SCIENCE REASON AND CRITICAL THINKING

 

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Feathered Infiltrator? - What is it about Muslim paranoia and our feathered friends? The BBC tells us "A migratory bird has caused alarm in a village in south-eastern Turkey after locals mistook it for an Israeli spy. Villagers' suspicions were aroused when the bird, a common European bee-eater, was found dead in a field with a metal ring around its leg stamped "Israel". They called the police after deciding its nostrils were unusually large and may have carried a microchip fitted by Israeli intelligence for spying." Ah, the dreaded Zionist nostril ploy! This says nothing about Israeli spying but speaks volumes about the intelligence of the peasants of south-eastern Turkey. The Israeli spy bird silliness is fast becoming a tradition among the factually challenged - see below.

From 2011 - Saudis Get The Bird - the best headline so far in a year that has hardly begun has to be "Saudi Arabia captures Israeli 'spy vulture'" Yes, it seems those Zionist monsters in Mossad are training avian spies. Surely the Saudis are not really this half-witted? Let's see "The large bird, which was carrying a GPS transmitter and a tag bearing the identification code R65 from Tel Aviv University, strayed into rural Saudi Arabian territory at some point last week, according to a report in the Israeli daily Ma'ariv. Residents and local reporters told Saudi Arabia's Al-Weeam newspaper that the matter seemed to be linked to a "Zionist plot" and swiftly alerted security services. The bird has since been placed under arrest." Oh, yes they are. What was the bird spying on, sand? At least the Saudis can claim their spy bird is a carnivore with a nasty great beak. The Iranians, back in October 2008, crapped themselves over a couple of pigeons - see below.

From 2008 - Stop That Pigeon! - this time it's not Dick Dastardly and Muttley but the Iranian security forces who want to get the bird. A piece in the Telegraph informs us of an intelligence breakthrough, "Iranian security forces have arrested two suspected 'spy pigeons'.." Apparently one pigeon was caught near a no doubt top secret "...rose water production plant in the city of Kashan in Isfahan province." The Iranian press report says "...some metal rings and "invisible" strings were attached to the bird, suggesting that it might have been somehow communicating what it had seen with the equipment it was carrying." (There is no mention of a little leather flying helmet and goggles.) A second bird, similarly equipped for espionage, was already in custody, "Early this month, a black pigeon was caught bearing a blue-coated metal ring, with invisible strings." This one wasn't after Iran's rose water manufacturing secrets for it was caught near the Natanz nuclear facility. Whether these are evil Zionist pigeons has not been vouchsafed us. What punishment the avian snoops will suffer has not been announced either but public hanging from a crane, a popular Iranian entertainment, is unlikely to be practical. 80 will pass over without comment the suggestion in the Telegraph that the pigeons may have been plotting a coo.

(Courtesy Jesus and Mo)

Putting Things Into Perspective - now and again one needs to step back and look at the big picture rather than concentrate on the deeds and misdeeds of the teeming hordes that infest poor old planet Earth. In this case the step is a giant one, a hundred million light years, courtesy of Astronomy Picture Of The Day.

Two Stories - the Washington Post covers a story on the “Nakba,” or catastrophe. "Palestinians on Tuesday marked their mass displacement that followed Israel’s creation with a blend of sadness and hope, stopping in their tracks for a mournful siren but also flashing victory signs and carrying banners proclaiming their right of return. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were forced from their villages during the war that established the Jewish state in 1948, an event they commemorate every year as their “Nakba,” or catastrophe". There were other refugees in the area at that time, unmentioned by the Post, that attract nowhere near as much attention - Jews.

Many people when they think of Israel think of a cuckoo state imposed upon an Arab land by dispossessing the native "Palestinians". That this is so widely believed is a tribute to the way the story has been manipulated over the years. But there us another side of the story, one which reached 80 by a most unusual route. The political editor of al-Quds, the Arabic newspaper, quotes the Israeli Foreign Ministry, saying that "...nearly half of the citizens of Israel today, including their descendants, are coming from Arab countries," claiming that "between 1948 and 1951, were expelled about 850,000 Jews, or forced to leave Arab countries, what made them refugees , and between the late forties and 1967 was the displacement of the overwhelming majority of Jews from Arab countries where they were born."

Thanks to Google Translate this article can be shared with those who, like 80, cannot read Arabic. It reveals a far more balanced view of what happened to Jews living in Arab states following the foundation of Israel, a view apparently undisputed by al-Quds. "...the Political Committee of the League of Arab States [met] to develop a series of recommendations to all Arab and Islamic countries on how to take action against the Jews in their countries. Among those recommendations, was withdrawn citizenship of the Jews, what made them citizens in the State of Israel only, which was newly founded. was the confiscation of their property and freeze their money in banks and the nationalization of property to them millions of dollars. also prevented Jews worked in the ministries, and imposed severe restrictions on their employment in government departments in general, so many lost their source of livelihood."

Surprisingly, the number of Jews expelled from Arab/Muslim countries far exceeded the number of "Palestinians" expelled from the new state of Israel. As the article makes plain, these facts affect any discussion of compensation or "right to return". 80 is no closet Zionist - it's ridiculous that it even has to be said - but there is a great need for a more accurate view of the history of Israel and its neighbors. (The quoted report by the Israeli Foreign Ministry is here)

Those Jewish refugees became a part of Israel. Things were very different for the Palestinians, as the Post reminds us, "Today, surviving refugees and their descendants number several million who are scattered across the globe, many still living in squalid camps in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and surrounding Arab countries." Why the squalid camps after all this time? None of the surrounding countries want the refugees, that's why - assimilation would remove a running sore which keeps tensions in the area on the boil. The Israeli bogeyman is a good distraction for the region's autocratic governments.  Israel does its own bit here with the idiocy of the illegal settlements. (In fact a case can be made that Jordan is Palestine). Not that everything is squalid camps - see the Gaza Mall, and the Faisal Equestrian Club, frequented by the affluent. Another attraction, the Crazy Water Park, was denied to the people by its destruction, not by Israel, but by killjoy terrorist group Hamas. All Palestinians are not equal, there are those in the camps and there are those who have money. This area is full of inequality and unfairness but not all of it fits neatly into the Israel bad, Palestinian good narrative. Not that many people like this when it is pointed out. (Also see Spare a thought for the other ‘nakba’)

Evidence Lacking -  a report on recent research asks Is rationality the enemy of religion? In 80's view this is something of a no-brainer - but then 80 hasn't carried out any paid research. Two psychologists from the University of British Columbia, Gervais and Norenzayan, have published a study which "...offers evidence that when people engage in analytical thinking, they are less likely to express strong religious beliefs. In other words, the more you’re inclined to think a problem through rather than to rely on gut instinct, the less likely you are to capitulate to belief in supernatural agencies." The main flaw here seems to be, how do you define religious belief? The spectrum runs from vague feelings of spirituality to hardline fundamentalism, the adherents of which claim to know for certain what god wants (usually the same thing as they do) and act accordingly - much to the inconvenience and sometimes death of those who don't share their faith. It is evident that everybody brings their own preconceptions to a discussion of this kind including Philip Ball, the author of the piece, who seems to think of atheism as an extremist position. Quite how unbelief is extreme he doesn't enlighten us.

80 doesn't believe in anything supernatural be it god, horoscopes or pixies on the basis there is not one shred of credible evidence for any of it. Yes, evidence for a deity could turn up one day but that possibility is so remote that it is a waste of time thinking about it. Ball feels the study treated religion as only of the simplistic "God, angels and devils" kind and ignored the "rich tradition of religious thought" of Western intellectuals. Two things, the majority of believers in the world are in the literal "God,angels and devils" camp with saviors and miracles and the like but the more refined intellectual believers when pinned down, (not always easy to do) are more often deists than anything. The same response applies to both sets in 80's view - no god, no point. The popular supernaturalist  is easily dismissed on the grounds of lack of evidence and the refined deist also, as his/her god does not manifest itself in the physical world.

One point of view that seems more and more attractive as one ages is that elucidated by Slartibartfast "Perhaps I'm old and tired, but I always think the chances of finding out what really is going on are so absurdly remote that the only thing to do is to say "Hang the sense of it" and just keep yourself occupied."

 

 

Hush, Hush Whisper Who Dares? - "It wasn't their race which defined them, it was their treatment of women." - Nazir Afzal, chief crown prosecutor for the North West, on the Rochdale child rape gang, quoted in the Guardian. Treating women as though they have no human rights? That sounds familiar. In the Telegraph Brendan O'Neill actually dares to mention the elephant in the room "For a variety of reasons – mainly because the attitudes and behaviour of white working-class women are so profoundly at odds with the outlook of conservative Muslim communities – there is a tendency among many Muslims to look upon such women as inferior, as “sluts”. In another Telegraph piece we are told "Martin Narey, former chief executive of children's charity Barnardo's, said there was "troubling evidence" that Asians were "overwhelmingly represented" in prosecutions for street grooming and trafficking of girls in towns such as Derby, Leeds, Blackpool, Blackburn, Oldham and Rochdale."

In investigating why this is so all avenues should be explored, never mind political correctness or "social cohesion". That, as has been noted, young white girls are more likely to be out on the streets at night than "strictly-parented" girls of Asian descent is a red herring. It tries to shift some of the blame to the girls using the old "she was asking for it" excuse. This is totally unacceptable but is all one with a culture that blames women if they are raped and often punishes them for their "crime". A culture that considers women of less worth than men may be a contributory factor. If, as we have been told repeatedly over the last few days, it is not race that is the problem then how about religion?

Update - the Guardian tells us "Far-right groups are exploiting the conviction of nine men who were part of a gang that groomed girls for sex to create a "climate of hate" against Muslims, community leaders have warned."  Asking pertinent questions about the role of Islam in the gang's behavior does not automatically mean you are a far-right fanatic no matter how much the Guardian plugs the idea. Yet again the undefined nonsense word Islamophobia is deployed to shut down debate.

Update - In a news story concerning further arrests in the Rochdale area of suspected pedophiles is a reference to the judge in the case of the nine men already convicted, Gerald Clifton, who "...suggested they had targeted their victims because they were 'not of your community or religion'." What community and religion is he tactfully not identifying by name? Tact will not help in investigating these disgusting crimes.

Update - "Trevor Phillips, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said the fact that the gang of nine men convicted of abusing girls as young as 13 were Asian and their victims white must not be ignored. He said it would be a “national scandal” if the authorities had failed to intervene to protect the children because of fears that it would lead to the "demonisation" of the Muslim community." Trevor Phillips talking sense for once.

(courtesy Jesus & Mo)

- "The tenets of skepticism do not require an advanced degree, as most successful used-car buyers demonstrate. The whole idea of a democratic application of skepticism is that everyone should have the essential tools to effectively and constructively evaluate claims to knowledge. All science asks is to employ the same levels of skepticism we use in buying a used car or in judging the quality of analgesics or beer from their TV commercials." Carl Sagan, from The Demon-Haunted World - Science as a Candle in the Dark.

Olympian Solutions - in austerity Britain where the rich boys in government tell everyone "We are all in this together" the hugely expensive Olympic games are little short of obscene. Now we learn "Religious symbols have been banned from a "faith" badge designed for chaplains at the London Games in case they cause offence." This richly illustrates how divisive religion is, with pretty much all faiths claiming sole access to the truth, whatever that is. This wasteful jamboree is supposed to be about sport, so why  have chaplains at all? It's not a bloody ecumenical conference so what's wrong with secular stewards? As it is the committee to design the badge ran into a minefield "...plans for a design featuring symbols of each of the nine faiths represented on the committee were rejected — because not all religious believers would feel "comfortable" wearing symbols of other faiths."

With the religion of rage and blame leading the complaints, no doubt. Islam has trouble with other faiths - not so much over doctrine, but over their very existence. The Rev Canon Duncan Green said "We discussed lots of ideas — it is always difficult to get a symbol that is comfortable with (sic) everyone. We wanted something that people of all faiths could wear and feel comfortable with and that showed the world faiths coming together. If we want something that appeals to all faiths it has to be neutral."  In other words it was better to drop the religious bit and be, ahem, secular.

The whole Olympic hoo-hah has become a quadrennial pain in the butt and far removed from the simple sports competition it was meant to be. It's unedifying to watch the unseemly scramble between countries competing to piss away mountains of money every 4 years. Why not have a permanent sports complex as near to Olympia in Greece as the archaeologists would allow? It would be cheaper, as all participating nations would contribute to its construction, and the event would give a shot in the arm to the Greek services industry. And all the stewards would have a badge bearing the image of an athlete - far more appropriate to the proceedings than the clutter of crescents, stars, crosses and other assorted crud.

No Resemblance - the Telegraph reports "al-Qaeda has rejected the claim by Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik that he was following a model set by the Islamic terror network, claiming the difference between the two groups "is like day and night"."  Or like murdering fascist scum and murdering Islamofascist scum?

Holy Crap - We learn "The pope has donated $250,000 to the Personal Ordinariate, the body set up by the Vatican for disaffected Anglicans, which may be used for buying property and paying stipends." Golly, that's nearly the price of a pair of tiny, handmade, ruby slippers - this bigot-rustling is pricey. Furthermore, "The Vatican's nuncio to the UK, archbishop Antonio Mennini, said: "The Holy Father's gift of $250,000 is a clear sign of his personal commitment to the work of Christian unity...." Unity? This is obviously a Vatican-style use of the word, meaning everyone else has to become a Roman Catholic.

Meanwhile, in Ireland we are told "The Catholic primate of all-Ireland has said that he will not resign as Church leader despite revelations in the BBC's This World programme. It found Cardinal Sean Brady had names and addresses of those being abused by paedophile priest Brendan Smyth. However, he did not pass on those details to police or parents." Surely withholding information concerning the rape of children is an indictable offence? This arrogant creep preaches on morality yet he failed to act when he could have gone to the police and saved these poor kids from further abuse.

Now he won't resign - Brady, a whited sepulchre if ever there was one, is beneath contempt. Ratzinger should sack him - but don't hold your breath. My, those defecting Anglicans must feel so proud joining such an organization. (For those who can watch BBC iPlayer here is the documentary The Shame of the Catholic Church referred to above. If you are outside the UK see here.) Update - "The embattled Irish Catholic primate, Seán Brady, has faced further calls for his resignation from Ireland's foreign minister and the editor of the influential Irish Catholic newspaper over a child abuse row." says the Guardian. Update - the BBC tells us "Cardinal Sean Brady has said he wants to personally apologise to a man who was abused as a 14-year-old boy by paedophile priest Brendan Smyth."  Bit bloody late for that. Just resign. 

The Data So Far

(courtesy of xkcd)

Fun Fact - Symantec reports via PC World "Religious and ideological websites can carry three times more malware threats than pornography sites..." . What do they mean religious and ideological websites? They're the same damn' thing. Anyway, Symantec found "...that the average number of security threats on religious sites was around 115, while adult sites only carried around 25 threats per site--a particularly notable discrepancy considering that there are vastly more pornographic sites than religious ones." So next time you're hanging out at Hot Christian Singles, for example, be careful, OK?

- "Glory is fleeting, but obscurity is forever." Napoleon Bonaparte "Tell that to Gregor Mendel, shorty."  Number 80

Read Of The Week - comes courtesy of New Scientist. Guerilla enlightenment: Defending science online is an opinion piece by Nicoli Nattrass sub-headed Pro-reason bloggers are doing a better job than scientists at challenging alternative medicine. Long may it continue. A good example of such is the excellent Respectful Insolence. This is what happens when people fall for quackery - 200 cases of measles on Merseyside, UK.

- "It's obvious from these statistics that people who are not fully vaccinated are not just at risk themselves, but they pose an infection risk to others, such as defenceless babies and toddlers who are too young to be vaccinated. Measles is a very infectious illness that spreads rapidly amongst children and adults who are not protected by MMR vaccine.

"It is also a serious illness that can lead to serious complications. On rare occasions, people die from measles. It should not be treated lightly, but it is an avoidable illness and we strongly advise parents to ensure that their children are vaccinated." Dr Roberto Vivancos, a Health Protection Agency consultant talking to the BBC.

 

 

(courtesy SMBC Comics)

The Wilful Ignorance - that is Creationism is not, as many people think, solely a rejection of evolution by means of natural selection, it is a rejection of all the knowledge gained by use of the scientific method. You cannot cherrypick - if you believe the Earth is only 6000 years old then you are rejecting the well-evidenced findings of modern physics. We know the age from radiometric dating and it is consistent with that of the Moon. To reject these findings you are effectively rejecting the phenomenon of radioactivity. Once you start pulling at the threads of physics then you are in trouble as you will have no consistent story of how the Universe works, beyond the moronic assertion "God did it". This is not an answer of any kind but meaningless babble. When you introduce such a magical being that is capable of absolutely everything, including salting strata with fossils, you reach the point where your assertions are not falsifiable, they cannot be tested. (That such a powerful being is able to do absolutely anything at all does lead into some logical dead-ends. Could God create something that is so massive he is unable to lift it?)

So, basically Creationism is a grand case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Physics underpins science - for example chemical reactions are brought by the interplay of electrons - drop the knowledge of atomic structure and you lose an explanation, an explanation that has passed every test. Creationists' view of science appears to be that it is large body of unalterable facts maintained by a scientific priesthood. In other words they have no idea of the scientific method itself. They think of science, when they think of it at all, as another religion, with a rigid structure that claims to be the absolute truth. That all scientific hypotheses and theories are, to a greater of lesser degree, tentative and dependent upon the results of experiment passes them by. Far from being the arrogant exercise Creationists believe it to be, the scientific method is a system of humble inquiry. Einstein expressed this well when he said "One thing I have learned in a long life: that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childlike--and yet it is the most precious thing we have." Compare that to a bible-bashing preacher claiming to know with absolute certainty what God wants from his creatures - which funnily enough is exactly what the cleric wants too.

If scientists come up with results from experiments these only become acceptable after said results are replicated by other scientists. If an experiment exactly duplicates the original it doesn't matter where it is done, whether it be Mecca, Mosul or Malabar. There is no Islamic science, no Christian or Hindu science, there is only science. Religion cannot meet these standards. To quote T H Huxley “The great tragedy of Science: the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact”. Faiths based upon revelation claim theirs is the only true religion and it is considered blasphemous to even think of questioning or testing God's fiats by experiment. In fact in some religions (hello, Islam) such questioning can get you killed. Religions, despite ecumenical conferences, are inherently divisive. At an international science conference there are fierce disagreements over the interpretation of experimental outcomes but there is universal agreement about the basic scientific method. The world is facing multiple crises, nearly all triggered by overpopulation, and science (with its handmaiden, technology) is the only way to address them with any hope of even marginal success. It is deeply worrying that in such troubled times a large portion of the American populace are turning their backs on science. Unless this can be turned around the 21st century will belong to China.

- “It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.” Albert Einstein

Oxymoron Of The Week - comes courtesy of a headline from Voice of America - Egyptian Presidential Hopeful Promises Islamic, Inclusive Future. Islam is incapable of tolerance of other faiths or even other flavors of Islam. The religion of rage and blame doesn't do inclusive, despite the self-serving bullshit of fools like David Cameron - see Despicable Dave.
 

Click the above image to send an email to your MP

- “Where is the justice in having religious leaders of one faith from one particular part of the UK? We know why it has happened, but it’s a historical anomaly and indefensible in democratic terms. You have to look to Iran for any equivalent system in operation. A number of bishops are also Church Commissioners, whose job is to maximise profit for the Church. Essentially the Church is defending its own interests in the Lords. Bishops in the Lords have the ear of ministers and they can sway debates.” Jonathan Bartley, co-director of Ekklesia in a Times report about the anachronism of bishops sitting in the House of Lords. This was in May 2010 and is as true now as it was then.

In fact the government's proposed House of Lords reform would actually give them greater influence. The so-called Lords Spiritual would go from 3% of appointed peers, to anything between 12% and 17% of appointed peers, depending on the eventual size of a reformed chamber. This is a complete nonsense. The bishops are an unwanted anachronism - a fine example of which is the obviously unhinged, persecution-obsessed ex-archbishop, Lord Carey. (Also see Episcopal Taxidermy)

 

(courtesy of Jesus and Mo)

Blinded By By The Light - any typos in this paragraph are there because 80 has tears in his eyes from helpless laughter. Two British icons, Rupert the Bear and University Challenge are given a hilarious makeover by Crispian Jago at the Science, Reason and Critical Thinking blog. Rupert and the God Delusion, in which our favorite bear takes on theology and University Challenge: Science v Religion with Mohammed, Jesus, Krishna and David opposing Turing, Curie, Einstein and Darwin are absolute gems, two of many on Jago's site. Humor is a powerful weapon in the war against irrationality and Jago deploys it to devastating effect. Other entries include How To Make Your Very Own Chupacabra and Explain Love You Atheist Bastard. Particularly outstanding is the Periodic Table of Irrational Nonsense (hover your cursor over each element to see the explanation). In case you hadn't already guessed, Jago's blog is highly recommended and now has a permanent link in the sidebar.

 

Muticulturalism - no, that is not a typo. There is a certain type of condescension that results in the mutilation of thousands of young girls in the UK. This is the foul and disgusting side of so-called multiculturalism, whereby barbaric and cruel practices that should result in prosecution are either condoned or ignored. These include forced marriage, so-called honor crimes and Female Genital Mutilation. Implicit is the idea that these practices are part of a group's "culture" and any interference is frowned upon. The law in the UK should apply to all its inhabitants with no cultural or religious free passes allowed - but it doesn't.

A report by the paywalled Sunday Times, referred to in the Guardian, tells us "As many as 100,000 women in Britain have undergone female genital mutilations (FGM) with medics in the UK offering to carry out the illegal procedure on girls as young as 10..." If reading that sentence doesn't enrage you then you are part of the problem. "Investigators from the Sunday Times said they had secretly filmed a doctor, dentist and alternative medicine practitioner who were allegedly willing to perform FGM or arrange for the operation to be carried out. The doctor and dentist deny any wrongdoing."  These child-mutilating bastards are plying their filthy trade despite the fact that it is illegal, but then a law that is not enforced is no law at all.

"The practice, which involves the surgical removal of external genitalia and in some cases the stitching of the vaginal opening, is illegal in Britain and carries up to a 14-year prison sentence. It is also against the law to arrange FGM." The report goes on to say that across all the police forces in England and Wales no one, that's right, no one has ever been convicted of the offence.

Multiculturalism has allowed a ghettoization to develop where no effort is made to assimilate and little girls are maimed. One suspects that two things are going on here, both part of the failure of multiculturalism. First is the condescending attitude that little brown girls should be treated differently from little white girls and secondly is the idea of "community cohesion" where the police fear enforcing the law because of a violent backlash. Female Genital Mutilation is largely but far from exclusively a Muslim practice, with all the complications that involves for policing.

Model Waris Dirie encapsulates the condescension implicit in misapplied multiculturalism "If a white girl is abused, the police come break down the door. If a black girl is mutilated, nobody takes care of her. This is what I call racism." There should be a complete ban on the term "female circumcision" which is inaccurate and downplays the seriousness of the offence. Imagine your sister or daughter held down screaming while someone takes a knife to her pudenda. Now apply the anger you feel to the perpetrators, the men and woman who mutilate young girls the world over. Never mind different religions, different cultures, some things are just WRONG. It is way past time the police took action against these child-maiming scum in the UK. For international efforts see Stop FGM Now.  Waris Dirie's Desert Flower site is here.

 

Episcopal Taxidermy - we learn from the BBC "A committee of MPs and peers has decided that bishops should remain members of a reformed House of Lords." 80 agrees, with one stipulation. They should be stuffed and mounted in glass cases, the better to reflect their relevance in a modern, secular Britain.

- "Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe." H. G. Wells

Read Of The Week - the LA Times brings us a story that is a welcome counter to the anti-science idiocy embraced by the Republican Party candidates. "At Leo Politi Elementary, workers ripped out concrete and planted native flora. The plants attracted insects, which attracted birds, which attracted students, who, fascinated by the nature unfolding before them, learned so much that their science test scores rose sixfold." That this can be achieved in an inner-city school is heartening. "Three years ago, the school's standardized test scores in science for fifth-graders showed that 9% were proficient and none were advanced. Last spring, 53% of fifth-graders tested as proficient or advanced." There's a way to go but things are headed in the right direction. Now this project needs to be emulated across the country.

Here is the sort of thing educators are up against "New Hampshire state Republican Jerry Bergevin recently railed against science and the atheist eggheads who call themselves teachers: "I want the full portrait of evolution and the people who came up with the ideas to be presented. It's a world view and it's godless."  Maybe the wilfully ignorant Bergevin wants the USA to become a scientific backwater in the 21st century - he's certainly going the right way about it..

- "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."  Thomas Jefferson

 

 

- "I am no more likely to seek moral guidance in the Christian Bible than in Homer's Iliad"  Number 80

Jesus Wept - well, apparently his feet did, but not, as one might expect, from the nail holes. At least he wept until a nasty old rationalist revealed the source of the "holy" water. Now said rationalist is being threatened with blasphemy charges. See The Freethinker for the story.

 

Barking

- "It is now Christians who are persecuted; often sought out and framed by homosexual activists. Christians are driven underground. There appears to be a clear animus to the Christian faith and to Judaeo-Christian values. Clearly the courts of the United Kingdom need guidance." said poor, persecuted ex-archbishop Lord Carey, one of 26 bishops who sit in the House of Lords, the upper house of government in a country where his particular Christian sect is the established church. Read the rest of his whining - the old boy seems to have a touch of dementia. Christians in Indonesia or Pakistan can only dream of the kind of so-called persecution inflicted on Christians in the UK. Carey has no sense of proportion. His misuse of the word persecution insults those beleaguered Christians living in Muslim countries. He'll be on about priest holes and burnings next. (Also see Lord Carey is a bigger problem for British Christians than any secularist by Martin Robbins)

 

"Some of my best friends are Jews. Only joking!"

Pell Mel - Cardinal Pell, the Archbishop of Sydney, in debate with Richard Dawkins, inadvertently revealed the Church's attitude toward Jews when he said "I've got a great admiration for the Jews but we don't need to exaggerate their contribution in their early days....They weren't intellectually the equal of [the Egyptians or Persians] – intellectually, morally ... The poor – the little Jewish people, they were originally shepherds. They were stuck. They're still stuck between these great powers." Without the Jews, Pell's precious church wouldn't exist, something that perhaps slipped his mind - in fact there would be no Christianity or Islam. Mmm. If 80 had a time machine the first job would be to bump off Abraham - just think of the centuries of wars, cruelty, misogyny and homophobia that would be avoided. Of course this rather assumes Abe was historical - which seems highly unlikely. You can read Pell's unconvincing apology here. A video of the debate itself is on You Tube

Another person who has problems with Jews is the fundamentalist Catholic actor Mel Gibson. 80 was puzzled when a while back it was announced he would be directing a film about a Jewish hero, the decidedly historical Judas Maccabeus. It didn't fit in with Mad Mel's anti-Semitism at all. Now we learn the project has been shelved amid acrimony. Acrimony is a word often associated with Gibson. Screenwriter Joe Eszterhas has written an open letter to Gibson blaming him and his Jew hatred for the debacle. Eszterhas wrote: "You continually called Jews 'Hebes' and 'oven-dodgers' and 'Jewboys.' It seemed that most times when we discussed someone, you asked 'He's a Hebe, isn't he?'" The full letter can be found here. Gibson has responded fiercely (he does fierce very well) saying " ...the only reason he did not want to take part in Eszterhas' film was because he was "extraordinarily disappointed" with the script....In 25 years of script development I have never seen a more substandard first draft or a more significant waste of time," . For 80's look at the source of Gibson's torture-porn Jesus flick see Authentic Lethal Passion? from February 2004. Also see Not Sorry Enough about one of Gibson's sexist and anti-Semitic rants. Update - Joe Eszterhas tells Why I Released The Mel Gibson Rant.

" The most common of all follies is to believe passionately in the palpably not true. It is the chief occupation of mankind." H.L. Mencken

 

Despicable Dave - David Cameron's burning desire for trade with Indonesia has overridden his principles. Oh no, 80 forgot, he doesn't have any. We learn "Prime Minister David Cameron says Indonesia shows that democracy and a modern economy doesn't compromise security and a person's ability to practice their religion." If he could remove the pound signs from his eyes for just a moment he would find that Indonesia, in common with every other majority Muslim country, practises religious discrimination. Islam is only in favor of free speech and human rights while it is in the minority - to be swiftly forgotten when the reins of power are grasped.

In 2010 this appeared in the Jakarta Post "A banner with a picture of a young, bespectacled Christian man is draped in front of the mosque, a fiery noose around his neck and the words: "This man deserves the death penalty!" Churches are shut down. And an Islamic youth militia prepares for its first day of training. Though the events all occur less than 5 miles (10 kilometers) from Indonesia's bustling capital, making headlines in local papers and dominating chats on social networking sites such as Facebook, they've spaked (sic) little public debate in the halls of power". Did you miss this, Dave?

How about this? "Christians in Bekasi, as in other parts of Indonesia, have been unable to secure a place of worship due to a permit system in the country that stacks the deck against non-Muslims. Lacking a building, they went to worship in a field, and that site has been attacked as well, with jihadists even punching female members of the congregation. It has been soiled with human feces, and worshipers there have been constantly harassed with shouts of "Infidel," and told they deserve to be stabbed to death. On this past Sunday, one worshiper was stabbed in the stomach, and the pastor was beaten over the head with a wooden plank." Did you miss this one as well? You are really not doing your homework, are you?

Surely even you couldn't forget this ghastly story? "Extreme violence and persecution against Christians in Indonesia has taken a new dramatic turn at the weekend as three Christian school girls were barbarically beheaded by masked attackers. The shocking news has stunned the region, and is the latest in a long line of religious attacks in the country."

And this? "A surge in anti-Christian violence in the satellite cities that ring Jakarta, almost always unpunished, has exposed alarming new fissures in Indonesian society. It has also raised concerns about the commitment of the police and the government to the country's founding principle of religious freedom." You are keen enough to creep round the church in the UK,  hoping it will run social services on the cheap, but you then forget to pack your piety when going abroad to drum up business. Your true god is Mammon, you despicable hypocrite.

- "This is the time when, as Christians, we remember the life, sacrifice and living legacy of Christ. The New Testament tells us so much about the character of Jesus; a man of incomparable compassion, generosity, grace, humility and love. These are the values that Jesus embraced, and I believe these are values people of any faith, or no faith, can also share in, and admire." Easter speech by David William Donald Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service, Leader of the Conservative Party and Member of Parliament for Witney. Oh, and Despicable Hypocrite.

 

Pious Lies - according to the Telegraph "Stripping Britain of its Christian foundations would leave the country vulnerable to “the most sinister of ideologies”, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury has warned. “It has, indeed, been the experience of this past century, as both Blessed John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI have observed how the most poisonous ideologies have arisen within the Christian nations of Europe,” he said. “Thus Nazism or Communism attempted to discard the Christian inheritance of faith and morality as if it had never existed." Any rational individual's first response to Mark Davies, Roman Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury is likely to be "Well, he would say that, wouldn't he?".

But even a somewhat cursory search of the web shows that Davies is either stupid or duplicitous. The Nazi regime and the Vatican had a closer association than many people realize - certainly closer than Davies, or his boss, would like to be known. You may recall the furore Pope Ratzinger triggered when he arrived in the UK. One of the first things he did was to equate the rise of atheism in the country to that of the Nazis. Now Nazism is something Ratzinger should know about - no, not because he was drafted into the Hitler Youth but because many of the Nazi leaders were Roman Catholics. Furthermore, not one of them was excommunicated for their horrendous crimes. We shall see there was another poisonous ideology with its headquarters not in Berlin or Moscow but the Vatican. (See Ignorant Little Man)

On this page is a photo gallery with some remarkable pictures "The following photos provide a pictorial glimpse of Hitler, how his Nazis mixed religion with government, and the support for Hitler by the Protestant and Catholic Churches in Germany." We see Hitler and his henchmen meeting bishops, cardinals and an archbishop, both sides all smiles. We even see Roman Catholic bishops giving the fascist salute. None of these clerics appear coerced in any way. One picture is captioned "Cardinal Secretary of State, Eugenio Pacelli (later to become Pope Pius XII) signs the Concordat between Nazi Germany and the Vatican at a formal ceremony in Rome on 20 July 1933....The Concordat effectively legitimized Hitler and the Nazi government to the eyes of Catholicism, Christianity, and the world."

Here is an essay by Richard Carrier which asks the loaded question Was Catholic Hitler "Anti-Christian"? The introduction states "We often hear accusations that "Adolf Hitler was an atheist and look what he did!" The idea that Hitler believed in God, that he even claimed Christ as his own, is so shocking to people that they will go to any lengths to deny it. But the notion that Hitler was an atheist has already been soundly refuted. He was unmistakably a god-fearing Christian."

Carrier shatters the myth that Hitler only pretended to be a Christian. "Certainly, Nazism in general was no kind of atheism. It was without doubt a Christian movement, even rabidly anti-atheist. Like the McCarthyites that came after them, the Nazis equated atheism with their arch-enemy Bolshevism. Atheism was among their many charges against the Jews."  About.com offers a number of links on Nazism and Christianity introduced thusly "The Nazis and Adolf Hitler are commonly thought of as representing the antithesis of Christianity and Christian values. If that's true, why did tens of millions of German Christians adore Hitler, join the Nazis, and participate in the Holocaust (among other atrocities)? Hitler and the Nazis promoted a Christian nationalism, anti-communism, anti-Semitism, and return to traditional values which most Christians appreciated. The Nazi party platform specifically endorsed 'positive' Christianity."

Either the Bishop of Shrewsbury is abysmally ignorant of his own church's dark history or he is deliberately repeating his boss's lies. Which is the more likely? Either option shows him in a very poor light. Finally, and this should hardly need saying - none of the above should be taken as belittling or ignoring the fate of the many brave Christians of conscience who ended up in the death camps along with Jews, gays, gypsies, political dissidents and the disabled.

Israel And The United Nations - defending Israel in any way (except the "settlements" idiocy which 80 condemns) is never popular with people who fail to see how things are stacked against the only democracy in the near east by western lefties and accommodationists (hello Guardian). No, Israel is far from perfect (is any country?) but it is also nowhere near an "apartheid state". Try seeing the country and the people and not clods like Netanyahu. How would you like near daily, indiscriminate rocket attacks from Islamist scum like Hamas? Pat Condell makes a lot of sense in this impassioned video. Ask yourself, how many concentration camps have a shopping mall?

 

- "Clairvoyant - a person with the power of seeing what is invisible to her client, namely that he is a blockhead" Ambrose Bierce, from the Devil's Dictionary

 

A Plague Upon Your Rationalizing - there are few things quite so silly and pointless as a scientist wasting his/her time manufacturing possible explanations of Old Testament (OT) miracles. (see here) The bible isn't history - certainly the Exodus tale isn't, it defies dating for one thing - but that doesn't stop attempts to historicize the magical plagues God visited on the Egyptians - although the mass infanticide of the first born is usually glossed over. The latest instance is from the Telegraph (where else?) where we are told "Researchers believe they have found evidence of real natural disasters on which the ten plagues of Egypt, which led to Moses freeing the Israelites from slavery in the Book of Exodus in the Bible, were based. But rather than explaining them as the wrathful act of a vengeful God, the scientists claim the plagues can be attributed to a chain of natural phenomena triggered by changes in the climate and environmental disasters that happened hundreds of miles away." How jolly interesting - but the first step in the rationalizing process is missing - the tedious bit about proving the events to be historical and then placing them in the context of known Egyptian history. The Egyptian history here being the one revealed by well over a century of scholarship and archaeology and not the wish-fulfilling tripe and dating games so popular with pseudohistorians. (These are the writers whose books appear under History in the bookstore when they should really be in the Mind, Body, Spirit and Drivel section - see Don't Mention Atlantis)

The Telegraph, true to form, regurgitates the pap fed it with no attempt at verification. "Archaeologists now widely believe the plagues occurred at an ancient city of Pi-Rameses on the Nile Delta, which was the capital of Egypt during the reign of Pharaoh Rameses the Second, who ruled between 1279BC and 1213BC. The city appears to have been abandoned around 3,000 years ago and scientists claim the plagues could offer an explanation." Which archaeologists? On what basis is the choice of time and place made? That a city was abandoned does not necessarily connect it to the Moses fable. The Egyptians, prolific record-keepers, do not mention Hebrew slaves, plagues, a baby in the bulrushes, any of it. The only authentic thing about the story is that Moses is an Egyptian name and that's about it. The professionals quoted in the Telegraph are biologists and a lone paleoclimatologist - not one archaeologist or historian among them. The story, thrilling though it is, is just not historical. It incidentally paints a ghastly picture of the OT god (one of many). He only inflicts the plagues and the infanticide because of the (unnamed) pharaoh's stubbornness in refusing to let Moses' people go. Why, in the face of such horrors, does he persist? Because God himself had "hardened his heart". The poor bloody pharaoh couldn't win - his inability to make his own decisions was stymied by the magic of the very deity that was torturing and killing his subjects. The villain of the piece is not pharaoh but this vile god which delights in its own cruelty. (Modern Christians often say "But that is just the Old Testament". This is a useless rebuttal as the god of the OT was the god in which their precious Jesus believed) Also see Skating On Thin Ice. For real history and archaeology see Doug's Archaeology Site, The Hall of Maat, and Bad Archaeology which has added a highly recommended blog.

 

 

...And In Happy News - the BBC tells us "The European Court of Human Rights has backed terror extraditions from the UK to the United States. The Strasbourg court held there would be no violation of human rights for those facing life and solitary confinement in a supermax prison." The deportees include the hook-handed hate-preacher Abu Hamza. Good riddance. The Guardian seems almost sympathetic "If the final extradition hurdles are cleared and Abu Hamza is made to board a prison jet bound for ADX Florence in Colorado, he should use the nine-hour flight to prepare himself for entry into one of the most secure, alienating and isolated environments in the world." Oh dear, how sad, never mind.

The Trunk Of God - we are always hearing about the face of the gospel character Jesus or his mother appearing on toast, tortillas, damp walls, window panes, tree stumps and other unlikely locations. Now one aspect of the Hindu pantheon has trumped this depressingly parochial Christian pareidolia by appearing on a mind-numbingly vast scale on the surface of Mars. Lord Ganesh the knowledgeable can be seen in all his elephantine splendor in a view from orbit by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. This may well be how Ganesh got there. Now a full-scale search is on to locate the god's little mouse companion.

"One thing I have learned in a long life: that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childlike--and yet it is the most precious thing we have." Albert Einstein
 

Council Wars - after the successful High Court challenge to the practice of holding prayers during local council meetings many thought that Communities Secretary Eric Pickles had overturned the ruling by using something called the Localism Act. However it would appear that the sylphlike politician, affectionately known as Eric The Hutt, is on shaky ground. We are informed "Legal advice obtained by the National Secular Society says that the Localism Act doesn't give councils the powers that Mr Pickles attributes to it." Keith Porteous Wood, Executive Director of the National Secular Society said "Mr Pickles is behaving like some sort of dictator, declaring a legitimate court judgment to be overturned simply because it doesn't suit his personal religious views. In doing so, he puts councils who take him at his word at risk of being in contempt of court. It is highly irresponsible of him. The Localism Act has not been tested in any court and Mr Pickles cannot simply walk in and give it any meaning that suits his purpose. Not only is he over-riding the courts but also the will of Parliament that never gave consideration to prayers during the drafting of the Localism Act."

Perhaps Jabba Eric has allowed his heart to rule his head. Well, not his heart, which is obviously under enough strain, but his evangelical Christianity. Pickles' membership of the scandal-hit Peniel (rendered by 80's spellchecker as Penile) Church hit the newspapers in 2000, highlighting concerns about religious influence over him as a member of parliament. In a piece called Sects, power and miracles in the Bible belt of Essex the Guardian tells of "...Bishop Michael Reid and the members of his Pentecostal church, which some describe as a 'disturbing religious sect'." One ex-church member and Pickles' constituent said "The bishop is a deeply troubled man who says terrible things about people who have opposed him. He has been excommunicated from another church, runs companies controlling millions of pounds and is very intimidating. How can you ask your MP to help you, if he supports the bishop?" This same bishop "...was excommunicated for 'raillery' - a biblical term for slander - from Liverpool's Devonshire Road Christian Fellowship in 1969 and his 'flesh was committed to Satan'." Reid was also notorious for claims of miracle healing cures. Do read the whole of the Guardian's fascinating report of the bishop, naked tennis players, his church and the MP.

Now, obviously none of the above is evidence that Pickles the Hutt is a religious loon, but, as 80 has pointed out many times before, you can tell a lot about a man by the company he keeps.

There Were These Two Old Men - one called Benedict, although that isn't his real name, and the other, Rowan. We learn "Pope Benedict, leading the world's Catholics into Easter, said on Saturday technological progress, in the absence of awareness of God and moral values, posed a threat to the world." Take 19 devout young men and three technological marvels in the form of jet airliners - the result? Mass murder. Look at the devout ayatollahs of Iran, under whose rule the manufacture of nuclear weapons proceeds apace. How about the US Air Force and devout Christians equals Armageddon? Last year the USAF withdrew "...materials used in a training session that relied upon Bible passages and a quote from an ex-Nazi SS officer to teach missile officers about the morals and ethics of launching nuclear weapons."  Perhaps old Benedict was speaking, as he so often does, ex recto.

Rowan, meanwhile, is getting positively frisky as his retirement from the position of Archbishop of Canterbury draws nigh - an earlier time would describe this as being demob happy. His joy at no longer serving as a whipping boy for homophobes and misogynists is understandable. Sadly this cheerfulness has not stopped him talking nonsense. We are told "The high tide of "new atheism" may have passed, the archbishop of Canterbury has said in his Easter sermon. Rowan Williams said the atheism v religion debate appeared to be moving on from what he called "a pointless stalemate"."  What the hell is "new atheism"? It's only the same old atheism but no longer stifled by the unearned and stultifying deference once accorded churchmen, theologians and other such riff-raff.

That atheism now has such articulate and assertive champions such as Daniel Dennett, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and the late Christopher Hitchens is opportune - as is the world wide web in serving as a platform for freethinkers. As for his "pointless stalemate", the fact is that Christianity, particularly Rowan's sect in the UK, is shrinking like a water-drenched witch. Stalemate implies no attrition is occurring on either side. Rowan then drags out the oft-used jibe, calling atheists hysterical. Hardly so, although to clerics and apologists confronted with intelligent non-believers who can easily best them in debate, accusations of hysteria are all they have left. It's either that or putting  their hands over their ears and going "la-la-la not listening".

There were these two old men sat in deckchairs. One of them said, "It's nice out isn't it?" To which his companion replied, "Quick, put it away, here come a couple of nuns."  Eric and Ernie, allegedly.

- "John Sentamu, the archbishop of York, ... delivered his Easter message through his column in the Sun on Sunday"  I'd like to see a video of that....

Not Wanted - we learn "The home secretary was "misled" when she moved to throw a leading Palestinian activist out of the UK, according to an immigration tribunal ruling that strongly criticised her decision and found in favour of his appeal against the government's attempts to deport him. Sheikh Raed Salah, the leader of the Islamic Movement in Israel, was held in June last year on the orders of Theresa May after he flew into Britain despite being banned from entering the country" Perhaps the tribunal would like to get off its collective arse and take a look here. Britain doesn't need another anti-Semitic, Islamist shit-stirrer - it already has plenty of its own.

Computer Help - "What does 'insuifficient bandwidth' mean?" (It means the Telegraph doesn't have a spellchecker)

Curate's Egg - 80 often castigates the Guardian for the many things it gets wrong so it makes a pleasant change to mention something it gets right. The Newton Channel, hosted by the Guardian, features science videos on fascinating subjects with good, engaging presenters. These include Murray Gell-Mann talks quarks, Richard Dawkins on extraterrestrials, Brian Cox's guide to quantum mechanics and Marcus du Sautoy counts from zero to infinity. The Curate's egg was famously good in parts but the Newton Channel so far seems wholly good. Now if the Guardian could do something about the high drivel factor in the Comment Is Free offerings....
 

Easter Celebratory Recipes - courtesy of the Landover Baptist Church and Mrs Betty Bowers, America's Best Christian™. First up is Easter Bunny Stew which requires "2 large Easter Bunnies (or five little baby bunnies), clubbed and skinned" If your kids or your neighbor's kids don't have such pets, roadkill will do! From Mrs Bowers' personal chef comes He Has Risen - The Passion Fruit of the Christ Easter Soufflé. What could be better to follow such gorgeous repast than some cookies? Of course these are not your regular cookies but "The Brutal Death of Our Savior" Cookies. Then, satiated, the whole family can sit down together and watch Mel Gibson's torture porn classic - The Passion of the Christ - here with extra material from the Gospel of Arnold.

(Siné - Massacre)

-  "Some national cultures, the ones that have inherited certain ideas -- about freedom and democracy, the limits of the political claims of religion, the importance of tolerance and dissent -- are more humane than other civilizations, which reject those ideas." David Brooks

The Lonely Atheist - a long-running dispute over a few minutes worth of radio air-time is a microcosm of the larger debate about religion and the public square. Thought For The Day (TFTD)  "...is a daily scripted slot on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 offering "reflections from a faith perspective on issues and people in the news", broadcast at around 7.45 each Monday to Saturday morning. Nowadays lasting 2 minutes and 45 seconds..." The offerings are often of a mind-numbingly banality and are parodied, explained, translated and rated on the excellent Platitude Of The Day web site. The dispute concerns whether people other than god-botherers can contribute to TFTD. The debate has reignited recently following remarks in an interview with the co-host of Today, Evan Davis, who also happens to be a gay atheist. He said "I think there's a very serious debate about whether the spot – which I would keep – might give space to what one might call 'serious and spiritually minded secularists'. I don't think "Thought for the Day" has to only be people of the cloth."

This sparked a response full of errors and a possible cry for help from a scribbler at the Telegraph, one Guy Stagg. The headline reads Secularists on Thought for the Day will expose the loneliness of atheism. This is a poor start and displays dismaying ignorance - a secularist is not an atheist - plenty of believers are secularists too, for they realise the best way to protect both religious freedom and freedom from religion is by having a secular state. Stagg's assertion that "Thought for the Day is one of the better things about the Today programme." is an expression of his personal opinion but when he also claims "Thought for the Day is consistently focused and intelligent." he is clearly setting the bar far too low or is just having a laugh. The quality of the talks is variable in the extreme as made clear by Platitude Of The Day, a site that Stagg would do well to visit in the interests of his much-needed further education.

Already in a hole, Stagg keeps digging with his spade of fatuity when he dismisses  Davis's proposal "It belongs to the same category of silly proposal as Alain de Botton’s secular temples, or Dawkins's rebranding of atheists as “brights”." 80 will give him de Botton, whose proposal for secular temples is indeed very silly but the Dawkins' reference is plain wrong. Dawkins did not coin the name "bright" or attempt to re-brand atheists as brights. He did give his support to the nascent group, but also said in answer to accusations that the name sounded elitist "Whether there is a statistical tendency for brights [noun] to be bright [adjective] is a matter for research." This is the prudent caution of the real Dawkins, not the shrill bogeyman caricature of religionists and lazy, accommodationist atheists.

Stagg is not, in fact, a believer and the following assertion may well reflect his own personal life rather than that of other atheists. "This is something that few secularists admit: atheism is quite lonely. Not just existentially, but socially as well." Note that this sentence also confirms that it is Stagg's own misunderstanding of the meaning of the term secular and not just that of some lowly headline writer. Should Stagg wish to experience the camaraderie possible among atheists, having read through the Platitude of the Day web pages, he should next visit the Freethought blogs. Perhaps then he might not feel quite so lonely and will cease projecting his own social inadequacies onto others. If the choice is to be that of existential loneliness  or having a supernatural, authoritarian Peeping Yahweh spying on you all the time then the former wins hands down. Update - the Radio Times TV listing magazine has a poll asking Should secular figures be permitted to take part in Thought for the Day? Results so far, Yes 95.92% (1,200 votes) and No 4.08% (51 votes). 

For further reading Stagg would  do well to take in  I'm an atheist but... by Richard Dawkins. 80 has written about TFTD before in a piece unsurprisingly and unimaginatively called Thought For The Day. On the subject of accommodationist atheists the piece on Melvin Bragg below has been updated.

A Civilized Country? - "Women in the UK are being forced to get married with threats and violence. Children under the legal age of consent for marriage or sex are also being forced to marry - and most of them are girls. Four hundred children were helped by the government's Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) in the last year - the youngest was five years old." See Child brides and licensed rape.

Read Of The Week - is a Guardian Comment Is Free piece, Why reproductive health is a civil rights issue by Michael Cohen. "The recently declared "war on women" or "war on religious freedom" – depending on which side of the political aisle you find yourself – is the most recent issue du jour, but the challenge with focusing on the politics of women's health is that it tends to mask what's really going on in America, right now. There is, in fact, a war on women – and it's not a political question; it's a civil rights issue." The toxic combination of the far-right and religious fundamentalism also takes the voters' minds (those that have one) off far more pressing issues. There are members of parliament who are trying to import anti-choice legislation into the UK, such as the vacuous and factually challenged Tory Nadine Dorries. Also see NHS patient care monitoring affected by abortion clinic inspections. 

- "You think it's tough being African-American? Try being me. Try being an atheist, childless, single woman as prime minister." Julia Gillard, Australian Prime Minister jokingly comparing her approval ratings with President Obama's.

Jesus & Mo - Jesus turns literary critic while Mo plays the straight man.

(courtesy Jesus & Mo)

 

Texas Twat - "In Texas, we base our policy decisions on sound science and what is ultimately best for our citizens. Man-made global warming remains but a theory and one where thousands of scientists remain sceptical." How many of those "thousands" of sceptical scientists are climatologists? This "sound science", does it include Creationism or praying for rain? Rick Perry, governor of Texas and failed Republican presidential nominee, reveals the depths of either his ignorance or his duplicity. The homophobic, bible-bashing, know-nothing was riled by the UK Foreign Office funding an environmental group which aims to influence climate security policy and associated legislation in Texas. The oft-used Jonathan Swift quote sums up the futility of such attempts "It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he was never reasoned into." Also see Science under fire from 'merchants of doubt': US historian.

(click me)

2012 Pigasus Awards Announcement 

"The awards are announced via telepathy, the winners are allowed to predict their winning, and the Flying Pig trophies are sent via psychokinesis. We send; if they don't receive, that's probably due to their lack of paranormal talent."  James Randi, source Wikipedia

- "George Galloway = Nick Griffin. They both try to gain power by driving a sectarian wedge into the heart of communities, and by preying on the dissatisfaction with mainstream politics. The far left and the far right are 2 cheeks of the same arse."  from Guardian reader AnotherRainyDay on the surprise victory of the despicable Islamist puppet Galloway in a local election. One wonders how many of the votes cast for Galloway were postal? 80 hopes the result is given the scrutiny it deserves.