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Richard Dawkins has a new new book out called the Magic of Reality. Doing the promotional rounds in the UK and the US must promote a certain amount of cognitive dissonance for Dawkins as the calibre of the questions he faces varies a great deal depending on which side of the Atlantic he’s on. Compare and contrast, my faithful readership, the two interviews conducted with Dawkins, one by the BBC and the other by Fox News.
As a North American, the second interview makes me ashamed to share the same continent with ‘commentators’ that espouse the merits of bronze age wisdom in the 21st century.
Keeping with the light blogging schedule, this is a repost from Alter.net about why the people of OWS are so ticked off and why they are protesting. Consider it a primer to help in understanding their positions.
1. Wall Street caused the crash: Unless you are suffering from financial amnesia, you should remember that it was Wall Street’s reckless gambling that did us in. It was Wall Street banks and hedge funds, not home buyers, who created the enormous demand for high-risk mortgages to pool, to securitize, and to turn into Ponzi-like gambling structures with names like CDOs, CDO squared and synthetic CDOs. It was the money-grubbing rating agencies that blessed these pieces of garbage with AAA ratings. As a result, trillions of dollars of worthless toxic assets polluted our financial system. When the bubble they induced burst, our system crashed, causing 8 million working people to lose their jobs in a matter of months due to no fault of their own. Anyone who still blames low-income home buyers, or regulations or Greece — or anyone other than Wall Street — should be checked for dementia.
2. The Wall Street crash directly caused the gravest unemployment crisis since the Great Depression: We’re three years into the worst jobs crisis since 1937. Upwards of 29 million people are out of work or have been forced into part-time jobs. The number of people who have been jobless for more than 26 weeks is at post-WWII record levels. And there’s no end in sight to this misery. Meanwhile, Wall Street’s representatives in Washington want us to focus on cutting public employment and public services to address the debt that Wall Street itself precipitated. WE wouldn’t have a debt crisis were it not for the bailouts, the crash, the lost jobs and the soaring cost of jobless benefits that can be laid at Wall Street’s door. (The debt was also caused by tax cuts for the rich, and the bankers certainly don’t want to talk about that.) For those diversionary debt tactics alone, Wall Street should be occupied until it pays to replace the jobs it destroyed.
3. Wall Street profited from the bailouts and remains unaccountable: Taxpayers provided trillions of dollars in cash and asset guarantees to the wealthiest bankers and hedge fund managers in the world. But nothing was extracted from them in return. Here’s one egregious example: Goldman Sachs paid $550 million in SEC fines for selling mortgage-related securities that were designed to fail so that a large hedge fund could bet against them. The securities failed as planned and the hedge fund pocketed $1 billion in profits. But after we bailed out AIG, Goldman Sachs picked up nearly $12 billion for similar bets that AIG had insured. Goldman Sachs collected 100 cents on the dollar and those dollars were ours.
4. The super-rich are getting richer: When the economy was crashing during 2008, high frequency traders in hedge funds and banks made upwards of $20 billion from the turmoil. This trading scam provided no redeeming value to our economy. Rather, it was a hidden tax on our sorrows — a transfer of funds from the many to the few. In 2010 the top hedge fund managers “earned” over $2 million an HOUR! The top 25 hedge fund managers took in as much as 650,000 teachers. Young people have the right to question these lopsided values. All of us have the duty to do something about it.
5. The super-rich are paying lower and lower taxes: While the government pleads poverty when asked to create a massive jobs program, our financial elites use every loophole available to avoid taxes. In 1995, the 400 wealthiest families paid about 30 percent of their income in taxes (after all deductions). Today their effective rate is less than 16 percent. And for what? What did society gain from their retained wealth? Not jobs, not debt reduction, only more Wall Street gambling.
Hard to find an image that has a postive portrayal of Socialism. Thanks to the sadly misinformed USA.
Having been pointed to a neat new site called Remapping Debate by Intransigentia, I’m please to share the treasure trove of fact laden articles with my fair readership here. Denmark is a social-democratic state, it believes in protecting its people and prioritizing the needs of a healthy society ahead of the corporate greed and unsustainable money cycling that so is so typical of the US and sadly, Canada.
Remapping Debate – Sept. 7, 2011 —
“While liberal and conservative pundits alike in the United States have long been issuing fatalist warnings about the “unsustainability” of the European welfare state, business leaders and economists in Denmark — a country with one of the most generous welfare states in the world — insist that, in fact, it is the U.S. model that may prove to be a dead end.
“If you come back five years from now, I guarantee that the welfare state is going to be even larger,” Ove Kaj Pedersen, an economist at the Copenhagen Business School, said in an interview in Copenhagen last month. “Why? Because for Denmark, the welfare state is our main competitive advantage.”
“Business Interest Organizations” in Denmark — whose analogues in the United States have long pushed for deregulation, lower taxes, less government spending, and less generous social benefits — agree with Pedersen: “There is a general consensus about the welfare state in Denmark,” said Steen Muntzberg, director of the Confederation of Danish Employers, which advocates on behalf of over 28,000 businesses in Denmark. “We have come to see it as a crucial part of what makes us competitive in the global economy. There is some debate around the margins, but it would be hard to find companies who don’t support the bulk of government programs.”
Stine Bosse, who until recently served as the group chief executive officer of TrygVesta, Denmark’s largest insurance company, and now serves on the board of several Danish companies, described a “symbiotic relationship” between the private and public sector in Denmark: “It’s obvious that in Denmark, both the public and business leaders regard the state as a partner,” she said. “A strong state is not just something you have to live with…it’s something we reckon is pretty important, a positive thing for business.”
Denmark and its Nordic neighbors have developed a distinctive response to the pressures caused by globalization[aka profiteering by transnational corporations] by combining relative flexibility in the labor market with strong social security provided by the state into a system they call “flexicurity.”
According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Denmark has some of the loosest requirements in the world when it comes to an employer’s ability to hire and fire workers, (though on the OECD’s scale, it still provides eight times as much security as the U.S. does)…. “
You see, society can be structure to work for the benefits of all the people in a country. It is not some vague theoretical concept but a successful, working venture. The state, public and private industry working together to make a strong, healthy and competitive society. It can be done, and is being done. Is it perfect? Of course not, but it is a viable alternative to the the rapine corporate oligarchic system in the US and the one we are lurching toward in Canada.
Find and read the rest of this article here.
Well, not charity in the most traditional sense of the word, but in the sense of regarding arguing with people about ideas and reaching a conclusion or at least more of a mutual understanding of what the other is saying. Inauspiciously, this rarely seems to happen on the internet, as the sectarian nature of the blogosphere and related message boards promote groupthink and a sad lack of charity for opposing ideas.
We can put it into context of the further train wreck of misplaced skepticism about the theory of evolution. My thanks to tildeb for hosting such a informative and useful blog. In the comment section of his article on “Why god’s law must be secondary” we get this gem of comment from 4amzingkids.
If humans evolved from apes or ape-like creatures, when did this happen? And which creatures were involved at that important point? With more than 5000 fossils or fossil fragments of apes, chimps, and humans allegedly showing stages of human evolution, which ape-like animal had enough human characteristics for us to say “this one has just crossed the boundary from ape to human”?
Homo habilis — it’s actually an apeThe short answer is “it never happened,” and the fossils show this.
Lets break down the argument.
1.Humans do not look like apes now.
2. At some point, if evolution is true, we must have changed from “ape” to human.
3.There have been no fossils found of this mysterious half-ape/half-man.
4.Therefore, evolution is wrong.
If, by chance, you are following the theme of this post so far, you know exactly where this is going. Not that we have not seen this before. But for the record, one should be clear. When constructing an argument about a position you do not agree with it is vitally important that you undertake your argument with the strongest version, best defended, most venerated definition of what you are arguing against. In other words, you need to argue against what the BEST version of what an opponent has to offer and not misrepresent or misinterpret what he or she is saying.
This sounds easy. In practice it is not. A great deal of care and attention is required to be charitable to others when arguing with them. The tendency is to construct a version of their position that is weaker than it is and argue against this flawed version. It is also known as constructing a straw-man argument because the arguments you are so handily demolishing are set up by you with the sole purpose of being easy to demolish. Setting up strawmen makes you look bad and rarely furthers debate as you end up arguing with yourself, rather than with the actual positions of your opponent.
Scroll up? Can you spot the strawman construction in 4amzingkids argument? Most people could find the flaw just by going to wikipedia and looking up Evolution.
“2. At some point, if evolution is true, we must have changed from “ape” to human.”
A true grey peppered moth on a tree covered in soot. Point 2 shows a distinct lack of knowledge of what evolution actually is and how it works. If one is to do only a cursory reading of the layperson’s literature about evolution it can be easily determined that Evolution is partially defined as the gradual change in species over time. So of course there is no “half and half” fossil available because one never existed because evolution does not work that way. Whoops!
It is even worse if you base your entire argument on a flawed assumption of what your opponents position actually is. The religious are famous for mischaracterizing their enemies in such fashion.
The idea that religion is harmless and that it is good for people, is patently false.
The raging torrent of evil shit that religion is responsible for claims more victims every second we allow magical thinking to be acceptable and “OK” in our society. It is a double header today, two videos for the price of one post.
Magical thinking kills children. Belief in god kills children. Christianity when insulated far enough away from the light of reason, kills children. Here is one instance, this child died surrounded by adults who were praying to god to restore her to health. She fracking had diabetes. Diabetes is a treatable condition with access to medical treatment.
But no. That is a little too sane. A little too rational.
The father testified in court that he thought “God would heal his daughter…”
The mother, a good ‘christian’ woman was also convicted and could face up to 25 years for her ignorance along with her husband. Send them away for 100 years, it does not matter as the damage is already done. The child is dead because her parents were mired in wilful religious ignorance. They were living in a foolish bronze age delusion that encourages belief in magic and myth at the expense of the real and the rational.
Our tour de force of religious stupidity limps onward. First on the agenda the book called “To Train up a Child” by Michael and Debi Pearl(their website has ‘mysteriously gone 404, since their book was instrumental in the death and torture of children, go figure). This ‘child rearing book’ prescription for the torture and abuse of children is an absolute travesty and prima facie evidence for how religion cloaks itself in morality while advocating the exact opposite.
Want to see evil in action? Let’s grab a review from Christianbook.com. (TW for ignorance and sadism)
“I recommend this book to everyone who has children! (Obviously, because child abuse is not rampant enough, let’s get those numbers going through the roof! This manual advocates beating your child until they comply. Not a little ‘swat’ but laying into your child until they are crying and cowering so they know you mean ‘business’. The second video in this post is about two fine christians who adopted children and then proceeded to beat one of them to death using the tried and true “biblical methods” described in this book.)
We lost the true understanding of discipline, and became so weak minded and selfish that we’ve produced spoiled, winning, uncontrolled “adults.” “Guiding” a child isn’t enough; and you don’t guild a child, you guild an adult. (Ah, so apparently torturing and beatings are will cure behavioural problems straight up. This gets even more atrocious as this religious fuck-wit cites verse to perversely back up her child abusing ways.)
“The rod is to guide, not hit” is strictly unbiblical. (Feeling the mercy and compassion of the bible already, I know I am. )
If your a christain the bible clearly instructs us to use the rod, ” Withhold not correction from the child; for if thou BEATEST him with the ROD, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with the ROD, and shalt deliver his soul from hell (Prov 23:13-14).” “He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chastenth him betimes (Prov. 13.24).” “The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child let to himself bringeth his mother to shame(Prov. 29:15).” “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child: but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him (Prov 22:15).” How can you misinterpet that? (Jesus-fuck, how indeed could you misinterpret that? I mean other than using your rationality and moral instincts to identify that the abuse and torture of children is wrong, how could you?)
It’s mind boggling how children act these days.. so unruly, so disrespectful to parents. We need to go back to the old time discipline, (biblical) and STOP listening to people with “degrees.”(Because careful study and observation of behaviour has been a complete write-off. Yes, let us stop looking to science for answers because the bible knows better, let us get back to beating our kids so they fear us.)
Obviously, how they “think” our child should be raised isn’t working too well. (Back in the real world, the lessons children learn from violence are evident: fear of authority, blind obedience, might makes right. Definite boons to society no? ) People need to have more children ( you need to have less, you ignorant fool), then they’ll understand. Our children is our future ( Not the ones, trained like yours, to use violence to obtain their goals ).
I am from a family of 9 children. I have 4 children 6years old and under. We read and applied “To Train up a Child” and it worked marvelously ( Violence, coercion and intimidation are always effective in the short term. I’m sure the psychological scarring won’t be too too bad, maybe all of your children won’t turn out to be as abusive as you.) People always commit on how well our children behave! ( As they comment on your ability to write, reflecting your tenious grasp on reality ) They are HAPPY scared shitless and so fun to be around, and we are planning to have more ( Once you get the torture-a-go-go rockn’ you just can’t stop!)!
I will be ordering multi copies because people are always asking where they can get a copy. It’s a short, easy read and straight to the point. (Child abuse is good) This book helps you to understand and apply what the bible teaches. ( how to abuse people and scar them for life, religion the gift that keeps on giving. ) If you want to produce responsible, respectful, obedient, happy, loving children this book is defiently a must!!!” (…)
Written by a true believer… But hey who am I to comment on this? I am an avowed atheist and perhaps my treatment of this issue has not been charitable. Lets see this book in action:
They only beat her for 7 hours before she died.
Read that again. If you’re not feeling a little (or a lot) sick to your stomach by now, you have a problem, because you’re not grasping the enormity of the evil being perpetrated here. These people, backed by their particular religious nonsense, tortured to death an innocent child. There is no morality to be found in religion.
I point to QualiaSoup’s assertion on what morality actually is: “Empathy, Experience, Reason and Knowledge – When we KNOW better, we can DO better. It does not get any more straightforward than this. Religion is a barrier to knowing better and therefore has no place in any rational system of morals. How many more grievous examples do we need before we can finally say that religion is an (ongoing) atrocity and a putrid stain on humankind that needs to be banished for the good of the species?
I just keep posting about gender inequality, others say pfffff! what the heck I am talking about….
Until the idea that inequality exists and that it is a problem,then there really is not much to discuss now, is there?
Your musty christian tome says a lot of neat stuff. Let’s see, if we did not get to cherry pick the morality that suits us, what we would have to do. But then again, consistency is not really a big part of belief now is it?
Thank you to Dammit Janet for the video link.
bleatmop
Mystro
Dead Wild Roses 
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