Proof Of God?

Over at Debunking Christianity, John Loftus answers a question. Specifically, the question of “what would it take for you, an atheist, to believe in god?”, and the objection that in reality, our answers are all lip service, that we are closed-minded and unwilling to budge. You can go take a look at his answer, but mine is a bit different. For me, this is one of those questions better answered with another question: What would it take for you, a christian, to believe in someone else’s god?

The same evidence that should be sufficient to convince an atheist, will necessarily disconfirm some religions, given that they disagree with one another, and positively proving one of them may well violate fundamental tenets of another (come to think of it, it might support none; there may be a very real deity that every single religion gets wrong). Gods are intentionally fuzzily-defined; if they were clearly defined, they would be easy to disconfirm. Absolute proof of a specific God would be a believer’s worst nightmare! With so many options, the odds that their own god is the right one are better in the absence of evidence. Besides (he said, cynically), old habits die hard, and the habit of denying empirical evidence has a long history.

Can you imagine what the various reactions of atheists and believers might be, to the sort of evidence that would make PZ check himself into a padded cell? My version, after the jump: [Read more…]

Fashionable Nonsense

I tried on a new piece of clothing
It was fuzzy and silken and red
It looked quite a lot like a sweater
But there wasn’t a hole for my head.
I struggled to put it on anyway,
But no matter what angle I tried
My arms found their sleeves without problem,
But my head stayed completely inside.
There’s something that’s wrong with this picture
And I’m quite at a loss, what to do—
So I talked to the guy at the counter…
He suggested I try it in blue.

It may be the style, or the fashion
But it keeps me from using my head
So instead of just wishing it fit me
I’ll try something different instead.

Context.

Bill Donohue Is Looking For Accidental Christians

Once there was an accidental Christian
Who had never read the bible—not a word!
She never knew that Jesus died to save us
Though it’s not her fault; she simply hadn’t heard!

Her beliefs, of course, were just coincidental
Cos she’d never heard a sermon or a prayer
So her strange belief in transubstantiation
Was devout, though she herself was unaware.

She believed in god the father, son, and spirit
She believed we fell from Eden, cloaked in shame
She believed that Jesus’ sacrifice redeems us…
Though she never knew, believed it just the same

Now the Catholic League is searching for this woman
Who is Christian, though she truly doesn’t know
Cos they’re looking to adopt her as their daughter
So her accidental faithfulness can grow.
Incredible stupidity, after the jump: [Read more…]

Rick Perry’s War On Religion

It’s time to be cautious; it’s time to be wary,
The “war on religion” is gonna be scary;
They’re coming to get us, according to Perry,
And Christians are under attack.
They’re coming to stop little children from praying
And force all our forces to get busy gaying;
Our nation had morals—but now, they’re decaying,
And Perry is bringing them back

He’s got a new ad, and he’s on the attack,
Cos he needs to distinguish himself from the pack
So he’s kickin’ some ass and he’s talkin’ some smack
Cos we all love a fella who tries.
And surely as Texas got rain when he prayed,
Rick Perry will win with his modern crusade…
Though the A.P. examined the claims that he made
And tells us they’re pretty much lies.

Context, after the jump: [Read more…]

Ellwood City–No Atheists Allowed.

On the lawn at Ellwood City
Such a pity, such a pity,
That the mayor should be an idiot, and ignorant of law
Though he doesn’t see a danger
Showing Jesus in the manger
If a sign appeals to reason, he can see the fatal flaw
See, the laws of our great nation
Build a wall of separation
So endorsing a religion is a step we must not take
And Mayor Tony Court, his honor,
Knows the “reason” sign’s a goner—
He’ll reject the application, for the constitution’s sake!
We can show the birth of Jesus
Without worry, if it please us,
After all, it’s only Jesus, not some Christian Holy writ
Jesus’ birth is universal
So there’s no need for reversal
Since it’s representing everyone, there’s none who doesn’t fit!
But a sign promoting reason
In this holiest of seasons
Is a First Amendment no-no; it establishes a stance.
“Use your brains” is violation
Of our country’s firm foundation
Since it isn’t true for everyone, it doesn’t stand a chance!

You won’t believe the real story, but it’s just below the jump:

[Read more…]

Semper Fi

Ok, so the last post was a bit depressing. And, frankly, the commentary on the vast majority of published versions of the Camp Pendleton Cross story have been depressing.

Best commentary? The Marine Corps News. OF COURSE there are individuals there who honor their crosses over their constitution. But damned if there aren’t a whole lot of thoughtful Marines who know and respect the rule of law.

There will always be disagreement and variability of opinion. That does not bother me. What bothers me is the appearance of an assumption that All Marines Are Christians, and that Marines will follow the bible first, the constitution second. The death threats–yes, death threats–against fellow Americans, because they would remove an unconstitutionally installed religious marker from federal property.

So when I saw “The Marine Corps News”, I expected more of the same. I was wrong, and happily so. When roughly a fifth of our armed forces declare themselves non-religious (2004 study, check page 25, table 5), they have to be somewhere! And at the Marine Corps News, those whose allegiance is (as per their oaths) to the constitution are a match for those whose allegiance is to the cross.

No rhyme here–just happy to be wrong.

The Camp Pendleton Cross

A group of Marines dragged a cross up a hill
To honor the loss of their brothers
In a land where we’re equal, according to law,
Though some are more equal than others.

The cross on the hill is a trivial thing,
So “establishment” need not apply
It isn’t religious—no need to remove it—
Besides which, I’d dare you to try.

Those atheist bastards who chose to complain
Are requesting divine retribution!
And no one believes in their flimsy excuse
That they’re fighting for our Constitution!

This nation was founded by Christians, you know—
In this country, majority rules!
We don’t need to hide behind legalese crap
Like those arrogant atheist fools!

Don’t lecture Marines on the duty they’ve sworn—
What they’re tasked to protect and defend;
They know what the law is; they know very well,
And if not, what the hell, they’ll pretend.

Rant, after jump: (oh, actually, before the jump, a note that PZ links to a poll on the topic you might want to express your opinion on.) [Read more…]

12 Years For Rape (um… that’s the victim)

Gulnaz was raped. There are none who deny;
The attacker was wed to her cousin.
The rape left her pregnant. That’s partially why
She’s been sentenced to jail, for a dozen.

An adulterous woman—or so say the courts—
Has few options by which to escape.
The best and the worst, by all recent reports,
Is to marry, to wipe out the rape.

The marriage, of course, would be to her attacker
Which Gulnaz is willing to do
What’s worse—though his family is willing to back her
Her own has a different view

Her rape has cast shame on the family name
And that cannot be changed, it is said
Yes, Gulnaz was raped; but she is to blame,
So her family, for shame, wants her dead.

The culture’s entrenched; it’s a matter of pride;
Protests will be to no avail
The damnedest thing—with her family outside,
Gulnaz may be safer in jail

Follow the link in the first line. I have no more to say. I want to, I just can’t.

A Powerful Message…

No poetry here, today. I’m too pissed off. “The family of god” has posted a nice message from an honest Jew, our dear friend Ben Stein. First off, I don’t care whether Ben Stein or anyone else posted it. I don’t really think he did, but it really doesn’t matter. I suspect it’s just an appeal to authority, which is a bit ironic considering what is about to happen. You see, in the message (I really don’t recommend clicking through to read it, but you certainly may), we find all sorts of things that contribute to the problems with America today (to keep with my more recent posts, I assure you that the first paragraphs are indeed a lamentation about The War On Christmas, with Ben Stein, “jewish commentator”, strongly on the side of Christmas); one such problem (which really appears to date the diatribe) is Dr. Spock:

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn’t spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock’s son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he’s talking about. And we said okay.

Now we’re asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don’t know right from wrong, and why it doesn’t bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with ‘WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.’

We’ve seen a few examples recently of families who spank their children. Of course, they would not make the news except that sometimes these children have died as a result of their spankings and related abuse. In addition, it should be noted that Dr. Spock’s children are both still alive. Reports of a son’s suicide are, as Twain noted, “greatly exaggerated”.

So… Ben Stein, noted liar, is quoted as delivering false statements in support of a position. Are you convinced?

Guess what? It doesn’t bother me, either, when people say “Merry Christmas”. But that’s just me–I feel no need to lie to you about Dr. Spock or anyone else to reinforce my opinion of holiday greetings. I don’t need to lie to you and make claims that we “aren’t allowed to worship God”, even though I personally don’t worship any god, nor feel that you ought to. You are allowed to! Really, you are! Seriously, I am an atheist, and even *I* know you are allowed to worship your god.

I’d suggest that you comment and tell the website author what you think of their distortions, lies, falsehoods, and general examples of bearing false witness. But near as I can tell, they don’t allow comments. So rant here, if you like. Click through to them to get their attention, and let them know what you think here. And I pretty much guarantee you, it won’t make a damned bit of difference.

Headline Muse, 11/15

From their gilded and silk-cushioned heights
Where their privilege has suffered some slights
The bishops are whining
“The laws are confining!”
They’ve vowing to fight for their rights

Headline: Bishops Renew Fight on Abortion and Gay Marriage

Heh. This headline has two daddies names–the “fight on abortion and gay marriage” one, and the far more catholic-friendly “Bishops Open ‘Religious Liberty’ Drive”. Same article, two headlines. The bishops are trying to reframe bigotry as “religious liberty”. The commenters are having none of it, which is nice. Yeah there are the occasional “the church is doing the right thing, fighting immorality”, but these are few and far between. In the New York Times comments, at least, the church has lost the high ground.