Archive for the ‘the law’ Category
1 February, 2010
On of the things I admire* about the radical religious right wackos is their ability to get you coming or going. First, they fight tooth and nail against any possibility of teaching our children actual facts about reproduction, sex, and all of the various ways to prevent pregnancy (abstinence, condoms, birth control pills, sponges, aspirin, IUDs). Then, if a girl and boy do what teenagers do and (because they have been lied to about the effectiveness of birth control) she gets a little bit preggers, they make it as difficult as possible to get a legal abortion (by intimidation (of doctors, nurses and patients at women’s health clinics) or violence (up to (and including) murder).
Out in Utah (a bastion of progressive thought), a new law has just passed out of committee. The “bill tightens the definition of what an abortion is and removes a legal immunity for women if they intentionally try to have an illegal abortion.” (this (and all others (except where noted)) is from KCPW‘s website). Read the rest of this entry ?
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Posted in abortion, Abstinence, abstinence-only education, Christianity, Church and State, conservatives, crime, GOP, health care, religion, Religious Abuse, Republican Party, sex, sex education, the law | 38 Comments »
11 June, 2009
Glenn Beck is an idiot. (And grass is green, the sky is gray, and scrapple is delicious.) Either that, or he is severely dyslexic (I am mildly dyslexic (mostly number orders and left-right)). Why do I say this? While talking out of his ass about the shooting at the Holocaust Memorial, he said (from C&L):
Beck: This is not the work of right-wing conservatives. This is the work of someone today who is racist, crazy, or most likely, both. Common sense tells you that there are very hateful people on the Right and the Left. Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in Authoritarianism, conservatives, crime, Faux News, Fox News, terrorism, the law | 9 Comments »
28 April, 2009
The radical right likes torture. They have a great deal of faith that, despite clear illegality and ineffectiveness, torture works. I find it very difficult to stomach the idea that we, as a nation, are actually debating what torture is and whether it works. I really cannot add a whole lot to the various discussions going on all around the blogosphere, but I can point out a couple of things. Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in 9/11, Authoritarianism, conservatives, faith, history, Politics, Reagan, terrorism, the law, torture, United Nations | 10 Comments »
7 April, 2009
Vermont just became the first state in the union to legalize gay marriage via the legislature, rather than the courts. After the Republican (big surprise) governor vetoed the legislation (he claimed that, in this economic climate, it would be a ‘distraction’): Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in Church and State, economy, gay marriage, gay rights, GLBT, human rights, progressive politics, religion, the law | 29 Comments »
29 November, 2008
Sometimes I think that I have way too many conversations with theists. Actually, I think I just have way too many contacts with theists. Unfortunately, I live in the United States of America, so theists of the fundogelical bent are all too common. Fortunately, I live in the United States where, by law (if not by actual practice) I have equal rights despite my non-belief.
One of the biggest problems in America is poor education (and it is also one of the reasons that fundamentalist, dominionist, evangelical Christianity is so prevalent here). Our science curricula is, if taught well, mediocre. If taught by the Book, it is execrable. A conversation with a friend of mine, a born-again Christian, reinforced this a few days ago. Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in bird, birds, Church and State, diversity, education?, Evolution, god, history, Me, naturalism, religion, science, sex, sex education, the law | 11 Comments »
13 November, 2008
I remember quite clearly some of the assholes with whom I went to school. Kids who sat in the back of the room making wisecracks during class, laughing it up, knowing that, no matter what they do, Daddy (an important and upstanding (and rich) pillar of the community) would protect them. Kids who, if they were losing a game, would take their ball and go home, or dump the Scrabble board, or throw the checker board, or do some other childish thing which poisoned any future games. George W. is one of those assholes. Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in 2008 election, Authoritarianism, crime, Energy, George W. Bush, idiots, lawsuits, Politics, Predators, rant, regulation, the law | 5 Comments »
3 November, 2008
Neoconservatism is based upon faith. Faith that, if we deregulate business and finance, they will suddenly behave themselves and act ethically. Faith that, if we lie to children about sex and prophylaxis, they will not experiment with their bodies. Faith that we will be welcomed with flowers in Bhagdad. Faith that tax cuts pay for themselves. Faith that tax cuts for the rich will help the poor. Faith that one can shape reality, can create a new reality, through sheer willpower. Faith that, because we are creating a new reality, the laws do not apply. Faith that everything that our founding fathers wrote has been misinterpreted by virtually every historian and that we are a Christian nation.
Faith, as I have said before (see here and here) is the ability to believe something despite no evidence or evidence to the contrary. Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in 2008 election, Abstinence, abstinence-only education, Authoritarianism, Church and State, depression, economy, faith, god, history, hypocrisy, idiots, McCain, naturalism, Palin, Predators, rant, regulation, religion, science, the law | 4 Comments »
2 November, 2008
One of my friends is a Republican. Dyed in the wool, lifelong Republican. He also rationalizes to an unbelievable extent. Why is he voting for McCain and Palin? A couple of reasons. Abortion (he seems to think that Republicans would actually shoot that cash cow). Taxes (he seems to think that Obama will raise his taxes and McCain will cut them). Competence (he seems to think that during the last seven years and nine months the nation has been run with competence).
Competence? Competence? I asked him to name one thing that the Bush administration has done right. Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in 2008 election, 9/11, abortion, Abstinence, abstinence-only education, Authoritarianism, depression, economy, education?, Energy, faith, George W. Bush, health care, hypocrisy, idiots, Iraq, McCain, Palin, Politics, Predators, regulation, the law, war | 7 Comments »
11 October, 2008
Does majority truly rule in the United States? It certainly does when it comes to elections (the 2000 Presidential election excepted). What about free speech or religion? Does majority hold the trump card regarding religious displays? Some think so.
Back in 1975, a small group formed a new church, called Summum, in Salt Lake City, Utah. When the town of Pleasant Grove decided that it was appropriate to display a donated Ten Commandments monument in a government-owned city park, the Summum group figured (rather logically) that if one religious tradition can display a set of rules, then so should other traditions. Summum therefore sued to force Pleasant Grove to allow them to put up a donated Seven Aphorisms of Summummonument to go with the Ten Commandments.
Read the rest of this entry ?
Posted in Church and State, hypocrisy, Politics, religion, the law | 9 Comments »
2 August, 2008
I promised I would (attempt) to keep up with this story of a Florida youth pastor accused of inappropriate contact with underage girls at a church in Pennsylvania. The initial story, covering the accusations, led to an interesting set of comments, many from Christians who (or at least their comments left the impression that they were) blamed the victims, which led to Denial: Not Just A River in Egypt.
According to todays Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, Mr. Brian Andrew Neiswender
. . . was charged Friday with indecent assault and corruption of minors and arraigned Friday afternoon before District Judge Paul Roberts. He was released on $25,000 unsecured bail.
The former youth pastor at Christ Community Church on West Dorrance Street had been charged on June 4 with two counts each of indecent assault and corruption of minors. Those alleged incidents took place between September 2003 and February 2006, when Neiswender was employed by the church.
Oddly, the article is titled “Police file more charges against ex-youth pastor” yet nowhere in the article does the writer, Sherry Long, mention any of the new charges. He was arraigned before District Judge Paul Roberts for two counts each of indecent assault and corruption of minors. These were the same charges levelled against him on June 4.
He has been released on a $25,000 unsecured bail, which sounds, to me anyway, like a good risk. He is married with a child and is not accused of violent behaviour. The chances of him failing to appear in court seem pretty good. His next court appearance, a preliminary hearing, is scheduled for August 11.
His address is still listed as Lakeland, FL, and is still listed as the Pastor of Youth Ministries on the Heritage Baptist Church web site. He is, however, on a leave of absence. He has been since June 5, the day after he was charged.
Okay, folks. How long until the first comment from a Christian appears asking either (a) ‘Why are you persecuting this man when he didn’t do anything to you?’ or (b) ‘He is a man of God so he must be innocent’ (or some variation of either)? In an attempt to preempt, I am not persecuting him, I am merely pointing out that, for someone who is married and is charged with teaching children about the goodness and morality of God, he seems to have forgotten at least one of the commandments (not to mention his wedding vows and his knowledge of what one can and cannot do with children). As for the second? He is human, and it is his choice whether or not to obey the law, not his devotion to a fictional bronze-age deity.
Posted in crime, hypocrisy, newspaper, Predators, Religious Abuse, sex, the law | 4 Comments »
(((Billy))) The Atheist 