The folks over at Common Sense Atheism have put together a list of the 20 Most Popular Atheism Blogs and I was surprised to see Stupid Evil Bastard listed at number 9. I have to admit that it was quite nice to see my humble little site listed among many others that I read daily and consider to be of much higher quality than what I manage to cobble together here.
I was also amused, however, as at least one commenter there felt that I was worth taking the time to bring down a peg or two for being yet another damned liberal:
I see the author of the “Stupid Evil Bastard” site is, from his comments on Iraq, Bush, etc. a just another Clueless Clod member of the Loony Left.
Just another Atheist who may use logic & critical thought when considering subjects of gods / religion. And who then totally LOSES the same abilities when it comes to the Iraq War and/or some (many?) other issues.
Yep, just another Atheist who, I will bet, wonders just how can the Programmed Robots of the Religious Right just refuse to learn, and/or Deny the MANY facts which PROVE Evolution is a Fact and Homosexuals are born.
Who, at the same time, either Refuses to Learn and/or Denies the MANY, MANY FACTS which more than PROVE the Iraq War is Both FULLY JUSTIFIED & a Very NECESSARY part of World Wide War on Terrorists who have been killing us and our friends for over 30 years,
I PITY him and all others of his irrational. illogical, unknowledgeable & self-deluded
ilk of fools. They seem to live in some world where their infinite Ignorance on some subjects is not surpassed by their Astronomical Arrogance they have the slightest clue.And Children, if any of you are so foolish as to believe you can PROVE, with REAL FACTS I am wrong, I sure welcome you to give it a try!
What’s particularly amusing about Mr. Reinhardt’s little rant is the fact that not two comments later he goes on about the wonderful curative properties of Noni Juice.
For those of you not familiar with the product, Noni Juice is made from the fruit of the Noni tree (Morinda citrifolia). The tree is known by a number of different names depending on where you are with noni being the Hawaiian name for it. Powder made from the fruit is high in carbohydrates and fiber with reasonable amounts of vitamins C and A, niacin, potassium, iron, calcium and sodium. Nutrient-wise it’s similar to a raw orange with about half the vitamin C and a little more sodium, but that hasn’t stopped the woo-woo alt-med crowd from claiming it has all manner of healing properties.
For someone who had just bemoaned my apparent failings of throwing logic and rationality to the wind with regards to politics it was rather amusing to read the following from Mr. Reinhardt:
Something I’ve been drinking for over 12 years which really works well at both speeding the healing and reducing the pain of dental problems is NONI JUICE! As there are over 300 brands you can find it at health food stores, Cosco, other stores and as an mlm product.
As with everything else the quality, quanity and price very. While what I drink costs more & less than others, I think it is the highest quality. IF I could not afford the one I drink now, I would be down at COSCO in a flash.
Even after more than 12 years, my results from noni are so remarkable, it still AMAZES ME! For one of MANY examples, I USED to have the Aches & Pains of old age until I was around 62 & started
drinking it. I NO longer suffer from them and have not for over 12 years. (I am now 75)Being a RABID Atheist Activist, it is a Miracle when I call anything a “Miracle” and yet that is what I consider the immune boosting power of Noni Juice to be. It is NOT the Noni Juice which effectively treats and/or cures over 90 different medical problems, rather IT IS YOUR own BOOSTED Immune system which does it. (In it’s natural state, Noni has been very effectively used for OVER 5,000 years!)
And then in a follow up comment:
IF you want know all the MANY great things noni Has done for me (aside from lowering both my Cholesterol Levels and Blood Pressure, taking the pain away and curing burns quickly, healing athletes foot in half the time and curing a toe nail fungus (which several years of prescribed medications did not) please e-me.
Noni not only is very effective on treating the insides & the outsides of our bodies, it does the same for all other mammals as well as animals, reptiles and birds.
Please see this generic website for a picture of a noni fruit, some of it’s history, and a little of the (much) research done on it.
This website has more information on Noni and you can also read and/or listen to various people’s experience of drinking and using Noni topically.
http://www.noni-is-good-for-you.com/
The following “store” has audio and video tapes, brochures, tri-folds, newspapers, books and CD’s. ALL of which are about Noni Juice.
It seems I’m not the only one capable of throwing logic and rationality out the window on certain topics.
From what I’ve been able to determine in the small amount of time I’ve bothered to look into the uses for noni fruit, it was looked at by medical researchers as a possible treatment for cancer to no avail and it’s been used by Hawaiians for years to draw pus out of boils. According to its Wikipedia entry it’s also used to “treat menstrual cramps, bowel irregularities and urinary tract infections”, but there’s no scientific support for those uses. There may be some use of oil from the seeds as they are “abundant in linoleic acid that may have useful properties when applied topically on skin, e.g., anti-inflammation, acne reduction, moisture retention.”
None of that has stopped the alt-med industry from putting some 300 different products out making all manner of wild claims. It was bad enough that the FDA issued several letters to various companies producing Noni Juice products warning them that the claims being made violated section 201(g)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act) [21 U.S.C. § 321(g)(1)].
For example, here is an excerpt from a letter to Peter W. Manville of NJP Products, Inc. (PDF file) in September of 2006 over claims made about his Noni Juice and BarleyGreen products:
The therapeutic claims on your web sites establish that the products are drugs because they are intended for use in the cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease. The marketing of these products with these claims violates the Act.
Examples of some of the claims observed on your http://www.noni-juice-plus.com web site include:
Noni Juice
Your web site contains disease claims in the form of personal testimonials about the use your Noni Juice product for a wide variety of diseases, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia, arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, allergies, asthma, bipolar disorder, depression, migraines, multiple sclerosis, and others. Examples of some of the disease claims observed on your testimonials page include:
“I just want to take the time to let you know that after a month of taking the Noni Juice you supply I noticed a difference in my symptoms, you see I have Lupus Erythematous [sic] and suffer from arthritic like symptoms. The first two weeks after taking I noticed that I did not have joint pain, the swelling in my fingers had disappeared, the fatigue disappeared and I had a lot more energy. Also, I had been suffering from chronic back pain and even that seemed to have disappeared. … It has helped with my depression. … It has vastly improved my irritable bowel condition. The relief from pain that I have had from arthritis [sic], fibromyalgia and lingering nerve pain(from shingles) is absolutely amazing. And I haven’t had a migraine since I started taking it. My allergies have improved. And slowly, but surely, my acid relux [sic] is getting less and less every day. … ”
“I recently broke 3 bones in my leg. … Being depressed, and not having much circulation in my leg i [sic] needed something that would benefit my situation. I was talking a friend and he told me when terrel [sic] owens (nfl football star) broke his ankle in the 2004-05 football season just 7 weeks prior to the superbowl, he took Noni juice to help him, and was back in time for the superbowl where he had 7 receptions! This influenced me to start using Noni juice and after taking it for a week, it helped my depression a whole lot, help get circulation in my leg …”
“… [A]fter my extensive back surgery, where I had two discs removed and nine pieces of titanium placed in me…. my one month post op x-rays looked like what they expected at three months. I thank the NONI juice for major assistance in healing this almost 50 yr. old spine.”
Wow, sounds like all the other woo-woo natural cures that you receive endless amounts of spam in your inbox for. (Açaí Berry juice anyone?) Needless to say, to be trashed by someone for my supposed arrogance and ignorance who then turns around and spouts woo-woo so enthusiastically is quite amusing indeed.
You’ll have to go to the entry over at Common Sense Atheism to see my reply, but I ask you not to turn it into a flame thread while you’re there. I’m sure Mr. Reinhardt will feel compelled to chime in here at some point as all of us Loony Leftists are probably way too tempting a target for him to resist and then you can have your fun. In the meantime, marvel at the lunacy on display.
Yeah, this pretty much sums it up:
Found over at Atheist Media Blog.
A couple of weeks ago I wrote an entry about the atheist bus ads making their way to Detroit. I mentioned in the title that the Christians in the area were “freaking the fuck out.” A description that at least one commenter in that thread took issue with:
John writes:
So what? I’m an atheist. I’m also not one who attempts to make excuses for my beliefs – just as Christians should not for theirs. They aren’t “freaking the fuck out” from what I can tell from the protests. It seems most want to abstain from riding the train that displays a message on it that they disagree with ; which is fine. It’s what I do by avoiding walking in to places of worship because I don’t wish to hear whatever messages I disagree with.
You’re right, John. It was wrong of me to characterize the folks leaving angry comments on the news article as “freaking the fuck out.”
Though perhaps this qualifies:
(Detroit, March 15, 2010) Vandals defaced or tore off part of the wording on at least three of the Detroit area bus ads that read “Don’t believe in God? You are not alone.” In each of the three currently known instances, it was the word “Don’t” that was targeted.
The vandalized signs are among the baker’s dozen of King and Queen sized ads first placed on the outsides of Detroit SMART buses on March 4 by the Detroit Area Coalition of Reason (Detroit CoR). The ads were paid for by the United Coalition of Reason (United CoR), headquartered in Washington DC.
“Acts like this give a striking reminder that our message is necessary,” said Ruthe Milan, coordinator of Detroit CoR. “Without a doubt, prejudice against atheists and agnostics is still very real in American life.”
Yes, there’s nothing like vandalizing messages you don’t agree with to demonstrate Jesus’ love and teachings of tolerance. A rather innocuous message reaching out to other atheists is just the sort of thing that would’ve prompted Jesus into trying to rip them off the sides of the buses. Heaven forbid us atheists associate freely and openly! Next thing you know we’ll be meeting with the President and expressing our opinions on things!
Oh, wait…
It looks like it’s Detroit’s turn for a round of atheist bus ads according to this article in The Oakland Press News:
The ads are to begin a month-long run Thursday on more than a dozen Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) buses. They show the words “Don’t believe in God? You are not alone” superimposed on an image of blue sky and clouds.
Ruthe Milan, a spokeswoman for the Detroit Area Coalition of Reason, says the ads will appear on SMART buses running from downtown Detroit to several Oakland County communities. They are being paid for with $5,250 from the United Coalition of Reason.
The message is the same as many that have been shown on buses around the country and, as you would expect, the Christians in the area are reacting with the calm tolerance preached by Jesus himself.
Ha ha! Just kidding! They’re pitching a fucking fit.
Here’s a small sample of their well-reasoned discourse:
James DiPaola wrote on Mar 4, 2010 6:42 AM:
“Lets send a message! DONT RIDE THE BUS! ”Pat Sullivan wrote on Mar 4, 2010 7:07 AM:
“SMART bus? They are not very smart for accepting an ad like this one. I agree with James–DON’T RIDE THE BUS!! ”daryl wrote on Mar 4, 2010 7:09 AM:
“All the atheists are doing is pushing their religion (and yes its another religous group) on Detroit. I am sick of these egotistical people that believe that the universe is just here. Well guess what i hope religious people of Detroit ban the busses. Than you crazy people can ride the busses together while talking about how you know everything there is to know about existence. ”Sick of it wrote on Mar 4, 2010 7:17 AM:
“I don’t recall the last time I heard of a group of atheists helping the disadvantaged and poor like religious groups do everyday from all denominations. I think that speaks for itself and how they value human life, they don’t. I feel like they are the sociopaths of spirituality, they think they should feel something spiritual and when they don’t, they want to bring you down too. ”kathy wrote on Mar 4, 2010 7:19 AM:
“instead of banning GOD in our schools and on our money, and every where else the atheist’s want as to ban him. why dont we just ban the atheist’s. Ill walk in ten feet of snow before i’ll ride one of those buses. SHAME ON YOU FOR PUTTING THAT CRAP ON YOUR BUSES. “
Fortunately, it looks like there are some rationalists amongst the population who are also chiming in. It’s already turned into quite the lengthy thread over there and The Oakland Press is probably enjoying the attention it so rarely gets otherwise.
Here’s a bit a news to brighten your day: The latest Pew Forum on Religion & Public life study finds that religious belief is on the decline among the younger population:
One in four American millennials — which it defined as those who were born after 1980 and came of age around the millennium — are not affiliated with any faith tradition, Pew found. They characterize their religion as “atheist,” “agnostic” or “nothing in particular.”
That compares to fewer than one in five Generation Xers — Americans born from 1965 to 1980 — who were unaffiliated with a religion when they were in their late teens and early 20s.
Just 13 percent of American baby boomers — those born from 1946 to 1964 — were unaffiliated with any religious tradition when they were young adults, according to Pew.
via Study: Young Americans less religious than their parents – CNN.com.
The other bit of good news is that there’s a good chunk of believers who don’t adhere to any particular religious sect or affiliation:
“While growing numbers of people are unaffiliated, it’s not necessarily a sign that they’re committed secularists,” said Greg Smith, a senior researcher at the Pew Forum. “We’re seeing among young people that there are ways of practicing faith and being religious outside of belonging to a religious organization or attending services.”
And while it’s likely some of the so-called millennials will become more religious as they get older, the study predicts that the number of unaffiliated will probably not shrink.
This will no doubt lead to renewed hand-wringing among the hardcore religious folks on the need to “get ‘em while they’re young” to try and stave off the increasing number of atheists and agnostics in the coming years.
Cue the Pat Robertsons of the world in 5, 4, 3, 2…
Non-Believers Giving Aid: a religion-free way to help disaster victims
Spurred by the horrific suffering in Haiti, the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science (RDFRS) has joined forces with 13 other freethought groups or associates, to collect donations to non-religious relief organizations. Those participating are Atheist Alliance International, Atheists Helping the Homeless, Atheists United, The British Humanist Association, James Randi Educational Foundation, Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, New Humanist magazine, Pharyngula, Rationalist Association, Reasonable New York, The Reason Project, The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science, The Skeptics Society and Unreasonable Faith.
We have set up a new dedicated bank account and PayPal facility in the new name of Non-Believers Giving Aid. All of the money donated will be distributed to disaster relief.
Clearly the immediate need is for the suffering people of Haiti, and all the money raised by this current appeal will go to that cause, but the new account will remain available for future emergencies too. There are, of course, many ways for you to donate to relief organizations already, but doing it through Non-Believers Giving Aid offers some advantages:
1. 100% of your donation will be go to these charities: not even the PayPal fees will be deducted from your donation, since Richard will personally donate a sum to cover the cost of these (capped at $10,000). This means that more of your money will reach the people in need.
2. When donating via Non-Believers Giving Aid, you are helping to counter the scandalous myth that only the religious care about their fellow-humans.
It goes without saying that your donations will only be passed on to aid organizations that do not have religious affiliations. In the case of Haiti, the two organizations we have chosen are:
You may stipulate using the drop down menu which of these two organizations you want your donation to go to; otherwise, it will be divided equally between them.
Preachers and televangelists, mullahs and imams, often seem almost to gloat over natural disasters – presenting them as payback for human transgressions, or for ‘making a pact with the devil’. Earthquakes and tsunamis are caused not by ‘sin’ but by tectonic plate movements, and tectonic plates, like everything else in the physical world, are supremely indifferent to human affairs and sadly indifferent to human suffering. Those of us who understand this reality are sometimes accused of being indifferent to that suffering ourselves. Of course the very opposite is the truth: we do not hide behind the notion that earthly suffering will be rewarded in a heavenly paradise, nor do we expect a heavenly reward for our generosity: the understanding that this is the only life any of us have makes the need to alleviate suffering even more urgent. The myth that it is only the religious who truly care is sustained largely by the fact that they tend to donate not as individuals, but through their churches. Non-believers, by contrast, give as individuals: we have no church through which to give collectively, no church to rack up statistics of competitive generosity. Non-Believers Giving Aid is not a church (that’s putting it mildly) but it does provide an easy conduit for the non-religious to help those in desperate need, whilst simultaneously giving the lie to the canard that you need God to be good.
Whether you do it by clicking the PayPal button, or by cheque or by direct wire transfer (see below), please help us to help the suffering people of Haiti.
Donate Now
Edward’s back with more on his War On Atheism series. This one is so good I nearly choked on my popcorn:
Found via Atheist Media Blog.
Talk about taking your ball and going home. Rather than allow an atheist group to erect a secular statement honoring atheist soldiers next to a Nativity scene that they had allowed for years, the Chambersburg borough council decided to ban all town-square displays:
Earlier this month, PAN Capital Area director Carl Silverman of Camp Hill wrote the borough a letter stating its intention to erect the sign. While the group believed it did not need the borough’s permission because the creche required none, it was submitting a proposed design in “the spirit of cooperation,” the letter said.
“We didn’t want to take Jesus out of the public square,” Silverman said. “We want to put atheism in the public square.”
Bill McLaughlin, president of Chambersburg’s borough council, said that after discussion with the borough’s solicitor, two practical options emerged — it could either allow everything or allow nothing to be displayed on the fountain. Council chose to allow nothing, he said.
At least they’re smart enough to know that it’s an all-or-nothing situation, unlike many small towns that think they can be selective in who they allow to put up displays on public land, and they’re not hiding their biases and prejudices in any way either:
McLaughlin said he took PAN’s letter as “a demand, with an implied threat of legal action.”
“The down side of ‘everything’ is it means everything,” McLaughlin said. “It would mean this group, and groups that are much more odious.” That was something, he said, council could not live with.
A letter submitted in “the spirit of cooperation” is considered an implied threat? That’s a new one. Still it’s refreshing to see that he doesn’t consider the atheists to be the worst of the possibilities.
So just what was on the atheist’s sign that was so terrible that the council could not live with it? Actually, not all that much:
The sign, which he said has not yet been made, would have had a picture of a sun rising over the words “Celebrating Solstice. Honoring Atheist War Veterans.” The sun would have had an italicized “A” in the middle.
Wow, that’s just horrible!
The response from the True Believers™ has, of course, been nothing but positive and supportive as they always are. Yeah, right:
Robert wrote:
May “GOD” send you and your organization straight to “HELL”!!! I’am a true believer and when an parasitic organism like yours starts ruin the wonderful Christmas holiday season for everyone. May you all drop DEAD MAGGOTS!!!William wrote:
You people are fucking nuts. You want to advertise NOTHING. Do we really need signs that say believe nothing. Funny how I am a Jew and yet a nativity scene has NEVER affected my life. Guess what? It never will because I am not a fucking loser like you. I hope one day you happen to walk on my posted property.mike wrote:
Thanks for screwing up our town, Chambersburg. I was in war and I know for a fact that there are no Atheists in war. If you dispute that then feel free to go to war and find out for your self, I know a great front line position just waiting on people like you. I am looking forward to seeing you in hell while we sit in heaven looking down on you Atheists
No one seems to realize that the folks at PAN didn’t win anything at all. They weren’t out to have the creche removed. They just wanted to be able to participate in the display, which they have every right to do. It was the council that decided to ban all displays if they couldn’t legally restrict it to just the one they wanted. It’s an all or nothing situation. You either allow everyone to participate or you don’t allow anyone to do so.
At least the True Believers™ have an option open to them:
A solution may be on the horizon. Central Presbyterian Church, on the square across from the fountain, is considering construction of a perch on its property where the Nativity scene could be displayed.
Which is where the damned thing should have been in the first fucking place. Why these Christians feels they should have a right to be the sole display on public property is beyond me. Well, it’s not really beyond me, they think that because they are the majority that gives them the right. As exemplified by this comment:
Lisa Blackstock of Mercersburg is spearheading a demonstration at noon Saturday in Chambersburg’s downtown. She believes the majority of people in the community want the creche to remain. “This is Christ-mas. It’s a no-brainer if you ask me,” Blackstock said. “There’s no way people in Chambersburg should let (PA Nonbelievers) win.”
In other words: We’re the majority and, ignoring how it came about, it’s our holiday so we demand special favor from the government.
Because that’s what Christmas is all about. Lording your superiority over all the lesser world views.
It seems every major religion has commercials touting the supposed benefits of their faith on TV. This is particularly true of Scientology and the Mormons. So YouTuber orleyorg sat down and put together what he thought might be a good advertisement for atheism:
It’s pretty good. Granted, most of the footage is taken from Scientology ads, but the voice over work is what sells it. Given the reaction to the atheist bus ads around the country, can you imagine the howls of rage if this were to make it onto national TV?
Found via The 40 Year Old Atheist.
This one happened close to home for me. Anthony Powell was a prolific YouTuber known for his misogyny and ant-atheist rants. He attended Henry Ford Community College and last Friday—ironically Good Friday no less—he posted his last YouTube rant before heading to school armed with a shotgun. There he tracked down Asia McGowan, a fellow student whom he had apparently attempted to strike up a relationship with previously, and proceeded to kill her before turning the shotgun on himself:
DEARBORN, Mich.— The man police said is accused of a murder-suicide at Henry Ford Community College left a videotape message on YouTube shortly before the crimes.
Anthony Powell suffered from chronic depression. His mother, Doris Powell said she thought her son would kill himself.
“I’m really thinking about killing myself. I think I am going to do it. I’m just scared.” Powell stated on YouTube.
[...] Police said they got a call about 12:30 p.m. on a report of an assault. En route, they got another report of shots being fired at the college’s MacKenzie fine arts center.
When police arrived, they found theater student Asia McGowan, 20, and Anthony Powell, 28, dead.
Police said Powell used a shotgun to shoot McGowan and himself.
Local 4 has learned the two students had a theater class together.
Reports are that Powell suffered from depression for many years and it doesn’t take many of his videos to see the man was unbalanced. Near as anyone can tell Powell’s religious fanaticism had less to do with his chosen target than his obsession with Asia McGowan. Still watching some of his YouTube clips it’s amazing that he didn’t target an atheist. Here’s a compilation of some of his rants by Think Atheist:
It occurs to me, given the thread DOF started on why Christians are considered the bad guys by some of us, that this is a prime example for consideration.
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