451. God enough

Comment #286951 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 2:30 pm

I don't think so. Wolfram was claiming an awful lot for cellular automata. His ideas seem to have faded into insignificance.

452. God enough

Comment #286940 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 2:22 pm

78. Comment #286927 by Steve Zara

Do a Google search for "Langston's Ant". It is a cellular automata system that has behaviour that can only be "predicted" by running the simulation. There is no way to explain the behaviour using the underlying rules.

453. God enough

Comment #286924 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 2:06 pm

Quetz - A real question: Does "emergence" apply to non-living matter? (I'll go back and read the article again.)

454. God enough

Comment #286921 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 2:02 pm

My comment was eaten
Bonzai - I don't think it's poor reading comprehension, it might be poor articulation. Sorry, but "There's a consciousness in the universe," (I know, Steve. you said, "there is - ours!") doesn't sound anything like "On this speck at the outer rim of the Milky Way, living beings have agency."

455. Woolly rhino's ancient migration

Comment #286898 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 1:29 pm

"ya'll are blinded"

I believe that should be "all y'all" (plural)?

456. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286897 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 1:25 pm

Library cards ARE free!

That's one...;-)

457. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286823 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 11:30 am

2 - Did you do that?

Edit: Or is it a "mirror" site? ;-)

458. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286815 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 11:21 am

24. Comment #286810 by severalspeciesof

Especially since they're so convinced that they are more virtuous than everyone else. I don't think their arrogance would allow them to anticipate being sent to "the other place."

459. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286811 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 11:19 am

"Fundies Say The Darndest Things" - thanks for that!

460. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286806 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 11:16 am

Agree - heaven for the climate, hell for the company. See you there?

461. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286793 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 11:08 am

Hi 2! "This rapture website is a rich source of humor."

You're not kidding! Just checked. I thought there was only supposed to be room for 144,000 "saved" in heaven? If I do what I'm told, can I bump somebody else?

462. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286780 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 10:56 am

SSO - It's always amazed me that the people who claim to be the surest of an afterlife are most afraid to die. My mother's instructions are to keep her alive, no matter what - stomach tubes, endless CPR, whatever it takes, whether she appears brain dead or not - and she's a devout (loony) catholic.

463. God enough

Comment #286776 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 10:51 am

He did say, "There's a consciousness in the universe."

464. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286771 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 10:48 am

10. Comment #286767 by eh-theist

Your in-laws aren't the only ones:

Monks Turn to Reflection With Monastery in Ruins

"LOS ANGELES — On Tuesday the monks met with their insurance agent....In the midst of all this destruction,” Brother Brown, 46, said Tuesday, “miracles happened all over the place.”

465. God enough

Comment #286757 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 10:31 am

I felt compelled to correct the following from this article:

There are things that we just can't deduce from particle physics YET-- life, agency, meaning, value and this thing called consciousness. The fact is that we can act on our own behalf and make choices. So agency is real. With agency comes value. Dinner is either good or bad. There's consciousness in the universe. We may not be able to explain it YET, but it's true.

466. Is Obama the Antichrist?

Comment #286747 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 10:19 am

It's unclear whether the writer is paraphrasing Staver or stating her own beliefs, but I'd like to know what that person's definition of "nuts" would be!

The people who believe Obama is the Antichrist are perhaps jumping to conclusions, but they're not nuts

467. God Trumps

Comment #286733 by Caudimordax on November 19, 2008 at 9:44 am

Newsweek reports on rapture-ready idiots without irony:

No wonder, then, that Obama triggers such fear in the hearts of America's millennialist Christians. Mat Staver, dean of Liberty University's law school, says he does not believe Obama is the Antichrist, but he can see how others might. Obama's own use of religious rhetoric belies his liberal positions on abortion and traditional marriage, Staver says, positions that "religious conservatives believe will threaten their freedom." The people who believe Obama is the Antichrist are perhaps jumping to conclusions, but they're not nuts: "They are expressing a concern and a fear that is widely shared," Staver says.

468. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283793 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 7:52 pm

Gotta go too...

469. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283790 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 7:50 pm

Another idea I had was to have one that said "I gave up golf and also tennis!".

470. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283781 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 7:41 pm

Unfortunately, they had discontinued this shade in 2008 :(

Ah'm Earl Scheib and Ah kin paint that car fer you!

Are you a purist when it comes to going with the manufacturer's offerings?

471. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283779 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 7:37 pm

Reactions to bumper stickers - actually, what would happen was that I would see people pointing, and then laughing. Sometimes people (unexpectedly Wall-Street-looking-types) would come up to me in gas stations and ask me where I got them. My approach is to have bumper stickers that dumb people don't figure out until I'm out of gunshot range!

472. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283764 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 7:24 pm

But the best thing about my car is that it's purple. (Well maybe not THE best)

So you can recognize me - but in case there's any doubt, mine is the purple A3 with the "Cheney/Voldemort '08" sticker on one side and the "Cardiac Arrest/ Theocracy '08" (thank you Talky Meat) sticker on the other.

473. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283759 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 7:19 pm

I must confess that I got a speeding ticket the day after I got my car - I simply wasn't used to that kind of quiet power! I kept looking at the speedometer and going, "Whoa, back off!" and 30 seconds later I was going 80 again. Then I remembered I had a thing called "cruise control" and as I was fumbling for the switch, I saw those flashing blue lights in the rear view mirror...

Still not used to the G forces of the turbo-charger!

474. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283741 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 6:53 pm

I was really leaning towards a Mini - but given all our Connecticut Hummer drivers - SOBs in their SUVs / Talkin' on their cellphones, steerin' with their knees - I opted for the Audi A3, and I really love it.

Close to 20 years ago I wrote a letter to the Stamford Advocate in response to an Op-Ed piece that said there was no need for auto manufacturers to re-tool right away because there was some vague "super car" project in the future. They didn't print my letter, but the gist of it was that positing a "super car" in the future was a sure way of discouraging people from paying attention to their fuel consumption in the present.

475. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #283730 by Caudimordax on November 13, 2008 at 6:42 pm

2 - you might enjoy this book

http://www.amazon.com/Crap-Cars-Richard-Porter/dp/1582346380

Crap Cars by Richard Porter

Looking at the link, there's a "dp" in there. Coincidence? I think not.

476. Palin: average isn't good enough

Comment #282041 by Caudimordax on November 11, 2008 at 1:29 pm

Just a quick link in case nobody saw this:

http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1831461

Gotta go.

477. Islamic radicals make mockery of hate laws

Comment #281720 by Caudimordax on November 10, 2008 at 7:11 pm

It was in October, so it'll be another year for the next one. Sure, I'd be happy to go and record such things.

Yeah, let's do it!

478. Islamic radicals make mockery of hate laws

Comment #281703 by Caudimordax on November 10, 2008 at 6:53 pm

2 - I didn't watch the whole thing. Holy (hmm - can't think of a shocking enough thing to say so will settle for) CRAP!!.

Were you there? Seriously, if you are willing to go to these things and record them, I'd be happy to help.

479. Islamic radicals make mockery of hate laws

Comment #281688 by Caudimordax on November 10, 2008 at 6:41 pm

2 - Sorry to hear about your gin problem - but I understand. I seem to be one of the last (phenotypes? genotypes?) on earth who can partake freely of gin. Of course, if I've had enough gin, it makes no difference to me when the police arrive.

480. Islamic radicals make mockery of hate laws

Comment #281683 by Caudimordax on November 10, 2008 at 6:36 pm

2 - okay, maybe I'm really stupid, but I couldn't figure out where those demonstraters were coming from. The blue and white baloons made me think of Hannukah - or maybe Rosh Hashannah?

481. Islamic radicals make mockery of hate laws

Comment #281540 by Caudimordax on November 10, 2008 at 3:02 pm

As an example of this oppression, one speaker said: "In the UK, terrorists get 40 years in prison whereas murderers and paedophiles walk free after five years."

482. Islamic radicals make mockery of hate laws

Comment #281537 by Caudimordax on November 10, 2008 at 2:55 pm

14. Comment #281533 by Border Collie

I was just about to say, can't wait for Pat Condell to weigh in on this.

I can't believe these doofusses move to the UK and then claim they won't submit to UK law. It's not like they were living in the UK before the British moved in and passed a bunch of laws! But they're so stupid, they don't even realize that this makes it hard for them to claim "islamophobia" every two seconds.

The answer is, "If you break the law, we arrest you. End of story."

483. The 'Great Debate' in Texas

Comment #281423 by Caudimordax on November 10, 2008 at 10:08 am

Hi 2!

Too late for Berlinski to be a Robin Hood now - I'd say the gig (or is it jig?) is up. Hope you're not volunteering for the role!

Depriving the Discovery Institute of some of their bucks isn't as effective as publicly denouncing them, IMO.

Edit: Professor Snape more than Robin Hood? But Snape wasn't in it for the money.

484. Does Religion Make You Nice?

Comment #280762 by Caudimordax on November 8, 2008 at 8:46 am

Sigmund Freud once described the goal of psychotherapy as "transforming hysterical misery into ordinary unhappiness."

When I heard that, I got really depressed.

485. Does Religion Make You Nice?

Comment #280757 by Caudimordax on November 8, 2008 at 8:35 am

Social hierarchies form, as do cliques and vendettas flourish no matter how good your intentions.

486. Does Religion Make You Nice?

Comment #280749 by Caudimordax on November 8, 2008 at 8:11 am

Speaking of libraries around corners, my town's Carnegie Library is just round the corner from the Mechanics Institute. Since the latter was disused, I wouldn't be surprised if the library had extended its pseudopods into it by now, thereby supplanting one public education initiative with another...

487. Does Religion Make You Nice?

Comment #280502 by Caudimordax on November 7, 2008 at 4:08 pm

Most Americans who describe themselves as atheists, for instance, nonetheless believe that their souls will survive the death of their bodies.

I dont believe that and dont know of any other atheist who does.

488. Does Religion Make You Nice?

Comment #280480 by Caudimordax on November 7, 2008 at 3:21 pm

Can we contact the D&D people and get them to give the money to RD.net?

I don't know much about Gygax's biography, but here's my massively simplistice train of though:

Gamer = geek = smart = atheist (at least the gamers I know are those things).

489. Does Religion Make You Nice?

Comment #280477 by Caudimordax on November 7, 2008 at 3:07 pm

Nails - only the first two "teaser" paragraphs from the article are posted above. You have to link to Slate and read the whole article where your questios will be answered.

490. Anti-religion agenda among social media users

Comment #280473 by Caudimordax on November 7, 2008 at 3:00 pm

"How disappointing! "

Yes, and the newspaper clipping was a hoax as well.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/atheists.asp

491. ELECTION DAY IN THE USA. GO VOTE.

Comment #280458 by Caudimordax on November 7, 2008 at 2:33 pm

...the market is not a tool to serve us, it is a moral agent to keep us in line, a God who rules over us.

"Spreading the wealth" and "redistribution" subverts what the market ordains. It is blasphemy.

492. Does Religion Make You Nice?

Comment #280454 by Caudimordax on November 7, 2008 at 2:27 pm

Did anybody go to Slate and read the whole article? The conclusion seemed to be that in America atheists are less generous than believers, but this is because they are excluded from the hyper-religious community around them, but in Sweden and Denmark, where people don't believe in god but have church rituals (i.e. community) they're even nicer and have lower murder and rape rates.

So there.

It's unfortunate that this website only put up the first two "teaser" paragraphs.

Last paragraph:

The sorry state of American atheists, then, may have nothing to do with their lack of religious belief. It may instead be the result of their outsider status within a highly religious country where many of their fellow citizens, including very vocal ones like Schlessinger, find them immoral and unpatriotic. Religion may not poison everything, but it deserves part of the blame for this one.

493. Bad Faith Awards 2008: Vote now

Comment #279907 by Caudimordax on November 6, 2008 at 3:25 pm

Part of the problem with this poll is that the judging criteria are not clear:

1. Is the award for sheer stupid faith-headedness? Sarah Palin might have done more than anyone else on the list to encourage mockery of religion.

2. Is it for actual harm done to people in the name of religion? - St Monica's Governors fit the bill, although the number of victims is small.

3. I'd never heard of Stephen Green before somebody here posted a link to his screed today - award for sheer lunacy.

4. Adnan Oktar got my vote for malignant piety, combined with massive dishonesty, megalomania, and a huge bankroll which enables him to reach a large, gullible audience. Award for the most far-reaching corrosive influence on the largest number of people.

Don't forget - vote early and often

Edit: Looks like they might have fixed the multiple voting glitch. That's okay: in a matter of hours Adnan Oktar's minions will be flooding the site trying to skew the vote.

494. Bad Faith Awards 2008: Vote now

Comment #279870 by Caudimordax on November 6, 2008 at 2:12 pm

17. Comment #279868 by Dhamma

"I voted Oktar, and can't for a minute understand why he hasn't got more votes."

I think Black Wolf said it well:

Oktar and his grand scheme of lobotomizing the ignorant is still a blank page to many people, including people who devise policies endorsing federal funding of more and more faith schools in Europe.

495. Bad Faith Awards 2008: Vote now

Comment #279829 by Caudimordax on November 6, 2008 at 12:56 pm

I voted for Adnan Oktar. It was a tough choice; the field is very competetive.

496. Gay Marriage Outlawed in California

Comment #279783 by Caudimordax on November 6, 2008 at 12:08 pm

324. Comment #279767 by Corylus

Wow! Those Britain in Sin people are completely batshit!

497. Gay Marriage Outlawed in California

Comment #279263 by Caudimordax on November 5, 2008 at 7:19 pm

Totally sucks. I think most of this has to do with the very large number of Americans that think sex is somehow "icky."

As somebody (probably here as well) said, "If people are so worried about gay people having sex, they should FORCE them to get married."

I believe it's like the journey African Americans have taken - progress, setbacks, but eventually, VICTORY!!!!

498. Fred Phelps's son is an atheist: Running from hell

Comment #279261 by Caudimordax on November 5, 2008 at 7:08 pm

Caudimordaux, you're not going to hell but...

you're such a dissapointment to your mother

and so to jesus

and so to god

(so you're not exactly heaven material are you' you'll work it out for yourself where you'll end up...)

Am I near the mark'

499. ELECTION DAY IN THE USA. GO VOTE.

Comment #279257 by Caudimordax on November 5, 2008 at 7:03 pm

2 - thanks for the hug. I am soooooo happy!!!

500. ELECTION DAY IN THE USA. GO VOTE.

Comment #278421 by Caudimordax on November 4, 2008 at 6:40 pm

Only a short time left to upload your "I Voted" sticker!