If you want any solid proof that a Pope is as flawed, ignorant and uneducated as the rest of us, look no further than Benedict XVI. When he isn’t busy making controversial statements about Islam, he likes to take a breather by trying to dismantle Evolution by means of Natural Selection by perpetually pointing at dusty old tomes. His latest blunder comes care of an off collar remark asking: “[h]ow many of these people are there today? These people, fooled by atheism, believe and try to demonstrate that it’s scientific to think that everything is free of direction and order.” Ratzinger is not a complete fool; although he lacks any training and understanding of evolution, he knows enough to realize that it seriously undermines the role of his creator god, which therefore puts his cushy job in jeopardy.

For the Vatican, it’s a departure from John Paul II comments claiming that evolution was more than a theory, and was not incompatible with Christianity. In July, Austrian Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn said that the Jon Paul’s statements were “vague and unimportant”, and himself backed the notion that a designer must have been responsible for the complexity of the Universe.

I don’t know about you, but I’m personally sick and tired of priest, cardinals and popes (the vast majority of them having no scientific training whatsoever) telling every scientist that they are wrong the natural world. These are the same men that devote their entire lives to the study of the supernatural, which by definition can never be measured, or even properly understood. Never mind the fact that two Popes, who are supposed to be the infallible avatars of God, never seem to agree on anything; the simple fact is that their authority extends no further than their own secluded belief structure. The very act of trying to extend their sophisticated form of fantasizing to the natural world only demonstrates their own hubris. These people may have power and influence, but if those in power still determined the truth, we would never have escaped the hell of the Dark Ages.

Benedict XVI should go back to the one activity that does absolutely no harm: praying. Since it’s a well demonstrated fact that prayer has no effect whatsoever, at least he can stop meddling in affairs that don’t concern him. If someone wants to know how many angels, fairies, or dragons can fit on the end of a pin, then they can give him a call. Otherwise, for any questions concerning the real world, don’t have him on your speed dial.

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Some people love the Bible. They receive a form of comfort every time they read a passage they like, and for the most part, it’s a fairly innocuous habit. We should not forget, however, that the Bible, when taken as a whole, is an inadequate moral guide for modern society. Kenneth Cummings Jr. learned that lesson only too well, as he lay dying in his home in Pearland, Texas. His murderer, Mark Magnum, who hunted and killed Ken, did so out of piety and love for God. Having read the bible for “thousands and thousands of hours” gave Magnum the confidence and resolve to end the life of a loving son and uncle, who’s only “crime” was that of homosexuality.

The tragedy, of course, is that this sort of incident is not an isolated one. The percentage of hate crimes based on sexual orientation is increasing, and as fundamentalism continues to rise in America, no doubt tragic cases such as this will occur more frequently.

Although many people will simply dismiss Magnum as a mentally deranged individual, the truth is that much of his delusions and hatred was fueled by his powerful religious convictions. Legislators in the US have talked for years about trying to reduce the level of violence in movies and videogames in order to curb violent crime, but have failed to realize that their own religions contain passages so brutal and dehumanizing that any modern media pales in comparison. You would be hard pressed to find, of course, any of these same politicians willing to ban the distribution of their favorite holy book (nor should any ban on books ever be imposed).

The truth is that most moderate believers take the Bible with a grain of salt. They have no choice but to ignore many of the “words” of God, for the simple fact that the actions and behaviors of even the most revered Biblical characters are, at times, highly repugnant. Of course, if the characters were regarded as mythical rather than real, their ability to negatively influence others would become as limited as any other discarded mythologies. No one emulates the behaviors and actions of Hercules or Achilles, and nor should they. The stories obviously reflect a far simpler level of moral sophistication.

The real problem is that Mark Magnum’s delusion and violent fantasies may have been properly diagnosed had he not hidden them under the cloak of religious piety. It only goes to show that insanity and mania can often be indistinguishable from religious fundamentalism. The protective blanket of religion, which shields itself from external criticism, is therefore a perfect refuge for psychotic murderers looking for any excuse to deprive other human beings of their right to live.

source: the houston chronicle http://www.chron.com

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There are some people who behave in such a strange manner, and believe in such terrifyingly silly things, that you have to take a moment in your day to see for yourself the depth of man’s delusions. This week, an interesting video was presented to me, where a supposed expert makes his predictions as to the relative size of heaven. His conclusion: that Heaven is about 7,000,000 times bigger then New York.

At first I wasn’t sure if this was some silly prank or hoax, considering not only the strange production value and the robotic movements of the host, but also the rather bold conjectures he makes. Did you know everyone gets a mansion in Heaven? I’s a good thing to; where else are you supposed to sleep and have breakfast?

The special effects are so ludicrous, I’m still not sure whether this isn’t an elaborate prank pulled on everyone. Nothing this bad can be real, right? Each minute is stranger then the next, as a 32 inch little person trolleys forward on her miniscule wheelchair, declaring that in heaven, her body will allow her to walk. She then proceeds to sing a rather creepy little jig in a voice reminiscent of Alvin the Chipmunk.

The crescendo of silliness is finally ended with a plea to consider our plans for eternity. What are you going to do if you’re crushed in an earthquake by the merciful hands of the Almighty? Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m barely able to plan a weekend, let alone an eternity of stuff to do. Such a long period of time to fill with activity would undoubtedly require a significant portion of my life to arrange, and at best, I could hope to account for only a few thousand years of fun. I certainly hope Heaven has an activity planner, or else things might get boring pretty damn quick!

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I’m not an American. I live in Canada, and although our two nations share many things in common, our views of liberty and patriotism differ significantly. This difference is rooted in the past, and how our countries gained their independence. For Canadians, the sovereignty of our nation took the form of endless negotiation. By the time our country was properly formed, some 140 years ago, the British Empire’s stranglehold on the world was already starting to wane. The principles of the Enlightenment had a powerful influence on politicians on both sides of the Atlantic, and as a result, the British realized that human beings could not effectively be colonized and deprived of the right to decide for themselves how they should live.

Canada was not dominated by fierce independents; instead, we developed a tradition of cooperation and diplomacy that is still the hallmark of our country today. Part of that diplomatic skill lays also on the fact that few Canadians are fanatically patriotic. Although there are still many people who display their flags proudly, this nation thrives on the fact that we cannot be easily moved into a frenzy simply through the utterance of patriotic rhetoric. It is also of paramount importance that Canadians continue to re-evaluate their values and ideals as the realities of the world change around them.
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Some of you may recall a story I featured a few weeks ago about a children’s television show staring a high pitched voiced Mickey Mouse rip-off, who encouraged children to fight Israel. Amid international pressure, the producers finally decided to drop the character, but not before adding their own little psychotic twist by martyring him.

We’re all aware that there are organized indoctrination campaigns all across the Middle East designed to create generations of suicide bombers. To succeed, they rely on two important tactics in their efforts to turn human beings into walking bombs: (1) they target the weak, young, vulnerable, and uneducated to do their bidding, and (2) they rely on the mechanism of blind faith as a tool for mindless obedience. What better targets than children, since they have all the necessary requirement?

Violent rhetoric doesn’t rely on subtlety to be effective. In the case of Farfour, the creepy mascot of religious intolerance, his final skit involved an Israeli soldier beating him to death while attempting to usurp him from his land. His teenage co-host, a young woman whose soft smiling face belied a cold and calculating grin, explained how Farfour’s demise was the result of his defending Palestine, a clear message that a peaceful compromise in Israel was not on the mouse’s mind.

Luckily, not everyone in Palestine was content with the show’s violent and malicious message. Many segments of the population are peaceful individuals, desperate for a compromise that would allow them to live in harmony and peace with their neighbors. It’s difficult to imagine, however, how such a thing is possible when characters like Farfour are given access to young and impressionable minds. The future of both Palestine and Israel will forever be compromised so long as zealots are allowed to incense children to violence and murder. I can only hope that unlike his North American counterpart, he will fade into obscurity, a forgotten memory of a desperate and turbulent time.

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