The Untimely Death of Dr George Tiller and Evidence in Support of Atheism

I haven't always been an atheist. To the contrary, I test drove quite a few religions down my path of disbelief. The one constant theme that I saw was that each sect believed that theirs was the one and only true word and way to what they called God. At a young age, this was the first glaring red flag that I couldn't ignore. I suppose that is reason #1 that I am an atheist, but that isn't what I intended to discuss here.

On Sunday morning, May 30, 2009, a self-proclaimed christian named Sam Roeder pointed a gun and pulled the trigger on Dr George Tiller as he attended church. Dr Tiller was one of three surgeons, nationally, who would perform what is called 'late term abortions' on women. These procedures were not random procedures. Some of Tiller's patients discovered late in their pregnancies that their fetus's had severe, potentially fatal birth defects. Others were experiencing pregnancy of the highest risk, in which delivery of the fetus would endanger the life or organs of the potential mother. George Tiller was not an evil man. He was a medical doctor, a surgeon, helping women with no other choice; women who would have surely sought alternative and dangerous methods of terminating the pregnancy with or without the help of Tiller, or another doctor like him. Not only was Tiller attending church at the time of his assassination, but he was serving as an usher. For those who may not have caught that, George Tiller was serving his god in his church when he was assassinated for doing his job, which was helping women in desperate physical and emotional conditions. Tiller was shot in the head at point blank range. He was wearing a bullet proof vest, AS HE ATTENDED CHURCH, due to the threats he had received on his life.

Since the death of Dr Tiller, many individuals have let their voices be heard, praising the courage of the gunman. @iskidd via Twitter is just one of the many who has made it his personal mission of the last 4 days to name call and belittle anyone posting condolences for the death of Dr Tiller, calling women in support of Tiller's work 'whores', calling one man a 'douche bag f*****' and telling another tweeter that she should live with a bag over her head. The basis of his judgement? God. Of course. Clearly, God would not only support, but apparently call for and inspire an act of domestic terrorism, which is exactly what this is. This act is a crime against humanity and an atrocity against human rights. In fact, it seems that in the effort to be 'pro-life', that forced and untimely death is absolutely permissible, as long as it isn't a fetus, regardless of the circumstances, right? The contradiction is blinding and gut-wrenching. I ask you, how can a christian people that is founded on the term 'love thy neighbor' also be in support of the brutal slaying of one of the most progressive and influential women's health providers in our nation's history? Kill one to save many? What made that your call to make? God told you to do it? You did it for God? The killing of Dr George Tiller is a giant step backwards for human rights, women's health and the general progression of man as a species. I can't help but think that right-wing-christian-fundamentalist movement is decidedly Anti-Life, no matter what their signs and t-shirts say.

What does this have to do with my personal choice to be an atheist? What doesn't it have to do with it, is a more appropriate question.