Rush Limbaugh calls Sandra Fluke a prostitute

Rush Limbaugh once again proves to the slightly more sane of us that he is still a raving idiot.  I'm sure for most of you reading, this is far from a revelation.  But there are times when someone says something so horribly wrong and offensive that they must be called out on it.

It is all the more important to bring this quote under scrutiny as it very clearly states what many of the religious 'right' and their puppets in the GOP have been stating as of late.  If this has been done by someone else, I would probably consider it a great sardonic remark against such idiocy.  But instead it shows that Poe's Law is alive and well. 

In a comment in reference to Sandra Fluke's being refused the chance to speak before a congressional committee on contraception, Rush stated:

"What does it say about the college co-ed Susan Fluke [sic] who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex -- what does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute."

When I first read this line, I was unsure of exactly how to react.  I was torn in equal directions of being disgusted, furious, and trying my best not to laugh.

I was disgusted because this is purest form of the current Republican view on women's rights.  It is everything they have been striving for against about half of the human population under the guise of 'morality'.  When the rhetoric is removed, this is what is left.  The view that if any woman dares to want to take control of her own body and what could happen to them if they dare to speak out.  After all, to such individuals they are nothing more than dirty, filthy whores.

I was furious because I know that Rush Limbaugh is not some crazy living in a box somewhere talking about how his underwear is blessed by Jesus (that would be closer to Mitt Romney, now wouldn't it).  He is listened to by many and there will be quite a few who will believe his blatantly offensive and painful inaccurate remark.  And his remark will be used by others to continue to perpetuate the mistreatment and oppression of millions.


I nearly died laughing because the statement and its sentiment are so utterly disconnected from reality.  In my head, I could see Rush hiding under his bed in terror because the evil feminists might come for him in his sleep.


This is the mentality the rational of this country are up against.  It is equal parts vile bigotry and pant staining lunacy.  In a world where the secrets of the universe are being unveiled through massive particle accelerators and we combat diseases through our understanding of evolution, the sentiments such as those espoused by Rush Limbaugh and his ilk should have no place other than the scrawling found on a bathroom wall.  But, unfortunately, this kind of hatred is alive and well.  It threatens all we have and will work for. 


It must be raged against, it must be demonstrated against and it must even be lampooned.  There may always be those who vomit forth such bile as Rush Limbaugh has spewed here, but we can make such individuals so utterly non-relevant that laughter and/or pity become the only appropriate responses.

How sexism hurts skeptical inquiry, and everything else for that matter.

Just the other day, there was an event over on the r/atheism section of the site Reddit that has just been brought to my attention.  It seems that a 15 year old girl posted an image of herself holding the book The Demon Haunted World by Carl Sagan that her highly religious mother gave her for the holidays.  She had posted it in hopes of an open discussion on the matter of her atheism in a religious family as well as her excitement over receiving such a wonderful and thoughtful gift from a parent that has often disapproved of her daughter's lack of belief.

Instead, she was met with levels of misogyny and sexualized comments that are beyond reprehensible.  Many of these comments were up-rated in excessively large numbers, showing that it was more than just a few idiots vomiting up their own brand of moronic bile.  At the girl's original post, comments of such a horrid nature can be found that I am loath to even repost them.  But I know that I must for the sake of pointing out the scale of the event as I know there will be people who would rather downplay such occurrences as trivial.

Comments such as “Well 15 is legal in many places, including my country, so I’ll only have to deal with abduction charges.” “Relax your anus, it hurts less that way.” “Blood is mother nature’s lubricant.” “Tears, natures lubricant.” “BITE THE PILLOW, IM GOIN’ IN DRY!” were posted.  Not only this, but as I said, they received far more up votes then down votes instead of being pointed out as vile comments they obviously are.  How many you may ask?  The second one on that list received, as of the writing of Rebecca Watson's original article on the event, 1715 up votes and only 648 down votes.  This makes it plainly obvious that they are being viewed by far to many as normal or even funny, instead of as the acts of horrible and hurtful people.

While not everyone who posted responded with such vile comments, the very fact that any occurred should be a source of shame for any decent person.  This is doubly so when it comes from a community that claims to pride itself in rationality and equality.  This is not to say that such traits are not held in high esteem by the skeptical community, but that there is much work that still remains to be done, otherwise this would never have transpired

Such behavior should be vociferously deplored the moment it creeps up.  There should be such a stigma against any such disgusting and clearly idiotic behavior that anyone who holds or exposes such beliefs should be afraid to mention them, or is forced to reevaluate them.  No one should ever have to fear speaking up on the internet because of how they will be treated by clearly damaged people.

Some will claim that to treat such commenters as the backwards and harmful individuals that they are is a violation of their right to free speech.  The fact that such things can be thought without having a melt-down of their irony meters shows a severely deranged and self-entitled mode of thinking.  It is to say that such commenters right to free speech is more important than the free speech of those they are attacking.

And yes, this is an attack and it should not be assumed to be anything less.  It is not playful trolling or harmless joking.  It is stating that someone else is so much less then you as to be unworthy of even the most basic of levels of human dignity and respect.

Not only have they harmed this girl who was only trying to show her own love of rational thinking and a great book, but they have also made what should be a rational and accepting community into the kind of place that has no place for those silly women-folk with their absurd illusion of having worth as something other than an object for a man to use.

Thankfully, many atheist writers have taken a stand against this behavior.  I was introduced to this account by the ever wonderful Greta Christina who goes on to link others who have also written in protest of this occurrence.  Many others have read about these accounts and have taken it upon themselves to speak out against this behavior as well as give their support to this girl on her original post.  I hope that many of those reading will follow the link and offer your own support.

Some may hope that if we ignore such fools they will simply shut up and go away.  I cannot fathom why anyone would think this, especially amongst a community that often does what it can to speak out against the crimes of others in religious and political arenas.

It displays and underlying misogyny that cannot be ignored.  For to do so will only serve to alienate half the human population.  Non-believers (and believers alike) of all forms must stand in unison to put this to a stop.  We should be above this and those that truly are must speak up.  Otherwise the voice of the misogynistic morons will be the only voice budding young female skeptics will hear and be turned away from what, I for one, see as one of the most fulfilling realizations possible.  That the universe can be understood on its own merits and is all the more beautiful for it.  If we do not stand up, then we are only quietly condoning such behavior.  We should be showing such individuals our passion for a rational understanding for the world and nurture their own love for it as well, not letting them suffer at the hands of others.  To do anything less is to deny such individuals humanity and lose a part of ours in the process.

Rape is like getting a flat tire?

Kansas Representative Pete DeGraaf (Republican) is behind a new bill that has passed the state house and is expected to be signed into law by Governor Sam Brownback. This bill will ban insurance companies from covering abortions in any case other than when the women’s life is in danger. While separate ‘abortion policies’ will be allowed under the bill, it affectively makes abortions out of reach for a large percentage of the populace who would need them. This bill does not make expectation for cases or rape.

A fellow Republican Representative, Barbara Bollier who supports abortion rights questioned the rationality behind such a bill. She wondered whether women really should be expected to purchase abortion only policies to cover for what is always an unforeseen possibility. Be it for an unwanted pregnancy in general or for the case of rape victims. In a completely unexpected rebuttal, Representative DeGraaf responded with:

“

We do need to plan ahead, don't we, in life?"

Bollier asked him, "And so women need to plan ahead for issues that they have no control over with a pregnancy?"

DeGraaf drew groans of protest from some House members when he responded, "I have spare tire on my car."

"I also have life insurance," he added. "I have a lot of things that I plan ahead for."

I really do not know what to say to this. How can anyone consider being violated in one of the most horrific ways as the same as the annoyance of getting a flat tire? If nothing else proves the inhumanity of such people, this certainly must.

Tennessee, protecting kids from the evil gays

Now I wish I had come across this sooner, as the news about it came out on the 21st of last month, but I had to mention it as it is a real threat to sanity. Tennessee, that ever so progressive state, has passed a bill from a committee to the state senate floor that would make it illegal to mention homosexuality in any way in schools before the ninth grade.

This bill is one that has been fought for by Republicans for the last six years. Created by Senator Stacey Campfield, and known as the "Don't say gay" bill, it states that:

"No public elementary or middle school shall provide any instruction or material that discusses sexual orientation other than heterosexuality."

Because we all know, if you just ignore something you don't like (or make it illegal) it will go away. Have a kid who is coming to terms with their sexuality? To bad, you better hide it because Tennessee doesn't want to hear about it or help you. This is the kind of idiocy created by people who honestly think sexual orientation is a choice and roving bands of homosexuals are out to corrupt their children.

This is not the first bit of nuttery from Campfield. Previously, he made an attempt to pass a bill that would require death certificates to be given for aborted fetuses. He was also behind attempts to force women getting an abortion to look at ultrasound images, eliminate the state's pre-kindergarten program and also make it legal to carry a firearm onto a college campus. Yet he still has quite a bit of support from many Republicans, which just shows how bat-shit insane they really are.

Upon hearing this, George Takei made a comment on his twitter once again proving his brilliant wit:

TN bill will prevent teachers from using the word "gay" in class. In response, I'm lending them my name: "It's okay to be Takei."

The stupidity, why won't it end...

I was just going to place yet another reply to an idiot commenter on my post about the morons of the world who seem to believe Japan deserved the disaster it is facing. That the estimated death toll of 18,000 is somehow justified. I knew there were many members of my species who are so vile that to call them human seems fundamentally wrong, but having it shown for what it is over and over is just tiring.

I log on today and find a plethora of repeat posts, so after cleaning things up a bit I was going to write a proper response, but I found I had more to say then should be left in the comments. Now maybe the repeats were all caused by an error, as there have been times when I've tired to put in a post and it appeared to disconnect, but actually went through, leaving me to post it again. However I generally don't leave four or five of each then type up another comment and do the very same damn thing. The second comment is labeled Anonymous, but so were the first three of the first post. Combine this with a nearly identical concept, mass repetition and the fact that they were all posted together (about once a minute) and I have to assume it is the same person.

The first comment by this person was at least a turn away from all the Pearl Harbor and WWII 'reasons':

Mitchell Jefferson said...

I think the whole thing is kind of sad but that the whalers, which we know are mostly Japanese, deserved it. Save the Whales!!! And the Japanese who aren't whalers!!! at least the kids...

While I am fully against whaling as there is absolutely no reason to do this anymore (of course I'm also against mass fishing, shark fishing, drag line catch and a host of other ways to destroy the oceans), this comment seems a bit odd. I'm not sure if this person is trying to say the disaster happened because of whaling or just that whalers deserved it and if it happens to off a few thousand other people, so be it.

But the next comment is even worse and shows a kind of mentality which I utterly loath:

I don't think it's just Japan. the entire Human race needs to be destroyed for what we've done to the Earth. Deforestation, whaling, killing animals for fur, abusing animals for labor or food (don't get me wrong, it's natural for humans to eat meat so I do). We should stop saying "poor Japan" and start saying "yay! Now not as many whales will be needlessly killed!"

Ah, the ever popular "destroy mankind" trope.

First and for most, to those who believe the human race needs to be eliminated, either off yourself or shut up. If you are not willing to set the example by reducing the species load by one (and only yourself for the crazies who apparently read my blog), then all you are doing is bitching pointlessly and are as much of the problem as anyone else, if not more so as you are not doing a damn thing to actually try and solve the problems facing our species. Hell, I doubt such people can even explain to me the reasons for such issues and the possible solutions as well as what is hindering any advancement. They are just ignorant whiners who think being pointlessly cynical does anything at all. So please, if you believe this, take one for the team, if nothing else then it will give the rest of us the peace and quiet we need to actually get to work and accomplish fixing these problems.

11 year old girl blamed for being gang raped in Texas

There are times when I read something and I am simply left seething in rage. When I have to remind myself that things like vigilante justice are wrong and, based on its very nature, will always get out of control. And this is coming from someone who disdains violence.

Last November in Cleveland, Texas an 11 year old girl was gang raped. Currently there have been 18 arrests. The girl was offered a ride and was then taken to an abandoned trailer where she was assaulted by the accused rapists, age 17-26. They took photos and recorded the event on their phones and began distributing it. Eventually copies made it to the girl's school where a student brought it to the attention of a teacher who approached authorities.

The event has brought out the sexist undertones of parts of the community where people began siding with the rapists stating that the girl was dressed indecently.

"She dressed older than her age, wearing makeup and fashions more appropriate to a woman in her 20s."

So are these disgusting people trying to say that had she been 20 then being raped by nearly twenty men would be perfectly fine? While many, including some family members of the accused rapists are speaking out against the crime and the misogyny that has been unveiled because of it, still many cling to their horrid beliefs.

The event, and the reprehensible view that many in the town have taken has been brought to national attention after Florida state Representative Kathleen Passidomo, while speaking in favor of a House bill to mandate school dress codes stated:

"There was an article about an 11 year old girl who was gang raped in Texas by 18 young men because she was dressed like a 21-year-old prostitute, and her parents let her attend school like that. And I think it’s incumbent upon us to create some areas where students can be safe in school and show up in proper attire so what happened in Texas doesn’t happen to our students."

This is vile. I am familiar with people blaming the victim before but it is still something that makes me so angry that I cannot believe such people should be allowed in office, around children or even in society as a whole. It shows an utter lack of empathy that borders on sociopathy. This girl has had her childhood ruined by the callous acts of these men and now she is being blamed for it? And for what? Not covering herself up properly? How is this any different then in fundamentalist Islamic countries that require a woman to cover herself lest she 'tempt' men to rape her?

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References:
New York Times
Examiner.com

'Japan deserved it', even more idiocy

A few days ago I had written a post about various Facebook users who believe that Japan deserved the devastation it received from the earthquake and subsequent tsunami because of their role in the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

Recently, on that post, I got an anonymous comment. It showcased the kind of bigotry, xenophobia and pure idiocy so well I couldn't let it rot away in the obscurity of the comments. I had to show it in all its terrifying glory. Please note that I will not be responsible for any damage to your computer in the resulting rage such stupid may put you in.

Anonymous said...

It's not just pearl harbour but also the millions of people the Japanese killed during world war 2, like the 10 million people killed in the nanking massacre in just a day. Or all the people they tortured with inhumane ways like burning, drink drowning, poison etc. for the sake of torturing them and nothing more. The Japanese totally don't deserve this because they deserve something far worse. I hope this tsunami is just the beginning.

I'll give you a moment to stop yelling at your monitor... Done? The level of idiocy is staggering. How can someone have this kind of hatred for a people for the actions of their predecessors? Obviously this individual did not think this line of reasoning through as if it were accurate then no human on the planet would deserve anything but death and torment. We all share some connection to those who, in the past, did reprehensible things. Is this some sort of modern incarnation of the idea of Original Sin? That the sins of one generation pass on to the next? Possibly used as an excuse for ones racism and xenophobia?

I responded to this disturbed individual with this:

I want to believe you are Poe, but you are most likely a disgusting example of my species. According to your 'logic' then we should apply the same concept to religion. Think of all the people slaughtered throughout history by any religious group. If crimes are carried to future generations then so must those of every one else.

Granted I am not twisted enough to believe this for a moment. The crimes that have been committed were done by the individuals, not the group. Those individuals have mostly died. To think people who had no hand in the events deserve death just as much shows a kind of thinking that scares me.

It scares me because it shows the inability to discern between individuals (especially when they are not known personally). It scares me because it shows the kind of nationalism and xenophobia that leads to senseless wars and hatred. It scares me because there are people who will think you have a point.

Whoever you are (as you did not even have the spine to log in to post your comment), know that above all else, above being a sniveling, hateful and ignorant person, you are pathetic. If I didn't find you so disdainful, I might have pity on you. But you chose to be a disdainful moron, so I can only look upon you with disgust.

With such vile humans existing around me, it is sometimes difficult to maintain the desire to help them or hope that our species is capable of more. Ironically, it is the way the Japanese people have came together to aid one another, without the kind of rhetoric or blame that has occurred when any disaster has happened in my country, that helps to keep these feelings strong despite such hatred that I have encountered.

Facebook users who think Japan deserved it

In the wake of the worst earthquake in Japan since the country officially began taking records over 140 years ago and the subsequent tsunami that has left a death toll of over 1,000 with more certainly to come due to the devastation, some Facebook users have decided that the havoc that Japan has received is justified. Why would anyone believe such a vile thing? How could anyone think such devastation and massive loss of life would be deserved?

The answer sadly comes from my own country. An increasing number of users are claiming that the damage endured to innocent people is some sort of divine retribution against the people of Japan for the attack on Pearl Harbor. Take that in for a minute, people who have only heard about this event in history class and through a bad movie believe that so much death is somehow justified because of an event that took place 70 years ago.

This is disgusting. These people are vile and some of the worst examples of stupidity, nationalism and even theism. Theism because so many are invoking their god as the source of these events. As for some reason, god only loves America. This was brought to my attention by a link provided by Pharyngula. The link provides a collage of various posts by Facebook users who are espousing this vile and baseless claim. As P.Z. Myers stated, "Don't click on this compilation of facebook entries unless you're one of those cynical people who already has low expectation of the worst of Americans."

While I do not know any of these people and hope I never do, I would like to offer what apologies I can to the Japanese people on behalf of these disgusting examples of failed sentience.

Gadhafi thinks he will die a martyr

Moammar Gadhafi, Libya's brutal dictator for 42 years, scares me. Is it because he is a vile, totalitarian, massacring bastard? Well yes, that is slightly on the distressing side (unless there is an upside to ruthlessly oppressing and slaughtering your own people that I am unaware of). But what makes him even more terrifying is the guy is bat-shit insane. Now when I say that, I don't mean the level of guano one might find in an attic, no, that is absolutely tame compared to Gadhafi, I'm talking Gomantong Cave levels of crazy.

Image from a recent MRI of Gadhafi's head

A prime example of this truly epic level of lunacy can be found in a speech he recently gave. He gave it from the remains of his former Tripoli residence that has been left in ruin after being bombed by the US in the 1980's. He decided to leave it in shambles as an act of defiance (because nothing says defiance like having a decrepit building that shows what happens when you piss off the wrong people). To make the scene more ludicrous, after the event that destroyed his former residence, he erected a monument of a fist crushing a US fighter. The setting alone warrants at least a 5 on the crazy scale. But Gadhafi is just getting started.

He comes out on the podium in flowing robes and a matching turban (how stylish!) and just because he likes to accessorize, added in reflective glasses (the international sign of douchebags and crazies alike, two groups he is a proud members of) to his lovely ensemble. But it is when he opens his mouth that the crazy goes from pathetic in a humorous way to full out tranquilizer and straight-jacket insanity.

For the most part he is shouting and pounding away at his podium but then, part way through he exchanges his reflective glasses for reading glasses so that he can begin to calmly read out of a book of law. He doesn't even slowly transition from raving madman to calm politician, he just switches suddenly. But apparently he soon gets bored of the lack of shouted ravings and starts to lose his train of thought and sits there for a moment looking confused as if he forgot where he was and what he was doing there. But this doesn't last long as he soon picks back up with the shouting until he begins to lose his voice. That is when you know you are devoted to your nuttery, when your own body can no longer tolerate it and starts to give out.

What he says is just as insane as how and where he says it. You have to at least admire his commitment. He is damned determined not to leave the podium till he reaches that coveted 10 on the crazy scale (more commonly known as raving doomsday hobo level). Apparently he has been listening to his own rhetoric and state controlled media for far too long as he states:

"You men and women who love Gadhafi ... get out of your homes and fill the streets, leave your homes and attack them [the protesters] in their lairs."

Wait, the protesters have lairs now? The irony of this being said by someone who outdoes most comic book villains in pure evil is simply astounding. Especially when it is being said in front of his own dilapidated lair (complete with loony statue and everything). He then goes on to state:

"Libya wants glory, Libya wants to be at the pinnacle, at the pinnacle of the world, I am a fighter, a revolutionary from tents. ... I will die as a martyr at the end"

He then vows to fight:

"to my last drop of blood."

A martyr, really? After slaughtering so many, after hiring mercenaries and having your own military turn anti-aircraft guns on civilians, after ordering the remaining militia to shoot anyone on sight (going so far as to having his men fire on ambulances), you have the audacity to claim you will be a martyr? If I could spit on you right now, I wouldn't, as you are not even deserving of my saliva you wretched fuck.

Though, after calming myself and thinking for a moment, perhaps he isn't far off, in the literal sense at least. While martyrdom is often seen as a sacrifice for a cause or belief, the word in its purest context can be applied to anyone who dies for a cause. But if you go that far, then Mussolini could also be argued as one so perhaps he is in good company.

As a final note, I would like to say that against such horrific evil, what the Libyan people have accomplished thus far and will certainly accomplish in the near future is worthy of nothing but respect. Even as their own lives are at stake, they work together to set up temporary government bodies, defense and police forces, medical services and every other necessity for a community. And it has all been done by people working together, for the good of the many. They have made sure to defend all who wish to join them, even those who were formerly supporters of Gadhafi. They have made sure not to damage their countries infrastructure for they know it is vital to their survival both as a future country and to their own freedom and well being. They join the ranks of so many others in recent times in their region of the world who have stood together for the good of themselves and their children's futures. They unite under a desire for peace and prosperity and while they may have to take up arms for a time to do so, they do it only for the greater good and not for power or revenge.

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References:

Maggie Michael and Sarah El Deeb, Associated Press

Rep. Chris Smith wants to redefine rape

This is just vile. New Jersey Representative Chris Smith introduced a bill last week that would redefine rape and how it applies to government payed abortions. Previously, in cases of statutory rape, incest, and rape were all covered under a government plan for abortion. Along side this was the allowance for when the mother's life is endangered. But all of this may change.

The US House, through a majority vote, has passed a bill that would change it so that these paid abortions can only happen in the case of 'forcible' rape. What forcible rape exactly is, he doesn't say. The bill goes further to state that any money set aside in a tax-exempt health savings account (HSA) must also be used with the new guidelines. This sets up a situations where a family won't be able to access their own money they set aside because their daughter's rape wasn't classified as 'forcible'. There has been added to the bill the inclusion of incest, but only if the person is under the age of 18. It also explicitly states that cases of drug or alcohol induced 'date rape' will no longer be covered.

I cannot properly say how disgusted I am right now. I really thought I had seen the lowest Republicans were willing to go, but this? Granted this bill still has to go through the Senate and if it were to pass that (lets hope not) it will certainly be vetoed by President Obama. But the very fact that it was brought up in the first place is horrid enough, add in the fact that it got a majority vote from the house (this is what happens when you let Republicans take hold) and you see quite a few hands that are covered in more filth then one cares to imagine.

Terrorism in Russia

Earlier today, at the international arrivals terminal at Domodedovo Airport, a man walked in with a brief case like any other. However this was not just any person awaiting the arrival of a friend, relative or business acquaintance. Instead, he was waiting for the best time to kill. He was an unnamed suicide bomber and because of his actions, 35 are dead and another 180 were wounded. As of yet, no one has claimed this attack, though Islamic militants in Chechnya are suspected.

This is the most recent in a series of attacks Russia has faced in recent years, all previous ones were by said militants, as such, it is safe to assume this one to be claimed by them as well. In fact Russia has been plagued with terrorism attacks from Chechen Islamic militants since 1995 when Chechen rebels captured a hospital in Budyonnovsk. Here they took over 1,000 people hostage, killing 100 of them outright. In a botched attempt, Russian soldiers tried storming the building that led to dozens of deaths. From this three day event (June 14-17), over 400 were also injured.

I was going to try and write up a bit on all the attacks, but the further I delved, the more I found. For each 'major' attack I found a handful of 'minor' ones. What separates a major from a minor? The media attention. Some of them had more lives lost but were underscored by other media. This represents a state of the media which I cannot stand and is one of many reasons why I generally do not watch television as well as why I cross reference news stories before writing about them.

Trouble in Ontario

In many parts of Canada, the public schools are still run by the Catholic Church. So when the It Gets Better project took hold, pointing out the high rate of gay teen suicide and the treatment they far too often receive in schools, it was only natural for many regions to encourage groups such as the Gay-Straight Alliance. And most schools have welcomed this, yes, even some of the Catholic ones. Things seemed to be actually getting better for young LGBT individuals, that is until the Halton Catholic District School Board (HCDSB) Caught wind of it.

The HCDSB claimed that clubs such as the Gay-Straight Alliance were harmful to its youth...despite every bit of evidence showing it was the complete opposite. The even went so far as to ban the organization from meeting at their school. When questioned as to their reasoning, board chair Alice Anne LeMay had this to say:

“We don’t have Nazi groups either, Gay-straight alliances are banned because they are not within the teachings of the Catholic Church.”

Wait...did she just Godwin her interview? I'm sure some religious apologists would have accepted the later part of her argument (though that doesn't explain why other Catholic run schools were fine with it), but only the most paranoid of the neo-cons would think the first half was justified. Because whenever you think of a group that strives to create understanding between differing groups everyone always thinks of the Third Reich.

But there is a chance that the Canadian government will force the HCDSB to change their decision. The reason being, as of 2011, the Ontario Ministry of Education declared that all school boards within Ontario (the province the HCDSB resides) must "have equity and inclusive education policies that help schools provide safe and positive environments for students of all races, religions and sexual orientations." They even go so far as to support the foundation of clubs such as the Gay-Straight Alliance.

However the education director for the HCDSB, Michael Pautler, argues that the Ministry of Education only proposes the Gay-Straight Alliance as one possibility to harboring a greater sense of acceptance for those with differing sexual orientations. Though he did not suggest any other possibilities. Apparently after the idea to compare them to Nazis failed they simply ran out of options.

Pautler went on to say:

"Dialogue groups can achieve the same kinds of objectives, but that have a broader focus on inclusion generally, or a celebration of diversity, as opposed to focusing on any one particular expression of diversity.”

In other words, you can have a group that explores the differences in humanity as long as you don't use the word 'gay', because, as we all know, highly religious people just feel icky all over whenever they hear that word and we wouldn't want that now would we.

Though what worries me even more is this final bit said by LeMay:

“[The policy] lists gender, sexual orientation, a whole bunch of stuff, that Halton has not included in their equity and inclusive education policy"

Hold on a sec, they haven't included gender in their equal education policy? And what is this 'bunch of other stuff', does this school still think blacks need to be kept separate from the rest of the student body? LeMay says this as if it were some common thing. Is denying women equal rights and comparing LGBT students to Hitler everyday occurrences in the Catholic parts of Ontario? The Catholics are really starting to scare me more and more each day.

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A bow to Xtra! Canada's Gay and Lesbian News for the information.

Perfection

Perfection is sought so often by us. But, perfection itself, is by its very nature, imperfect. For the moment one achieves perfection, one must remain eternally still, as the slightest movement will jar some piece out of alignment and thus, destroying the overall pristine state.

This is why imperfection is, in fact, more desirable then any perfection could ever hope to be. As perfection is static and frail. Where as imperfection, or as I prefer to look at it, individualism, seeks not a finite state that must be forever maintained. Instead, it strives for a dynamic system where difference and originality is rewarded. Where plasticity is seen as the noblest of traits.

Unfortunately the culture we live in does not seem to agree with nature and myself. It, instead of striving for the organic variations that make existence so thrilling, seeks to press everyone into one perfect form. A creation that must freeze itself in time and wash away any sign of character. Thus our society envisions perfection to be the existence of the mannequin. Ever perfectly poised and never a hint of expression nor ever a glow from our inner spark that grants us our uniqueness.

This is the reality so many of us are finding ourselves in. Trapped in an ever collapsing cage that seeks to hold us firm and still. So that others may look upon us and hope to one day feel the living rigor mortis that is perfection.

And things get even worse

I just wrote about the recent Facebook scam. Where some company that took the images of Emma Jones, who, after her ex boyfriend posted revealing photos of her on facebook, drank cleaning fluid to kill herself, and used them to promote their survey. I thought that was vile enough, but it turns out there is more to the story than just this.

Whoever is behind this scam decided to also pull up photos of someone who had committed suicide after being bullied on Myspace. This individual is Megan Meier, she hung herself three weeks before her fourteenth birthday because of the vile hatred other people had posted on her Myspace. I want to take a moment to explain this situation. Megan Meier was clinically depressed and was going through the the trials and tribulations that is middle school and everything that comes with it. She already had self image problems. Then one day she meets someone called Josh Evans. Being a young girl who had social problems, the idea of having some attractive male talking to her was quite uplifting. In fact her entire family noticed the change in her behavior. They were able to see their daughter as the happy youth that everyone hoped she could be.

But things began to spiral downward quickly. Suddenly this caring Josh started sending Megan negative messages. Communiques that tore apart Megan's self esteem. It eventually culminated in this final message:

I don't know if I want to be friends with you anymore because I've heard that you are not very nice to your friends.
Everybody in O'Fallon knows who you are. You are a bad person and everybody hates you. Have a bad rest of your life. The world would be a better place without you

She only replied with this:

You’re the kind of boy a girl would kill herself over.

Megan Meier was found twenty minutes later, hanging in her bedroom closet.

It was later revealed that there never was a Josh Evans. The Myspace account was being used by Lori Drew. Her and her daughter, as well as Ashley Grills used the account to seek revenge. According to Drew's daughter, Megan had spread some gossip that was unfavorable towards Drew's daughter. So they got together and decided to try and ruin her life. After all, she had passed along gossip that might have tarnished Drew's daughters' name, so it was all in far game. At least that is what these vile pathetic humans thought. They never took into account the implications of their actions and how it could possibly destroy someones sense of self worth.

This alone shows humanity as nothing more then vile and vengeful entities, preying upon one another. I could stop here and it would be something to write about all in of itself. But I have to go deeper as humans are always finding new trenches to be filled with travesty and remorse. As I said, the Facebook scam used the images of the late Emma Jones. But it has come to my attention that they have also pulled photos from another incident. The same scammers also pulled photos from Megan Meier's life to use in this wretched con. Another life lost, yet being used as a publicity stunt.


Here is the image on the Facebook scam:


As you can see, it is the same exact photo. I really have very little else to say except that, if this is what the future of marketing really is, then I doubt there is much hope to retain any dignity or even a sense of humanity. I cannot understand why anyone would do this. My disgust knows no words, no sound, for it is far too deep to ever be heard. I can only hope that there are some out there that are not feasting at the corpse of what was once our proud humane self. Our embodiment of humanism, ethics, morality, and empathy. If this is what we are to become I want nothing of it. But I shall strive to rectify what I can. To rebuild our pillars of hope and humanity. I only hope it is not too late.

Oh look, another heartless facebook scam

Internet scams have already become a commonality amongst the current web faring generation. They come in so many varieties. You have your Nigerian Princes, your international lotto winners, the poor starving people who inexplicably still have regular access too computers and a myriad of others. One can even make a game out of it to pass the time by creating a perverse form of bingo (but if you ever find yourself doing this you are required to include alcohol in some way. Why? Because you are someone who is sad and alone, searching through the detritus of the internet in hopes of amusing yourself. You really cannot get much lower then this and you know it. As such, you need something to dull that aching sense of worthlessness that has overcome your very existence). But recently I have encountered one that tries for a whole new low.

You might be asking yourself, is this really possible? Can humanity produce a scam so depraved that its very creation forms a whole new level of loathing for our species? If you have to ask yourself this, you obviously have not been paying much attention to what your fellow bipeds are capable of.

So to break you of your hope and naivete, I present you with the following. A new scam that has been spreading around the site Facebook. It looks a little something like this:


I encountered this lovely little bit of despondency when I noticed it as a linked status from one of my contacts. My curiosity got the best of me and I clicked on the link. I was then shown the above image and when I went to click the "read the full story" link (because I, for some inexplicable reason, have an irresistible urge to have every last bit of hope for my species to be painfully carved out of my ever hallowing sense of being) I was prompted to allow this article to pull my information from Facebook. Now my sense of self deprecation can only go so far before the reason centers of my brain send out an over ride to keep me from being a complete idiot.

I knew that if this story was legitimate, it would be passed around via word of mouth and not some application that you must subscribe to. After all, most legitimate articles do not require your to sign over what equates to your electronic soul just to read them. So I, being a relatively rational human, decided to do a search on the above article.

It did not take me long to find out that my rational self was right to be wary of this article. As it turns out, it is actually a Trojan hijacker. On top of assaulting your browser with the might of so many tiny Grecian warriors it also brings you to one of everyone's favorite source of wretchedness, the corporate survey.

Yes, someone out there is so inhumane as to have had what I can only conceive of as having this thought, "I wonder if there is any way I can use humanities sense of guilt and distress towards the suffering of our youth at the hands of manipulative monsters as a way to get a lot of people to fill out my companies senseless survey". The fact that after having this idea, the individual did not choke on his or her own vomit or was not beaten to death with a stapler by the first person who read his or her proposal tells me that in the corporate world, being a vile and loathsome toad is actually an admirable trait and something that will get you promoted.

The very idea that such people can come home and instead of crying themselves to sleep for being the very embodiment of evil that they have always feared they would become, that instead, they probably go around boasting about their horrid new idea to all their repellent friends who go about their lives thinking of equally repugnant ideas to con to the masses. This makes my inner child who had at one time, had hopes of redeeming humanity and finding actual goodness amongst our species. But is now left with only wanting to find some possible escape from these abominable creatures.

So it is all just a scam right? Everything was made up on the spot and it includes nothing from reality. Thus we can thankfully wash our hands from it and never speak of it again. Except for the fact that whoever it was that thought of this most noxious idea actually used the photos of someone who had committed suicide after her ex boyfriend posted naked pictures of her on Facebook. Yes, to try and make their scam seem more plausible, someone dug up the photos of someone who killed themselves over revealing photos on Facebook. Here is the original article as evidence as well as a photo used in that piece just to show you that it is, indeed, the same person.

Now you may take your time to yell, scream, vomit or whatever else gets the feeling of disgust out of you. This is people profiting off of someones suffering. Not only are they profiting, but they are re-animating a person who has already been laid to rest, dragging up all the old wounds and sorrows surrounding the event just so they can try and scam some people into filling out their survey. I do not think there are proper words for this kind of vile disrespect.

So congratulations humanity, you have just found a new way to make me revile you.

A hypothesis as to why idiots are the loudest members of society

Granted this is only a tenative hypothesis, but thus far the logic behind it is sound. I believe I may have found an explanatory mechanism behind the trend of the loudest members of our species frequently being the most moronic.

I believe it is becaus of thus: the louder member of our species are the ones who are more naturaly inclined to be idiots. Therefore they are more likely to put their foot in their mouth. Each time they do this they stretch ouh their mouth by a small but noticable margin.

Each time they stretch out their mouths, they increases the resonance capability of their mouth, thus making them slightly louder. The louder they get the more people they can effect with their idiocy. Thus further increasing the number of times they are able to shove their feet into their mouths, further stretching it and further increaseing the size of the mouth as a resonating chamber.

We quickly find that such individuals create a vicious circle for themselves, thus quickly making such persons the most vocal and, much to the chagrin of the rest of the populace, most aggitating members of our species. I believe the only way to resolve this self perpetuating cycle is through the long duration administration of education to lessen the individuals foolhearty behavior which would hopefuly begin to slow down and/or end the cycle. If the treatment is delivered soon enough, the symptoms may even be reversable. Although in seveare cases, such methods may be offered too late in the patients illness to provide any noticable effect. In such cases it is my advisment that the only way to prevent such further behavior (as well as lessening the ambient noise level around them) is to fit the patient with a proper fitting muzzle and/or gag. The usage of behavior correcting tools such as shock collars may also be necessary.

Yet another person from the state I reside makes me ashamed to live here...

I am, once again, ashamed of my state. To understand why I must feel such shame, watch this video. It is a clip from everyone's favorite pretend news network, Fox.



For those of you who do not wish to watch the video or cannot due to there location, here is an article by ThinkProgress describing what is occurring on the video.

Now that you have had a chance to fill yourself in on the facts, let me give you my impression on Senator Jim Inhofe's reaction to the change in the name of the parade. It probably will not surprise you to find that I think Inhofe is being a whiny child who is doing nothing more then throwing a hissy fit when he does not get his way. Now granted, he could have done a lot more then he has to make himself look like a fool, but the fact that he has done this alone is more then enough to warrant being called out for his actions.

Inhofe claims to have taken part in this parade for the past thirty years and it is only when the word Christmas was replaced with Holiday that he has decided to not partake in the parade. As for some reason, he cannot bear to be in the "Holiday Parade of Lights" because it no longer uses the word Christmas. Now I have no problem with Senator Inhofe sitting this one out. Personally I wouldn't mind if he would remove himself from a lot more functions. For me, personally, Inhofe is an embarrassment to Oklahoma and is a walking stereotype of everything that is wrong with this state. He also proudly proclaims his backwards thinking that my state is notorious for. It is because of people like him that I have to reassure those I talk with from different states or countries that I'm not a backwards, bigoted and all around ignorant hick.

To make matters worse, Senator Inhofe says

Last time I checked, Gretchen, Christmas meant the birth of Jesus Christ and that's what we're celebrating and that's what I'm celebrating and that's what my twenty kids and grand-kids are celebrating."

Oh really? Apparently Inhofe believes that Christmas was the sole property of Christians and to suggest otherwise is wrong. Which is quite interesting as he contradicts himself right after by agreeing to something Gretchen Carlson says. He even goes on to elaborate upon it himself. Now here is what Gretchen Carlson prompts Inhofe with

So what you are saying is, its not like you are not tolerant of other religions, like Hanukkah and Quanza and whatever else may be celebrated in December. What you're saying is what a lot of people are saying in our society right now which is, we are supposed to be tolerant of all these other religions which every person pretty much accepts. Why does it always seem Christianity is the one to take the boot

This is followed by Inhofe's reply of

They're the ones to take the hit and you know your good friend, who has been on your program many times, Lanny Davis, I was on a program with him last week and he's Jewish, he's uh, very liberal, he's from the Clinton White House and he agrees with me.

Notice the contradiction? First he said that Christmas is entirely about the birth of Jesus Christ, therefore making it a Christian holiday and only a Christian holiday. Then with the support of Gretchen Carlson, he agrees that it is a holiday that everyone can have and that he never does anything to disrupt what others believe. So how can it be only a Christian holiday, but also be supportive of other beliefs?

I think it comes down to this. Had Gretchen Carlson not prompted Senator Inhofe with the part about being tolerant of other religions, Inhofe would not have contradicted himself, though he would still be a bigot. What I believe happened here is Gretchen Carlson noticed what the Senator had said and proceeded to prompt him in an effort to save the integrity he would have lost otherwise. Though I'm not entirely sure that Senator Inhofe was aware of all of this entirely. It would not surprise me that, had Gretchen Carlson not prompted him at that moment and at some future date some journalist asked Inhofe if that means he was less intolerant of other religions, he would say something that alludes to him not being tolerant of other religions and wanting Christianity to be the one everyone sees in public. I cannot say if this is accurate or not, but based upon what he has said here and previously, it would fit with his mode of thinking.

I also find it pathetic that he brings up the ever present idea of Christianity's martyrdom. That all the other religions are tolerated just fine but it is only the poor innocent Christians who have to take the beating. As any sane and non-biased individual can tell you, in the United States, and especially in the more conservative states such as Oklahoma, Christianity is in charge and often does all it can to keep it that way. Even if it means he has to squash the rights of others. For him to turn around and say ask "why is everyone picking on poor Christian me" while going about his office supporting bills to the Oklahoma Constitution that makes it illegal for same sex marriages to take place. Thus ensuring that his Christian doctrine is kept safe. As well as supporting such frivolous resolutions as the one banning those who think differently on the case of evolution from speaking (this is in reference to the proposition to ban Richard Dawkins from Oklahoma. His vote can be found under Resolution 1015). So it is clear by his actions that he feels like he and his fellow Christians are in charge. Yet he still pulls the martyr in an attempt to get his way. This kind of counter intuitive thought is one of the prime reasons why religion has no place in politics.

So I once again, apologize on behalf of every free thinking and rational person living in the state of Oklahoma. Not everyone in this state is a backwards thinking moron. We, sadly, just have enough of those underdeveloped individuals in our state to get people like Inhofe elected.

Fox news, ever the source of honest journalism...

For those of you who did not notice, the title is dripping with sarcasm. I'm sure most of my readers picked up on that, but I also know the intellectual aptitude of humanity at large; so I wanted to clarify. The title is in reference to this recent article put up on the Fox News website. I'll give you a chance to read through that great example of journalistic integrity.

I have the misfortune of currently living in the state where this event is unfolding. What you might immediately notice is Fox News' attempt to link the atheists who funded this billboard and satanists. Yes, the journalist who wrote this article is doing his best to make his audience of gullible readers think that atheists are in league with satanists. Now I personally know that satanism is not actually about worshiping the devil figure from Christian mythology but more about poking fun at the system and irritating the status quo. But your average Christian reader does not have the slightest inclination towards this fact. Most honestly believe that there are people out there who truly see Lucifer as their ruler and perform various horrible acts to gain favor with this imaginary character. I also know that Fox news is well aware of this fact as well and they are using it to stir up commotion and public outrage in the hopes of increasing their ratings and site hit counter.

So is there an actual connection between the Oklahoma Atheists and the satanist group? Kind of. The only link they have is that the satanist group rented part of the same building the atheist group will be using. Yes, that is the one and only link. So other then trying to get more of a reaction, there is absolutely no reason to even mention the satanist group who did not offer any funding for the billboard or are associated with the atheist group in any way.

In a strange twist, near the end of the article, there are a couple quotes from a local minister, Robin Meyers, who says "It's not the people who don't believe in God that worry me, it's some of the people who do" and "Fundamentalism is the enemy worldwide, no matter what the strain." I believe that Mr. Meyers and myself would have quite a few things that we would agree on. This heartens me quite a bit, to hear about religious moderates who are standing up against the more fundamental groups.

So in the end, we have another case of Fox news writing things in a way that will get them the most ratings; while laying their intellectual integrity down as a sacrifice to the ignorant hordes. If only such half-truths and bending of facts were punished instead of being rewarded by the masses.

A random insult at humanity.

The people who wear fanny packs are those who are so mediocre in absolutely every way that their existence has become an unending cycle of monotony and their only comfort in life rests in the knowledge that by wearing such an aesthetic monstrosity they might pull down those around them into the gaping maw of banality that they have no hope of ever escaping.