I guess I wasn’t paying attention. Good thing there are sources on the web to explain history to me.
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
I guess I wasn’t paying attention. Good thing there are sources on the web to explain history to me.
Since people have been asking about my travel schedule lately, here’s how I’m going to be spending my weekends:
| Friday, 31 Oct-2 Nov: | Toronto, ON |
| Friday, 7-9 Nov: | Washington, DC |
| Thursday, 13-15 Nov: | Kearney, NE |
| Wednesday, 19-22 Nov: | Philadelphia, PA |
| Friday, 5-6 Dec: | Orlando, FL |
I’m hoping the visit to DC will be an especially joyous one.
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?
But then, isn’t everything? We had a veritable orgy of communion wafer consumption in Springfield, enhanced by a chocolate coating. Why can’t the transubstantiation trick involve chocolate and milk instead of bread and wine?
I lived in Philly for seven years, so I do have a connection and retain my affection for the city, and a respect for the addytood Philadelphians have always had. I felt a real tingle of sentiment when I heard that Philadelphia sports fans booed Sarah Palin. Clenched fist salute for Philadelphia!
I did not get shot at during my presentation. I was not heckled to the point of tears. Richard Carrier‘s talk did not bore me. Despite Springfield being the world capitol of the Assemblies of God Pentecostal church, Sarah Palin did not attend…but it is not the case that the event was poorly attended. I did not fall off the stage, nor were there any technical problems with the video equipment. There were no Catholic picketers. Jesus did not manifest in a chariot of fire to smite the two godless speakers. The audience at our talk did not shy away from asking difficult questions of Carrier and myself. The beer that evening wasn’t bad. While I did briefly disparage the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, no one threatened my livelihood or waved a sword at my neck. I was not neglected or mistreated. I did not eat all the chocolate-covered communion wafers I was given…yet. I did not miss a pleasant evening at the Springfield Brewing company.
I do not understand why anyone would think I am a pirate.
Ben was concerned that I would write horrible things about Springfield and MSU, so I had to cruelly let him know I would not write a post that said anything positive at all about my visit.
I do not think I would turn down an invitation to return.
You probably didn’t know that Richard Carrier is not a ninja.
Have you ever noticed what the first result you get if you google for gift from god is? He does love us!
(via Evo Terra)
We need more Tangled Bank entries — the next edition will be at Pro-Science on Wednesday. So get cracking and mail them in soon!
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.
Many of us were fans of Possummomma and her blog, Atheist in a Mini-van. She was a passionate writer, struggling to make ends meet with her family, coping with lupus, and also having to deal with a lot of anti-atheist-bigotry in her community and online. Well, they finally got to her: she’s gone offline and has put her blog under password protection, all because of some extreme harassment and accusations from, believe it or not, Christian fans of a dopey reality TV show. It’s a long, sordid, complicated, ugly story which I’m not going to repeat here, sinc The Calladus Blog has covered it thoroughly. The short and simple summary:
Venomous Christians, threats, and stalkers. Enough was enough. Possummomma has been libeled and attacked online, and stalked in real life. This isn’t good for her family, or for herself. Stress aggravates the symptoms of SLE, and who needs that? This is one more drama, and P-momma just doesn’t have the energy to deal with it. She’s offline now, and the rabid Gosselin cult can high-five the fundamentalist preachers with a hearty, “Well Done!”
Possummomma’s co-blogger also supports the explanation. I have to sympathize — trying to fight the insanity of religion that afflicts our culture can wear one out, especially when there are bigger personal issues of family and health to deal with — but let’s all hope an opportunity to catch her breath and get a rest will be sufficient to restore an excellent writer to her role as a public advocate.
