religion

Joshua Marshall on how out of step fundamentalist evangelicals are with both a modern society and the vast majority of other religions. "Most mainstream religious groups have long since made their peace with evolutionary theory. As in, most Protestant denominations, the Catholic Church, Judaism in its Conservative, Reform, and most Orthodox groups." And as one of his readers points out, Nasa's current focus is the search for life: "The creation vs science question has a major bearing on a rather visible government program: Isn't the primary rationale for most of the space program to learn more about the origins of life? Some would say that exploration of Mars and the moons of Saturn will help us shed light on these eternal mysteries. Others would point out that all we need to know can be found in the book that's available in every hotel room." Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah...

If someone asks you to debate Evolution over Intelligent Design, scientifically - don't. If you lose on technical grounds, then you probably shouldn't be out unsupervised, and if you win you will get some variant of this: "You are too scientific and rational, one day you'll understand the true nature of the importance of being spiritual". The counter argument to this, makes a much better opening move: Believer: "If evolution is true and birds are descended from dinosaurs, can you tell me why there was a maintenance of hepatic-piston diaphragmatic lung ventilation in theropods throughout the Mesozoic?" Atheist: "No". Atheist: "Why do the insides of evangelical churches look like Donald Trump's bathroom?" Believer: "Its what happens in a religious building that matters, not the architecture, think of all the music". Atheist: "What, like the Osmonds, all the stuff Cat Stephens did when he converted to Islam or Uncle Harry's Bar...

Independant: "As MPs vote on whether to go ahead with a Bill that could outlaw religious jokes, we celebrate comedy's finest at their blasphemous best" I always think that a society's toleration of jokes about anything, is a fine sign of its level of being benign. My favorite is the Emo Philips one: "I was walking across a bridge one day, and I saw a man standing on the edge, about to jump. I ran over and said: 'Stop. Don't do it.' 'Why shouldn't I?' he asked. 'Well, there's so much to live for!' 'Like what?' 'Are you religious?' He said: 'Yes.' I said. 'Me too. Are you Christian or Buddhist?' 'Christian.' 'Me too. Are you Catholic or Protestant?' 'Protestant.' 'Me too. Are you Episcopalian or Baptist?' 'Baptist.' 'Wow. Me too. Are you Baptist Church of God or Baptist Church of the Lord?' 'Baptist Church of God.' 'Me too. Are...

Reading through accounts of Christian protests of Harry Potter came upon this classic: "Maine: A group of Christians in Lewiston, ME, the Jesus Party had planned to hold a book burning in a local park on 2001-NOV-15. However, they were denied a fire permit by the Fire Department. So they held a "book cutting" instead. " The Harry Potter books: Charming stories or demonic plot?

Reuters: Indian government reverses a crippling fine imposed by a Hindu temple, on a family whose baby pee-ed while its mother was praying.

Salman Rushdie attacks an article in the Guardian by Dylan Evans which proposes a moderate atheist stance. The problem with the moderate stance is that there is no compromise between belief and non-belief in the context of religion

Byron LaMasters reports on the Stem Cell debate in Congress. Bush has threatened to Veto on the grounds that: He opposes that which "destroys life in order to save life". By logical extension, this means that Bush is opposed to most defense spending.

Great account by David Corn of his Fox news confrontation with the Family Research Council, an Unchristian Wrong lobby group: Fighting the Family Research Council in the Religious War. It includes a tragi-comic description of government funded contraception group that not only believes that sex is dirty but that you can only practice abstinence if you believe in Jesus - otherwise you will, apparently, burn in hell, forever. (Off Fuck and Die?) The FRC are one of the main lobby groups pushing for no compromise in the 1.5% of judicial nominations that couldn't get through, thus causing the current constitutional mess. It is easy to blame the standoff on the executive branch and Jeff blames it on the Senate, but the real problem is that the marginal extremists are throwing such a hissy fit that the government is being bullied by them. Moderate Republicans are being bitch slapped by the...

"...hundreds of thousands of young Americans are now patrolling and guarding hazardous frontiers in Afghanistan and Iraq. Is there a single thinking person who does not hope that secular forces arise in both countries, and who does not realize that the success of our cause depends on a wall of separation, in Islamic society, between church and state? How can we maintain this cause abroad and subvert it at home?" The piece is by Hitchens who skillfully tears a bunch of arseholes a new bunch of arseholes. While I sometimes wonder about Hitchen's integrity - he does seem to now be digging himself out of the pit he has created for himself over the last 2 years, by supporting secular libertarianism, which is surely the future for US politics. Hitchens is a good writer, his pen as dangerous a weapon when he was on the left as on the right....

You often hear the term 'moral relativism' used pejoratively compared to the continued use of the morality of 2000 years ago. What this needs is a new term - much like the use of the positive word gay instead of homosexual or pro-life instead of anti-abortion. Moral relativism means is that your notion of morality changes over time - but like the arrow of time itself it always moves forward - moral relativism means moral progress, as compared with the static and eventually obsolete morality endorsed by all religions. Quotes by Pope Ratzi: "Having a clear faith, based on the creed of the church, is often labeled today as a fundamentalism. ... Whereas relativism, which is letting oneself be tossed and 'swept along by every wind of teaching,' looks like the only attitude acceptable to today's standards." Indeed it is, and moral progress is better by definition.

Home schooling has traditionally been given to kids whose parents are on the extreme fringes of society, hippes on the left and bible bashers on the right. Because of the growth in religious extremism, there has been a similar growth in home schooling, meaning that some schools have had their budgets cut as they lose pupils and per pupil funding. To woo pupils back, a school in Oregon is changing its curriculum to include creationism in science classes and biblical texts in English literature classes, leading to a crappy science and boring, one-dimensional art education for everyone. So for those that do point out that the US is by and large moderate, here is a concrete example of how the passion of a mindless minority over the apathy of the majority leads to an undemocratic situation where the minority view is enforced rather than tolerated. Oregon District Aims to Woo...

Great post by Ryan at 'You Know what Part' that shreds my last post on the US becoming a theocracy. You Know What Part: Religion, politics and my ticket to Hell Things that Ryan is right about: 1. I did invoke Godwin's law. Godwin's law is useful when ranting. 2. The US is not really becoming a theocracy. In actual fact as the Economist pointed out, most people have centrist, moderate beliefs and politics, but the margins are where elections are won. 3. Progressive circles have their fair share of hypocracy and there is something even more irritating about liberal self-righteousness - because they should know better. 4. As my friend Alex pointed out - as a founder of an Internet genealogy company, I have a vested interest in the Earth being older than Biblical claims. But... There are a bunch of religious nutters whose voice tipped the margins in...