501. Top Ten Stories of 2007

Comment #103859 by black wolf on December 27, 2007 at 6:21 am

I just found a new one for the list:

Benazhir Bhutto is dead.
A suicide murderer shot her and then blew himself up, killing 20 more people.
Ironically coincident, on another board, a faith-head wrote:
Aren't believers the real humanists?

502. Disquiet over schools' moment of silence

Comment #103103 by black wolf on December 24, 2007 at 9:59 am

"I have been contemplating something recently. We get together and buy some sizeable tropical island. We create an atheist nation-state. Immigration is based on not being a fucktard. If you are a swimsuit model, we can forgo the immigration standard."

Why buy it? Claim that No God promised it to Unbelievers, the People of No Holy Writ, 100,000 years ago and annex any part of the world... of our own choosing, 'cuz we have free will, of course.

503. Disquiet over schools' moment of silence

Comment #103095 by black wolf on December 24, 2007 at 9:52 am

What is a secular reason for it? Outside of religion where is the precedent for such a thing?

504. Girl, 16, dies after hijab dispute with father

Comment #103087 by black wolf on December 24, 2007 at 9:44 am

DiscoverTheObfuscation:

Preaching is not appreciated and not allowed here.

505. Priest who committed suicide for rebirth cremated

Comment #103082 by black wolf on December 24, 2007 at 9:41 am

Methinks he found exactly the appropriate way of proving his faith and invalidating Faith conclusively and compellingly. Way To Go!
Come on Believer, you can do it! Your faith is stronger, and you've got the right religion to boot! At least one of you will make it!

Before I get sued, this was not an incitement but sarcasm.

506. Disquiet over schools' moment of silence

Comment #103066 by black wolf on December 24, 2007 at 9:24 am

But advocates of the laws say they give educators a tool to focus their students' attention and provide children a chance to reflect on either personal issues or the challenges they might face that day.

"It's certainly a student's constitutional right to engage in silent reflection, even if it includes prayer," said David Cortman, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, a nonprofit Christian law firm that has filed briefs in the Sherman case. "It's as if the mere mention of the word 'prayer' suddenly taints the law."

"My one friend was really angry because he liked having that moment to think about his life. He's going through a tough time. His parents are getting divorced. His brother's not very nice to him," Dawn said.

507. 'Christian God is not to blame'

Comment #102908 by black wolf on December 23, 2007 at 9:42 pm

"In July, more than 500,000 Christians will descend upon Sydney. I ask you all to welcome them into your hearts and perhaps, as at the Olympics, into your homes.... We should remember the sick and the sad, the lonely and the angry and reach out to help them."

508. 2 fleas for the Christmas week

Comment #102722 by black wolf on December 23, 2007 at 1:13 pm

This week's? Hardly, the book is half a year old.

Publisher's note: "This ebook is an important and convincing response to the conclusions of Richard Dawkins in The God Delusion. The author believes that the concept of a transcendent entity as the source of morality and ultimate justice, is an essential foundation of rational human life and society.

Without a transcendent authority and standard, the numerous pursuits and values of humans are merely peculiar delusions characteristic of the human species. Keeran points out that although Dawkins does not believe in the existence of God because of the supposed lack of scientific or factual evidence, he and like-minded others inconsistently assert the existence of numerous other non-scientific realities elaborated by the author in 55 chapters.

Atheism claims to be simply the absence of belief in a god or gods and therefore contributes nothing to human value, meaning of life, or moral conduct. These must be borrowed from other arbitrary non-scientific beliefs which then become the gods and religions of atheists ranging from nihilism to humanism and even buddhism and wiccan."

Dear Mr. Keenan, please summarize for us the pain and suffering caused by the moral codes which we pray to. You may conveniently add up the figures of those mentioned above.
Unfortunately, I don't have the time to do so, I need to clean up my altar of humanism now and pray a while.

509. Good God! A politician who doesn't believe...

Comment #102128 by black wolf on December 21, 2007 at 4:04 pm

... a bumbling reactionary who leads a blameless life.

510. The Pagan Christ

Comment #102123 by black wolf on December 21, 2007 at 3:47 pm

Let 'em have "new spiritual" approaches anyway they want. No more SonOfGod and going to hell scaretactic BS, along with no need for subsidies, church taxes or buildings to gather in. Because we know they're unable to sort it out and agree on Teh Truth, they've gotta live with the problems they created. Do they have a 'Death By Mindf*ck' category at the Darwin Awards?

511. For the Love of Christ

Comment #102120 by black wolf on December 21, 2007 at 3:40 pm

"If you sin, you better have the courage to bash Jesus' face in!"

Hmm. Yeah, I reckon I could take the scruffy hippie, actually. In fact, I could totally nail him.

512. For the Love of Christ

Comment #102118 by black wolf on December 21, 2007 at 3:37 pm

Sick. Makes me wish for the times when every nation had its secluded islands to deport such idiots to. This guy along with Chuck.
Possibly, sane governments could pool some money to buy an atoll for these nutters. And definitely patrol the waters for outbreaks of human viruses.

513. Debate between Michael Shermer and Dinesh D'Souza

Comment #101692 by black wolf on December 20, 2007 at 6:59 pm

Don't bother replying to the 'phile. He's probably just one of the usual drive-by posters. At least his languich skillz are typical of their kind.

514. Whale 'missing link' discovered

Comment #101684 by black wolf on December 20, 2007 at 6:31 pm

Dr Benway, you're wrong.
Given his stance on promoting traditional clerical value, his answer would be:
"Nimirum illic es muris in aether, bardus!"

515. Al Qaeda: We're open to questions

Comment #101422 by black wolf on December 20, 2007 at 10:49 am

It is actually irrelevant if Islam prohibits suicide. When someone redefines his or others' suicide as defense of a supreme ideal that is not to be questioned, moderate theology is impotent. That's the crux with moderate religion: it is powerless to prevent violence and disaster while selling hope to those who survive by chance.

516. Three wise men just legend: archbishop

Comment #101373 by black wolf on December 20, 2007 at 9:28 am

dbunker, three possibilities:
1) He says exactly what he believes.
2) He's a closet atheist and privately admits it to himself.
3) The opposite. He's much more dogmatic in his true belief, and panders to agnostics and atheists to get them back into the fold of 'resonable faith'.

517. Three wise men just legend: archbishop

Comment #101360 by black wolf on December 20, 2007 at 9:19 am

The mainstream Churches have acknowledged that the three wise men story was probably a myth long time ago. A Catholic nun told me that something like a decade ago.

518. Three wise men just legend: archbishop

Comment #101260 by black wolf on December 20, 2007 at 6:48 am

Many Christians view biblical events as these Anglicans do. However, they appear unable to take the logical step of putting The Book in their myths & legends shelf, because they are afraid of discontinuing tradition and losing their sense of purpose. In their minds, the only possible path lies in apparent frantic metaphorism. They feel that they must desperately find deeper meanings in cherished scripture, unable to contemplate or entertain the reasonable and logical conclusion.
A toddler will delightedly play with his poo until someone takes it away. For theologians, it's the poo of centuries of predecessors. Unfortunately, our sense of freedom and human rights does not permit society to take the poo away.

519. This Is Not a Test

Comment #100067 by black wolf on December 18, 2007 at 7:38 am

It wouldn't even come as a surprise if Huckabee endorsed copy-paste 1933-45 German family policy, as that was firmly in line with his position on so-called values. He did say that he would protect even an atheist's rights, but can we really believe that he acually means these words as what he wants to make the meaning appear? I can picture no way in which a policy would promote (Christian religious) faith-based values without limiting free expression and speech. There is no coherent possibility to regard certain worldviews and scientific knowledge as a danger to social values without restricting education and public expression, as you would otherwise allow your core beliefs to be undermined. If you firmly believe that humanity's eternal souls and ultimate destiny are endangered by scientific theories or sexual orientation among other things, how can you permit these in education and socialization?

520. Do the laws of God trump those of man?

Comment #99693 by black wolf on December 17, 2007 at 10:27 am

I correct part of my previous statement: only about 27% of Malawians are Catholic. Of course that doesn't diminish the fact that any religious organization has the moral obligation to monitor the practice of its members.

521. Do the laws of God trump those of man?

Comment #99606 by black wolf on December 17, 2007 at 7:10 am

The link posted above about the Nigeria witch-hunts reminds me of a recent television report about Malawi. 95% of the populace regard themselves as Catholic. A closer look at their religious practice reveals that they have simply incorporated Christianity into their own traditional religion, complete with miracle and faith healers, spiritual and demonic possessions, witches and sorcery, and ritualistic dances. In Malawi, people can be officially arrested and incarcerated for sorcery.
My point is, European churches apparently count these people as of their kind whenever they want to make a point about whose religion grows fastest or similar inanity. As the pope, they choose to point their fingers at atheists and the all-but-mummified canards about Marxism and Stalinism. But I do not ever hear, see or read about how they condemn and take to decisive action against christianized shamanistic superstitions in Africa, Asia and South America.
I assume this is because they are not willing to alienate the probably actual majority of their followers (even if in affiliation label only). They are terribly afraid to become revealed as what they actually represent: a small circle of ivory tower academics wallowing in delusions of grandeur, desperately clinging to their yard of common ground with common sense, to which they have been reduced by secular enlightenment.
The dishonesty of claiming millions of uneducated, superstitious and far-away people as their own while condemning 'secular fundamentalists' or 'scientism' at home is appalling.
This is precisely why moderate religion is dangerous. It comforts and consolidates itself by spreading holy scriptures to the last backwaters of human society, while disregarding or at best very belatedly concerning itself with the actual educational needs of the people. It is a conspicuous observation that prosperous religious groups from the 'developed world' prefer to found decent schools and finance infrastructure where there is a challenge by a competing religion. This practice unveils their efforts not as altruism, but as a self-aggrandising show of farcical prowess.

How do you domesticate more wild sheep than the other guy? Build more troughs and fill them with better food. And don't attempt to shear their wool until they're safely locked in your corral.

522. Ask The God Delusion author Richard Dawkins

Comment #94713 by black wolf on December 6, 2007 at 10:15 am

About replacing the 'atheist' label with 'promoter of reason and rationality': sadly, the Pope himself is at the forefront of those who paint theistic faith as the epitome of reason, and he is very successful at convincing the public. The media and prominent public figures regurgitate his words without ever questioning or analyzing if they really make sense, or if they simply appear as such because they rest on unfalsifiable claims, which can be phrased logically correct in principle and still be devoid of content or pertinence to reality.

523. Papal encyclical attacks atheism, lauds hope

Comment #93488 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 9:02 am

Being Pope would be great fun, I reckon. You could make up a whole load of new beliefs, getting ever more ridiculous to see how far you could push it before you got rumbled.

524. Daniel Dennett Debates Dinesh D'Souza

Comment #93465 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 7:36 am

Dr. Benway, that Dumbo analogy is brilliant. I'm stealing it right now.

525. Papal encyclical attacks atheism, lauds hope

Comment #93464 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 7:33 am

Yup, seriously.
AllanW, the 'trick' is, they're only infallible when they proclaim a statement as such, which they're very careful about. Infallibility became dogma in 1870. Since then, there was one single ex cathedra (the catholic term for declaring infallible) statement, which was the bodily ascension of Mary to heaven (1950).
Additionally, the catholic church assumes substantial infallibility in statements related to beatification, the resurrection of Jesus and the foundation of monastic orders.
Ain't that a neat trick? It's absolutely true (True) unless you can absolutely prove it wrong.

526. Papal encyclical attacks atheism, lauds hope

Comment #93457 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 7:16 am

Quetzalcoatl, that is my opinion too. But once you believe that Jesus is Truth, it falls into place somehow *shrug*.

527. Atheism's Wrong Turn

Comment #93446 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 7:04 am

Good point Santi, but a totalitarian or repressive state based on the 'In-Lists' in Cosmopolitan is amusing science fiction, whereas most countries really and actually indulge and preserve restrictive marriage, sexuality and labor laws based on religious doctrines.
For example, the German constitution has an article stating that Sundays are protected as days of rest and edification of the soul. This passage is currently being cited by the churches to prohibit stores and warehouses to open on Sundays.

528. Papal encyclical attacks atheism, lauds hope

Comment #93441 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 6:48 am

Where in the Bible does it say that? Can't remember reading that before.

529. Atheism's Wrong Turn

Comment #93429 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 6:31 am

There is absolutely no reason to see Atheism as a special exception. This means that one possible hypothetical future is a totalitarian atheist state where people who don't publicly renounce faith are hounded, victimised, their books burned, etc. A state where children report their parents for praying in privacy, or for saying "Good God!"

Such a state might look somewhat like Nazi Germany.

530. Atheism's Wrong Turn

Comment #93423 by black wolf on December 3, 2007 at 6:12 am

The issue is more than just about religious brainwashing. I have seen a television program (the one where two families exchange mothers for two weeks or so) where a deeply religious mother abused her children simply by emotional neglect.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbaGQxS9NKo (German)
The only occasions she actually sat down with her children were to pray and to talk about Jesus. She was utterly incapable of discussing the children's problems at school or with friends. All she cared about was waking up, immediately singing a hymn to Jesus, praying. She believed all her children needed were a minimum of clothing and no room decorations whatsoever. The childrens' rooms looked like jail cells. The other mother was trying to talk to her about the childrens' needs and how the Christian mother neglected them, and her reaction was denial. Then she started to sing hymns in high volume to drown out everything she was being told, and simply walked away. She was completely oblivious to the real world, and her children were emotionally suffering. They literally had no mother but a godbot.
This form of child abuse needs to be addressed much more specifically in legislation and practice, as most countries focus only on physical abuse currently.

531. Logical Path from Religious Beliefs to Evil Deeds

Comment #93239 by black wolf on December 2, 2007 at 1:31 pm

Louise, Russia is far from being an atheistic society. They are Russian Orthodox by a huge majority. And what Goldy said ;)

532. Papal encyclical attacks atheism, lauds hope

Comment #92695 by black wolf on December 1, 2007 at 8:44 am

If technical progress is not matched by corresponding progress in man's ethical formation, in man's inner growth, then it is not progress at all, but a threat for man and for the world

I actually agree with this, but what on earth make this incompetant old brown shirt think he has any grasp on ethics?

533. Sudan demo over jailed UK teacher

Comment #92669 by black wolf on December 1, 2007 at 6:04 am

The German chancellor Mrs. Merkel is a physicist, and a Protestant pastor's daughter. She is very reasonable when it comes to promoting science and technology. On the other hand, her party colleague of the Christian Democrats and 'governor' of Hessen has fallen for the 'teach the controversy' ruse the IDists are trying to pull. Fortunately he didn't convince the school board and education ministry (so far). This has nothing to do with Sudan, but I draw the conclusion that we must look at influential individuals, much more than parties or religious communities as a whole to advance secularism.

534. Boy dies of leukemia after refusing treatment for religious reasons

Comment #92317 by black wolf on November 30, 2007 at 9:21 am

I find the question of the social cost involved interesting. I don't want to denigrate a tragedy to a cost-effect ratio problem, but I can't help thinking about it nevertheless. I know the system is more focused on self-responsibility in the US, but in Germany for instance as in most European countries, the whole society mandatorily pays for every person's health care. Everybody pays for the personnel and materials required to treat a JW, only to observe the whole effort going to the garbage bin when religion tells them to throw it away. If it wouldn't violate the humanist principle of solidarity, I'd tell them to pay for their own doctors, hospitals and medical research as long as they're so keen on metaphorically spitting in society's face.

535. A New Flea in Town!

Comment #91889 by black wolf on November 29, 2007 at 2:08 pm

I am quite confident that few believers will afford buying the whole flea circus. With each new book being published to suck on Richard's profitable name, each one's share is getting smaller.
The cover image of this gem might even encourage people to read some Sagan, although they'd probably prefer Collins to match the personal limit of intellectual capability.

536. Banishing the Green-Eyed Monster

Comment #91868 by black wolf on November 29, 2007 at 1:27 pm

Richard is echoing my own thinking on this matter. I know that I have my jealous moments, as probably most of us evolved ones do. But my marriage is healthy because we can discuss any desires we have, even if it may be for someone closer at hand than a movie star or fashion model. We're open and honest about this, and we therefore have good reason to trust each other. Christians keep asking, where is your evidence for love? Well, there it is.

537. Pupil defends teacher in Muhammad teddy furore

Comment #91767 by black wolf on November 29, 2007 at 7:37 am

This whole thing is ridiculous of course, but I must be quite the idiot because I don't understand why the woman did this in the first place. What, has she been in a cave for the past 10 years? Didn't she have any sort of clue that what she did might bring about some sort of "outrage"?

"No, no, Muhammad, we can't name a TEDDY Muhammad, that just wouldn't be right [and I have some bit of interest in retaining my job and my life]."

What a dim bulb she must be.

538. Megachurches Add Local Economy to Their Mission

Comment #91757 by black wolf on November 29, 2007 at 7:00 am

I'm glad that any 'church' focusing their interest on economic growth and finacial revenues this heavily will not be reckognized as a church or religion in Germany, and like Scientology not be tax exempt.

539. Dutch lawmaker planning film criticizing the Quran

Comment #91756 by black wolf on November 29, 2007 at 6:52 am

Bonzai, the procedure is very similar to the one we have in Germany. We have an Islam council to advise the government about muslim communities. Oddly, all the organizations in this council put together don't even represent a majority of muslims in Germany. They each have their own little agenda, often in opposition to others. The silent majority of muslims who are unable or unwilling to join one of these organizations won't have their opinions heard, but many have German citizenship and are an important voter group. So the politicians in districts with a significant muslim population will want their votes - but then they turn to one the unrepresentative clubs to ask what the unrepresented majority seeks.
As Islam doesn't acknowledge a single leader or council as the Catholics and Protestants have it, both the muslim communities and German politicians are 'fair game' to fit the agenda of self-appointed leaders. This leaves parliamentary politicians quite helpless, as they'd sooner listen to one of those men than no one at all.

540. Dutch lawmaker planning film criticizing the Quran

Comment #91754 by black wolf on November 29, 2007 at 6:37 am

As I point out, I don't see too many complaints about Germany's anti-fascist laws, so why not just apply the same thing?

541. Turkey probes atheist's 'God' book

Comment #91467 by black wolf on November 28, 2007 at 11:39 am

Bonzai, wouldn't it be funny if Christians and Muslims sued each other under EU law for hurting the other's feelings. 'Jesus is the son of God!'. 'No he ain't. Muhammad is his prophet! And only the Koran is the literal Word of God!'. 'Oh yeah? Well I'm suing you because you're insulting my faith!'. 'No you can't, because I'm suing you first! See you at court!'.
Judge: 'Hmmm. Interesting. Know what? You're both retarded, and you're paying a hefty fine for wasting my time. Oh, did I hurt your feewings? Try and sue me.'
On another note, the religionuts are running out of exclamation marks soon.

542. Golden Compass author hits back

Comment #91466 by black wolf on November 28, 2007 at 11:30 am

Mr. Craig, one of the lead actors of the film, has stated in a promotional interview that the film advocated 'Christian values'. Actually the values he mentioned are human values, but as we know, a few people can't distinguish between them.

543. Monotheism was a con from the beginning

Comment #91362 by black wolf on November 28, 2007 at 6:42 am

USA_Limey wrote:

For the skull fucking nutters I agree that's true. But alot of people of faith can and do loose their faith. Many of them post on this very website. They can be reached, and there is hope.

544. Discover plagiarism at the Discovery Institute

Comment #91123 by black wolf on November 27, 2007 at 9:46 am

DI: 'But we were only correcting the material to reflect God's Truth, which has been revealed and is therefore irrefutable, so it's actually Harvard which is distorting the Truth, and we would like to have all our lawyers sue them for it. Alas, the Worldly International Secularism Enterprise Conspiracy Refuting Asserted Clerical Knowledge (WISECRACK) will not allow us to do so'.

545. Monotheism was a con from the beginning

Comment #91116 by black wolf on November 27, 2007 at 9:35 am

No argument regardless of how well founded it may be will give a believer pause. If we had a time machine and sent 200 people, preachers and theologians among them, to the cruxifixion. Jesus would say 'oh well, as I'm going to die anyway I might as well tell you the truth - I'm not the son of God, he doesn't really speak to me, all I wanted was to become king and I fu**ed up', and then those same 200 people would witness how his followers carried away his corpse and claimed resurrection. Faithheads would still bullshittishly blabber about, 'I would like to say, is it not really our spiritual knowledge that makes the difference, and spiritually we perceive his sonness, and would we not, what is the factual difference in metaphorically saying, as I would like to put it, which makes it True(TM) in any case'.
If secular politicians only had the guts to uncompromisingly refute any justification for faith schools and subsidies for clerical endeavors. No proselytizing allowed, no clerical opinions respected on social and political matters, and let them pay for their personnel and immobilia from their own pockets. Churches and religion are a major and influential part of our history, but that is no reason whatsoever to preserve it. In Germany, the Romans built roads, bathhouses and schools - so why isn't the government putting aside money for the Temple of Jupiter? Christianity would be nowhere without the Roman heritage establishing it as state religion. Roman religion wouldn't have existed without the ancient Greek clergy and incorporation of Egyptian deities.
They lost the human sacrifices, animal sacrifices, heretic burnings. But they still assume the right to 'educate' children and to have their opinions respected, by redundantly pointing at their cultural importance. Which exists because they are allowed to do what they have always done.

546. That's not MY God or Religion you're criticising

Comment #90756 by black wolf on November 26, 2007 at 9:17 am

According to Buber, God exists as a manifestation of a relationship with God driven by the urge to build a relationship with God. Ye Olde Mindefuk, Horatio.

547. That's not MY God or Religion you're criticising

Comment #90753 by black wolf on November 26, 2007 at 9:12 am

that is a great question what does the word "exist" mean when it is said "God exists" or "God doesnt exist".

548. Rock of Ages, Ages of Rock

Comment #90751 by black wolf on November 26, 2007 at 9:06 am

Ah, but the Ark was on the other side of the world to the Grand Canyon, miraculously shielded from all the mud.

The mud that carved the Grand Canyon was also, like, really really acidic or something. Or maybe it was something else. It was certainly miraculous.

Praise the Lord!

549. Rock of Ages, Ages of Rock

Comment #90742 by black wolf on November 26, 2007 at 8:39 am

Tyler: I wonder if they'll still get a free pass if they start torching public schools.
I mean, how blind can Justitia be? She's not carrying a sword for no reason. The scale has tipped.

550. The absurd world of Martin Amis

Comment #90738 by black wolf on November 26, 2007 at 8:31 am

You can wander straight through Washington with a sign denouncing Jesus, and be safe.