Via Big Think, actor Jonathan Pryce characterizes stage fright as selfishness: It’s an interesting thought, and I’m not going to say he’s wrong, but will point out a few things: 1. Self-consciousness and selfishness are not the same thing. Portraying it as selfishness isn’t just “cruel” because it’s hard to hear someone telling you that … Read more
“The problem of evil” is the common term for a certain argument against the existence of God. Or at least, the existence of the so-called “omni god”: one who is omniscient (all-knowing), omnibenevolent (all-loving) and omnipotent (all-powerful). The argument goes, basically, that evil would not exist in a universe created by such a deity, because … Read more
From Denver Westword Blogs, Marijuana billboard for Amendment 64 touts Pat Robertson endorsement Money quote: Amendment 64, the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act, have turned plenty of heads via billboards near Mile High Stadium, with the first featuring a soccer-mom-type woman revealing her preference for cannabis and the second spotlighting a father saying, “Please card my … Read more
The Onion has a really good piece regarding Friday morning’s shootings in Aurora: Sadly, Nation Knows Exactly How Colorado Shooting’s Aftermath Will Play Out. Excerpt: While admitting they “absolutely hate” the fact they have this knowledge, the nation’s 300 million citizens told reporters they can pinpoint down to the hour when the first candlelight vigil … Read more
Yes, I strongly support boycotting Chick-fil-A because of the large amounts of cash they’ve donated to anti-gay causes. But Boston’s mayor Thomas Menino has gone way, way beyond that by declaring that he intends to block Chick-fil-A from opening any branches in his city because of their political leanings: “Chick-fil-A doesn’t belong in Boston. You … Read more
From what I know, there’s no ethical case to be made against Chick-fil-A’s food or business model in particular. They use pretty much the same quality chicken as any other fast food place, many of their meals are actually pretty healthy compared to most similar establishments, and they apparently treat their employees well. That makes … Read more
I had no idea that the White House had established a web site specifically to host petitions. Some of them are quite wacky, but the one I got an email from CFI (the Center for Inquiry) about today is very worthy: Call upon the Indonesian government to respect the freedom and dignity of all its … Read more
As the Penn State report is being reviewed, and people are talking about how a man could rape multiple children over a sustained period with the protection of his colleagues, I see explanations of “hero worship” and comparisons to the Catholic church again and again. I won’t say these explanations and comparisons are wrong– after … Read more
Taslima Nasreen has a horrifying post up at No Country for Women on individual cases of women attacked with acid in different countries. It includes a lot of photos, so be forewarned. Each woman had acid thrown in her face, with the result of being disfigured beyond recognition and often losing sight in one or … Read more
I received an email this morning from Change.org: “Yeah, I killed him, but he did worse to me.” In 1997, a man in Queensland, Australia killed a gay man who he claimed flirted with him by bashing his head into a wall and stabbing him to death. Today, “gay panic” is still a legal defense for murder … Read more