Stormbringer's Thunder

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Years ago, I wrote "atheist" on Twitter, and one cautioned me about using that word because I risked "calling down the thunder". We know that they can be ornery cusses even on their good days, but I was unaware of the intellectual prowess and wisdom of The Mighty Atheist™, dwarfing that of a mere theist. What I had yet to learn, however, is that they also have super powers that are even magical at times. Now I know better. Christians and creationists, I hope you heed this warning! Graphic modified from  Clker clipart As with other super powers, those of The Mighty Atheist™ are difficult to categorize. Not all atheists and evolutionists have the same powers to the same degree, and there is no special school for gifted atheists under a professor so they can develop their abilities. Like logical fallacies, powers often blend and overlap. Let's saddle up and ride over yonder to Deception Pass where the atheists, atheopaths, anti-crea

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Interesting that some cultures have made scientific advances in some areas, then just — stalled. Ancient pagan cultures had some good mathematics and observations, Mohammedans falsely take credit for various discoveries [ 1 ], Communist science was notorious for lagging behind the West (espionage was a big part of their progress [ 2 ]), and so on. For science to thrive, it needs the proper environment. Mao Zedong image on Chinese banknote Image credit: Freeimages / Tudou Mao Despite Bill Nye the Propaganda Guy's claims [ 3 ], belief in evolution has nothing to do with scientific progress. In reality, evolution is of no benefit to medicine [ 4 ], and has hindered scientific progress [ 5 ], and is anti- science [ 6 ]. Atheistic communism has been devastating to scientific advancement [ 7 ], and America is racing in that direction, what with the politicizing of science and all [ 8 ], [ 9 ], [ 10 ]. Do you need to be an atheist to be a scientist today?

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Simply put, a logical fallacy is an error in reasoning. People have to use logical thinking every day and seldom think about thinking. Ancient Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks and other peoples used geometry, which requires logic. Logic as a discipline became more formalized with people like Aristotle. Some people will say that logical fallacies only apply to debate situations, but such an idea cannot be supported. A twist on Aristotle by Luca Giordano, 1653 On the surface, spotting logical fallacies seems rather easy. Sometimes it is. Other times, the lines blur because fallacies share different names, different fallacies resemble each other, people combine them, and more. Those times are like a social media relationship status: it's complicated. We cannot be clinical all the time, and some fallacies appear in our everyday speech. For example, reification (assigning a characteristic to something that is abstract) happens frequently. No, your car d

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen For several months, I've been chomping at the bit to get this article written. There is an addendum belo w the video. Is it just my imagination, or has there been a marked increase in anti-vaccination material? (Perhaps they get worked up by anti-vax celebrities and politicians like Donald Trump , Jim Carrey , Jenny McCarthy , Bill Maher , and others.) There are many conspiracy theories linked to vaccinations, and there is a range of intensity, including "governments use vaccines to control the population". This troubles me. No, it actually gets me angry. (There are people who will take any innocuous comment and say that the writer is angry, but in this case, I'm telling you right out of the gate how I feel. I've even "unfriended" people for spreading the stuff.) This will not be a detailed pro-vaccine apologetic, since too many people have their minds made up from emotional appeals and terrible reasoning, but I want to make so

People have remembered significant national and global events many years after they happened. I've heard and read where people remember the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated, the 1941 attacks on Pearl Harbor, and other things many years later. Memorial of September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, image credit: Pixabay / brandnewday I was working in the back of the Big Chain Company Store (now semi-defunct) with the shipping and receiving manager, getting merchandise ready for shipping. (I had lived in New York for just over a year.) One guy came back there and began telling us about the plane crashes, and I didn't believe him because he often told jokes that were in poor taste. After he convinced the manager and me, I went to the computer and saw that he was right. When the Internet went down, I became even more alarmed. What's going on? Millions of people were wondering this, but we knew that America was being attacked. The rest of the day was a daze for me. I liste

This was originally published in June, 2013. I think. For some reason, I unpublished it ("revert to draft"), but it did not keep the original date. Much of it is the way it appeared then, but there are some funky things happening with text size and spacing, but I think I settled them down. The second paragraph was added in August 2016. Also, the file size of the image is much larger than I prefer to use (284 kb). Not only does hate make people stupid, but the anger in atheism is related to mental issues . I've said these things for years, and keep getting more evidence. Although I shouldn't give those who crave attention that they desire to bolster their egos, Haywire the Stalker has been making a fool of himself for years with defamation and blatant untruths. In a recent rant about my stupidity, dishonesty, and denying what he considers "facts" in his incoherent worldview, (h e focuses mainly on my introductions to linked articles and splits hairs to m

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Once again, I need to state that everyone has a worldview that is comprised of presuppositions (those things that we assume to be true without verification). Atheism is a weird belief with many aspects, and some people who profess atheism are actually agnostics (unsure of God's existence). I've even seen one tinhorn profess agnosticism and then jump the fence and identify as an atheist in the same post. So, atheists have a passel of presuppositions in their religion . I suspicion that some people want to call themselves atheists because they heard that atheists are the smartest people. That's demonstrably false. (It also leaves out the fact that many of the most brilliant people, past and present, have been not only Bible-believing Christians, but biblical creationists as well.) Often, Christians have challenged the claims of professing atheists, and the atheists are startled to find that they are not reasoning properly. That really puts a bur

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Regular readers of my Weblogs know full well that I believe in healthy skepticism, as it helps us obtain adequate information instead of accepting unsubstantiated claims. W ere those ads really rejected for inclusion in a Super Bowl broadcast? Maybe, maybe not. But it's not exactly a serious claim that can change your life , is it?  Fact-checking comes to the forefront when something is on the fantastic side. I've come to expect atheists and evolutionists to believe and pass along negativity when it comes to Christians and creationists, but it really burns my prairie schooner when Christians embarrass themselves (and other Christians) by neglecting to do a bit of fact-checking before passing along wild stories. Some even pass along material from parody sites without checking the sources. This child believes in asking questions and getting details. The end of the world is a good example. Image credit: NASA Goddard Ready to head for the hil

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen For Question Evolution Day , I reckoned I'd point out a major bit of weirdness that anti-creation tinhorns saddle up and ride. I've seen many logical fallacies that they use, and try to not only watch my own reasoning, but encourage Christians and creationists to learn about fallacies as well. This is to keep us from getting intimidated by bullies, but also to be more accurate in our own presentations and discussion. Many fallacies can be grouped together in the "red herring" category. That is, they're distractions. The ad hominem is the staple of atheists, saying things like, "You're stupid for believing in God and creation". Maybe I'm stupid, and my mother dressed me funny, too, but what does that have to do with the article's content? Another is the "straw man", where people put words in your mouth or otherwise misrepresent your position. "Hasty generalizations" are popular among atheis

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen For several years, I've been emphasizing how identifying logical fallacies can not only sharpen our own presentations, but help us spot deception coming from certain people. While I focus on evolution, creation science, and theology, it's easy to see how sneaky wording is used in other areas, especially those that are politically orient ed . It seems to be increasingly important t o have people to define their terms, and to nail down an understanding for a discussion, debate, or reporting. That is because there is a great deal of deliberate confusion going on, especially regarding connotations of loaded words. One of my favorite examples is "fundamentalist". That word is often used as a pejorative because of the connotations of a dour legalist , and the definitions are flexible; Calvinists, Lutherans, me, others can be considered fundamentalists because we believe in the fundamentals of the faith (we ll, duh) . Many of us don't cott