tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91652416071331645382011-11-27T17:55:09.237-06:00One Atheist Libertarian guy's rants and opinions on life and the world around him.Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.comBlogger351100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-4260618858430176632010-01-02T12:03:00.002-06:002010-01-02T12:29:12.173-06:00

One of my biggest free thinking pet peeves is the puritanical, small-minded and often dangerous approach the religious majority has toward sexuality. As one who is willing to make a conscious choice to decide for one's self, I encourage you to carefully consider what you think about - and how you react toward - such an important part of humanity. One of the best resources on the effect of

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-79942508821006787562009-12-08T09:53:00.001-06:002009-12-08T09:53:53.692-06:00

I just had to share this video I found on YouTube. It is a compilation of ludicrous statements taken from online fundamentalists forums, and illustrates in a hilarious way the warped mind of the religious fanatic. Enjoy!

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-36064041338433082022009-12-06T10:10:00.000-06:002009-12-06T10:10:27.737-06:00

I just thought I'd start by sharing a quote by HP Lovecraft I found on Positive Atheism's Big List of Quotations that is a much more eloquent version of my own thoughts: "We all know that any emotional bias -- irrespective of truth or falsity -- can be implanted by suggestion in the emotions of the young, hence the inherited traditions of an orthodox community are absolutely without evidential

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-63821889298360223582008-01-04T22:06:00.003-06:002009-12-06T10:56:10.157-06:00

Twenty years ago last year I graduated from Lebanon High School. I actually wanted to go this year as opposed to my 10 year reunion where I was a little apprehensive for various reasons. I wanted to see a couple of old friends and reconnect. No such luck. Either I was just too elusive for them (which cannot be true unless they are total morons) or they just did not have a reunion this year. What

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-24533669007221107132007-12-24T11:35:00.001-06:002009-12-06T10:27:36.786-06:00

As with every Christmas season, we non-Christians are getting the church's ownership of everyone's favorite holiday shoved down our throats. I am encountering these snobbish messages everywhere, from chain email letters to billboards. Emphasizing the "Christ" part of Christmas as if the rest of the world was not aware of it's presence is elitist and even intolerant. You don't see the Jews posting

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-73906927955324098312007-11-19T22:15:00.001-06:002009-12-06T10:27:50.428-06:00

Yesterday some fuckhead refused to move over and let me onto the highway from the on-ramp. He had room to move as there were no cars in the far lane. He just didn't want to. Bastard looked right at me with a "what are you looking at?" expression on his face. If I would have had my laser tracking system installed, that asshole would have been toast! I'm a pretty easy going guy, but when it comes

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-9319514482168937902007-10-30T10:12:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:28:06.549-06:00

Every year I see more and more evidence of religious groups and even entire communities castrating Halloween traditions. This morning on the radio more than one person called in to complain of costume restrictions, i.e. no "witches," no blood and gore, etc., imposed on their kids by school administrations. In my own neighborhood, the churches are hosting "fall festivals" in an attempt to

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-70551376816883740232007-10-22T08:19:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:28:20.456-06:00

The last time someone got into my car in the middle of the night, they stole my checkbook. You would have thought I had learned my lesson, wouldn't you? But no, as the months went by I became more relaxed about security at my own fucking house! and started leaving my car unlocked at night. It figures that I left my Zen Microphoto out in the car when I am usually very protective of it, making sure

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-83961013043770272902007-10-16T08:11:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:28:54.467-06:00

As you may know from previous rants, I have made the determination that I need to begin integrating more creativity into my life. It's hard to believe - and a little disappointing - to see that it has been three months since I made that determination... with little to show for it. I have been in planning stages for a while, so it's not like I'm sitting around on my ass complaining. I've been

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-89086793895511318192007-09-12T14:29:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:29:46.943-06:00

Those of you who know me well know that I have issues with Christians. That is not to say I am bitter for anything they have "done" to me, it is simply because the majority of them are elitist, hypocritical idiots who have turned their supposed faith into a travesty of religion. That's all. I have a serious problem with those who come to my house peddling their God like some stupid vacuum

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-74813017722157699432007-08-31T14:22:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:30:39.074-06:00

Even after the whole metrosexual thing got popular, I still found there are a whole lot of guys that equate personal care and appearance activities with women and gay men. What's up with that? Why do guys choose to ignore their looks beyond clothes and facial hair? Is the average 21st century male still so damned homophobic they must look - and smell - barbaric in order to feel like a man? What a

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-38535906431908814842007-08-23T10:09:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:31:04.282-06:00

I am simply amazed and dumbfounded by what I have just discovered. I have just found Why Firefox is Blocked, a site that advocates web sites actually block users of the Firefox browser. According to this site, the use of Firefox and it's extremely popular AdBlock Plus extension is akin to stealing money from the web site owners because of loss of advertising revenue, calling it "internet theft."

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-25788480112926597032007-08-21T10:54:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:31:58.271-06:00

...is pretty damned fun! For my wife's birthday, we took a rather impromptu weekend trip to Las Vegas. It was my first visit to Vegas, and Ange has not been there for almost thirteen years. We stayed at the Luxor Hotel & Casino, visited with Ange's half-sister, Miranda, her mother, Ronny, and her boyfriend, Charles. We also hung out with our wonderful friend, Rhonda, with whom we shared the

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-66802188819301397912007-08-03T10:59:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:32:17.598-06:00

Ever since I joined the Trillian Astra alpha testing team, I have been itching to get my hands on the web-based version of the application. Working under the umbrella of a large corporation, I am restricted from using instant messaging clients. (The HTTP ports typically used by such software are blocked by the corporate firewall.) So one of the things that excited me about Astra was the web

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-36467231206425280392007-07-20T12:52:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:32:50.151-06:00

It is always an interesting to find out where exactly you fall in terms of your political ideas. You might be surprised at how much - or how little - you agree with the current rash to idiots candidates running in the 2008 Presidential Election. A few years ago, I had done my research when I became interested in supporting the Fair Tax initiative. I knew I was not a Democrat, nor was I Republican

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-79074092417921675022007-07-15T12:18:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:33:15.600-06:00

I feel like total shit. For the past few years, I have been increasingly non-artistic. I know that it's happening, but there is a lazy part of me - or possibly the "put your family first" part of me - that tells me it's not important for me to be artistic, to have a creative outlet. The thing is, I know it's necessary to have that outlet. I spend so much time concentrating on family or work (in

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-68207418980663307582007-07-09T21:41:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:34:39.948-06:00

We managed to eke out four whole days to get away this year for our 10 year wedding anniversary, so I made plans to go to Hot Springs, Arkansas to enjoy a nice, romantic escape. I booked us a few nights at the Wildwood Bed & Breakfast, which was built in 1884 by a wealthy physician, Prosper Harvey Ellsworth and his amazingly forward-thinking wife, Sarah. She designed the house and much of the

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-85684820181710525112007-07-09T14:10:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:35:05.354-06:00

July 4th marked my 10 year wedding anniversary. Woohoo! We have had quite a few people tell us over the last few days (days in which we have both proudly told many people of our special day) that we don't act like we have been married that long. They tell us we act like newlyweds, and how in love we seem to be. And you know what? They're right - we are in love. And why not? Why is it that

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-90814583667403559642007-06-28T10:47:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:35:18.411-06:00

I am thrilled to have been chosen for the second phase of alpha testing for the new Trillian Astra. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Trillian, it is a multiple protocol IM client that allows you to login to MSN Messenger/Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, Google Talk, AIM and ICQ in one place and chat with people who use any or all of these IM protocols. I have been using the Pro

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-29425385160571840132007-03-08T13:12:00.001-06:002009-12-06T10:35:35.049-06:00

Today is the day before my birthday, and I tried to renew my driver's license during lunch. There was only one person in front of me when I arrived, and he was almost done. Sweet. I had my birth certificate, my Social Security card and, of course, my old driver's license. I thought I was set to go. Lady Behind the Counter hardly glanced at the birth certificate I set down. "That one won't work.

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-13561748364309483952007-01-24T12:09:00.001-06:002009-12-06T10:36:05.816-06:00

Friday, January 12th 2007 saw the biggest ice storm the Ozarks has seen in over 20 years. This happened a week after I had surgery on my right knee to repair a meniscal tear. We were at home playing games with some friends, hoping that our evening festivities would be complete before the storm hit. About 9:00pm the limbs began falling from the trees, and soon after we lost all power. One of the

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-6555059292991694242006-12-21T08:48:00.001-06:002009-12-06T10:37:11.077-06:00

For much of my adult life, I have had a beef with a few of the time honored, traditional Christmas cartoons concerning the messages they send and the concepts they employ in the telling of their hokey holiday stories. I know that they were created many years ago when certain ways of thinking were accepted or tolerated by the general public. However, considering the amount things have changed in

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-57312485365801911342006-12-06T09:08:00.001-06:002009-12-06T10:37:56.248-06:00

And receiving, too. Ha ha ha... But seriously, folks. I'm really not a greedy person. I don't like obligatory gift giving in either direction. That is, I don't want to be given a gift just because you happen to be related to me any more than I appreciate being made to feel obligated to buy Christmas presents for my virtually estranged family members. I think gifts should be from the heart, not

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-72074172817770455412006-12-05T21:27:00.002-06:002009-12-06T10:45:37.594-06:00

Twice a year a local HVAC company comes to our house to perform preventative maintenance: inspect the furnace (or air conditioner in the spring), change the air filter and give everything a general check up. Considering our furnace is about 18 years old, I figured it to be a good investment for just a few bucks a month. I'm glad I made that investment, because today the technician pointed out a

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-44909624810156859022006-11-19T22:33:00.001-06:002009-12-06T10:46:09.324-06:00

Okay okay okay! So you say Christmas doesn't suck. So what? You're entitled to your opinion. And I'm entitled to mine. And I say Christmas sucks. Why? Well to start, I hate shopping for gifts on a limited budget. I'm a generous guy, and I like to buy presents based on what I think my friends and loved ones will enjoy and not on what my wallet will allow. To be at this point in the holiday

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-15552850341511207822006-09-27T08:32:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:46:29.532-06:00

I am not a naive person, and I'm not necessarily a suspicious person. Under normal circumstances I try to balance caution with paranoia, and try to safeguard my family and belongings only in situations where I percieve a rational need for it. My driveway in suburban Springfield is not one of those locations where I felt the need for wariness. But I was wrong. Last night, some low-life got into

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-38055303178130327082006-08-26T00:30:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:47:11.856-06:00

We just got back Friday from visiting Andrew on Family Day and then seeing him graduate from basic training. It was an enjoyable yet sometimes frustrating experience for us all, but we are so glad to have had the opportunity to spend some time with him. Our trip down to Ft. Leonard Wood was uneventful. We checked in at our hotel around 3:30 Wednesday afternoon and fooled around for an hour or so

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-35890788644597535932006-08-22T08:42:00.000-05:002009-12-03T14:28:11.075-06:00

My step-son, Andrew, has been in Army Basic Training since June 15th in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. He has contacted us at least once a week - usually on the sly, as he still has that untouchable mentality he is famous for - and has written occasionally, too. We've all missed him much more than we expected to, and are anxious to see him again.Tomorrow we leave to go to his Graduation from Basic

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-7383681946928634022006-08-21T11:44:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:47:46.119-06:00

To celebrate my lovely Angelique's birthday on the 17th, I made reservations at a local bed & breakfast. We had a wonderfully romantic time! Her mother had volunteered to stay overnight with Erich, Parker and Kiefer, and she arrived at our house at 11:00 (on time!) Saturday morning and we were on our way. Our first stop was lunch at the Galloway Village Tea Room. The menu was small yet unique,

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-11827997261843733362006-08-10T09:32:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:50:34.419-06:00

We all know Murphy's Law ("If anything can go wrong, it will"), but there are a large number of similar laws that you may not know about. I have assembled a small collection of these that I not only find relevant to my life in the past few months, but also pretty damned funny! Cutler Webster's Law: There are two sides to every argument, unless a person is personally involved, in which case

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-70082025848983577152006-07-20T00:20:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:51:10.446-06:00

A relationship with another person is actually three entities: you, the other person and the relationship itself. That relationship entity grows, has needs, etc. just like you and I do as individuals. This relationship entity is truly an amalgam of the fragments of ourselves we present when interacting with each other, a Frankensteinian creation born from our first meeting. We can coax the

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-35596154522709212006-07-16T16:42:00.002-05:002009-12-06T10:52:48.473-06:00

Years ago I made up a game (creatively entitled "the Name Chain") that has been a family favorite ever since. It is mostly geared toward to preteen and up, but Parker has been able to contribute somewhat to the game play. We played it yet again on the way to my company picnic in Kimberling City today, and I thought I would share it. Here are the rules: To play, you utilize the full names of

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-40941341081078504082006-07-05T12:38:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:53:48.774-06:00

Although I do not "practice" polyamory, recent experiences have encouraged me to revisit the subject. I have spent a large portion of my adult life philosophising the subtleties and complexities of polyamory. I read Robert Heinlein's "Stranger In A Strange Land" for the first time when I was just a teenager. Coming from a particularly non-loving, neglectful home, Heinlein's ideas concerning

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-26875509374904286532006-01-01T08:00:00.001-06:002009-12-29T10:12:37.084-06:00

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165241607133164538.post-46680635666855415152005-10-14T21:39:00.001-05:002009-12-06T10:54:12.724-06:00

More than ever, "the customer is always right" has become nothing more than water cooler joke. Do as little as it takes to make the customer happy is the running theme lately, and I have quite frankly had as much of that as I can stand. When was it that customer service dropped off the list of good business practices? In the last few months I have repeatedly had my faith in human kindness and

Ben Lawson Photographyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14360623180128973478noreply@blogger.com0