06.30.07
It’s a Great Product… and It’s Free!
(via A Whore in the Temple of Reason)
[tags]atheist, atheism[/tags]
Why Do Churches Provide Us with Fodder?
If you take it one way, it’s hilarious.
If you take it the other way, you’re going to have clown nightmares for months…
(via Balance and Paradox)
[tags]atheist, atheism, church, Christian, clow[/tags]
Perfect Happiness
Funny stuff:
Russell’s Teapot has more where that came from.
(via The New Atheist)
[tags]atheist, atheism, Russell’s Teapot[/tags]
Today’s Newspaper Roundup
First, we have a couple great letters-to-the-editor. These are from the Chicago Tribune, in response to their article about Camp Quest:
I continue to be amazed at the special treatment that religion receives and hope that the work of people like camp founders Edwin and Helen Kagin helps keep the mythology in churches where it belongs.
…
… Everything we teach our children should be based on giving good knowledge and wisdom and then hoping (and helping) the child to choose well.
If my son becomes religious someday, I certainly would be disappointed; but it wouldn’t make me happy if he ended up being a fan of country music, reality TV or the Cubs either.
That’s from GianCarlo Nardini. Jan Weller of Chicago also has this to say:
The brave atheists [reporter Ron Grossman] profiled — particularly the children — are inspiring.
…
Belief in a deity doesn’t necessarily lead to genuine morality, nor does the lack of such belief automatically lead to amorality. I consider myself to be an incredibly ethical and compassionate human being, and I reached this state without any formal religious upbringing.
And boy am I glad I never had to go through that brain-washing regimen.
Sadly, the Christians reading that letter probably dismissed everything Jan wrote after they saw the brain-washing comment… which is disappointing considering the letter is otherwise accessible to everyone.
But it’s not nearly as bad as this guy from The Ocala Star-Banner:
Any person who can use logic and reason can see the Christian world view is reasonable, plausible and more logical than any evolution theory ever presented.
…
Who are these ignorant, hateful people who attack a way of life proven to produce good children, a long healthy life full of peace and goodness? What good has ever been created by an atheist? None.
…
Why do you give them a non-challenged forum to present their perverted positions? Let’s open this to debate and see whose position falls apart.
I’m never sure whether these types of comments deserve a response or not. It’s apparent nothing will get through to them, anyway.
In other news…
Muhammad Ali’s training facility is up for sale on eBay! It’s an unusual item, and it’s never certain how these things will sell.
We then get a list of unusual eBay items: Fingernails of a killer. A grandmother. Virginity. Britney Spears’ chopped off hair. This guy who sold his soul on eBay. The Pope’s old car.
Great juxtaposition at the end there.
Finally, the New York Times discusses all the religious social networking sites, including HisHolySpace.
Caitlin Todd enjoys making friends on social networking Web sites, but is turned off by content that she believes is inappropriate on a number of popular pages.
So Caitlin, 16, meets people only on Christian social sites like www.hisholyspace.com and www.xianz.com, where profanity is prohibited, prayer is urged and content is strictly monitored.
“I use Xianz because it is a place that I can come to and have fellowship with friends. Sharing God’s word and helping others,” Caitlin wrote in an e-mail message. “Xianz is like a big church!”
You gotta love the idea of social networking sites where you choose to cut yourself off from large segments of society.
[tags]Chicago Tribune, Camp Quest, Edwin Kagin, Helen Kagin, Christian, Cubs, GianCarlo Nardini, Jan Weller, Chicago Tribune, Ron Grossman, The Ocala Star-Banner, evolution, Muhammad Ali, eBay, virginity, Britney Spears, Pope, New York Times, HisHolySpace, Caitlin Todd, God[/tags]
06.29.07
First Freedom First Video
First Freedom First has a trailer video about “safeguarding separation of church and state” and “protecting religious liberty.” It’s been around for a little while, but I had never seen it until now and it’s as good a time as ever to watch it.
Yes, it gets hokey at times, but it’s effective. And the issues raised are incredibly important.
The video was written and directed by Adam Klugman of the Progressive Media Agency.
(via Mriana)
[tags]atheist, atheism, First Freedom First, separation of church and state, Adam Klugman, Progressive Media Agency[/tags]
A Christian Nation, Says Local Bigot
I was reading a (very) local paper and I saw an article written by Pastor Vernon C. Lyons, a Baptist minister.
Lyons is a guy who opposed the building of a mosque in our community because he felt it would bring in the terrorists.
He tried to come off as sane, but it didn’t work:
“Muslim terrorists kill people. Moderate Muslims do not kill people. Moderate Muslims supply the cash to the militant Muslims,” Lyons said.
No. No they don’t.
His church is normally a polling place during elections, but after his comments (in late 2004), the county said no to the church being a place voters went to on election day. People were too uncomfortable going there.
“It led to enough fear and intimidation on the part of some voters, we felt it was smarter not to get in the middle of it and move it,” said Cook Co. Clerk David Orr
Lyons made this hilariously ironic statement afterwards:
“If the county clerk chooses to accommodate the bias or intolerance of some voter, that certainly is his prerogative, we have no quarrel with that.”
Anyway, he wrote this piece for the community paper:
He deserves a well-written smackdown.
I’ll do my best.
In the meantime, any suggestions as to what I need to include in a rebuttal piece would be helpful.
[tags]atheist, atheism, Vernon Lyons, Ashburn Baptist Church, Muslim, Islam, David Orr[/tags]
Michael Behe’s Book, as Reviewed by Richard Dawkins
The New York Times is going to publish Richard Dawkin’s review of Michael Behe’s new book on Sunday. It was previously up behind the TimesSelect wall, but it’s now available for public viewing.
Here’s a selection of what Dawkins has to say about The Edge of Evolution:
I had expected to be as irritated by Michael Behe’s second book as by his first. I had not expected to feel sorry for him.
…
After his humiliation in court [at the Dover trial], Behe — the star witness for the creationist side — might have wished to re-establish his scientific credentials and start over. Unfortunately, he had dug himself in too deep. He had to soldier on. “The Edge of Evolution” is the messy result, and it doesn’t make for attractive reading.
…
Behe correctly dissects the Darwinian theory into three parts: descent with modification, natural selection and mutation. Descent with modification gives him no problems, nor does natural selection. They are “trivial” and “modest” notions, respectively. Do his creationist fans know that Behe accepts as “trivial” the fact that we are African apes, cousins of monkeys, descended from fish?
…
… Behe, as is normal at the grotesquely ill-named Discovery Institute (a tax-free charity, would you believe?), where he is a senior fellow, has bypassed the peer-review procedure altogether, gone over the heads of the scientists he once aspired to number among his peers, and appealed directly to a public that — as he and his publisher know — is not qualified to rumble him.
The review makes me wish that the people who read (and believe) Behe’s books were the same people that read the New York Times.
Alas.
[tags]atheist, atheism, New York Times, Michael Behe, Richard Dawkins, The Edge of Evolution, Dover, Intelligent Design, Charles Darwin, Discovery Institute[/tags]
Atheist Tactics Debate
Chris Hallquist and I will be appearing on The Debate Hour online radio show on the evening of Friday, July 13 at 8:00 p.m. (EDT) to discuss atheist tactics. The host of the show is none other than The Infidel Guy himself, Reginald Finley.
Here’s a sampling of the issues that Chris and I disagree over:
- Should we care about the “angry atheist” stereotypes? (I say we should)
- Should we present atheism as involving more than just disbelief in God(s)? (I say yes)
- How awesome is my book? (I say *really* awesome. And that’s not biased at all…)
The show is live and listeners are welcome to call in with questions! More information is here.
And if you have thoughts on the topics above (or other issues dealing with how atheists present their message), feel free to discuss them in the comments.
[tags]atheist, atheism, God, Chris Hallquist, The Debate Hour, The Infidel Guy, Reginald Finley[/tags]
Hitchens vs. Sharpton, Part Deux
Christopher Hitchens and Rev. Al Sharpton were on Hardball yesterday. It’s their second time meeting since a public debate in May when Sharpton made this controversial statement about Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney:
“As for the one Mormon running for office, those that really believe in God will defeat him anyway, so don’t worry about that. That’s a temporary situation.”
They discuss the Roman Catholic Church’s stance that Catholics who run for office must share the Church’s extreme anti-abortion views. But that’s not nearly as humorous as Hitchens’ soundbytes…
The short video of those lines can be downloaded here (WMV).
Here’s what happened: Sharpton said the War in Iraq was not religiously-motivated, but rather the result of “a personal hallucination” by President Bush and Hitchens.
Hitchens says this in response:
Well, I’ve lived to see the Rev. Sharpton denounce rhetorical maneuvering, so that should be enough for me this evening.”
And a bit later, we get this nugget from Hitchens:
You’re the guy who proves you can get away with anything in this country if the word ‘Reverend’ is in front of your name.”
Even more shocking?
Hitchens has a water bottle in his hand instead of a cigarette or alcohol.
[tags]atheist, atheism, Christopher Hitchens, Reverend Al Sharpton, Hardball, Chris Matthews, Mitt Romney, Republican, Mormon, God, Roman Catholic Church, abortion, War, Iraq, President Bush[/tags]
06.28.07
Ex-Ex-Gays Speak Out
We laughed when we were told Ted Haggard was “cured” of his gayness after three weeks because the idea of a gay person magically turning straight (through “counseling,” no less) is ludicrous.
It’s not always a laughing matter. A lot of gay people, out of fear that there is something wrong with them, try to go to places like Exodus International, a ministry that claims prayer can fix your homosexuality.
However, three former leaders of Exodus are now issuing an apology.
Sort of.
(Emphasis below is mine)
“Something’s happening. And I think it’s very positive,” agreed Michael Bussee, who founded Exodus in 1976, only to fall in love with another man — a fellow ex-gay counselor.
Now a licensed family therapist in Riverside, Bussee regularly speaks out against ex-gay therapies and is scheduled to address the Ex-Gay Survivor’s Conference at UC Irvine at the end of the month.
…
But Bussee put aside his protest agenda recently to endorse new guidelines to sexual identity therapy, co-written by two professors at conservative Christian colleges.
He and other gay activists — along with major mental-health associations — still reject therapy aimed at “liberating” or “curing” gays. But Bussee is willing to acknowledge potential in therapy that does not promise change but instead offers patients help in managing their desires and modifying their behavior to match their religious values — even if that means a life of celibacy.
So Bussee apologizes for thinking you could “cure” gays… you can’t. But he adds that gay people can just never have sex, and that could be ok.
He was joined by Jeremy Marks of Exodus International Europe and Darlene Bogle of Paraklete Ministries (an agency that referred gays to Exodus). In a statement, they said the following:
Some who heard our message were compelled to try to change an integral part of themselves, bringing harm to themselves and their families. Although we acted in good faith, we have since witnessed the isolation, shame, fear and loss of faith that this message creates.
The trinity also reminded people that it’s possible to be gay and Christian - a foreign concept for many struggling with their faith.
The director of Exodus, Alan Chambers, was also mentioned in some articles:
With years of therapy, Chambers says, he has mostly conquered his own attraction to men; he’s a husband and a father, and he identifies as straight. But lately, he’s come to resent the term “ex-gay”: It’s too neat, implying a clean break with the past, when he still struggles at times with homosexual temptation. “By no means would we ever say change can be sudden or complete,” Chambers said.
…
Chambers and other Exodus leaders talk deliberately about a possible biological basis for homosexuality, in part to explain that no one can turn a switch and flip from gay to straight, no matter how hard they pray.
So he’s apologizing about the term ex-gay — you can never change completely. Though he still seems to be ok with what Exodus promotes: Freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ.
It would’ve been nicer had they all said, “We were wrong this whole time. Homosexuality can’t be cured. It’s just who you are. But we are still Christians and those two worlds are completely compatible.”
But that’s asking too much.
I suppose this is a small step forward.
(Thanks to Logos for the links!)
[tags]atheist, atheism, Ted Haggard, gay, Exodus International, homosexuality, Michael Bussee, Jeremy Marks, Exodus International Europe, Darlene Bogle, Paraklete Ministries, Alan Chambers, Jesus Christ[/tags]
