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Friday, August 1, 2008

Flinging Dust

Maybe... Do you think she found Jesus? Is she gonna show up at Ray's with a new ID, something like "spreading the truth/the former atheist known as flinging dust"? Of course, she could have been abducted by aliens or flew into the Bermuda Triangle. Hope she's well.
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29 comments:

  1. Ranting StudentAugust 1, 2008 at 5:39 PM

    As do I.

    ReplyDelete
  2. WeemaryanneAugust 1, 2008 at 5:43 PM

    Flinging Dust, where are you?

    ReplyDelete
  3. FroggieAugust 1, 2008 at 5:46 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  4. MiloAugust 1, 2008 at 7:39 PM

    New rule. No one may leave without saying goodbye.

    Has anyone tried her email?

    ReplyDelete
  5. WeemaryanneAugust 1, 2008 at 7:47 PM

    I tried, Milo; all I got was an automated "away, not checking email" response.

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  6. AnonymousAugust 1, 2008 at 7:47 PM

    What happened??

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousAugust 1, 2008 at 7:58 PM

    I agree with Milo, if I am not around for a bit I'm on vacation or busy with school. I'll let you know if I leave forever. I really hope FD didn't leave for good!! FD come baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaackkkkk!!!!!! Please :-(

    ReplyDelete
  8. captain howdyAugust 1, 2008 at 9:08 PM

    This is bad. This is really bad.

    If for some reason she did go over to the other side, I can only say that I like her and wish her well, and she'll not get a harsh word from me--even if she DID start appearing on Ray's blog.

    I still can't see her doing something like that. She's just too sharp.

    ReplyDelete
  9. AnonymousAugust 1, 2008 at 10:11 PM

    FD

    I am way too sentimental. So appear please. Otherwise, to overcome my sentimentalism I will have to make this face to you:

    :-b

    And you do not want that, do you?

    ReplyDelete
  10. felixAugust 2, 2008 at 12:24 AM

    fd,
    I really appreciated your presence here. Please leave a message for us, or have someone post for you if you don't feel up to it. Just somethiing brief to let us know what's up.

    ReplyDelete
  11. WeemaryanneAugust 2, 2008 at 6:50 AM

    Guys, I got a reply to my email -- she's okay. There's a family thing and she had to take down her blog.

    She'll be back, but under a new username.

    ReplyDelete
  12. captain howdyAugust 2, 2008 at 7:00 AM

    Now let me ask everybody a question--

    What if she really HAD gone over to the other side. How would we have reacted? Would some of us tried to hassle her at Ray's? Would a few even started reassessing their own atheism?


    [Personally, I wouldn't have had much of a prob. with it from an atheism standpoint. I've been a staunch materialist and atheist 30+ yrs. The atheist case is pretty secure. And no, I wouldn't have hassled her at Ray's, neither. Not brave enough.]

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  13. WeemaryanneAugust 2, 2008 at 7:05 AM

    I would have hated it. And I think I also would have hated her. At least initially. It would have taken me awhile to get some perspective on the matter.

    But no, I wouldn't have hassled her in public. I mean, I might have written a nasty comment and looked at it for a second, but then I would have deleted it.

    I'm about 99% sure of that.

    ReplyDelete
  14. WeemaryanneAugust 2, 2008 at 7:13 AM

    Captain Howdy's question made me think of something. This episode may serve as a kind of mock rehearsal. We should all be prepared for a friend or loved one to convert; it happens all the time. If we've thought it through ahead of time then we can be prepared to say, sincerely and truthfully, "I respect your decision even though I cannot approve of it," (or words to that effect).

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  15. captain howdyAugust 2, 2008 at 7:27 AM

    We as atheists have to face the facts: There are thinking people on both sides.

    Don't ask me to personally account for it; I can't. To me, Christianity is ludicrous; absolutely out of the question. But my present inability to explain how there could be thinking people on both sides doesn't change the fact that there still are.


    We as atheists have to deal with them.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Andrew LouisAugust 2, 2008 at 7:32 AM

    So uhhhh,
    what's the story here? What happened?

    ReplyDelete
  17. captain howdyAugust 2, 2008 at 8:02 AM

    We've got a flinging dust sighting.

    ReplyDelete
  18. WeemaryanneAugust 2, 2008 at 8:18 AM

    Andrew, I can't give any more details but I can tell you she's all right and she'll be back.

    ReplyDelete
  19. felixAugust 2, 2008 at 8:34 AM

    We had that 'going over to the other side' incident at rdnet. A user was annoyed by other user's responses to an article, in which they mocked around about a failed clumsy and cartoonish suicide attempt of a cult leader. A few of the comments were tasteless, but this person reacted by generalizing this on the whole community and painting all as incompassionate and misanthropic brutes. It was shown that he had himself verbally harassed female board members, and he pulled the martyr card. So he left and went to a fundy's message board and now thinks he found 'compassion' and 'purpose' in re-believing what he had discarded years earlier. It turned out that he is a person who is more interested in being noticed and patronized than in controversial discussion and evaluating truth, what some would call an attention whore. It's this oversensitive emotional need that bars many people from rigorously examining their own thinking and to embrace simplistic and irrational views.

    ReplyDelete
  20. felixAugust 2, 2008 at 8:59 AM

    On an OT note:
    Terry writes at Ray's
    Time is running out for everyone! You could pass away any moment, and if you don't know Jesus Christ as your Savior, you will go to Hell! The place of torment!!!

    I don't wish that on anyone but satan and his disciples. Evil deserves it, but not God's children. Turn away from your sin and join the Family of God!

    A short time ago, and ever so often, Ray writes:
    WITHOUT THE SAVIOR, WE WILL GET EXACTLY WHAT WE DESERVE ON JUDGMENT DAY.

    So, right after commending others for commending him, parroting Ray and advertising HBKS for the millionth time, Terry merrily skips into the contradiction zone once again. Ray says every human deserves Hell, Terry says they don't. Repent, Terry! You are dissenting with your idol and prophet!

    It's about time they invent some new words for their idea of 'deserving', along with 'justice', 'mercy' and 'love'. Have I mentioned 'contradiction'?

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  21. WeemaryanneAugust 2, 2008 at 9:35 AM

    In Martin Luther's day (f'r instance), people literally didn't know whether they were likely to live through the day, or whether they were likely to wake up in the morning. If you had to live with the constant anticipation of death, then the bleevers' warnings might make sense. If you had no idea that certain microorganisms in contaminated drinking water and insect bites were killing half of Europe, then it would have been reasonable or at least not unreasonable to suppose that gods or demons (or both) were causing the epidemics as punishment or maybe just a sick joke a la the Book of Job.

    IOW, if most of us were tragically ignorant of how the world really works, then this repent-and-be-saved BS might be understandable if not commendable. In the 21st century, it's neither.

    ReplyDelete
  22. AnonymousAugust 2, 2008 at 11:27 AM

    I'm really glad FD is OK. If she had gone to "the other side" I would be critical of some of her new comments (if they were like Rays and his minions) but I would still love her as a person. Unlike most of the supporters at Ray's, she is a genuinely friendly, funny, and compassionate person. I'm not sure if I would question her former atheism. Probably not because I hate it when Christians do that with former Christians.

    ReplyDelete
  23. TJHAugust 2, 2008 at 11:54 AM

    How I treated her would have depended on her, I suppose. If she, or anyone else, acted like Ray or Burton, or Mark W. Laine or Vera, like that. I would act accordingly. FD, I hope things work out.

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  24. Ranting StudentAugust 2, 2008 at 12:08 PM

    I too hope so.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Lance Christian JohnsonAugust 2, 2008 at 4:34 PM

    Hey, I've been out of town (nobody misses me!!!!) and I was worried when I saw this. I hope she's doing well, and I look forward to seeing her come back here.

    This might sound corny, and I've mentioned this before on my blog, but the one thing that I really like about this little group here is how many intelligent, thoughtful, scientifically-literate women are on here. Women are just as capable of critical thinking as men, but oftentimes they aren't encouraged to do so as they grow up.

    All of you ladies on this blog are very important - especially to any young girls who might be lurking out there.

    Am I being cheesy? Sorry if I am.

    ReplyDelete
  26. KirstiAugust 2, 2008 at 4:49 PM

    Lance and I were out of town for a couple of days and when he just told me that FD was gone and had deleted her blog, my heart stopped!

    Thank you, Wee, for letting us know that she's okay. I sincerely look forward to her return.

    ReplyDelete
  27. AnonymousAugust 2, 2008 at 5:29 PM

    "This might sound corny, and I've mentioned this before on my blog, but the one thing that I really like about this little group here is how many intelligent, thoughtful, scientifically-literate women are on here. Women are just as capable of critical thinking as men, but oftentimes they aren't encouraged to do so as they grow up."

    I'm going to assume this includes me and be very flattered :-)

    It's true not many girls are encouraged to be skeptical. I think some of that may be because girls in general are taught not to be too opinionated, confrontational, and not to stir up debate. These qualities in a women tend to earn her the "bitch" title.

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  28. MaragonAugust 3, 2008 at 12:04 AM

    "It's true not many girls are encouraged to be skeptical. I think some of that may be because girls in general are taught not to be too opinionated, confrontational, and not to stir up debate. These qualities in a women tend to earn her the "bitch" title."

    This is exactly it. Intellectual, opinionated and willing to do something about it are qualities that many men will avoid in women, or so I've been told.

    ReplyDelete
  29. MaragonAugust 3, 2008 at 12:04 AM

    And Dust, where ever you are, and whatever you believe, if you need anyone to talk to, email me and I'd be glad to do anything I could.

    ReplyDelete

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