Leave it to Dusty!

A point of view CNN will never air:

Teh 9/11 Stoopid

Another stupid Facebook post:

As 9/11 approaches....I would like to share this prayer
Now I lay me down to sleep...one less terrorist this world does keep...with all my heart I give my thanks...to those in uniform regardless of ranks...you serve our country and serve it well...with humble hearts your stories tell...so as I rest my weary eyes...while freedom rings our flag still flies...you give your all, do what you must...with God we live and God we trust....Amen!

If they trust God, why send military overseas?  Shouldn't God just smite all the enemy with pestilence and locusts and earthquakes and hurricanes and uhhhhh high unemployment rates.... uhhhh nevermind

At least they didn't insist on friends doing a c&p of this drivel, but I just wanted to!

So ... ahem ...  In the past ten years, we have experienced murder, mayhem, droughts, earthquakes, hurricanes, and a few terroristic attacks by Muslims.  And a few by Christians.  And a few that we still haven't figured out the motives for.

And yet we still waste our lives on Facebook and Blogger and youtube as if we're not all individually living under the Sword of Damocles.

Which is nice, because we're not.  We have always had a precarious existence.  There have always been plots against "good guys" by "bad guys."  The story of human history is filled with this kind of stuff, and coincidentally, so is the Bible, which is 100% human.

We don't live our lives looking over our shoulders because you just can't live that way.  That's why we sometimes get caught with our pants down, as we did on 9/11 and at Pearl Harbor and as I did a couple of months ago when a deer ran in front of my car.  Paranoia is not healthy.  We have an innate sense of not worrying about events with low odds other than taking ordinary precautions.  I wear a seat belt despite a 20+ year driving history without an accident.  It wasn't paranoid to wear the seat belt, and then when I hit that deer... well I didn't actually need the seat belt because the deer got the worst of it, but I'm glad things could have been worse but not worser.

If we were tasty little rodents surrounded by owls and felines and all manner of predator, we would be justified being on edge all the time.  Likewise, if we were less fertile and less plentiful.

The world has too many people and we're getting in each other's way and on each other's nerves.  99% of us could be wiped out and the species would probably continue with the genetic material of that 1% left, assuming they could find each other.  "God" wiped out humanity before.  Why pray to him now, when we've gone forth and multiplied a little too much?

Instead of praying, we should take reasonable precautions and watch out for ourselves and others.  We should think a little more about how others are feeling and thinking.  We should be aware of how many ways we're vulnerable without being ridiculous about it.  We should be humble about our shortcomings and the ways we affect other people without being doormats.

This article is both chilling and thought-provoking:  http://www.science20.com/alpha_meme/science_next_911-82474

The author makes the point that what made the 9/11 terrorists so dangerous was their arrogance, a "sin" that isn't unique to Muslims.  Chirstian terrorists are just as arrogant and just as dangerous, and they may be lurking around the corner or brewing some overblown resentment against people they consider the "enemy."

I was as disturbed as anyone on 9/11, perhaps more because of having lived in both New York and DC.  But what disturbed me more was the arrogance of the Christians around me who seemed so sure that God was on our side, and that all muslims were evil.  I was in Texas at the time, but it's not a Texas thang to be a black-or-white thinker.  The effect of 9/11 on the psyche really disturbed me, and the reminders of the event kind of make me sick to my stomach.  I feel for the people who were there and who were hurt directly, but the people who went a little nuts around the country kind of scare me.

Speciation

Thanks to NWA's ignorant post, I felt compelled to find something that NWA could understand regarding speciation. I think this excellent video should do the trick:



For a fuller discussion of macro-evolution, Talk Origins has a series on predictions based on evolutionary theory and the results that confirm the theory.

Note: A theory is not the same as "hypothesis," which is a preliminary guess. A "theory" in science is a concept that explains observed phenomena, and which can be further tested with more observations. So far, observations by trained biologists have confirmed and refined the theory of evolution in many ways. Observations by Christian pseudo-scientists have been debunked by responsible actual scientists. Note: these scientists are not "Darwinists." They are scientists - they trust the scientific method to add to human understanding, and do not revere Darwin at all except in the same way they revere any scientist who has proposed a new theory that has stood the test of time. They are not "Darwinists" any more than they are "Newtonists" or "Einstinists."

Examples of Evolution

Of course the only reason I would post this on a blog about atheism is that some Christians cling to the idea that Christianity (or more accurately, Judaism) explains scientific "mysteries."   These "mysteries" were only mysterious to the bronze age mythology writers, not to modern scientists, but science is hard to read and fairy tales are easy to read.  That's the real reason they cling to their mythology: it's easier to imagine a sky fairy with a magic wand whipping up the universe, planets, and all the species of earth than it is to take the time to learn a little about what people have been deducing from evidence for a few hundred years.

Some of this might be a bit hard to read, but persevere.  It's easier in the end than trying to rationalize that science proves "intelligent design" or throwing out rationality altogether.  After all, if you disagree with evolution through natural selection you have to throw out modern antibiotics and vaccines, and then you die.  We might miss you, though we won't miss your stupidity.


DNA proof of why there are still monkeys!



The Whale evolved from land-dwelling mammals, and there are "transitional" fossils to prove it.

The eye evolved through natural selection.  It is not irreducibly complex or magical.  (There's a video at that site so even the stupidest Christians can understand it)

Humans evolved from other bipedal species, which in turn evolved from other primates.   DNA evidence confirms this.  Yes, it does!  (This last one's harder to read but it's the source of the cool chart to the right)

If you really want to "teach (yourself) the controversy," check out the responses to creationist claims at Talkorigins.org.  My favorite stupid argument is the "argument from incredulity."  It's the argument that because you can't (or won't) believe something is true therefore it's not true.  Hey, I'd like to believe that I'm the Princess of the Universe and that I can smite anyone who zips into the parking place I have my eye on.  But I don't believe that because I'm not psychotic.  The same argument is put forward by UFOlogists and other believers of utter nonsense.  It's as sophisticated as putting your fingers in your ears and singing "la la la la I can't hear you!"

Lewis Black on Creationism

From The Daily Show. He dishes the dish on Ken Ham and Kent Hovind. If you can stomach clips of these two ignorant chimps this segment is priceless:

Seditious Conspiracy, some charming Christians

This is "old news" but I didn't know about this group:



This insane idea keeps coming up in crazy rants from individuals but I had never heard of a group entertaining fantasies like this:

In an indictment against the nine unsealed on Monday, the Justice Department said they were part of a group of apocalyptic Christian militants who were plotting to kill law enforcement officers in hopes of inciting an antigovernment uprising, the latest in a recent surge in right-wing militia activity.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/30/us/30militia.html

The "shot heard 'round the world" and the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand were catalysts but only because of seething tensions that were already brewing. Fantasies of kick-starting a war by blowing up a federal building, or flying planes into one, or shooting teenagers at a politically-oriented camp, or shooting cops.... they're just fantasies. The festering tensions they hope to ignite exist only in their own minds. They did not succeed in inspiring others, and only made people hate them. And yet, there are probably still more waiting in the wings hoping to gain credibility and followers via some outrageous violent act.

It's a common thread, and there seems to be a religious undercurrent there too. These people seem to know how to use the interwebs, so why haven't they figured out that they can't inspire loyalty this way?

How do Atheists Prepare for a Hurricane?

The president of American Atheists answers loaded questions and parries with idiotic believers.  It reminds me a lot of conversations I've had with theists.  Pretty funny:



We get candles, but not votive candles ;-)

I'm not sure I'd answer these theists the same way but I'd call "We wish you well with your candles and batt'ries" a mocking statement!  And anyway, why would Jesus care about flooding?  He would tell believers to walk on the water, or else they're not true believers!