Brent Rasmussen

Observations and inanities by a second-shift assistant supervisor in the Puppy-Grinding division of the Evil Atheist Conspiracy® (our motto: "Sure it's cruel, but think of the jobs!"), your host, Brent Rasmussen.

Jim Downey

UTI Associate blogger Jim Downey is a former newspaper columnist and also writes at the Daily Kos under the handle Shadan7. "I'm the fat old man of the crowd (well, make that middle-aged and overweight). My life's arc has been colorful in some odd and delightful ways, and though by most conventional standards I'm not 'successful', I've mostly enjoyed the ride. I now keep busy writing, playing with my dog, and as a book & document conservator in private practice."

Paul Fidalgo

UTI associate blogger Paul Fidalgo is an actor, musician, and writer with a background in political media, communications, and research. He holds a master's degree in political management from George Washington University, and blogs on atheism in American culture. He blogs at Examiner.com as the DC Secularism Examiner, and maintains two blogs, Near Earth Object, a blog of several overlapping magisteria including political satire and his own musical work; and Bloc Raisonneur, specifically concerning atheists' precarious place in American politics and culture. Paul's music can be purchased for mere pennies at Amie St.

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Rick Ulrey

UTI Associate blogger Rick Ulrey comes to UTI by way of the Marine Corps: "I'm 31 and I earn my living fixing computers. I served 6 years in the Marine Corps and consider myself a liberal libertarian with conservative leanings. I am a firm believer that the world would be a better place if people took responsibility for themselves and their actions. As you can see from the picture I love food. That's me eating a banana fritter in Australia with a nice cup of coffee. I love to cook and my other hobbies include hiking, camping, reading and on and offline gaming."

Steven Darksyde

UTI co-blogger and friend DarkSyde has this to say about himself: "I'm in my 40s, I work out a lot, I'm a personal trainer as a hobby, I've worked mainly as an investment advisor, stocks and bonds. I've done quite a bit of sky diving. I live a few miles from the Space Center in Florida. I have a strong background in math and physics and I'm an active advocate for Evolution in the Evolution vs. Creationism issue."

It's A Miracle!

Submitted by Brent Rasmussen on April 5, 2006 - 2:03pm.

Christians tell us that a little more than 2000 years ago, a man named Jesus performed a divine miracle and walked on water.

Well, ice, anyway.

I don't buy it. I mean, what's more likely? That a medieval religious teacher walked across some hard-to-see ice to speak with his disciples and they misinterpreted it -- or that the same being was the divine Son of the Almighty God, Supreme Deity Of The Universe, and that he contradicted the laws of physics and performed a supernatural, impossible miracle by walking upon the surface of regular non-frozen water?

It's so obvious. Hello?

I tell you - all this rational thinking is threatening our traditional irrational family values. Damn you, you evil oceanographers! Damn you to hell for all your confounded thinking!

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Dude, if God gave me an ice

Submitted by Theo (not verified) on April 12, 2006 - 11:45pm.

Dude, if God gave me an ice path over whatever lake I was trying to cross, I'd be pretty stoked.

Dude,

Submitted by Brent Rasmussen on April 13, 2006 - 5:07am.

Dude, I so totally agree with you.

Totally. Dude.

Well, you know, if by "God" you mean, like, a bong or something, then you know, that would be cool. Totally. And if by "ice path", you mean, like, waves, and by "lake" you mean "ocean", then I would so completely agree with you, and also be stoked, dude.

*flashes "hang loose" sign with left hand*

Frustrating

Submitted by Zeteo_Eurisko on April 6, 2006 - 11:48am.

People like this FSU prof do more to help Christians than anything. They set themselves up as easy targets for Christian apologists to hold up as examples of "dumb atheistic thinking."

Tsk

Submitted by mark (not verified) on April 6, 2006 - 7:18am.

It seems you've set up a false dichotomy, offering your explanation as an alternative to the common one. As others have pointed out, there is at least one more possibility, one which seems even liklier (the alleged event is a fable).

Pfft.

Submitted by Brent Rasmussen on April 6, 2006 - 9:10am.

As you know, Mark, as a Christian man I KNOW that there is no other explanation except a miracle. The oceanographer made up that whole "clear ice" story because the devil was whispering it in his ear.

You poor atheist, using big satanic words like "dichotomy". What is that? Another word for bisexual deviants?

I'll have you know that Our Lord And Divine Saviour Jesus Christ The Redeemer is not a fable like the Little Mermaid! How dare you!

(Psst. Mark. It was a joke. The whole post is tongue-in-cheek. Lighten up a little bit. Heh.)

Yup, this has all the earmarkes of...

Submitted by george.w on April 5, 2006 - 5:05pm.

a strained explanation when the simple one is, "it never happened at all and somebody made it up." Half-submerged ice isn't something you'd walk casually on, and didn't Jesus just walk right up to the boat? So the ice came right to the edge of the boat, and the (very experienced) fishermen didn't notice it? During a storm?

A Third Possibility

Submitted by mikey (not verified) on April 5, 2006 - 4:41pm.

The Third Possibility is some men it the second or third century with an agenda and a desire to exercise power over other people invented this talk of the son of god and his divine miracles...

Mikey

Ice?

Submitted by Alon Levy on April 5, 2006 - 2:40pm.

Well, the article mentions cold spells 2,000 years ago, but I think you're going to need a major glacial period for the Sea of Galilee to freeze over.