Monthly Archives: September 2010

Over-sensitive atheists

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Richard Dawkins described Pope Benedict as “a leering old villain in a frock who spent decades conspiring behind closed doors for the position he now holds; a man who believes he is infallible and acts the part” and the Catholic Church as a “rotten edifice – the whole profiteering, woman-fearing, guilt-gorging, truth-hating, child-raping institution. “

Dawkins is not only entitled to his opinion – however fatuous – but also entitled to publish it, something he did with a degree of relish that would probably have been absent had he been slandering a pillar of Islam.

The Pope’s visit to Britain has inflamed the pious sensibilities of numerous atheists, many of whom signed a letter to the Guardian bewailing the fact that the Pope acts and speaks like a Catholic and claiming he didn’t address the child abuse problems in the Church – even though he did.

Pope Benedict, in his address at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh pointed out that:

Even in our own lifetime, we can recall how Britain and her leaders stood against a Nazi tyranny that wished to eradicate God from society and denied our common humanity to many, especially the Jews, who were thought unfit to live. I also recall the regime’s attitude to Christian pastors and religious who spoke the truth in love, opposed the Nazis and paid for that opposition with their lives.

As we reflect on the sobering lessons of the atheist extremism of the twentieth century, let us never forget how the exclusion of God, religion and virtue from public life leads ultimately to a truncated vision of man and of society and thus to a “reductive vision of the person and his destiny”

All perfectly true since Hitler and his Nazis were not so much atheists as anti-theists – against God – just as Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins are. Hitchens and Dawkins would protest that they are not Nazis, but they are unable to point to an objective standard of right and wrong that would tell them that they shouldn’t be. A Hitler Youth marching song goes like this:

We follow not Christ, but Horst Wessel,
Away with incense and Holy Water,
The Church can go hang for all we care,
The Swastika brings salvation on Earth.

Horst Wessel was a Nazi party street-fighter murdered by communists and turned into a martyr by Josef Goebbels.

Also, the 20th century leaders that have been inspired by a rejection of God: Mao, Stalin, Kim Jong-il, Pol Pot have ruthlessly slaughtered more people in 100 or so years than all the tyrants that preceded them put together . This is not particularly surprising: Christianity teaches that each person is made in God’s image – they are shaped by God; atheism teaches that each person has no created essence other than that of a clever animal and therefore can be shaped and moulded by force. The fact that Mao, Stalin and Pol Pot failed is testimony to the fact that they were wrong: a person does bear God’s image.

None of this matters to atheists, who, when not occupied with hurling abuse at the Pope in fits of irrational pique that would embarrass a 3 year old, become quite hurt and hysterical when someone has the effrontery to challenge their cherished articles of unbelief:

The British Humanist Association was quick to respond to the Pope’s remarks, noting in a statement: “The notion that it was the atheism of Nazis that led to their extremist and hateful views or that it somehow fuels intolerance in Britain today is a terrible libel against those who do not believe in God.

“The notion that it is nonreligious people in the U.K. today who want to force their views on others, coming from a man whose organization exerts itself internationally to impose its narrow and exclusive form of morality and undermine the human rights of women, children, gay people, and many others, is surreal.”

Richard Dawkins fumes:

I am incandescent with rage at the sycophantic BBC coverage, and the sight of British toadies bowing and scraping to this odious man. I thought he was bad before. This puts the lid on it.

Thank you, BBC: anything that makes Dawkins “incandescent with rage” deserves all the license fees it can get.

Canadian Muslim says Muslims in the West have more freedom than in Islamic countries

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And the Pakistani ambassador walks out of UN meeting.

Human rights activist, board member of the Muslim Canadian Congress and International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) Representative Raheel Raza confronts Tariq Ramadan and the Pakistani Ambassador representing the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).

Swimmers may be forced to cover themselves to avoid offending Muslims

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From the Herald Sun, Australia:Add an Image

A plan to force families to cover up to avoid offending Muslims at a public event has triggered furious debate.

So far the Premier John Brumby has refused to weigh into the debate about the event, saying he will wait to see the VCAT ruling before making any comment.

VCAT has approved a ban on uncovered shoulders and thighs for a community event to be held at the Dandenong Oasis, a municipal pool.

“Participants aged 10 and over must ensure their bodies are covered from waist to knee and the entire torso extending to the upper arms,” a request by Dandenong City Council and the YMCA states in an exemption application to the Equal Opportunities Act.

If this spreads to the US, I am anticipating an outbreak of nudism protests during Ramadan 2011, possibly organised by Rev. Terry Jones. Barack Obama will declare that America is not about exposing shoulders, Fred Hiltz will call for prayer and a mutual respect for one another’s covered thighs and general Petraeus will warn that bare torsos create a distraction that puts our troops in danger.

Making fun of Christine O'Donnell

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I bumped into Normal Mailer briefly in the late 70’s. I was attending a conference in Miami, waiting for an elevator in my hotel standing next to a large fellow with a walkie-talkie. The walkie-talkie squawked and seemed to say “Mr. Mailer is on his way”. The elevator arrived and out stepped Norman Mailer. What I presumed was a hotel tart – with a hard face and stunning figure – flounced up, took his arm and disappeared with him into a waiting limousine. Mailer liked to take a contrarian view of many things; among them, masturbation – he didn’t approve:

“I wouldn’t say all people who masturbate are evil, probably I would even say that some of the best people in the world masturbate. But I am saying it’s a miserable activity.”

Mailer was cool, of course, so those who adopted the conceit of thinking they were too, forgave him for criticising their favourite pastime. Not so for Christine O’Donnell – winner of Republican Senate Primary in Delaware – who said much the same thing and is being roundly mocked for it by the usual twerps on the left.

I’m looking forward to the next Democratic Party slogan: Democrats, masturbating for you.

Trinity Anglican Church, Aurora joins with local Muslims

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From here:

(Aurora, ON) – A last minute decision was made on Thursday, September 9 by Aurora’s Trinity Anglican Clergy  – The Reverend Canon Dawn Davis, and the Reverends Stephen Kern and Dawn Leger would create a living answer to the threats of burning copies of the Qur’ans made by church members in Florida.

In co-operation with the Trinity Church’s resident Interfaith Minister, Rev. Terry Weller, a theme was decided upon – “The only burning we are interested in is a burning desire for “PEACE, RECONCILIATION AND RESPECT”.

A secondary theme presented was: “OUR GOD CREATED DIVERSITY ON THIS EARTH. WE HOLD THAT THERE IS UNITY IN DIVERSITY”.

While, as Christians, we should live peacefully with our neighbours of other faiths, if the message of the early church to opposing religions had been: “Our god created diversity on this earth. We hold that there is unity in diversity”, there would be no Trinity Anglican Church, Aurora. Perhaps that would not be such a bad thing.

Transsexual woman names Diocese of New Westminster in Human Rights complaint

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From here (my emphasis):Add an Image

A Vancouver transsexual has filed a human-rights complaint, alleging discrimination on the basis of sex, age, and disability after she was evicted from a downtown social-housing complex. In an interview with the Georgia Straight, Pamela Burge said she was thrown out of the Wellspring, which is at 415 Nelson Street, at the end of June. This came after the society that manages the complex claimed that she owed $1,355 in outstanding rent.

Burge, once a well-known broadcasting executive who went by the name of Tim Burge, has alleged that the real reason she was evicted was that the building administrator, Joanne Graham, did not like her because she is transsexual. Burge, 65, claimed that she did not owe any back rent, and that the society refused to acknowledge receiving her documentation of her income from social assistance and the Canada Pension Plan.

“I could never imagine this happening to me as a middle-class man or even as a regular woman,” she said.

Burge has named Graham, the 127 Society for Housing, and the Diocese of New Westminster as respondents in her complaint to the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal. The Anglican church has supported the society and its name is on a plaque outside the front door of the building, but Burge said that it has absolved itself of any responsibility for her eviction.


The prospect of seeing Bishop Michael Ingham being hauled before the Human Rights Tribunal for evicting a transsexual from her apartment is an irony more delicious than any that could be concocted by the most fertile imagination. I wonder if the Anglican Journal will cover the story?

Terrorists fired phosphorus shells into Israel

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From the Jerusalem Post:

At least 2 of the 9 mortar shells fired during the day contained phosphorus, police confirm; regional council head intends to inform UN of Geneva Convention violation.

Two phosphorous mortars were fired at southern Israel from Gaza on Wednesday, Police Spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told The Jerusalem Post.

“A police bomb disposal team examined a number of mortars that were fired today. We can confirm that two out of the nine mortars contained phosphorous,” Rosenfeld added.

Israel Police said it was not the first time that phosphorous shells had been fired at Israel from Gaza.

Imagine the wailing and gnashing of teeth we would have heard from the Guardian and other repositories of leftist agitprop – not to mention bombastic pieties from the WCC, NCC, Fred Hiltz and Shirley McClaine – had it been the other way around.

As of the time of writing this post, though, the media are ignoring it.

Brampton man charged with pretending to practice witchcraft

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From the CBC:

Police in Brampton, Ont., say they have charged a man with fraud for pretending to practise witchcraft.

Investigators allege the suspect was taking money for witchcraft-related services at his home.

Forty-four-year-old Yogendra Pathak of Brampton has been charged with fraud under $5,000 and pretending to practise witchcraft.

It’s believed the services had been offered for more than a year, and police are asking for alleged victims or anyone with information to come forward.

While it appears to be illegal to pretend to practice real or bogus witchcraft, it is perfectly legal to really practice pretend witchcraft and to actually practice real witchcraft. The question is, why are the courts picking on only one variety of charlatan; I wonder if the perpetrator will appeal to the charter of rights.