Hello

Allow me to introduce myself. I go by the name Huxley here and elsewhere in the Intertubes. I’m a 26 year old Finnish guy, studying IT and business in Helsinki, Finland. Also where I was born and raised. My interests range from all things science, computers and other geeky things, to history, economics and world affairs, to an especially unhealthy fascination with American politics. The latter waxes and wanes roughly every four years, and is about to reach new heights of obsession.

I could forever sing praises of the fair hostess of this blog, whose idea it was for us to write here together, but I don’t want to embarrass her too much. Suffice to say that that I rarely, if ever, find myself disagreeing about anything with her. We share most of our interests, our secular liberal values, and our strongly atheist world views. She’s also the most important person in my life, and I believe our mutual nonbelief has brought us together stronger than reverence to any deity ever could. As far as I’m concerned, any celestial dictator who’d require us to love him more than we love each other, ourselves and our families, can go straight to hell.

I was baptized as a baby into the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, like some 82% of Finns, but my immediate family was by no means very religious. I got my dosage of childhood indoctrination in the mandatory prayer sessions, visits to church, and religious studies classes in the lower comprehensive school. Never took any of it very seriously, nor did the majority of other kids. It was just sort of watered down, easy, liberal Christianity for the masses. I called BS on it early when I refused to be confirmed into full membership of the church. It is still considered an important rite of passage over here, though the kids do it mostly because they get showered in more presents than they’ve ever seen before. I thought it would’ve been hypocritical for me to go through with it, and well, never was and never have been much of a materialist. My parents didn’t protest much. The most my mother made an effort was to warn me that someday I might want to marry a girl who wants a church wedding, and then I’d have to get confirmed as an adult. Granted, the odds were against me there, but it seems I have them beat. ;)

During my formative years I drifted about a lot, not really getting a grip until I was in my twenties. I was a smart student, but lacked the motivation and interest in the real world to commit myself to education or a decent job. No long term goals, no idea what to do with my life. I completed my national service, both in the armed forces and later in civilian service, enjoyed my time in both and discovered many things about myself. I realized that I’m actually very capable and good at getting things done once I’ve got my mind set on it. I also became friends with Jennifer, and we sort of grew together over time. So too did my new outlook on life grow. I’d considered myself an agnostic before, but once I took that small step into full blown atheism, it was like removing blinders off my eyes. One might say it was the perfect intellectual awakening, into the wonderful world of science and skepticism, in other words: to that which is real. Reality indeed is far more interesting, bizarre and wonderful than fantasy.

Richard Dawkins, with his book The God Delusion, set out to open the eyes of fence-sitters such as myself, and has surely succeeded. Much credit also to her who made me read the book in the first place. It’s a damn shame, and increasingly frightening that most people in the world are still shackled by religious faith. It may well be the most potent force of evil in the world, but surely not the only one. Free market fundamentalism, though in some ways a pseudo-religion itself, is right up there with communism, nationalism and fascism. It has taken its toll in Latin-America, Africa, Middle-East and Asia, and certainly on American democracy. I will elaborate on that in later posts, so let that be a teaser.