Worthy cause of the day: “Stop Canada's 2009 Commercial Seal Hunt”.
Relevant to Divine Misconceptions:
- “Married‚ and the mob” and “More than mischief: Are recent acts of church vandalism tied to bigotry?”: Let us be clear on what freedom of religion means: everyone is free to believe whatever they think is correct, even if no one else agrees. This is an eminently practical political right, as it keeps the government away from the business of deciding what is truth (something governments are ill-equipped to decide) and helps create a society in which people do not try to kill each other over doctrinal issues. These two articles discuss a perversion of the notion of tolerance, namely the misconception that everyone is entitled to automatic acceptance. Automatic acceptance actually works against tolerance because it ignores that not everyone agrees on what is right and wrong. It is therefore to be expected that different groups will have moral disagreements and will be opposed to each other’s activities, thus negating the possibility of true acceptance. Keep in mind that in order for one person to get acceptance from another, the former has to justify his/her actions or beliefs to the latter in the latter’s belief system. Anything other than this is an attempt to force one’s beliefs on others—the opposite of tolerance. What has happened in the Proposition 8 controversy that some of those against defining marriage in exclusively heterosexual terms seem to have gone overboard in their quest for acceptance and have become intolerant, sometimes to criminal extents. This is a very disturbing and ironic idea which I hope does not become a trend.
- “China sentences Falungong follower to three years in jail: lawyer”: What struck me is that the atheistic government of China charges that Falun Gong is “heretical”. This is logic without reason. The logic is the logic of politics. The Chinese government tries to control and regulate everything within its borders, and since wiping out religion is impractical, said government tries to control the religions practiced in China, regardless of whether or not its dictates are rational or not and persecutes anyone practicing religion outside of its control. Since Falun Gong is not controlled by the government, the government logically tries to dictate that Falun Gong is heresy, even though it makes no sense for atheists to try to dictate what is heresy for religions they do not believe it.
- “KAZAKHSTAN: Restrictive amendments on religion go to president”: Yet another country completely misses the notion of freedom of religion and that governments have no business dictating truth.
- “Meltdown fallout: some parents rethink toy-buying”: Submitted by Barry.
- “Terrorism in Mumbai”
- “Late workers, students get notes blaming NY subway”
- “What Would Blackbeard Do? Why Piracy Pays”
- “Station takes call letters of TV show”
- “Full-size cardboard figure causes NJ bank standoff”
- “To end AIDS, test and treat everyone, study says”
- “Wash Car after Chickens Cross Road”
- “Actor robots take Japanese stage”
- “Caught on film: It's a bird, it's a plane, it's NASA's lost tool kit crossing the night sky!”
Aaron
