Those crazy Brits

This is just the craziest thing I ever heard. Politics where you can actually have politicians who don’t believe in god, and where you can talk about removing the privileged status of religion from the legislative body, and where all the major political parties have organized representation by freethinkers? Yeah, and they also have gumdrop trees and rivers of chocolate and beer volcanoes, too, I bet. Where is this magical place? Middle Earth, maybe? Nah, it’s called England — which I could be persuaded is also a mythical fantasy land.

There is a great tradition of free thought in the Conservative Party. Many leading Conservative thinkers have not required religious belief or superstition to define their lives or their political views.

The creation of the Conservative Humanist Association means that all three major UK political Parties now have associations aligned with the British Humanist Association. We hope that all UK political parties will now recognise that the majority of our people want a more secular political system.

There is an opportunity for Conservatives – with our focus on individual freedom and choice – to create a real dynamic for change in our civil society.

Can you imagine a statement like that from either of our major American political parties?

How low will he sink?

I’m hanging out in the airport in Springfield, Missouri, and of course CNN is blaring on all the televisions. As is typical, it’s just one news story repeated and rehashed and gnawed over endlessly, but what is surprising is what the story is: John McCain is running a filthy, dirty, racist, hate-mongering campaign. Revere has a fine post pointing out the McCain Doctrine: all’s fair if it gets him elected.

Heck, you ought to read all of Revere’s posts in the Annals of McCain-Palin. And once you’ve felt enough disgust at this man, lighten it up with the latest Freethinker Sunday Sermonette, which this time around is an excellent example of satire.

Hannity pwned

This is truly a thing of beauty: Sean Hannity, after using the tawdry guilt-by-association gimmick against Barack Obama, gets the same thing done to him. Watch the man squirm in frustration!

Bonus! The clip is presented by Keith Olbermann!

Double bonus! It’s got Rachel Maddow commenting on it!

Super duper triple bonus! John Cleese sent in a poem about Hannity!

Ode to Sean Hannity
by John Cleese

Aping urbanity
Oozing with vanity
Plump as a manatee
Faking humanity
Journalistic calamity
Intellectual inanity
Fox Noise insanity
You’re a profanity
Hannity

Time for a group liberal smirk and swoon, everyone.

What are we, lepers?

Elizabeth Dole is continuing her campaign in North Carolina of smearing her opponent, Kay Hagan, for simply associating with atheists. We atheists are the “most vile, radical liberals in America,” out to wage war on Christmas and stock boy scout troops with homosexuals, and we actively support political candidates who are atheists. I know … how dare we.

I have a personal reason to be offended, however. The Dole ads cite endorsements by two atheists, FriendlyAtheist.com and DaylightAtheism.org. Now hang on…what’s so scary about the Friendly atheist? And Daylight Atheism sounds positively pleasant. Couldn’t they find one mean, cruel, truly frightening atheist to give a testimonial, like maybe one with an obscure and somewhat intimidatingly intellectual name?

Yeah, I’m feeling left out.

I will say anyway that if you live in North Carolina and you have an opportunity to vote for the open-minded and thoughtful Kay Hagan and against the Rovian slimebeast named Elizabeth Dole, please do so. If she’s got the endorsement of the Friendly Atheist and Daylight Atheism and even Pharyngula, you know she’s on the side of goodness and light.

Obama vs. Cranky Grampa

We have another debate coming up shortly, so here’s an open thread for you all to chatter on…if the software lets you.

There will be no drinking games allowed that encourage alcohol consumption every time POW is mentioned.


<sigh> If ever I hear the words “my friends” again, I shall gag.

Defining moment for me was when McCain insisted that Obama was dangerous because he would speak too loudly (while later castigating him for advocating diplomacy), and Obama came back to point out that McCain was the one singing “bomb bomb bomb, bomb Iran”. In other words, McCain was a desperate fraud while Obama was calm and well-spoken.

Although I also felt Obama was thin on specifics and rich in politician-speak. He didn’t thrill me, but he was solidly better than his opponent.

Oh, yeah…and when McCain called Obama “that one”. That was condescending and creepy.

Sally Kern’s mouth motors on

The infamous anti-gay legislator from Oklahoma, Sally Kern, was interviewed by the Oklahoma Daily. The story has some fine bon mots, like her definition of evolution:

Kern defined evolution to me as “the process of wanting to create something or have something be perfect. Get rid of that which is not healthy and strong.”

That’s a very common creationist misconception: they can’t imagine a natural process that doesn’t have wants, that is lacking that teleological impulse.

The writer sent me the outtakes from the interview. If you want more Kern uncut and uncensored, look below the fold.

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