The Hazards of Belief

PopePalpatine

Kinda unrelated, but the term "boutique festival" really grinds my gears.

Custardpi

PopePalpatine wrote: »

Kinda unrelated, but the term "boutique festival" really grinds my gears.

Meh, just a posh word for small. A bit like an estate agent describing a one bed hovel as "bijou residence". Personally I've had a better time at boutique festivals than at the larger ones like Oxegen so I'll let it slide despite the term's somewhat pretentious nature.

Hotblack Desiato

Cornflakes were designed to provide poor nutrition and inhibit the sexual desire. The Kellogg brothers were religious nuts.

robindch

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

Cornflakes were designed to provide poor nutrition and inhibit the sexual desire. The Kellogg brothers were religious nuts.

...as documented, roughly, in the 20-year old film, The Road to Wellville - quite funny, despite the crappy (cough) ratings:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Road_to_Wellville_(film)

robindch

PopePalpatine wrote: »

Kinda unrelated, but the term "boutique festival" really grinds my gears.

Likewise unrelated, but anything which is "curated" - jeez!

recedite

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

Cornflakes were designed to provide poor nutrition and inhibit the sexual desire. The Kellogg brothers were religious nuts.

Bizarre but true, apparently.

Delirium

Wasn't sure where to post this.

https://twitter.com/colettebrowne/status/729255770089492480

marienbad

robindch wrote: »

Likewise unrelated, but anything which is "curated" - jeez!

+ hundred times ! where did this 'curated' fetish spring from ?

robindch

MrPudding wrote: »

Well, the law is there and it would appear that there is, at least, an arguable case. I will hold my outrage until he is, is he actually is, convicted and actually receives any punishment that is more than token.

Things not looking very good for Erdogan's attempt to use German laws against German citizens:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/erdogan-injunction-mathias-doepfner_us_5731e10be4b016f37896ea9d

HuffPo wrote:

German Court Rejects Erdogan’s Request To Stop Media CEO Repeating Insult

BERLIN, May 10 (Reuters) - A German court on Tuesday rejected a request by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan for a preliminary injunction preventing the head of German publisher Axel Springer repeating a derogatory term. Erdogan‘s lawyer, Ralf Hoecker, told Reuters Erdogan had sought the injunction after Chief Executive Mathias Doepfner’s public support for a controversial poem read out by comedian Jan Boehmermann on German television in March. But the court said in a statement it had rejected it on the basis of “the defendant’s right to free expression of opinion.”

Erdogan is known for his sensitivity to criticism and Turkish prosecutors have opened over 1,800 cases against people for insulting him since he became president in 2014. That sensitivity has also made itself felt on the international stage, raising tensions with Germany at a time when the two countries are grappling with a huge influx of Syrian refugees. Erdogan‘s office was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Reuters. The Turkish leader has repeatedly said his opponents are free to criticize him but that those who stray into insult will face legal action.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has drawn heavy criticism for allowing German prosecutors to pursue a case against Boehmermann at Erdogan‘s behest. Under Germany’s criminal code, insults against foreign leaders are not allowed but the government can decide whether to authorize prosecutors to go ahead. In the poem, Boehmermann suggested Erdogan hits girls, watches child pornography and engages in bestiality.

Doepfner expressed solidarity with Boehmermann in an open letter published in Germannewspaper Welt am Sonntag in April, saying he had laughed out loud over the poem and “wholeheartedly” supported what the comedian had said. If the court in Cologne had agreed to grant the injunction, Doepfner would have been banned from repeating a sexually crude term to describe Erdogan that was first used by Boehmermann and subsequently quoted by the Axel Springer chief.

The court said its decision did not address the legality of the Boehmermann poem, which is still under investigation.

[...]

Doepfner expressed solidarity with Boehmermann in an open letter published in German newspaper Welt am Sonntag in April, saying he had laughed out loud over the poem and “wholeheartedly” supported what the comedian had said.

Ha, salt in the wounds!

silverharp

https://www.the-newshub.com/international/pakistani-christian-boy-accused-of-blasphemy-for-watching-anti-islam-video-10000-reward-offered-for-his-killing

Pakistani Christian boy accused of blasphemy for watching anti-Islam video - $10,000 reward offered for his killing

According to local news reports, the Muslims have put three conditions before the Christians, in exchange for a pardon. They have told them to convert to Islam if they want to continue living in the village, leave the village forever, or despicably, they have asked them to hand Imran over so they can burn him alive in front of the church.

A Christian boy working as joiner at a health care centre has fled his home after learning that Muslim religious scholars had issued a fatwa (Islamic decree) against him for committing blasphemy, and that he is likely to killed.
Imran, a young Christian boy who worked in Chak (village) No. 44, Phalyian District Mandi Bahauddin in the Punjab, Pakistan, attended the wedding of one of his Muslim friend’s daughter on April 16 and recorded a video on his mobile phone.

On April 19 a colleague asked him to show him the recording, and instead Imuran handed over his phone and left to finish the job he was working on.

When he came back he saw that Bilal, a local Muslim pharmacy owner, was holding his phone and was showing provocative lectures of Pastor Sami Samson to other workers standing around him.
When Imran asked Bilal to return his phone, Bilal slapped on his face and accused Imran of watching anti-Islamic lectures of the Christian Pastor on YouTube. ...

Hotblack Desiato

Our friend Vincent Twomey has been at it again, weighing into the 'which bunch of nuns should be let run the National Maternity Hospital' debate on Wednesday in the Irish Times letters page and getting an unmerciful slapdown on Friday.

Yup basically the argument is whether 'Mercy' or 'Charity' get to run the very expensive gig we pay for. Although nominally 'Mercy' is still in charge of NMH Holles St and the chair of the board is none other than Diarmuid Martin of the Drumcondra Palace, he takes a hands off role and doctors appear to be allowed get on with their job.

Two things could sorely test this however, future changes to abortion legislation and the inevitable rapid increase in social conservatism among the dwindling number of recruits to the clergy - Martin's eventual successor might make McQuaid look like a liberal, or even a human.

As for Vincent's ('Charity', and a hugely profitable business it is for them too :rolleyes: ) they don't permit their doctors to offer elective male or female sterilisation and contraceptive implants. Because we're the RCC and we know what's good for the little people.

robindch

Small sample size, but the results seem consistent with previous papers on the topic:

Study Suggests Conservatives Are More Susceptible To Bullsh*t

http://www.iflscience.com/brain/are-conservatives-more-susceptible-bullsht

IFLScience wrote:

A new paper claims that people who think meaningless statements are profound are more sympathetic to Republican candidates in the current U.S. election. Delightful as this conclusion may be to anyone worried by the rise of Donald Trump, the authors caution against drawing too wide conclusions. On the other hand, the study, published in PLOS ONE, opens new lines of research in the emerging field of bullsh*t studies.

“In this contribution, bullsh*t is used as a technical term which is defined as communicative expression that lacks content, logic, or truth from the perspective of natural science,” write Dr. Stefan Pfattheicher and Dr. Simon Schindler. Working from this definition, the authors adopt the “Bullsh*t Receptivity scale (BSR)” to measure how likely people were to see bullsh*t statements as profound.

As the paper notes, “Various forms of bullsh*t exist.” The paper tests receptivity to only one of these, which the authors refer to as “pseudo-profound bullsh*t,” inspired by the work of Gordon Pennycock on the topic. This refers to statements that sound deeply meaningful at first, but are “actually vacuous.” The capacity to detect this sort of bullsh*t requires reflective and critical thinking.

A sample of 196 American adults were measured on the BSR and asked to rate themselves as liberal or conservative, and to give a 1 to 5 rating to six presidential candidates. The average age was 36, and 57 percent were male, but no information was collected on racial background or education level.

Possibly for safety's sake, both authors are based in Germany, comfortably out of reach of outraged Trump fans. Although Trump supporters aren't the ones with the greatest reason to be unhappy with the findings; the strongest correlating factor with BSR was liking Ted Cruz.

[...]

MrPudding

robindch wrote: »

Small sample size, but the results seem consistent with previous papers on the topic:

Study Suggests Conservatives Are More Susceptible To Bullsh*t

http://www.iflscience.com/brain/are-conservatives-more-susceptible-bullsht

Yeah, WTAF does "make America great again" actually mean?

MrP

Lurkio

MrPudding wrote: »

Yeah, WTAF does "make America great again" actually mean?

MrP

Something really, really useful, which will no doubt be revealed when hes elected.

JPNelsforearm

MrPudding wrote: »

Yeah, WTAF does "make America great again" actually mean?

MrP

Making anime real

Pherekydes

I think he means he's going to make America grate again.

PopePalpatine

Pherekydes wrote: »

I think he means he's going to make America grate again.

Wisconsinites are rubbing their hands with glee right now. :pac:

Hotblack Desiato

PopePalpatine wrote: »

Wisconsinites are rubbing their hands with glee right now. :pac:

That gag is a bit cheesy.

(If they were in India, would they rub their hands with ghee?)

recedite

MrPudding wrote: »

Yeah, WTAF does "make America great again" actually mean?MrP

The answer to your question is "Yes we can".

Pherekydes

recedite wrote: »

The answer to your question is "Yes we can".

The answer to the question, what does the statement "can we make America grate again" mean, is "yes, we can".

That doesn't make sense.

oscarBravo

Pherekydes wrote: »

The answer to the question, what does the statement "can we make America grate again" mean, is "yes, we can".

That doesn't make sense.

It's a reflexive dig at Barack Obama in response to criticism of Trump.

The actual answer to the question "what does 'make America great again' mean?" is "America isn't great" - a fact that seems to have eluded most of the Donald's supporters.

recedite

The point is, campaign slogans don't have to make sense, or answer any question. They just have to sound positive, and make the speaker sound like an action man.

robindch

oscarBravo wrote: »

The actual answer to the question "what does 'make America great again' mean?" is "America isn't great" - a fact that seems to have eluded most of the Donald's supporters.

Whether or not America is "Great" is somewhat beside the point.

Listening to Trump's supporters - as indeed listening to the whinging asshattery which constitutes the entirety of the pro-exit side of the Brexit civil war - suggests that (a) around half of the population are unable to fact-check the most basic of statements, don't know why they should, and don't care that they don't; (b) around half of the population do not understand English and don't seem to notice or care; (c) around half of the population are as thick as the world's most distressing collection of short planks; and (d) around half of the population are combustible fools looking for somebody else's fire to inflame their underused, chilled and listless brains.

#grunt

Lurkio

robindch wrote: »

Whether or not America is "Great" is somewhat beside the point.

Listening to Trump's supporters - as indeed listening to the whinging asshattery which constitutes the entirety of the pro-exit side of the Brexit civil war - suggests that (a) around half of the population are unable to fact-check the most basic of statements, don't know why they should, and don't care that they don't; (b) around half of the population do not understand English and don't seem to notice or care; (c) around half of the population are as thick as the world's most distressing collection of short planks; and (d) around half of the population are combustible fools looking for somebody else's fire to inflame their underused, chilled and listless brains.

#grunt

They don't check, because it is emotionally appealing. Facts to the contrary will be discounted and basic logic entirely and utterly abandoned. Pandering increases the problem, as it lends credibility to the crap being spouted. The more that goes on, the more you see former fringe gibberish becoming discussed in the mainstream as if it had legitimacy.

Shrap

robindch wrote: »

(b) around half of the population do not understand English and don't seem to notice or care

They understand the 50 (approx) most commonly used words in The Sun/Daily Mail headlines. That's enough of a vocabulary to get the gist of which way they should vote, eh?

PopePalpatine

Lurkio wrote: »

They don't check, because it is emotionally appealing. Facts to the contrary will be discounted and basic logic entirely and utterly abandoned. Pandering increases the problem, as it lends credibility to the crap being spouted. The more that goes on, the more you see former fringe gibberish becoming discussed in the mainstream as if it had legitimacy.

B-b-but Trump doesn't pander! Only crybaby liberals and traitorous RINOs do pandering![/Drumpf*ck]

JPNelsforearm

Lurkio wrote: »

They don't check, because it is emotionally appealing. Facts to the contrary will be discounted and basic logic entirely and utterly abandoned. Pandering increases the problem, as it lends credibility to the crap being spouted. The more that goes on, the more you see former fringe gibberish becoming discussed in the mainstream as if it had legitimacy.

Says the guy who supports policies based on entirely on feelings..:rolleyes:

oscarBravo

JPNelsforearm wrote: »

Says the guy who supports policies based on entirely on feelings..:rolleyes:

Yay, ad hominem! That showed 'im!

Absolam

oscarBravo wrote: »

It's a reflexive dig at Barack Obama in response to criticism of Trump.
The actual answer to the question "what does 'make America great again' mean?" is "America isn't great" - a fact that seems to have eluded most of the Donald's supporters.

You forgot the closer.... but it can be! Will McAvoy for President

JPNelsforearm

oscarBravo wrote: »

Yay, ad hominem! That showed 'im!

immigration/refugee crisis, open borders position is entirely emotion based. Refusal to countenance different crime rates for different ethnic groups/cultures, again, entirely emotion based. Supporting suppression of speech, again, entirely emotion based.

Lurkio

JPNelsforearm wrote: »

immigration/refugee crisis, open borders position is entirely emotion based. Refusal to countenance different crime rates for different ethnic groups/cultures, again, entirely emotion based. .

Who is this?

pauldla

Getting back on-topic (?)...it seems the Vatican's English-language media advisor is distressed at the role some Catholics are playing on the internet.

From www.catholicherald.co.uk

Catholics have filled the internet with venom and vitriol, says Vatican media advisor

Many Catholics on the internet are uncharitable and disturbed individuals, the Vatican’s English-language media advisor has said.

Speaking to the DeSales Media Group of Brooklyn diocese, Fr Thomas Rosica said: “Many of my non-Christian and non-believing friends have remarked to me that we ‘Catholics’ have turned the internet into a cesspool of hatred, venom and vitriol, all in the name of defending the faith!

“The character assassination on the internet by those claiming to be Catholic and Christian has turned it into a graveyard of corpses strewn all around.”

'..a graveyard of corpses strewn all around'? That's a bit strong, surely?

Lurkio

pauldla wrote: »

Getting back on-topic (?)...it seems the Vatican's English-language media advisor is distressed at the role some Catholics are playing on the internet.

From www.catholicherald.co.uk

Catholics have filled the internet with venom and vitriol, says Vatican media advisor



'..a graveyard of corpses strewn all around'? That's a bit strong, surely?

He plays in a Slayer tribute act at the weekends.

silverharp

dodgy imams assisting reinforcing extreme views in English prisons, account from whistleblowing inmate

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/the-jihadi-training-camp-right-in-the-heart-of-london-a3249941.html

In my second week, on the way to Friday prayers, I said something about showing tolerance to other religions and one of the Akhi, who was in for terrorism, turned to me and said emphatically: “No, there is zero tolerance, they are all kuffar and we have to destroy them.” After that he let it be known that I was kuffar and that nobody should greet me or associate with me.

I felt vulnerable because I saw what happened to people branded kuffar. In the cell be-side mine, there were two black Muslims and a Christian and one day there was a lot of petty arguing over a kettle. The next day, the Muslims made up a story about the Christian disrespecting Islam and next thing 25 prisoners stormed his cell and beat him up. He got moved after that. In my cell there were also two black guys who had converted to Islam, and when I was made kuffar, they let it be known that if anybody stormed our cell, they would not protect me. I was scared so I asked to see the imam, but that was another mistake.


There are about six imams in Belmarsh and apart from one, who was supportive, the other imams either ignored me or appeared to be sympathetic to the extremists. It was shocking. After that I kept my head down and only left my cell if I had to. All around I witnessed people being radicalised. Instantly you could see the change. They would start to wear their trousers rolled below the knee, something Prophet Muhammad did, they would grow facial hair, they would call each other “Akhi” and they became hyper-aggressive towards anybody not into radical Islam.

Three quarters of those being radicalised had been involved in gangs and were in for violent crime or drugs. They understood that the biggest gang inside Belmarsh was the Brothers and that they needed them for their protection. But it also gave them a sense of identity.

People would boast that as soon as they got out, they were going out to Syria. They were young and impressionable. There were so many would-be jihadists in there I felt like an intruder at a jihadi training camp. There were also plenty of moderate Muslim inmates like myself who suffered because we couldn’t speak out. I couldn’t believe how the flaws in the system effectively support the extremists.

After five months I got moved to Highpoint, a category C men’s prison in Suffolk. I was there for the Charlie Hebdo attack in January 2015 and again there were prisoners openly praising the attackers and embracing one an-other, although not as many as in Belmarsh. I complained to a chief prison officer who said: “We know what’s going on but we don’t have the funding or staff to do anything about it.” Again, the imams were useless. When I told one imam that we were being asked to take on jihad and sought guidance as to what our duties were, he said: “It’s not clear-cut. Do whatever you think is right.” People took their passivity as a licence to follow jihadism.

Links234

Iranian women cut off their hair and dress as men to avoid morality police

Women in Iran are cutting their hair short and dressing as men in a bid to bypass state 'morality' police who rigorously enforce penalties for not wearing a hijab.

A number of women have shared photos of themselves in public with their hair uncovered on Instagram and other social media.

The women have cut their hair short in some images and in others are dressed in clothes more typically associated with men.

The hijab is becoming an increasingly contentious issue in Iran as women step up their campaign against it and other oppressive, gendered laws. In recent months, women have been filmed walking through Tehran with their hair uncovered and activists have urged Western tourists to violate laws by refusing to wear the hijab during their visits to the Islamic republic.

This is pretty damn horrible

recedite

..cutting their hair short and dressing as men

When they do that in Ireland, nobody considers it "horrible"

Links234

recedite wrote: »

When they do that in Ireland, nobody considers it "horrible"

It's almost as if women in Ireland have a choice, where women in Iran may do so out of nessecity to avoid ire from a brutal bunch of twats, as in a completely different situation?

One eyed Jack

Links234 wrote: »

It's almost as if women in Ireland have a choice, where women in Iran may do so out of nessecity to avoid ire from a brutal bunch of twats, as in a completely different situation?

I'm not sure who the morality police are in that story, the actual police, or these idiots -

activists have urged Western tourists to violate laws by refusing to wear the hijab during their visits to the Islamic republic.

That "brutal bunch of twats" sound fierce altogether.

recedite

Links234 wrote: »

women in Iran may do so out of nessecity to avoid ire from a brutal bunch of twats, as in a completely different situation?

Do you not think they might hang out dressed as men because they enjoy it, and maybe they are lesbians? If they just wanted to avoid the ire of the religious police, they would simply dress as women and wear the headscarf.

looksee

recedite wrote: »

Do you not think they might hang out dressed as men because they enjoy it, and maybe they are lesbians? If they just wanted to avoid the ire of the religious police, they would simply dress as women and wear the headscarf.

Really? Do you seriously need it spelled out to you?

fran17

looksee wrote: »

Really? Do you seriously need it spelled out to you?

And men are not permitted to wear shorts,it's their custom and traditions.What's the point here?

looksee

fran17 wrote: »

And men are not permitted to wear shorts,it's their custom and traditions.What's the point here?

I don't know, you tell me?

robindch

Know somebody in Dublin who's gay, has cancer or is on the autistic spectrum? Well, bring 'em along to Torben Sondergaard and his 'Abundant Grace Christian Assembly' in Ringsend to sort it all out!

http://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/religious-group-claims-can-cure-8030025

legocrazy505

robindch wrote: »

Know somebody in Dublin who's gay, has cancer or is on the autistic spectrum? Well, bring 'em along to Torben Sondergaard and his 'Abundant Grace Christian Assembly' in Ringsend to sort it all out!

http://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/religious-group-claims-can-cure-8030025

It's spreading. Hopefully people here don't take to it otherwise FF will start becoming the Republican Party. Wheelie bins though? Really...... I wonder what Mr Binman thinks of his bins being used to baptise people.

recedite

A wasted trip for this travelling preacher who claims to cure the gheys of their demonic urges, after his invitation to speak was withdrawn. Looks like the Co. Wicklow based clergyman who invited him was forced to pull the plug after some adverse publicity about it.

cowboyBuilder

http://nypost.com/2016/05/19/apartments-islamic-museum-to-be-built-on-site-of-failed-ground-zero-mosque/

What an insult to the fallen Americans of 9-11.

oscarBravo

cowboyBuilder wrote: »

http://nypost.com/2016/05/19/apartments-islamic-museum-to-be-built-on-site-of-failed-ground-zero-mosque/

What an insult to the fallen Americans of 9-11.

What a bizarre thing to say.

Lurkio

cowboyBuilder wrote: »

http://nypost.com/2016/05/19/apartments-islamic-museum-to-be-built-on-site-of-failed-ground-zero-mosque/

What an insult to the fallen Americans of 9-11.

Why not make new York muslimfrei? That'd be a great end solution.

Lurkio

oscarBravo wrote: »

What a bizarre thing to say.

Presumably the muslims killed by the attacks share his sentiments, otherwise we'd have to conclude he doesn't consider them American.