Now that you've (hopefully) read some of the philosophy/bullshit on this site, before getting all excited/angry/fearful about me (my mental and emotional state, not to mention my chances of "going to heaven") or these concepts, try to keep one thing in mind: your ability and availability to read anything and further, to comprehend and, if you're open minded enough, to consider rationally what you read here is the result of certain chemical reactions and electrical stimulation constantly and often randomly taking place within the molecular structure of the mortal biological entity known as your body ... especially your brain.

As I understand the science, all intellect, emotion, spirituality, philosophy, logic, reason, memory, rationality (or lack thereof), ethics, morality, predisposition ... in short, every thought you think, your reactions to those thoughts, even actions and physical functions requiring only reactions, are triggered, controlled, modified and abated through basic molecular interaction, elementary chemical reaction and electrical stimulation. All living species on the planet, from the most minute microbe, to the alfalfa plant, to the largest ocean-borne whale, exist as a result of this elementary, natural process. Through pigheaded ignorance, this chemical/electrical spasticity is alleged to be "divine" by a humanity also subject to those same base and basic impulses and molecular reactions. Elementary chemistry and physics, evolution and genetics have, seemingly, been ignored by mankind in its vain search for a "supreme intelligence" and "everlasting peace at the right hand of (insert your favorite deity here)"... not to mention the "meaning of life".

The chemical and electrical interactions among the molecules of the common cold virus, the ragweed, the blue whale and the human being have been occurring since the first microbe oozed, DNA- and RNA-less from the enzyme-laden chemical stew of one or another collusion between an earth-impacting asteroid (or small comet) within the heat of volcanic debris at the electrical jump start of a fortuitous lightning bolt. To further complicate matters (and, more or less prove my whole point here), medical science has learned to modify some of these reactions with the addition of other chemicals to enhance the experience of life or to relieve the results of the alarmingly common "misfires" in certain neurological generators and receptors.

These basic chemical and mechanical reactions (modified or not) upon which the existence and evolution of life are based have, obviously, been the cause of all historical occurrence and have ultimately resulted in the vaunted free will of the human species. Thus, all life, instinct and thought is historically a matter of cosmic and cataclysmic accident rather than an act of "divine intervention" or "supreme intelligence". All events, therefore, from the beginnings of life to the eventual extinction of the universe, are mere molecular disturbances rather than any sort of "god-driven" dynamic, argumentation regarding "first cause" notwithstanding.

As far as these chemical reactions and electrical impulses concern religious thought, divinity, superstition, etc., many individuals are, as we know, afflicted with chemical/electrical interactions which misdirect them into believing there is an other-worldly "higher power" helping them along the road of life and protecting their "souls" in anticipation of accepting them into the vacuum of "heaven" where, apparently, no chemical or electrical molecular stimulation is necessary to their "life everlasting" (although how there can be life everlasting in the "kingdom of heaven" if the essential for any kind of life is missing seems to be a question no theologian I know of would wish to answer.) (See: sec.VII of The Manifesto.) Thus, through nurtured manipulation, some impulses and chemicals put people to sleep in church, others stimulate people into believing that pleas toward and praise for a divinity is necessary to the uniting of two people in marriage or in receiving a "soul" into "heaven" or "nirvana" or "paradise". Still other evolved electro-chemical stimulation generates the urge to sacrifice ones only possible life or to take another's only possible life in the name of (again, insert your favorite deity here.)

There are also individuals like myself, whose electrical and chemical stimulation and permutations form an intense abhorrence of the superstitious and nonsensical idea of an all-powerful divinity and of the religions generated by such ideals and who are, therefore, (by these same diverse electro-chemical processes) considered by others to be aberrant, cynical, dangerous, and emotionally unbalanced. Personally, I consider my chemistry to be firing on all eight cylinders (for a change) but even "crazy", mentally and physically impaired individuals have the random, naturally occurring processes of chemical/electrical molecular interactions in, perhaps, a slightly more bizarre fashion than those of more regimented and allegedly more normal, if less exotic, receptors of the better-adjusted of our species. Alas, the most monstrous individuals in history (Hitler, Stalin, Caligula, etc.) became what they were as a result of these fundamental and normal neurological processes. As these processes are a natural, indeed, the essential part of living, of co-existence with and within earthly society, one reason why the evil perpetrated by these individuals (with the willing complicity of others) alarms "normal" people so much: they (perpetrators and accomplices) could all be us...simply by the fact that every life form is composed of the exact same chemical and electrical stimulation and subject to the same chance of "good" reactions and "monstrous" reactions.

My somewhat Nietzsche-an point here is that life is a random process powered by chemistry, electricity and molecular physics. History is the result of this essential, life forming and life-living process for better or worse. Religion, in its present form is a mere pebble in the evolutionary highway of earthly life's myriad chemical/electrical molecular convolutions. I have a feeling and a hope...more chemical/electrical/molecular interaction and detonation...that somewhere in the future, the pin-prick on the eons-long fabric of time representing mankind's notions of divinity will eventually dwindle and disappear to be replaced by concepts and species (with their attendant chemical/electrical interactions and modifiers) far more advanced, adaptable, logical and spiritually self-reliant than present (humble) humanity can even conceive possible.

It seems fairly obvious to me that the human brain evolved as an instrument of survival for the species, not as a means of "worship" nor as a conduit between an individual and any sort of deity. As a housefly in the perpetuation of its species begets thousands of offspring during its short life and has, through the process of "Natural Selection", the instincts to locate and consume readily available food, so mankind has, through the same process, developed its unique and powerful intellect by reason of becoming a threatened species of chimpanzees. As this exceptional brain, through the cyclical inventiveness inherent within it, found more and more idle time, less time to worry about food, clothing and shelter, not to mention fleeing (natural) predators, it demanded a means to occupy this idleness. In the days before books, plays, dance, radio, T.V., movies and computers, humanity began to use this idleness to create art, leisure and conversation. Another seemingly obvious manifestation of this natural means to utilize the potential of the idling intellect resulted, through dreams, illness or drug-induced hallucination, and/or through misunderstood and rare natural phenomena, in certain of these receptors (probably at nearly the same stage of intellectual development and planet-wide) conceptualizing the basic ideals of deities and worship. We have taken these deistic conceptions and unlike the innocence of art, leisure and conversation we have bastardized and traumatized them into the farce which we today call religion.

Nature has one inflexible law: chaos. Nature also contains flexible rules and regulations to help life mitigate the chaos: the laws of physics, chemistry and Natural Selection. There are, therefore, rules in the living of life and there are laws in the compatibility of the species within time and space and there are suggestions for the interrelationships of each of us humans with the others. I'm certainly willing to live by the rules, I obey the laws (for the most part), and most of the suggestions seem damned fine. I do however, have a problem with one or two of the suggestions (such as the imposition of taxes...as opposed to the rule of death). Like most of us, I'll tolerate those suggestions I find offensive, but...I don't have to like it. Thus, The Manifesto.

To summarize the five paths to reality: The idea of baptism is one of the foundations of all organized religion. In the christian/catholic sect, this foundation, apparently was first described and propounded by "saint" Augustine as mankind's sole means of rejection of "original sin". This belief, however, has been exposed as (another) fraud by the simple fact that "original sin", the surrender to temptation by the mythical Adam and Eve by way of their faithful serpent, is an impossibility of roughly four and a half billion year old natural law as Charles Darwin proved over 150 years ago. The theories and observations propagated by "On the Origin of Species" have been accepted as reality by the convincing majority of the reputable scientific community, as well as all half-way educated and enlightened individuals whether they profess a belief in some sort of deity or not.

This basic exposition of the fraud of religion and "gods", based as it is on proven, natural fact, results in the inescapable conclusion that all that follows from this fictional creationist abstraction has to be considered fraudulent also. This is reason number one for my disclaimer of traditional deistic faith.

Reason number two: there has never been any irrefutable evidence that any sort of "God" could possibly exist in any dimension, time or place as propagated by the judeo-christian (or any other) religion, society or culture. On the other hand, when you examine the bedlam of the universe (black holes, rogue asteroids, quasars, red dwarves, cataclysmic collisions, etc.) and particularly our planet (war, genocide, greed, corrupted morality, dictated faith, deception, traffic jams, Disney World, etc.) the evidence in support of whimsy, fate, luck, meaningless chaos is nearly overwhelming.

We occidentals have had the judeo-christian aspects of societal and cultural mores hammered into our histories and our collective psyche over our entire lives. In the interests of societal integration and self-defense, the average individual accepts this nonsense without question. It seems that all this acceptance of religion (leading to dependence in some extreme cases) is an illogical and futile attempt to order the universal chaos of existence.

All deities, no matter the "faith" which spawned them, have always been found to be of mortal conception. In the case of the generic, judeo-christian "God", some scholars credit the Pharaoh Akhenaton (around 1353-1336 B.C.E.) for the current notion of a monotheistic "God"-based theology. Voila, reason number three.

As reason number four, we must recognize the unreasoning inter-religious, inter-denominational intolerance which has contributed to so much of the inter-societal and inter-cultural hatred and fear throughout history. This theistically motivated hatred and fear is a direct result of the disparate dogma inherent in these power/wealth/influence-hungry mortal delusions. The misery and death perpetrated through the ages by one religion against another, or all religions against so-called "heretics" and/or infidels in the name of various deities disproves any notion of beneficence in "religious faith".

Finally, we come to reason number five. Before the Age of Enlightenment, religious dogma, ritual and deities undoubtedly provided a much needed, generic and structured diversion from the stress and sameness of everyday reality, from the chaos which is our universe. Mankind, especially the masses of poor and oppressed, could count on the state-sponsored religions to delude them into thinking that no matter how seemingly useless and miserable their present circumstances, "god", Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha, the "great spirit" or something would "love" them and look after them in the "afterlife" as long as they kept the faith. Even kings, wealthy landowners and merchants apparently felt, at least subconsciously, that they needed "god"(s) and the deistic dogma and rote, theistic ceremony of their society for its entertainment value, as an adjunct to whatever infrequent amusement was available to those of the upper classes. And this wasn't necessarily a bad thing at that time. But we are well beyond "that time". In terms of recorded human history, we are light-years beyond the need for superstitions to explain the mysteries of existence, of life and of the universe. Through dogged determination, mankind is, in spite of the best efforts of religionists to thwart it, beginning to realize the potential of its naturally rational intelligence in coming to grips with the chaos.

Mankind often seems to be attempting the impossible: to deify a secular universe through its irrelevant use of religion and divinity. It harbors the irrational hope of ordering the chaos of existence with "gods" and "Plans" and "meaning" and "faith". Obviously our species still hasn't learned that you can't make chicken soup from chicken shit! Our modern enlightenment seems, however, to have lately made a start at exposing all deistic faith as an anachronistic and futile exercise in propaganda, as a temporary personal burden and as an uncomfortably mysterious and rote wallow in superstition. I believe humanity will eventually replace this adventure in dreamland with a more practical and timely set of ritualistic diversions at last embracing more reasonable, natural, temporal and personally fulfilling spiritual methods of introspection and temporarily alleviating (without entirely dismissing) the inherent stress and boredom of reality while continuing to recognize the underlying chaos of existence.

This entire tirade, moreover, intentionally discounts the fact that many philosophers throughout history have claimed that we can never know the truth(s) about anything because to accept or deny facts or beliefs implies a knowledge of the capriciousness of human intellect that is allegedly inexplicable. To deny a deity, apparently signifies to some thinkers: "How did you receive the capacity to deny if you have the capacity to know?" It seems a somewhat irrational premise to assert denying anything means we have the "divine" capacity to know everything but this is how some religionists apparently rationalize their superstitions. As with everything concerning something as philosophically and practically esoteric as what we call "spirituality", it's all somewhat confusing ... just as the ethereal notions of deistic dogma are confusing. As history has proven, facts and statistics can be used to support and deny ANYTHING! Sometimes all different views at the same time. "Spirituality" is merely another neurological facet of mortality, accepted, denied or ignored with few lasting consequences to existence however it's dealt with. As with shit, "spirituality" happens. Actions, no matter their source, really do speak louder than words.

One final thought. The insights, beliefs and ideals contained in the Manifesto and its attendant dissertations will probably put me on some government list (not to mention some personal lists) of unsavory characters. I am, however, grateful that I am able to disseminate my ideas from the United States as opposed to a number of other countries I can think of. I am fully aware that were I not fortunate enough to live in the U.S. I might be subject to arrest, prosecution, even execution for my philosophy and reasoning. As it is, I've mostly been subjected to scorn and ridicule, ignorance and propaganda, by the so-called "faithful". Ah, well, life sucks ...and then you die!

Thanks for taking the time to wade through this.

E.D.T.