Religion, SF, and Other Speculative Fictions.


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Entries from September 2008

Spark: Atheist Moments on Colbert

September 20th, 2008 · by xJane · No Comments

Here. Including what atheists yell during sex, canoeing on a lake of fire for all eternity, the dangers of topiary, why we should have more atheists in the military, atheist storm troopers, the separation of church and town, the Gospel of Cadbury, and the Dead Faith Scrolls. (the second Dawkins vid is a duplicate) If [...]

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Tags: Art · Atheism · Book Reviews · Church and State · Creativity. · Dialog · Getting over Religion · Humor · Media and Design · Peace; conflict resolution. · Politics · Pop Culture · Reason · Religion · Skeptic · Spark · Video · Web 2.0

Spark: We Haven’t Linked to Cracked.com in a While

September 19th, 2008 · by xJane · 10 Comments

So here you go: “Orson Scott Card Wants YOU (To Rise Up Against The Gay Menace). Including such gems as To those to of you who haven’t read Ender’s Game by Orson Scott card, warning: two spoilers follow. Spoiler 1: Your childhood was incomplete. and You’ve spent your life imagining diverse races and cultures, and [...]

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Tags: Activism · Art · Atheism · Belief · Blogging · Church and State · Classic · Current Events · Dialog · Ethics · Feminism · Gay Rights and Queer Issues · Gender · Getting over Religion · Humanity · Humor · Mormon · Politics · Pop Culture · Reason · Religion · Science Fiction and Fantasy · Sexuality · Society · Spark

Microfinance: Food for Thought

September 18th, 2008 · by xJane · 1 Comment

Microfinance is the lending and borrowing of (relatively) small amounts of money. Generally, the lender is a (relatively) rich Westerner and the borrower a poor citizen of a developing country. And I don’t mean relatively poor; I mean abject poverty, where $25 to buy a goat means the difference between being able to feed your [...]

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Tags: Activism · Charities · Consumerism · Ethics · Feminism · Gender · Goals · Humanity · Links · Musings · Suggestion Box

on Living Abroad

September 18th, 2008 · by xJane · 4 Comments

I’ve always said that a few years abroad should be required for Americans. But recently, I’ve been meeting people who’ve spent those few years abroad but who remain remarkably closed-minded, and provincial. Maybe it’s mitigated by the years abroad, maybe the years abroad did nothing and they would have ended up this way anyway, or [...]

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Tags: Musings

Theocracy

September 17th, 2008 · by xJane · 7 Comments

*desperately trying to avoid typing “theoCRAZY!”* I missed this discussion at school, but have been seeing flyers for a forum on asylum law that state: HOW IMPORTANT IS YOUR FREEDOM OF RELIGION? [...] Come hear [asylum professionals] discuss asylum law and practice. In particular, they will discuss the plight of Christian converts in Iran and [...]

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Tags: Atheism · Belief · Charities · Christianity · Church and State · Depression · Ethics · Fiction · Getting over Religion · Gods · Islam · Judaism · Law · Musings · Personal · Politics · Reason · Religion · Skeptic · Society · Spiritual Progressives

Spark: Update from the Gay Marriage Files

September 17th, 2008 · by xJane · 7 Comments

California, post Supreme Court decision (that discrimination based on gender is discrimination), now uses marriage licenses that ask for the names of “Party A” and “Party B” to the marriage. As someone who still doesn’t feel like the word “wife” applies to her, I think this is pretty awesome. It is, however, causing waves. I [...]

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Tags: Activism · Atheism · Belief · Christianity · Church and State · Current Events · Dialog · Doubt · Feminism · Gay Rights and Queer Issues · Gender · Law · Links · Politics · Queries · Reason · Religion · Ritual · Sexuality · Society · Spark · Women

Spark: from the “heh” files

September 16th, 2008 · by xJane · 10 Comments

I know I’m not the only one to whom this has occurred before, but the Pope thinks secularists are too materialistic (unlike the Church, of course). Some great comments on this over at Pharyngula.

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Tags: Art · Atheism · Belief · Charities · Christianity · Church and State · Classic · Consumerism · Current Events · Doubt · Ethics · Fantasy · Getting over Religion · Justice · Politics · Religion · Simplicity · Skeptic · Society · Spark

Sparks: Palin & Feminism

September 16th, 2008 · by xJane · 1 Comment

Here are two great articles about the “feminism” espoused by Palin and, by extension, Republicans: McCain’s Feminist Mistake and Feminism without Feminism.

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Tags: Activism · Church and State · Current Events · Dialog · Ethics · Feminism · Gender · Getting over Religion · Politics · Reason · Spark · Women

In lieu of Music Monday…

September 15th, 2008 · by John · 6 Comments

It’s Live from Saturday Night! (h/t Lessie)

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Tags: Politics · Video · Women

a Jihad for Love

September 15th, 2008 · by xJane · No Comments

This is the trailer for a new movie, a Jihad for Love. I thought it was apropos given Prop 8′s drawing ever nearer. It is a story about the struggle of gay Muslims. I have added it to my Netflix queue, but if it comes out in the greater LA area, I’ll prolly get a [...]

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Tags: Activism · Art · Belief · Church and State · Current Events · Dialog · Feminism · Gay Rights and Queer Issues · Gender · Islam · Justice · Law · Links · Media and Design · Movies/Hollywood · Mysticism · Reason · Religion · Sexuality · Society · Spiritual Progressives