Who is Bob?

So who is this Bob guy, anyway? That's probably the question running through your mind right now. I've already introduced you to this website and what I'm trying to do with it, but I've never really introduced myself properly.

Well, the short introduction may be found in the single paragraph biography I've been using for a while now, whenever I need to put a bio or "about the author" on something:

"Robert Lewis is the king of atheist, Libertarian, autodidact, iconoclastic horror and non-fiction writers. He worked as the Talent Director for Insidious Reflections magazine before its untimely death. Currently, he runs the website, www.inbobwetrust.net. The horror writer in him will never rest until everyone on the planet is scared out of their minds. The non-fiction writer in him will never rest until every little piece of humbug is crushed like the wasteful superstition it is. The effect of this is that everyone is pissed at him some of the time, and some people are all of the time. Plus, he’s getting really good at referring to myself in the third person."

Really, that's about it. But you probably want to know a little more about my accomplishments and qualifications.

I began writing fiction in grade school, and became serious about the craft after I won a writing contest in the third grade.

Over the years, I've won a handful of writing contests from various small organizations or publications.

As I mentioned, I was the Talent Director for Insidious Reflections magazine, which was a horror and dark fiction literary magazine. Several of my articles and reviews, as well as interviews with genre authors, were featured in that magazine, which, unfortunately, is no more. It's dead. Or perhaps, it's undead. I'm not really sure.

During my early teens, I became very interested in Chess, and started studying the game and playing in tournaments. I performed fairly well, taking first and second places in several small tournaments. Of course, I'm no master. Among tournament players, I did no better than average. But still, I know quite a bit about Chess theory, especially when compared to the casual player.

As far as the politics is concerned, I feel qualified to speak on the matter for one major reason: I'm an American, and the politics has an effect on my own personal life. However, I've also done something most people never have: I've read the Constitution. And I've done something most people would never dream of doing: I've studied.

I also served on the first LPCO (Libertarian Pary of Colorado) Platform Committee. Together, we wrote a platform for the state party. As of this writing, I've already volunteered to serve on next year's committee to revise and add more planks to the existing platform.

With regards to religion, I was raised Catholic, and have been a member of several Christian groups (Catholic and otherwise). Christianity, therefore, is my area of expertise, though I've made every effort to study other religions as well. I left the faith as soon as I was old enough to think for myself.

I devote a great deal of my time to the exposure and debunking of frauds, hoaxes, quacks, and other humbuggery. My qualifications to do so are simple: I refuse to accept anything blindly. More specific expertise comes from my background as an amateur magician (albeit only a mediocre one, which I freely admit), and my stubbornness. I absolutely refuse to accept anything unless I've done thorough study.

I've been told that I have a closed mind because of my skepticism of religion and the paranormal. To that I have several answers. Perhaps my favorite is that I think it takes an incredibly open mind to accept Quantum theory. I do accept it (though I don't claim to fully understand it) because it is supported by massive evidence, while paranormal claims are not. I've also been known to quote Professor Richard Dawkins: "There's this thing called being so open-minded your brains drop out."

Simply put, my qualifications to speak on any matter on this website all boil down to one fact: I don't blindly accept anything without thorough thought or study.