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Secular Humanity - July 2007

Christian hate machine churns on

July 31st 2007 04:22
The following article is currently being sent around evangelical Christian email lists. I wanted to post it to demonstrate the mindset behind what truly is the biggest threat facing America, corporate fascism empowered by fundamentalist mythologies and end-time paranoia. This woman speaks for around a third of the country, the same 30-something percent who still give the criminal George Bush Administration favorable marks.
To those who subscribe to this line of thinking, they don't see that they are being manipulated through their fears and prejudices by a leadership bent on world domination through corporate profiteering and perpetual warfare. Read what it says, and feel it. Note who everything is in absolutes. Nothing good can come from Islam, and no American soldier can do wrong. The first rule of radical fundamentalism is that you do not question the dogma, no matter how silly it looks when placed under the light of even a little logic.


Fw: WOW!! This Woman Should Run for President


Certain politicians are not in touch with reality. The thing that is important to remember is the fact that most of them have an IQ that is below average. They would be complete failures at anything that didn't depend on ham-acting and a gift of gab.


Written by a housewife from New Jersey and sounds like it. This is one ticked-off true American lady. "Are we fighting a war on terror or aren't we? Was it or was it not started by Islamic people who brought it to our shores on September 11, 2001? Were people from all over the world, mostly Americans, not brutally murdered that day; in downtown Manhattan, across the Potomac from our nation's capitol, and in a field in Pennsylvania? Did nearly three thousand men, women and children die a horrible, burning or crushing death that day, or didn't they? And I'm supposed to care that a copy of the Koran was 'desecrated' when an overworked American soldier kicked it or got it wet? Well, I don't. I don't care at all. I'll start caring when Osama bin Laden turns himself in and repents for incinerating all those innocent people on 9/11. I'll care about the Koran when the fanatics in the Middle East start caring about the Holy Bible, the mere possession of which is a crime in Saudi Arabia. I'll care when these thugs tell the world they are sorry for hacking off Nick Berg's head while Berg screamed through his gurgling slashed throat. I'll care when the cowardly so-called 'insurgents' in Iraq come out and fight like men instead of disrespecting their own religion by hiding in mosques. I'll care when the mindless zealots who blow themselves up in search of nirvana care about the innocent children within range of their suicide bombs. I'll care when the American media stops pretending that their First Amendment liberties are somehow derived from international law instead of the United States Constitution's Bill of Rights. In the meantime, when I hear a story about a brave Marine roughing up an Iraqi terrorist to obtain information, know this: I DON'T CARE. When I see a fuzzy photo of a pile of naked Iraqi prisoners who have been humiliated in what amounts to a college hazing incident, rest assured - I don't care. When I see a wounded terrorist get shot in the head when he is told not to move because he might be booby-trapped, you can take it to the bank: I don't care. When I hear that a prisoner, who was issued a Koran and a prayer mat and fed 'special' food that is paid for by my tax dollars, is complaining that his holy book is being 'mishandled', you can absolutely believe in your heart of hearts: I don't care. And, oh - by the way - I've noticed that sometimes it's spelled 'Koran' and other times 'Quran'. Well, Jimmy Crack Corn and-you-guessed-it: I don't care!! If you agree with this viewpoint, pass this on to all your E-mail friends. Sooner or later, it'll get to the people responsible for this ridiculous behavior! If you don't agree, then by all means hit the 'delete' button. Should you choose the latter, then please don't complain when more atrocities committed by radical Muslims happen here in our great country. And, may I add a quote, 'Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But the Marines don't have that problem'.......Ronald Reagan. I have another quote I would like to add and I hope you will forward all of it; 'If we ever forget that we're One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under', also by Ronald Reagan. One last thought for the day: In case we find ourselves starting to believe all the Anti-American sentiment and negativity, we should remember England's former Prime Minister Tony Blair's words during a recent interview. When asked by one of his members why he believes so much in America, he said: 'A simple way to take measure of a country is to look at how many want in --- and how many want out.' "


"Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you: (1) Jesus Christ; (2) The American G.I. One died for your soul, the other for your freedom. YOU MIGHT WANT TO PASS THIS ON BECAUSE MANY SEEM TO FORGET BOTH OF THEM."

.......A New Jersey Housewife

Did you notice the absolutes? The mean-spirited hate, not even really trying to disguise itself anymore? The quotes from the political prophet of the movement, Ronald Reagan? Although there were problems in the Middle East long before Reagan, he spurred on the current crises through the same kind of dominion theology that powers the Christian right today. The type of person who would write this(or subscribe to it) has nothing to do with what America is supposed to be. The only freedom they want is for others to be like them. Not only do they accept the idea of torture, they derive pleasure from the very idea. They hold any belief system that isn't their twisted faith as evil and in need of "cleansing." They came very close to establishing the "permanent one-party rule" they have sought after since 1980. If not for the occupation in Iraq going so badly, they may have well succeeded. But we are far from safe. They are mobilizing and can be expected to be very influential in the 2008 electons. Anyone who doesn't want to see America descend further into an empire existing for the profits of the few at the expense of the many, needs to fight them. Remember, around 30 percent of Americans feel this way. And if they all vote as a block, they can be a majority when turnout is low,.
This writer closes with the rant about Christ and the American G.I. being the only ones who will sacrifice. I acknowledge the service of the military people of the past. As for Christ dying for me, I will borrow from the writer of the email. I don't care.
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Go see Sicko!

July 28th 2007 05:05
Michael Moore's latest is a must see!
I had the privilege of seeing Sicko on the weekend before wide release, when there was a limited number of theaters offering a sneak peak. The film left me both angry and hopeful. It is a film that "says something," that's for sure. It is the "message movie" of the year so far.

What exactly does the film say? It says that we, in America, should be ashamed of our health care system. It says we should be ashamed of allowing a system that puts profits far ahead of people in a country that is so "civilized." It tells us that we are stupid if we believe that private for profit health insurance is a good way to provide what every other "civilized" country considers a basic right. Every other country worth its salt knows this. Even countries with far less economic prowess know.

There are many good examples of how other countries do health care much, much better in the film. Canada, France, and Cuba are highlighted. Another I would offer is Ukraine. Only recently an independent nation and with an economy struggling to emerge, Ukraine nonetheless put health care in its Constitution as a basic right for all. Health care works the best when it is for the people, not for the profit of a select few of the people. Why don't more Americans realize this?

It also works best when those who choose health care as a profession do it because it is something they very much want to do, not because they see it as they easiest way to the big house on the hill and the million dollar bank account. That statement applies to the vultures in the health insurance industry as much as it does to doctors. Still, greedy doctors are also part of the problem.

What else does Sicko say? That we should be ashamed of ourselves - when those who can't afford health insurance are dumped on skid row. When a man who loses the end of two fingers in an accident is forced to choose which one he wants to live without. When workers sick after being exposed to airborne hazards in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks are given health care in Cuba that they cannot get at home. One has to wonder, in what is the most "Christian" of the major industrialized countries, is the health care system the most without a soul?

Yes, Sicko should make you angry. But it should also make you hopeful. So many will see it, and so many other voices are finally speaking to the issue, that there is indeed hope that America may decide to join the rest of the advanced world and provide real health care for its citizens. Yes, even those who aren't rich.

Few - except maybe those who get told what to think by the likes of Hannity, Coulter, Limbaugh and Parshall - can come away from seeing Sicko and not know that the American health care system is seriously broken. I have enjoyed all of Michael Moore's work, but can acknowledge that some of his films are hard to get past the hard-core deniers. Even though Fahrenheit 9/11 was backed up with a great deal of facts, it was a hard sell. Sicko is easy, it is so obvious. Go see it this weekend, and take friend. Then do something.
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Be happy without religion!

July 26th 2007 20:23
After the attacks of September 11th, 2001 conservative Christian leader Jerry Falwell said "I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians that are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People for the American Way - all of them who have tried to secularize America - I point the finger in their face and say "you helped this happen."

"Well, I totally concur, and the problem is we have adopted that agenda at the highest levels of our government" Pat Robertson responded. He doesn't mention that his own third - rate law school was busy infiltrating the "highest levels of government," later claiming to have 150 graduates working in the Bush Administration.

The now thoroughly discredited Tom Delay said concerning the Columbine shootings that he received a letter reading "Dear God: Why didn't you stop the shootings at Columbine?' And God writes, 'Dear student, I would have, but I wasn't allowed in school." Similar comments were made by many religious leaders after the recent Virginia Tech shootings.

Fox News has Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity railing against the "Secular - Progressive agenda." If you listen to the rhetoric, you might think that the United States is going to hell in a hand basket, and the only way to stop it is to get on our knees. But do the facts bear this out?

As it turns out, no. There is a direct link to measures of social ills and religion. Generally, the more religious a nation is, the lower it rates statistically on social measures such as divorce, violence and homicide, poverty, social justice. More secular nations have less disease, better education and literacy rates, better gender equality, and better treatment of minorities and those of alternative lifestyles. The only indicator where more atheistic nations score lower is in suicide rates.

There are differences in countries according to their level of industrialization, so for the purposes of this article let's only look at the so-called "First World" countries. Therefore we are throwing out results from some countries where one religion is forced on the people by the government. This actually skewers the results toward the argument for religion. Those nations who force one religion by decree do very poorly in all the criteria. I have also discounted China from the atheist numbers, as it is forced government policy. The nations where so-called "organic atheism" flourishes - that is where people are free to choose to be religious or not to be - are compared.

Of the industrialized nations, America has the highest church attendance rate. It also has the highest murder rate and the highest rate of divorce. And within America, the "bible belt" fares worse than the blue states. Louisiana has the highest church attendance, and its murder rate is more than twice the national average. Washington State has the lowest church attendance in America. It's murder rate is only 38 percent of the national average.

A Christian writer on associated content bemoaned the fact that atheists and agnostics have the lowest divorce rates in America, while evangelicals have the highest among any single group, in her article Evangelicals: Why do we have the highest divorce? According to the study cited, evangelicals came in at 33 percent, just below non-denominationals at 34 percent. Atheists and agnostics came in at 21 percent, the lowest of any group. And the study was done by a Christian research organization, The Barna Group.The trends also hold true throughout the industrialized countries of the world. The less religious the countries are, the lower the rate of divorce. The only exceptions are Italy, Ireland and Belgium.

When the United States is compared to its peer nations - that is other industrialized countries, the trends are clear. The extremely secular nations are safer, healthier, better educated, more charitable, and have generally higher overall standards of living. Of the peer nations, the United States is the only country that denies its citizens universal health care.

While the facts don't necessarily mean that adherence to religion means a less socially advanced society, they do point to that conclusion. What is certain is that a "secular - progressive" belief structure will not lead to America's demise, as the Falwell's and O'Reilly's will have you believe. Consider other adherents to the fundamentalist doctrine of the Christian right. Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter, Tom Delay, George Bush, Pat Roberson, James Dobson, Michael Savage, James Kennedy, Ted Haggard, Janet Parshall, the list goes on and on. Of course there are good people in the movement too, but they are being led by the likes of those mentioned.

Perhaps a person should consider the words of Thomas Jefferson, written in a letter to his nephew. "The Christian god is a three headed monster; cruel, vengeful and capricious. If one wishes to know more of this raging, three headed beast-like god, one only need to look at the caliber of people who say the serve him."
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The Motherhood Manifesto

July 24th 2007 05:07
The advocacy group Moms Rising has a documentary out that needs to be seen by every American. The Motherhood Manifesto is informative, factual, and sprinkled with some humor. It tells stories of motherhood in America that should lead the viewer to wonder just what are we doing, and what is important to us as a country.

With the animated character Bev Betters popping in to expose the myth of the super mom, the film looks at real mothers and families facing real problems in an America that seems to value the imagined “bottom line” much more than it values motherhood


[ Click here to read more ]
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Good news on the progressive front

July 24th 2007 05:03
Hello and welcome,
The purpose of this blog is to inform people about progressive movements. Not just in America, but the world over. The winds of change are indeed blowing. World citizens are beginning to realize that social order is dependent upon people working together as a group. Be it the environmental movement steamrolling behind Al Gore, the push for American health care reform currently highlighted by Michael Moore, or the world refugee crisis taken on by Angelina Jolie, true heroes are emerging, pushing for a world socially and culturally fair to all.
Welcome, feel free to post, and take the time to learn


[ Click here to read more ]
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I am going to tackle some serious issues on this blog, but we can't forget to laugh from time to time...in light of that, I offer the following....

What was expected to be a routine colinoscopy for President Bush ran into some complications. Apparently, Mr. Bush started to emerge from the sedation he was under and seemed to be uncharacteristically coherent. Normally, the procedure causes a person to become a little woozy and incoherent. Doctors were understandably puzzled


[ Click here to read more ]
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Greetings and welcome

July 22nd 2007 17:26
Hello to any and all who may come by....I am a writer very concerned with the path the alliance of corporate greed and Christian fundamentalism has put America on. I believe both these groups have the same agenda, an America involved in perpetual warfare for profit and power. An America where the twisted ideals of Christian fundamentalism are the framework for social structure. An America where you are free - to be like them.
My pledge is to fight them, however I can. Join me, and help to secure an America (and world) free of the shackles of mysticsm and corporate superpowers.
I will accept any and all comments, and never apply censorship


[ Click here to read more ]
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