School might be where many of us are introduced to basic academic knowledge, but how we choose to live our lives determines how knowledgable we actually become.

I understand that people need to cling to something bigger than themselves. I get it. What I don't get is why billions of people choose to cling to fictions instead of looking at the amazing realities of truth. Fiction is not easy; I know because I hold two English degrees. Understanding the fictions that help us define our humanity is painfully difficult. But they admittedly are fictions based on the reality of human experience as filtered through the perceptions of fallibly mortals. Once you take those fictions and call them fact, or try to build a society based on fictions then there is a problem. I don't know whether to simply dismiss those people as ignorant, to pitty them for their gullibility, or curse them for their laziness. None of the above, I guess. I know some fine people who believe some silly things, but that's part of being human. I can't understand how kneeling to a fiction can make you love the world, and they probably can't understand how realizing that I an just a small part of billions of years of cosmic activity makes me more wonderful than any god because I am real. And I not only come from the stars, i am the human incarnation of them.

Replace the words , "God wants" with the words , "I want" and see if if the desire is still true. Chances are, it is. Be your own God. Or at least have the guts to admit your own true desires.

It is very important for people to realize that everyone else's beliefs and perspectives are born out of a combination of individual and collective experiences. This does not make these beliefs right or wrong, they are merely the effect of a lifetime of being influenced by parents, friends, school, religion, and individual occurrences. If you want to truly engage a person in meaningful conversation, or if you truly wish to teach a person something they are resistant to knowing, then you must first understand that person's perspective on the world; in essence, you must first understand that person's life. Then, after careful consideration and a lot of learning on your part, you will be much better equipped to deal with the meaningful issues at hand. Just keep in mind that everyone is the expert in regard to their own life, so if you want someone to see the world through your eyes, you must first be willing to see the world through the eyes of another. This crucial component is often lacking in contemporary discourse and we are living the dangerous results of its omission.

Imagine how much more we could accomplish as a species and civilization if, instead of focusing on religion, people would take all that time and energy and place it on something that actually works. This brings to mind two important things in my life. First, it makes me think of my mother who dies a horrible death as a result of cancer and complications of a stroke. If we had put more time and energy into medical exploration, into sending more people to medical school, or encouraging more children to pursue science as a profession, then there is a chance that my mother could still be alive. Or at least, she might have had a less traumatic end to her life. The memories of a helpless woman suffering for nearly two years is unbearable, and the possibility that it can be different for those in the future is astounding. But we must focus on the reality of needs, not the superstitions of people who believe that suffering is somehow good anyway. Second, I think of my son who has an array of developmental and neurological issues including, what can only be best described as autism. Since medical doctors and researchers have begun serious studies on ASD, they are finding an amazing complexity to the disorder that is opening up another dimension to the universe of the brain. I cannot help but reflect upon the awesome power of the brain and how it finds ways to compensate for certain aspects of  such a debilitating condition; but it cannot overcome everything. One thing that I have learned as a family man and as an academic, is that there are often very simple, and sometimes ridiculous roots to some of the most chaotic problems. If this is the case for cancer or autism, I can only hope that we can find the roots of those conditions so that we can prevent it from happening to others. If both of them are merely mutations in our genetic code that we are unable to change, then we should know that, too. What is most important, however, is that there are answers to these questions, and we should be dedicating extensive time and energy to solving these puzzles that effect the lives of billions people. That is an endeavor far more noble than naively putting something in the hands of a deity that likely doesn't exist.  

Who mourns the death of a random crow that flies overhead at a forgotten moment on a seemingly unimportant day?

I have much more respect for the individual who, when asked something he doesn't know the answer to, replies, "I am not sure'" than the individual who stands by some unproven, and likely unprovable answer. This is especially true when the response is some sort of theological response that has absolutely no real connection to the issue at hand.