However, I am far from an expert in this area.  I am all for having communication; I am just not comfortable with a group using the school system to reach children without having both sides of the discussion available to them. 

This situation has gone to the courts and the Board of Education, with the courts siding with PFOX, here and here.  It is obvious that PFOX is wrong.  I just want more people to know about this and to speak out.  It is the only way there will be equality for all people!

-SB

Healthy Living 2.15 - Cross Training

It was a pretty much a fun week for healthy living, didn’t do anything crazy, but things went well and binge threats were almost non-existent. Bike riding to work is still a challenge first thing in the morning, something about getting up at 4:30, eating breakfast, then getting prepared to go out in the cold.  I’m sort of looking forward to it snowing, it will give me some excitement on my ride in.  I also love the feeling of the sweat and tears from the wind freezing to my cheeks.  That is so cool!

The statistics for this past week.

BMI – 39.7 (down 6.8 total)
Calorie Intake - 1752/day
Calories Burned - 3350/day
Net Caloric difference -1598/day
Water - 72 oz/day


Proteins - Carbs - Fat distribution -- 49% - 41% - 10%

On Fridays at school, there is some pick-up basketball with some of the staff.  I figured it was time that I get some cross-training in.  Yes, I’ve been biking, doing the elliptical, and lifting weights, but every time you do a different activity you work different muscles.  I knew this going in, but felt I was in really good shape for being a fat guy.  And I was right, my cardio during the basketball was great, never got really winded, had lots of energy, and felt really strong.  I played for about an hour and felt great.  My ride home was a little slower than normal, then, about a mile from home waiting for the light to change, boom! Calf started to cramp, inside of my hamstring was cramping, I knew immediately I was in for a sore night.  I took a hot shower and got ready for a relaxing night, wow, the pain of cramps and muscles rarely used is strangely both agonizing and intriguing.  Then Saturday, I went golfing with my good friend Rob, again, different muscles, back and shoulders, I felt so strong, but again sore. 

Ahh, did it ever feel good on Sunday, I could barely move.  It took a few days for the sore to go away, but overall, my body feels strong and good.

-SB

Healthy Living 2.14 - Depression

I missed a couple of weeks, partly because of laziness, partly because this healthy lifestyle is getting me down…despite the enormous gains…er losses.  I reached a milestone these past weeks.  The first, I am now able to use the Wii Fit board.  I think that is a good thing.  Now I have to destroy all of my daughters’ records.  The second milestone deals with a round number, not really comfortable with stating my weight yet, but it was smashed through.  In any case, I’m looking at BMI as my targets.  Will be below 40 BMI soon, maybe next week…so cool!

The statistics for this past week.

BMI – 40.1 (down 6.4 total)
Calorie Intake - 1850/day
Calories Burned - 3500/day
Net Caloric difference -1650/day
Water - 72 oz/day


Proteins - Carbs - Fat distribution -- 49% - 41% - 10%

I am finding that with the healthy living comes depression. I don’t think it is bad enough to be medicated, but there are days when I find it so difficult to continue on without binging.  And the feeling doesn’t pass quickly, not at all, sometime it lasts days.  And it is not like I’m not eating!  I know studies have been done and find high rates of depression in the obese, but I cannot find any studies about depression of those going through healthy lifestyle changes.  In any case, I just tell myself to suck it up and keep going.  I know I am not alone in this.  I have the support of family, friends, my fitness team, but I am not sure what to ask for help.  That is what is frustrating.

Soon, about a year from now, I’ll be at a BMI of 28 and you won’t recognize me.

-SB