Another bus is out in the open: It’s an atheist.
This, of course, is following the trend of buses in Britain, Spain, and the United States coming out in their denial of a creator.
No one knows exactly when buses rose up to create a united voice on this front (some suggest it was the infamous South Carolina license plates who spoke loudly of their conversion that egged them on), but when it started in the United Kingdom, Christians seemed to be split. Some decided they wanted to shun the buses, others suggested that open dialogue with the buses would be the best way of dealing with their newfound assertive stance.
Were I the bus I would have come up with a better declaration of faith, so to speak. “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” is some rather lousy advertising when it comes to a matter of such importance. “Our cars’ brakes probably won’t fail at the most inopportune time. Now stop worrying and fork over two months’ salary as downpayment” isn’t exactly what got me into my 2002 Oldsmobile Intrigue.
Then again, there’s the whole assumption that Christians (or other theists for that matter) don’t enjoy their life and spend their time worrying about….well, something. Hey, I’m as guilty as the next of perpetuating a stereotype: we can be cynical, panicky, and willing to resort to an escapist mentality that makes disbelief look better in comparison. I’ve fallen into that trap and I’m sure I’ll fall into it again. However, it’s not what Jesus told us to do:
But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Worry and dispair? Sorry, that’s not my faith, as little as it is, and I apologize for when I make it look as such.
Incidentally, if you feel like making your own Bus Sign to inadvertently stir up unease, give it whirl. Need a few examples?
(HT: Mark Shea)
(HT: Greg Popack)
(HT: Woah)
That generator was pretty fun. And why do atheists need to advertise? Does anyone ever really convert to atheism?
The signs aren’t targeted towards the believers, but to the questioning.
And that peanut butter one is pretty funny/true.
How would you convert to atheism? I thought the point was not believing in anything except for the fact that you believe in nothing. I have to say, I’m a fan of freedom of speech, but I bet a slogan that said, “Everybody dies, what will happen when you go?” and the some reference to God would be pulled off immediately because it makes influential mad.
While I hear what you’re saying about “converting” to atheism, I would argue that it takes as much faith to believe in random chance or nothing at all as it does to believe in a deity. Either way, you’re making a choice, and if you’re someone who has been a person of faith who has decided that there is no God, then that is as much a conversion as when someone decides to put their faith into a faith-based belief system.