©2009 The Idealist.net Last updated September 15, 2009
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A work in progress and progress at work, if you've landed here you're an early adopter. Stop back as I add more items of religion, politics, consumerism, and life as it SHOULD be...
Noam Sane
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Religion
Evolution and The Science Classroom: I think people who want Creationism taught as, or in place of, evolution are selfish :-< They want your kid to believe what their religious text alludes to. Please visit this site for some excellent Science Book Stickers to mock and counter the brain dead, selfish, decision of the Cobb County, GA, Board of "Education". http://www.swarthmore.edu/NatSci/cpurrin1/textbookdisclaimers/ (later overturned by court)
This excellent (opiononated, but it IS his forum) site has some wonderful observations about religion and secularism (mostly the former): http://www.sullivan-county.com/#religion Here's a taste: 25 Responses to 25 Creationist Falacies.
BOOKS:
An excellent, if slightly vitriolic book about religion from an educated heathen's standpoint. He's an equal-time basher, not just an anti-Christian. "God Is Not Great" by Christopher Hitchens. The Book at Amazon.com
A book in the same vein by 20th century British philosopher Betrand Russell, "Why I Am Not A Christian" (1927)
Ray Suarez, author and journalist, "The Holy Vote"
MOVIES:
A Handmaid's Tale, based on Margaret Atwoord's novel, starring the late Natasha Richardson. A story about a near-future US theocracy.
RELIGULOUS by Larry Charles and comedian and social commentarian Bill Maher. I don't agree with Maher 100% but I do most of the time and I really wish I got HBO because I laugh my butt off when I DO see him and he also makes me think. A great quote from Maher, pulled from Wikipedia:
During Maher's appearance on Larry King Live on August 11, 2005, he said he was an agnostic who nevertheless is still quite open to the idea that a god exists. The following exchange also occurred on that program:
CALLER: "Hi. Well, my question is, the Lord spoke to me approximately three years ago, and if the Lord spoke to you, I was wondering if you'd become a believer."
MAHER: "No, I'd check into Bellevue, which is what you should do..."
Book Burnings and Modern Bureaucracy
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) -- A church's plan for an old-fashioned book-burning
has been thwarted by city and county fire codes.Preachers and congregations throughout American history have built bonfires and tossed in books and other materials they believed offended God. The Rev. Scott Breedlove, pastor of The Jesus Church, wanted to rekindle that tradition in a July 28 ceremony where books, CDs, videos and clothing would have been thrown into the flames.
Not so fast, city officials said.
"We don't want a situation where people are burning rubbish as a recreational fire," said Brad Brenneman, the fire department's district chief. Linn County won't go for a fire outside city limits, either. Officials said the county's air quality division prohibits the transporting of materials from the city to the county for burning.
Breedlove said a city fire inspector suggested shredding the offending material, but Breedlove said that wouldn't seem biblical. "I joked with the guy that St. Paul never had to worry about fire codes", Breedlove said.
The new plan calls for members of the church to throw materials into garbage cans and then light candles to symbolically "burn" the material.
Question: is Scott's last name appropriate?
Web Sites:
http://www.wittenburgdoor.com/when-evangelicals-dream
An article from a Christian web site that uses sarcasm to make fun of the more
scary aspects of conservative Christianity. Particularly valid considering its
source. Some of the blog postings following it make one wonder just how socially
conservative many of the magazine’s subscribers are.
This magazine seems to be an arm of a Christian organization which has, for years,
been monitoring money collected by religious organizations and ministries.
I SWEAR TO GOD (oops?) I'm not Christianophobic. There are millions of free thinking, God loving folks out there, many of whom are my friends and with whom I coexist harmoniously, who believe that Jesus is their savior and they're happy with the joy that brings them. I'm just terrified of the ones who are sure they're right. It's sad that there's no afterlife because those who are sure there IS will never know they were wrong.
BTW, if you don't like bumper stickers like "Coexist" or "Honk if you're Jesus" you might prefer the apparently fasionable N.O.T.W. line which is "...an alternative lifestyle brand that goes beyond the norm...fashion that communicates the grace, truth and love of Jesus"
©2009 The Idealist.net Last updated September 15, 2009 |