Jesus and Mo

The author of Jesus and Mo hits the rhetorical nail on the head. You can’t insult an idea.

Associated Press censors itself

Apparently, right-wing pressure has caused the Associated Press to remove a picture from its library. Read Conservative values: opportunism and cowardice. Because we mustn’t offend anyone! The picture is a work of art exploring the edges of sacrilege. Sorry, people, this is the real world. You do not have a right to remain comfortably unchallenged at all times.

So in case you’re wondering what it looks like, the golden image of Immersion (Piss Christ) is here.

Piss Christ by Andres Serrano (1987)

The image is from Wikipedia, which has a discussion of the picture and its provocative title.

What is “Judeo-Christian”?

I think it’s an attempt to claim the respectability of an ancient religion for its heretical successor.

• Ed Brayton tackles the question in The absurdity of the phrase ‘Judeo-Christian’
• He points to an essay by Shalom Goldman: What do we mean by ‘Judeo-Christian’?

Religion confuses children about factual vs. fictional

Here’s an interesting study: Children exposed to religion have trouble telling fact from fiction.

…children who went to church or were enrolled in a parochial school were significantly less able than secular children to identify supernatural elements, such as talking animals, as fictional.

In other words, they are gullible. That’s not what we want for our children before we send them out into a sometimes cruel world. Unless they can evaluate who is likely telling the truth and who is telling a comfortable lie, they are in for some rude shocks.

Rebecca Watson

How it all began: “Sexism in the skeptic community.” This is a simple, straightforward story that has been distorted and misrepresented all over the Internet. It has also spawned proper harassment policies at many events and a new movement, Atheism plus.

Freedom from Religion Foundation

Here are some highlights of the FFRF’s year 2011, including some examples of virtual billboards the Out of the Closet campaign:

Quoting Adam Savage

Doesn’t he sound like an action hero or intrepid explorer?

At the end of his Reason Rally speech, Adam Savage of Mythbusters provided one of the best ‘sound bites’ of the day:

I have concluded through careful, empirical analysis and much thought that somebody is looking out for me, keeping track of what I think about things, forgiving me when I do less than I ought, giving me strength to shoot for more than I think I’m capable of. I believe they know everything that I do and think and they still love me; and I’ve concluded after careful consideration that this person keeping score —is me!

Thunderf00t: Reason Rally and Rock Beyond Belief

Video blogger Thunderf00t has a brief clip about the Reason Rally, which he attended, and this weekend’s Rock Beyond Belief at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. The video has the best crowd shots I’ve seen yet, and a brief plug for Rock Beyond Belief, listing the speakers and performers.