I Really Like The Candidate!

I really like the candidate
I really like his views
His positions on the issues are the ones that I would choose!
I really like the candidate
I’m thinking it’s a sign
Her slogans at the rally were identical to mine!
I really like the candidate
I’m following the bus!
We’re going to take the nation back for those who think like us!
I really like the candidate
I can’t believe my luck
What a miracle I came across another stupid fuck.

So… when Irene dumped rain on ground that had already been saturated, the result was calamity. I’m thinking that A) the primary states have already been saturated with political bullshit, and B) it’s just the beginning of political shitstorm season.

Expect calamity.

Headline Muse 8/28

“Keep the rum, give me straight Dr Pepper”
Said the decade-long-sober 12-stepper
She’s an atheist, too,
Which may counter the view
That A.A. sees the godless as leper

Headline: My Faithlessness: The atheist way through AA

Ok, not a headline, but from CNN’s Belief Blog. Hey, I only just got power back; any port in a storm.

AA (that’s Alcoholics Anonymous, not American Atheists) has never quite seen eye to eye with AA (that’s American Atheists, not Alcoholics Anonymous) due to the former’s explicit references to a god or higher power. This article is a really nice, if brief, story of an atheist who decided not to throw away a source of help just because she disagreed fundamentally with their axiomatic assumptions.

I like this. It views AA (the first) functionally, by what it does, rather than by what it claims. By the same token, we can see the social functions of many nominally religious institutions (hospitals, kitchens, etc.). Yes, the good that they do is due to their hard work, like it is for all of us. They can pray like theists, so long as they work like atheists.

It’s An Empirical Question

I’m looking for some funding, if you’re willing to invest—
Cos it’s time for us to figure out whose praying works the best.
See, we’re getting rid of FEMA, and we’ve got to find a way
To respond to things like hurricanes. The answer is, to pray.
Can we influence the weather? Can we turn away a storm?
In a blizzard in the winter, can we keep the homeless warm?
Can we pray us up some batteries, some candles, and some food?
Can we pray for stronger windowpanes, or are we simply screwed?
We’ll pray away the damage, and we’ll pray to clear the roads
We’ll pray the roofs are strong enough to tolerate the loads

… Just lost power for a moment, so if anybody cares,
Gotta cut this short and post it, cos I gotta say my prayers.

So, yeah, we did just lose power for a bit, so this may be the beginning of radio silence for me for a while. If comments take a bit to get approved, that’s the reason.

Aaaaaand then we lost power again, for about half an hour, one sentence before I could post this. And it’s early still. So up this goes. See you tomorrow, I suspect.

Stay safe–prepare like an atheist!

Ceremonial Deism

The Republican candidates have, of late, put me in mind of “ceremonial deism“.

Atheists are sometimes accused of making mountains out of molehills, of making a big deal out of the pledge of allegiance or “in god we trust” when there are bigger fish to fry. Really, though, it seems to me that it is the handful of god-bothering republican candidates who are keeping a trivial god in the public eye.

I am reminded of the following, from the old blog:

The motto is “In God We Trust”;
Display it everywhere, we must!
In doing so, recall, it’s just
A hollow little phrase.
It’s on our money, even though
It lost religion long ago—
Rote repetition made it so
It’s meaningless these days.

If you’re like me, you find it odd
That those who claim to love their god
Would fight to keep this cheap façade,
Especially on money!
But now, in congress, start the fight
To grow the phrase in public sight—
Replacing God with new “God lite”
You must admit, it’s funny

Remember Teddy Roosevelt
Opposed the motto, cos he felt
It sacrilege to put on gelt,
Insulting the creator
But that was then, and this is now;
We’ll push our god; we don’t care how,
With every method we allow.
And jobs? Well, maybe later.

According to CNN, the crazy season is upon us the House Judiciary Committee has scheduled a vote this thursday, reaffirming “In God We Trust” as our national motto. The Supreme Court has held that ceremonial use of religious language does not constitute a violation of the establishment clause, in cases where rote repetition has rendered the language meaningless.

That is, the phrase is legal if it is meaningless. If lawmakers wish to argue that “In God We Trust” actually refers to their particular choice of god, their usage would apparently violate the First Amendment.

Of course, the real motivation is likely to be considerably more secular; the brilliant legal mind of Michele Bachmann, with the tenacity and quickness of a barnacle, has latched onto President Obama’s use of E Pluribus Unum as more representative of our nation. It is, of course, more inclusive, and less pandering toward any particular religious view. Which makes it utterly unacceptable to Bachmann.

Plus, of course, it’s much easier to score points with one’s constituents this way, than to tackle the important issues.

Headline Muse, 8/27

As they batten the hatches and cower
Still their numbers increase by the hour
Not exactly a boast—
Cast your eyes on the coast;
There’s a million, right now, without power

Headline: Hurricane Irene Causes Power Outages For Nearly 1 Million East Coast Customers

Have not heard word from my relative who, at last info, was refusing to evacuate in NC. She’ll be fine, is my guess, but a hell of a lot of people won’t be.

Exercises in Futility

He hears the prayers, but God refrains
From redirecting hurricanes;
Is it that praying doesn’t work?
Or is this “God” a royal jerk?

Maybe Texans should have been praying that they get missed by a hurricane. God responds to reverse psychology… or just doesn’t respond.

Another Pledge?

What is it with the GOP and pledges? The Pledge to America, the No-Tax Pledge, abstinence-only “virginity pledges“, “under god” in the pledge of allegiance… and now, an anti gay marriage pledge. Erm, I mean a pro-traditional marriage pledge.

The nice thing about pledges is, pledging is easier than thinking. Perry, Bachman, Romney, and Santorum no longer have to consider the merits of the idea. They have pledged. They are honor-bound. For Perry, this represents a change from his earlier states’ rights stance. States’ rights is a dog-whistle, but the baggers missed it and accused him of being soft on gay marriage. So…

When he said that it might
Be a state-by-state right
The teabags accused him of hedging
In a matter of days
He was ditching the gays
And to make it official, was pledging
The republican plan
Is one woman, one man,
In the view that’s supported by Perry
Keep the government small
Till eventually, all
It can do is say who you may marry
Cos in matters of love
When a push comes to shove
It’s the government’s job to determine
That there’s one group—the straights—
Who deserve to have mates,
While another, the gays, are mere vermin
There’s no need to decide,
For a groom or a bride,
Cos the pledge means the choice is preempted
The decision’s been made
And it must be obeyed…
On the off chance the governor’s tempted.