Google Plus Activity

I’ve been getting more involved in Google+ Communities lately. I’m a moderator for the big Atheism Community (the one with 17931 members); I take part in lively debates in the Religious Discussion Community; and I’ve been involved in a new Anti-Apologetic League, which is a private group of atheists who call upon each other when debates with apologists call for it. For example, I was having an argument with a Catholic defending his opposition to gay marriage when a few of his friends jumped in with gay agenda conspiracy theories--at that point I posted the link to the debate to the League and suddenly five other atheists overpowered the conversation. While I feel quality over quantity is preferred, the AAL argued well. It isn’t something I’d use often, but it’s a resource that works both on Google+ and externally to other blogs and social networks.

It’s also worth noting that I was kicked out of the community for the Christian Apologetics Alliance after a month of low-key membership. I was open in my disbelief, saying that I wanted to learn more about apologetics. I was careful to only ask questions and never statements because I could see that the community was set up under a dishonest premise. Even though posts occasionally asked for atheist opinions and had a section called “Christian to Non-Christian Chat,” pointing to holes in their arguments or offering arguments against God got one removed almost immediately. Insulating their belief in an echo chamber of yes-men is apparently more important than the apologetic mantra of “defending the faith.” After all, there’s no need to defend something when you don’t allow any challengers. It’s still unclear why I was removed. I asked the community owner and head-mod, but he declined to answer.

The Christian Apologetics Alliance is just one of many religious communities on Google+. I found that there was no Atheist Blogger community to match the Christian Blogger community, despite the network’s large atheist population, so I made one. Google+ has given me many post ideas over the past few months, and I’d like to share further thoughts with fellow bloggers in the future. If you write for an atheist/agnostic/humanist/reality-based site, feel free to join.