Atheists

The last of earth yet to discover

nobody@vox.com(David Horton) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 12:37:07 -0800

Well, beautifully judged - this is post number 100 for the year (by sheer chance!)

We have talked of many things on this journey together in 2009 - of shoes — and ships — and sealing-wax — of cabbages— and kings — and why the sea is boiling hot— and whether pigs have wings. Well, not many of them, actually, except for the boiling hot sea, although I must put the others on my list for 2010. But two a week on average, rain, hail or shine, the posts must get through. So will need to pull some rabbits out of the hat (or rather, out of the garden - in the last 12 months the rabbit plague has reached, well, plague proportions) - find new things to say about our country's leader and his rival; new insights in an election year; outsider's thoughts on the Alice in Wonderland that is American politics; new thoughts about the slow motion train wreck that is climate change; occasionally happy, and apposite, pop culture titles and references; vicious but fair attacks on the madness that is religion; witty asides about quirky events; and, as always, deep and meaningful thoughts on whether the meaning of life is still 42 or has dropped to 41.

So thank you all for coming along for the ride this year - I was usually as unsure about where it was going as you were, but we arrived safely and the end of all our exploring was to arrive where we had started and know the place for the first time. I hope you will all be back in twenty ten (won't it be nice to have a year that sounds like a proper year again) - and please, bring some friends. The Cinderella coach is made out of watermelon, and there is plenty of room for more passengers.

Maybe this will be the year Mr Pickwick and his companions conquer the literary world - decipher the mysterious stone that leads to the breakthrough into the heights of internet fame. Or maybe not.

Bon chance.

All David Horton's writing is on The Watermelon Blog.

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Naughty Friday funny - A pun

nobody@vox.com(petermcc) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 15:57:01 -0800

Indian with a hatchet

Artefacts are a major portion of an American-Indian reservation's economy. Annually, thousands of tourists visit reservations and most will not leave without purchasing at least one memento of the traditional Indian culture.

One enterprising Indian was able to outsell his competitors in the sale of wooden dolls by selling them at only a fraction of the cost others had to charge. On examination of his dolls they found that where traditionally hard wood was used, this Indian would use cheap pine on which he glued thin pieces of fine mahogany, thus being able to produce the dolls at only a fraction of the cost.

While he claimed his dolls were still authentic, his competitors complained that it was only a cheap Sioux Veneer.

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Hospitality, merriment, and open-heartedness

nobody@vox.com(David Horton) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 16:34:32 -0800

To all my friends, readers, subscribers, occasional visitors, supporters, critics, wherever you are around the world, may you all have a Pickwickian Xmas full of good company, good food, and good cheer. May you receive a warm and cordial reception, wherever you go - and may the very servants grin with pleasure at the sight of you; may the hot elder wine, well qualified with brandy and spice, go round and round and round again; and may there be not too many mince pies left for the fat boy the next day. Oh, and may your sleep be sound, and the dreams be pleasant, on the evening of Xmas Day.

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Oral Roberts, Finally Called Home

nobody@vox.com(Paxton) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 16:00:21 -0800

I don't know how I missed the fact that Oral Roberts died last week. I mostly know the televangelist from the controversy that occurred in 1987 when Roberts revealed that Jesus was holding him for ransom. During a fundraising drive, he stated that if he didn't raise $8 million by March, God would "call him home." People laughed, but Roberts raised the money and didn't die, thereby proving that he was right.

Apparently, this time, old Oral just couldn't come up with the cash.

Oral Roberts

"Jesus had two archangels break my kneecaps."

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The Mad Monk's spiritual adviser says it must be right. He read it in a book. God help us.

nobody@vox.com(Snowy) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 15:23:27 -0800

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26512112-5003402,00.html

Books prove prayer can cure cancer, says archbishop

TERMINAL illness such as cancer can be cured by prayer, the head of the Catholic Church in Australia said.

But Catholic Archbishop of Sydney Cardinal George Pell admitted such cures, like the miracle attributed to Mary MacKillop, were obviously rare.

"Yes obviously (cancer can be cured by prayer)," Cardinal Pell told ABC Television today.

"And there are quite a number of examples in the books."

Cardinal Pell said that wouldn't give sick people a false sense of security because they realised cure by prayer was a "very long shot".

The Vatican has recognised Mother Mary's role in the healing a woman with inoperable cancer during the mid-1990s after she prayed to Mother Mary.

It was the second miracle attributed to Mary MacKillop, set to become the nation's first saint 100 years after her death.

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Naughty Friday funny - Breast feeding

nobody@vox.com(petermcc) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 03:06:00 -0800

Breastfeeding

A woman and a baby were in the doctor's examining room, waiting for the doctor to come in for the baby's first examination.

The doctor arrived, and examined the baby, checked his weight, and being a little concerned, asked if the baby was breast-fed or bottle-fed.

'Breast-fed,' she replied.

'Well, strip down to your waist,' the doctor ordered.

She did. He pinched her nipples, pressed, kneaded, and rubbed both breasts for a while in a very professional and detailed examination.

Motioning to her to get dressed, the doctor said, 'No wonder this baby is underweight. You don't have any milk.'

I know,' she said, 'I'm his Grandma, but I'm glad I came.'

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God Exorcist - Freedom from God Church and Religion

nobody@vox.com(vampiri) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 07:40:39 -0800

God Exorcist - Freedom from God Church and Religion

http://xcircle.ning.com/

God Exorcist is the anti god, church and religion social network. Freethinkers that do not dwell on myth & superstition that enslaves minds.

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Atheism

nobody@vox.com(vampiri) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 10:12:45 -0800

The God Exorcist

Atheism can be either the rejection of theism, or the position that deities do not exist.In the broadest sense, it is the absence of belief in the existence of deities.

The term atheism originated from the Greek ἄθεος (atheos), meaning "ungodly" or "deserted by the gods," which was derogatively applied to anyone thought to believe in false gods, no gods, or doctrines that stood in conflict with established religions. With the spread of freethought, skeptical inquiry, and subsequent increase in criticism of religion, application of the term narrowed in scope. The first individuals to self-identify as "atheist" appeared in the 18th century. Today, about 2.3% of the world's population describes itself as atheist, while a further 11.9% is described as nontheist.Between 64% and 65% of Japanese describe themselves as atheists, agnostics, or non-believers,and up to 48% in Russia.The percentage of such persons in European Union member states ranges between 6% (Italy) and 85% (Sweden).

Atheism tends towards skepticism regarding supernatural claims, citing a lack of empirical evidence. Common rationales include the problem of evil, the argument from inconsistent revelations, and the argument from nonbelief. Other arguments for atheism range from the philosophical to the social to the historical.

In Western culture, atheists are frequently assumed to be irreligious or unspiritual.However, religious and spiritual belief systems such as forms of Buddhism that do not advocate belief in gods, have also been described as atheistic.Although some atheists tend toward secular philosophies such as humanism, rationalism, and naturalism, there is no one ideology or set of behaviors to which all atheists adhere.

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Julia Sweeney & Michael Shermer

nobody@vox.com(WannabeTesla) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 00:41:50 -0800

I know I have just been posting videos mostly, but I am preparing for finals rights now. The real action is in the comments right now.

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Now THAT's Sexually Repressed

nobody@vox.com(WannabeTesla) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:09:33 -0800

Thanks ZOMGitsCriss for introducing me to this one.

Gimme Dat Christian Side Hug

Wow. Just wow.

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