Category News

Aiding the Terrorists

Remember the 2004 election, when partisans from both major parties
were arguing that Osama bin Laden wanted the other guy to win? Well,
this time around,
wonder no more:

“Al-Qaeda will have to support McCain in the coming election,” said a commentary posted Monday on the extremist Web site al-Hesbah, which is closely linked to the terrorist group. It said the Arizona Republican would continue the “failing march of his predecessor,” President Bush.

The Web commentary was one of several posted by Taliban or al-Qaeda-allied groups in recent days that trumpeted the global financial crisis and predicted further decline for the United States and other Western powers.

Reminder: Pulpit Initiative Today

For those who weren’t paying attention, today’s the day of the
Alliance Defense Fund’s
Pulpit Freedom Sunday,
in which pastors are protesting the fact that their churches’
tax-exempt status comes with strings attached, namely rules against
endorsing political candidates, same as any other non-profit
organization.

From what I’ve seen, the news coverage is mostly unsympathetic. The
Post’s On Faith column has a
guest post
in which the author tries to defend this act of civil disobedience,
and gets smacked down in the comments.

So it looks as though most people recognize that the participating
churches are trying to have their cake and eat it too, and can cry me
a tax-exempt river.

It’s Amazing What Passes for Persecution These Days

According to
this story
in the Post, the Virginia police superintendent issued a directive
saying that police chaplains have to conduct non-denominational
services, i.e., not invoke Jesus’ name. This is in response to a
federal court ruling about prayers before city council meetings.

Del. Charles W. Carrico Sr. (R-Grayson), a former state trooper, said he is organizing an online petition to get the State Police to reverse its decision. Carrico said he will submit a bill to overturn the action when the General Assembly returns in January.

“Col. Flaherty needs to abandon this attack on Christianity,” he said.

So as I read this, troopers can practice whichever religion they like
in private. They can pray on the job, if it doesn’t affect their job
performance. Troopers who are also chaplains can also perform
religious services on the taxpayer’s dime. But when a line is drawn,
saying that they have to include non-Christian theists while on the
job, suddenly it’s an attack on Christianity.

Perhaps they’d like to call the EMTs to bring a waahmbulance.

Christian Persecution

This
is fucked up:

GHUMUSAR UDAYAGIRI, India — Babita Nayak was cooking lunch for her pregnant sister when a mob of Hindu extremists wielding swords, hammers and long sticks rampaged through their village, chanting “India is for Hindus! Convert or leave!”

The gist of this depressing article is that Hindu fundies are killing
Christians, burning their homes, destroying their churches, and
driving them into refugee camps.

Read More

Webster Cook Removed from Office

Webster Cook, the University of Central Florida student who
precipitated
Crackergate
by failing to eat[1]
a piece of bread he was given, has been
removed from his post on the SGA,
the university’s newspaper reports.

[1] Since Cook’s “crime” was that of not eating, I’m
amused at the fact that the UCF Associate Campus Minister’s name is Swallows.

The only thing that could make this better would be if his colleague’s
name were Spitz.

QOTD

Source

The conflict in Georgia also upended Bush’s travel plans. He decided to postpone by one or two days a planned vacation beginning today at his ranch in Crawford, Tex.

Yeah, I’m sure he remembers how bad it looked when hurricane Katrina struck while he was on vacation. Then again, most New Orleans residents are black. Georgians are Caucasians.

Badoom-sha! Thank you, I’m here all week.

Webster Cook Won’t Be Expelled

Since PZ’s on vacation, I might actually get a chance to scoop
Pharyngula with the
news
that a panel at the University of Central Florida voted unanimously to
dismiss all charges against Webster Cook and his friend Ben Collard in
the Crackergate matter. Good.

HT
Bill Donohue.

Read More

Like Letting Students Grade Their Own Homework

This is retarded:

The Bush administration yesterday proposed a regulatory overhaul of the Endangered Species Act to allow federal agencies to decide whether protected species would be imperiled by agency projects, eliminating the independent scientific reviews that have been required for more than three decades.

[…] Under current law, agencies must subject any plans that potentially affect endangered animals and plants to an independent review by the Fish and Wildlife Service or the National Marine Fisheries Service. Under the proposed new rules, dam and highway construction and other federal projects could proceed without delay if the agency in charge decides they would not harm vulnerable species.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who thinks that this is as stupid as
letting the defendant at a trial decide whether he’s guilty or not, so
I won’t belabor that point.

But even with the best intentions on everyone’s part, this is still a
stupid idea.

There’s a joke about an old engineer called out of retirement to help
fix a machine at the factory where he used to work. After poking
around, he puts a chalk mark on the part to be replaced, and submits a
bill for $30,000, itemized as follows: “Chalk mark: $0.50. Knowing
where to put the chalk mark: $29,999.50”.

The EPA is in the best position to tell where environmental chalk marks should
go. It’s what they do. That’s why they have environmental experts. The
department of transportation may be great at planning and building
roads, but they can’t be expected to accurately predict how their work
affects the environment, any more than the EPA can be expected to
design and build an efficient highway system.

Spreading American Values

From the Post:

China announced late last month that it would permit protests during the Olympics in specially designated zones, as long as demonstrators first secured permits. […]

[Human rights groups] say the “protest pens” being set in Beijing parks are part of China’s Potemkin-village-like display for the Summer Games, which open Friday.

Gee, I wonder where the Chinese might’ve come up with that idea.

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The Further Canonization of Saint Ronny

The Ronald Reagan Legacy Project wants to
put St. Ronny’s face
on the $10 bill. Either that, or half of all dimes.
I suppose it makes sense to put it on a small denomination, given the
amount that actually trickled down, but I have a better idea: if
people want to put Reagan’s name on money, let’s have the Ronald
Reagan Memorial National Debt. After all, he did more to increase it
than the 39 presidents who came before him, combined. Three times
more, in fact.

CNN has
a poll
(usual disclaimers, yadda yadda) about which denomination should be
consecrated this way. At the moment, “None” is leading, with 54%.