Mobilizing for the War on Christmas

So, here is a recent story about the Loudoun County (VA) Supervisors reversing a policy preventing religious holiday displays by third parties at their courthouse. The new policy allows 10 third party holiday displays ON A FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE BASIS.

Is it just me or would you love to see a manger display surrounded by displays for the Flying Spaghetti Monster, Festivus, the Winter Solstice and Chalica. The Baptist would lose their their minds. Better yet for them to be 11th in line to see what marginalization feels like.

The real issue behind the bogus "War on Christmas" meme is the discomfort of Christians of not being treated with cultural deference; the idea that they are just another unfounded superstitious belief, and not the fountain of the American Dream its adherents still want it to be.

This is a recent quote on the subject from rationalskepticism.org

"I'm sick of these lame wars on Christmas.

I hereby declare WAR on Christmas.

Over Christmas I shall draw up my battle plans for my Christmas rival a holiday whose only purpose is to give to the needy and less well off in society instead of just being greedy little shits who moan about getting socks and undies from relatives you barely see.

Next winter solstice I urge you to give hard earned dollars to a charity that does not directly benefit you.

Together we can beat Christmas and encourage good will towards fellow humans, as opposed to the rife consumerism down in the name of a zombie jew whose message has long been forgotten in favour of greed, bigotry and gluttons in red suits."

More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/08/AR2010090804480.html

Atheist Group’s Billboard Targets ‘Closet’ Non-Believers

"An atheist group that has paid for a large billboard outside the Lincoln Tunnel reading “You KNOW it’s a Myth” says it is targeting “closet” atheists as part of its Christmas season campaign."

More: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2010/11/27/atheist-groups-billboard-targets-closet-non-believers/

Tony Blair, Christopher Hitchens Debate Religion

"Audience members voted on the debate and preliminary results posted on the Munk Debates website sided with Hitchens, with 68 percent saying that religion is more of a destructive than benign force in the world."

Read article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/27/tony-blair-christopher-hi_n_788717.html

Watch Debate here (start with part 2): http://www.youtube.com/user/hitchensblairdebate

Therapy for the Delusional

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (the guide most commonly used by psychological professionals) defines a delusion as:

A false belief based on incorrect inference about external reality that is firmly sustained despite what almost everybody else believes and despite what constitutes incontrovertible and obvious proof or evidence to the contrary. The belief is not one ordinarily accepted by other members of the person's culture or subculture. (Emphasis added)

The main point being that this esteemed group of professionals had to add that second sentence to the definition in order that religious people not be included among the deluded.

But, of course they are. And where is the logic in essentially saying that so long as most other people believe it that any belief is acceptable?

History is replete with “mass delusions”, i.e. widely accepted beliefs, which were wildly unethical or harmful:

• Nazism
• Slavery
• Witch Hunts
• McCarthyism
• Belief in demon possession
• Belief that illness was caused by sin

These were “acceptable” because most people in society, at one point, believed in them? That is just complete bullshit meant to protect the delicate constitutions of the blindly faithful and religious apologists whose delusions are catered to, pampered and protected like some parents guard their child’s belief in the tooth fairy.

Isn't it time we stopped protecting and being so deferential to people of faith? Any therapist will tell you that you should never buy into a deluded person's fantasies. If you do, they will never get better.

So, without malice, the next time someone tries to force you or your children to pray, or to say “Merry Christmas” instead of “Happy Holidays” or to attend a religious service in which you have no interest or to have a religious element to a public, secular event SPEAK UP. Nothing gets better if you don’t.

For those of us in delicate positions for whatever reasons, such as employment or interacting with a spouse’s family, anonymous flyers, letters to the editor, comments on local websites, or simple personal non-participation and other types of public action can be just as valuable. But you must do something to show that this type of behavior is not only outside the bounds of polite society, but deeply delusional.

Young Christians Leaving the Church at Fast Rate Ever

Quote:

Those marking "no religion," called the "Nones," made up the only group to have grown in every state, from the secular Northeast to the conservative Bible Belt. The Nones were most numerous among the young: a whopping 22 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds claimed no religion, up from 11 percent in 1990. The study also found that 73 percent of Nones came from religious homes; 66 percent were described by the study as "de-converts."

Other survey results have been grimmer. At the May 2009 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, top political scientists Robert Putnam and David Campbell presented research from their book American Grace, released last month. They reported that "young Americans are dropping out of religion at an alarming rate of five to six times the historic rate (30 to 40 percent have no religion today, versus 5 to 10 percent a generation ago)."

...approximately 70 percent of American youth drop out of church between the age of 18 and 22. The Barna Group estimates that 80 percent of those reared in the church will be "disengaged" by the time they are 29.

more: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/november/27.40.html

Religious do not have monopoly on virtue, says Queen Liz

I have never been a fan of the Windsors and support republics and democracy as much as possible, but a big tip of the crown to the Queen of England for the shout out:

"Speaking at Church House, central London, she told members of General Synod that believers and atheists were equally able to contribute to the prosperity and wellbeing of the country."

Full Article Here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/nov/23/queen-synod-virtue

Apple Goes Full Homophobe

Apple fully approves of new "Anti-Gay" app with a 4+ rating.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/24/apple-manhattan-declaration-app_n_788075.html

Beating Kids is Bad, Mmmmmm,K?

We can all agree that child abuse is bad. Unless it is for Jesus. Anything you do for Jesus is ok.

Angie sets those who never "spare the rod" straight:

Underwood’s theoretical equations of religion development

Egyptian polytheism +local Canaanite customs +Zoroastrism =Judaism

((Hinduism – caste system) + Ancient Indian folk medicine and philosophy) + Late Classical Greek Philosophy = Buddhism

((Messianic Judaism +Buddhism) *Classical Greek Philosophy)^{Roman Political Organization} = Christianity

(Ancient Arabian Legends + Christian evangelism + Judaism)*Nomad Culture = Islam

(Islamic Prophetic Authority +Christianity)^{American Exceptionalism} = Mormonism

(Poorly written 1950’s style pulp science fiction + Cult of Personality + pseudoscience) * Islamic-like Prophetic Authority = Scientology

Of course the whole point of these statements would be that no religion is truly original. Even the Neanderthals had some sort of religion. Religion is demonstrably less the result divine inspiration than the barrowing and blending of preceding mytho-philosophical systems with modern (at the time) thought.

Like Christopher Hitchens said, Mormonism is just Scientology plus 180 years. But then again, Islam is just Christianity plus 650 years. They are all equally…unlikely.

What Mormons Believe, and Don't Want to Talk About

This might be the biggest con ever just to convince your wife that it is cool to have sex with other women. Of course it is no crazier than than talking shrubs or virgin births.

Theory of Beauty

This is a link to a presentation from the TED conference on a Darwinian Theory of Beauty. I think that, assuming you could sneak it past the local school board and the evangelical snitches, it would be a very good and reasonably quick introduction to evolution to a teen or young adult audience.