Pope won’t judge gays who share something in common with him: The Lord and Expensive Fabrics!

557878_702713299754730_334537535_nWell, the man in the stylish cape, silly hat and all that expensive fabrics says he won’t judge gays. How so cute!

Pope Francis magnanimously announced that:

If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?

This news has been heartily welcomed in the LGBT community. Many now flash the statement like a sort of ‘divine’ approval of their sexual orientation and armor in their LGBT Equal Rights campaign.  Even I might just flash the quote at the next catholic who  rants about how gays, bisexuals and Trans are all going to hell, but isn’t that really the position of their Pope? [Read more…]

The Christian Association of Nigeria vows to chase out gay diplomats but Archbishop Desmond Tutu won’t worship a homophobic God.

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is once again making a national fool of itself and its members. Listening to the rants of its spokesperson wants to make me puke.  Really, how deluded are those religious nincompoops?

The latest hullabaloo occurred when the Nigerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr.  Olugbenga Ashiru was reported to have said:

Nigeria is not against any country for legalising  gay marriage, but in our country, given our customs and traditions, as well as religious beliefs, marriage as ordained  by God is between a man and a woman.

“But if we have diplomats with same sex spouses posted to Nigeria, we have no choice but to accredit them accordingly because they come from countries where such law is in place

However, the spokesman of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 northern states and the FCT, Mr. Sunday Omr-oibe-sundayibe described the position of the minister as hypocritical and unacceptable. Mr Oibe, in a statement in Kaduna noted that both Christians and Muslims in Nigerians have all agreed that gay marriage is against their religious and cultural beliefs. Maintaining any nation that sends a gay diplomat to Nigeria is violating the laws of the land and it should be resisted.

He stated:

“We want to make it abundantly clear, be it America or Britain or any country that sends a gay diplomat to Nigeria; we will mobilise to chase him out of the country.

Really, you will chase diplomats out of Nigeria because of the gender of their adult partner?392527_440135569333535_236565153023912_1763288_63201606_n [Read more…]

Absurdities and Atrocities: #BabyOctopusNotHalfhumanHalfFish!

Wonders they say, shall never end. A Nigerian fish seller who lives in Ibadan, Nigeria, saw her fish evolve into half human half fish! The latest story goes thus:

 Strange Fish With Human Parts Causes Stir in Ibadan.

Hundreds of residents of Ibadan, Tuesday, rushed out to catch a glimpse of a strange fish which was said to have human parts at Asaka compound area of the city. The incident happened at Ile Akindele when a fish seller noticed the strange creature after removing the wrap of a frozen fish.

She said:

Before getting the fish out of the ice-pack, we needed to use knife to remove them and use water to de-freeze. I was shocked to see the frozen fish developed into a living being in the water, the description of which showed half human and half fish. I quickly called my father and some Alfas to see the strange fish”.

She screamed so loud the entire neighborhood rushed to see what the calamity was. Her father r15988_10201197211164216_1959934178_nan in, only stopping to pick his Quran to ward off whatever demons were chasing his daughter. Well, the daughter ran to her Imam for protection from the half fish half human. The tabloids and various Naija blogs revel in the story; they splashed this absurd picture of a half fish half human on their front pages. Never mind that the human half of the fish looks like the legs of a skinny white woman who probably was modeling on a beach for Victoria secrets. And well, the half fish part was an angry looking fish with sharp teeth. [Read more…]

Senator Pedophile Sani Yerima, Bishop David Oyedepo and guilty Nigerians, She is a: #ChildNotBride, #ChildNotWitch, #ChildNotHouseGirl!

Nigerians have suddenly woken up to the ills of child abuse because of an obscure part of the constitution. While we are all getting self righteous and indignant about children’s rights, let us also look at ways we are guilty of perpetrating child abuse. After all Child abuse comes in different colours, shapes  and sizes.

Religion and child abuse: 

Rape is never funny and pedophilia is nothing to joke about. It sure baffles me how people who condemn rape, who would normally freak out at the thought of a 54 year old man raping a 9 year old girl, could still praise and worship a pedophile prophet who did exactly that!

It seems being a catholic priest or an Islam prophet is a shield from being scorned at as a rapist and pedophile. And now, you can add being a Nigerian Senator or diligent follower of the Islamic faith to the list.  Why the double standard?  Even when dead, pedophiles graves should be spit on not worshiped in holy pilgrimages! [Read more…]

Cameroon Gay Rights Activist Murdered: Enough of this hate crime, join the protest!

Eric_Lembembe_Cameroon_Gay_Activist_MurderedI wish I have good news to share from Africa, but it all seems so gloomy!

 Heartbreaking news comes in from Cameroon. Another gay rights activist brutally murdered.

 Prominent Cameroonian gay rights activist and journalist Eric Lembembe has been killed in the capital, Yaounde, a rights group says. Mr Lembembe’s neck and feet appeared to have been broken and his face, hands, and feet burned with an iron, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said.

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-23331832 [Read more…]

On S29(4)b and the #ChildNotBride saga: Let’s get the facts right

It was one of those days when everything hits you at once. I was physically, intellectually, emotionally and politically tired.  I decided chldnotbrideto check my mails to take my mind off ‘issues’ but instead of some funny cat meme, the headline ‘Nigerian Senate Okays Child Marriage’ jumped at me. I screamed “Whaaatttt?” I clicked on the link to read the report and just out of nowhere I started laughing. Yeah, that was actually my first reaction, it was my first laugh of the day, actually my first laughter in days, I laughed so hard and it was very fulfilling. Now, you might wonder what was so funny about child marriage.  Honestly, nothing. Child marriage is simply child abuse and there is nothing funny about child abuse.  It was the report that gave me a lot to laugh at. Remember I said this was a day everything seemed out of my control and I was almost at a breaking point. I guess stress has a funny bone sometimes.

The news was about the dramatic proceedings in the Senate on Tuesday 16th July, 2013. The report stated:

The voting in the Senate, which lasted for about five hours, also witnessed the adoption of Section 9 of the draft bill of the amendment, which empowers the National Assembly to make an entirely new constitution for the country.

The senators also adopted Section 3A of the draft, which rejected the president’s assent to the amended constitution before taking effect.

Make new constitution for the country? Take away the power of the president to assent the constitution? I smell trouble here, the kinda trouble I would enjoy watching.  Power is hardly ever easily relinquished. Politicians will kick up a storm whenever their rivals propose to hack their powers. I eagerly await the drama that will definitely ensue.

The report further stated that the senators rejected autonomy for Local Governments, refused the proposal to make the office of the Attorney General of the Federation independent of the Minister of Justice and managed to end the day by  somehow ‘Okaying’ child marriage.

Hmm, my reaction was this laughter that went on uncontrollably for minutes. I was already picturing the president heaping abuses on the senators for daring to even suggest taking away his presidential power of assent. Also,picture the screaming Local government chairmen (well they are almost all men anyway and i am tired of complaining about the persistent use of ‘Chairman’ when it should have been changed to gender neutral ‘Chairperson’, even the few women ‘chairmen’ reject the ‘Chairperson’ tag, so much for girl power!) [Read more…]

FtbCon: Atheism with a conscience!

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FtBConscience is on this weekend (Friday 19th July 2013 – Sunday 21st July 2013), with the theme ‘Atheism with a Conscience’. You can join FtBloggers and our array of distinguished panelists for a stimulating weekend without leaving the comfort of your home!

Join us live as we discuss Atheism, Religion, Social Justice, Science, Art, Love, Grief, Mental illness, Video games and a host of other interesting things! There will also be live Atheist music performed by our in house musicians!

I am one of the speakers on the panel Atheism is Not Enough, Saturday 20th July, 2013, (10am to 12pm CDT (UTC – 5) / 4:00pm-6:00pm British Summer Time, GMT +1). I hope you will join me for this interesting discussion.

You can visit the chat room here, follow/tweet @ftbcon, or post on our Facebook page if you have any questions!

It is really sunny here in London,  we are experiencing a heatwave, so I might live-stream from one of the beautiful parks in London, the queen’s palace or set up cam near Prince Williams and his wife, Duchess Catherine, who is due to deliver the next royal baby any minute now. We might catch a glimpse of Kate going into labour! Well, it could mean a hasty panel on Monarchy and the privilege of Birth.  Now, got to go get my background just right, after all this is gonna be live!

BTW, at the end of the conference, you can also hangout with FtBloggers and our wonderful panelists for drinks. I heard there is beer, chocolate, Ice cream, erm… sorry atheists; we won’t be eating babies, they are not on the FtB conference menu!

Marriage Equality for England and Wales; A Victory for Equality!

Great news! There is Marriage equality at last for England and Wales! The House of Lords has now passed the equal marriage bill at its Third Reading for England and Wales. The bill should receive Royal Assent soon. This will pave the way for same-sex couples to have access to marriage equality.

This is a positive step forward not just for England and Wales, but for humanity as a whole too.

 

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Kudos to every individual and organization, who lobbied their lawmakers, rallied and stood up for Marriage equality.

I join all progressive minded humans to celebrate with England and Wales on this momentous occasion.

The Equality train must go round faster and faster. It is my hope that the equality train arrives in Africa sooner than later, it surely must have a stopover in Nigeria soon. [Read more…]

George Zimmerman, a free man? A sad day for Florida, America and Humanity

George Zimmerman has been declared not guilty of murdering Trayvon Martin. A sad day, a very sad day indeed. My heart atrayvon martinches. I am angry, I am depressed and I am afraid of this fury building up from deep inside of me. It is a reminder that justice is a respecter of certain persons, has colour preference and tilts favorably towards a certain class. The facts of the case are simple enough, but oh how so many wants to make it into this complicated case. They whine “You don’t understand, this is what the law says”

A barbaric law made to justify barbaric acts. Laws that should not have a place in the law book of any nation that lays claim to democracy and civilization.

It is a simple case, and here are the simple facts of the case :

On Feb 26, 2012, Trayvon Martin, a 17 year old black teenage boy was on his way to his daddy’s house in a gated neighborhood. It was raining, he had on his hooded sweatshirt, his ear buds and a bag of skittles. He was unarmed.

George Zimmerman, a 28 year old white man, wannabe cop and a neighborhood vigilante, [Read more…]

Why “Thank God I am still better off than some” is a selfish prayer and attitude

734924_268214039970930_2030938367_nSince being forced into the unemployment market, I have noticed an increase in people telling me to be thankful to God that I am still better off than others. Of course, they know I am an atheist, but believers eagerly pounce on any opportunity to tell atheists that ‘God’ is great. I have even been told that the rough patch I am going through is God’s way of showing me he is the Almighty God, and he wants me to recognize it, go on my knees, and accept him as God and only then would he make my path smooth again. ROTFLMAO!

OK, I won’t even go into the childishness of such a God or the morality of anyone who thinks such a God deserves to be praised or why God takes on the personality of his believers/creators. That is a story for another day. Now, let us not divert too much, the topic for today’s discussion is ‘Why “Thank God I am still better off than some” is a selfish prayer and attitude. Here is an analogy to get us started.

In a village, lives an all-powerful king who has the powers to make all things happen. He is famed as omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent, he could grant every heart desire if he so wish. Villagers often gather in his golden palace to praise him, pray and give thanks to him. [Read more…]

Child abuse is not discipline or African, it is simply cruelty to children!

Nigerian couple who beat their six children jailed after Coronation Street barmaid Michelle Collins gave evidence against them

 

  • Couple beat their children with brooms, hoovers and wires, claiming they were possessed by evil spirits
  • They gave their baby morphine overdose after her first birthday
  •  ‘I am beaten without mercy’, said an SOS note written by one of the children
  •  Parents alleged Miss Collins wanted to ‘steal’ their children
  •  ‘We are innocent, this is a miscarriage of justice’, screamed the couple as they left court…

 

Yes, it hurts me personally and in every humane way possible when abused children are not believed when they finally find the courage to speak out. It also hurts me to no end that in the part of the continent I come from, people define ‘child abuse’ in a different way and conveniently brush it aside by calling it discipline!

It is indeed sad that some Nigerians consider this case as ‘culture clash’ and even racial discrimination!

To many Nigerians, it is considered normal for pastors to accuse children of witchcraft and slap them in churches. It is considered OK  for prophets to take children to beach sides and beat them mercilessly while their parents shout “Hallelujah”, under the ‘acceptable disguise’ of casting out evil spirits from the children.

No, these are not rare occurrences, as I wrote in a previous post, these things happen almost every minute of the day, just visit Lagos Bar Beach!

Parents beat their children with brooms, cut them with sharp objects and inflict all sorts of injuries on their children and wards, all in the name of discipline and these are normally the same parents who steal in their workplaces and brag about their 419 activities in front of their children [Read more…]

Because I Am A Girl

Trembling she holds her tummy

Knowing this fourth baby coming

Will be her making or breaking

She moans, her world hanging

Groaning she strains

Not just from labour pains

With one more push, I came panting

With just a look, she screamed fainting

A reprieve from the moment of truth

Husband in-laws with new wife struts

Buckle up; it’s going to be a rough ride

Because I am a girl

 

In the kitchen I am taught to cook

While the boys read from the books [Read more…]

The Living Dead

Forlorn faces

Painful traces

Shows the strain

Of years of pain

Etched in wrinkles

Body shriveled

Eyes blankly dead

Toiling for seeds

Take a seatzombies21

For Life is a beat

 

Youthful joy of living

Pleasure of feeling

Playground pain

Forgotten in the strain

Slaving in the bustle

Of a city life hustle

Rushing to make a living

But never enough savings

Buried under the bills [Read more…]

Killing in the name of their Skydaddy: Boko Haram Militants Kill 29 Students, Teacher in Yobe, Nigeria School Attack

409263_194632337300826_100002621825953_318303_1770217189_nKilling in the name of God is unfortunately as old as the first time Man created God in his own image. Boko Haram, the Islamic terrorist group against western education in Nigeria struck again early this morning. According to reports: boko_haram561_2

 Armed Islamic militants have killed 29 students and an English teacher in an attack on a boarding school in Yobe State in northeastern Nigeria.

 

Survivors being treated for burns and gunshot wounds said some students were burned alive in the attack, which allegedly took place early Saturday and which is believed to have been carried out by the radical Boko Haram Islamic group.

 

Gunmen stormed the premises of Government Secondary School in the town of Mamudo in Yobe State at around 3am, setting fire to parts of the complex.

 

Dozens of children from the 1,200-student school escaped into the bush and have not been seen since, reports Sky News

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/boko-haram-militants-kill-29-students-teacher-in-yobe-school-attack/152599/

484898_433952073352485_1826309972_nIt is said that those who make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. These horrible people are living testimony to this fact.  Pigs that are for no just reason, much loathed in their various Holy books, are definitely better than those cold blooded murderers; after all pigs don’t kill for any imaginary Sky daddy.

 

BTW, people who want to stone LGBTs to death in the name of their God are no better than these Boko Haram terrorists. [Read more…]