Atheists Blast Street Sign Remembering 9/11 Firefighters As "Seven In Heaven"

(From right to left: Sen. Velmanette Montgomery (in hat), Councilwoman Sara M. González, Borough President Marty Markowitz and Captain Mike Kendall applaud as street sign is unveiled while families and firefighters look on.)

Atheists are complaining about a new street sign in Red Hook that commemorates firefighters who died on 9/11. On Saturday, a group of Red Hook firefighters, community members, and local politicians, gathered near the Engine 202 and Ladder 101 firehouse to rename part of Richards Street "Seven in Heaven Way." "They are heroes and should be rewarded in a place like heaven,” Tom Miskel of Community Board 6 tells the Brooklyn Paper. Atheists, of course, are making a big stink.

"It’s improper for the city to endorse the view that heaven exists," said David Silverman of American Atheists tells the Brooklyn Paper. "It links Christianity and heroism." A valid point, but how many heroes has atheism produced? Christians have Joan of Arc, big George the dragon slayer, Kirk Cameron. Atheists have Mao Zedong and Bill Maher—not exactly hero material, so you get why they're a little jealous.

City Councilmember Sara González shepherded the street sign change through the city council, and we asked her spokesman Mike Schweinsburg if it's appropriate to use city resources for a sign with religious overtones. "The seven heroes have long been known as the 'Seven in Heaven,' " Schweinsburg tells us. "That's something that we didn't have any hand in, it is the way the community and their families chose to remember them. So if that is their desire then we are happy to continue to remember them in the way that their family and fellow firefighters prefer to call them.

"Is it appropriate? There are any number of streets named after religious figures, like Sister Mary Franciscus Way [in Sunset Park]? Should we not honor these people because the community chooses to call them the Seven in Heaven? Yes, it is absolutely appropriate to spend city funds to honor heroes, however they're known." And you know, "Seven In Existential Annihilation Way" doesn't have quite the same ring to it.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By John Del Signore in News on June 20, 2011 1:15 PM

Comments [rss]

Time Kindly

The Firefighters gave their life to save others, what do Atheist give back..NOTHING...All I have to say to the
Atheists a Hot Dam Day is coming soon!

Time Kindly

Atheist is trying to use their power to take our religion beliefs away from us just b/c they don't believe in God.. ALL I HAVE TO SAY TO ATHEIST A HOT DAY IS COMING SOON!!!

Henry Massingale

Until you unite as one and not blog, unless it is to get the messege out, you are being defeated one stone at a time. While you fight this issue the enemies of Men of Faith take anorther defeat at the souther tip of our Country.

Florida County Appeals Ten Commandments Case
Officials in Dixie County, Florida are appealing to keep a Ten Commandments monument in front of their local courthouse building in Cross City.U.S. District Judge Maurice Paul ruled on July 15 in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, which sued the county to remove the monument.The monument was bought by a local businessman, who pays for its maintenance as well.County residents say support for the monument is unanimous
Abolish this Civil Liberties Union, take them to Court and abolish this waiste of Tax Dollars. Take the fight to them....Abolish them ! this Civil Liberties Union, this waiste of Tax Dollars. Take the fight to them stand up.... My name is Henry Massingale and I approve this messege.

Henry Massingale

So now we are going to place this under a new interface, Bolo Alert / byMassingale,
I was glade to find you under our Google.com page search form, glade you made it, now you are welcome to;

1.Operation
Clean
S... - toptentogo

Jun 23, 2011 – Operation Clean Sweep / byMassingale
is supported by Constitutional Law that if we as a people see a
issue so wrong not only is it our
...www.toptentogo.mysite.com/.../Operation_Clean_Sweep_byMassingale

Marcelo Abans

There is a matter of taste, it's easy for us to take a step back and completely forget about CONTEXT. They aren't arbituarily doing it, someone didn't wake one mornign and say "This is what we are gonna do". This was thought and planned a consensus of what was good for honoring those who died.I was against the Mosque because of the sensitivity of the matter that those who were building should have had towards new yorkers. with time much like how some of us are removed from Pearl Harbor, there will be a time where it won't matter to the next generation, and it shouldn't. Harboring shit like that continues hate.I didn't think they should have been outlawed but those making it happen should have taken a step back from their own agenda. There are MUCH more productive, and complicated issues arising where those energies can be used for than a sign that pretty much says "Thanks for help others when it was time". That's what matters..It's almost as if, we atheist are losing focus on what are real battles like when feminists tried to get "Manhole Covers" changed to "Personhole Covers". This is a street sign and has no direct affect on my everyday life as say Allowing smart design being taught in school as an actual science.Like someone said "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." This sign, does NONE of those. So fellow atheist, stop it.. This isn't about us, it's about those who helped others when most of us would have been too scared to.. I"m willing to bite my tongue out of respect..Put it this way, as an atheist if you help an old woman cross the street or with groceries and she said "Thank you very much, God Bless" are you gonna ask her to take back her thank you JUST because she said God Bless or are you going to see the context, the intention behind it and smile and walk away knowing you did something nice. This is one of those instances. You wanna fight about it, go ahead but don't be surprised if you get left out of parties for being a downer. Be a Chris Knight, not a Lazlo Hollyfeld.

Henry Massingale

I watched and looked for a long time
for those of no faith, I have found a fitting name, the Nickamungers
from the movie Riddick.From this day forward you will be know as the
Nickamungers.

Now according to,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Separati...
- below is a Google .com link at Wikipeda.org

to what I see when I read this,The
phrase "separation of church and state" (sometimes
"wall of separation between church and state"), attributed
to Thomas
Jefferson and others, and since quoted by the Supreme
Court of the United States, expresses an understanding of the
intent and function of the Establishment
Clause of the First
Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. The First
Amendmen treads "Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof
...."

Now from what I see is that Man is not
in the position to Write Laws to Govern God or The Foundation of
faith even that of Prayer in Schools.

What has been created is that of a
Church of None Faith, by intent or lack of in-site. Now to set the
Foundation of that Church of the Nickamungers.

Welcome to the 21 Century Where ideas
are changed by Men of Faith, and that Law that states, free exercise
thereof, so welcome to a twist of a in site.

Henry Massingale

Founder and Director of F.A.S.C.
Concepts in and for

Operation Clean Sweep / byMassingale,
and this will be of course a 10 x 10 posting to get the message out
and interface all the voices.

sweathog1948

I do not understand why Atheist go over the deep end because of a street sign.

So what we have here are people who do not believe there is a God, Do not believe there will be a day of judgement. I guss they believe when you die that's it,there is no after life, Then why should they care if other people do believe in a after life called heaven.

i believe these Atheist are c.onfrontive about what if i am worng and there is a heaven and a hell, and a judgement.

It is not the christian they try to slience, but God himself. My oldest daughter Kimberly died when she was 17. We had an open casket for viewing. When i looked at Kim, she was not there. Oh her body was there but the real kim,her soul was gone.

Is my daughters body decaying,, oh yea. But the real kim is in heaven. When my time is done on this earth I will go to heaven and I will see her again.

Jesus is the real deal, he paid the price for
my sin and the sins of the whole earth. You can not pay the price for your salvation for it has been done. Salvation is a free gift,for Jesus has paid the price for every one. all you do is confess your a sinner and ask Jesus to forgive you . You are then born again, As a christian you are not perfect but you are perfectly forgivening./

fleur_de_lis

ugh this is ridiculous. you can follow any religion here! people are so lucky to have the freedoms we do in this country. and then once we get these great freedoms, some of us become like this. there is NOTHING wrong with a street name having 'heaven' in it. there are bigger issues out there. It disgusts me that these people care that much about something so trivial when their time and energy would be so much better spent on pretty much anything else. ughhhhhhhh

BoogieDown

People? Learn to read. As hotstepper has pointed out SEVERAL times above, ONE guy pointed to the separation of church and state.

Linda Wyatt

Why is it ok for the U.S. to give terrorist Osama bin Laden the honor of a RELIGIOUS ceremony at his death, but we can't honor our fallen U.S. heroes? Why do we have to have our traditions stripped, our history changed, our memories and hearts broken, our patriotism trampled and most importantly, why do we have to have atheism shoved down our throats? I'm sick of this nonsense!

BoogieDown

"why do we have to have atheism shoved down our throats?"

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Whew, that was a good one. Ok, now that I've collected myself after reading your hilarious joke, how many times have atheists come to your door to harass you on a Saturday morning? It's never happened to me, but I sure get those insane Jay Dubs coming by at least three times a month. Seriously, get a grip, lady.

Brian

Atheist heros what about Pat Tillman.

lizzie_d

This is what happens when you run out of real problems.. I'm an athiest but what is the big deal? If you are upset by this, people expressing the tiniest bit of religion is the least of your problems

Brian

This was not the ideal battle to pick.

Henry

The only controversy here is that the Brooklyn Paper would print that story!
http://www.thelmagazine.com/Th...

Otto Yamamoto

Meh

SpaceChief

I'm not going to debate the inappropriateness of the verbage on the sign, but clearly - the moron who wrote the article is an antagonistic idiot.

Please - just publish the garbage without links, as the inventor of html was an atheist, then disconnect yourself from the Internet - as the two who developed and tested the theories were atheists. Start using the manual typewriter because the three who invented the transistor were all atheists. Turn off your lights - Edison was an outspoken atheist.

While serving in the US Navy, I was acknowledged for bringing three runaway main feed pumps under control on a hard steaming aircraft carrier, there was no time for thinking about god - I had all but 45 seconds or so to begin to effect change with less than 5 seconds or so to start wheeling the first valve and I had to correctly choose the first to turn. All because a religious zealot ran scared during an over-speed trip test. Failure to act rapidly would have resulted in the deaths of myself and about 12 others in that space - nearly instantly following water overload in the boilers which would have destroyed the superheated pipes out-flowing from the steam drum (where the water is boiled at 1200 psi). Almost certainly others would have died trying to recover the ship.

I m an atheist.

Screw you and your ignorant thinking.

Marcelo Abans

That situation and putting up a sign are 2 different things you do realize? I agree with you but unless someone forgets to screw in the sign tight i'm pretty sure NO ONE will be injured by it..

starrygordon

Many religious people strongly feel that it is all right for them to push their myths on you, but terribly wrong for you to push your myths on them. However, this particular case seems unusually trivial going both ways.