Atheistville with Mike Smithgall
Hosted by Mike Smithgall, Atheistville explores atheism, deconversion, and secular life through open, respectful conversation. The channel features two signature shows:
Mike Drop – weekly commentary on religion, politics, and culture from a reasoned, secular perspective.
Breakfast with a Heathen – a relaxed Sunday Q&A that tackles listener and Reddit questions about belief, honesty, and living without faith.
Together, they create a space for candid dialogue about leaving belief behind, thinking for yourself, and building a meaningful life grounded in evidence, empathy, and ethics rather than dogma.
Podcast Creator Bio: Mike Smithgall
Mike Smithgall is the creator and host of Atheistville, a podcast and YouTube series exploring atheism, deconversion, and secular life through real conversation instead of confrontation. Drawing on his background as a financial professional and lifelong skeptic, Mike focuses on how people think, what leads them to question faith, and how they rebuild meaning without religion.
He interviews former believers, secular thinkers, and progressive voices to highlight shared values of empathy, critical thinking, and human connection. His mission is simple: belief should be personal, not political, and every story deserves to be heard.
Follow his work on YouTube (@Atheistville) or at Atheistville.com.
Atheistville with Mike Smithgall
After Charlie Kirk: Unpacking Political Martyrdom, Violence, and the Future of American Democracy
This week, we tackle the assassination of political commentator Charlie Kirk and its broader implications for American democracy. Our discussion covers Kirk's rise as a major figure in Christian nationalist movements, the immediate political reactions to his death, and the troubling patterns of political violence in the United States. We examine how martyrdom functions in modern politics, the performative nature of political outrage, and why both sides aren't equally responsible for America's violence problem. The conversation also explores the role of online radicalization, the othering of political opponents, and what we can expect as political tensions continue to escalate. A sobering look at where we are and where we might be heading.
đź’¬ Viewer Question Do you think political violence in America will get worse before it gets better, and what would it take to actually reduce the temperature of our political discourse?
đź“‘ Relevant Topics or Chapter Headings
- Charlie Kirk's Rise and Influence in Conservative Politics
- The Immediate Aftermath: Blame, Speculation, and Performance
- Political Violence Throughout American History
- The Making of Modern Martyrs
- Christian Nationalism and the Othering Problem
- Online Radicalization and Real-World Violence
- Comparing Responses: How Different Sides Handle Tragedy
- The Path Forward: Can We De-escalate?
Suggested Reading List:
Bad Faith: Race and the Rise of the Religious Right by Randall Balmer — Documents how evangelical political movements often appropriate religious language for partisan ends rather than theological ones, providing crucial context for understanding vaccine resistance. https://amzn.to/429RRio
A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn — A powerful retelling of American history from the perspective of the marginalized, challenging traditional narratives and power structures. https://amzn.to/3UqDfHn
The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism by Katherine Stewart —For too long the Religious Right has masqueraded as a social movement preoccupied with a number of cultural issues, such as abortion and same-sex marriage. In her deeply reported investigation, Katherine Stewart reveals a disturbing truth: this is a political movement that seeks to gain power and to impose its vision on all of society. https://amzn.to/4na3a2A
Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez — Jesus and John Wayne is a sweeping, revisionist history of the last seventy-five years of white evangelicalism, revealing how evangelicals have worked to replace the Jesus of the Gospels with an idol of rugged masculinity and Christian nationalism―or in the words of one modern chaplain, with “a spiritual badass.” https://amzn.to/48jYUJ7
Visit us at www.Atheistville.com for more content from Mike Smithgall and the Atheistville team
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