Milton Friedman Dies

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I suppose I should mention that Milton Friedman died this week, a leading apostle of free markets and minimal government, carrying on luminously the work of Adam Smith. There has been no shortage of articles in appreciation of the man and his influence on our times, but in spite of my own appreciation for the power of free markets, I cannot feel like that much of a fan and pick one to better commemorate this historical marker. I might yet come across one, but the article would probably be more critical of Friedman's philosophy and influence than not, though it also would have to be fair and respect the power that is there.

xXx

Milton Friedman Dies

♠
I suppose I should mention that Milton Friedman died this week, a leading apostle of free markets and minimal government, carrying on luminously the work of Adam Smith. There has been no shortage of articles in appreciation of the man and his influence on our times, but in spite of my own appreciation for the power of free markets, I cannot feel like that much of a fan and pick one to better commemorate this historical marker. I might yet come across one, but the article would probably be more critical of Friedman's philosophy and influence than not, though it also would have to be fair and respect the power that is there.

xXx

Dilbert's Interesting Thoughts on Atheism

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Is it my imagination or have the atheists come out of the closet (in the United States) since 9/11?

Prior to 9/11, it would have been career suicide for a public figure to come right out and say God is a fairy tale. Now it’s a feature of popular culture. You can see it on cable of course, in shows such as BullSh*t, Real Time, The Daily Show, and Southpark. But it’s also a feature of network TV. The main character on House is written as the most brilliant human on the planet, and he’s an atheist. The new show 3lbs has a similar character. I can’t remember anything like that ten years ago.

Famous atheist Richard Dawkins’ book The God Delusion is #5 on Amazon.com. Sam Harris is right up there with his books The End of Faith and Letters to a Christian Nation. They aren’t selling in numbers anywhere approaching the top religious books, but they are best sellers. When was the last time two books promoting atheism were best sellers at about the same time?

I think the hidden benefit of Islamic extremism is that it freed the atheists from their closets. The old mindset in the United States was that almost any religion was good, and atheism was bad. But since 9/11, atheism has moved above Islam in the rankings, at least in the minds of Christians and Jews in the United States.

-- "Atheists: The New Gays" by Scott Adams

I think there is more of a point in comparing atheists to gays than Mr. Adams is appreciating. Although gays are arguably enjoying greater acceptance, I dare say that their place in American society is rather compromised, still 'enjoying' a real minority status in the face of an often hostile majority. And so it is with atheists, I think. Sure, you can hear more about and from atheists, but it would be a mistake to be overly happy as though a new age has dawned. About half of Americans believe in a literal devil and prefer some sort of creationist theory over evolution. Rating higher than Islam in some precincts is faint praise, considering how many Americans probably do think of it as the religion of terrorism. But there does seem to be a kind of progressive stirring in the land, though hesitant and uncertain.

xXx

Dilbert's Interesting Thoughts on Atheism

♠
Is it my imagination or have the atheists come out of the closet (in the United States) since 9/11?

Prior to 9/11, it would have been career suicide for a public figure to come right out and say God is a fairy tale. Now it’s a feature of popular culture. You can see it on cable of course, in shows such as BullSh*t, Real Time, The Daily Show, and Southpark. But it’s also a feature of network TV. The main character on House is written as the most brilliant human on the planet, and he’s an atheist. The new show 3lbs has a similar character. I can’t remember anything like that ten years ago.

Famous atheist Richard Dawkins’ book The God Delusion is #5 on Amazon.com. Sam Harris is right up there with his books The End of Faith and Letters to a Christian Nation. They aren’t selling in numbers anywhere approaching the top religious books, but they are best sellers. When was the last time two books promoting atheism were best sellers at about the same time?

I think the hidden benefit of Islamic extremism is that it freed the atheists from their closets. The old mindset in the United States was that almost any religion was good, and atheism was bad. But since 9/11, atheism has moved above Islam in the rankings, at least in the minds of Christians and Jews in the United States.

-- "Atheists: The New Gays" by Scott Adams

I think there is more of a point in comparing atheists to gays than Mr. Adams is appreciating. Although gays are arguably enjoying greater acceptance, I dare say that their place in American society is rather compromised, still 'enjoying' a real minority status in the face of an often hostile majority. And so it is with atheists, I think. Sure, you can hear more about and from atheists, but it would be a mistake to be overly happy as though a new age has dawned. About half of Americans believe in a literal devil and prefer some sort of creationist theory over evolution. Rating higher than Islam in some precincts is faint praise, considering how many Americans probably do think of it as the religion of terrorism. But there does seem to be a kind of progressive stirring in the land, though hesitant and uncertain.

xXx