Do you remember the Daniel Dennet lecture a few months ago regarding a pilot study he was conducting about atheist priests still giving sermons? If you never watched it and have an hour to kill, I highly recommend going back and checking it out. If you want the short version of what the hell that must be like, check out this article:  The main theme seems to be: “I can’t quit my job because I’m an expert in nonsense and have no marketable skills.”

If you think about it, the reason these guys can’t leave their shitty jobs is they have bills to pay, and apparently duping people with supernatural nonsense is still where it’s at. I joke around about the fact preachers are experts at fairy tales, but when the reality of that hits home, and in particular threatens your wallet, I’m sure we’d probably do the same thing.

I had a thought while reading the article however; are their skills not marketable at all outside preaching? If they were so effective convincing people  God exists, why couldn’t they do something similar to show people that “He” doesn’t for a living?

Sure, you could say the real problem is there’s really no money in it. Fair enough. But why not? We’ve seen time and time again that religionists have deep pockets, while our measly track record isn’t even in the same league. We’re goddamn amateurs when it comes to this stuff, and I think it’s time we started changing that fact. We’ve got to get in the habit of supporting more organizations, or if you aren’t personally satisfied with the ones existing today, maybe start your own. We need clear, concise goals. We need dedicated and smart people to make them happen, and most of all, we need some fucking money.

Am I alone in thinking it might be time for atheists to start thinking about really doing more to help the cause?