Thursday, March 31, 2011

famine

bloated bellies,
pleading eyes,
gangly limbs,
twitch then die.

dirty brown water,
diseased throughout,
brick hard earth,
breaking picks.

scorching sun,
temperatures rising,
science sees a problem,
money says no.

christians peddling misery,
praying equals hope,
hope dwindles fast,
god doesn't answer.

kill thy neighbor,
resources dwindling,
owned by few,
jealously guarded.

mansions lit,
gardens watered,
could feed thousands,
instead of two.

clean their houses,
get some water,
mow the lawns
for a cup of grain.

stinking bodies,
never washed,
hold them closer,
comforts all you've got.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Abortion Doctors Wanted Posters Revisited


Last October it was being reported that wanted posters featuring doctors were being distributed around Charlotte, NC. These were similar to ones that were being passed around during the 90's.

Wanted posters were put out showing abortion doctor's home and office addresses, the cars they drove and their personal appearance.


These are some from the 90's.






Dr. Tiller also received the treatment:



That was just before he was shot in the 90's. The insanity has started again. All the above "wanted" doctors are dead.


New wanted posters do the same. They give addresses, vehicle information including license plates and physical descriptions.






























I know these are fringe groups, but they have the supposed dignity of religion behind them. This is a part of christianity. This encourages killing, as it did in the 90's, of doctors who are performing legal medical treatments. How many women's health providers will there be in the future if the threats keep coming?


Update. The posters are once again being distributed:


"Rachel Maddow posed that question last week as she reported from Kansas on the escalating campaign of threats, harassment and terror against Dr. Mila Means, who recently announced her plans to provide abortions in Wichita.


Abortions have not been available in the city since the murder of Dr. George Tiller in May 2009. Means has now become the target of an aggressive campaign led by anti-abortion extremists. WANTED-style posters featuring Means’ photograph and address are being circulated in Wichita and online, and about a dozen anti-abortion zealots stalked the physician at her rural Wichita home."


This is chilling as well:


"But no legal actions have yet been taken against the protestors. (A previous Kansas attorney general, Phill Kline, currently facing ethics charges, not only failed to prosecute those who threatened and stalked Tiller but used his public office to launch an inquisition against the doctor.) On the other hand, the disruptive protests outside Means’ family practice office precipitated a lawsuit against her from her landlord, and now she is not allowed to perform abortions at that office.

The anti-Means protestors include some of the same anti-abortion extremists who used to protest against and stalk Dr. Tiller. As Amanda Robb pointed out in her investigation of Tiller’s murder for Ms. last year, those who have murdered abortion providers–such as Tiller’s assasin, Scott Roeder–operate within a network of extremist advocates rather than being “lone wolves"

The new article appears here.


It is one of many reasons that I do not accommodate theists, it gives them courage.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Family


Discussions come up every so often that describe the way some families treat the atheists in their group. Scorn, dismissal; outcasts?

Curious if that is a common trait among very religious parents or general family members.

For my dysfunctional family religion was not a factor in my generation growing up. There was an infrequent nebulous mention of Jesus every so often, but nothing that I found to be more than a bad fable; definitely nothing important. I was never impressed, or in awe, of any biblical characters that I read about or watched televised stories about, except for maybe Samson; babes, death and destruction, oh yeah. But, even he wasn't as much fun as other mythical figures; Hercules was definitely brighter, the nordic and roman gods much more fun.

Regardless, there was basically no specific religion during my early years. Then my older brother opened the floodgates and married a catholic, who then turned hard right baptist. The doors were now open to the infectious insanity of the pious.

We went from a very pragmatic family that concentrated on work and survival, to one that is now mostly god fearing. My child, nieces and nephews have all caught the disease.

Right now, I think our family dynamics are being destroyed. We are still close, and different from many who have written. To this date, any of the immediate, and even not so immediate, family members will protect each other adamantly. Scary force. The women are as crazy as the men, if not worse. We are theists and atheists, liberals and conservatives, but screw with one of us and you're messing with us all.

So far religion has not unglued the cohesiveness of my family, but when I read the stories from other atheists, I think that someday, sometime, the increased religiosity of my family will eventually tear down the walls of "family first," that now reigns supreme. I mean, isn't that what the bible teaches? Screw your family, god is first?

Pretty dismal forecast if this is what religion does to families. Creeps in and rips apart the foundations of life, great.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Marijuana Gets a Federal Recommendation


Probably like many, I get alerts all day every day cluttering my mailbox, usually someone or some idea needing my money.

Today I read an interesting blurb that despite the White House saying they were not going to go after distributors in states where medical marijuana is legal, they raided 28 dispensaries in the last twenty four hours. Made me want to check what the heck is going on.

Never did get to what I was looking for, because of this information:


"As federal battles over medical marijuana across the country heat up, a statement from one federal agency may be a huge asset for medical marijuana dispensaries that have been targeted by the various arms of the U.S. Department of Justice and the IRS.

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) is a division of the National Institute of Health, which is itself one of the 11 component agencies that make up the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Last week, the NCI quietly added to its treatment database a summary of marijuana’s medicinal benefits, including an acknowledgment that oncologists may recommend it to patients for medicinal use.

The summary cites clinical trials demonstrating the benefit of medical marijuana. Part of it reads:

The potential benefits of medicinal Cannabis for people living with cancer include antiemetic effects, appetite stimulation, pain relief, and improved sleep. In the practice of integrative oncology, the health care provider may recommend medicinal Cannabis not only for symptom management but also for its possible direct antitumor effect.

Although 34 states have passed laws recognizing marijuana’s medicinal properties and 15 states, plus Washington, D.C., have legalized it for medical use, this is the first time a federal agency has recognized it as medicine. Despite recent developments, Attorney General Eric Holder said in 2009 that the Justice Department would not raid medical marijuana facilities, but at no point did he acknowledge their legitimacy as distribution centers for medicine. A 2001 Supreme Court ruling, meanwhile, declared that medical use of marijuana cannot be considered in any federal court deliberating on a marijuana possession or distribution case.

The new NCI assessment could have an impact on the classification of marijuana as a Schedule I drug, the harshest possible drug classification, which has resulted in a prison population in which 1 in 8 prisoners in the U.S. is locked up for a marijuana-related offense. One of the principal criteria for a Schedule I determination is that there be “no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.” The U.S. Justice Department may have a hard time maintaining that claim if challenged, considering a federal agency now recognizes marijuana’s medical use in cancer treatment."

So how does this happen. We have a federall health entity saying that marijuana does have medical usefulness, but we're going to raid the providers?

I need more information, antitumor effect?

If you want, read the rest here.

Is Rational Thought a Bias?

Well, no. Rational thought is what everyone ought to partake in. Reason is a drink that instead of weakening cognitive processes like alcohol, promotes clarity of thought.

Is that the same to a theist?

No, it is not. Theists maintain their beliefs by repeating this mantra over and over. Smart people suck. It's just that easy! Smart people take away from supernatural imagination, from fictional thoughts of joy.

Well, I wouldn't go as far as saying they think smart people suck at all times, just when it suits their needs. There is a continual pattern of denial theists display when taken to task. Usually it comes in the form of dismissal. Say what you want, but when a theist sees the road of reason ahead, he backs out. He has to. It is the fear of being led astray.

Yet, a theist could make the claim that you are biased. You are biased because of your lack of faith. If you had faith, you would not question certain parts of life. The answers are there, written in their favorite book.

At this and many other life happenings, atheists really do hold the high ground. The tables turn. The theist is the person of bias. He is the one that will not, or cannot, open his mind to the world that he lives in. The bias is centuries old and has been instilled with pain and suffering.

There are times when I think this is the only problem; no matter how many different ways you may state the thought, the bias is the problem. The bible is never very fair when it comes to unbelievers, in fact all writers despise those who lack faith.

I would think that if you could get the imagination, the wonder, the joy of discovery that you may feel when a new idea plants itself in your world, that bias can be changed.

The religious can of course be in awe of the universe, but most only in a superstitious manner. There's always the exception, but your run of the mill theist just doesn't look at the reasoned world in wonder, he saves that awe for ideas that have no base in reality.

I think it's as simple as this. If you can express a scientific or reasoned thought with the same intensity that a priest or pastor can whip up, you will get their attention. If, by inflection and purpose and intensity you can explain a simple scientific thought and excite someone's imagination of where that thought may lead, you've basically set them on a path that gives them the same wonder that religion's slight of hand conjuring does.

Go for it.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Show me the Money!


Even a casual look at current events reveals an astounding picture. The world is in protest, and though there are goals that differentiate the protests, there is one common theme; countries are being looted by the rich.

I've briefly discussed the protests still occurring in the midwest here. I hate to continue exhorting the same subject matter, but the subject stares me in the face where ever I look.

This weekend protests started in CA; they're not waiting, they are starting the fight now. The why is fairly simple to explain, it resonates with the world as a whole. For some reason, the middle class is being shut down. The programs that protect a government's citizens are being abolished. Safety nets? No need say the rich, we're okay.

In Britain they had the largest protest since the Iraq war; tens of thousands are marching. Some of the organizers are saying 250,000 people participated. Guess what the problem is? 

Show us the money!

The Brits were holding placards stating, "Don't believe in the Deficit," and "general strike now." The government there is looking at $130 billion in cutbacks. Supposedly by next month libraries will close their doors, youth programs will be abolished, social workers will be laid off; even the police force in some areas are having up to twenty-five percent of its personal being eliminated. Of course, health care and welfare will be pillaged; basically all the safety nets are being purged. 

It would appear that the world is all going broke at the same time, the money has seemingly vanished overnight. 

Video footage promoting the youth movement in Morocco shows one of the protesters claiming they want to stop the looting of the nation. Similar notions infuse all the protests.

Is this what is happening world wide? Are we on the cusp of a revolution where wealth will be used to provide jobs and security for the working class heroes of every country?

It is fairly easy to discern the trembling of the mighty, as their castles of gold sneer at the poor. What is it in a person that requires the hoarding of all things that may have value. Really, another jet? More gems? Another home? Cars, motorcycles, land, power, money, greed; the rich must close their eyes at the unrest in the world, otherwise their play would be troubled with nightmares of the impoverished knocking at their doors.

Though I cannot speak for the world, I know that in the U.S., people just want to live comfortably. They don't need palaces, they don't need yachts, they don't need a home in every state; all they want is a bit of security. As long as that security exists, the populace will remain stable.

I think the conservative onslaught will dismantle the few safety nets we have. Will the people just calmly accept the demise of the american dream, or will they fight to recapture?

I wait to see.

Gratitude

Grateful, I hear that word a lot from the religious. Grateful for the food on the table, grateful for family in their life, grateful that god has provided for them.

It is a word my wife uses often. She's grateful for every damn thing I do, drives me to drink; which apparently she likes also, so once again grateful. I do the cooking, she is grateful. I do what people do to keep busy, I work, I play, I socialize and once in a while I might even think. She is grateful for all. I think her catholic background encourages the use of the word.

I know that you're thinking, what the hell is wrong with him? Grateful is easily understood to be just a word of thanks, of appreciation; something pleasant or maybe even satisfying.

But it is not. It is a religious word. The connotations surrounding the word make it useless to an atheist. I know that you could be grateful that you have friends that surround you, grateful that your boss gave you a raise, grateful for many things that are not associated directly to religion; just seems that thankful would be a better word.

I would maintain that the only sensible use of the word would be in reference to parents or guardians. You may have a debt there, but that will be paid off naturally as life progresses; at least for most of us. 

I am not grateful, since for the religious that would be defined as more than thankful; it is an obligation. It is a debt that must be paid.

There is no supernatural being providing for us, but a theist will easily toss a bit of cash in that basket feeling he's paying some of his debt. He will attend church, repaying that debt, he will spread the word of god, repaying that debt. Useless word for an atheist.

Is the first thought that circulates through your mind when participating in an act of kindness the payback? If you give a homeless guy a couple of bucks, do you expect him to show up the next day and shovel your driveway or mow the lawn? No, only god would corrupt the act of giving.

No, the payback is the feeling that charity gives you.  The payback at work is the feeling of a job well done or a paycheck. 

I'm not sure that theists understand that their gratefulness is just a twist of words to make their slavery somehow noble.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

I am a Blessing


That statement takes away all the fun of helping someone out.

Bring my in-laws some lunch, watch them do their praying over the food while holding my hand, then take them out to the local casino in Detroit. One of the few things they can still do that they enjoy. Couple of hours gambling, good fun, especially since they play penny and nickel slots; they aren't going home broke.

Back to their home, discuss the coming holidays. I volunteer to help them decorate, (they haven't been around for the holiday in years, usually in FL), and we set up the date for that to happen. They've also decided that I should cater the affair for them, (which they won't pay for), since I'm able and willing to do the deed. Great fun, I find devout catholics to be so charming.

Before I could escape, I'm hearing how blessed they are that I'm helping them. What?

So, here I am, big ugly guy, sent from the lord to take care of you bitches. Yep, that's me.

I am a vessel for the lord, I have no charity or humanity that is innately a part of my being.

I am nothing.