The long-awaited and highly unoriginal Reason Rally post

I have finished M1, which means I can finally take the time to write about a rally I attended two months ago. YAY. First I must point out that I've come to terms with the fact that I'm not going to be a famous atheist blogger and activist. I do, however, want to let my small group of followers know what this rally was all about and why I think this stuff matters, mostly by highlighting some of the speakers who already explained it better than I could.

So, what was Reason Rally? Basically, tens of thousands of atheists gathering on the national mall to stand up for human rights and science. Many of these people were openly identifying as atheists for the first time. People traveled from all over the country, carpooling and sharing buses with strangers, to become a part of a community and be themselves in a way that never felt safe before.

Then there were people like me--already quite vocal about our beliefs, usually surrounded by plenty of other freethinkers. Sure, my friends and family don't always understand my radicalism, but I've never faced discrimination because I'm an atheist. I was there for those people who have faced discrimination, or have been silent out of fear, to show them that they are not alone in their beliefs.

Of course, I was also there for Tim Minchin, who graced us with his music, stand-up, poetry, and fiery mane. Here's 'Pope Song.'

You may sense a bit of anger beneath the hilarity. Greta Christina, probably my favorite speaker of the day, explained that atheist anger wonderfully. Here's an excerpt:

Atheists are angry because we see millions of people being terribly harmed by religion, and our hearts go out to them, and we feel motivated to do something about it.

And now that I've captured your interest, here's the full speech. Greta is preceded by Adam Savage, who was also excellent, but if you don't have 18 minutes, skip to 9:00 or so for Greta. Greta is required viewing.

And now, I leave you with this quote from Adam, in case you skipped over his part, or even if you didn't, because the quote is so good I'm sure you want to experience it again:

I have concluded through careful empirical analysis and much thought that somebody is looking out for me, keeping track of what I think about things, forgiving me when I do less than I ought, giving me strength to shoot for more than I think I am capable of. I believe that they know everything that I do and think and they still love me, and I've concluded after careful consideration that this person keeping score is me.

P.S. For tons more videos, just search for "reason rally" on YouTube.