Mid-June Rehash: Dolphin/cephalopod copulation, divine search warrants, and criminalizing atheism!

I'm hopefully getting back in the swing of this blogging thing again.  This time I'm shooting for making mid-month rehashes of stories from around the internet a regular feature.  Let's do this.

Is that an octopus on your genitals, or are you just ha... wait, what?

So, in case any of you haven't seen it yet, this image started going viral yesterday:

Photo credit: Joan Gonzalvo

Best comment I've seen so far: "That's gotta suck."

(via Ed Yong)

Mid-month absurdity: Divine revelation is now probable cause?

Last year, a self-proclaimed psychic told the Sheriff's Office of Liberty County, Texas, that a local couple had 25 to 30 dismembered children buried on their property.  This prompted a raid on their home by deputies and put the couple in the media spotlight internationally (largely because the Sheriff's Office tipped off the media before executing the search warrant).

As it turns out, the couple weren't really serial killers and didn't even have one dismembered child buried in their yard, let alone 25 to 30 of them.  Now they're (rightfully) suing the Liberty County Sheriff's Office for defaming them and ransacking their home on the word of a charlatan.

The charlatan in question had this to say for herself:

“They up front asked me how I got the information, and I am a reverend. I am a prophet and I get my information from Jesus and the angels, and I told them that I had 32 angels with me and they were giving me the information and then it went from there,” she said.

Jesus and 32 angels told her about it? Must be legit.

(via Ken at Popehat)

Atheism gets you 2 1/2 years in prison in Indonesia

I hope by now that all of you who love freedom have heard of what's happening to Alexander Aan of Indonesia.  If not, go read up on it.

He's going to prison and will spend the next 2 and a half years locked up with dangerous criminals for asserting God's non-existence on an atheist group page on Facebook.  He also has to pay a fine of roughly $10,600 US.

Islamic extremists, however, seem to think that the sentence is too lenient; some of them feel that he's committed a capital crime.

“These atheists should be beheaded, that’s what they deserve,” wrote a man who identified himself as Putra Tama, a Muslim from neighboring Jambi province.

The Islamic Society Forum (FUI), an umbrella group for several hard-line groups, said that a five-year jail term for Aan would not suffice.

“He deserves the death penalty, even if he decides to repent. What he has done cannot be tolerated,” said Muhammad al-Khaththath, FUI’s secretary-general.

“It is important to prevent this group from spreading atheism in this country,” he added.

That doesn't bode well for him; how many Islamic extremists are going to be sharing a cell block with him?  It's morbid, but I wouldn't be surprised some righteous zealot sticks him with a shiv in the name of God.


At any rate, it isn't even legal to be an atheist in Indonesia.  You can choose from a laundry list of state-approved religions, but "none of the above" isn't an option.

Note to self: don't go to Indonesia.

If you're interested, the Atheist Alliance International is collecting donations for a legal fund to help Aan fight this ridiculous conviction.  If you want to contribute to that specific fund, make sure you tick the appropriate box before donating.

(via Friendly Atheist)

Atheism gets you jail time in the UK, too?

Indonesia doesn't exactly have the world's most permissive religious freedom laws, but surely nothing like that would happen in a bastion of liberty like a Western nation, right?

Yeah.  Wrong.

John Richards, an elderly man living in Boston (a small town on the eastern coast of England), has a sign hanging in his window proclaiming religion as fairy tales for adults.

Recently, the local police informed him that he could be arrested for it if it offends anybody and he refuses to take it down.

Unlike in Indonesia, I highly doubt an arrest in this case would result in any kind of conviction.  I hope.

(also via Friendly Atheist)

Recommended Reading: The Merely Real

I may have linked to her old blog as recommended reading last year, but Chana Messinger has a new blog that she updates frequently, writing about all sorts of interesting topics like feminism, skepticism, and occasionally food.  Go check it out.

[Weekly Recap] Atheism in the news, Atheist Ethicist, exoplanets, more blasphemy cases, and trolling!

I'm probably not going to have a lot of time to devote to blogging until December, so posting will be sparse until then.  I have to remind myself that I write on here for fun, so I shouldn't feel like I have to balance it with my responsibilities IRL.  These Weekly Recap posts will be on hiatus for the time being, replaced by me posting whenever the heck I feel like it.  An exciting new development, to be sure.

Don't worry, loyal readers: I've still got a handful of posts in draft that will be going up as soon as they're presentable, and I'll still occasionally be struck by inspiration for a spontaneous rant about something or other.

I might still have a few nights like this. (comic from xkcd)

Without further ado, here's the last Weekly Recap you'll ever see until I decide to start doing them again.

Atheism in the news

Journalists are talking about atheists more and more as time goes on, and it isn't always about lawsuits anymore.  Christians are freaking out that godlessness is becoming so popular in America.  We're being blamed (or credited?) for the rise of polarizing Religious Right political candidates like Perry and Bachmann.  The Houston Chronicle spotlighted local atheists in the Texas city for the good they do in the community.

It gives me hope that American culture is approaching a tipping point, after which being an "out" atheist will no longer be anything new, exciting, or scary in this country.

Hipster Hubble: "I was detecting exoplanets before you even knew how to look for them."

"HR 8799 c, d, and b? You've probably never heard of them."

It appears that the Hubble Space Telescope took some shots in 1998 which, processed using modern techniques, revealed planets orbiting other stars.  Have a look at Phil Plait's post about it at Bad Astronomy.

Each new planet we detect is another chance of finding one in its star's "Goldilocks Zone" capable of supporting life as we know it.

Saturday Spotlight: Atheist Ethicist

I link to Alonzo Fyfe's posts often enough that he really deserves a mention in this section.  Theists and atheists alike might benefit from his perspectives on controversial issues, which he addresses using facts and logic rather than ideology and emotional appeals.  He'll sometimes spice it up with a bit of sarcasm.

If you're looking for convenient answers, you might be disappointed; more often, you're left with inconvenient questions that you should have been asking yourself all along

Go read his blog, Atheist Ethicist, and see why I've become a persistent lurker there.  You might learn something, or your head might explode.

Trolling for Billboards

The infamous Blonde Nonbeliever gave me a good laugh this evening.  Ever get tired of those "You're going to hell!" billboards on the sides of Midwestern highways?  Her friend decided to prank call the phone number on one such billboard spotted on a road trip.  Hilarity ensues.

Godless Quote of the Week

"Arguing about religion strips religion of its special privileged status as the one idea that can never be questioned. And that helps all the goals we're working towards -- ending anti-atheist bigotry, separation of church and state, [ending] special legal exemptions for religious organizations.  Arguing about religion helps re-frame religion as an idea rather than an identity -- which makes believers more open to listening to our ideas."

- Greta Christina, in her talk at the Secular Student Alliance conference earlier this year.

Weekly Absurdity: Blasphemous cartoonist arrested in Turkey

Turkish cartoonist Bahadir Baruter might spend a year in prison for drawing this:

The area circled in red apparently contains a hidden message, proclaiming something to the effect of "There is no God and religion is a sham."  It might offend people, sure.  But is it a crime?

In Turkey it is.  As I said last week, don't take freedom of speech for granted.

Belated Weekly Recap: Strange Matter, evolution book ban, and honor killings in the UK?

I've been a bit busier than expected for the past week.  To tell the truth, I've mostly been out enjoying the fresh air with my wife and our dog, and just haven't had much time or energy left over to spend at the computer.  Blogging has consequently been on the back burner until now.

Posts going up within the week sometime in the near future (I swear upon Russell's Teapot):

You can't prove it's not there!

• a retrospective post about ten years of September Elevenths and the War on Terror
• a statement of my political principles as a left-libertarian centrist (partly a response to The Heathen Republican)
• a fun post in which I make up completely absurd claims and conspiracy theories
• possibly a Skeptic Freethought post as well, if I think I've come up with something worthy

At least I'm only 24 hours late on my Weekly Recap.  Let's do this.

Weekly Recap: Tea Party vs. libertarians, atheist wedding vows, Little Kropotkin, and education fail!

I'm a bit late getting my posts completed this weekend; I've been doing a lot of running around and have not had as much computer time as usual. My obligatory 9/11 decennial post will be up tomorrow or Tuesday.

Tea Partiers are not libertarians

Skeptic libertarian author Michael Shermer tweeted a link to this video highlighting the very different views of the psuedo-libertarian Tea Party "Patriots" and actual members of the Libertarian Party.

It may get a bit strawman in some parts, but on the whole I'd say it's spot on. I'm certainly not happy about social conservatives commandeering the libertarian label (though I do not consider myself a true libertarian, I agree more with their views than I do with either major party) for their anti-liberty agenda, and I'm all for calling them out on it.

Godless Quote of the Week

Photo credit

"Each time I look to the stars while holding your hand, one fact runs through my mind. From the iron that courses through our veins, to the oxygen that fills our lungs, every piece of me, and every piece of you comes from those stars above us. How amazing it is to know that countless years ago the very atoms that make us both the individuals we are today were perhaps intertwined, interconnected, but most importantly... together."

This is an excerpt from an atheist redditor's wedding vows. I thought it was beautifully written, and I wish I'd been clever enough to pen something like this for my wedding. We had a Christian ceremony, but asked the minister to keep the preaching to a minimum and picked out cookie-cutter vows that didn't contain religious references.

Of course, the minister decided to troll me and insert the phrase "in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit" at the end of them; people who knew I was an agnostic at the time had a good laugh about that one.

(via Blonde Nonbeliever)

Sunday Subscription Site Suggestion

This week, I'd like my readers to take a look at The Humble Empiricist, a blog written by a Michigan atheist who goes by the name Kropotkin. It's mostly opinion articles, and she states her case in a straightforward, common sense manner. You can also see the video counterpart to her blog on her YouTube channel.

Weekly Absurdity: Buying iPads instead of hiring better teachers

The New York Times recently reported about the fact that the push for cutting-edge technology in classrooms hasn't improved students' learning in any measurable way. To make matters worse, school districts have been laying off teachers while simultaneously shelling out for this expensive technology.

It's not about how much you spend per pupil or what shiny new gadgets you have for your students to learn on. It's about the capable and driven person you have in front of the classroom leading them to skills and knowledge.

(via Secular Right)

Weekly Recap: An atheist asks for advice, The Brick Testament, and more billboard controversy!

I saw this in the local paper while at my parents' house.  It may be a cheesy advice column, but it's a good sign to see the atheist viewpoint getting more mainstream exposure.  I have to wonder if the article offended anyone like certain billboards did, however...

Bible stories, told with Legos!

I recently stumbled across The Brick Testament, a series of biblical illustrations creatively built from the versatile plastic blocks we remember from our childhood (or later in life, for that matter).

Nothing is held back.  No detail is too racy, too gory, too contradictory with other details to be acted out with little yellow people.  Go check it out.

Godless Quote of the Week

One attack I’ve heard theists make against atheists is, “So, you atheists think you know everything? You think you’re smart enough to know everything? You think science can figure out everything? There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt…” That quote is from my good friend Mr. Straw Man, but it’s an idea we hear all the time: atheists are arrogant and don’t think they need god, because they’ve got it all figured out. I think people who make that accusation are confusing style with content. I’m a loud, aggressive, strident, outspoken atheist, and I’m an asshole — but what I’m claiming is not in any way arrogant. It couldn’t be more humble. It’s just “I don’t know.”

- magician, skeptic, and crude humorist Penn Jillette, in the intro to his new book God, No!: Signs You May Already Be an Atheist and Other Magical Tales.

Sunday Subscription Suggestion

This week I'd like to spotlight Science Sushi, a blog that serves real, raw science without the usual jargon or speculative sensationalism.  The author, Christie Wilcox, is a proud nerd with an affinity for marine life and a penchant for mythbusting.

She infamously ignited a flamewar with proponents of the "organic" agriculture movement by writing a post debunking myths about the "organic" label, and held her ground like a boss.

Weekly Absurdity: Why is this still controversial?

Atheist and secular humanist organizations around the country have been putting up all manner of billboards over the past several months.  Unlike the intentionally incendiary ads sponsored by American Atheists earlier this year, these billboards have all contained a positive message: you don't need to believe in a higher power in order to lead a good life.

One such billboard sponsored by the Center for Inquiry went up in Grand Rapids, Michigan earlier this week:

How offensive!

This message has proven too controversial for many Christians' sensibilities (take a look at some of the comments on the news articles!).  The same billboard was apparently banned in Tennessee for its "offensive" message.  It's interesting how even extremist Christian messages don't cause the same level of controversy.

This, however, is perfectly acceptable.

I know that I've written on this subject before, but it still confounds me.  As always, insecure believers seem to see happy, friendly nonbelievers as the greatest threat to their religion's existence.

(via Friendly Atheist and Skeptic Freethought)

Weeky Recap: We Are Atheism, Godless Quote of the Week, Sunday Subscription Suggestion, and the Thought Offender Registry?

I've decided to make these Weekly Recaps a regular feature on this blog.  If anything, it'll give you all something to read every Sunday if I happen to be out of material for a week.  It'll also motivate me to work past my writer's block in at least some way on a regular basis.

Each such post is going to feature the following:

• The Godless Quote of the Week: something profound and/or snarky uttered or written by a fellow atheist, with a link to the source for context.
• Sunday Subscription Suggestion: inspired by Twitter's Follow Friday meme, I will link to a blog or other site I've recently discovered and would recommend to my readers.  Not necessarily atheism-related.
• Weekly Absurdity: something absolutely ridiculous that I've discovered within the week.  It might be a facepalm, or it might be a LOL.
• Whatever the hell else I want to post.

That's it in a nutshell.  Buckle up.

We Are Atheism campaign launched!

The push for atheists to step out and assert their presence has yet another organized form of support.  With the tagline "Stand up.  Speak Out.  Be Counted.", We Are Atheism provides atheists with a platform to tell the world who they are and what they do believe in.

I plan on submitting a video myself in the near future.  Speaking of which, are there any readers in Central Ohio who own a decent video camera?

Godless Quote of the Week

(via Friendly Atheist)

"[T]hey said, 'So you think you’re the biggest, most important thing in the universe?'
On the contrary. I think I am among the smallest. Cosmically speaking, I barely exist."

This was said by author Marya Hornbacher, an atheist who writes about mental illness, addiction, and recovery without a higher power to call upon.

Sunday Subscription Suggestion

I'd like to spotlight the blog Fallen From Grace by Bruce Gerencser.  Bruce is a former evangelical pastor who spent half of his life as a church leader before coming to the conclusion that he's an atheist.

His blog tells the tale of his journey "from Eternity to Here" and offers a unique perspective on life, religion, and apostasy.  He'll often point out the hypocrisy of those who once considered him their brother in Christ.

Weekly Absurdity: Thought Offender Registry?

(via Pharyngula)

Pastor Mike of the Living Water Church in southern Florida has a suggestion for keeping tabs on us nasty atheists.  He proposes a national registry of all those who publicly deny his god's existence, modeled after the Sex Offender Registry.  After all, don't good Christians have a right to know if there are any godless monsters living in their communities?  Think of the children!

He highlights some of the benefits of such a registry:

. . . we could begin to witness to them and warn them of the dangers of atheism . Or perhaps they are radical atheists , whose hearts are as hard as Pharaoh's , in that case , if they are business owners , we would encourage all our Christian friends , as well as the various churches and their congregations NOT to patronize them as we would only be "feeding" Satan.

Were I a business owner, I'd have mixed feelings on this.  I'd be happy to have fewer bigoted fundamentalists hanging around in my shop, but I'd sure miss taking their money. I'd also be quite perturbed that this Satan character was embezzling my profits, as I'd have a strict policy against hiring mythological beings.

It's all too tempting to scoff and snicker at this sort of nonsense, but as PZ correctly points out it poses a real threat of harassment and intimidation against outspoken atheists by self-righteous Christians with nothing better to do with their time.

Well, the only defense against something like this is threat dilution. I say that atheists start contacting Pastor Mike and ask where we can sign up!

Joining Skeptic Freethought!

As of today I'm officially a contributor at Skeptic Freethought, a group blog focused on the atheist, agnostic, freethinking, humanist, secular, and skeptic (AAFHSS) community and on student groups in particular.

I've got my own author page and everything!  Yes, I know I need a better photo, but the shot of me enjoying a pint of Magners in a London pub will have to do for now.

I'll be making my first-ever post there by the coming weekend.  For now, anyone interested should feel free to take a look at what the other contributors have written.

How NOT to be a horrible person: a friend's blog

A good friend of mine, who prefers to be identified as Active Bystander, has started a blog to chronicle tales of customers behaving badly.

These aren't just simple transcripts of irate patrons hitting their boiling point (a la NotAlwaysRight), however; Active Bystander is actually going one step further and analyzing the how and why behind rude customers' behavior, and giving advice on how we all can avoid being that customer when we're upset about a product or service.  There are, after all, ethical ways to have a problem rectified without being a bully to the person behind the counter.

Having worked in customer service for a number of years and experienced my share of horror stories, I'm excited to see where this goes.  I encourage anyone interested to go check it out.