Debating Evolution is a Waste of Time (yeah, I know it's been covered before)

Debating Evolution with religious folk is a waste of time.
With the unknown, one is confronted with danger and discomfort--the first instinct is to abolish these painful states. First principle: any explanation is better than none. We all do it, we hear a strange noise and we quickly come up with a guess to explain the noise, i.e., wind, a ghost, a…? All tribes/social groups through time have come up with myths to explain unknowns, answers arrived at not through reason or logic, but to tranquilize the fear of the unknown, providing comfort.

Religious folk form their identities through their religious teachings and any information that doesn’t fit their belief system, triggers feelings of insecurity and fear; emotionally, they feel they are being personally attacked--they must abolish the danger and discomfort they feel. They can’t use reason or logic to evaluate any of the millions of facts supporting evolution--because they are indoctrinated and imprinted as children to feel shame and fear if they question their church's authority.

Don’t waste your time debating Evolution with a creationist; respect the right of others to believe as they wish, but never miss an opportunity to demonstrate the irrational paradox and dangerous delusion that is religious faith.

Anywhere in the world, where education increases, belief in religion declines and inversely, women’s rights increase. The greatest intolerance for religion comes from religious folk’s intolerance of other religions or sub-groups within their own religion.

It's time to tax all religious businesses and for the greater enforcement of the laws separating church and state; including, but not limited to, the armed forces, religious schools and donations to political parties.

Barbaric Law In Afghanistan Passed Reducing Women's Rights

Another abhorrent law has passed in Afghanistan, showing the barbarism of islam.

• It is now legal for shia men to deny food and sustenance to their wives if they refuse to obey their husband's sexual demands.


• Fathers and grandfathers have full guardianship over the children


• Women must ask permission from their husbands to work.


• A rapist can avoid prosecution by paying 'blood money' to a girl who was injured when he raped her.


• "Tamkeen is the readiness of the wife to submit to her husband's reasonable sexual enjoyment, and her prohibition from going out of the house, except in extreme circumstances, without her husband's permission. If any of the above provisions are not followed by the wife she is considered disobedient."

Apparently in a bid for votes in the upcoming election, Hamid Karzai has basically sold the rights of women to gain power. The election is Thursday, August 20. But from what I can see, women will lose as long as the country is islamic.

Violation of Freedom of Religion

In January of 2008, I was arrested for drunk in public. Yea, I know, you gotta be pretty stupid to get one of those, huh? Well, suffice it to say that my fair city had the highest arrest-rate for that particular crime in the state at the time and a disproportionate number of those arrested were Hispanic, a heritage I can claim. Ok, now that we've established that I was guilty of Walking Down the Street While Brown, how does this relate to Atheism? Like this: my civil rights were violated by me being coerced to attend court-mandated A.A. meetings.

Here's the scoop. AA is a religion. All of these courts have ruled that Alcoholics Anonymous is a religion or engages in religious activities:

• the Federal 7th Circuit Court in Wisconsin, 1984.


• the Federal District Court for Southern New York, 1994.


• the New York Court of Appeals, 1996.


• the New York State Supreme Court, 1996.


• the U.S. Supreme Court, 1997.


• the Tennessee State Supreme Court.


• the Federal 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York, 1996.


• the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.


• the U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh District, 1996.


• the Federal Appeals Court in Chicago, 1996.


• The Federal Appeals Court in Hawaii, September 7, 2007, in the Inouye v. Kemna case.(orange-papers.org/orange-spirrel.html)

Forcing me to go to AA under threat of legal sanctions and criminal prosecution is the same as forcing me to attend a state established religion, which AA seems to be trying to do with their "cooperating with courts and judges" policy, but that's another story for another day.

Updates: A New Study and Obama's Faith Council

A couple weeks ago, I wrote about Sheeple: Studies About Social Conformity. I focused on 3 studies that show how people are easily influenced and manipulated, mostly by the authority figures in their lives. The other day a new study was published that added to this and I wanted to share it with you.

Financial Advice Causes "Off-loading" In The Brain shows that expert advice may shut down areas of the brain responsible for decision making processes, particularly when individuals are trying to evaluate a situation where risk is involved. This study focused on financial advice given by an "expert" to participants in an fMRI machine who were told to make a decision on how to spend money. I have a feeling that this is also the case in other areas of decision making as well. Hopefully it will be investigated and tested.

It makes sense though, when you look at how easily people are led by those in positions of authority. If someone is an "expert" this study shows that the brain offloads the decision making process. It trusts the expert and gives up responsibility for that choice.

"This study indicates that the brain relinquishes responsibility when a trusted authority provides expertise, says Berns, the study's lead researcher. "The problem with this tendency is that it can work to a person's detriment if the trusted source turns out to be incompetent or corrupt."

Honor Killings are Illegal? Turkey Resorts To Honor Suicides For Women

First, let's talk a little about Turkey.

Turkey is a secular democracy with no state religion. It's a developed country and a regional power with close relationships to many other countries. The people are educated with a good life expectancy of 73 years. The men are better educated than the women but school is free and compulsory from ages 6-15. The reason there is a discrepancy for women is because in the southeastern provinces, Kurds and Arabs hold their traditional customs.

There is no state religion in Turkey and their constitution provides the freedom of religion and conscience but does not promote a religion. But here's where things go downhill. 99% of the country is muslim. There are a few minority religious there too, and about 3.2% are irreligious or atheists. A poll in 2002 reported that 65% of the people believe "religion is very important." Another poll in 2005 found that 95% of the citizens believe "there is a god."

Here's where it gets sickening. Honor killings in Turkey have been getting more common. The government estimated them at about 200 a year, half of all the murders committed in the country. So in 2005 Turkey changed the law so that honor killers would receive a life sentence instead of being able to get a reduced sentence, claiming provocation. Still, there is now about one honor killing a week in Istanbul, so it's spreading into the modern cities as well.

Now a new phenomenon is brewing - honor suicides. Women are told to kill themselves so that no one has to go to prison for life for murdering them.

The Reason I Speak Out Against Religion

This idiot epitomizes the christian fundamentalist thinking prevalent in America today. She and her ilk are systematically driving this this country into ruin by forcing their iron age bible thumping "morals" on the rest of us. (1:40)

Her hypocrisy, hatred and bigotry are apparently common among "true" christians, and she is why I do what I do, why I speak up, why I am intolerant to her cultivated ignorance and arrogant stupidity. This is why we need to come together and find common ground, to find a way to stand up and speak out against blatant bigotry, ignorance, the muddied mess of church and state, and our basic Constitutional rights.

One Lockstepping Jackboot Closer To a Theocractic Police State

I'm sure you've heard of this insidious law in Kentucky, by now. State Rep. Tom Riner, a southern baptist minister, tucked a provision in a homeland security bill in 2006 that lawmakers overwhelmingly approved.

Apparently you don't need intelligence or common sense to hold a government position in America these days. You certainly don't have to adhere to the Constitution or the Bill of Rights.

The statement begins, "The safety and security of the Commonwealth cannot be achieved apart from reliance upon almighty god."  Basically, Homeland Security's religious duties come before everything else, including how to spend the millions of dollars ($28 million this year) they get from the federal government and whatever possible threats they might think they have in the middle of nowhere.

Amusing and Serious Stuff

An amusing cartoon about a serious topic:



Women can't make their own decisions according to Bill Napoli in South Dakota. This funny shirt is very helpful for all of us poor females that can't think for ourselves. You can get the t-shirt here.

And a serious comparison about outgoing president Bush and Osama bin Laden. Remember him?