February 2011
90 posts
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100224132655.htm
Article on why intelligent people tend to be more liberal or atheist.
January 2011
81 posts
The Trouble with Bright Girls (Psychology Today) →
psychotherapy:
Successful women know only too well that in any male-dominated profession, we often find ourselves at a distinct disadvantage. We are routinely underestimated, underutilized, and even underpaid. Studies show that women need to perform at extraordinarily high levels, just to appear moderately competent compared to our male coworkers.
But in my experience, smart and talented...
peglegcrumpet:
That’s a bingo!: URGENT MESSAGE FROM ACTIVIST IN EGYPT. PLEASE REPOST IF YOU CAN!
thunderheist:
roxanneritchi
[via]
“To all the people of world” Alicia Ali Marsden To all the people of world The people in Egypt are under governmental siege. Mubarak regime is banning Facebook, Twitter, and all other popular internet sites Now, the internet are completely blocked in...
thisgingersnapsback asked: Enlighten me. What murders and genocides have been committed in the name of atheism, pray tell? What "doctrine" of atheism exists that could possibly convince a person to murder another individual due to differing faiths or ideas?
I'm not saying that atheists don't do bad things. But I would be astounded to see any who do them in "the name of atheism"...
I'm not saying that atheists don't do bad things. But I would be astounded to see any who do them in "the name of atheism"...
Fucking athiest extremists
brittanibotulism:
chadphillipdiamonds:
You make it seem like it’s a cult on it’s own.
I don’t understand why you’re so upset about Atheist Extremists. The most an Atheist Extremist will do is get angry, throw some insults, maybe bruise someone’s pride and at worst write a book.
The most a Religious Extremist will do is kill their own children, wage war against another group with different...
liberal-lad:
“Now, what about marketing to children? Ample science, along with statements by various professional organizations tells us that marketing to young children is both deceptive and unfair. Why? Because young children simply do not have the cognitive capacity to understand that they are being marketed to; they cannot comprehend “persuasive intent,” the linchpin of advertising. Here’s...
The nature of evil
“Almighty”- The word does not mean that God can do absolutely anything. The rational God cannot decree that 2+2=5, nor can the good God do evil acts. Almighty means that God can do whatever God wills, but God can only do that which is in accordance with the divine nature. Christians believe that nature to be love. The God of love could not be a cosmic tyrant, whose creation was simply...
Texas Used Stimulus to Cover 97% of Its Deficit →
pantslessprogressive:
Even as he railed against the Recovery Act, Texas Gov. Rick Perry used the government’s stimulus plan to cover 97 percent of the state’s budget deficit in 2009:
From CNN:
“Turns out Texas was the state that depended the most on those very stimulus funds to plug nearly 97% of its shortfall for fiscal 2010, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
...
Corrupt Politics: Glenn Beck Won't Stop Death... →
corruptpolitics:
Seventy-eight-year-old Frances Piven, a City University of New York professor, has been receiving death threats. It all started when Glenn Beck decided to target her on his Fox News program for a paper she wrote in 1966, calling Piven an “enemy of the Constitution,” one of the “nine most dangerous…
REALLY URGENT petition for Ugandan lesbian Brenda
stfusexists:
Please sign this letter to Theresa May calling for a halt to the deportation of Brenda Namigadde from the UK back to Uganda, which will be happening TODAY OR TOMORROW.
With David Bahati, the Ugandan politician and author of the notorious “Kill the Gays” legislation, taking an interest in her case, Brenda faces clear and present danger if she’s forced to return.
You may have seen...
Atheism
I feel the need to clarify my position on atheism, if only because it’s a part of the conflict I have between political and moral beliefs.
Politically, I’m a raging liberal, and believe everyone has a right to live in this country and believe what they want without being judged. I would defend that right every time, even if it contradicted with the values of my own religion. No...
A response
So, I weighed the issue and decided to respond to the email. I do believe the Christian-left should speak out more, even if the email itself is a hoax. The message in it is one I know they follow. Plus, I know the people who sent it. I’m calling this a first attempt at liberal Christian apologia(though I tried to stick mainly to statements I figure they’ll agree with, not necessarily...
Hoax email
Random email I got: Andy Rooney and Prayer. I get these sorts of things a lot from my religious right relatives and their friends. Snopes calls it a hoax, as does this site: http://agnosticthinking.blogspot.com/2010/07/andy-rooney-prayer-e-mail-is-hoax.html Which was just the first one I found googling it, and amused me that the author noticed the same bits of BS that I did.
Tempted to respond...
theworldisnotenough1:
“If feminism is a movement to end sexist oppression, and depriving females of reproductive rights is a form of sexist oppression, then one cannot be anti-choice and be feminist. A woman can insist she would never choose to have an abortion while affirming her support of the right of women to choose and still be an advocate of feminist politics. She cannot be anti-abortion...
Privledge Denial
So, one of my classes ended up talking about minority priveledge today, in the midst of an argument about the Arizona ‘papers please’ law and affirmative action. At some point in the discussion about the latter, the teacher asks, “Ok, how many people believe that they are minorities?”
<couple raised hands, some offended expressions>
Teacher: Well, I’ve got...
The Importance of Philosophy
infinitidisciple:
Let this serve as an introduction to my blog.
As a self-proflaimed philosopher and a Phil Major, I am often faced with the following statement/question in varied iterations while (attempting) to discuss with others my interests of the All-encompassing field that is Philosophy: “philosophy is useless” and “what good is philosophy?” The thinking (if I should use that word) that...
savagemike:
“Strangely, part of the reason that I am not afraid of the reprisal of any possible god for my current unbelief is that I expect that a good god—the religious folk who would condemn me to hell as a heretic and atheist always say that their god is ultimately good—wouldn’t punish me for my honest dissent. I find Christianity to be inherently immoral. I have known many, many, wonderful...
Christians ask the wrong questions
goodreasonnews:
liberalchristian:
donghyunsuh:
It’s a telling sign that Christians evade the question of whether or not atheists are right and instead choose to shift the debate to whether or not atheists are jerks.
Lol… because the answer is unknowable. And many atheists do the same thing.
Atheists aren’t asserting there are no gods. If that’s unknowable it’s only as unknowable as if...
/A brief personal rant
I always thought it was unethical of a teacher to broadcast their political affiliations. Obviously, students tend to figure it out in political-based classes, but this particular teacher says things that are neither accurate nor at all relevant to the class. And I know, most professors are liberal- but there is no comparison to the way she rants about how the president is...
Christians ask the wrong questions
donghyunsuh:
It’s a telling sign that Christians evade the question of whether or not atheists are right and instead choose to shift the debate to whether or not atheists are jerks.
Lol… because the answer is unknowable. And many atheists do the same thing.
Jon Stewart Exposes Fox News' "Nazi" Rhetoric... →
jonathan-cunningham:
militantagnostic:
When Megyn Kelly was told that many on her own network have done the same thing, she denied it. Tonight, Jon Stewart proved Kelly wrong. Way wrong.
The “Fox is always right” crowd will ignore it, but this is extremely telling.
That was unbelievable. It’s moments like that that make me question the sanity of anyone who trusts Fox...
Republican Congressmen admit they monitor talk... →
godlessgirl:
cognitivedissonance:
jonathan-cunningham:
Our political system is controlled by unbelievably effective demagogues and liars. *sigh*
This is legitimately disturbing.
On the media influencing Congress
Yikes
Ayn Rand, Hypocrite? Legendary opponent of... →
theworldisnotenough1:
trastorn:
mohandasgandhi:
Critics of Social Security and Medicare frequently invoke the words and ideals of author and philosopher Ayn Rand, one of the fiercest critics of federal insurance programs. But a little-known fact is that Ayn Rand herself collected Social Security. She may also have received Medicare benefits.
An interview recently surfaced that was...
Further Thoughts On Treating Children Like Adults
savagemike:
kohenari:
Earlier today, I posted a photo of Jordan Brown and quoted an Amnesty International USA blog post about his case. It’s gotten a fair amount of attention on Tumblr and everyone who has commented has fallen into one of two camps:
The U.S. shouldn’t try children as adults, since children and adults are different and since international law effectively prohibits it;
This...
There has been a lot of talk about Libertarianism...
savagemike:
And I have promised another Tumblr user that I would be writing a post on the pitfalls of Libertarianism, but I am having trouble combining them all into a logical post. One of my main issues is there is just so much wrong with the philosophy, it’s hard for me to know where to begin. Suffice to say that Libertarianism in it’s purest form requires a world that frankly does not exist,...
My Philosophy
One thing I don’t understand is how the Christian Right became so influential in recent years, or why American Christianity is now so associated with conservatism. If anything, I think I became more liberal the moment I believed in God. It was the first time I truly understood what it meant to have an idea or feeling that couldn’t be so easily expressed in words, why other people see...
Everything wrong with America pretty much...
politicalprof:
Three things came across my desk today that seem to me to pretty much summarize my feelings about what’s wrong with America these days—or at least one part of my feelings.
First, it turns out the State of Texas, the low tax, pro-business allegedly miracle model state many conservatives would have everyone else emulate, is now running massive budget deficits and is responding in...
Is the Universe a holographic reality? →
theworldisnotenough1:
YOU MUST ALL READ THIS AND HAVE YOUR MINDS FUCKED.
Awesome article… I love it when science agrees with me.
Think the Bible is 100% "Pro-Life"? Think again.
stfuconservatives:
sequinedk:
stfusexists:
This post was originally published here, on the Rabble Pro Choice site, and sent my way by the lovely pianycist. Enjoy!
Exodus 21:22-23 If an attack on a woman causes a miscarriage the attacker must pay a fine. If he causes serious damage to the mother it’s “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”. This indicates that a fetus does not have equal...
MSNBC liberal? the myth of "the liberal media"...
greenstate:
vruz:
a tpm reader writes:
Rachel Maddow does five hours a week on camera. Keith Olbermann did the same. Combined they provided ten hours of news, progressive commentary and sane conversation for an entire week. For this, MSNBC is deemed a liberal news outlet and we are often reminded by outside sources that MSNBC represents the liberal point of view and that they are “left...
Proof of Belief
I’ve been studying a little about epistemology(how we acquire knowledge), evidentialism(a belief must have evidence to be valid), and fideism(faith is independent of reason). There are advantages and criticisms to be made of either of them.
Basic problem I have with evidentialism is the impossibility of neatly defining ‘what is evidence’ in every case, and so we’re left...
Religious beliefs cannot be used as a reason to... →
The Saskatchewan government says “no” is not an option for marriage commissioners who are unwilling to wed same-sex couples.
At least one commissioner says the province will have to fire him if that’s the case.
Justice Minister Don Morgan says marriage commissioners are getting letters informing them about a decision by the province’s top court. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal ruled last...
Let me just tell you, through gifs, how we all...
greenstate:
bookwormlibertarian:
statehate:
greenstate:
pantslessprogressive:
Just reblogging for my followers as a follow-up to this post, wherein GreenState proclaimed that she would never vote to take away anyone’s rights.
Those rights apparently also don’t include freedom of speech nor freedom of expression.
Thank you, Ricardo. I’m not at all surprised though. She just doesn’t...
Conceptual Metaphor →
Conceptual Metaphor is at the center of a complex theory of how the brain gives rise to thought and language, and how cognition is embodied. All concepts are physical brain circuits deriving their meaning via neural cascades that terminate in linkage to the body. That is how embodied cognition arises.
Primary metaphors are brain mappings linking disparate brain regions, each tied to the body in a...
New Horoscopes
Does Astrology really need disparaging? I’m kinda confused by all the facebook comments I see that start with something like ‘I think Astrology is total BS, and it doesn’t matter at all that the signs changed, etc, etc…’ and end with ‘Oh, by the way, I’m a Leo now.’
So, my friend, you could care less about the subject, don’t believe in it at...
On the massive, unexplained animal deaths(they’re actually pretty common):
Blame technology, says famed Harvard biologist E.O. Wilson. With the Internet, cell phones and worldwide communications, people are noticing events, connecting the dots more.
“This instant and global communication, it’s just a human instinct to read mystery and portents of dangers and wondrous things in...
‘You’re going to have to shoot them in the head,’... →
stfuconservatives:
savagemike:
Discussing Democratic leaders during a June broadcast for the Republican Fox News Channel, conspiracy host Glenn Beck told his followers they would have to “shoot them in the head” in order to bring an end to an alleged “communist” agenda. “They believe in communism,” he said. “They believe and have called for a revolution. You’re going to have to shoot them...
“Mika. You need to buck up. I know you think this story has no purpose other than...”
– Stephen Colbert
GKHDKJLSDGHDSKJ I LOVE IT WHEN HIS REAL SELF SHOWS THROUGH
(via whovoicesthepuppets)
I love this.
(via somethingsmartandclever)
That episode was awesome.
Apologists
Maybe I’m just too naive or something, but I trust that people generally mean what they say. Generally. For example, the idea of Christian apologists appeal to me. It seems almost obvious, though before today, I’ve never actually read anything from them. So I googled, and came up with a random, professional-looking site that started off pretty well: explaining the idea, logical...
Alabama's Robert Bentley Disses Nonchristians on... →
savagemike:
onmysix:
“The world is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.” Thomas Payne
Choice words from Governor Bentley:
“There may be some people here today who do not have living within them the Holy Spirit. But if you have been adopted in God’s family like I have, and like you have if you’re a Christian and if you’re saved, and the Holy Spirit lives...
