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White Radical Evangelicals Get a Pass

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 20:14:24 GMT

clipped by: dulios
clipper's remarks: "Thus, white evangelical Ministers are free to advocate American wars based on Biblical mandates, rant hatefully against Islam, and argue that natural disasters occur because God hates gay people...By contrast, black Muslim ministers like Farrakhan, or even black Christian ministers like Rev. Jeremiah Wright, are held with deep suspicion, even contempt. McCain is free to hug and praise the Rev. Hagees of the world, but Obama is required to prove over and over and over and over that he does not share the more extreme views of black Ministers."

Clip Source: www.salon.com

Some hateful, radical ministers -- white evangelicals -- are acceptable

Yesterday, though, the equally fringe, radical and hateful (at least) Rev. John Hagee -- a white evangelical who is the pastor of a sprawling "mega-church" in Texas -- enthusiastically endorsed John McCain.

Here is just a small sampling of the belief system of this welcomed McCain supporter:

* All Muslims are programmed to kill and we can thus never negotiate with any of them.

* God caused Hurricane Katrina to wipe out New Orleans because it had a gay pride parade the week before and was filled with sexual sin.

* The End Times -- Rapture -- is imminent and the U.S. Government must do what it can to hasten it, which at minimum requires: (a) a war with Iran and (b) undying, absolute support for a unified Israel, including all Occupied Territories

Tags: mccain, obama, farrakhan, hagee, black ministers, white ministers

Endorsing Self-Delusion Over Truth

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 13:58:54 GMT

clipped by: BartendingBear
clipper's remarks: Interesting thoughts.

Clip Source: www.esquire.com

Of all the overrated things in the world -- sex on the beach, John Updike -- the most overrated is the Truth. The Truth has its uses, yes, but it should be approached with extreme caution. Especially when dealing with self-knowledge, the Truth can be a soul-sapping drag.

My love of delusion crystallized when I learned about a psychological theory called depressive realism. This holds that the people with the most accurate view of the world are the clinically depressed. Studies show they have a correct perception of how much they control the outcome of events -- namely, very little. (Not all scientists buy this theory; but they’re probably just deluded.)

We need this false bravado more than ever. Deep down, I believe planet Earth is in the worst shape in human history. I really do think that we are living in the End Times.

But I’m going to remain in denial and do what I can. It’s the only slim chance we have of saving this doomed -- make that resilient -- world.

Shamefull Religious Intollerance

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 01:51:25 GMT

clipped by: ouyangwulong
clipper's remarks: That people would be so transparently discriminatory is honestly surprising to me, although it shouldn't be.

There is no right to force non-Christians to recite Christian prayers in American public schools. There is no right to put God in the plege. Just like I have no right to force Christians to leave offerings before the statues of the Buddha.

But don't get me wrong. This isn't about Christianity. Christianity no where condones this abhorrent and intolerant behavior.

This is about the power of discrimination, and it is an addictive social phenomenon. These people would do the exact same thing with another religion. Christianity was just the most convenient vehicle for their hatred at the time.

Apparently we still need to change a lot about our society before we can live with our neighbors in peace.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

School Board to Pay in Jesus Prayer Suit

A Delaware school district has agreed to revise its policies on religion as part of a settlement with two Jewish families who had sued over the pervasiveness of Christian prayer and other religious activities in the schools.

One family said it was forced to leave its home in Georgetown because of an anti-Semitic backlash.

At Samantha’s high school graduation in 2004, a minister’s prayer proclaiming Jesus as the only way to the truth nudged Mrs. Dobrich to ask the school board to consider more generic and less exclusionary prayers, she said.

Her son, Alex, then 11, had written a short statement that said in part: “I feel bad when kids in my class call me ‘Jew boy.’ I do not want to move away from the house I have lived in forever.”

After the family received threats, Mrs. Dobrich said, she and Alex moved to Wilmington. Her husband, Marco, stayed in his local job to make sure that the family had health insurance.

Tags: intollerance, antisemitism, christianity, judaism, descrimination, religion, evangelism

Adult Brains Wired to Go Ga-Ga Over Babies

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:32:27 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: So when does the change happen that causes some to mistreat children the way they do.

Clip Source: dsc.discovery.com

Makes You Go 'Aw'

Feb. 27, 2008 -- The urge to cuddle and coo when presented with a baby turns out to be an innate response prompted, at least in part, by the structure of an infant's face, according to new research that actually shows how this baby love process works in adult brains.

The finding could explain many behaviors, including why adults connect with babies, why most parents immediately gravitate to their kids and why many men appear to be attracted to women with baby-like features.

All elicit an attraction and parental brain response beginning in the medial orbitofrontal cortex, which is at the front of the brain just over our eyeballs, the new study, published in this week's PLoS ONE, determined.

"The brain activity in the orbitofrontal cortex could help us pay more attention, protect and cuddle the infant," lead author Morten Kringelbach told Discovery News.