The Owensboro Freethinkers was a group originally formed to
bring together like-minded folks who agree on a certain subset of values, and
in order to alleviate any confusion on what those values may be, we have a list of ten statements that mostly represents us as a group, and
hopefully it will offer the general public an idea of where we’re coming from,
and what we represent.
It worked for the Christians and the Jews – don’t see why it
can’t work for us as well:
- Thou shalt have freedom of thought…
The term “freethinker” is a relatively new term on the
social scene, though it can be retroactively applied to many famous folks in
history who may have been, in spirit, a freethinker, but sans the label. The definition of a freethinker is an
evolving one, and it’s up for interpretation and debate, but the Owensboro
Freethinkers use an amalgamation of definitions provided by Merriam Webster and
a self-proposed definition offered by the Evansville Freethinkers, our sister
group in Indiana. Our definition stands as such: “one who forms opinions on the basis of
reason independently of authority; especially one who doubts or denies
religious dogma. Individuals should
neither accept nor reject ideas proposed as truth without recourse to knowledge
and reason, and that opinions should be formed on the basis of science and
logic, without being influenced by authority, tradition, or any other dogma.” To boil the notion of freethinking down to a
palpable sound-bite, we encourage folks to “think whatever they want, but be
able to rationally back it up”.
Freethinkers believe that no person should be restricted, intimated, or
coerced into believing, thinking, or espousing a position, point of view, or
way of thinking unless they reached it on their own grounds through rational
and critical thought.
- Thou shalt have freedom of speech…
“I do not agree with what you say; but I will defend to the
death your right to say it” – (Attributed to) Voltaire
In conjunction with the first value, we believe that people
should be able to freely express their opinions and views, regardless of how
controversial, uncomfortable, unpopular, or off-beat the view is. Furthermore, we believe in healthy and, most
importantly, open discussion and debate on these subjects without any fear of
unreasonable reprisal. Most freethinkers
value the 1st Amendment which guarantees the right to freedom of
speech, but as the Clash once said: “you
have the right to free speech…as long as you’re not dumb enough to try it”. There are consequences to what people say and
write, but we encourage healthy dialogue between those who hold opposite views. Our group stands for the notion that “any
ideas are intellectual fair game”.
- Thou shalt value humanity…
Many of us freethinkers are also secular humanists or
variations thereof, which believe that, for a lack of better definition,
mankind is the end-all, be-all. We grow
together, we die together – the details between are very important to us. We have a realistic view of mankind, but we
see the potential in our species to rise above many of the ideological and
social fetters that have caused us quite a bit of harm in the past. Many of our own independent ideas encourage
the progression of humanity to a better future, and the best way to ensure a
better future is the continual improvement of today. We stand to help our fellow man.
- Thou shalt encourage and perform critical and rational thought…
We promote critical and rational thought as the best means
to our ends as a species. Until the
advent of the scientific method – a product of the Enlightenment – society as a
whole, particularly from the fall of Rome until relatively recently, was based on unreasonable superstition, dogmatic beliefs, and rampant,
unchecked spiritualism. In Western
Society, the virtues found behind critical thinking have assisted mankind in
rising from the mire of the medieval ages, and now because of the scientific
method, we enjoy modern technology, longer life spans, lower mortality rates,
cures to diseases long thought to be scourges from God, and an overall,
improved lifestyle. History has taught
us the value of thought based on reason, and our position as a group encourages
a society based on said mode of thinking.
We stand behind institutions that can better man by exercising these
values – science being one major institution in particular.
- Thou shalt not restrict or infringe upon another human being’s rights…
We believe in the power of our United
States constitution. We believe that our country was founded on a
reasonable amount of individual liberty and freedom, and as such, we discourage
groups and organizations discriminating on sexual, racial, religious, or
political basis (or any other basis not listed). As long as we are productive citizens, we are
all entitled to the same basic rights and liberties regardless of who we are. We also believe in debating what those rights
are, and how far they extend. As Ben
Franklin said (and I paraphrase here) democracy is “two wolves and a lamb
deciding what to have for dinner”. We
believe in protecting the lamb’s right to not be devoured by the whims of the
wolves.
- Thou shalt promote education…
If the lock to a better society needs a key to open humanity
to better results, education – a good education – is that key. We believe that no person should be denied an
education, and we believe that education is not a twelve-year agonizing
experience for children, nor a four-year rat-race for young adults in college
and university. We believe that
education is a life-long endeavor, and that to be a productive, well-informed
citizen capable of giving back to society, one must be educated. We promote constant, continuous, and
unfettered learning. We are all
students; we are all teachers.
- Thou shalt encourage fair government, fair economics, a fair society, and equal opportunities…
This is open-ended, but we encourage all citizens to use
their faculties to better mankind, and we universally stand for the idea of
fairness. Realistically, there will
never be a fair society, but we encourage systems built to promote fair
society: the law of our land, our
political systems, public activism, free trade of ideas and discourse, etc.
- Thou shalt value thy life – it is the only one thou hast…
Most of us do not believe in a god or higher power. Some of us do. Those who don’t realize that this is the only
life we have, and time should not be squandered. We have one shot at improving mankind, and we
live in a time where the opportunity to do so has rarely been so ample. We believe in enjoying our lives and
appreciating what we have because it is finite.
We believe in bettering the planet for our progeny.
- Thou shalt be an active citizen…
We promote being pro-active in the community and lending a
helping hand where needed. Most of these
latter statements are all tied together with the thread of activism. We believe that, in order to initiate change,
one should vote, start groups, start clubs, bring attention to issues, use
their voices, and do whatever is reasonably allowed within our culture to bring
about any change desired. There is no
point in having a society or country “for the people” if the people do not have
any stake in it. A healthy citizen
recognizes they have a vested interest in society, and he or she does their
best to participate.
- Thou shalt not lie…
Ok, you caught us – we borrowed this one from Exodus, but we
like this one. Freethinkers and those
associated with the philosophy must, above all, be honest with others and, most
importantly, to ourselves. Freethinkers
love to learn, we love to grow, but we don’t know everything. We try not to be pretentious, but in the course
of discussion and debate, we do ask for evidence to back up claims, and we take little, if anything, on faith. We ask for and promote intellectual and moral
honesty. We promote honest critical
inquiry, and we normally loath dishonesty.
No person is perfect, but if the truth is to be sought and pursued, one
should not do it by dishonest means. We don't know if the truth will set us free...but it sure helps us get by.
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