Europe sees creationism as threat to human rights

Europe sees creationism as threat to human rights

Europe's primary human rights body will vote on a proposal this week to defend the teaching of Darwinian evolution and keep creationist and intelligent design views out of science classes in state schools in its 47 member countries.

This has always been a problem with the liberal idea of "cultural diversity." Far too many cultures still treat women as chattel, glorify religious violence, and battle science because its provable tenets contradict their fairy tales from the ancient past. This is where liberalism breaks down. We have get shitty with people: religious indoctrination is child abuse, stupid lies and made-up fantasies about the origin and evolution of life on earth form the basis of the belief systems that permit ignorance and abuse everywhere there is fundamentalist religion, whether christian or muslim or hindu.

You know what will be really hilarious? If the vote goes through to prevent the teaching of fantasies as science, creationsit cacklers everywhere are going to slapping their lips together in the form of rapidfire hate speech like never before. Fox News will become the comedy channel.

Salman Rushdie is not the problem. Muslims are.

Salman Rushdie is not the problem. Muslims are. An interesting read from a muslim unwilling to let others steal his religion out from under him.

Above all, I am offended that so many other Muslims are not offended enough to demonstrate widely against God’s self-appointed ambassadors. We complain to the world that Islam is being exploited by fundamentalists, yet when reckoning with the opportunity to resist their clamour en masse, we fall curiously silent. In a battle between flaming fundamentalists and mute moderates, who do you think is going to win?

Of course, you know my take on this: Muslims are not the problem, either. Religion is.

The Dangers of Christian Extremism

Rippin' into Rosie

I hate Rosie. She says something that's correct: radical Christians are just as dangerous as radical Muslims, but then she can't explain why in a cogent fashion. She sputters and argues and, by making a fool of herself, she discredits a correctly drawn conclusion based on observing what radical Christians are doing.

Clash of Mentalities Debated on Arab TV

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Watch clash of mentalities @ YouTube

Arab Psychiatrist Wafa Sultan: There is No Clash of Civilizations but a Clash between the Mentality of the Middle Ages and That of the 21st Century. This hard-line Muslim cleric goes off on her, yelling at her and throwing his arms around. Completely medieval, and, ironically, proving her point for her.

The Power of Faith

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The Power of Faith

This could be remade with footage from Jesus Camp, now.

Sell Everything You Have and Follow Me

Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go [and] sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come [and] follow me. ~ Mat 19:21

One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. ~ Mar 10:21

Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. ~ Luk 18:22

Does God Want Us to be Rich?

Um... no. But I guess that's a little beside the point now, isn't it? I find it extremely curious that none of the verses above appeared at all in the Time article. How is such an oversight possible in an article concerning the Bible's take on wealth? Prosperity Lite seems to me to be proof that religion (and by extension, God) is a creation of people. Funny how this new religion reflects the consumerist culture from which it sprang.

These megachurches preaching Prosperity Lite are, to me, a frightening product. Just as radical Islam takes advantage of our own freedom of religion to plot harm to us, under the guise of the same we are looking at nothing less than the rise of a new powerbase in America. They are using freedom of religion as an avenue to political power. This looks to me like the rise of a new class in America: the religious wealthy. Yes, we have had wealthy religious people before, but I can't help feeling there's something fundamentally (sorry, had to!) different about this new batch of praise-singers.

And yet, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Might makes right. Religious power is political power. These people will soon be running for office across the land, and they will win. Theocracy will have arrived at last. Dominionism will have its day. A new Dark Age will begin, but the majority of the people will not recognize it or even care, because a theocracy is what they wanted. Even if it isn't, moderate Christians will not speak out against it. You think I exaggerate? Time will tell. I would love to be wrong about this.

There is a counter-movement living closer to the ideal expressed in the verses above, but it will change nothing for obvious reasons: they have no money and power on earth. I actually kind of admire the new monastics. If I were a believer, I would be attracted to this ideal. One thing it doesn't do is overtake the government or impose itself on me. But unless they actively fight Prosperity Lite, they will be in the unfortunate position of benefiting from the actions of the evangelicals without having to do any of the work.

The church at the center of this "faith of prosperity" is the Lakewood church, linked above. You can watch what services are like here or below:

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This isn't church—it's a broadway spectacle. Notice how there is no real learning or lessons, only entertainment and empty emotional appeals. The shared groupthink of the audience carries itself along on an emotional high mistaken for a spiritual experience.

What frightens me the most is how everybody holds up their right hand.

Why Be Openly Atheist?

Why be openly atheist? Why not just live my life and not get involved in what may be the world's most insoluble problem? I would prefer not to have to identify myself as an atheist at all, because to me it's self-evident as to why nobody should ever believe in any god or follow any religion.

For many years, I have stayed out of the debate but fumed quietly from the sidelines. I raised my stepkids as godless and with the faculties to think critically, and I felt that was the most important thing I could do to change the world (they are wonderful kids and I'm very proud of them).

Raising my children the way I think best isn't enough, because I have good cause to fear for their future safety and freedom, as well as my own. America is in danger of destroying itself from within. If the fundamentalist right has their way, our destruction is assured, and it will only be a matter of time. Radical Islam will still want to destroy us from within as well as without. Under the oppression of christofascism, America will not even be worth living in (although it would make a great setting for a social science fiction story).

I used to joke that I wasn't an activist... I was a deactivist. That little joke was good for a wry chuckle now and then among my family and friends. But I no longer think that. I perceive that the freedoms we in America hold dear are under threat, not just by Muslim extremism but by dominionist Christian extremism. Exposing this frightening doctrine is one of the reasons why I write this blog.

I suppose I could support the cause of freedom quietly, while outwardly do and say nothing to make theists think I am any different from them, but then I would be living a lie, and I can't do that. I do not believe the ends justify the means: that is the way of the cheater, the liar. That is how people convince themselves to commit atrocities. I believe the means justify the ends, and if I am to speak out against lies then I cannot live a lie. I will not sit by and hope other people do what I could be doing. I can leave my country or I can fight for it. I choose to fight for it (many years ago, I chose to fight for it another way by enlisting in the Marines, but that is a different story I'll tell later), and my first move is to declare myself openly an atheist.

If you have found yourself growing concerned over the the future of this country and the rise of the irrational religious right (both Islam and Christianity), you may have wondered if there is anything you can or should do about it.

There certainly are specific things you can do, but only you can decide if you should openly declare yourself as a person on the side of reason and rationality. There are many places online to begin learning if these ideas are entirely new to you. The links to the right or the book The End of Faith, by Sam Harris are good places to start.

We may be in the minority, but we could stand to have a stronger voice than we currently do. The song will be stronger if you add your voice to the choir (uh oh! church metaphors! look out!). One way to add your voice is to start your own blog. Chronicle your own observations of a world gone mad or your own personal journey into your outlook and philosophy. To show solidarity, to show that you are indeed part of a group that stands for freedom and for reason, you can link to other atheist and secularist blogs and websites. You can post links to social bookmarking sites. You can rejoin ridiculous comments left by ignorant fundies. I'm sure many atheists are wary of appearing to take on the same outward conventions as religion, and I understand that, but humans are social animals after all. We can band together for protection, strength, and friendship.

Somewhere out there, a young teenager may be just starting to think for herself. Who will she find when she types in her query at a search engine? Maybe it will be you, maybe it will be me. The more of us there are, the better, and that is why I am openly atheist. That is why I implore you to become more active if you've been holding back or, if you're unsure, to learn more. Know yourself. Be true to yourself. Being true to yourself can be surprisingly difficult, but it is worth it. For me, being true to myself means being openly atheist.

Phony Muslim Faith Healer deals with Freak-Out on Muslim TV

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This is a show broadcast on Egyptian television in 2005. The guests are a man who professes to be able to tell the difference between fakery and true jinn posssession (demon or spirit possession) and a sheikh who seems to be claiming people can be healed with just the Koran and honey.

A third guest freaks out and starts rolling around on the floor, twitching, whooping & hollering, and throwing papers everywhre. The guests debate what's wrong with him in an oddly calm way. Quackery, hucksterism, and phony healers are certainly not the exclusive domain of christian fundamentalists.