I am THE AMAZING ATHEIST, YouTube Vlogger, Notorious Douchebag, Lord of the Neckbeards and All-Around Perverted Weirdo . . . AMA!

What's this all about? (link removed)

Edit: I removed the link because I realized that despite the fact he probably doesn't give a shit, I really shouldn't be questioning one's private life, and I apologize.

I am a masochist and a submissive, sexually, and I enjoy being degraded, humiliated, having pain inflicted upon me, etc. Occasionally, I would meet doms of both sexes online who would make requests of me. 99% of these doms have been discreet and not shared my content with the internet at large, but there's always going to be some unscrupulous fuck who can't resist leaking something juicy.

I am not embarrassed by this tape or by anything else I enjoy. Obviously, I would prefer if such things remained private, but I'm not going to lose any sleep over my privacy being violated. I don't concern myself with situations beyond my control--and anyone who would judge me for my sexuality is not someone whose opinion I respect anyway.

Hi TJ, love your stuff!

How do you feel about the current state of the atheist and skeptic movements, especially the atheism+ debacle? Is it getting worse or getting better?

Thanks for doing this AMA.

"Atheism+" is really just one groups attempt to turn non-belief into something as dogmatic as belief. Being free from the constraint of religion should, in my opinion, free one from adherence to some monolithic moral code that demands we substitute our own judgment with groupthink.

I think it's Atheism PLUS all of the dogmatic bullshit I was running away from in the first place.

What do you think of /r/atheism ?

I wish that it was more of a forum for discussion rather than just another dump for bad memes and facebook troll posts.

I find your videos on politics, and the few debates you've done in particular, much more informative, but also comical. You have a very unique and practical approach to political topics. Have you thought about getting more involved in being a political voice?

I could never be involved in politics in any capacity other than as a ferocious advocate of my own thoughts and ideas. I am too uncompromising to ever hope to affect change in this world. Let the pragmatists of the world make the tough choices and hard compromises--I'd rather just bitch about things to an audience.

Hey, TJ.

I've noticed that over your time as a YouTube personality, you've gotten a lot less...I dunno, angry, I guess. When I first checked out your channel a while back, I was a bit taken aback at how emotional you'd get over subjects. It seems you've mellowed out significantly over the years. Is there any reason for this?

Falling in love, smoking weed, aging, etc.

Do you regret all the horrible things you said to that rape victim right here on Reddit a little over a year ago?

http://www.dailydot.com/news/amazing-atheist-reddit-rape-controversy/

http://freethoughtblogs.com/blaghag/2012/02/scratch-the-amazing-atheist-off-your-list-too/

As far as regrets go, I already answered a question about that.

I don't regret anything I've ever said, even the things I don't hold to any longer--even the things I apologize for! To regret something would mean regretting the circumstances around it and the choices that lead to it. And maybe I haven't lived the best life--but it's been a life that is uniquely my own. And I cherish my mistakes and my flaws as much as my triumphs.

Now, in relation to the statements you bring up--I'm sure that reddit is familiar by now with /r/shitredditsays? Well, I was in a flamewar with people from that subreddit at the time. Everything I said was crafted to be maximally offensive to them, because they've shown themselves to be ridiculously overly sensitive in the past. It was like going up to a cocky vegan and chewing a wad of steak in front of them. I was just fucking with them, basically.

Granted, I went too far. But when looked at in the context of an internet flamewar with the most obvious trolls on the planet, I don't think what I said was all that offensive.

Do you think that in the CNN interview, you were brought in with the hopes that you would say something inflammatory for the hosts and christian to easily dismiss? Were you supposed to be the token atheist?

Yeah. I think that was their plan. Which is why I went into full pundit mode and didn't allow them to play that game.

Why do you contradict yourself by making those terribly awkward ad videos? Tough times?

I've never had any principle that would keep me from selling out. I don't take issue with taking money to say I like some product or another. It's blatantly obvious to anyone with a brain that it's a paid endorsement and doesn't necessarily reflect my views. Bill Cosby might hate Jell-O Pudding.

How's life after marriage?

Married life suits me very well. I am an attentive and loving partner and I really do give it my all every day to make and keep my wife happy. This, in turn, makes me happy. I love waking up every day and knowing that, no matter what the rest of the world may think of me, I've got someone who I love completely and who loves me back as completely.

Hi TJ, Do you plan on appearing on more major news sources like you did on CNN? Thanks!

I don't honestly know if I would agree to be on CNN again. TV seems so restrictive and stuffy in comparison to just releasing my content to my audience directly. I think I'd only consider further TV gigs if I could show up in person rather than join the panel live via satellite.

What are your thoughts on Christopher Hitchens's justification of the Iraq War?

I can tell you that I did not support the Iraq war at any time. Not during the lead-up. Not during the war. Not in retrospect.

Hitchens made a more compelling case than most, but I was ultimately unconvinced.

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You know, the way I do videos is I read a lot of news and I see what jumps out at me as interesting. Sometimes that's politics, sometimes not. If I made political videos just because I thought they'd do better, I'd probably make them without any real passion. I'd be Ray William Johnson--just exploiting a niche.

Why do you keep shaving your glorious facial hair?

I get bored with it. I can't stand looking exactly the same over long periods of time. So, sometimes I wear a full beard, sometimes a goatee, sometimes stubble, sometimes clean-shaven . . . it all depends on my mood.

Where do you see yourself in 20 years?

Getting blown by a sex robot in a condo on the mood.

does it ever upset you that a lot of your views are deemed "eccentric" by the general public? i've noticed many of the things you say might be upsetting to some people, but are generally rooted in common sense; is common sense really so uncommon?

What's common sense to you and me might be outrageous to someone else. Some people think it's common sense that a furry carpenter was nailed to some sticks to redeem the sins of all mankind.

I don't ever open my mouth thinking, "Yes, everyone will agree with what I'm about to say!" In fact, for most of my life, I was living in Louisiana, where most of my views are about as far from the norm as you can get. I've been violently accosted for some of the things I've said or advocated. But it hasn't stopped me.

What's your favorite subreddit?

My favorite subreddit at the moment is /r/futanari (Definitely NSFW)

thank you for showing me that this exists

No problem, fellow pervert!

Which religion do you find most acceptable?

Acceptable is a strange word to use. I don't find them "acceptable" or "unacceptable" so much as I find them "wrong." Not wrong like, "I raped 15 babies" wrong. Wrong like, "2+2=7" wrong.

All religions are wrong. Unless your "religion" is to be skeptical and think critically.

Do you get harassed in your local area by religious believers or are they unaware of who you are on the internet?

I was once accosted by a Christian as I was eating a pizza. He approached me and asked where I got my information on Christianity. I told him I got it from the bible. He said that I was reading the bible wrong. I asked him if he would go retake his seat as I was eating pizza and hanging out with friends and was truly in no mood for a theological debate.

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Homeless ranter.

What video are you most proud of & why?

I don't watch my videos very much. I think that I'm most fond of this video though: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Rv5KNQFu4 It's pretty old.

Dude I love your videos! They are really informative and funny! Keep up the good work!

Do you smoke at all? Weed? Cigarettes? Cigars while looking inquisitive?

HEY HEY HEY HEY . . .

Hey TJ, your stuff is incredible! Thanks for the videos!

Question: Do you act the same way you do in videos compared to outside of videos?

In person I tend to be shy and reserved until you get

a.) to know me

b.) me drunk

What would your ideal world look like? Do you think it would be better if everyone was an atheist?

I think an ideal world would be one in which people were free to pursue their own interests without interference from others (so long as these interests weren't violating the consent of other people).

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A lot of people seeing it and saying, "Who the fuck is The Amazing Atheist? Downvote!"

Or: "I fucking hate The Amazing Atheist! Downvote!"

Do you think your content has gotten worse?

I don't really watch or judge my own content. I simply create whatever I want to and let others judge it as they see fit. I'd never weigh in on something like whether I've gotten better or worse. For me, it's about self-expression. If I've created something that reflects who I am and what I think, I consider it a success.

Do you have any games in plan for the TJ Plays it all channel?

Super Meat Boy has been a popular request, so I've already started creating some SMB content.

Tj, Love your vids. i was born a muslim, in Lebanon. I'm an atheist now. Lately i've been diagnosed with lung cancer, and it's pretty progressed already. and I feel the need to believe in God, but i just can't. I have this weird sensation that I WANT to die believing that i'm not actually disappearing after that moment. I know this will be a hard question. If you were about to die in a month, can you just describe your feelings about the God thing? wouldn't you WANT to have a decisive answer? the 0.00001 chance of god's existence isn't already a chance? people win the lottery every week or two, wouldn't also the existence of god be a probability? and why the fuck am I talkin to you? Am I that hopeless about God? just say something that you wish someone would tell you if you were in my place and asking for it.... please

I'm saddened to hear about your predicament. I don't know how I would feel if I were in your shoes, and I think that however you feel is the right way to feel. No one can tell you how you should approach your own death. I wish I had some great words of wisdom to impart, but I'm out of my depth trying to answer a question like this.

TJ! I've been subscribed to you for almost half a year now. I've spent many a night up late watching any 'related videos' youtube gives me of you. I actually have a question that has bugged me for a little while about you true opinion on someone.

Bill Maher. His views are almost identical to yours, minus his claimed Libertarian-ism and occasional Ron Paul support episodes. He hates Mitt Romney, he's a devout atheist, and has a huge liberal atheist fanbase. In some of your videos you mention him, whether it's in the description or in the video itself. You criticized him once and seem to be impartial at other times. So, I guess my question is what do you really think of him? I watch both of you about as often as the other and wonder if you dislike him on some level.

I like Bill Maher, but he is an anti-vax wacko. He literally believes that vaccines don't work. That's fucking madness.

Other than that, we do seem to agree on most things.

1) Do you think it's moral to support mass slaughter and torture of animals by buying meat?

2) Are you familiar with any books by Peter Singer?

1. No, but I do it anyway because it tastes good. Also, why waste a historical excuse to do something that future generations will probably perceive as evil? If I go down in the history books for any reason, I hope someone raises their hand in class and says, "He was a meat-eater. Fuck him!" And the rest of the class cheers. "Yeah! Whoo! We in the present are morally superior to those who lived in the past! YEAH!"

2. Nope.

Holy cow, I haven't seen you since you were on TGWTG. Didn't know you've carved out a niche on youtube (and a fairly successful one at that). Congrats. I did like your stuff you did on the site back then.

Can you give any details or background on your time there? Why you left? (I figured that you weren't overly popular so they cut you)

My videos on TGWTG did very well, but my strong political beliefs rubbed many at the site the wrong way. My understanding is that Nostalgia Chick, in particular, despised me. So, I was asked to leave.

Honestly, I was glad to leave after I the refused to release my video TOP TEN GAYEST MUSIC VIDEOS OF THE 80's. It's not the fact that they refused to release it that bothers me, but the reasoning. They were afraid that their users would leave homophobic comments and it would make their site look bad.

I was like, "Wow. Do you guys really think so little of your own fucking users?"

TJ, you seem like you'd make a good president. Do you think you'll ever run for president?

I would get a grand total of three votes. You, myself and my mom. That's about it.

What's the most extreme hate mail you have ever gotten? (Any death threats?)

I have received many death threats, particularly from Muslims. Oddly, the most hate I ever got was when I made a video critical of Buddhism. I would have thought Buddhists would be pretty chill, but they're not as used to criticism as the Abrahamic faiths, I guess.

That's incredibly frustrating to me as a Buddhist. I may not agree with your criticisms of the religion, but you are more than entitled to make them. By doing that, not only are they making us look bad, they are completely missing the point of our religion. I'm sorry you were treated that way.

Yeah, I thought it was extremely unusual. My criticism were basically an attack on the concepts of detachment and selflessness preached by Buddhists, and ironically the reaction to that criticism was selfish and showed clear attachment to the philosophy. So, I feel like it was an ironic victory.

Would you mind elaborating on how Buddhism preaches selfishness? That doesn't make sense to me, because Buddhism teaches selflessness and altruism.

But yeah, that is ironic; like you said, you aren't supposed to be attached, even to the religion itself.

I said it preaches selflessness, which is why the selfishness of some of the commenters struck me as so hypocritical. And when I call them selfish, I mean in the sense that they seemed very arrogant in their messages to me (a trait I admittedly share with them).

In your videos, I often find that you use anecdotal arguments more than anything else. Is this on purpose or just a coincident. If it is on purpose, what is it about them that makes you use them?

I find they're most effective rhetorically.

Why do you take people's donations, promise something amazing, and then not deliver? Yes I'm talking about Not Productive. The website took ages to come out, your so-called expert designer/coder used an outdated and frankly inappropriate website software and the design - which I read may even be a template - is nothing special at all. And at the moment it's closed because you want to 'generate original content'. Considering how long the site was delayed, why wasn't the content made in that time? Because you never planned to launch a decent working site, did you? You're going to let it wither and die until everyone forgets about it and then you'll start your next e-begging drive. Am I right, or am I right? Answer me that.

My site was designed by the Participatory Culture Foundation, and it wasn't what we wanted it to be. The site was slow, fickle and it was way too large for a new kid on the block. So, we went back to the drawing board, refocused out efforts and the new Not Productive (with a new business model) will be launching very soon.

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1. I believe that human beings own themselves, and if a person chooses to die, that is absolutely their right.

2. I would continue to love her him every bit as much as I do now.

3. Literature.

4. I guess our tastes must somehow be different.

5. Fiction: Catcher In The Rye. Non-Fiction: Danse Macabre, by Stephen King.

Do you watch Naruto?

No. But I have jerked off to Naruto hentai before.