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Diatribes, Volume 1: 50 Essays From a Godless Misanthrope
Do you occasionally suffer from bouts of rationality, cognizance and literacy? Are you constantly baffled by the failure of your fellow hominids to comprehend simple principles like evidence, statistical significance, confirmation bias and logic? Do your jaws ache from constantly holding your tongue in polite company? Do you find yourself tempted to stand on tables and scream “The bible also says rabbits chew their cud! That’s not an allegory and I’m not reading it out of context, you frothing nincompoops, it’s just wrong!”? Then this may be the book for you. The Scathing Atheist is a weekly podcast about religion that uses all the expletives the subject deserves. In its first year of production, host Noah Lugeons has earned a reputation for vindictive wit that is on full display in these fifty essays; each an expanded version of a tirade that first appeared on the podcast. More than a third of the book is all new material so whether you're a fan of The Scathing Atheist podcast or just a fan of vulgar and blasphemous wordplay, these bite-sized nuggets of vitriolic rationality are the perfect catharsis for atheists who are too polite to tell people what they really think.
214 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2014
69 people are currently reading
133 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 10, 2014
My first introduction to The Scathing Atheist podcast was the phrase 'Jehova's Witness Protection Program.' A line like that is just too interesting to not investigate further. Since then I've been a faithful listener to the podcast and have on many occasions had to check myself and not start laughing out loud while on the bus to work.
For all the comedy and mockery the podcast crew does, it is the diatribes at the beginning of the show that really show the passion Noah feels for why he's doing the show. Sure, the atheist community often pokes fun at organized religion, but in these opening essays, you really get a sense that there is something rotten about the whole institution and while mockery is fun, many of the atrocities caused in the name of one religion or another need to be addressed, and the root cause marginalized.
This book is a compilation of the opening diatribes from the first 50 episodes of The Scathing Atheist, and it drives home what I mentioned above. We can joke, we can laugh, and we can mock people like Ken Ham and Ray Comfort...but we also have to realize the damage they're doing, and do everything we can to stop them.
For all the comedy and mockery the podcast crew does, it is the diatribes at the beginning of the show that really show the passion Noah feels for why he's doing the show. Sure, the atheist community often pokes fun at organized religion, but in these opening essays, you really get a sense that there is something rotten about the whole institution and while mockery is fun, many of the atrocities caused in the name of one religion or another need to be addressed, and the root cause marginalized.
This book is a compilation of the opening diatribes from the first 50 episodes of The Scathing Atheist, and it drives home what I mentioned above. We can joke, we can laugh, and we can mock people like Ken Ham and Ray Comfort...but we also have to realize the damage they're doing, and do everything we can to stop them.
March 1, 2019
Diatribes, Vol 1: 50 Essays From a Godless Misanthrope by Noah Lugeons
“Diatribes, Vol 1” is an amusing book of atheist diatribes that mocks religion because it’s most deserving of it. Noah Lugeons of The Scathing Atheists provides readers with 50 essays from his popular podcast. This entertaining 214-page book includes fifty essays broken out by the following ten chapters: 1. Atheist Activism, 2. Atheism and the Media, 3. Those Who Earn My Ire, 4. Religious Vs. Secular, 5. Christians Annoy Me, 6. Why Religion Always Sucks , 7. The “Benefits” of Faith, 8. Debating Faith, 9. The Bible, and 10. Devoted to Stupidity.
Positives:
1. Fun, irreverent, engaging book to read.
2. Mocking religion is always a fun topic. Provides 50 essays or diatribes from the Scathing Atheist podcast.
3. Makes the case of why religion needs to be mocked. “But religion doesn’t make a good target because it’s shocking, but rather because it’s deserving”.
4. Lugeons knows his strengths and weaknesses and stays within his wheelhouse. He is a sort of shock podcaster who focuses his ire on religion. The book has been cleaned up enough to appease his fans and for consumer consumption.
5. In between the jokes, there is plenty of substance. “Religion has had a free ride for too long and despite the growing murmurs of malcontents, the societal privilege afforded to faith remains a national embarrassment.”
6. Atheism and the link to intelligence. “So why are atheists smarter than religious people? Because getting answers correct is the definition of intelligence.”
7. Separating faith from critical thought. “Religion forces you to relinquish critical thought. It can’t be arrived at through empirical means and it can’t stand up to logical evaluation so it has to. That’s a prerequisite to faith.”
8. Religion at its core. “At its best religion is naïve and arrogant. At its worst it’s fatal.”
9. Thought provoking. “As atheists, we stand in awe of a lot of things… but perhaps the thing I’m most in awe of is the stupidity it takes to look past the entire universe of things that actually exist and stand in awe of something that doesn’t.”
10. Rightfully attacks religious privilege. “We’re just asking that religion be evaluated by the same means as everything else and be given no special privilege on the simple merit of being religion.”
11. Explains why religion sucks. “It has to be hard for religious people to ignore the way science keeps being right all the time.”
12. The recent impetus behind atheism. “But if there was a phoenix that rose from the ashes that day, it was the new-atheist movement. The four horsemen all cite the 9/11 attacks as the impetus to their vocal opposition to religion.”
13. Some points are so relevant today. “As soon as you allow somebody to speak with an authority that can't be measured against reality, it will be abused.”
14. The afterlife. “I’m sick and tired of hearing people argue the merits of a belief in the afterlife. It’s an absurd concept no matter how you try to spin it and what’s more, it makes it harder to deal with the reality that dead people are just dead. That’s usually the hardest thing anyone will ever have to deal with so you’re probably better off trying to deal with it right away rather than cheese-clothing over it with fairy tales until it actually happens.”
15. Takes glee in exposing myths. “So sure, believing in myths is comforting in the moment; in the same way it’s comforting to pretend you can fly when you’re falling.”
16. The power of emotions. “And that’s when the real nature of the argument comes out. That’s when it becomes obvious that this conversation was never about logic, it was never about reason, it was about emotion. It wasn’t about the world you observe, it was about the world you want to observe.”
17. The value in arguments. “Every argument counts. Every debate matters. Every chip off that stone adds up. Never lose sight of this important fact; everybody who has ever given up their faith, everybody who has ever set aside the prison of superstition and embraced reality did so because of one point; one question; one analogy.”
18. Shortcomings from the Bible. “Noah’s Ark is a horrible, awful, disgusting, repugnant story but it’s the one that makes the cover on most books of Children’s Biblical Stories. Now I ask you, if that’s the best you can do for a children’s story, how can you possibly argue that this book is anything but terrible?”
19. Prosperity gospel. “God wants you to be rich. Sure, he could have given you wealthy parents or the PowerBall numbers, but why bother with that when he could just stick all the secrets to happiness, fulfillment and large beliefs in 22-point type, a 5th grade reading level and five easy steps?”
20. Merits of podcasting. “So when I face this moral quandary, regardless of its source, I hope that I’ll be able to take solace in the fact that the merit of podcasting is largely derived from its intellectual independence.”
Negatives:
1. Understandably, lacks the depth of more philosophical or scientific books.
2. If you are a prude this is not your cup of tea.
3. Lacks supplementary material. There are no notes, bibliography or charts to compliment the humorous biting narrative.
In summary, a fun irreverent book. It takes all types in the atheist movement to make progress in society and Lugeons stays within his wheelhouse, a self-proclaimed impassioned antagonist who uses potty humor to mock religion. I’m usually prime and proper so this kind of tactic is an uncomfortable guilty pleasure. But through all the mocking, Lugeons delivers substantive and well-thought out tirades that proves the need to mock religion for the betterment of society. I recommend it!
Further suggestions: “Diatribes, Volume 2” by the same author, “God: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction” by Dan Barker, “God is not Great” Christopher Hitchens, “Good Without God” by Greg Epstein, “Freethinkers” by Susan Jacoby, “A Manual for Creating Atheists” by Peter Boghosian, “The God Virus” by Darrel Ray, “Why Evolution Is True” by Jerry A. Coyne, “Atheism for Dummies” by Dale McGowan, “Nonbeliever Nation” by David Niose, “Nailed” by David Fitzgerald, and “Think” by Guy P. Harrison.
“Diatribes, Vol 1” is an amusing book of atheist diatribes that mocks religion because it’s most deserving of it. Noah Lugeons of The Scathing Atheists provides readers with 50 essays from his popular podcast. This entertaining 214-page book includes fifty essays broken out by the following ten chapters: 1. Atheist Activism, 2. Atheism and the Media, 3. Those Who Earn My Ire, 4. Religious Vs. Secular, 5. Christians Annoy Me, 6. Why Religion Always Sucks , 7. The “Benefits” of Faith, 8. Debating Faith, 9. The Bible, and 10. Devoted to Stupidity.
Positives:
1. Fun, irreverent, engaging book to read.
2. Mocking religion is always a fun topic. Provides 50 essays or diatribes from the Scathing Atheist podcast.
3. Makes the case of why religion needs to be mocked. “But religion doesn’t make a good target because it’s shocking, but rather because it’s deserving”.
4. Lugeons knows his strengths and weaknesses and stays within his wheelhouse. He is a sort of shock podcaster who focuses his ire on religion. The book has been cleaned up enough to appease his fans and for consumer consumption.
5. In between the jokes, there is plenty of substance. “Religion has had a free ride for too long and despite the growing murmurs of malcontents, the societal privilege afforded to faith remains a national embarrassment.”
6. Atheism and the link to intelligence. “So why are atheists smarter than religious people? Because getting answers correct is the definition of intelligence.”
7. Separating faith from critical thought. “Religion forces you to relinquish critical thought. It can’t be arrived at through empirical means and it can’t stand up to logical evaluation so it has to. That’s a prerequisite to faith.”
8. Religion at its core. “At its best religion is naïve and arrogant. At its worst it’s fatal.”
9. Thought provoking. “As atheists, we stand in awe of a lot of things… but perhaps the thing I’m most in awe of is the stupidity it takes to look past the entire universe of things that actually exist and stand in awe of something that doesn’t.”
10. Rightfully attacks religious privilege. “We’re just asking that religion be evaluated by the same means as everything else and be given no special privilege on the simple merit of being religion.”
11. Explains why religion sucks. “It has to be hard for religious people to ignore the way science keeps being right all the time.”
12. The recent impetus behind atheism. “But if there was a phoenix that rose from the ashes that day, it was the new-atheist movement. The four horsemen all cite the 9/11 attacks as the impetus to their vocal opposition to religion.”
13. Some points are so relevant today. “As soon as you allow somebody to speak with an authority that can't be measured against reality, it will be abused.”
14. The afterlife. “I’m sick and tired of hearing people argue the merits of a belief in the afterlife. It’s an absurd concept no matter how you try to spin it and what’s more, it makes it harder to deal with the reality that dead people are just dead. That’s usually the hardest thing anyone will ever have to deal with so you’re probably better off trying to deal with it right away rather than cheese-clothing over it with fairy tales until it actually happens.”
15. Takes glee in exposing myths. “So sure, believing in myths is comforting in the moment; in the same way it’s comforting to pretend you can fly when you’re falling.”
16. The power of emotions. “And that’s when the real nature of the argument comes out. That’s when it becomes obvious that this conversation was never about logic, it was never about reason, it was about emotion. It wasn’t about the world you observe, it was about the world you want to observe.”
17. The value in arguments. “Every argument counts. Every debate matters. Every chip off that stone adds up. Never lose sight of this important fact; everybody who has ever given up their faith, everybody who has ever set aside the prison of superstition and embraced reality did so because of one point; one question; one analogy.”
18. Shortcomings from the Bible. “Noah’s Ark is a horrible, awful, disgusting, repugnant story but it’s the one that makes the cover on most books of Children’s Biblical Stories. Now I ask you, if that’s the best you can do for a children’s story, how can you possibly argue that this book is anything but terrible?”
19. Prosperity gospel. “God wants you to be rich. Sure, he could have given you wealthy parents or the PowerBall numbers, but why bother with that when he could just stick all the secrets to happiness, fulfillment and large beliefs in 22-point type, a 5th grade reading level and five easy steps?”
20. Merits of podcasting. “So when I face this moral quandary, regardless of its source, I hope that I’ll be able to take solace in the fact that the merit of podcasting is largely derived from its intellectual independence.”
Negatives:
1. Understandably, lacks the depth of more philosophical or scientific books.
2. If you are a prude this is not your cup of tea.
3. Lacks supplementary material. There are no notes, bibliography or charts to compliment the humorous biting narrative.
In summary, a fun irreverent book. It takes all types in the atheist movement to make progress in society and Lugeons stays within his wheelhouse, a self-proclaimed impassioned antagonist who uses potty humor to mock religion. I’m usually prime and proper so this kind of tactic is an uncomfortable guilty pleasure. But through all the mocking, Lugeons delivers substantive and well-thought out tirades that proves the need to mock religion for the betterment of society. I recommend it!
Further suggestions: “Diatribes, Volume 2” by the same author, “God: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction” by Dan Barker, “God is not Great” Christopher Hitchens, “Good Without God” by Greg Epstein, “Freethinkers” by Susan Jacoby, “A Manual for Creating Atheists” by Peter Boghosian, “The God Virus” by Darrel Ray, “Why Evolution Is True” by Jerry A. Coyne, “Atheism for Dummies” by Dale McGowan, “Nonbeliever Nation” by David Niose, “Nailed” by David Fitzgerald, and “Think” by Guy P. Harrison.
November 21, 2024
A book of monologues, "diatribes", as is the nature of the title. I've been listening to The Scathing Atheist for a few years now, and I've since gone through the whole of the podcast's backlog over that amount of time. Reading this was a nice little trip down some some memory lanes, remembering stories that Noah told in early episodes and knowing the things that he would later experience but didn't know about yet. The cats, the podcast guests, his move to Georgia, various health complications, various live shows he didn't know he was going to do, conferences he would go to (QED 2024, where I would get to meet him and ask him to sign my copy after his talk "The History Of Christian Video Games).
Noah is an excellent speaker and a shining example of what atheism can be, and I'm proud to have met him and be a member of his audience.
Noah is an excellent speaker and a shining example of what atheism can be, and I'm proud to have met him and be a member of his audience.
May 22, 2023
Normally I would rate this a four because of some grammatical errors, but there’s so few books by atheists for atheists and I feel that importance makes up the deficit. The read is exactly as advertised.
How I Use the Rating System
1: There is no 0 on the provided scale, so I use this as a 0. I find no redeeming qualities and would not suggest the title to anyone for any reason.
2: I hated the work and regret wasting my time reading it, but find or understand that it has some value.
3: Average. I don’t regret having read it, but what I received as an experience was nominal.
4: I enjoyed or found value in the title, but it’s not something I would recommend to everyone, or I would not consider rereading it, or there was a significant flaw that prevented it from being a 5.
5: I enjoyed it so thoroughly I would reread it and recommend it to just about anyone. Or I found it so valuable that I felt it deserved such a rating.
How I Use the Rating System
1: There is no 0 on the provided scale, so I use this as a 0. I find no redeeming qualities and would not suggest the title to anyone for any reason.
2: I hated the work and regret wasting my time reading it, but find or understand that it has some value.
3: Average. I don’t regret having read it, but what I received as an experience was nominal.
4: I enjoyed or found value in the title, but it’s not something I would recommend to everyone, or I would not consider rereading it, or there was a significant flaw that prevented it from being a 5.
5: I enjoyed it so thoroughly I would reread it and recommend it to just about anyone. Or I found it so valuable that I felt it deserved such a rating.
May 5, 2017
Read this book!
More truth, humor and dispelling of B.S. than you'll find anywhere else. Buying volume #2 as soon as I re-read this one!
More truth, humor and dispelling of B.S. than you'll find anywhere else. Buying volume #2 as soon as I re-read this one!
September 11, 2021
Fun read for a fan, great intro for those who aren't
This book encapsulates my responses to topics, stated in more witty and more crudely than I would ever express. I loved it
This book encapsulates my responses to topics, stated in more witty and more crudely than I would ever express. I loved it
December 1, 2021
Fantastic read!
Clear thoughts and brilliant writing. Highly recommended read for any non-religious person seeking some added clarity for themselves. Thank you, Noah and Heath!
Clear thoughts and brilliant writing. Highly recommended read for any non-religious person seeking some added clarity for themselves. Thank you, Noah and Heath!
May 28, 2022
This book offers arguments in a voice with more clarity than I could. It's a great read to commiserate with.
January 12, 2024
Solid Foundation
The book stays true to the podcast. The additional commentary gives texture and depth to each Diatribe. If you are a fan of the Puzzle in a Thunderstorm shows, I highly recommend this work. This is where it all began.
The book stays true to the podcast. The additional commentary gives texture and depth to each Diatribe. If you are a fan of the Puzzle in a Thunderstorm shows, I highly recommend this work. This is where it all began.
February 15, 2025
Those of you who listen to "Scathing Atheist", here is the first volume of the diatribes. The Dawkins ones didn't age well, but the gang weren't to know that.
And yes, religion is outdated and a waste of time, money, and effort.
And yes, religion is outdated and a waste of time, money, and effort.
August 27, 2016
This book collects the first year's worth of "diatribes" that is the slightly irritated opening monologue of the Scathing Atheist Podcast Noah Lugeons has founded in 2013 and performed always since with the help of co-hosts Heath Enright, Eli Bosnick (a later addition) and supported by his wife Lucinda Lugeons.
And i love their names... No Illusions, Losin' d'Illusions and Heathen Right, could you have better names for this job? :D
Reading through this fifty rants of anti-religious indignation was a quick job, they flow quickly and 212 pages aren't that much either. But I've found a lot to think about in Noah's explanations for his standpoint and the choices of targets for his ire. The irreverence and the non-apologetic nature of his hostility towards the casually accepted if not even expected daily religiosity in public are a refreshing change to the countless online atheists that always pray to search compromise and stay polite and as unconfrontational as possible. But why?
Lugeons poses that religion has already lost. We know better than to accept the concept of an invisible influence in daily life as e.g. many athletes presuppose as "helping them win"... how could and why would an eternal god change the outcome of a football game especially if both sides and their fans prayed for victory?
A good book for both fans of the show and people interesting in seeing a bit more aggressive stance on atheism and its place and defense in our times.
And i love their names... No Illusions, Losin' d'Illusions and Heathen Right, could you have better names for this job? :D
Reading through this fifty rants of anti-religious indignation was a quick job, they flow quickly and 212 pages aren't that much either. But I've found a lot to think about in Noah's explanations for his standpoint and the choices of targets for his ire. The irreverence and the non-apologetic nature of his hostility towards the casually accepted if not even expected daily religiosity in public are a refreshing change to the countless online atheists that always pray to search compromise and stay polite and as unconfrontational as possible. But why?
Lugeons poses that religion has already lost. We know better than to accept the concept of an invisible influence in daily life as e.g. many athletes presuppose as "helping them win"... how could and why would an eternal god change the outcome of a football game especially if both sides and their fans prayed for victory?
A good book for both fans of the show and people interesting in seeing a bit more aggressive stance on atheism and its place and defense in our times.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2016
I'm a huge fan of the Scathing Atheist podcast, and when I heard the Diatribes (short pithy monologue at the beginning of each show) were available as a book, I thought they might come across better in writing. I'm not sure they do. Don't get me wrong they're great either way. Noah has great delivery, so the spoken version comes across well while driving or lifting weights, unless you laugh so hard you wrap your car around a pole or drop 150 pounds on your chest. Either would be bad. The written version makes the points more memorable for my aging brain, though. Written isn't better. It's just different. Unless you hate irreverence directed at targets that basically stand up and beg for it, and dick-jokes (can't forget those), listen to the podcast and buy the Diatribes. You have to do both. There's tons of laughs in podcast that aren't in the book.
December 18, 2016
As 'The Diatribe' is one of my favorite few minutes of the week I was probably predisposed to enjoy this, although I wasn't exactly sure how they would translate to the printed form. However I enjoyed them at least as much as on the podcast. You can really savor each line and the little setting the scene notes add to the experience as well.
February 5, 2016
I'm happy to have this and it was not at all bad, but made me really appreciate Noah's delivery because reading is rants just can't compete.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews