Atheist support for terminally ill?

So it's been a while since my last post..... sorry about that, life got a little crazy for a while and it's getting harder to type.

Not a whole lot has changed since I last posted. I'm no longer on the clinical trial because I ended up getting a staph infection from the hickman line... which sucked, it put me into septic shock and ended up as a nine day hospital stay. I'm better now! I still have ALS, but no infection that will kill me quickly, oh and got over my IV phobia, after being forced to have 2 in my arm and one in my neck got me over that pretty fast.

Now I have a problem, or rather, a question. I cannot deny the fact that I have ALS as certain daily activities are becoming more difficult, and I was wondering if there is a support group for atheists that are terminally ill? As a forum or something if not local. I ask this because as a terminally ill atheist it is difficult to find people to talk to about the things I'm going through, and I don't have the energy to start one.... It has taken me 1/2 an hour to write this post. So if anyone happens to know of anything please drop me a line.

Best Wishes,
DD

Victimizing the victim

So an article has come to my attention that I could not ignore, and could not stay silent.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-15991641

A woman in Afganistan was put in jail for two year under the charge of infidelity. She tried to appeal this and her sentence was turned into 12 years - that's not the worst part.

The reason for her infidelity... she was raped - still not the worst part.

Her rape inpregnated her and she had a child in jail - it still gets worse.

There was a public outcry and a petition with 5000 signatures was presented to the president of Afganistan who offered her two choices:

1. Serve two years instead of the 12 she was sentenced or...

2. Marry her rapist.

Yes, that is the worst part of this story.

How can anyone believe that this is a fair alternative to jail? Or better yet how could anyone think that this is resonable... ever? The woman was raped... which is bad enough, and she is thrown in jail for being raped then they want to force this woman to marry and forever live with the man who violated her.

I don't think I can express how much it upsets me to live in a world where sh!t like this occurs, and how pissed I am in general over the situation this poor woman has found herself. I mean it... I'm so enraged that words are escaping me right now.

We live in 2011... things like this should not happen anywhere ever! Well you can bet now that this story has hit the blogosphere the president of Afganistan is going to get a petition with more than 5000 signatures.

It's not even December!!

Seriously, it's not even December and already the Happy Holidays vs. Merry Christmas crap has begun on facebook. Most of the people who object to using the term Happy Holidays are Christians and make comments about putting Christ back in Christmas, or that God is always welcome in their house. Come on people, can we try to be a little less exclusive and a little more inclusive? I know that this is kind of a dumb thing that ticks me off... but it does, and here is why:

1. All the people in question, so far, live in Canada (as do I) and in our charter of rights and freedoms it states that every citizen has the feedom of conscience and religion (in fact that is the first one listed). I also know that many of the people who have the same problem live in the US and you guys have the First Amendment which offers freedom of religion as well. What does this mean? Well it means that both Canada and the USA are secular nations, which means that everyone has the right to be irreligious, or practice the religion of their choice.

2. Christians seem to feel as though they are exempt from these rules, and try to force their religion down the throats of others with no respect for the beliefs of the people that they are attempting to convert. This happens more often during the Holiday Season. Particularly through this idiotic debate, and they seem to be particularly ignorant of all of the other religious holidays which take place during the same season, or the nonbelievers in their midst. More than just Christmas in December

3. If you actually look at the meaning of the word Holiday, you will see that it translates directly to Holy Day, and by only saying Merry Christmas that your Holy Day is more important than others, or that there is an assumption that everyone celebrates your Holy Day, and not only is that arrogant, it is wrong. Holiday is a much more inclusive term for the season than Christmas, and is a term that a secular nation should be okay with using. Particularly Canada which prides itself on its multiculturalism and tolerance.

4. We do not live in a theocracy. That makes me very happy. If people want to live via their own Biblical values that's fine, but you do not have the right to force it on others (see point 1). I would perfer to continue to not live in a country where heritcs and witches are burned at the stake, women can be killed if they are not a virgin on their wedding night, children can be stoned for disobeying their parents, apostates are beheaded, gays are beheaded or stoned to death, slavery is perfectly fine, etc. etc.

So if using a more inclusive word upsets you and you would like to live in a theocracy I would suggest that you leave the secular country you live in for one more suitable for you... might I recomend Iran or Vatican City.

So I would like to wish everyone a happy nondenominational winter celebration.

DD