Westboro Baptist Church to troll Constance McMillen's graduation

Just when I thought Westboro Baptist Church couldn’t get any more vile, they just announced that they will picket Constance McMillen’s high school graduation. If you don’t remember, Constance was the lesbian student who wanted to take her girlfriend to prom, and in turn her high school canceled prom. And when it seemed like everything was going to work out okay (after the ACLU stepped in), the majority of Constance’s high school student’s went to a secret “real” prom instead.

Constance, you should see the WBC’s attention as a badge of honor. By standing up for your rights and helping gay students across the country, you became so awesome that WBC wants to waste their time on you. The vast majority of people, theists and non-theists alike, detest the deplorable actions of WBC. We applaud you.

Though at the same time, I really do feel bad for her. Her classmates have proven to be complete tools so far, with no one willing defend Constance, and everyone willing to bring her down. The WBC has always brought together diverse groups together to protest and mock their hate… I wonder if even Fulton, Mississippi will launch a counter-protest? The cynic in me worries, since the sort of things that have been said by community members fall pretty close to the beliefs of WBC.

Fulton, this is your one shot at (at least some) redemption. I suggest you don’t screw it up.

Atheist Barbie has been sullied by teabaggers! Nooooo!

And yes, by teabaggers I mean Tea Party members. I think I rather have my Atheist Barbie Photoshopped with a pair of balls in her mouth* then be awfully transformed like she was:Aaauuuuuugghhh nooooooooooooo! God, it’s not even a good Photoshopping job. At least I put forth some effort. He couldn’t even find his own Barbie to Photoshop, he had to go and add on top of mine! And then not credit me for it! …Well, I guess it’s good that he deleted the link to my blog, since I don’t want to be associated with Tea Party bullshit. At least someone else has already gone ahead and fixed it (and pointed out Atheist Barbie was originally from here):Thank you, Sadly, No!, for pointing out that creativity and good work ethic are not traits of teabaggers.

Speaking of creativity and working hard, back to writing my thesis (almost done!).

*Though that does not mean you have to go do it. Seriously. Please don’t.

National Day of Prayer ruled unconstitutional

In a case of “Wow, it took you that long to figure it out?”, the National Day of Prayer was finally ruled unconstitutional in a federal court:

Congress established the day in 1952 and in 1988 set the first Thursday in May as the day for presidents to issue proclamations asking Americans to pray. The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a Madison-based group of atheists and agnostics, filed a lawsuit against the federal government in 2008 arguing the day violated the separation of church and state.

President Barack Obama’s administration has countered that the statute simply acknowledges the role of religion in the United States. Obama issued a proclamation last year but did not hold public events with religious leaders as former President George W. Bush had done.

Government involvement in prayer is constitutional only as long as it does not call for religious action, which the prayer day does, U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb wrote in her ruling.

“It goes beyond mere ‘acknowledgment’ of religion because its sole purpose is to encourage all citizens to engage in prayer, an inherently religious exercise that serves no secular function in this context,” Crabb wrote. “In this instance, the government has taken sides on a matter that must be left to individual conscience.”

Good work, Freedom from Religion Foundation!

Now, I wonder how this will pan out when it almost assuredly goes to the Supreme Court… Any political science people want to weigh in?

Vatican reverses decision on once shunned group

Dear Vatican,

I’ve noticed that recently you haven’t been doing so hot in the public opinion. Sometimes people think you can be too harsh on those that don’t perfectly jive with your views, or those that make you look bad. People didn’t like that time you excommunicated the mother and doctors of the 9 year old Brazilian rape victim. Or the fact that you prohibit contraceptives, putting AIDS stricken Africa at even more risk and negatively affecting women all around the world. Or the whole gigantic cover-up of mass molestation of little boys – yeah, that’s not going over so well. But I really have to give you props for finally forgiving a group of people that really deserved your apology long ago:

The Beatles.

Thanks for having your priorities in order. Now that we know all we have to do to change your mind is produce “beautiful melodies” that “still give us emotions,” we’ll get right on that.

Sincerely,

Jen

Dawkins & Hitchens plan a legal ambush to have Pope arrested

Yep, you heard right. Dawkins and Hitchens are planning on getting the Pope arrested when he visits England in September:

“Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens, the atheist author, have asked human rights lawyers to produce a case for charging Pope Benedict XVI over his alleged cover-up of sexual abuse in the Catholic church.

The pair believe they can exploit the same legal principle used to arrest Augusto Pinochet, the late Chilean dictator, when he visited Britain in 1998.

The Pope was embroiled in new controversy this weekend over a letter he signed arguing that the “good of the universal church” should be considered against the defrocking of an American priest who committed sex offences against two boys. It was dated 1985, when he was in charge of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which deals with sex abuse cases.

function slideshowPopUp(url) { pictureGalleryPopupPic(url); return false; }

Benedict will be in Britain between September 16 and 19, visiting London, Glasgow and Coventry, where he will beatify Cardinal John Henry Newman, the 19th-century theologian.

Dawkins and Hitchens believe the Pope would be unable to claim diplomatic immunity from arrest because, although his tour is categorised as a state visit, he is not the head of a state recognised by the United Nations.”

(Side note: Could the Times have possibly found a more evil looking photo of Dawkins? Sheesh)

I find this quite interesting. I’m not well versed in international or British law, so the fact that this is plausible is intriguing. And I have to say, I agree with Dawkins’ and Hitchens’ sentiment. The Pope and the Catholic Church have systematically covered up hundreds of cases of child rape. They shouldn’t receive immunity because they’re a religious organization – thinking you have an imaginary friend isn’t exactly a good reason to commit such horrible crimes.

At the same time, I’m a little worried. There are still many people out there that are sympathetic to the Pope, and to have two figureheads for atheism going after him isn’t going to be too great for our image. I really hope that other religious figures will join in and support Dawkins and Hitchens. We need to show that this isn’t some atheist agenda to bring down the Catholic church – it’s a human agenda to protect our children and deliver justice.

(Hat tip to Miranda)

EDIT: It seems the Times has overblown the story a bit. For more of an explanation, check out this post.

Soldier coming back home gay worse than coming back dead

I love reading letters to the editor in newspapers, because they’re always the best place to find spectacular gems of ignorance. For example, let’s look at a Florida resident’s brilliant logic when it comes to repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell:

As a former staff sergeant, war veteran and drill instructor in the Marine Corps, I believe the repeal this law will cause living hell within the ranks of the military, and also for the moms and dads whose kids are serving. It will be heartbreaking when a son comes home and says to his parents ‘I’m gay’ when he didn’t leave home gay.

Because that’s totally how homosexuality works. It’s a horrible disease that spreads to anyone hanging around queers for too long! Not, you know, biologically based behavior.

When it comes to gays in the military, it is not a question of them not being patriotic or not physically fit. Unfortunately, they are not morally fit. Their lifestyle has disqualified them to serve.

Because we don’t allow anyone in the military who has ever done something wrong. I’m sure there’s a test all recruits have to take that makes sure they fit the proper Christian moral ethics, which is why no one in the military has ever lied, stolen, masturbated, lustfully thought of a woman, taken the lord’s name in vain, eaten lobster, gotten tattoos…

One must understand that a homosexual person does not reproduce (homosexuals recruit). When I was a young Marine, one tried to recruit me into that lifestyle. It caused panic and fear to come over me. It is not discrimination or hate speech toward the gays, it is simply saying no.

These young people will be exposed to strong sexual attractions, and some will give themselves over to it because they are young and vulnerable.

They recruit, just like any other human trait where that human can’t reproduce! I knew those Tay-Sachs babies were causing other Tay-Sachs babies to be diseased. I mean, genetics, pfffffft.

Repeal the don’t ask, don’t tell policy and you will have the men who serve in an uproar. You will have open sex in the barracks, name calling, real threats and fighting among the troops, and even worse the violence of blanket parties. Late at night, some men will throw a blanket over a gay person and beat the life out of him. The repeal of this policy will give way to violence, no matter how much instruction is given by their leaders.

Yeah, and when all those macho, testosterone filled, heterosexual men start beating a gay man to a bloody pulp, it’s totally that gay guys fault! Sheesh, don’t they know heterosexuals just can’t control their rage?

Also, you will have disunity on the battlefield.

Today, if my son was going into the military, I would be more concerned about him coming home a gay person than worrying about him getting wounded or killed in battle.

We are becoming a pathetic nation with no clear moral values.

RICHARD GRANT

Lakeland

That’s right, son. I rather you come home in a casket than loving someone of the same sex. Better to be dead than gay.

…People like this fucking terrify me.

Indiana high school student sues over graduation prayer

Ah, always good to see freethinkers in Indiana! Or at the very least, young people who support the separation of church and state:

A Greenwood High School honor student who learned in class about court rulings striking down school prayer has found a real-world application — his own graduation ceremony.

Eric Workman’s lawsuit, filed Thursday by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, challenges the high school’s practice of allowing seniors to vote on whether to have a student-led prayer at graduation.

ACLU attorney Ken Falk said allowing the vote and even having the prayer run afoul of U.S. Supreme Court rulings that found prayers at public school-sponsored events to violate the First Amendment.

“This is particularly egregious when it’s coming from a student who’s going to be sitting on the stage,” Falk said. Workman, 18, is ranked first in his class, the lawsuit says.

Good for him! It can be difficult to deal with small religious towns in Indiana, and this kid is probably getting a lot shit for what he’s doing. So I send kudos his way for helping keep church and state separated!

Of course, not everyone is as understanding…

The Rev. Shan Rutherford, pastor of Greenwood Christian Church for more than three decades, said he disagrees with the proposition that such a prayer would violate a student’s rights.

“If I lived in a Muslim nation, a Hindu nation or anything else, I would expect to go along with the majority,” Rutherford said. “He’s trying to go with minority rule. To me, that’s wrong in a democracy, one that was founded on Christian principles.”

“If you don’t agree, I don’t think you should try to stop other people from exercising their rights.”

Rev. Rutherford, I think you need to sit in on that government class Workman learned so much from.

Anyone who still claims that America was founded on Christian principles shows how little they know about our government’s history, since that trope has been destroyed over and over. But worse than that is his failure to comprehend the idea of “majority rule, minority rights.” Just because Christians are in the majority doesn’t mean they get to have everything their way, especially when it infringes upon the rights of the minority. Removing a school prayer doesn’t make it an atheist ceremony, representing a majority of Americans – it makes it a secular ceremony, representing everyone. I would be just as a against someone getting up on stage an talking about how there is no God, religion is stupid, and anyone who believes in God is deluded. That would be totally inappropriate for a public school graduation, just as a prayer would.

Ah, Christian persecution complex. Lovely, isn’t it?

(Hat tip to Tom)

Guest post: Canadatheism: The Northern Perspective

This is a Guest Post by Jon, a reader from up North who wanted to shed some light on atheism in America’s Hat. Er, I mean Canada. He writes over at his fiction blog, Our Man Jonesy. Take it away, Jon:

Canadatheism: The Northern Perspective
(Or: “Fundamentalism in Canada has been cancelled due to snow”)

Greetings from the frozen wastelands of Canada! While Jen’s away, I’d like to give you a general feel for atheism as it exists in the land of hockey and maple syrup. Those readers actually from Canada: feel free to sit back and talk amongst yourselves while I toss off pearls of Canadian stereotype to keep the Yanks entertained. If you’re from elsewhere, just play along for now and you’ll be able to tell your cocktail/hookah/opium den chums about how much you know about about foreign cultures.

If you’re living in the ‘States, you’ve probably heard of us before. We’re the place that everyone threatens to move if the Republicans win another election. A lot of us speak French, we use the metric system, and if you ask us, it’s not actually that cold out. And how’s the religion like out there? Well, it’s pretty mild, actually . Fiercely mild. If general polling is correct, up to a third of us acknowledge ‘No Religion’, and in a country with the population the size of the state of California, that’s rather an accomplishment, if I may be so bold. It’s at the point that the leader of the opposition party (Michael Ignatieff) can say things like:

“Some people will have no difficulty thinking human beings are sacred, because they happen to believe in the existence of God the Father and believe He created Mankind in His likeness … Far better, I would argue, to forego these kinds of foundational arguments altogether and seek to build support for human rights on the basis of what such rights actually do for human beings.”

Yeah, baby. That said, Canadian politics is a morass of apathy. Our parliament has been prorogued for the second year running, and our current head of government is a rather Christian individual. Nonetheless, we’ve really only got a few problems when it comes to openly displaying our ability to say ‘Godless’ in both official languages.

First, I’m going to blatantly appeal to stereotype here and point out the general level of pathological politesse present. We’re rather polite about others’ beliefs, and their prerogative to go on believing. We go so far as to apologize for how polite we are about it. One of the big reasons why religiosity is less of a visible factor in Canadian politics is that we’re a mostly pluralistic nation. It’s not just that we have the French Catholic crowd occupying Quebec, or the Spiritual traditions of our Aboriginals; Canada also has the largest immigration rate in the world. While a lot of it is from the East Asian countries- Vancouver, our Westernmost metropolis, has jokingly considered adopting Mandarin as its second official language- we also have a not-inconsiderable level of migration from the Middle East. The difficulty arises when the more hard-core religiosity they bring comes in conflict with our own “well, if you must, I suppose” social etiquette. We’ve shrugged off the attempts at Sharia law time and time again, but at the same time, we’re far from making minarets illegal architecture. One of the central reasons why we’re so at odds to talk against fundamentalist dogma in Canada is because we seldom talk about religion at all.
Another foot-hold for stronger theism in Canada is that our populace is scattered. We have a fraction-of-a-million people each in Montreal, Vancouver, and Calgary, as well as Ottawa and Quebec City; Toronto features an above-average population of 2.5 million. The rest is rural, and far from unreligious. Non-metropolitan religiosity is more notably strong in those populations living outside those few cities, to say nothing of the populated Maritime provinces. Even excluding that, only Vancouver might be said to be predominantly atheistic. Toronto’s comparative migratory draw results in a higher population of transplants from religious areas, and Montreal has, as one of its prime attractions, a huge frigging cross on its namesake hill.

But what, then, supports the noticeable secularism in Canada? I would strongly implicate the disenfranchised Anglicans that made up a lot of Early Canada. Come on- we founded a church on divorce. Why carry on the tradition if we’re on another continent entirely- though, in reality, we’re still technically headed by the British monarchy, and have a person appointed to represent it. Perhaps more relevant is that level of politesse I keep harping out about (sorry if it’s bothering you); perhaps one of the reason for the separation of church and state is precisely the ‘I’m okay with it’ pluralism that has such a hold on Canada; perhaps letting go of the gun-grabbing dogmatism that has infected other states just lets you see all the sides with equal fairness– and in the end, you get the conclusion that theism is a rather silly idea from the get-go.

…I mean, SURELY it can’t just be the [amazingly] good Canadian beer keeping everyone in a state of paralytic drunkenness, preventing extremism of any kind. The comparative poor quality of American beer might well be keeping you folks in the ‘boisterous’ stages of intoxication, thus giving rise to Megachurches, rednecks, and the frank need to satiate one’s pastorly urges with some crystal meth and pay-per-screw man-love. Just a theory. Get better beer, America.

For other Canadian Atheist Resources:
Center for Inquiry: http://www.cficanada.ca/
http://www.skepticnorth.com/

Nota Bene: The author will not, contrary to stereotype, apologize for a belief in the general superiority of Canadian beers. There are, however, some notable American beers.

(American) Ed.: And there are some terrible Canadian ones.

1,000 Rabbis blame natural disasters on gays

Apparently it’s not just Christians like Pat Robertson who like to blame gays for natural disasters. The Rabbinical Alliance of America issued the following statement about the profound effects of allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the military:

“When Americans are suffering economically and millions need jobs, it’s shocking that the Administration is focused on its ultra-liberal militantly homosexualist agenda forcing the highlighting of homosexuals and homosexuality on an unwilling military. This is the equivalent of the spiritual rape of our military to satisfy the most extreme and selfish cadre of President Obama’s kooky coalition.

We agree with Eileen Donnelly of the Center for Military Readiness that this will hurt the cohesiveness of the military, cause many to leave the army, and dramatically lower the number of recruits, perhaps leading to the reinstatement of a compulsory draft.

“Thirteen months before 9/11, on the day New York City passed homosexual domestic partnership regulations, I joined a group of Rabbis at a City Hall prayer service, pleading with G-d not to visit disaster on the city of N.Y. We have seen the underground earthquake, tsunami, Katrina, and now Haiti. All this is in sync with a two thousand year old teaching in the Talmud that the practice of homosexuality is a spiritual cause of earthquakes. Once a disaster is unleashed, innocents are also victims just like in Chernobyl.

“We plead with saner heads in Congress and the Pentagon to stop sodomization of our military and our society. Enough is enough.”

Little did the Rabbi mention, 9 months before 9/11 I bought an mp3 player. I think I have a new theory to propose – iPods are the cause of all of these disasters. It makes so much sense! Haven’t they been rising in popularity as all these natural disaster have been taking place? Good god, what’s going to happen when the iPad is officially released? It must be a sign of the apocalypse!

Wait, natural disasters have been occurring since the dawn of mankind? …Since before mankind was even around? …They don’t have a causal or correlational relationship to human behavior, least of all how people listen to music or where they stick their genitalia?

Oh yeah, that’s called reality. I forgot how the natural world functions for a moment, silly me.

Seriously though, people like this infuriate me. He says the mere existence of homosexuals rapes the spirit of the military. You know what? Why don’t we worry about all the women serving our country who are being raped and sexually assaulted by their fellow servicemen before we start worry about any spirit rapage. Since you know, women actually exist.

(Via Unreasonable Faith)

A heat map of religiousity and social ills

This nifty graphic is pretty cool, even if you’re not a biology dork who sees it and thinks “Ooooh, it’s like a heat map for gene expression! Yay!” …Or something along those lines. (Click image for larger, readable version) While nifty, remember this type of visual shows correlation, not causation. Religiosity doesn’t necessarily cause poverty, lower IQ, and increase crime. If I had to make a hypothesis, I would say it’s likely that education or the lack thereof is the real driving force behind these things, including religious belief.

Regardless, this does nicely illustrate one thing: Religious belief doesn’t necessarily lead to a better, safer, happier world. The next time someone claims that theists are morally superior and that all of our societal ills are caused by godless heathens, show them this nice little chart.