Funny Video Time

Watch a religious satire here. I'm not sure what's funnier, the satire or the people who don't catch that this is satire. Hehe. Darwin = not intelligent. Bwahahaha.

And then watch a video by Beatallica here. They sing Beatles songs in the mode of old (read: non-sucky) Metallica. It's hysterical. To me. Which says just about nothing for its actual comedic value.

The Religious Reich

Here's a scary quote I read in Liz Clarke's profile of Mike Huckabee in the Washington Post this morning:

"I didn't get into politics because I thought government had a better answer," [Huckabee] told a group of pastors on the eve of the 1998 Southern Baptist Convention. "I got into politics because I knew government didn't have the real answers, that the real answers lie in accepting Jesus Christ into our lives." He concluded that speech with words he says he'd phrase differently today: "I hope we answer the alarm clock and take this nation back for Christ."

I don't know which scares me more: that an American in 1998, with even a passing acquaintance with the First Amendment, could think that this is an appropriate agenda for an aspiring President, or that millions of people would vote for him based on this single criterion. And I realize he says he'd phrase it differently now, but I don't see how different phrasing would change the idea.

No! No! I'm One of You!

So Mitt Romney gave a speech yesterday defending his Mormonism and explaining how it wouldn't play a part in his decision-making. Of course it's bullshit, and of course he displayed what a moron he is (as opposed to what a Mormon he is). For a more thorough dissection of the speech than I'll give, read Nathan's post, which addresses the most egregious lapses.

In his attempt to counter Mike Huckabee's increase in popularity in Iowa, Romney has decided to throw everything into appealing to evangelical Christians so he can save his campaign. In doing so he's positioned himself against secularists, who seem to be supported by the text of the Constitution of the United States. But he knows this plays well to the pious, so he can ride this horse 'til it collapses, because nobody's there to call him on it.

A quote from Romney's speech comes close to addressing reality:

[R]eligious tolerance would be a shallow principle, indeed, if it were reserved only for faiths with which we agree.

In the interest of completeness, I'd restate it as:

Tolerance of other worldviews would be a shallow principle, indeed, if it were reserved only for religious faiths.

This was an interesting quiz...

You scored as Buddhism. Your beliefs most closely resemble those of Buddhism. Do more research on Buddhism and possibly consider becoming Buddhist, if you are not already. In Buddhism, there are Four Noble Truths: (1) Life is suffering. (2) All suffering is caused by ignorance of the nature of reality and the craving, attachment, and grasping that result from such ignorance. (3) Suffering can be ended by overcoming ignorance and attachment. (4) The path to the suppression of suffering is the Noble Eightfold Path, which consists of right views, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right-mindedness, and right contemplation. These eight are usually divided into three categories that base the Buddhist faith: morality, wisdom, and samadhi, or concentration. In Buddhism, there is no hierarchy, nor caste system; the Buddha taught that one's spiritual worth is not based on birth. Buddhism 83% Satanism 83% atheism 75% agnosticism 54% Judaism 50% Paganism 42% Islam 33% Christianity 17% Hinduism 13% Which religion is the right one for you? (new version) created with QuizFarm.com

Really? I scored that high for Satanism? Higher than for atheism? Weird. The way the questions were going, I thought the answer would be, "Alright, smartass. You're trying to look like a godless heathen."

Edit: the margins are goofy on the insert, but I don't know how to fix that. Sorry.

HPHCBTCTTPIWJ2.0*

*Happy Pagan Holiday Co-opted by the Christians to Trick Pagans into Worshipping Jahweh 2.0

Sorry. These holidays do it to me every time.

If you're offended by sacrilege or don't like the sight of cinematic blood'n'guts, don't look at this picture. Otherwise, enjoy yourself. It's teh funnay.

Have fun with the chocolate and the eggs and the rabbits. And thank the pagans for them.