Putting Religion First

On my way home tonight, I saw a bumper sticker that said:

Catholic
Conservative
American
In that order.

And I thought, really? You put your religion before your country? (And on top of that they put their political ideology before it too, but that's a whole other post). I suppose that is the way people do it. And I also think that makes them a traitor. Either you defend the Constitution or you don't. If your religion gets in the way of defending the Constitution, then you're not an American. It can't come third. It's either first, or not at all. Christianity is diametrically opposed to secular democracy, which is what the Constitution lays out for us. There is no religion in the Constitution. The only mention of religion is in Article 6, and that is to ensure that no religion is required to hold office or serve the United States.

"...no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States."

I suppose when you believe the big lie, that the writings of semi-nomadic pastorlists, who thought the stars were permanently pasted into the night sky, are the words of "god" and that everyone who doesn't believe what [fill in the sect here] espouses is going to hell, that would make you betray your own country, and if it came down to it, your own countrymen because they're not like you in that they are a different religion, or no religion at all.

Article six was a huge step forward in our civilization. Prior to it, in most places, you had to be the religion of the ruling party to vote (if you could vote), to hold office, or in some instances, to even live in said place. In the colonies here, prior to the Revolutionary War, there were laws that required people to be a certain religion to participate in the operation of the colony. That is the reason why Roger Williams left Massachusetts to found Rhode Island. They ran him out because he wanted a voice in his own governance without having to convert to the official state religion.

I just don't get these people. And it's late... I'm sure I'm rambling now...

They'd Really Rather Burn the Books Instead

Some dipshit parent got mad that The Diary of Anne Frank has explicit material in it, and school officials in Virginia caved to it. And you wonder why American children are some of the lowest ranking in the Industrialized world. Our education system here is a joke.

If these "Christian" (and I use that term loosely) don't want their children to learn anything, they should home-school them. And hide the Bible from them while they're at it, because the Bible is about a hundred times more illicit and graphic than The Diary of Anne Frank. Of course the dipshit parent has probably never read either.

So there you have it. This is the exact same reason why an entire nation of people went along with the Nazis and allowed millions to die in death camps. Because they were stupid and uneducated chattel.

The Double Standard

I'm sure that by now you all have heard about the shooting at Fort Hood here in Texas. It's a tragic thing, so many people killed for no good reason. It's really sad. What's also sad is some of the comments left on various news articles. Instead of offering the families of those who were slain their condolences, the racists are out in force and the anti-Muslim sentiment is oozing forth. The shooter is apparently of Jordanian descent and his name is of Arabic origin.

Whether or not he did what he did because of his religious beliefs (which I do doubt at this moment), why does everyone blame Islam? What truly would be irony is if he turns out to be a fundamentalist Christian evangelist, but I do digress. You see, crazy doesn't discriminate. He didn't open fire on those people because of religion, even if he claims that is the reason. Rather he did it because he's crazy. Period. Crazy. Nothing else.

But you say, the Koran is full of violence. Then I dare you to read the Bible. The Bible too has commandments to kill non-believers, witches, idolaters, homosexuals, etc. But when some crazy Christian kills someone, even when they claim their religion made them do it, we don't see people condemning Christianity.

Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. Ex 22:18

And the man that committeth adultery with [another] man's wife, [even he] that committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. Lev 20:10 (Man, all the cheating Republicans better watch out!)

If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them. Lev 20:13

A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood [shall be] upon them. Lev 20:27

That is of course not counting all the smiting that "god" does, or ordering the killing of a man for gathering sticks on the sabbath (Num 15:32-35) or the ordering of the ancient Israelites to keep all the virgins for themselves after slaughtering an entire town (Num 31:17). However, "god" appears to change his mind by Deu 5:17 by saying "Thou shalt not kill" but forgets all about it by Deu 13:6,

If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which [is] as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; [Namely], of the gods of the people which [are] round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the [one] end of the earth even unto the [other] end of the earth; Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. Deu 13:6-10

The Bible is full of genocide, of "god" ordering the ancient Israelites to kill their neighbors and take their land. Of ordering them to kill unbelievers. During the Medieval period, western Europeans took all of this to heart, and murdered millions because of it, and that's not counting the crusades in the Middle East.

On that note, do you want to know why the Middle East is in the state it's in today? Because Medieval Christians invaded one of the most enlightened civilizations on earth and reduced it to ashes, and the British came along and finished it off in the 19th and early 20th century. Of course, they fucked up Africa too, so go figure.

The Arabs gave us the number zero, algebra, optics, and a myriad of other things prior to the invasion by a bunch of barbaric western Europeans. If you were a female in the Middle Ages, it would have been best for you to have been born in the Muslim world. During the Medieval period, women in the Middle East had rights that the women in western Europe did not have. Such as the right to testify in court, hold property and initiate divorce. And this history is buried here in the west, glossed over by people who would rather forget that our ancestors were a bunch of asshats.

Recommended reading: The Crusades through Arab Eyes

A Good Ol' Fashioned Book Burning

I had read about the wackos in Canton, North Carolina who are going to have a book burning on Halloween night the other day. Ah, but this isn't just any ol' book burning where they burn Harry Potter or something. No, they're going to burn Bibles and other Christian writings instead.

I didn't get around to writing about it until now. Part of this is probably because it came as no surprise to me. I grew up not far from where these people are. Do not for a moment think that this is some kind of minority in a microcosm of Christianity in this area. Western North Carolina is full of these types, so keep this in mind when the media is sure to say that their church has "only" fourteen members. I have met a good many who believe exactly what they do. They believe the KJV of the Bible is the only version acceptable. If you try to have a rational conversation with them and discuss the history of the Bible, how it came to be, how it was translated, their response will be "that's the devil talking." I'm not making this shit up, I have actually had people say that very line to me. Speaking of a lack of understanding about biblical scholarship, I have come across people who have told me point blank that the Bible was written by Jesus himself. Again, you can't reason with these people, or have a rational conversation. If you don't agree with them, it's all Satan's fault.

Apparently, everyone is very interested in these people, because their site has evidently exceeded it's bandwidth and is down. Yay for the wayback machine. It was stated on their main page:

We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, and it is our final authority in all matters. We believe in teaching “no other doctrine”, like Paul told Timothy, and that is our stand. We stand on God’s Word and not man ideas or “scholarship.” We make no apology for our stand. We are an old fashion Independent Fundamental Baptist Church.

In other words, they don't like education or studying. Their followers are to follow, not question, and do so blindly. Apparently they mock the god that they believe gave them a brain complete with the capacity for critical thinking skills. They don't trust their own brain, or anything that can be learned from "scholarship", but rather put their trust in the often incoherent writings of semi-nomadic pastoralists who thought that the earth was flat and that the stars were permanently pasted into the night sky.

I find book burnings, of any book, whether I agree with it or not, abhorrent. These people are ignorant, so much so, that they have no idea that when they say they're going to burn books, that the first thing most educated people think is "like the Nazis". Well, except for me, but then I'm weird. I automatically think of the Index Librorum Prohibitorum. Idiots.


The picture at the beginning of this entry is of the Dominicans tossing Catholic and Cathar books into a fire. Of course the Catholic ones floated away from the flames while the Cathar ones were consumed. 15th century painting by Pedro Berruguete after a legend from the 13th century. The picture on the left is of the Nazis burning books.

They Don't Hate us for our Freedom

They hate us for our Corporatocracy, and the endless greed that goes with it.

Study: Poverty fueling Muslim tension with West

By DAVID STRINGER
Associated Press Writer
May 7, 1:51 PM EDT

LONDON (AP) -- Joblessness and poverty are a more potent source of tension between Muslims and wider European and U.S. society than religious differences, one of the first major studies of Muslim integration since the Sept. 11 terror attacks claimed on Thursday.

Attacks by Islamic extremists on the United States, and European capitals like Madrid and London, have sparked debate about whether a failure of Muslims to integrate into Western society has fueled extremism and created divisions between communities.

But a study of around 10,000 people in 27 countries by the Gallup polling company claims non-Muslims - including the public and lawmakers - have misunderstood the attitudes of Muslims in the West, stifling attempts to promote better understanding. Muslims in the West are more patriotic, more tolerant and more likely to reject violence than the rest of Western society believes they are, the study claims...

The study found that only 10 percent of British Muslims consider themselves integrated into British society, compared to 46 percent of French Muslims and 35 percent of German Muslims. Mogahed, an Egyptian-American Muslim, said unemployment and access to education were key factors in isolating Muslims in the West.

The study found that 38 percent of British Muslims said they had a job, lower than the figure for the British general public - 62 percent - and lower than Muslims in Germany or France, where 53 percent and 45 percent respectively said they were employed. Mogahed said that Muslims, particularly in Britain and France, feel marginalized because they have more difficulty finding jobs than non-Muslims, and typically have lower incomes.

"Economic integration may become more precarious in light of the current financial crisis affecting Europe," she said. Another key finding of the study was that that Muslims don't prioritize their faith over patriotism, Mogahed said.

The study found that 77 percent of British Muslims feel a strong sense of British identity, compared to 50 percent of the country's non-Muslims. In France, around half of Muslims and non-Muslims say they feel a strong sense of patriotism...

And this just goes into Muslims who live in the west. They're discriminated against and people assume that they're really terrorists in disguise. I once knew a girl, she was Muslim and had a small child who was about three. All of them were American Citizens. Her family ran a convenience store and one day she told me that this older man came into the store, and when he saw her in her headscarf and the child, he pointed at the toddler and said something to the effect of "He'll grow up to be a terrorist too." I was appalled that someone would assume that because of one's religious persuasions that that automatically makes them a terrorist. Excuse me, but the kid's three. You don't even know if he'll have strong religious beliefs when he grows up. It's absolute, unadulterated ignorance and racism/ethnocentrism, and there's no excuse for it. How can you talk about a toddler like that? How cruel and stupid do you have to be? Is it any wonder that they don't feel integrated into society?

I mean, if you see an Irish Catholic, do you call his kid a terrorist because of the IRA? They blew people up over religion. Do you automatically assume such a thing? Or does it really have more to do with race as to why Muslims get hated on? After all, the Irish guy is white. And don't try that whole "the Koran is different than the Bible" argument, because that's bullshit. Both books are full of barbarity and god righteously ordering the smiting of this or that group of people. Indeed, a portion of the Koran is a retelling of the Bible with the names spelled differently, but no one has a problem with the Bible. Even the Bible says that you should kill unbelievers. Where's the outrage over that?

"If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, "Let us go and worship other gods" (gods that neither you nor your fathers have known, gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, from one end of the land to the other), do not yield to him or listen to him. Show him no pity. Do not spare him or shield him. You must certainly put him to death. Your hand must be the first in putting him to death, and then the hands of all the people. Stone him to death, because he tried to turn you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. Then all Israel will hear and be afraid, and no one among you will do such an evil thing again." Deuteronomy 13:6-11

Indeed, Christianity itself has historically been a violent religion. Just look at the Inquisition or the pogroms against Jews.

People forget that there are crazies in all walks of life, and while religious convictions (of any type) can fuel that, there are plenty of people who are just plain fucking crazy, and religion has nothing to do with it. Luckily, I think the majority of people, regardless of their religion are basically good people.

When society starts demonizing an entire group of people because of their religion or ethnicity, bad things follow. All one must do is look at history to see this.

Dirty Swine! Flu Name Offensive

I wondered why they had started calling it "North American Flu" in the press this morning. Now I have my answer.

Israeli official: Swine flu name offensive

"JERUSALEM (AP) -- The outbreak of swine flu should be renamed "Mexican" influenza in deference to Muslim and Jewish sensitivities over pork, said an Israeli health official Monday.

Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman said the reference to pigs is offensive to both religions and "we should call this Mexican flu and not swine flu," he told a news conference at a hospital in central Israel.

Both Judaism and Islam consider pigs unclean and forbid the eating of pork products.

Scientists are unsure where the new swine flu virus originally emerged, though it was identifed first in the United States. They say there is nothing about the virus that makes it "Mexican" and worry such a label would be stigmatizing..."

So now we're going to start naming medical based stuff based on religious superstition? Please. I happen to like pigs by the way. They're smart, and I don't understand how merely saying that the flu is 'swine' somehow compromises their religious beliefs. Maybe it's just me.

I fail to see how a exhortation from the Biblical writers to not eat pork, translates into not using the name "pig" or "swine". Are they not allowed to look at pictures of pigs either? I mean, I'm really not schooled on this avoiding all things to do with pigs. I just thought they weren't supposed to eat it. So, if this is the case, does reading The Three Little Pigs to a Jewish kid in a class constitute an infringement on his religious beliefs? Am I correct in thinking that this is about as ridiculous? Or am I missing something?