Letters to the Future: 2
October 4, 2008 2:20 am Letters to the Future, Religion
Hello to the year 2010!
This is really a letter to myself, but it’s here because it seemed the best place for it. But it’s to you, too, you people of 2010 and beyond, so you’ll know how I felt back here in the past. I guess I want you to realize that we had our passions just as you do, and they sometimes drove us to … extremities.
I just quit my job. Walked out.
Was it a good choice? Well, it’ll be a while before I know, I guess, but right now … it’s good and bad.
Really bad, in a way. I mean, seriously, deep-shit bad.
I’m deep in debt, behind on a boatload of bills, and not doing all that great in my freelance career. I’m likely to lose my house, my credit rating, and even get pretty hungry before I manage to work things out. IF I do. I’m also 56 years old, and I have no health insurance.
Whew! Just imagining it in this moment, it scares me.
But it’s also good, maybe really good, in a couple of ways.
One way was the trigger that caused me to quit. It was good that I left.
I’m an atheist, I think you know. An unbeliever, even an anti-theist. My old joke is “I don’t believe in gods, and I don’t think you should either.”
Here’s what I do at the newspaper I work at (um, what I “did,” at the newspaper I “worked” at): I’m a special type of editor called a copy editor.
A little background: Stories come into a newspaper by two separate streams. The major stream, for most newspapers, is the Associated Press. “Wire” stories from all over the country — all over the world, really — show up on the AP Wire, and are picked up, or not, as the local editors choose. The second stream is stories written by staff writers employed by the local newspaper itself.
Larger newspapers have a number of them. In the old days (say, 10 years ago), it might have been scores of them, maybe even a hundred or more for the giants, but today it’s down, most places, to a handful. Some very small newspapers might have only one or two.
Stories flow in and are evaluated by a team of senior editors. The senior editors lay out rough page designs on paper, and situate the stories in them based on length and importance. They imagine headline sizes and lengths, based on those layouts, and then send the corresponding stories into the newspaper’s local system.
Copy editors like me then pick up the stories and read them. We correct the spelling, grammar and punctuation, do some fact-checking if necessary, and add on the appropriate headline.
Tonight an interesting story rolled across my desk. It was about a World War II pilot and his experience in the B-17 military plane, also called the Flying Fortress. The final anecdote of the article was about his plane getting shot down, and one quote the reporter used was him saying something like “My co-pilot was an atheist before, but he’s been a good Christian ever since.” [Note after posting: The quote actually referred to the bombardier.]
I flagged the quote with a note to my immediate editor: “Ahem. If this quote said ‘My co-pilot was a Jew before, but he’s been a good Christian ever since,’ would we even think about including it?”
In my head was a very clear understanding that the quote was a serious insult to a certain demographic. I happen to be one, in this case, but I would certainly have flagged the line if it was that equivalent quote about a Jew being converted by the experience into being a Christian, even though I’m not a Jew. If it said “My co-pilot was a black man before, but this scared him white,” I would’ve brought it up, even though I don’t happen to be black. If the story made a similar statement about a gay or lesbian, or a handicapped person, I would have flagged it.
I realize we’re talking about a mix of demographics here, some by birth, others by choice. In this case, I suppose you could say I choose to be an atheist. Except it doesn’t feel that way. It feels like I HAVE to be an atheist, because anything less is a betrayal of my deepest principles and self-respect.
But the principle is the same in both types of examples. Lazy discrimination, callous ridicule, tossed out there simply because you don’t care enough about other people’s feelings. Because they’re not real to you, not human enough for you.
Hey, if it’s vital factual information, it goes into the newspaper no matter whose nose gets out of joint. But if it’s just casual insults or jokes that you know in advance will offend, you just don’t throw it in with the attitude of “what the hell, screw ‘em.”
……………………………………
I suppose I could have stayed and attempted to be more persuasive. But … I have this thing that I don’t LIKE persuading people. Growing up in an environment where all sorts of psychological pressures are brought to bear on us — advertising, politics, the daily suasions that our acquaintances lay on us to bend us to their way of thinking — living in an ocean of lies and arm-twisting, I seem to have just made an unconscious resolution some time back to not treat my fellow men and women that way. Knowing how much I hate it when it’s done to me, it seems wrong to push or trick other people into doing things just because there’s some advantage in it for you.
Often and always, it puts me at a serious disadvantage. For one thing, you pretty much always have to do things someone else’s way.
For years, I just gritted my teeth and lived with the discomfort, but somewhere along the way to growing up, I discovered that, even if you can’t change people’s minds, you don’t have to put up with the situation before you. You always have the freedom to absent yourself from it.
The rule in the back of my mind says: If you really don’t like something, don’t hang around arguing. Just leave.
Oh, I seldom hesitate to express my disapproval or disagreement. But I don’t argue. I just say that I disagree, briefly attempt to explain the nature of it, and then stop.
(Annoyingly, much of the time I fail to change people’s minds. And yet, on the other hand, I like to think I’m fairly flexible and sensitive – if the same thing happens in reverse, if I’m wrong about something and someone shows me how, I usually get the point in only a few words. Because I know I make mistakes all the time. I’m willing to BE wrong, to admit at a moment’s notice that I am, and to try to fix it.)
…………………………………….
In this case, the good thing is that I felt strongly about this insulting quote that was going to make its way into the newspaper, and I expressed it.
I did it twice, in fact. After I saw that my immediate editor was apparently going to keep the quote in the story, I went to the chief editor and mentioned it. And he said, “Oh, I saw that already. No, it’s perfectly fine as it is.”
But it wasn’t perfectly fine. It was insulting generally, and it was insulting to me.
To anybody not African-American in 1950, it would be difficult to understand what was offensive about the black-face comedians on TV, the shuffling and mugging and eye-popping actors who made black people out to be stupid and lazy.
Certainly any Jewish person aware of his people’s history could recount – even without mentioning Hitler – equally insulting jokes and stories and attitudes involving Jews.
But make an atheist joke or insult, and even though the exact same model of callous unconcern is the core of the thing, most people today can’t see that there’s anything wrong.
Most people are unable to generalize the lesson of insult, because they can’t see atheists as a people, a group, with a deeply held set of beliefs and a common concern of acceptance.
The difference is, Jews and blacks, and later gays, made noise. Made themselves and their concerns felt by the larger society. Made themselves HEARD.
But atheists have yet to do that, really. There are a number of books on the recent bestseller lists about atheism and the nature of religion, but there has still been almost nothing in the way of defensive actions or protests at the still-very-common vilification of atheists by religious people.
Something else occurs to me: If it’s black jokes or insults, it’s racism. If it’s Jewish jokes or insults, its religious or cultural persecution. If it’s mistreating women, it’s gender bias. If it’s gay discrimination, it’s homophobia.
But if it’s atheist jokes and insults … what?
Atheists today face discrimination so subtle, so pervasive, that it doesn’t even have a name.
So: I said my piece about the statement being offensive. It was ignored. And rather than argue, make a scene, try to persuade people against my own standards of the limits of allowable argument, I just … left.
If you really don’t like something, don’t hang around arguing. Just leave.
I actually really liked my job, and all of my co-workers.
And considering my economic situation, did I over-react? Possibly. Probably.
But for that moment, and every one since then, I just don’t think I can sit quietly and let myself be insulted just because somebody doesn’t know that it’s important to me, or to people like me. I can’t be the quiet “Yes, boss” atheist anymore and just put up with the constant flood of unthinking crap.
I do hope things are better in your time. I know how lucky I am not to have been a black man in the 1950s and before, or a Jew in Hitler’s time, and I know the people in those examples suffered infinitely worse treatment than anything likely ever to happen to me.
But then again, “my people” – unbelievers of every sort – HAVE suffered our share of torture, murder, shunning, and other mistreatments off the scale of anything I can adequately imagine. In every period of history, we’ve been terrorized by the religious – the nice Christians, the peace-loving Muslims, so many others. Is burning at the stake less horrifying than being gassed in Germany, or lynched in Alabama? I have to say I don’t think it is.
Here and now, none of that’s likely to happen, but it seems important for me to point out, if only to myself, that it has, and could. The discrimination is the same, no matter how far back it happened, and no matter how seemingly insignificant to the discriminator today.
The second good thing about this: As I was driving home, feeling angry about this incident, I said to myself “This is my fault for putting myself in this situation. I should have been working as a full-time freelancer all this time, making three times what I make at the newspaper. But I relaxed, I slid down into that comfort zone of being an employee. I let someone else set my schedule. I let someone else set my income ceiling — worse, I begged for more hours and days, like a puppy begging for crumbs from the table.”
I’ve been having good money-making ideas since I was a kid. And I have a dozen different skills. And yet I STILL work for other people.
Watching myself all these years with what Terry Pratchett calls “second thoughts,” I could never figure out why I wasn’t doing what I needed to do to create the fully-independent life I’ve always imagined. And at the age of 56, I was (am) aware that if it’s ever going to happen, it better be soon.
Worse: Also at the age of 56, I’ve started to ask myself “Is this it?” Is this all I’m ever going to be? A wage slave, one of those silent millions who go to their graves with their music still in them?
Tonight I decided: No. This is not it.
I think I’m finally fed up enough, tired enough, angry enough — with myself, mainly — that this will be the spark that sets me onto a whole other path in my life.
Friend up there in the future, in case you wondered, this is the night, this is the moment, when things changed. It took me this long, but I finally got a grip, and did something different with my life.
I cut the cord, I came into port and burned the boat behind me.
It starts now, the rest of my life, the better part, the part I’ve always wanted and never had the courage to create.
…………………………………….
Welp, at 2 a.m., it’s time for bed. I have to get up early.
Lots to do.
.
.
.
[If you're unsure what this "Letters to the Future" is about, it's just a quirky (and copyrighted) idea I had. It's a way for me to write about the present in a way that highlights things that would otherwise go unnoticed. Thinking of writing to someone in the future forces me to examine everyday things in new ways. If I think of explaining them to someone not familiar with them, I have to look more closely.]
Susan B. :
Date: October 4, 2008 @ 3:50 pm
Well, as a fellow atheist, I thank you for expressing your disapproval of that insulting remark. For me, the insult to myself is not the problem. I have a thick skin; I can handle it. The problem is that whenever a respected institution like a newspaper repeats these kinds of statements without criticism, it reinforces the idea that atheists (or Jews, or blacks) are second-class. A Christian may sometimes feel uncomfortable thinking of atheists as inferior, but when they see that the newspaper does it too, the realize it’s okay. The newspaper has responsibility, I think, to avoid reinforcing negative stereotypes whenever possible.
In your situation I’m not sure that I would have actually walked out. Quitting my job would seem a huge blow to my financial status that could negatively affect my future as well, and all for one sentence that probably wouldn’t change anyone’s mind. I probably would have tried as hard as I could to convince the editor, but if the editor wouldn’t budge I would have let it go and kept my job. Nevertheless, I’m impressed that you took a stand against this statement and took such a risk for it. More than that I’m glad that you’re going to take this big change in your life and run with it.
Hank Fox :
Date: October 4, 2008 @ 7:39 pm
Thanks Susan. Your first paragraph expressed exactly what bothered me about the thing – a newspaper shouldn’t be in the business of reinforcing casual stereotypes.
And I’m not sure I SHOULD have walked out. But (ahem) I did. Whew. And here I go, off on this new road.
Joe Sixpack :
Date: October 4, 2008 @ 11:19 pm
I’ll echo Susan’s appreciation and say thanks for pointing that out to your bosses.
Good luck with whatever you’re going to do now, Hank. So you’ve had a lot of original ideas throughout your life, eh? Are we talking inventions? Can we look forward to seeing you on an infomercial in the wee hours of the night, selling the latest why-didn’t-I-think-of-that product?
Tom :
Date: October 5, 2008 @ 6:45 am
Good luck Hank. I have the same thought all the time – to pack in the job and work on my magnum opus – which happens to be a software product, not a book.
The difference between you and me, is that you have the guts to actually do it.
Let me know if I can be of any help in promoting your new services in the UK.
nessaz :
Date: October 5, 2008 @ 6:14 pm
Go for the gold, Hank! It’s a gutsy move, and you may regret it, but I think everyone has wanted to do that at some time or another. Well, if you’re passing near Maryland I’ll park a good meal in front of you.
Aaron :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:07 am
Thank you, Hank — for standing up for all of us.
You made Pharyngula, so that gives you a modicum of fame / exposure for your trials!
Bob :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:08 am
Hey Hank:
I saw your contact info, and I was wondering if you worked for the Times-Union. (I’m from the area, and I’m familiar with the paper.)
You were right in doing what you did, of course. I applaud you for that.
Glenn :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:15 am
I know it doesn’t move anything on the health insurance front, or any other front for that matter, but: thank you so much for this.
You are all kinds of brave, and I admire what you have done.
Bodach :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:16 am
Taking a stand (even when your bones creak) is what we have to do to stay sane. Good luck, Hank!
Donnie B. :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:17 am
Good luck, Hank. I don’t normally have the opportunity or authority to hire a freelance copy editor, but if I ever do you’ll be the first place I turn to.
One little thing struck me as odd: your letter to the future is addressed to the people living in the far-flung, futuristic world of 2010 — which is almost a year and a half away! Maybe 2110 would have been more appropriate.
MarkW :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:20 am
Hi Hank,
I’m an atheist too, I’ve come over as one of PZ’s “minions” from pharyngula. Thanks for taking this stand, and I hope I have the courage to do the right thing if I’m ever in similar circumstances.
I quit my job last year (for different reasons — although it was mainly because my boss was an arsehole, so maybe not that different) and it was the best thing I’ve done in a long time.
All the best
Mark
Brad D :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:20 am
Wow! That’s a bold move, and I really hope it works out for you.
The local paper here in San Diego is particularly hostile to atheists as well. Particularly when covering the lawsuits over crosses on public land, which is a long running ugly saga here.
I need to write letters when I see this in the future, making the same comparisons you did before you quit.
Best wishes!
KristinMH :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:24 am
Good for you, Hank. I hope you find another job where you’ll be respected as you should be. You and people like you who stand up for themselves and their beliefs should be applauded – you are an inspiration. Best of luck to you.
Peter :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:24 am
I hope you’re okay, in fact, I hope your plan works and the freelance stuff goes well, it’ll certainly make you happier from what you said. I think I understand, you might get paid, but sometimes it isn’t enough to sit quietly and just take the money.
Scott M. :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:25 am
Hank, would it be helpful if we all wrote to your paper asking them to give you your old job back?? Short of that, how do we send money to your pay pal account??
Best wishes and thanks for taking one for the team.
Jeff Flowers :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:26 am
Good luck to you Hank.
Snappyback :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:38 am
Integrity is so rare and refreshing these days. Kudos and best wishes to you, Hank.
funda62 :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:40 am
Thank you for standing up for your beliefs and for all of us atheist or not.
Shane :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:47 am
Thanks Hank. I’ll spread the word.
Tyson Koska :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:49 am
Good “luck”… whatever that is…
Tyson
Adam N :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:49 am
As a fellow atheist and human being, I just want to tell you that I salute you and your stand, and sincerely hope everything works out for you.
Although, though I am only 21 and have been an atheist since about grade 5, I cannot say I’ve ever faced discrimination for my beliefs, despite everybody I know being aware of them, and many disagreeing with them. Maybe it’s living on a university campus, maybe it’s being in Canada, but there just doesn’t seem to be that problem in my area. I guess I should consider myself lucky.
So I’d also like to thank you and others like you for bringing this problem into the limelight and taking a stand for your rights as a human being. Filthy heretic or no
Tom :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:54 am
Hey Hank,
While I applaud your efforts, I think it might have been cheaper, and just as effective, to take out a full page ad, adjacent to the article, stating your objections.
Good luck,
Tom
Lord Zero :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:00 pm
I give you all my support, what you did was incredible, an act of bravery and courage unthinkable in our times.
I hope you work out things there, get a better job.
If we can be of help, please call for us, the atheistic community of Pharyngulites.
nipseyrussell :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:02 pm
hi, just linked over from pharyngula. did this story run? is it on line and if so can you link us to it or otherwise help us find this article so we can read it and perhaps follow up with a letter to the editor if we feel so moved?
kimber :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:05 pm
I applaud you, Hank, and wish you all the best in your future adventures. With that sort of fire in your belly, I have no doubt that you’ll be successful in all you choose to do.
I went through a similar process a few years back. I cast aside wage-slavery for freelance writing (although, admittedly, for no reason so noble…. I just couldn’t stand it anymore), and I’ve never regretted my decision.
Rog :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:19 pm
Hank,
I’d like to join everyone in wishing you the very best of luck.
I do have reservations on this – as I’ve said in my blog – in so far as I’d hate Atheists to get as hyper sensetive and oppresive of free speech as many religious groups have become. But, as you say, if the word Atheist were susbtituted with Jew or Muslim, or any other group, the article would never have gone out, so this is an obvious case of discrimination.
That said, I admire immensely not only your stand, but the way you have handled the whole situation – with honesty, dignity and intelligence – a lesson many could do with learning from.
Good luck,
Rog
Interrobang :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:20 pm
Good luck, Hank!
To further Susan’s point, it’s not just that it’s an ugly stereotype, it’s an ugly stereotype that inspires certain kinds of small-minded people to do offensive things. In a way, insinuating that atheists just need a life-threatening event to “bring them around” is basically an insult of the same type as that old slur that lesbians would all become straight this instant if only they’d have heterosexual sex with “a real man.” The result is usually harassment at best.
Who knows, now that they’ve lost a good copy editor (and those are hard to come by, I’m told by friends in the biz), they’ll think twice over publishing crap like that.
Thanks for standing up, Hank.
uncle frogy :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:21 pm
In Chinese the “symbol” for crisis is the same as opportunity. Newspapers have been a struggle for some time as you said it is not if but when they change radically. I lost a secure job once I may not have recovered the same level of security I had before but things could not have turned out any better if I had designed it myself.
Danio :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:21 pm
Good on ya, Hank. I completely agree with your principles, and I admire you for taking a stand on them. I have been on fire about this very issue since the ESPN commentator Rick Reilly gushed “It’s a lousy night for atheists!” when some born-baseball player hit a bunch of home runs a few months back. Again, had Reilly substituted ‘jew’ or ‘black’ or ‘buddhist’, etc. for ‘atheist’ in that pronouncement, he would have been out of a job before the next sunrise. As it was, there was nary a mention of it outside the blogosphere, and certainly no acknowledgement by Reilly or by ESPN that he had misspoken.
I hope there are enough fellow non-believers in your (former) newspaper’s distribution area who will respond to the offending piece with letters to the editor, echoing your initial concerns. We must confront this still-nameless bias wherever and whenever we see it, and in doing so, hopefully make some progress in reclaiming what used to be a secular nation.
Best of luck on the job front, man.
Holbach :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:35 pm
I have never been in that kind of situation, and at present don’t say how I would have acted, but I am proud, as an atheist, to commend your actions. I wish you had been better situated financially as this will bear on your present circumstances. If I could win the lottery I would gladly give you a good amount to keep you comfortable for a period. All the best of luck Hank. You are a good man.
J.S.Brown :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:38 pm
Was the co-pilot an atheist? Did he claim Christian beliefs after the incident? If so, then it’s “factual information.” I don’t see how that line could be offensive to atheists other than being disappointed by the co-pilot’s poor reasoning.
It would be different if the statement was assumed to be true about an atheist, or about atheists generally; “there are no atheists in foxholes.”
Based on what I read above, you did overreact. I wish you well in working for yourself.
Speedy :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:39 pm
Thanks Hank…
One thing I see as different between Atheist prosecution and the others you mentioned… they all were seriously persecuted. Physically even. And they all filed law suits and fought, openly and loudly about their plight.
Walking away? No. They sat in the streets as water hoses pounded them. They were attacked by dogs. They were taken to camps to die. They marched on the streets and went to jail for their convictions.
Until we, as atheists, stop just “walking away” and decide to stand up, fight back, and get vocal… we’re going to remain second class.
Deservedly so.
Johnny Vector :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:49 pm
I’ve been reading your posts and comments for a few years now, and have long had you tagged as my copy editor of choice for when I write my memoirs. Edited by you, and illustrated by Carl Buell, I can write pure crap and it’ll still be an awesome book.
Have you been following Phil Plait’s saga? He quit his job and went pure freelance too. Good luck!
Aaron :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:52 pm
Congratulations and thank you for staying true to your principles and striking a blow for the non-believing community. We are growing in numbers and strength and in time we will prevail. Hopefully, future generations will carry on the cause just as we have built upon the sacrifices of those before us.
Cat Faber :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:53 pm
Thank you for standing up for all of us.
I wish you the best in your new life as a freelancer!
Griffin :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 12:59 pm
Truly inspirational. I wish you the best on your new road.
cactusren :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 1:06 pm
Hank,
Another Pharyngulite here, applauding you for making such a bold move.
I’d just like to contrast this with pharmacists who refuse to dispense contraceptives on religious grounds. If they have a problem with their job requirements, they could just walk away, as well. Instead, they try to change the law, then hide behind their beliefs rather than standing up for them.
Sorry if that seems off-topic, but its what came to my mind while reading your letter. I hope that everything works out for you!
Laura :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 1:15 pm
You are a brave person, and I thank you from the bottom of my little heathen heart for having the courage that most (including myself) would not have to stand up for what is right and fair. Cheers to you! Best of luck to you with your freelance career!
Dave :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 1:39 pm
My advice, as an atheist, is that you re-evaluate whether you want to stand behind your stance against this article and find out if your job is salvageable. It may very well be.
The line from the article wasn’t written by the reporter but was a quote from the pilot (an important distinction, in my opinion). It is entirely possible that the person who originally said it was simply using it to express how life-threatening the crash was and how miraculous their survival was. They probably didn’t really believe that.
Point being; this is not the kind of thing you want to quit your job over. As far as offensive goes, there are editorials that are published that are way worse than this. I don’t even find it offensive. It is even a little funny. If you were a blonde woman, this might be akin to quitting your job because someone quoted someone making a “dumb blonde” joke.
Please re-think this thing. I’ve made worse decisions over more trivial things but this is close.
Good luck.
Justin N :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 1:51 pm
I believe I will echo the sentiment expressed by my fellow non-believers on this site- Bravo, sir! Your bravery is an inspiration to us all.
Thank you for your tale of courage, and I hope that your new life works out for you. Best of luck, and best wishes.
Ichthyic :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 1:55 pm
Hank.
To put it bluntly, it sounds like you really needed to do this anyway. You needed to cut some cords and put yourself into a situation where you have to think on your feet again; test your mettle once more, as it were. Once more into the breach, etc. etc. I think you have a lot of company, myself included.
I’m glad you didn’t wait much longer!
best of luck to you.
“My co-pilot was an atheist before, but he’s been a good Christian ever since.”
well…
“Jesus was my copilot, but then we crashed and I had to eat him.”
Gene :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 1:59 pm
Hank,
You’ve got some serious balls dude! That must have been tough, but I applaud you along with all of the others.
George Bush Sr. didn’t even think that atheists should be citizens of this country (let alone 2nd class citizens). That sort of disrespect can quickly lead to all sorts of pain for atheists and needs to be combated at every turn.
You have done more than your share in protest and have done us all proud.
Christopher Sisk :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 2:14 pm
Good luck Hank,
You’re a hero in my book.
Having just been downsized, I feel your concern about finding work and the freelance struggle in these recent times. Your courage and ethical integrity are a standard we should all hope to live up to in any time. If you need any graphic work done in your future ventures, look me up. I’d be proud to work with you.
Best of luck,
Christopher Sisk
Bee :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 2:14 pm
I’ve jumped out of the employee pool a few times. Once, at the age of forty, it was even the same area of employment: I was doing design, graphics, layout, page pour, ad building, copy writing, copy editing for a publisher of trade/business tabloids. The business got into financial trouble, was weeks behind in wages, owed so much to the printers, they wouldn’t print.
The final straw for me? Fellow came in with his little kid, not well dressed, a freelancer, with the money for a tiny hopeful ad that I knew would never run. The publisher took the man’s money, over my protests. I walked out and never regretted it, even though things were rough for a while.
Best of luck to you, Hank.
Bee
OT :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 2:23 pm
Hank:
I quit my womb-to-tomb job 14 years ago. I’m 53 now. My family and everyone I knew thought I was crazy. I can remember just sitting and my hands shaking in fear as I thought about and worked on what I was going to do next (I was a computer programmer), but old friends called me with freelance jobs and soon I had employees and more security than I ever had with an employer. The major difference between me and my employees, was my willingness to take a risk. You’ve taken the risk. Make the most of it, and Thank You for speaking up for the rest of us.
Alan
Flameduck :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 2:26 pm
How about Stupidity? Foolishness? Just call it as you see it.
Clare :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 2:43 pm
Thanks for being the person who restored my faith in humanity for today! I salute your courage and wish you the very best of luck.
Timothy Wood :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:00 pm
bravo. you are an inspiration.
Flonkbob :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:10 pm
Hank — good luck to you. Sometimes you have to stand up and say ‘enough’. I work for a VERY conservative (very much in the news at times) firm, and I’m quite open in my disagreement with everything from gay oppression to the war. I haven’t quit, nor have I been fired (yet), though I’ve certainly been held down rather hard by those above me on the ladder who are offended by my beliefs.
That’s okay, I’m still above ground so it’s a good day. I hope you bounce back from this financially very quickly. We (the unbelieving community) need more people like you to stand up for what’s right, even in opposition to what religion calls ‘morality’.
Akari_House :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:11 pm
Thanks for setting an example for us all. It’s easy to get used to being walked on, and forget that you have legs too. I hope things improve from here on out for you.
(another Pharyngula reader passing by)
Mr.Pendent :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:21 pm
Good luck, Hank. I admire you and will try to emulate your bravery.
You have put into action a quote that has been spinning in my head for the last month or so:
“Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes.”
Paul :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:24 pm
I, too, quit a job because of discrimination against atheists. My boss, the owner of the company, started praying before meetings. I talked with him privately about how I didn’t think it was appropriate, but he said I should be thankful to Jesus that I have a job.
Within a month of that conversation, I went from Employee of the year to getting a terrible review, with no discernible change in my quality of work.
Unlike you, however, I found a new, better job before I quit that one, and I’m happier for it.
Good luck with your freelance work, and thank you for giving an example of an uncompromising atheist for me to give my little girl as she’s growing up.
Karen :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:32 pm
Hank,
it sounds as though you had a bomb ready to go off, and this incident lit the fuse. It’s risky as hell, and may be the best thing you’ve ever done for yourself.
For many years I worked in a tech industry where there was lots of managerial incompetence, and was laid off several times — always with 30 or 40 other people — when management finally figured out that their version of the product was not going to compete well enough to make the shareholders happy.
Some of those layoffs were just layoffs, and I went off and eventually found another job. Others were the boot in the rear that I needed to make changes in my life and my career. Crisis and opportunity are indeed two faces of the same coin.
The very best of luck to you, and DO keep writing and tell us how it’s going, here or on UTI.
Florian :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:36 pm
Hank.
I saw PZ’s post on Pharyngula, about a person I had never heard about in my life – and five minutes later I find myself having read this letter of yours, sharing the knowledge of (and feelings about) what surely is one of the most important decisions in your life. This is something one doesn’t get too often… A wonderful text, an intense insight, a both thought-provoking and uplifting read.
I’m younger than you, have much less experience in work life and life in general, have never had to experience any problems with being a non-believer in my home country of Germany, no serious financial problems at the moment…
But on the other hand I’ve also just made a big decision for my life, by moving to a different country, on my own – so at least I know a good deal about feelings from both the good and the bad of starting something completely new.
I admire your honesty and your courage and wish you all the best for a great future!
dudemang :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:37 pm
way to go man!
Nick :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:38 pm
@J.S. Brown above,
The statement may well have been accurately reported, but if it is offensive and immaterial to the rest of the story, then why include it? For example, if the pilot had said something like, “Those dirty Krauts sure got us good!” then I doubt most people would vote to include it, given the likelihood of offense to a German reader. Yet as Hank points out, discriminatory attitudes towards atheists are so prevalent that this sort of thing flies totally under the radar.
The hell with them, Hank. You stuck to your guns and I have no doubt that this is the beginning of bigger and better things for you.
AmandaM :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:39 pm
Thank you for speaking up and setting an amazing example for us all. Best of luck to you.
nipseyrussell :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:44 pm
well, i found the article at the newspaper’s website. since hank didnt post a link, nor will i, that is his call. it is interesting that despite all the comments here and at pharyngula, there are only two comments under that article right now! one was there when i got there (“He’s a great dad and terrific grandpa too!”) and one i left. the uproar is not particularly uproarious at this point….
Schenectady athiests unite (or is that like 2 people??)
Ian Pollock :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:48 pm
The quote you objected to really highlights how a good fraction of the religious impulse arises from fear of death, pure and simple.
I suppose that’s understandable on a human level, but can anybody overtly state it that way (“believe in God – cover your bases!”) without getting at least a little embarassed at the uncut wish-thinking they’re indulging in?
Anyway, good luck in your future endeavours.
-Ian
Rick :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:52 pm
I’m glad to see you making a stand. I hope you find another job alright…
Pyroclasm :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 3:56 pm
Hey, I’m here from Pharyngula.
I wanted to thank you for sacrificing your livelihood for your principles. That’s something that we don’t see very often these days, and it’s inspiring to the extreme.
Best wishes to you.
Paul Johnson :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 4:17 pm
Hank you should really set up a paypal donation account. Plenty of bloggers do it. Also if you get the opportunity to contribute more to this excellent cause you have defended, you could really attract more support.
Good luck in your endeavors. If all goes sour, just know that you can always say that you stood up to adversity. Some would say that this is the only way to really live a meaningful life.
Jake Basson :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 4:42 pm
Hank,
I hear you on not wanting to push on other people’s psyches constantly. I even sometimes allow myself to be guided by someone’s ideas for how we should both proceed when I know the ideas are bad. Yes, the incessant push on everyone’s will is a burden and it’s laudable to recognize that and want to diminish your contribution to it. Also, I like to hope that letting someone else’s will be expressed means they will receive their just desserts for better or for worse. In any case, although I’m impressed by your conviction, I think this scenario is the exception to the rule about limiting your own influence on people. I hope you made is as difficult as possible for your editors, made the depth of your passions clear before quitting, made them decide to fire you to get their way if that’s what it came to instead of making easy for them. You wrote that it’s wrong to try to persuade people just because there’s some benefit in it for you…but the benefit is for everyone! You also wrote that what needs to happen is for the voice of atheism to be heard…I hope your writing receives the attention it deserves for your sake and for the sake of the civil treatment of atheists, and I also hope that you don’t pass on your day to day opportunities to make your voice heard.
Thanks for standing up,
Jake
Azdak :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 4:58 pm
Hi Hank,
I’ve followed the others over from Pharyngula to wish you well on your new adventures. If you’re like me, compromising on your values in order to keep a job is never the healthy way to go. I did it once, and though I later left that job over a decade ago, it still bothers me that I didn’t have the balls to stand by my convictions when it counted. I admire your courage, and wish you all the best in your search for new and fulfilling opportunities.
Brandon Clinton :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 5:24 pm
Good for you, Hank, and thank you.
Robot Wisdom 2.0 at biolog :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 5:44 pm
[...] Fox quits his career job at the newspaper over the soft bigotry of [...]
Krubozumo Nyankoye :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 5:56 pm
Thought provoking posting you made here Mr. Fox. If this is an example of your thinking and writing you will do well and you probably need not worry all that much about getting on your feet financially.
It takes courage and conviction both to think independently and to live independently in so far as possible. It is not always easy to do or obvious how to do it. However, if you never try, you will never know.
I have freelanced in my field for almost 30 years, there have been good times and bad, I have not accomplished all that I had hoped I could but I have accomplished more than anyone else expected me to. I will keep working at it to the best of my ability until I expire. There is nothing I would rather do.
If my experience is any example you will have a satisfying and unique future which you greatly deserve, in as much as you have freely chosen to forge it yourself.
You were right to object to a gratuitous slur against those of us who use the brains we have evolved in one of the most obvious of decisions in life. I pity those who cede their birthright, the only life we will ever know, to the greatest lie of all and to those who gain by it. You have broken a chip from that wall of ignorance.
Kindest regards,
trog69 :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 6:40 pm
Good aftermoon, Hank. Here’s wishing you great good luck and mildly interesting times.
I’m taking your admonishment to heart; We atheists need to speak out much more than we do now. I will work harder at this than I have, so at least know that you’ve already inspired one person to get off their duff.
Thank you, Mr. Fox.
JakeR :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 7:31 pm
Hank, hie yourself to https://listserv.indiana.edu/cgi-bin/wa-iub.exe?A0=COPYEDITING-L&X=683ABC7E5A1A5ED420 or http://tinyurl.com/4vkp72 and sign up. The group has several non-theists among its members and suggestions for finding–and occasional offers–of work.
Nat Jackson :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 8:11 pm
Good on you for standing by your convictions Hank.
If this is the only life we have, and we’re the only incarnation of ourselves that will ever exist, it is sensible to put a high value on being able to live with yourself.
Duke York :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 8:51 pm
Be strong, Hank. I admire your principles.
Duke
Vlad the Inhaler :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 8:51 pm
Thank you…as a fellow non-theist, I found your story profoundly moving. I wish I had your courage.
Kevin Hower :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 10:17 pm
Way to go Hank! It’s pretty scary doing what you did. I’ve done it before, and things turned out alright in the end, but it was, quite frankly, terrifying at the time. I applaud you for standing up for your beliefs.
Much success in all you do.
DS Blank :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 10:21 pm
Go for it… for yourself, and all of us.
The things that go through my head » Blog Archive » Admiration :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 10:44 pm
[...] have a lot of it for Hank Fox right now. He quit his job in response to some atheist bigotry. I can honestly say that I am quite [...]
Simon Scott :
Date: October 6, 2008 @ 11:14 pm
Dude, you quit your job over that?
Seriously, it was a quote. It wasnt expressed as an opinion. The article was quoting some decaying old loon.
Of all the things to quit over……
Antti Rasinen :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 1:14 am
Amazing. I’ve heard of the occasional bad treatment the irreligious encounter in the States. But I couldn’t believe it until I read the above.
I live in Finland, where roughly one fifth of the population is officially non-religious. We do have our share of intellectual turds in the press now and then, but there is usually a huge backlash.
I think you did the right thing. Hopefully it turns out well for you.
Inoculated Mind :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 1:28 am
Hank,
Marvelous post, and good luck to you. If I come across some of your freelance pieces, I’ll be sure to support your effort by picking them up. Thanks for taking a stand on a issue related to The Last Minority, and letting it not be a downer but instead a catalyst for change in your life.
Jim S :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 2:07 am
Congratulations! Fantastic! Good Luck!
Several things resonated in your story but mostly striking for me was to discover we feel exactly the same about persuading people, and for exactly the same reasons.
Both my wife and I have been freelancers for 15 years! You can do it!
News From Around The Blogosphere 10.6.08 « Skepacabra :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 2:54 am
[...] Hank Fox has quit his job at a newspaper because they ran an unnecessary quote, in spite of his protests that was blatant bigotry against atheists: The final anecdote of the article was about his plane getting shot down, and one quote the reporter used was him saying something like “My co-pilot was an atheist before, but he’s been a good Christian ever since.” [...]
Hunt :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 4:03 am
Sorry, don’t have time to read all the other comments right now, so ignore if this has already been covered. The very worse part of that story quote, and actually the most intellectually insulting thing about it, is it’s probably apocryphal. True atheists don’t simply convert because of a single traumatic event. So, not only was it insulting in a bigoted way, it was an insult to reader intelligence and maturity as well.
Jay McCaffrey :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 7:44 am
While in the US Army in the 1960s, I wanted my religious preference to be listed as Atheist. This brought me endless trouble. I was told by my company commander that I had no chance of promotion as a atheist. So I did not reenlist. I took my GI Bill and got a very fine university education, thank you. In my case it worked out well. I hope you have a similar story to tell someday, Hank.
Die Anyway :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 10:46 am
Another PZ minion checking in to give a cheer and best wishes (as if wishing was worth anything). Trigger events don’t have to be big, they just have to occur at the right moment. I’m rootin’ for ya, ’cause we’re all in this together.
Eat well, stay fit, Die Anyway.
Thom H.
Silly :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 11:39 am
I wonder if any of you would consider it insulting to Christians if someone described a situation in which they had seen a child die despite hundreds of prayers to heal the child and said, “Before that moment, I was a Christian. But from then on, I was an atheist.” Or if a person told a story in which they had seen poverty in America, and said “Before that moment, I was a Republican. But from then on I was a Democrat.”
Please. This is a bunch of sanctimonious twaddle. The story is about someone’s personal experience, and it appears to accurately report the experience. How dare anybody claim that reason and experience can lead to Faith!? It’s an insult to anybody they disagree with!
Your argument rests on false analogies — “scared white” or “scared Christian.” Try “became an atheist because of disillusionment with God not answering prayers.”
Kate :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 5:53 pm
Silly – there’s a whole lot of difference between someone being interviewed that says ‘until then I was a ‘ whatever and someone else making that observation. No, I don’t think any of those observations would have been printed if they were said about someone else.
Dear Readers… « “Gone Fishin’: Postcards From God” :
Date: October 8, 2008 @ 12:13 am
[...] of the economy, it takes a courageous atheist to quit his job right [...]
Kevin Murphy :
Date: October 8, 2008 @ 1:28 am
Respect due and gladly given.
I wish I had your cojones my friend.
Best of luck.
ZorkFox :
Date: October 8, 2008 @ 3:22 am
As a fellow atheist, human being, and unemployed copy editor, I regard your decision to leave your job as a bright example of what we should all be prepared to do when our principles are challenged or, worse, ignored.
I’m sure it’s scary for you right now—it’s scary for me, too—but I’m sure a bright guy like you will find the right way to make your new life, and make it better.
If you want to set up a team of attractive, globe-trotting, high-rolling, elite editors, look me up.
Richard Eis :
Date: October 8, 2008 @ 6:55 am
You quit over that!! Yoooou idiot. That was waaay over-sensitive and now you are in financial trouble.
Amanda :
Date: October 8, 2008 @ 8:59 am
Thanks for having such integrity. I found the article online and left a comment about it. Nothing inflamatory, nothing mentioning you. Just a reader showing distaste for the editorial decision. I hope that everything works out for you.
SolveEtCoagula :
Date: October 8, 2008 @ 9:36 am
Congratulations, Mr. Fox, for having the courage to stand up for your convictions. I am deeply impressed, and wish you well in your freelancing. I’ll be certain to keep an eye out for your name — the least I can do is put a bit of money where my mouth is and buy your stuff should I come across it.
David H. :
Date: October 8, 2008 @ 2:10 pm
Hank, I’m sorry to hear that you quit your job over taking offense to include that speaker’s opinion. While I’m an atheist, as well, I believe that other people should be entitled to express their opinions unfiltered, bigoted or otherwise. I think this was poor judgment on your part. Especially since it sounded like you had an otherwise satisfying job and good work environment.
Regarding religion, I believe that man is inherently a religious animal. That’s who we are. We’re wired that way. Almost all civilizations have created their own myths and gods since the earliest recorded history. Those of us who choose not to believe will always be in the minority. (Even though we’re right.)
Good luck on your new ventures, whatever they may be.
David
David :
Date: October 10, 2008 @ 4:51 am
Sadly, little pseudo-poetic snippets like this creep into the public consciousness, and many people actually question, “how can atheists can find meaning?” Atheists are apparently the ‘least trusted minority’, yet how can anyone deny the integrity and principle you have shown here, and inspired in others?
Amador :
Date: October 12, 2008 @ 10:33 pm
I applaud you for taking a stand for us. It was a gutsy think to do, and I’m not sure I would’ve had the courage had I been in your situation. In my case, I think I would’ve fought over it and I would’ve expressed my discomfort that the paper condones attacks to freedom of belief. But it seems to me that you had other long-standing reasons to quit and this was the trigger. It’s great for you to have left with such dignity.
I join other comments in that the info is probably apocryphal: the “atheist in a foxhole” argument is too self-fulfilling. Of course, we should be prepared to receive this sort of criticism, and, in this sense, I’ve found that the foxhole argument actually supports atheism.
The foxhole argument basically states that an atheist confronted with a life-threatening situation will seek protection and salvation from the hands of a higher power. In other words, I find myself in an overwhelming situation like a plane about to crash. that turns off my capacity to reason carefully or meditate and turns on my fight-or-flight response. Not being able to do anything else, I turn to a supernatural being. If that is the case, doesn’t it actually support the case that religion breeds on fear, coercion and irrationality?
Malcolm Lockridge :
Date: November 4, 2008 @ 6:49 pm
Good luck, mate. Other than loyalty, there is nothing I admire more than the integrity and moral courage you constantly display. Stay cool, you’ll be fine. Have faith in your own abilities. You’re the smartest and wisest man I know, you can write up a storm, and the job you quit was far beneath you anyway. “It’s not a problem, it’s an oppportunity.” Write me, I’ve lost your email address.
Neil Moffatt :
Date: May 31, 2009 @ 5:16 pm
Although you wrote this entry back in October, it is new to me today. I thought it prudent to share my feelinsg in a kind of parallel to yours. Namely that at the end of last year, after some bad health, I decided to live on my savings for a while and live according to the job title ‘Maverick’. I simply followed by ideas and the consequences of them. It started with the writing of 2 books on Go (Oriental game), and then moved to a decades long problem – my hyopglycaemia. That is nearly under control in spectacular fashion. It onvolved a lot of research, which has triggered some enquiries to government. I have an invention I want to explore yet. But focusing on developing ideas rather than directly earning money is so refreshing and fulfilling. It is like being alive as an adult for the 1st time.
Crazalus :
Date: September 23, 2009 @ 8:08 am
Given the number of stories of people who, in times of crisis, have turned away from Belief… maybe you should have asked if they’d approve of the quote “My Co-Pilot was a Christian, but since then he’s been an Atheist”
I can bet they would have turned that down very quickly…
James Smith, João Pessoa, Brazil :
Date: November 29, 2009 @ 12:26 pm
WHo was it that said, “People that want to tell you about their religious beliefs, never want to hear about yours.”?
You have acted in a courageous, morally correct manner. I wish you luck in all your future endeavors.
Brian :
Date: February 21, 2010 @ 5:19 am
I created an Atheist / rational thinker store, mostly out of anger and frustration at the general public’s stupidity and/or apathy about just these kinds of things. Check it out if you like… I keep all of the prices as low as is possible through zazzle in order to get as much out there as I can and help spread the word that we’re not going to take this shit anymore.
http://www.zazzle.com/briman232*
Sapna Tv :
Date: March 23, 2011 @ 12:01 am
I sent an email to the ASA – to the lady who emailed me. Her email address was on their letter. That was over 24 hours ago – no acknowledgement or response at all yet.
I agree – political ads must adhere to some criteria. But if the ASA make them exempt, who does regulate them?