A FREE WORLD

I would love to live in a world free of religion, free from judgment, free from damnation, free from fear, free from war, free from terrorism, free to think, free to learn, and free to love anyone I choose. Oh! And free to buy beer on Sunday! Religions are the great “dividers” of man. We will never resolve our differences as long as our gods are in the way. Religions cause more suffering than any disease known to man. If mankind can get past the superstition and fear there is no telling what could be accomplished.

The funny thing is it all comes down to our fear of death. It’s the price we pay for brains. Brains that store events in short term memory and then if that memory is called upon enough, it becomes a long term memory. Long term memory is why we perceive the passage of time. Long term memory is how we know the people we know, but some of the people we know died. Then we find out everybody dies. Where did they go? The simple answer is; they do not exist. The wonderful chemical electric wet works we call a brain has ceased to function. That’s not good enough for the conscious mind, because as hard as we try we can never envision our own nonexistence, and the unknown is scary for us. It’s supposed to be. We learned a long time ago to fear the unknown, to be cautious when in unfamiliar situations. Those brains and fears have served us well, made us the most successful organism on the planet!

People fill every niche in life, if there is a way to survive a human can find it. We are at this very moment coming up with new ways to thrive. From the first division of hunter from gatherer came new occupations and ways to get the things you need to survive. Unfortunately deceit and treachery were also a lucrative way to get what you need. If you could convince people that that the volcano was alive and angry, and that the volcano speaks to you in your dreams, you might be able to get them to cook a goat and leave it at the base of the volcano.” Yummy, yummy free goat tastes best! Gee I wonder what else I could get these stupid people to do in the name of the volcano.”

I’m sure it didn’t take long before someone figured out that everyone was afraid to die. “Yes I swear my elephant god will give you a new life after you die, better than the first one because you do the things he asks of you. Those other people, well elephant god has a place for them too! Oh you don’t believe, well I guess you’ll just have to be the next sacrifice. Get him!” The con gets bigger and bigger and is actually passed down from generation to generation. Eventually most of the perpetrators are no longer aware that it’s a con, they believe! That’s the beauty of it. You can use the mark to help you carry out the con. Back in the early days of religion it was hard to be the voice of reason. I too would tithe half my earnings and bow in prayer to god if it meant not getting stoned to death. Many of the early religions declare that all non believers should be put to death, Christianity and Islam to name two.

In today’s world there are still pockets of society’s that are governed by the prevailing religion. A society in which anyone who does not believe would be too afraid to admit it. But in places like the USA you can speak your mind and live the way you choose. You do not even have to pretend to believe, or is it just easier to go along. Why? Because they are everywhere and they control a lot of the things you count on. They have more power than the rational people that see religion for what it is. Religious people hold the highest positions of authority in the land. They even tout their religious affiliations as a badge of honor that somehow qualifies them to make laws that we all must live by.

I just wish People would realize There will never be a truly “free world’ as long as we continue to hang on to our superstitions. You only get one life, there is no god and you don’t get to live forever in a better place. After you’re dead you’re not coming back to say: “Hey you lied to me!” and death is nothing to be afraid of (I didn’t mind being dead from the beginning of time until the day I was born, and the time between my death and the rest of time won’t be much bother either) ...Oh and there isn’t any leprechauns, unicorns, ghost or little green men either!