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Random Prime

· 4TH OF OCTOBER, THE YEAR 2004

OBLIGATE MINORITY

I was just listening to this story on NPR about two neighboring Presbyterian churches, one politically conservative and the other liberal, and, as a devout agnostic, feeling estranged. I’m pretty firmly planted in the educated middle-class, and grew up in a town predominated by people of the same ilk, so I’ve never really felt like a minority, and I’ve certainly never felt particularly disenfranchised. Ironically, I started feeling more like a minority when I lived in the Castro, where most things are marketed toward the predominantly gay population. Hearing the faithful discuss their political convictions just reminded me that as an unbeliever, I’m actually part of one of the smallest minorities in the whole world.

3 COMMENTS

ken-ichi said on October 4th, 2004 at 5:01 pm,

Ok, I am a huge nerd, but today’s All Things Considered actually had a story about agnostics as an imaginary voting bloc. I have no life.

ken-ichi said on October 4th, 2004 at 5:34 pm,

There are some seriously crazy people out there. Seriously. More crazy than people who just sit around listening to NPR all day.

tony said on October 4th, 2004 at 10:00 pm,

you will burn in hell, unbeliever.

i must confess,i love listening to evangelical christian talk radio. i find it completely fascinating. there’s a great show on here when i’m driving home from work, called “the bible answer man” where people phone in and ask this amazingly knowledgable guy questions. it’s run by a group that puts out the “christian research journal,” and they run these amazing advertisements that sound just like any other radio advertisement (man and woman speak in a too-folksy conversational manner about product’s benefits) but the woman says, in a casual manner, “it will help you defend your faith from the atheists at your office, and the cultists at your door.” my jaw dropped when i heard this. you’re right, it’s a crazy world out there.