Nevermind...

[FriendOfAFriend]

..

[Ali]

Uhhhhh....good luck to your friend.  Not sure what else you're looking for.....

[FriendOfAFriend]

...

[En_Route]

Man, I really hope that this doesn't get considered to be spam.   I swear, I have no idea how to discern up from down, at this point!

Let me explain.. A friend of mine is competing on The Glass House, a reality show. (I know!  I would have lost *myself*, right there... but please keep reading!) 

Stephanie is an Atheist and chemist, and works in R & D for a major company. If she wins the $250,000 prize money, she'll be using it to finance a Ph.D.  She's made it pretty far - It started with 14 people, and will be at only 6 after tonight's vote.
                     

Stephanie's continued stay at the show has been an uphill battle from the start. She's not a model/actress, she has conducted herself with dignity (will NOT skank it up), doesn't cause drama, and what you see is what you get.  Once it came out that she's a member of Mensa, she began being bullied incessantly for being intelligent. For as awesome as Stephanie is – She really is the sweetest, most positive person alive, the most likeable person I've ever even *heard* of, etc – what she is putting out there is a hard sell to the vast majority of people. What we love about her is... well, not the most compatible with reality TV.


That said, it's really disheartening that the vast majority of comments against Stephanie are intelligence related. It's always made me uncomfortable that intelligence is discouraged – almost demonized – in today's society... but reading such vicious manifestations of that? Wow. I've got to say, the comments – and the bullying she's endured on the show – really bring back some ugly memories from elementary and Jr High.

   
Fun fact: "Stephanie is, like, a scientist...and Joy is a playboy model. They are not real like us!" – actual quote from one of the other competitors. You know. Because science isn't real, or something.


In addition to being bullied, those on the other side of this divided house have targeted Stephanie and her "workable bonds" as being "heathens", and have turned it into a religious war.  Long story short, Stephanie's side includes a gay man, and the other (very religious) side includes a Mormon - one who has proudly taken her three young children to protest in support of Prop 8. This has caused much drama.  That same competitor's supporters have targeted Stephanie for being Atheist.


Unfortunately, that competitor has way more support than Stephanie - or anyone else in the house - does, as her friends/family/religion is turning the entire show into a religious issue.  Although Andrea herself was born, raised, and currently resides in Southern California, her stay on the show was covered by Deseret News - a Salt Lake City paper - and picked up by many other Mormon news filters.   We find it incredibly unfair for this to be happening, especially while some of those same people are attacking Stephanie's religious views. 


Andrea has the most votes in the house - apparently by a long shot - and will win this specifically because she is a Mormon.  Additionally, $25,000 of that prize money will go to the LDS church.


Personally, we think that a Ph.D is a much better use of that prize money.  Please help us help her!   

Thank you so much for any help you can provide.  I think that we were all a bit shocked when Stephanie announced that she'd be doing this show, as reality TV isn't something that many of her friends have ANY experience with at all.  She has no desire to act / be famous from this, she just wanted to try it out as another adventure! 


I have some links - to Team Steph on Facebook, Twitter, our blog, the show site (for voting), etc... but won't post em, because I'm sure this is spammy enough as it is.  The things we'll do for friendship!  (And SCIENCE!)

Yay, Team Stephanie! She is TOTALLY AWESOME!

(Have I got that right?)

[Siz]

Sounds like the majority public have spoken. It's their call, right?!

Maybe she needs to skank it up. I see no profit in virtue.

[En_Route]

Sounds like the majority public have spoken. It's their call, right?!

Maybe she needs to skank it up. I see no profit in virtue.

I think you fail to appreciate that her total awesomeness is predicated on the fact she is totally so not skanky.

[Ali]

I have a hard time working up enough "team spirit" to care how a fellow atheist fares on a reality show.  Apathy, thy name is Ali.

[xSilverPhinx]

Cats, the bunch of you!

If there is one thing we can learn from some segments of the religious it's rallying to proudly support denying people their rights because we were told to do it!...wait...nevermind.  

Anyways, good luck to your friend. She may be intelligent, but the religious who are turning this into a religious war aren't stupid as demonstrated. They're like...mini politicians or something.

Someone should call the Asmo and tell him that his mini minions are out of control.

[Recusant]

Hello and welcome to HAF, FriendOfAFriend. You made the right choice in not posting links; there is a rule here against that. You're also right in that your post is spammy enough as it is.

That said, I admire your loyalty to your friend, and wish you and her well. I've never even heard of the particular reality show she's involved in, though, and I'm not about to seek it out (and what, spend money on a fee-per-text phone vote?) in a quixotic effort to prove that atheists are more *something* (?) than Mormons.

You haven't received any real support for your effort here, but on the small chance that you come back and choose to participate, here are the--

Notes for new members from Tank:

The Rules.

Users who comply with forum rules will graduate to full membership after 10 posts. Till that time your ability to post is limited to the "Getting to Know You" section of the forum. It is our hope that this small restriction improves the overall atmosphere of HAF.

Some threads you might find interesting.
Where did you get your username from?
10 Things About Yourself
Tell us A Bit About Where You're From
Photography
Non-religious pet peeves
Pets...what do you have?
How to tell your family you are an atheist.*
"Rules for Conducting a Discussion" by Dr. Mortimer J. Adler*

*You will need 10 posts before you can add a post to this thread, but you can read it at any time.

Again, I wish you well. 

[En_Route]

Hello and welcome to HAF, FriendOfAFriend. You made the right choice in not posting links; there is a rule here against that. You're also right in that your post is spammy enough as it is.

That said, I admire your loyalty to your friend, and wish you and her well. I've never even heard of the particular reality show she's involved in, though, and I'm not about to seek it out (and what, spend money on a fee-per-text phone vote?) in a quixotic effort to prove that atheists are more *something* (?) than Mormons.

You haven't received any real support for your effort here, but on the small chance that you come back and choose to participate, here are the--

Notes for new members from Tank:

The Rules.

Users who comply with forum rules will graduate to full membership after 10 posts. Till that time your ability to post is limited to the "Getting to Know You" section of the forum. It is our hope that this small restriction improves the overall atmosphere of HAF.

Some threads you might find interesting.
Where did you get your username from?
10 Things About Yourself
Tell us A Bit About Where You're From
Photography
Non-religious pet peeves
Pets...what do you have?
How to tell your family you are an atheist.*
"Rules for Conducting a Discussion" by Dr. Mortimer J. Adler*

*You will need 10 posts before you can add a post to this thread, but you can read it at any time.

Again, I wish you well. 

A deft  mix of benevolence and frugality.