Daily Archives: Saturday March 31st, 2012

Thoughts of the Day

“I brought the case because I wanted to encourage toleration among my children. I certainly did not want teachers who have control over my children for at least eight hours over the day to . . . program them into any religious philosophy.”

— Ishmael Jaffree, acceptance speech for “Freethinker of the Year 1985,” awarded by the Freedom From Religion Foundation

“The greatest difference between the Humanist ethic and that of Christianity and the traditional religions is that it is entirely based on happiness in this one and only life and not concerned with a realm of supernatural immortality and the glory of God. Humanism denies the philosophical and psychological dualism of soul and body and contends that a human being is a oneness of mind, personality, and physical organism. Christian insistence on the resurrection of the body and personal immortality has often cut the nerve of effective action here and now, and has led to the neglect of present human welfare and happiness.”

— Corliss Lamont, “The Affirmative Ethics of Humanism,” The Humanist, March/April 1980

“I’m a nonbeliever. I don’t believe in the existence of a God. I don’t believe in the Christian dogma. I find it horrifyingly silly.The intolerance that flows from organized religion is the most dangerous thing on the planet.”

— Jane Rule, Brave Souls: Writers and Artists Wrestle with God, Love, Death and the Things that Matter by Douglas Todd (1996), cited by Celebrity Atheists website.

http://ffrf.org/day/view/03/28/

“Being an atheist is a matter not of moral choice, but of human obligation.”
— John Fowles, quoted in The New York Times Book Review (May 31, 1998)

http://ffrf.org/day/view/03/31/

Alan Grayson Email

Some Observations from a fund raising email of his :

A month ago, I wrote a note called “The Myths That Are Killing Us” – the hard myths that no Republicans, and very few Democrats, ever challenge. Here was my list:

The Government can’t create jobs. (Tell that to FDR, who created four million jobs in three months.)

Tax cuts reduce the deficit. (Doesn’t it bother them that a man named “Laffer” came up with this one?)

A fetus is a baby.

The poor have too much money.

Cutting the federal deficit will end the recession.

The rich are incentivized by tax cuts, while the poor are incentivized by lower wages, no benefits, an end to the minimum wage, and unemployment.

An unwanted child is God’s will.

Everyone who wants health insurance has it.

The problem with education is the teachers.

The “free market” satisfies every human need.

There is no discrimination in America anymore.

The distribution of wealth and income are irrelevant.

 

Well, this list seems to have provoked a lot of thought among us. Since I regard what we do as a collective endeavor, I want to share with you some of the best of this crowdsourcing by our audience – 20 more destructive myths:

 

One gender is better than the other, one race is superior to all others, and there is only one true religion.

You can get any medical treatment that you need, for free, in any hospital emergency room.

Ronald Reagan won the Cold War.

The environment can protect itself.

It is better for America to be feared than loved.

Only the wealthy create jobs.

America is a Christian nation.

Human beings are not the cause of climate change.

Minority women have children in order to qualify for welfare.

President Obama wants to take away our guns.

The more we spend on the military, the safer we are.

Corporations use tax cuts to hire people.

The unemployed are lazy and stupid.

Rich people are smarter than everyone else.

We will never run out of oil.

Invading foreign countries wins hearts and minds.

Science is a matter of opinion.

Instigating unnecessary wars shows your support for the troops.

Corporations are people.

Money is speech.

Every one of these myths is fascinating in its own right. You could write a whole book about each of them. So to the supporters who contributed to this list, thank you. I’m listening and learning.

 

And if we could just get past all of these myths, then think about what a great place this would be.

 

Courage,

 

Alan Grayson

Pauline’s Daily Tweets

  • Getting ready for the gym and our weekly grocery shopping……hoping to end on a high note, workout wise……we'll see. #
  • GOP Attorney General Suing Over Obamacare Supports Single-Payer: ‘I Trust The Government More’ http://t.co/fURFqMm Totally unexpected #
  • If Supreme Crt Strikes Down Affordable Care Act, Conservative Justices Will Do Lasting Damage To The Court's Legitimacy http://t.co/SDIrzeS #
  • U.S. Tax-Evasion Probes Said to Slow as Prosecutors Transfer http://t.co/z8gxx40 We need more investigators….not less =( #
  • White People, You Will Never Look Suspicious Like Trayvon Martin http://t.co/j7xR1Ag #
  • Robert Greenwald on the New Film 'Koch Brothers Exposed' — the 1% at Its Very Worst | Tea Party a.. http://t.co/oDhJ3cF #
  • Atheism Rising, But God Is Not Dead Yet: 10 Ways Religion Is Changing Around the World | Visions |.. http://t.co/tgdHOVm #
  • One Nation, Not Under God: http://t.co/7nmyEMF via @theprospect #
  • Two Years After Spill, Disgusting BP Oil Contaminates ‘Cleaned’ Marshes http://t.co/irhkED2 This makes me want to cry =( #
  • Why Arizona’s New Anti-Abortion Bill Is Worse Than It Seems http://t.co/ByOi3yM #
  • Chuck The Dog Welcomes Home Soldier (VIDEO) http://t.co/qKFqm4u Totally adorable! #
  • Wow!!! A hell of a season finale from #Spartacus ! #
  • Big Oil’s Bogus Campaign: http://t.co/W78ahmB: #

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