Hello RRS
Offline Hi everybody, I posted once or twice before I noticed that there's a forum for introductions, but here's mine.
In order to satisfy my parent's paranoia, I won't be providing my real name, but you can call me by any of my online nicknames: Tycoon, Tyke, Tyc, or Ty.
I'm a sixteen year high school junior, and I live in southern California. About two years ago I came to terms with my sexuality as a gay, and it opened my eyes in ways I can't even described. I had been raised Christian, sang in the church choir, served at the altar, and participated in the youth group - and then, after a lot of online discussion and debate, converted to atheism. Though I still remind myself to be open-minded, I'm a die-hard atheist now, I refuse to say "under god" in the pledge of allegiance, and have started crossing out the words "in god we trust" on my money.
Well, that explains my atheism. Umm... I guess a little trivial personal information? I sing in my school choir... had a short solo this past Sunday in front of an audience of about 2,000... I play a lot of video games... I don't listen to music at all, because it prevents me from thinking much... and I'm a very picky eater. I suppose that's about it.
Any questions, feel free to ask. 
Oh, and please tell me just a little bit about yourself if you post!
Tycoon
- Login to post comments
Welcome to the forums, hon! =^_^=
Hey.
I live on the other coast. I'm an atheist gay that never said the pledge, because at my school people were too busy talking during homeroom to care. I play games too (Have a lot of games on steam, a Wii and a 360) and am working my way through college. I listen to music a lot (Mostly metal, trance, dance, techno, chiptunes, and well...anything else that interests me except country and most rap). I only eat organic food for the most part, and like to cook my foods from scratch.
Hope you have fun here. I know I do. I think most people here play video games, because a new topic on the subject seems to come up every couple days about it.
Welcome. :3
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Hey Tyke.
Real name's Chris. 24 years old. I live in Michigan and I don't care for it. I'm an Atheist and have been since birth. I play electric guitar and I'm a hobby programmer. I too am a gamer.
So how's life treating you?
After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him.
The moral: When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.
MySpace
Welcome!
Oh, uh, okay.
http://www.rationalresponders.com/perhaps_introduction#comments
Our revels now are ended. These our actors, | As I foretold you, were all spirits, and | Are melted into air, into thin air; | And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, | The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, | The solemn temples, the great globe itself, - Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, | And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, | Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff | As dreams are made on, and our little life | Is rounded with a sleep. - Shakespeare
Welcome aboard (abroad?!?) I'm a quasi-newbie to this site and to actually accepting that I'm an atheist, and not just an agnostic (both, really, but... well, anyway, it's got a hell of a stigma attached to it, even for a non-believer).
Real name's Ward, and I'm the poor bastard from Los Angeles stuck in Midland Texas. The Hometown of George W. Bush. YEEEEEEEEEHAAWWWWWWWW!!!! Seriously- it's on all the signs. The 'yeehaw' and everything.
I'm 28 (compared to some of you, I'm an old fuck), working on my MA in English lit and learning how to write poetry well (I am actually published, but it's been about ten years, and that stuff was juvenelia anyway). Also bi; have a kid who doesn't live on the same continent as me (loooooong story there) but who I'm supporting (one of the reasons I'm here, in Midland, living with my parents- the other being that I needed to pay off $20,000 in credit card debt- and did so within a year).
I don't have a blog or link to myspace or Facebook (though I'm on both- I loathe myspace and getting tired of Facebook and, regardless, fear the data mining from the latter) because *I* can't keep myself interested in my own writing for very long. Though I have written three video game reviews for the paper where I work as a copy editor. Here's one of them: http://www.mywesttexas.com/articles/2008/11/21/entertainment/top_stories/gears_of_war_2_review.txt
I'm sure others are about here and there.
Ummm... that's a pretty good start. Welcome to the forums and enjoy your time here.
Hi Tycoon~
I like that name the best as it is the name of a bar I frequented while living in Iowa
Agnostic atheist would best describe me --- it took me about 10 years to figure that out but long story short, I never believed in a god. As for the pledge, I never liked saying it (I was always too busy picking on the boys in my class) and for some time in elementary school I thought the phrase "..for which it stands" was "for witches stance" -- yep, thought witches were real at that point in my life but still didn't believe in a god.
I am 37 years old living near Chicago ~ love shopping (when I have money) love eating (when I feel like cooking) love playing pinball on Xbox (when my husband isn't hogging the console)
Have fun! Jump right in
Slowly building a blog at ~
http://obsidianwords.wordpress.com/
Hi!, welcome! My real name is Javier, I'm 15 years old, and I live in the Dominican Republic.
I think i read somewhere that they didn't add that shit until mid-20th century.
I play a lot of video games too, do you have an Xbox 360? I pretty much play Call of Duty and Guitar Hero. Oh, also, I ROCK at math!!
...and... i'm a picky eater too.
''Black Holes result from God dividing the universe by zero.''
Hi, there's lots of fags here. I'm glad you were able to come to terms with sexuality. It can be a difficult progression. As well, congratulations on entering reality. I'm certain you'll find lots of information and informative people here. Stick around and don't be afraid to stick a post somewhere. And start listening to music.
BigUniverse wrote,
"Well the things that happen less often are more likely to be the result of the supper natural. A thing like loosing my keys in the morning is not likely supper natural, but finding a thousand dollars or meeting a celebrity might be."
I'm not sure why, but I feel like Big Gay Al ought to deliver that line. Super!
Even for us straights, there's a lot of shit to get over when leaving Christianity. I can only imagine how hard it is for a gay. For what it's worth, I've written a lot on human sexuality that you might find helpful. Check it out here. I haven't done much on homosexuality specifically, but I'm sure there's a lot you'll like anyway.
Atheism isn't a lot like religion at all. Unless by "religion" you mean "not religion". --Ciarin
http://hambydammit.wordpress.com/
Books about atheism
BigUniverse wrote,
"Well the things that happen less often are more likely to be the result of the supper natural. A thing like loosing my keys in the morning is not likely supper natural, but finding a thousand dollars or meeting a celebrity might be."
Welcome, Tycoon! Excellent nick.
Since everyone else is divulging their secret identity: my real name's Tony. Not that it matters. I'm a 42-year-old programmer living in Cleveland, though I am originally from Alaska (up until about 4 years ago). I studied physics in college, am a published author (both fiction and nonfiction), and I'm planning on going back to college to become a teacher.
I too play video games. I have both a 360 and a PS3. I got rid of the Wii once I realized I hadn't turned it on in almost a year.
I have never really believed in god, so had nothing to come to terms about. I used to believe that religion was benign, but lately I'm realizing how corrosive it really is.
In any case: welcome. I hope you enjoy your stay.
"Yes, I seriously believe that consciousness is a product of a natural process. I find that the neuroscientists, psychologists, and philosophers who proceed from that premise are the ones who are actually making useful contributions to our understanding of the mind." - PZ Myers
Welcome! My name's Will, and I'm a saint.
Thank you everyone for posting.
For the sake of saving space, I am not going to quote anybody.
JillSwift: Thank you for the welcome.
ClockCat: Nice to meet another heathen queer. Does it rain a lot over there on the East Coast? I loove the rain, and never get any. I've got an Xbox 360 myself.
spike.barnett: Why do you live Michigan if you don't like it? Job or college? Cool that you play the guitar.
I've got a drum set, but haven't ever gotten off the ground with it because school took away all my practice time. 
Life's treating me okay. Not gonna complain.
butterbattle: I know what you mean by emotionally swindled. I felt that way at one point too. And I have a really short fuse as well.
craymonkie: Thanks for the welcome.
Sorry that you're stuck in Texas - I would hate it there. Asside from the fact that most of the people there seem to be hicks, I don't like how flat it is. I'm used to living among big hills. I read your review on Gears of War 2, and it was really well written. 
I'd get the game myself, but I don't think my mom would tolerate a game with that much gore.
Renee Obsidianwords: I've heard there's nothing interesting in Iowa, hahaha. Is that true? But you do have a very interesting story in the pledge - that's great, believing in witches but not god.
SSBBJunky: Nice to know there's somebody close to my age.
You're right, they did only add that stuff in the mid twentieth century, out of a ridiculous belief that communists would not be able to hold money if it had "in god we trust" written on it, or say the pledge of allegiance. I do have an xbox 360, but it got the red ring of death a week ago, and I haven't sent it in yet... As for games, I mostly play Halo 3 and Rock Band. 
Seems we are rivals already.
Thomathy: It was a difficult progression, and thanks. I will never start listening to music!
Hambydammit: You have a lot of interesting stuff written here: http://hambydammit.wordpress.com/ - I intend to read it.
NigelTheBold: Thanks.
My parents are both computer programmers - looks like you're trying a bit of everything though. 
Physics, writing, programming, teaching... wow. I never really liked the Wii either. Thanks for the welcome.
Will: Really? Congratulations.
Welcome to the forums. My name is Trevor, and I live in Oregon.
I lived in Cypress / Anaheim Cali for 16 years before I moved to Oregon. Oregon is waaaay better
I'm afraid I'm going to be another guy that says listen to music.
so...
LISTEN TO MUSIC!!! Music can help you think, not just prevent you from thinking.
"Give a man a fish, and he'll eat for a day. Give a man a religion, and he'll starve to death praying for fish." - Anonymous
"If God doesn't like the way I live, let him tell me, not you." -Anonymous
I use my Wii more than I do my 360.
360 only gets used for RPGs :3
All my FPS gets done on Steam.
As for rain, it rains quite a bit here. I like the rain though.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Nice to meet you Trevor.
Thanks for the welcome.
I've never been to Oregon, but I'm going to assume that it rains there a lot, and that means that I would like it more.
I'm not going to start listening to music.
It's distracting, and I don't unerstand the huge obsession anyways. People practically define each other by what music they listen to nowadays.
Tyke
What games do you play on the Wii? I think a lot of the games are really stupid and don't require much skill... and as for Brawl, I didn't like it the second I saw it, for some reason.
Have you ever played Oblivion or Fallout 3 on your 360? Great games. Even better on the CPU, because you can mod them and there are huge databases of player made mods out there.
What's Steam?
Doubt you can compare to me
Although I suspect it is for very differant reasons, for me it's political, nothing to do with the type of food 
Btw hi names Richard and im from South Africa
Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
No animal shall wear clothes.
No animal shall sleep in a bed.
No animal shall drink alcohol.
No animal shall kill any other animal.
All animals are equal.
Hi Richard.
What's it like in South Africa?
And yes, believe me, I can compare.
I've only eaten one vegetable in the past several years - and I almost threw up doing so. I know, it's really irrational, but I can't overcome it. I'm also not a big meat eater... I hate steak, meatloaf, roast, tri-tip... I do enjoy hot dogs and hamburgers. Mind you, they can't be big and beefy. And I only ever have one patty.
I love No More Heroes, the vast virtual console games, and all the new wiiware titles that get released. Lately I've been playing Bit Trip a lot. I use my Wii for net browsing, news, and weather a lot with the built in channels.
Here is a list - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WiiWare_games
As for Oblivion and Fallout 3, no I have not played them on my 360. I have them on steam. Oblivion I thought was much better than Fallout 3, I kind of feel Bethesda dropped the ball a bit. It's still not a bad game though.
Steam? It's the largest online gaming community, having over 20 million accounts. Made by Valve, it is free awesomeness that supports dedicated servers for games and overall the best designed system I've seen yet. Your games are stored on your account, and you can download them and install them at will. You do not need to keep disks around. Also, the community for gaming on steam is very good. I loooooooove playing L4D on steam. I tried it on the 360, and the live community is...just fail.
http://store.steampowered.com/
Games are occasionally made free on steam, and every weekend they do a special where they highly discount a game. There is no subscription fee, sign up and you are good to go.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
I don't really know many Wii games. All I know is that they don't have many FPS games, and that's really all I'm into asside from the occasional RPG which I still enjoy more on the Xbox or CPU.
Steam is a computer system? Huhh.... Why would you get Oblivion off of Steam? It's not exactly an online game... do you know if you are able to mod it? Because if not, you are missing out. I certainly like Oblivion, but there are a lot of things that could have been changed, and there are mods that do so.
I certainly don't like the Live community of the Xbox 360... a lot of people are so childish that they'll betray me in Halo 3 just to get a weapon that they want and I have. But is it downloadable on Steam? And would it have online play?
I hate meatloaf. Steak isn't that great because of the visible slabs of fat for me, it kind of makes it feel digusting. I don't even know what tri-tip is.
I like chicken.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Hello Tycoon!
I'm 20 and my name is Kyle :P I live in PA which is quite boring. I never really believed in a god, but as a kid hell scared me into trying to believe.
Steam is great! Your account is free and it is the best way to shop for PC games. No disks... great deals like 50% off new releases and sometimes great package deals for indie games.
I'd have to agree with ClockCat that Oblivion trumps Fallout3.
Oh and I'm a give good hugs!
Hi Kyle.
I live in a pretty boring place too - it's like a little chunk of suburb outside of L.A. where nothing happens, ever. I used to believe in god, and actually got stronger in that belief before dumping it, as an attempt to cope for my disagreements with god and Christianity.
Maybe I'll have to try Steam sometime. I've never, ever heard of it before. The only reason I might not use it so much is that most of my friend stick to Xbox Live.
Oblivion does trump Fallout 3, no question. I just don't like certain aspects of it. Like, they could have done a much better job of designing the cities and Cyrodil in general. I kind of despise the Imperial Palace, I would have envisioned it as this huge, high walled, turreted castle with secret tunnels and lots of different rooms and things to do, and instead it's basically one big tower that you only even need to go inside of for a few quests.
I'm not that great at hugs, lol. Not much of a touchy-feely person.
Tyke
I looove chicken! I don't like the meats I listed because they're really just huge chunks of meat soaked in their own fatty juices, and it's just kind of disgusting and blehhhh. I prefer a mix of good foods. Chicken with pasta. Cheesburgers. Not just a huge lump of meat.
I bought Oblivion off Steam because it is the best way to buy games. I have it forever, do not need a disk, and can install it at will from my account...in addition to easily being able to patch and mod it through the steam software.
Steam is probably the best community for online gaming out there. It has a lot of FPS titles, and dedicated servers (which for hardcore FPS players, are required for fast pings). Titles like the call of duties, team fortress 2, L4D, counterstrike, unreal tournaments...and a lot of others. I just pre-ordered a new FPS Co-op survival horror game called Killing Floor for tomorrow.
As for Halo, that is probably the only game you won't find on Steam. But it's not that good compared to a lot of the FPS out there, it's just above average.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Hamburger pretty much is just a lump of meat though.
I like spicy cajun chicken pasta. I think it's one of my favorite dishes. Cheeseburgers are meh for me, I'd rather use buffalo meat to make a burger if I have a choice. It tastes a lot better than cow, less fatty.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
If you want to install steam...
Just click this.
http://cdn.steampowered.com/download/SteamInstall.msi
That is the link to the downloader. Steam takes maybe 5 minutes to setup at best. It's free, and you can get a good look at what kinds of games it has...even having access to some of them free, courtesy of Valve.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Mmmkay, well, Steam seems pretty cool. There are a lot of FPS games out there I haven't played, but I really enjoy Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4. A lot of people don't like Halo 3, and yeah, it probably isn't the best FPS out there... but I liked it the second I started playing it. The gameplay just sort of agreed with me, and I was instantly good at it. I'm almost always MVP, can take on as many as four people at a time, and raaaape with a sniper rifle - long range or up close and personal. I suppose that's why I like it.
I usually get plain cheesburgers with thin patties, not some triple patty beef monstrosity.
YESSSSS! Cajun chicken pasta is my FAVORITE!! I get it all the time at Chilis!
Have you ever been to Chilis?
No, I've never been to Chilis.
Yes, I have been to Chilis. It isn't bad there, but I think it tastes a lot better when I make it. The chicken is about the same, but the alfredo sauce and the pasta are sooo much better made from scratch.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Really? Hmm... Do you have a special recipe? What kind of alfredo sauce and pasta do you use? How do you cook the chicken?
GAY PEOPLE EXIST? WHAT THE F?
Next thing you're going to tell me is that the moon is not made of cheese. You're a cheesaphobe arnt you?
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-make-fresh-pasta
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cajun-Chicken-Pasta-2/Detail.aspx
I used videojug to learn to make pasta, and the second link is the basic recipe I use. I modify it a bit sometimes, and nearly always add a bit of shredded mozzerella cheese to the sauce to both increase flavor and make the sauce thicken more when it cools.
All the ingredients I use are organic.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
Wow, that looks like a great recipe. I wish it taught how to make pene pasta - my favorite.
http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-make-alfredo-sauce
Here is another way to make alfredo sauce. I prefer to use green onion instead of chives though.
I usually top lightly with parsley and basil when the dish is finished.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
That was... interesting.
They have machines that can make that.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
It is my silly way of saying "Welcome" and at the same time showing the bigots that they wont get cooties from either gay people like you or atheists like us.
I am making fun of any club mentality of any label of the childish, "MOMMY MOMMY THEY'RE NOT LIKE ME.....MAKE THEM SHUT UP".
Welcome, just be you.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
Ohh. Okay.
Well, take a number. My co-workers are just as confused by my cornball humor as you are. Theists don't understand me anymore than atheists do. They both look at me and say, "Frued is pulling his hair out over Brian".
Being an atheist doesn't mean everyone will get your bad jokes. Just be glad you didn't pay admission to read them.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
Yup totally differant reasons, we shall see who is more picky ^_^ Hard to believe I used to be like that as well (nothing wrong with that besides on a nutritional level
)
Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
No animal shall wear clothes.
No animal shall sleep in a bed.
No animal shall drink alcohol.
No animal shall kill any other animal.
All animals are equal.
Hah, that and that it frustrates my parents' ability to cook dinner because I won't eat half of what they would want to cook.
I did the same. They would cook it and I would walk past it and ask if there was anything to eat. When my mom pointed at it, I would say "No, the REAL food."
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
That is very true. But I try not to do that, and don't care if people tell me "I suck" because I like Metallica or System of a Down.
Yes, it rains a lot in Oregon, this year alone we've had like... 2 weeks of sun it seems like.
I'm in love with the rain
"Give a man a fish, and he'll eat for a day. Give a man a religion, and he'll starve to death praying for fish." - Anonymous
"If God doesn't like the way I live, let him tell me, not you." -Anonymous
Hahahahaha, yeah.
Pull up a chair; sit on the floor, admission is free; pay at the door. Where have I heard that one before??
You can come visit. Although the pesky sun is out today : /
Oregon weather changes every 5 minutes.
One day we had bright sunny day, then it started raining, then it started snowing, and then it hailed. All in the same day.
"Give a man a fish, and he'll eat for a day. Give a man a religion, and he'll starve to death praying for fish." - Anonymous
"If God doesn't like the way I live, let him tell me, not you." -Anonymous
*gasp*
Blasphemer!
Btw, I eat everything.
Our revels now are ended. These our actors, | As I foretold you, were all spirits, and | Are melted into air, into thin air; | And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, | The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, | The solemn temples, the great globe itself, - Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, | And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, | Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff | As dreams are made on, and our little life | Is rounded with a sleep. - Shakespeare