ISM-Think Meetup

This Meetup was started by free thinkers. It is used as a forum to discuss different contradicting beliefs using reason, evidence and critical thinking. You are free to speak your mind when you respectfully speak your mind.

An 𝐈𝐒𝐌 is a practice, system, philosophy, or political ideology. Our secular laws are rooted in Christian𝐢𝐬𝐦. Our government policies are driven by Scient𝐢𝐬𝐦. Our daily lives embodies Individual𝐢𝐬𝐦. When people accept a single overriding ISM without question they will seek out, villainize, and destroy those that don't drink their Kool-Aid.

We have been using three meetings and discussion formats. Members do not have to provide comments or opinions and are also welcome to come and listen. These meetups are intended to be conversations not lectures.

𝟭) No specific topic just a general discussion on current events which can include your comments, ideas, opinions and beliefs but remember we are free thinkers so be prepared to have your ideas and beliefs questioned or perhaps even challenged .

𝟮)     A topic is selected, and we try to give everyone at the meetup equal time to express their comments, views and opinions on the topic. Once again be prepared to have your ideas and beliefs on the topic questioned or perhaps even challenged.

𝟯)     We are also offering members the opportunity to present or talk about a topic they are familiar with or have knowledge about. With this format, the member presenting the topic will be taking up most of the time, but we will make sure that there will be enough time for all members to ask questions. Members interested in doing this need to contact the organizer to make the arrangements.

𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗣𝗘𝗢𝗣𝗟𝗘

We have been meeting on the second or third Saturday of the month from 5:00pm to 7:00pm.

The meetup is limited to 12 members. This does not mean that if you see 12 members reserved that you cannot reserve or cannot attend. We should be able to get one or two more and there are usually cancelations. Members are also welcome just to drop in any time during the Meetup and leave any time during the Meetup without reserving.

𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦

We are hoping that the meetups can be a learning experience on how we as multicultural Canadians from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds can live together with respect for our different beliefs and learn something from each other. Having said this, We are hoping that any belief system that promotes, hatred, bad behaviour and violence will be denounced and condemned by the members. We would also like to think the members of this meetup would reject and would speak out against religious literature or ideology that is confusing and that can easily be interpreted in ways that promotes bad behaviour.

Trying to earn a living is always a challenge and we are also hoping that the discussions and information the members share and exchange in these meetups can help all of us better navigate the brief journey that we are all on in this world and universe and help inspire us make better decisions for our lives and perhaps we can inspire others to make better decisions for their lives.

𝗛𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗬

This meetup was started by Rasha back in July 2016. When Rasha was not able to continue, Nancy became the new organizer and when Nancy was not able to continue, Danny became the new Organizer in April 2017. In 2019 Chris agreed to be the co-organizer and also organized some meetups. In 2022 Chris stepped up to become the Organizer.

We met a lot of interesting people with a lot of interesting ideas and beliefs. Sometimes the discussions got a little heated but for the most part as long as the beliefs and ideas did not promote hatred or violence, we all ended up respecting each other’s ideas and beliefs. We only had to ban one member for inappropriate content and behavior.

𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗤𝗨𝗢𝗧𝗘𝗦

1 “The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off!” – Gloria Steinem

2  ”It’s easier to fool people than It Is to convince them that they have been fooled” - Mark Twain

3 ”If you repeat a lie often enough, people will believe it, and you will come to believe it yourself" - Joseph Goebbels propaganda minister for Adolf Hitler

𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗧𝗨𝗕𝗘

In an effort to help members understand what these meetups are about, we have prepared a list of several YouTube videos that capture the type of thinking and ideas that these meetups try to promote during our discussions. You are not obligated to watch them but if you are interested, they are all good so pick some that you think might be interesting to you.

𝙍𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝘿𝙖𝙬𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙨 – 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙋𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙋𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙚 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT4EWCRfdUg

𝙎𝙩𝙚𝙥𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙁𝙧𝙮 – 𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙙𝙤 𝙬𝙚 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙚？
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azhJvF7a5Ic

𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙚𝙡 𝙎𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙧 – 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙏𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙝？
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z73mvg4R-JI&t=208s

𝙅𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞 - 𝙌𝙪𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙧𝙖𝙪𝙙
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qc300AQCi7A

𝘿𝙧𝙚𝙬 𝙈𝙘𝘾𝙤𝙮 - 𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙌𝙪𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙨 𝙄𝙢𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙎𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymujUx5z_Xk

𝘿𝙧𝙚𝙬 𝙈𝙘𝘾𝙤𝙮 - 𝘾𝙖𝙧𝙡 𝙎𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙣’𝙨 𝘽𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙮 𝘿𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙆𝙞𝙩
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUgdrno-2xY&t=987s

𝙎𝙖𝙗𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙃𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙧 - 𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙄 𝙇𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙋𝙨𝙚𝙪𝙙𝙤𝙨𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWV0XIn-rvY&t=70s

𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙚𝙡 𝙎𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙧 - 𝙒𝙝𝙮 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙞𝙧𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T_jwq9ph8k

𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙚𝙡 𝙎𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙧 – 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛-𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_6-iVz1R0o&t=130s

𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙭 𝙅. 𝙊’𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙧 – 𝙒𝙝𝙮 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWy1FBArO7c

𝙋𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙥 𝙁𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙝 - 𝙒𝙝𝙮 𝙙𝙤 𝙬𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙚
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jobYTQTgeUE

𝙈𝙖𝙩𝙩 𝘿𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙮 𝙤𝙣 𝙈𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAQFYgyEACIs

𝙈𝙖𝙩𝙩 𝘿𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙮 – 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝘼𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙨𝙢 𝙊𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RApmJJO_RQ

𝙎𝙖𝙢 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙨 – 𝙁𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙫𝙨 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙤𝙣
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-j8L7p-76cU

𝙎𝙖𝙢 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙈𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm2Jrr0tRXk&t=3684s

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙡 𝘼𝙧𝙜𝙪𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 (𝙉𝙚𝙚𝙙𝙨 𝙉𝙤 𝙂𝙤𝙙)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY_OJ2I6Yps

𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙭 𝙅. 𝙊’𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙧 - 𝘾𝙖𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙗𝙚 𝙂𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙂𝙤𝙙
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKW_ZwaKlQc

𝘿𝙖𝙣 𝘽𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙧 – 𝙂𝙤𝙙 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙚𝙭𝙞𝙨𝙩
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btJazTimH4M

𝘿𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙙 𝙀𝙖𝙜𝙡𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙣 – 𝙂𝙤𝙙 𝙫𝙨 𝙉𝙤 𝙂𝙤𝙙 -𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙨？
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AP_Q6JqFMf0

𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙚𝙡 𝙎𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙧 - 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙗𝙡𝙚𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙀𝙫𝙞𝙡
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=78&v=EPrmSkJ6bZk

𝙍𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝘿𝙖𝙬𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙨 & 𝘼𝙡𝙖𝙣 𝙇𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 & 𝙍𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙤𝙣
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSCDfjTDVCk

𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙚𝙞𝙡 𝙎𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝙂𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙣 – 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙙, 𝙈𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙈𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙣 𝙀𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLRdTugBInz19PmwsPhMjrzABr7yPUl1ry&v=HCAgTJ3181s&feature=emb_logo

𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗚𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗠 𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗪𝗘𝗕𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗞

Doubt your beliefs? Have questions about changing or leaving your faith? You are not alone. If you would like to talk to someone on the phone the website lists the numbers you can call.
https://www.recoveringfromreligion.org/#rfr-welcome
There are also weekly zoom meetup talks every Monday starting at 8pm. The talk is hosted by Eric Wells, Support Group Director and Amaia Perez, Online Programing Director along with different guest speakers each week. The website provides all the details and the zoom link ID codes.
https://www.recoveringfromreligion.org/rfrx

𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗜𝗢𝗡

Millions are living without religion without fear of the unknown and with reason and rationality. Morality comes from the human need to socialize, to interact with other humans. Our ability to empathize with others is what encourages us to create moral societies. Morality does not come from some type of authority. Morality is the understanding that the wellbeing and happiness of others benefits everyone. We don't even have to love everyone or even like everyone. we just have to understand that the wellbeing of others benefits everyone.

[Living Without Religion (centerforinquiry.org)](https://centerforinquiry.org/campaigns/living-without-religion/)

Living Without Religion - A Campaign by the Center for Inquiry - YouTube

Millions are Living Happily Without Religion | CFI - YouTube

Mike Rubens Finds Out Why America is Losing Its Religion - YouTube