51. Should Galileo's tomb be opened for DNA tests?

Comment #141385 by hoops mccann on March 10, 2008 at 10:27 am

"I also saw the remains of his middle finger on display at the history of science museum."



How appropriate.

52. Richard Dawkins' US Tour begins this week

Comment #139856 by hoops mccann on March 6, 2008 at 3:14 pm

Wooter asks:

"How do you overcome this fear of being gone forever"?

Answer: by being grateful for the opportunity to live and honoring that life by living it to the fullest.

53. A natural phenomenon

Comment #139441 by hoops mccann on March 5, 2008 at 8:52 pm

decius,


Love your avatar. Is it Larson?

54. Church exhumes Padre Pio

Comment #139254 by hoops mccann on March 5, 2008 at 11:52 am

What macabre bullshit. I'm sure glad I cut myself loose from that outfit when I was still young.

55. Hebrew University researcher: Moses was tripping at Mount Sinai

Comment #138448 by hoops mccann on March 4, 2008 at 10:58 am

Rod-the farmer says:

"When one enters a jewish home, one is sometimes invited to "Have a nagela". This is the original name for a HHHHash brownie. Note the guttural HHHHH. "


I'd like to meet your friends!

56. Add another flea to the list...

Comment #132895 by hoops mccann on February 25, 2008 at 11:34 am

Another bozo on the bus.

57. Potentially Habitable Planets Are Common, Study Says

Comment #129592 by hoops mccann on February 19, 2008 at 10:56 am

Charles Bradlaugh says:

"This may be a bit of a tangent, but it reminds me of what i thought was the weakest part of TGD: the anthropic principle idea. i can see 'the universe is so big, the law of averages suggests there must be another world like this one somewhere' in a kind of phillip pullman way, but i didn't see how it fitted into 'therefore a god didn't create this one.' "

I don't think that the anthropic principle concludes that there is no god, only that devine action is not *necessary* to create things that are highly unlikely. Even highly improbable events become inevitable when the universe of possibilities is large enough. We know that it's greater than zero since we exist, so sheer size and expanse of time make it possible for life (and universes) to exist without needing (super)intelligent creators.

58. Ben Stein Wins Intelligent Design Money

Comment #127975 by hoops mccann on February 15, 2008 at 8:25 pm

rod-the-farmer says:
"One can only hope that his first movie will not make it into mainstream theatres across the world."


When I first heard about the fleas, I wondered about their commercial viability as well. Is anyone actually buying this stuff? I have to wonder if it is vanity published or (more likely) subsidized by some group.

59. Exorcism undergoes a revival across Europe

Comment #126200 by hoops mccann on February 12, 2008 at 3:29 pm

"I learned that many members of my congregation became in touch with a dark force whenever they used their computers," he said.

Microsoft?

60. Exorcism undergoes a revival across Europe

Comment #125679 by hoops mccann on February 11, 2008 at 8:39 pm

I'm half Polish, and this embarrasses me. When I read news like this I start to wonder if maybe there isn't a grain of truth to all the jokes. On a more serious note, I can just picture every religious parent whose child talks back dragging the poor kid to one of these witchdoctors.

"Typical cases, he said, include people who turn away from the church and embrace New Age therapies, alternative religions or the occult. Internet addicts and yoga devotees are also at risk, he said."

Why not include Unix gurus, vacuum cleaner salesmen, avid golfers and Kiss fans while you're at it?

"...speak in exotic tongues..."
Like French?

"He said priests at the institute realized they needed an exorcist on staff after encountering an increase in people plagued by evil."

Great irony!

'... associated with medieval witch-burnings and the 1973 Hollywood horror film, "The Exorcist."'

If it wasn't for this tawdry piece of crap, exorcists would be on the trash heap of history along with inquisitors and overseers. Fuck Hollywood and William Peter Blatty.

"...resurgence in exorcisms has been encouraged by the Vatican, which in 1999 formally revised and upheld the rite for the first time in almost 400 years"

Now *there's* an accomplishment!

"According to what I could perceive, the devil was present and acting in an obvious way," he said. "How else can you explain how a wife, in the space of a couple of weeks, could come to hate her own husband..."

Or maybe he's a bozo and she just decided that it was time to get off the bus? Also, the fact that they were in a marriage *counseling* program speaks volumes.

"Rev. Andrzej Trojanowski..."
Maybe he's just horsing around :-o

61. Inventor Doesn't Dare Say 'Perpetual Motion Machine'

Comment #124111 by hoops mccann on February 8, 2008 at 11:42 am

samratpathania makes some comments that cut right to the heart of the matter. I would like to address them:

"What saddens me when I read the comments with regard to this post is that people are resorting to personal attacks to dismiss this person.
This person may be a college dropout (Bill Gates was one wasn't he) and he may have a ruined marriage. But what does that have to do with the credibility of his invention."

Nothing, per se. But is does have a lot to say about his character. It's not merely that his marriage was ruined, it's that it was ruined by his obsession with the invention. He's playing the unrecognized-genius-working-in-his-basement-struggling-against-all-odds role, straight from central casting. A Nicola Tesla wannabe. This certainly casts doubt on his ability to be objective.

"It reminds me of an German philosopher/astronomer who proposed that the earth came out of Jupiter."

Immanual Velikovsky

"Carl Sagan talks about this in Cosmos and he was shocked not at the this idea itself but at the vehement dismissal of this idea by learned people"

I know the episode well. What Sagan is decrying is the fact that scientists actively tried to suppress and censor the author, not that they were merely dismissive towards him.

"Prove the man wrong. That is all we have to do"

No, we don't. Anymore than we have to disprove the existence of a deity. Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence (there's Sagan again). It's the inventor's job to provide the evidence and convince scientists that he's right. That being said, it would be straightforward to test his claims. Connect a power source to the input of the device with an accurate instrument to measure how much energy is being supplied. Then connect the device to a dummy load with an instrument to measure the energy being produced. If the output exceeds (or equals) the input, collect Nobel prize. If it is less than the input, but better than any existing device, collect patent. Otherwise, get a day job.

62. Inventor Doesn't Dare Say 'Perpetual Motion Machine'

Comment #124050 by hoops mccann on February 8, 2008 at 8:32 am

"In 2005, Heins formed a company called Potential Difference Inc. to develop and market his invention ... Heins has also been raising money for his invention, asking individuals such as former U.S. vice-president Al Gore, Virgin Group founder Richard Branson, Tesla Motors chairman Elon Musk, and Google´s "ReCharge IT" project"

Yep. I figured this was the case well before I got to that part of the article. Could I be psychic? And, let me guess, he's selling shares in the company.

63. Sharia law in UK is 'unavoidable'

Comment #123634 by hoops mccann on February 7, 2008 at 12:23 pm

emmet says:

"The only way to respect all religions equally is to respect none of them at all. "


Beautifully put. A sound bite that we should all memorize.

64. Some non-Christians feel left out of election

Comment #123190 by hoops mccann on February 6, 2008 at 3:03 pm

Geoff sez:
"As a Brit, I've not studied the candidates as closely as, perhaps, you Yanks have, but I don't see anyone in the mix that I'd vote for.

Got to be a Democrat, presumably; but who do you guys see as the "most secular" candidate?"


I wish it was that simple. I was all for Edwards because of his stands on labor rights, universal health care and the war. If he is religious, he at least doesn't flaunt it or use it cynically to get cheap support. Alas. Right now, I think Barack Obama is the least dangerous. Because of her need to show that she can be as tough as any man, Hillary supports expanding the war. That puts her out of the running in my book even if she doesn't identify herself as religious (which she does).

65. Female Muslim medics 'disobey hygiene rules'

Comment #122624 by hoops mccann on February 5, 2008 at 4:58 pm

Incredulous says:

"In this instance, though, I think Dr Benway's point about ensuring patients are not harmed is pretty moot"

Are people not getting this (possbly unintentional) reference? This statement is utterly hilarious to anyone who has read The Naked Lunch.

66. Dusty Clues: Study suggests no dearth of Earths

Comment #122153 by hoops mccann on February 4, 2008 at 8:25 pm

This is awfully inferential. I also noticed that the journalist reached conclusions that the author of the study was very cautious about making. Hate it when they do that. It's better than the usual wild guesses though.

67. God vs. Gridiron

Comment #121060 by hoops mccann on February 2, 2008 at 11:06 pm

vivaldian67 says:
"I don't see what all the fuss is about myself - it's only rugby for cissies. ;)"


From John Cleese's open letter to the American public following the 2004 election:

"You should stop playing American football. There is only one kind of football. What you refer to as American football is not a very good game. The 2.15% of you who are aware that there is a world outside your borders may have noticed that no one else plays American football. You will no longer be allowed to play it, and should instead play proper football. Initially, it would be best if you played with the girls. It is a difficult game. Those of you brave enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which is similar to American "football", but does not involve stopping for a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour like nancies)."

68. What should a scientist think about religion?

Comment #119431 by hoops mccann on January 31, 2008 at 3:28 pm

Oh, leave deists alone! They won't try to convert you and certainly won't burn you at the stake for heresy, although they may burn a steak every once in awhile.

69. Belief in Belief

Comment #118291 by hoops mccann on January 30, 2008 at 3:06 pm

Duffski says:

"An incredible article; my only complaint is that when it comes to me arguing with theist friends, I am incapable of the intellectual vigour and lucidity of Hitchens or Dawkins... "


Welcome to reality :)

70. Dawkins is third most prolific internet Briton

Comment #117784 by hoops mccann on January 29, 2008 at 3:50 pm

I would like to have seen John Cleese do a little better.

71. Interview with Richard Dawkins

Comment #117660 by hoops mccann on January 29, 2008 at 10:30 am

Sally Luxmoore writes: "Hmm. Interesting. I don't know what this book is (I'm English, is it American?)"


It's American. It was the book that was central to the controversy at Dover, Pennsylvania. The book was intended to introduce "intelligent design" into the biology curriculum of the local school system. Christian fundamentalists had covertly taken over the local school board and railroaded a vote that approved use of the book. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed and the attempt was blocked by a successful lawsuit. The title reveals the most prominent feature of fundamentalists: unoriginality. I'm sure that the title is a contraction of two book titles: "The Panda's Thumb" and "Of Hens Teeth and Horses Toes", both excellent books by Stephen Jay Gould.

72. The devilish church practice of exorcism

Comment #115127 by hoops mccann on January 23, 2008 at 3:56 pm

"I think a fitting end to the Nazi popes reign would be him tied up and tortured until he "confesses." "



Now, now.

Seriously, I don't think Mr. Ratzinger is deserving of the title "pope" (for what it's worth). I'm starting to wonder if he's earned enough respect to be called "Mr." Anyhow, that priest in Africa should be doing time somewhere.

73. The devilish church practice of exorcism

Comment #115098 by hoops mccann on January 23, 2008 at 2:45 pm

"In practice, official Catholic exorcisms have been dramatically increasing since the mid-1970s, according to Michael W. Cuneo, ..."



In other words, since the movie came out :)

74. The OUT Campaign has its own Flea!

Comment #106755 by hoops mccann on January 3, 2008 at 12:06 pm

I'm always struck by the lack or originality of the fundies. Others have pointed out the use of the red "C". The titles of the fleas speak for themselves. The title of the textbook that the Dover, Pennsylvania school board wanted to use was called "Of Pandas and People". Consider this:
"Of Pandas and People" = "The Panda's Thumb" + "Of Hens Teeth and Horses Toes"
Both of the latter books are by Stephen Jay Gould.

75. Mind your manners

Comment #89393 by hoops mccann on November 20, 2007 at 2:02 pm

> Henri's in the top five trolls on RD.Net

> You're right, NMcC, better to just ignore him.


But is he a Marxist troll or a cultural troll?

76. I didn't know the FLEA CIRCUS was back in town!

Comment #84967 by hoops mccann on November 4, 2007 at 11:28 am

Is anyone actually buying these things? Are they vanity books? Are religious teachers assigning them for study? Are priests making people read them for penance? (Assigning books to read has apparently replaced the "Hail Mary" as a penance item, if what I've heard is true). I can't imagine anyone investing the money and the time to read one of these, otherwise. Maybe the whole thing will backfire, as the derivative books may inspire people to read the originals. I was inspired to read Lord of the Rings by first reading the Harvard Lampoon parody Bored of the Rings.

77. The smallest signs of retreat

Comment #68611 by hoops mccann on September 7, 2007 at 10:09 pm

Anyone who has taken the trouble to carefully read his book or listen to him speak would realize that Richard has always been conciliatory. He is a gentleman. He is willing to give his opponents the benefit of the doubt, and does not use bullying or sophistry to win arguments. This puts him at a grave disadvantage to people who are fundamentally dishonest and treacherous. He is naive in the sense that he underestimates the determination and viciousness of his enemies, believing instead that people are basically honest and that disagrements can be resolved by reasoned debate and evidence. Unfortunately, his (our) enemies are playing a much different game. By choosing to take a higher moral and intellectual ground, he is sometimes "too nice a guy" for his own good. However, I think it is better that he lose a few battles (with his customary graciousness) than to stoop to their level and risk losing the entire war. Ms. Bunting and Mr. Cornwell should be ashamed of themselves, but now I'm the one who is being naive. People like them have no shame.

78. Kenya: The Death of Religion And Rise of Atheism in the West

Comment #56610 by hoops mccann on July 16, 2007 at 2:24 pm

"The article claims Hitchens is the sympathiser, not Dawkins. And I don't know if it's true."

Hitchens is a former Trotskyist. Trotskyists are not known for their sympathy for the former Soviet Union. Trotsky himself was murdered by Stalin for not accepting the direction that the Russian revolution was taking in the 1920s.

79. Heliocentrism is an Atheist Doctrine

Comment #45810 by hoops mccann on May 29, 2007 at 10:34 am

sanforized?

80. Television evangelist Falwell dies at 73

Comment #41113 by hoops mccann on May 15, 2007 at 2:00 pm

"... and another one's gone, and another one's gone. Another one bites the dust."

Queen

81. Consciousness Comes from DNA

Comment #40542 by hoops mccann on May 14, 2007 at 12:52 pm

"Gallup found mirror self-awareness in oranges..."

I *thought* I heard a scream when I was operating the juicer this morning!

82. Cardinal: homosexuality a form of prostitution

Comment #39624 by hoops mccann on May 11, 2007 at 10:44 am

"He also uses a report from 243 Latvian doctors as proof that homosexuality is an illness."


And as we all know, Latvian doctors are the best doctors. This bozo talks like Borat.

83. The Fifth Flea!

Comment #28224 by hoops mccann on March 28, 2007 at 12:33 pm

He's created a whole new literary genre!

84. Research links some scriptures to hostile acts

Comment #23727 by hoops mccann on March 2, 2007 at 9:00 am

Homo economicus writes:

Anyone remember Clockwork Orange when he is in prsion and reads the bible?


"It had been arranged by the prison charlie, as part of my further education to read him the Bible. I didn't so much like the latter part of the book which is more like all preachy talking, than fighting and the old in-out. I liked the parts where these old yahoodies tolchock each other and then drink their Hebrew vino and, then getting on to the bed with their wives' handmaidens. That kept me going."

"I read all about the scourging and the crowning with thorns and all that, and I could viddy myself helping in and even taking charge of the tolchocking and the nailing in, being dressed in the height of Roman fashion."

85. Dawkins v. Collins Debate

Comment #23448 by hoops mccann on February 28, 2007 at 7:46 pm

There's something that I don't understand about Dawkins' response to the "perfectly tuned constants" issue. When confronted, he responds by arguing either that the underlying structure of the universe makes the values inevitable or by invoking the anthropic principle/multiverse argument. Why not just point out that describing the constants as "perfectly tuned" for life is putting the cart before the horse? It was life that adapted to the conditions in the universe and not the universe that adapted itself (or was pre-determined) for life. If the conditions (constants) had been different, life would have been different (but still possible). This seems to be a simpler way to get around the design argument than resorting to esoteric and hypothetical theories. Am I missing something here?

86. Review of 'The Quotable Atheist'

Comment #22061 by hoops mccann on February 12, 2007 at 8:56 pm

Katha Pollitt says "For me, religion is serious business -- a farrago of authoritarian nonsense, misogyny and humble pie ..."

I would add to that: unjustified guilt, fear of eternal "punishment" non-participation and existential paranoia.

Also, it's interesting to note how the churches have appropriated Frederick Douglass. For centuries the clergy supported slavery and serfdom. But since they were forced kicking and screaming to accept abolition in the 19th century, they started taking credit for spearheading the anti-slavery movement. Douglass is often presented as a "safe" Christian, much like Martin Luther King.

87. The God Delusion

Comment #21748 by hoops mccann on February 10, 2007 at 10:58 pm

Orr informs us that "the Ultimate 747 argument was shredded by reviewers".
And just where did this happen? Every negative review of TGD that I read was based solely on personal attack, with liberal use of out-of-context quotes and straw man versions of Dawkins' statements. Not a single review dealt with his arguments point for point.
And why should he have to cite "religions thinkers?" The whole point of TGD is to question the basic premise of all of these works, which he would be tacitly accepting as true by taking them seriously. It's like saying that I have to read the "best available works" on the Bermuda Triangle and Astrology before I can refuse to believe in them.