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’?

Death sentence for apostasy

Religion makes people feel justified in doing evil things, and do evil things to protect their nonexistent gods. A man has been sentenced to death in Mauritania for “speaking lightly of the Prophet Mohammed.”

In 2012, an American man was arrested for killing an American soldier for not believing in God: murder of Jose Ramirez.

Why you should ignore the tone police

Because they punch down while those they police aren’t allowed to punch up. The people being told to ask nicely or argue sweetly are themselves subject to a barrage of hostile garbage. Read Amanda Marcotte’s trenchant analysis: “Tone policing only goes one way.”

Nine times out of 10, if someone is saying something horribly offensive, and someone else calls them out for it, everyone will turn on the person calling them out for it. You see this every time people get more up in arms because someone used the term “racist” or “sexist”, but not so much over the racist or sexist shit that caused the word to be articulated.

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:

Reason Rally scenes with audio from Dawkins

March 23, 2012

This video shows typical scenes from the Reason Rally in Washington DC on March 24. The audio track is excerpts from Richard Dawkins’ speech to the rally.

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.