Losing My Religion

I hate religion.  I am disgusted when people promote or defend religion.  I dispair when people express even vaguely 'spiritual' beliefs.  Why on earth would believe in a sky fairy?  Sadly, in recent years religion has become increasingly prominent in British public life.

My consolation is that the term 'recent years' chronologically speaking is a tremendously parochial term.  Obviously the human race is becoming increasingly secularist.  What else would it do with hundreds of years of intellectual development?  "Oh well, we know there is this thing called 'science' that has given us all of the benefits that we experience constantly, but nevertheless we'll choose to regress to an earlier time of ignorance".  No, reason will win the day.  But for short bursts, superstition appears to gain the upper hand.  And, despite the bigger picture, that makes me sad.

Consolation?  That very few people actually believe the crap spouted by the men in dresses.  They just become more... tolerant to it.  Especially when the prevailing public mood is negative (thanks George; thanks UKIP).

So come on people, cheer me up.  Tell Cameron that you're not going to fall for his Big Society bollocks.  That religion should not get tax breaks.  That you want policy based on reason, not magic.

Hey Hey We're The Monkees

Now that the poppy charity collectors have disappeared, the Pudsy brigade are out in force.  I had to run the gauntlet of guilt and shame in Euston Station this morning by not giving a contribution to any of the numerous bucket rattlers.

However, there was a man collecting at Mansion House tube station for this:

http://www.orangutan.org.uk/

which I thought was dedicated and brave, given the emotional blackmail emanating from the massed ranks of Children In Need collectors (most of whom, incidentally, I assume are good people acting for what they consider are all the very best reasons).

It’s always also worth noting that the Government should be funding Children In Need’s UK causes, and world governments should be funding their 3^rd world causes.  In other words the wealthy and big business should be paying their share, rather than relying on the regressive taxation of charity giving (as we all know, the poor contribute more proportionately than the rich to charity, therefore any charity that should reasonably be funded by Government is, in fact, a regressive form of tax).  Uncomfortable as this is, the Conservative Government, the wealthy and large corporations are delighted whenever you give to charity.  It delays for another day the time when they have to pay just a little more tax.

The apes of Asia are unlikely to get any material support from government. So I gave the orangutan man what change I had and in doing so noticed that his collection box was empty.  I guess people had already given their money to more high profile causes.

 

Mutter

Apparently the Republic of Ireland would rather let a healthy young woman die than terminate a foetus of dubious viability.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20321741

Ah, how I dispise all those bastards in the Catholic hierarchy that think this is an acceptable state of affairs.  No country is perfect, but the imposition of medieval superstitions on a modern western country would be shocking beyond belief, were it not a widely recognised fact.

When will the Irish grow up and demand that abortion is legalised?  Surely it can't be long, given the rapid decline in religious belief in Ireland and across the world.  Tragically it will be too late for Praveen Halappanavar, whose young wife is dead.

Standing In The Way Of Control

I expect the blogosphere (i.e. the bits of it that other people actually read) is awash with outrage that Islamist Abu Qatada cannot be deported form the UK to Jordan.

Certainly that is my gut reaction.  I despise what Qatada supposedly stands for - superstitious beliefs, enforced compliance with those beliefs on others, suppression of women, wearing silly clothes.  I'd prefer that he wasn't in my country.

However, Qatada is clearly being demonised to satisfy a national craving for hatred of 'the other'.  Reading the BBC's summary*, a slightly more balanced appraisal than you may find in most print media, Qatada:

"emerged as a key voice in the Islamist movement in London..." which, unless we want to restrict freedom of expression, is fine;

"... which advocated strict Islamic government in Muslim countries..." I have a problem with this, but again, freedom of speech;

"... and armed struggle against despots and foreign invaders."  Sounds like a terrorist, right?  But how would you describe the German or French resistance during World War II?

"He was tried and found guilty in his absence of terrorism offences in Jordan in 1999."  It would be nice to hear some details around this, but I think it is safe to assume that the Jordanian courts are capable of passing political judgements as opposed to ones based entirely on jurisprudence.

So lets have a think about this.  Qatada, as far as we can tell (and the British Government has not acted against him), has committed no crimes in the UK.  He undoubtedly has some unpleasant beliefs and (I assume) would like to impose his backward, medieval superstitions on the rest of us.  However, the only intelligent criminal objection we can raise against him is that the Jordanians want him.  And we'd trust their legal system as far as we can throw it (how would YOU feel about facing  a murder charge in Amman?)

Is outrage really the most appropriate response?  Haven't the European Court and, most recently, SIAC actually made the right decision in ruling that Qatada may not get a fair trial in Jordan and, by extension, should not be deported?

Isn't it possible to despise what Qatada stands for and still be proud that British (and European) justice has prevailed in this case?

Or shall we just be angry that the black man is still in our country?

* some may say that the BBC is a leftist propoganda machine that 'is racist against white people'.  Those people are morons.  I actually read that the other day - 'racist against white people'.  The writer appeared oblivious to the fact that the BBC is run by middle-aged, middle-class white men.  Those who accuse it of left-wing bias have apparently never read The Times, The Financial Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Daily Mail, The Daily Express or The Sun.  Or watched Dragon's Den, or the multitude of other programmes on the Beeb that implicitly or explictly support the capitalist status quo.  I assume that, as sentient moral beings, John Humphreys and Jeremy Paxman have socially-liberal and economically-conservative leanings in their private lives, but to accuse them and their colleagues of left-wing bias in their professional lives is stupid and contrary to the mass of daily evidence.

Tears Of A Clown

I see that Romney supporters were booing and boo-hooing when it became clear that Obama had been re-elected.

Of course, I would expect Democrats to be distraught had the result been reversed.  However, when there is such a public display (and they were doing it for the cameras) of dismay from the GOP's side I can't help wondering whether this was the 1% that would have benefitted massively from a Romney reign.  Or were they members of the 99% that would have continued to be fucked sideways by the Republican establishment's particular version of the American dream, and just too stupid to realise they are like turkeys voting for Christmas.

I do find it funny/exasperating that the American people are so cynical about politicians and yet so many of them continue to vote for a party that blatantly tells the biggest lie of them all - 'redistribution of wealth from the masses to the elite will be good for the masses'.  What is it about that formulation that they just don't get?  They bandy around the phrases trumpeted by right demagogues... 'supply side'.... 'trickle down'.... as if these idealist concepts actually carried any weight against the contrary evidence of 32 years of disastrous economic desertification.

To those people who were booing the President of the USA, I say rejoice!  You've dodged a bullet.  You actually have a President who will try and help the 99%, rather than fucking them sideways.  Isn't that a cause for celebration?  Or are you simply sociopathic members of the 1%... a fucker rather than a fuckee?