There is some contention within even the skeptic community as to whether or not agnostics are fence sitters and afraid to take sides......or whether atheists are too regimented or harsh in their non-belief and way of thinking.

Some atheists chide agnostics for not taking a more solid stand and for being as they say, "wishy washy." I have often alternately called myself an atheist and an agnostic. Why? Because frankly, I don't have any idea. I cannot prove there isn't some sort of God or supernatural being and in turn, believers cannot prove that there is one. I do not feel I need to prove that something doesn't exist.....it is up to the believers to prove that it does. I guess you could say I am not only a skeptic but I am skeptical of skeptics who say they know for certain. Sorry, NO ONE KNOWS.

Personally, from all of the facts I have learned and the information I have been presented with, do not believe there is a God. Certainly NOT any God from the Bible or other religions. But I am willing to concede that there is a lot we don't know and even more that I don't know. Does that make me a "fence sitter?" I don't think so. It makes me a skeptic and someone who is making the best possible decision with the facts at hand.

My parents and other Mormons, Christians or believers will try and use "Pascal's Wager (or Pascal's Gambit) which is a suggestion posed by the French philosopher Blaise Pascal that even though the existence of God cannot be determined through reason, a person should "wager" as though God exists, because so living has potentially everything to gain, and certainly nothing to lose" This is really a failed argument because there are a lot of beliefs and ideas floating around out there that cannot be proved through reason. Should I live my life as though each of these really existed?

For example: There is a conspiracy theory out there believed by many, that the heads of world corporations and governments are really not human but shape shifting alien, reptilian, humanoids hell bent on taking over our planet. I personally feel this idea is idiotic and no one has proved to me that this is a reality but again no one has proved the opposite either.(You've hear the term "show me the money" well "show me the reptilian.")

So.....if I choose to use Pascal's Wager, do I live my life as though there WAS some vast reptilian conspiracy? Do I live in fear and hide from government officials for fear of them being reptiles? (Believe me, I just fear for my wallet.) Do I live my life, raise my family and join others who are also believing in this nonsense? Do I follow a specific code of rules and ethics to keep from being detected by the reptiles? Do I go to a building and worship them incase I die and end up on their reptile planet? If I do base my whole lifestyle and happiness on a gamble that this wild tale might be true, what did I lose? I lost my whole life, the only one I have, living in fear of something that from a logical stand point, could not possibly be true.

Here is another example: There are people who actually believe certain crystals hold magical powers and healing properties. From a logical and scientific stand point, I feel this is nonsence BUT, lets say I use Pascal's wager and decide to live my life as if this was true regardless of the fact that there is no valid evidence to prove it. Would I change my lifestyle to include using crystals for healing and even for making decisions? Do I join groups of other like minded crystal believers? Do I worship the crystals just in case? Some might say "what's the harm?" But again, I have wasted my whole life living as if something nonsensical was true. Perhaps there were better decisions I could have made using logic rather than consulting a rock. Perhaps I have led a life of chronic pain that could have been healed with more convential medical treatments rather than wearing a special mineral around my neck? More importantly, I have wasted my life gambling that something preposterous might be true and not taken the time to live a more knowledge based and fullfilling life.

So if I am living my life based on Pascal's Wager, there are so many odd beliefs out there.....how do I pick which ones to gamble on. Is one nonsensical idea for a wager as good as any? It's impossible to believe in and gamble on all of them......just in case

When it comes to God and religion, many people would rather gamble on preposterous and often impossible, contradictory writings from ancient text for fear that these writings may be correct. They are afraid they will go to hell or lose their soul if they do not make this gamble. So, we have people after people after people following different beliefs and making different wagers.....hoping they have gambled on the correct one.....wasting the only life they have been given. Wow, that's a pretty big wager, your life

How do I know? I don't. I don't know that their is NOT some other plane of consciousness, or dimension we go to when we die......I don't know if we were created by a superior alien race and planted here on earth (although from what I do know that's improbable if not impossible).....there are A LOT of things I don't know. BUT I do know that the Bible is the most idiotic, violent, preposterous, and ignorant book of dubious background out there and it could not possibly have been written or dictated by an "all knowing, omnipotent, loving creator." I grew up as a Mormon and from what I have learned I know that a man named Joesph Smith did not translate a book written on gold by using two magic rocks and looking in a hat. So while I don't know everything, I do know enough to not gamble wasting my life on idiocy.

I know that everything I see about religion, is scientifically impossible, ethically challenged, backward, and sometimes insane so.....I will not live the one life I have wagering that this collective nonsense is true. I will also not live in fear that if I wager incorrectly, I will burn in a lake of fire for eternity......I will also not base my life on believing that there are pink unicorns, reptilian humanoids, magic rocks, witchcraft, planets controling my personality.....or anything else that really cannot be proven but must rely on faith, delusion, and an eyewitness account of a possible schizophrenic or psychopath.

So, while I don't know everything I do know enough to remain skeptical and always keep my eyes open. There is a lot I do know thanks to science and a mind capable of thinking clearly. I thought I was atheist.....I guess that word too implies an absolute knowledge. I guess I am agnostic. I do not believe in God but since no one has proven God does or does not exist.....I will remain skeptical.

Am I agnostic or atheist and does it really matter what name I call myself? I suppose it might matter to some because the word atheist conjures up some rabid God hating fiend rather than someone who just does not believe in God. To call myself an agnostic though, conjures up someone sitting on a fence and refusing to jump to one side or the other. Since I don't believe in God but admit I don't know everything I am an Agnostic.......or an Atheist.....wow, this fence is hard to sit on.

Cindy Jayne