When one reads a book or a magazine article, one often wants to know a little bit about the author. Even a small amount of information not only establishes credibility, but it helps the reader understand where the author is coming from. The same is true with webpages. The following is some insight as to who exactly, The Wisconsin Atheist, namely me, is and what he's all about.
To begin with, my name is Timothy T. Kydd. I'm 20 years old and a sophomore at the University of Minnesota--Twin Cities. I'm a political science major planning on persuing a career in the political spectrum but not in elected office. Naturally I have strong opinions on a variety of socio-economic issues and I generally fall into the liberal to moderate arena; a "New" Democrat and a civil libertarian. This website is not about my political beliefs, however. For that stuff, be sure to check out my separate webpage, Tim's New Lair of Liberalism
I'm originally from Madison, Wisconsin although I moved to Stevens Point (about 100 miles north) when I was 17. That was the tragedy of tragedies. Stevens Point is the ultimate in a small town. It's dull, uninteresting and regressive. Worse, religion (namely the Catholic Church) has nearly theocratic influence over the citizenry. It's enough to drive a liberal atheist like myself insane. Thankfully, I got out of Stevens Point to go to college.
As you can plainly understand by now, I am an atheist. I consider the notion of "God" undefined as well as unproven. I do not assert that no god or gods exist, I merely maintain that there is no conclusive evidence to support the existence of a supernatural entity and, more importantly, there is no need of or use for a belief in any deities.
So, what do I believe in? I believe in the power of the human psyche; a power so great and so complicated that we may never understand it. I believe in human potential; the potential to achieve the most awesome and magnificent feats. I believe in knowledge in a free, open, and inquisitive mind. I believe in myself and I believe in my fellow humans. We as a people have the power to "save" ourselves and our civilized society or destroy; the choice is ours; it's up to us. No supernatural entity is going to save us and praying to images of such is totally useless (other then ensure false security).
So, what are my opinions regarding religion? Well, it's been a part of every culture of people in history; it can be useful, helpful or harmfull and destructive all depending on the circumstances and the religious teachings themselves. Dogmatic religions which demand you worship a certain deity(s) exclusively and follow a strict code of rules and doctrine set down usually in some type of scrpiture differ from philosophical and spiritual religions like Zen, which allow the mind to work freely and in harmony with the body and spirit. While I personally do not subscribe to either, it is with the former that I have contempt, frustration, and protest.
I agree with Bertrand Russell who once called Christianity "the principle enemy to moral progress in the world". Except I would add Judaism and Islam to that statement. These three great religions have caused more treachery, harm, misery and pain to this tired old earth and it's human inhabitants then any disease or natural disaster could ever accomplished. World history is soaked with the mischief of this three religions, from the crusades to the inquisition, pogroms and witch trials, forced conversions and excommunications, wherever these religion spread to, harm soon followed. Were these religions and their repsective leaders to recongize this harm and accept responsibility for the cruelties they've caused, one could respect them. But they do not. They justify and in some cases glorify their bloody histories by insisting all was done in the name of their god. I would not want to believe in such a god; such a god would be unworthy of belief and/or worship.
Even in our modern, "enlightened" world, these dogmatic religions continue to do astronomical harm. Consider where the wars and massacres of the present day or in recent history break out. In the middle-east, Moslems butcher and torment Jews and vice versa. In India and Pakistan, Moslems attack Hindus. In Bosnia, Christians and Moslems fight, kill and hate each other. In northern Ireland, Catholics and Protestants continue to terrorize each other. In many cases, the two warring parties are of the same race, the same ethnicity, the same nationality, the same general income and are identical in virtually every way, except religion. And that is enough to justify the hatred and slaughter inflicted. But bullets and bombs kill and destroy whether "blessd and ordained" or not.
Considering all of this, one has to accept the fact that dogmatic religion is very harmfull and potentially dangerous. But surely religion does much good too. It often provides food and medical supplies, establishes schools, daycare, hospitals, colleges, homeless shelters, counseling centers and many other humanitarian institutions. There is no question of these good deeds. The questions lie in whether the good results of dogmatic faith outweight the bad. I don't think so. And, could aspects of religion be accomplished by secular institutions? I believe they could.
I'd love to stand on the sidelines, shrug my shoulders and say "I don't care", but I can't. I try not to let dogmatic religon and the thousands of naive simpletons it enslaves bother me, but it does. Perhaps someday I'll reach the lofty plateau of atheism where one is son entirely freed from religion that he can remain totally aloof. Until that time comes, my opposition to and contempt for dogmatic religion and all it encompasses will remain pronounced and overt.
I was raised in a traditional, Catholic family, but my mind outgrew the confines of church doctrine long ago. I know some folks enjoy reading about how ex-Christians lost their faith, left their religion and their belief in God. So, those who are interested can check out this separate page for my personal Deconversion Story.
I am an active promoter of freethought and atheism and work to demolish the steretypes that accompany both. I am a proud yet passive member of the Freedom From Religion Foundation and Minnesota Atheists. Furthermore, and just as importantly, I am dedicated to the preservation of absolute and unconditional separation of church and state. In doing so, I support the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans United and People for the American Way.
When I'm not toiling away with college work, advocating the atheistic alternative or working to maintain the wall of separation of church and state, I am usually reading (almost always non-fiction) or composing some piece of creative writing. My other leisure activites include bicycling, chess and an occasional round of golf.
Concerning sports, I don't play them, but I do enjoy watching both football and baseball. I am not a major sports fan, but I do have some favorite teams. In baseball, it's the Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies. In regards to football, just because I hail from Wisconsin originally, does NOT mean I am a Packer backer. My favorite team is the Cowboys. I also like the Chiefs, Lions and Dolphins. In college football, I root for Michigan first and foremost, even when they play Minnesota (our Gophers suck, anyway) and I also like Tennessee and Auburn. I can't stand basketball and don't like hockey much either although I was pleased to see the Red Wings finally win the Stanley Cup last year.
Okay, so to recap and summerize my biography, here's a rundown on the most important facts about me:
Name: Timothy T. Kydd
Birthdate: June 17, 1977
Height: Six Feet, Two Inches
Weight: 220 lbs., appox.
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Brown
Race: Caucasian and Hispanic
Ethnicity: Polish, Cuban, Puerto
Rican, Greek and Cherokee
Birthplace: Madison, Wisconsin
Current Home: Stevens Point, WI
University: U. of Minnesota
Home in College: Minneapolis, MN
Class: Sophomore
Major: Political Science
Here's a list of my Fall Quarter '97 classes, if you're interested...
Phil 3001f General History of Western Philosophy (5 credits)
Pol 3051 Intro. to Political Analysis (4 credits)
EngW 3110 Topics in Creative Writing (4 credits)
Stat 3011 Statistical Analysis (4 credits)