You racist. :)

While atheist groups, along with humanist groups, should be inclusive, they can't be all things to all people. I am sure you had someone get upset with you because you don't write on _________________.

The bigger issue to me is that these groups have a class problem. They are overwhelmingly middle/upper class and this is reflected in things like their conferences. Things are priced so high that many working class people can not afford them. The same goes for their periodical prices. If upward mobility leads to more education which leads to less religiosity, then we need to figure out a way to reach Joe running a machine in a factory and Mary working at Walmart. As it stands now, the various groups seem quite exclusivist. (Which translates into white, educated, and higher income) None of this is deliberate but I do think atheist and humanist groups and their leaders need to be aware of these things and work to change the face of atheism and humanism. Simple things like having average, nobody atheists speak at the conferences instead of the same small group of people that seem to speak at every conference. I have mentioned this about preachers turned atheists. If you based things on the ex-preachers that speak at conferences, you'd think there were only three of them. :)

I guess what I am saying is this. These groups need to stay focused but they need to do a much better job at becoming more inclusive.
My recent post Bruce, You Have a Narcissistic and Bankrupt Heart

I started blogging six years ago. I didn't care if anyone read what I wrote. I viewed it as cheap therapy. :) Over time, my blog attracted a large number of readers. I still don't understand it. Some days I find myself saying, who wants to read this s#%t. :) but, they do and I am grateful.

Like other commenters, I encourage anyone who wants to blog to do so. Do it for yourself. The more people that tell their story the better off we are. The Atheist community has all sorts of voices and all of them need to be heard.
My recent post Where You Going Without Jesus?

My list of thing I am hesitant to write about or don't write about is similar to yours. Feminism is the biggest one. It is the one subject, no matter what I write, that elicits controversy, anger, and personal attacks. So, I leave it alone. I am unwilling to pay the emotional price for writing on these things. I definitely have strong opinions on these subjects and I think many readers would love to hear what I think, but I can't handle the "outrage" from those offended by my words. I have no problem with disagreement. It is when the disagreement is made personal that I have a problem.

Dawkins is spot on with this one. Since I no longer read the blogs of the social justice warriors, I will just have to imagine their outrage. :)

Thanks for sharing this, Jack.
My recent post Bob Gray Sr, The Politicking, Rick Perry Loving, Gun Toting, Comedian of Texas

Southern Baptist. Here is the association directory. http://www.mccbaptists.org/crockett.htm

I wish people were not so punitive when they disagree with someone. Many people seem to think every disagreement is an act of war. I get a lot of people who hate me because of the subjects I write about. Usually, I give them a comment or two and then cut them off. They are then free to take to take to their blog/forum/Facebook/Twitter/Reddit and rage all they want.

A few years ago, I had an Evangelical Christian who was harassing me. He's leave blog comments, send me emails, write blog posts about me, etc. He was quite a nasty man. One day I was looking at the logs and I noticed that he was doing all this from work. I decided to call the HR department of where he worked. This put an end to his harassment. The internet shelters people from being held accountable for their actions. People have said things to me online that they never could have said to me face-to-face without getting smacked up side the head. :)
My recent post What Does It Mean To Walk In The Light?

Caleb,

I am going to play the old man, I know more than you card. I don't like to do this but you are a young guy, right? I was in in the IFB/Evangelical church for 50 years. I pastored IFB/Evangelical churches for 25 years. I know what I know. My wife's father is a retired IFB pastor, her uncle is a noted IFB pastor, and she has three cousins that are either a pastor, missionary, and an evangelist or married to them. So, while I may not be an IFB pastor any longer, I am still in close contact with the IFB church movement, be it through family or through people contacting me on my blog.

I have said all this to say, we need to have this discussion again in 20 or 30 years. Let's wait until you have fully seen the ugly underbelly of the IFB church movement; it's lies, deceits, cover-ups, and scandals. These are not rare stories but quite common...you just don't know about them.

I know you are not going to hear a word I am saying so I won't waste any more of my time. You think David Gibbs is a wonderful man of transparency. I know better. I am not saying he is dishonest or anything like that. I am saying he is a good lawyer that puts the needs of his clients first. To do otherwise would be malpractice. Jesus does not come first...the church he represents does. (and don't confuse the two) If you doubt this...find out how many VICTIMS of sexual abuse Gibbs has represented over the years. Get a list of the IFB churches and pastors he has gone after over sexual abuse. Then, let's talk.

You can reach me on my blog if you are interested in talking further.

Bruce Gerencser

As you may know, I was an Evangelical pastor for 25 years. Several of the churches I pastored had a bus ministry. One church had 4 busses. While my intentions were sincere, I now see that the bus ministry was a way to boost attendance numbers. Since size matters in Evangelicalism, the bus ministry is an easy way to boost attendance numbers. The bigger the attendance the more you were perceived as being used by God, of being a "success." We bussed in the poorest of the poor, yet rarely did anything to minister to their temporal needs. It was all about getting them saved.

As I have made clear in my writing about Bill Wininger, churches need to quit "managing" allegations of abuse. Any allegation of abuse should be reported immediately. Too many churches are more concerned about their reputation than they are the person who was abused.

Lawyers are part of the problem. People like David Gibbs are called on to manage abuse allegations. Churches are told to say nothing publicly. This is why, in the Wininger case, the two churches involved have made no public statement. This makes them look like they have something to hide.

I appreciate your blog. The more writers that expose the "sins" and crimes of abusers and predators, the safer children will be. I think, like with the Catholic Church, Evangelicals have their own secrets, their own coverups. These things must be exposed. Parents should not trust a church or a pastor without there being justification for doing so. As we now know, from stories like the Bob Gray abuse story, a sexual predator can pastor a large church, hide in plain sight, and do vile things for decades.

As the gambler said, know when to hold them and know when to fold them. :)

These discussions almost always end up with the Christian appealing to faith. In other words, $&#% your facts.

Years ago, when I was still a pastor, I had a pastor friend that believed the King James Bible was inerrant. When I sent him a long list of errors in the KJV, he rejected them out of hand. He astoundingly told me that even if I could prove there was an error in the KJV he wouldn't believe it. He was going to believe, by faith, that the KJV was inerrant. This is the same type of thinking that was exhibited by the man in your story.