BBC NEWS | UK | UK 'lacking nativity knowledge'

The great 'advantage' that the UK has over the USA is that Religious Education is required by Law to be taught in British Schools and there is no separation of Church and State in the UK. This means that children are largely bored to the limit with RE from school. Their parents, having also been bored by it, leave it to the schools, so unless it has the misfortune to be born into a religious family a child in Britain has a good chance of being put off religion from an early age, and children of religious families are probably genetically inclined to believe nonsense anyway.

TERRA 405: Evilution!

Was among the best bits I've ever seen. Speaks for itself.

fantastic.

You can download a copy of the TERRA 405: Evilution! video here:

http://lifeonterra.com/#SWF

This morning, before Norm posted today's collection of links, I listened to the Point of Inquiry podcast with Richard Dawkins. Truly a wonderful conversation. I urge everyone to join Richard's "Out campaign." I did it with my family this year and it was liberating.

With my seething anger over Romney's speech this week, I'm reminded of one of the best Point of Inquiry podcasts. It's like a sermon for atheists, urging all of us like-minded individuals to come out of the closet. Like an effective Sunday morning worship service, it starts out slowly and builds to a crescendo urging atheist activism.

The podcast is a speech by Derek Araujo. From the secularhuminism website:

Derek Araujo 1999 graduate of Harvard University and founding President of the Campus Freethought Alliance, Mr. Araujo is undoubtedly one of the most articulate student activists in this country. Equipped to discuss issues ranging from the necessity of a secular public education to the inherent value of scientific literacy, Mr. Araujo would prove a competent opponent to those speaking on behalf of the benefits of "creation-science" education, as well as a myriad of other education-related topics. In addition, Mr. Araujo has been extremely articulate as an activist promoting the separation of church and state, and is an effective proponent of skepticism with relation to claims of the paranormal, supernatural, and unexplained.

Here's the link for the podcast. Derek's speech starts at the 15 minute mark (approximately). I highly recommend it.

http://www.pointofinquiry.org/?p=60

As a young student in the 1960s I went to a meeting of the College Humanist Group - expecting to find like minded atheists - what I found was a group of people who were intent on 'spreading the Word' - evangelising Humanism. This exemplifies precisely what I found most problematic about religion, the fact that ONLY THEY ARE RIGHT and thus ALL OTHERS ARE WRONG!

Pope Benedict granting indulgences again - time off from purgatory. What an old softie - It's so inspiring!

Seriously, when I see this kind of stuff I just can't get angry - I'm stuck between awe and giggling when I consider that there are millions who actually buy into this stuff.

Chris Hitchens's formulation is my preferred, "maladjusted elderly virgins".

This year, the Church expects to have 8 million suckers instead of the usual 6. The best book about Lourdes is Emile Zola's "Lourdes".

Thank zeus that the BBC found a so not-gay priest, Father Jonathan Morris, to interview.

I prefer single-malt indulgences.

Indugences have a very evil history and it is no surprise that this particular pope would find the practice useful.

Yowsa, I finally got around to checking out the Evilution vid. That be some seriously sick shit.

All the "kids have no moral compass" crap coming from a man whose moral and intellectual compass came from a breakfast cereal box, would be humourous if the consequences were not so destructive.

I gotta' ask; Given that the US has such a strong Christian majority, since the man would claim the US is a "Christian Nation", who broke the moral compass?