So what is going on with blogs these days? If you’re like me, and you keep abreast of news and opinion on technology and media, you’ve already probably been told many, many times that the blog is dead, a medium that served its purpose in the twenty-aughts, but has now been rendered mostly irrelevant by Tweetbooksnaptumblegram. Apparently Hemant is a little bit like me too (poor guy), and he pointed me to this post at Neiman Journalism Lab by blog pioneer Jason Kottke that, despite Kottke’s entrenchment in the form, prophesies its demise, and in its place are the ephemeral and the institutional: Read more
In February of last year, the Russian punk band Pussy Riot staged an impromptu performance in Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Their actions were stopped by church security officials. By evening, they had turned it into a music video entitled “Punk Prayer — Mother of God, Chase Putin Away!” The women said their protest was directed at the Orthodox Church leader’s support for [Russian president Vladimir] Putin during his election campaign. In Putin’s ever-more autocratic Russia, where nationalism mixes with increased religiosity, this was a provocation that couldn’t stand. In August of 2012, three members of Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years behind bars for “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred or hostility.” Yekaterina Samutsevich was released within months, but Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina had to wait until yesterday to walk free again (some sources are reporting that, although the pardon is official, the pair haven’t actually been let out of prison just yet). Read more
Remember how New York State Senator Andrew Lanza was outraged by American Atheists’ billboard in Times Square? He said the digital billboard, images of which are below, was “religious persecution of the kind that similarly lead to the Holocaust.” Anyway, get this: In the original press release, Lanza wrote the following: Read more
I have an unbelievable update about the money we raised for the people of Morton Grove, Illinois near the bottom of this post. Really, you won’t believe how this thing is shaking out. In case you want the full story, though, I’m going to repost much of what I’ve written before: … Back in October, I posted about how the American Legion Post 134 was financially boycotting the Morton Grove Park District because its Commissioner Dan Ashta wouldn’t stand for the Pledge of Allegiance at board meetings. Ashta’s sitting down for the Pledge cost the district $2,600 that the American Legion group had been giving them each year. Read more
Kimberly Winston highlights a disturbing trend of atheists trying to be generous only to have various groups reject the efforts: Read more
In case you needed more evidence that Catholic school students are often kinder, more decent people than Church officials, just look at what happened at Eastside Catholic High School (in Seattle, Washington) today. On Tuesday, Assistant Principal Mark Zmuda was forced to resign from his position after school officials confronted him about his sexual orientation and summer wedding. Tomorrow will be his last day at school thanks to the “loving,” “grace-filled” nature of the Catholic Church. But the students at the school weren’t taking that decision lightly. Today, they staged protests online, on Twitter, in the cafeteria, and outside the school: Read more
Seriously, atheists, I don’t know which one of you did this, but it looks like you did this and it’s unacceptable. Yesterday, we learned about an anonymous note sent to a family telling them they should reconsider their “flagrant display” of Christian beliefs… because there was a Nativity scene on their front lawn. (Which, I should point out, is perfectly legal and fine.) Now, Paul Cox of the Sacramento Freethinkers, Atheists and Nonbelievers posted on the group’s Facebook page images of signs that appeared in front of (and across the street from) his Christian father’s front-lawn display: Read more
You knew there would be problems when Oklahoma state officials approved a Ten Commandments monument outside the building in 2012. Two weeks ago, the Satanic Temple made nationwide headlines when they said they wanted to donate a monument to be placed in the same area. A week later, a Hindu group followed, saying they wanted to donate a monument of Lord Hanuman: You *know* more applications were in the pipelines, too — I mean, atheists hadn’t even offered anything yet! — which must be why the Oklahoma Capitol Preservation Commission voted unanimously today to declare a moratorium on monuments: Read more
In Finland, members of established religions are taxed about one percent of their income to support faith programs. However, for the past ten years, secularization has been on an unprecedented rise. Since 2003 people have been able to leave the church online, and the number of resignations has risen dramatically. Before that, those doubting their faith had to speak to a priest before they were permitted to leave the church. So, with believers dwindling and churches getting poorer, this happened: Read more
