What do I have to do to get these people to issue a fatwa against me? What is so special about a handful of cartoonists in Sweden, the Netherlands and Britain? I drew a cartoon of Muhammad back on Everybody Draw Muhammad Day. Why am I not getting any love from the terrorists?
I hope I get better response from the Christians et. al. when I really let loose on Blashpemy day.
From the Wall Street Journal, Austin federal judge Sam Sparks has dismissed a suit by the Dallas-based Institute of Creation Research, which sought the right to grant a master’s degree in “science from a biblical perspective.” I’m sure they’ll study such interesting topics as:
Plants being created, growing and making fruit before there was any light for photosynthesis. (Genesis 1:11)
How you can get goats to have striped kids by putting striped sticks in front of them while they copulate. (Genesis 30:37)
What kind of bird a bat is. (Leviticus 11:13)
How birds used to have four feet. (Leviticus 11:20)
The amount of weight a unicorn can carry (Numbers 23:22)
And that’s just in the first three books! I bet there’s all kinds of scientificky stuff in there just waiting to be discovered!
My favorite part, though, is that the judge called the Institute of Creation Research group’s legal filings as “overly verbose, disjointed, incoherent, maundering and full of irrelevant information.” You know what that means? It means they submitted the Bible as a legal brief. Can you imagine anything more “verbose, disjointed, incoherent, maundering and full of irrelevant information” than the Bible?
The brother-in-law doesn’t think I should go to church with my wife. He thinks it’s the height of hypocrisy for me to even set foot in a church, Christian or otherwise. When I confronted him with the statistics that say, just within his own 2000+ member church, there could be anywhere from thirty to three hundred and twenty non-believers, he maintained his denial. There are no atheists in his church. Everyone believes.
Everyone.
Now I read this article and the attached research (PDF) showing that yes, even Protestant pastors who are still preaching from the pulpit, teaching Sunday school classes and counseling their flock can lose their faith. Of course, we already knew that, but this research by Dennett and Linda LaScola confirms it. I would like to think that this would shake the foundation of his (my brother-in-law) little world, but I doubt it. He’s made a way of life out of denial. This is the same guy who spends a couple of weeks each year with his family, trying to convert Catholics to Christianity in Guadalajara.
Yeah, I don’t think he’s going to let a little thing like facts get in the way of his unshakable beliefs.
In April of this year, U.S. District Court Judge (Western Wisconsin District) ruled that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional, and equated the 1952 and 1988 laws establishing the Day of Prayer as federally mandated calls for religious action. In so deciding, U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb wrote that the government can no more enact laws supporting a day of prayer than it can encourage citizens to fast during Ramadan, attend a synagogue or practice magic.
In fact, it is because the nature of prayer is so personal and can have such a powerful effect on a community that the government may not use its authority to try to influence an individual’s decision whether and when to pray.
Judge Crabb noted government involvement in prayer may be constitutional if the conduct serves a “significant secular purpose” and doesn’t amount to a call for religious action. I’m not sure where or in what capacity prayer could serve a “significant secular purpose” but a National Day of Prayer definitely doesn’t fit the bill.
It goes beyond mere ‘acknowledgment’ of religion because its sole purpose is to encourage all citizens to engage in prayer, an inherently religious exercise that serves no secular function in this context… In this instance, the government has taken sides on a matter that must be left to individual conscience.
The lawsuit against the federal government in 2008, filed by The Freedom From Religion Foundation, argued that the day violated the separation of church and state. Even though Crabb wrote that her ruling shouldn’t be considered a bar to any prayer days until all appeals are exhausted (and President Obama’s administration has already filed their intent to appeal) she has received an overwhelming amount of hate mail, including death threats, from angry Christians. Here’s a sample from Progressive.org (emphasis mine)
“Judge Crabb needs to be removed from her position,” wrote Bob Ferguson by e-mail. “She is a stupid bitch.”
Al Kafer of Cleveland, who described himself as a “70-year-old Vietnam vet,” addressed her as “Babs” and wrote: “We could give a damn what some INTELLECTUAL PYGMY in a skirt in cheeseland says.” And he added a P.S.: “We are no longer taking your shit anymore.”
“You mam [sic] are a disgrace to America,” wrote Michael Yeager. “Only an Anti-Christ individual would deny a national day of prayer. . . . Basically, you have committed treason against God who established our nation.”
John in Texas (jkcope5427@sbcglobal.net) wrote: “I will be praying God removes her from office.”
…
“Can you imagine what it will be like to live forever in Hell?” wrote David Lee (dflee10@inbox.com). “We have had enough of the Obamas of this world, and we plan on stopping them as we will also you.”
One anonymous letter, addressed “To the Dishonorable Barbara Crabb,” said: “You Barbie are a disgrace to this country just as Obama is. . . . Enjoy Hell, you will be there soon. I pray for your kids.”
Mrs. Eleni Rigual of Bedminster, New Jersey, called for “immediate impeachment.”
Roger Stapp sent an e-mail that said: “There should be a way to remove communist judges from our courts.”
Others told her to go into exile. “Please do this country of ours a huge favor and leave it,” wrote David Anderson (flightpro2@netzero.net).
And still others told her to find Jesus. Demanding that she must “repent,” B. Eric Culbertson added: “Put your faith and trust in what Jesus Christ did on the cross. The decision is yours, and it will have eternal consequences.”
Please take the time to write Judge Crabb a letter of support. As far as I know, the only way to contact Judge Crabb’s office is by snail mail (come on, you still know how to do this!) or by phone. Here’s the contact information:
Peter Oppeneer
Clerk of Court US District Court, Western District of Wisconsin
120 North Henry Street, Room 320
P. O. Box 432
Madison, WI 53701-0432
Office Hours and Telephone:
(608) 264-5156, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily except Saturdays, Sundays and federal holidays.
Freethinkers of all stripes need to be sure that we’re providing a counterpoint to the vitriol being spewed by the Religious Right. Buy a stamp or give the judge’s clerk a call. It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant. Just a short line of support. Here’s what I sent:
You get a gold star! Thank you so much for upholding the First Amendment by striking down as unconstitutional the National Day of Prayer. I’m so happy to hear that judges are still willing to judge a case on its constitutional basis, and not the whims of a religious majority. I know you’ve gotten a lot of hateful mail resulting from your decision, and I wanted to let you know that both you and the Bill of Rights have fans as well.
I’ve upgraded my blog to WordPress version 3.0. If you have any problem viewing the site, let me know so I can address it. I’m always a little wary about upgrading, but this one went off without a hitch…
I was born in Mobile, Alabama in 1969 and I've lived my entire life (so far) on the Central Gulf Coast. I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of South Alabama in 1992. Since 1993, I've worked as a graphic designer. I'm married, with two dogs, six cats and three mortgages. I primarily write about skepticism, free-thought, politics, atheism, separation of church and state, humor, science and my own personal experiences and issues.
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