On one of the podcasts, Ryan commented on the fact that he felt that there shouldn’t be a “purity” test when it came to atheism. While I agree that no one should need to prove they are a true nonbeliever, you have to wonder if there aren’t a few that “fake it” for financial and political gain. Take the laughingly ignorant S.E. Cupp, who’s been making the rounds as Fox New’s new token “atheist”. She’s written a book suspiciously called “Losing OUR religion” , and she’s convinced that there is a liberal conspiracy to undermine and attack religion.
A few days ago she went on Real Time with Bill Maher”, and Bill confronted her about it. She came off looking fairly uninformed about the relative religiosity of people in the media, and my spider sense started to tingle. I’m not the only one who is suspicious of her non-belief. There’s even a facebook group that claims she’s not actually a real atheist (with a surprisingly large number of TGA fans who have joined).
I’ll admit that I’m suspicious of her intentions, but that may have more to do with the fact that she’s obviously a clever opportunist. She may label herself a non-believer, but it’s clear that her audience is very religious, and fearful of the way their religion is being tossed to the side in light of new discoveries about the natural world.
The Rational Ape has a great article detailing his suspicions about her lack of belief (and the fact that she doesn’t know what “allegory” means), but in the end, there’s little you can do about someone who might be faking disbelief simply to get attention (how annoying is it when Kirk Cameron claims he used to be an atheist?). Do I think she believes in God? Probably not, but she does seem to have a pretty weird agenda. Why would she welcome the inclusion of religion in politics, or be so blind as to think belief somehow makes politicians more trustworthy? She is either deliberately lying to placate her base, or she’s woefully misinformed about the dangers of mixing politics and religion. In any case, she’s not too impressive, and it’s my hope that she’ll quietly fade into obscurity as her ignorance and incompetence is slowly revealed to the general public.
May 18th, 2010 at 11:53 am
I’m not one of those atheist that is angry at god. You can’t be an atheist and hate god at the same time. It defeats the meaning of atheist. I think she is confuse on what the word atheist means.
S.E. Cup is hot!!!
May 18th, 2010 at 11:54 am
It is funny that this now shows, when I saw the clip this morning I thought the same thing, even there is no purity test for us, one can smell a rat when you see one.
May 18th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
Yeah. Not an atheist. But I’m sure FauxNews loves her.
May 18th, 2010 at 12:36 pm
FOX probably thinks they can use her since she supports Republicans, and that they can convince people they are coving both sides without bias. She’s just a tool like the rest of the, but her angle is to be the voice of republicans that don’t want to be caught up in religion, yet stay pro-business/industry like they used to be before the born again Christian craze.
May 18th, 2010 at 12:55 pm
Just because she is a Republican does not mean she can’t be an atheist. A lack of any belief in a god does not mean you need to be a liberal.
May 18th, 2010 at 1:07 pm
Its as if she wants to desperately become an atheist but she never read the hand book. That explains this makes you an atheist and this doesn’t and what the facts are on both sides. Almost as if she forgot her glasses the day she read the books and mixed up the titles of what makes you an atheist and what doesn’t. She is giving the right information but for the wrong side, she is speaking for the theists and saying she is an atheist. so I say she is an infantile atheist that is to say she knows nothing and Has not done her research and when she has then she can claim herself as an atheist. Until then she is an idiot.
May 18th, 2010 at 1:47 pm
Some people think atheism is good for them, but not good for everybody. Because you know, they can handle it because they are so much more intelligent/strong than the stupid/weak unwashed masses.
May 18th, 2010 at 2:12 pm
S.E. Cupp. First I would like to say I do not think she is an Atheist. While I won’t go so far as to say there is a, “Handbook of Atheism,” as Darkpassenger implies; I do get the point he is making. I think S.E. is the Token Black in a pretty little white girl package, which Middle ‘Merica finds palatable. Yet it’s not that simple. She is not just the Token Atheist. The shit that is ejected from her mouth reeks of a familiar stench. Theism. She may throw in a couple of lines familiar with Atheists, but that is just smoke-and-mirrors used to build some street cred. If she were really an Atheist, I would like to seriously have a talk with her.
Perhaps a spanking too. (meh, she is rather cute, I’ll giver her that…). All joking aside, that leads me to another point. Where S.E Cupp really pisses me off (besides all the other ways she really pisses me off) is that she is the one good looking woman I have ever come across who claims to be an atheist. Why does that piss me off? Simple: the one female “atheist” who is actually good looking is nothing more than a theist in atheist’s clothing. Bah!
May 18th, 2010 at 3:25 pm
@ Michael
Sorry if i didn’t totally clarify, I was implying a metaphorical handbook or collection of books and information. I guess i was a little to cryptic in my description of a Book, I would like to imagine that the only qualifications for an atheist or to become and atheist is to understand what and atheist is.To do so would mean that you would have do some formal research as to what atheist believes and what are the facts. That would be what it is that i meant by the atheist hand book a general understanding of the ideology of atheism. something that S.E. has misconstrued ideas and facts about. so once again sorry that i did not fully explain myself.
May 18th, 2010 at 4:33 pm
She’s deffo no Atheist. No true Atheist would argue that believers are not delusional – if they’re not, there’d be a god. Also, her opening comments regarding Atheists who “hate” god is the result of her mouth being directly connected to a Xtian fundie’s brain methinks.
May 18th, 2010 at 4:56 pm
Watch this “atheist” claim she would never vote an atheist into office. Why? Because religion keeps people honest. Why is that? Because religious people answer to a higher power every night. Sounds like your typical atheist!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl8v9wGfpQI
May 18th, 2010 at 5:34 pm
Who gives a shit what’s coming out of her mouth i want to put something in it. She hot with those glasses and that rack fuck she even knows how to right. S. E. Cup will you marry me?
May 18th, 2010 at 9:41 pm
I watched her and listened to a previous interview with her. She didn’t seem to know the first thing about atheism other than” i don’t believe in God” she is hot, but here is a whole lot of stupid coming out of her
May 19th, 2010 at 11:01 am
When I watched this on Friday, I was thinking that she was a theist with a plan to pretend to be atheist who will later be re-born. I know many “nones,” and not one would ever defend religion the way she does. There are some who will say that religion is helpful for some in times of need, but that is about it. She is defending religion the way many xian apologists seem to do. Her defense of her position on the anti-religious media is incredibly weak, at least from what she said on the show. Almost every atheist that has even some knowledge of the state of religion in America could rip her defense apart. I don’t think every atheist needs to be a strident anti-religious person, but I certainly don’t want this ignoramus representing atheists on any talk show ever again.
What really got me was Cory Booker’s ignorance of what Bill was trying to say about how religion causes problems. He seems (like most xians) to just forget about all the bad shit that religion does. He also failed to be honest about xian arrogance. The compartmentalization that theists are able to do just amazes me.
May 19th, 2010 at 12:29 pm
“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves” (Matt. 7:15).
The bible warned us of these theist(wolves) in atheist(sheep) clothing, Oh wait I forgot the bible meant things the other way around, my bad.
Joking aside, I think that she is really confused about her atheism, or maybe she is actually a theist. Or maybe she is trolling us all in order to sell more books. Either way no one would have paid attention to her if she wasn’t hot.
PS: I would totally do her.
May 20th, 2010 at 3:41 am
She is clearly deluded in the sense that many religious people are, but she has a certain amount of intelligence that does not allow her to believe in spite of all the evidence. She is an interesting case, of which I’m sure there are more of among the masses. People might believe, but come to find that they can no longer maintain the delusion. But they still, after all the time spent believing it, indulge in the falsity that even if it is not true, religion is good. I’, sure Republican pundits will begin trotting out a view of them, since they are getting owned of the existence, they may appeal to the idea that religion is good for people. It has been done many times before, this might just be a brand new opportunity to attack (or defend) on this front
May 23rd, 2010 at 2:05 pm
I wonder if Bill fucked her after the show. If he didn’t I’d be disappointed. She’s hot!
But totally not an atheist. She sounds really dumb too.
May 24th, 2010 at 4:06 am
A sleazy tabloid journalist with sex appeal, nothing more. Having only just discovered this media blow-up doll, I haven’t yet made a determination as to the sincerity of her professed atheism, though I am highly skeptical for obvious reasons. Excerpts from her book seem only to echo the standard “Christian nation” arguments of the religious right and don’t show much in the way of creativity. Anyway, effectively, she’s a Christian and I’ll treat her as such.
June 1st, 2010 at 5:30 pm
I really dig your logo and banner but I’ve gotta say, this blog is pretty insipid. You don’t seem to have a very firm grasp on social, political, or theological ideas and realities.
Also, hasn’t anyone harped on you before for the clear self-contradiction that is “atheism?” I mean honestly, just as any religious individual will claim full understanding of their own metaphysical existence based largely upon faith, atheists for all their “godlessness” turn around and do exactly the same!
Conceding to know everything about the universe requires either ignorance or unsubstantiated belief (also known as faith). You should change this blog name to “the good agnostics” or be forever guilty of utter unintellectual hypocrisy. Don’t you find it at all ironic that intellectualism is the supposed “backbone” of atheism? c’mon guys
June 1st, 2010 at 6:19 pm
Atheism is merely choosing not to believe in the supernatural, or in any other revealed religions. If you think that it’s arrogant to hold that the Universe has no supernatural explanation, then so be it. If you are religious or agnostic, I ask you this basic question: what are your unstated assumptions? Do you think that holding out for a supernatural explanation to the universe somehow makes you wiser? What basis do you have to believe that this is a possibility? If you have no answer for that question, perhaps you have not fully realized that even agnosticism pertains to a “potential” belief in something. I find atheism no more arrogant that refusing to believe in leprechauns, elves, or fairies.
June 4th, 2010 at 1:14 am
She says that “even the Palestinian/Israli conflict that’s going on right now… that’s over land… that’s over territory.”
Excuse me, but the conflict is between two religious peoples who believe that God reserved that land for them. So, it is very much about religion.
Matt: Atheists do not claim to know everything about the Universe. We simply don’t believe in your God (or any others). It is the Theist who claims to know everything about the Universe. And the answer to everything is “God did it”. And if we don’t believe what they believe, we are going to burn in Hell for eternity, while they live in Paradise. THAT is arrogance.
June 4th, 2010 at 1:29 am
Another point about Ms. Cupp… In other interviews, she claims that 98% of America is religious, and 80% is Christian (leaving a mere 2% of the population Atheist… in fact, she says that only 2% of the WORLD is Atheist). Not so. In America, the only single Christian denomination that outnumbers Atheists are Catholics. (Evangelicals outnumber Catholics, but that includes a lot of different groups.) We are roughly 20% of the American population.
June 20th, 2010 at 3:46 am
Ten dollars says shes waiting for the most (monetarily) convenient time to have a born again conversion.
July 20th, 2010 at 12:10 am
From her comments it’s like a Jew saying Mohammed was a true prophet and islamic relgious law is the bees knees and all other Jews are out to get the Muslims. I detect inconsistancies in her self-proclaimed philosophy.
The question I’d like most to hear her answer is why she is an Atheist. “I don’t believe in God” while close to the technical definition, just doesn’t do it for me.
Oh, and to stay consistant with the other posts, I would also do her.
July 30th, 2010 at 8:08 pm
Is there a site that we can discuss Maher? He has no chain of logic. Oh, and PS- someone needs to tell him he’s not a member of the media. He’s a comic.
August 1st, 2010 at 4:10 am
What I see here are a lot of politically liberal atheists who are horrified by the idea that someone who does not subscribe to THEIR religious substitute (secular humanism, and “progressive” politics) could possibly reject the idea of a higher being running the universe. This does not compute…………….
Her beliefs are (1) there is not a god, (2) conservative, small government policies work best and maximize freedom, and (3) Many liberal social policies have been carried to such extremes that the have screwed up our culture.
And, yes, she is hot.