The Oklahoma atheist who politely informed CNN's Wolf Blitzer that she didn't thank the Lord for that split second decision to seek shelter with her young son as the tornado bore down on her family has gotten a lot of moral and financial support from other secularists as a result of her straight talk on national TV. A good many "nones" have come out to show that they appreciate Rebecca Vitsmun's honesty, and probably her good humor and courtesy as well. Given the dislike that some Americans continue to show for nonbelievers, Ms. Vitsmun showed a lot of courage in declaring her beliefs on camera.
The web campaign Atheists Unite has raised more than $101,000 of its $55,000 goal. I'm not awfully good at math, but I think that's twice as much as the amount organizer Doug Stanhope aimed at originally to help out the family.
I know intellectually that the Internet is tubes. But emotionally, I think it's magic.
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