Free Republic

Did you miss it? Last month the country celebrated national Blasphemy Day! According to NPR.com, atheists marked Blasphemy Day last month at gatherings around the world, celebrating the freedom to denigrate and insult religion. Activities included de-baptizing people with hair dryers and an art exhibit in Washington, D.C., which showed, among other titles, Jesus Paints His Nails, in which "an effeminate Jesus after the crucifixion [applies] polish to the nails that attach his hands to the cross." The atheist group Center for Inquiry hosted the exhibit. Addressing a capacity crowd at the University of Toronto, columnist Christopher Hitchens elicited enthusiastic...

A new polling analysis from Gallup finds that the Republican Party has lost support among nearly every major demographic subgroup, from college graduates to married people to those making under $30,000 a year. In 2001, 47 percent of college grads leaned Republican. Today, just 37 percent do. Support among married people has slid from 51 percent to 46 percent. Just 28 percent of those making less than $30,000 lean Republican, down 9 points in the past eight years.

We are constantly reminded about the destructive consequences of religion -- intolerance, hatred, division, inquisitions, persecutions of "heretics," holy wars. Though far from the whole story, they are, nevertheless, true. There have been many awful consequences of religion. What one almost never hears described are the deleterious consequences of secularism -- the terrible developments that have accompanied the breakdown of traditional religion and belief in God. For every thousand students who learn about the Spanish Inquisition and the Salem Witch Trials, maybe two learn to associate Gulag, Auschwitz, The Cultural Revolution, and the Cambodian genocide with secular regimes and ideologies....

PARIS (EJP)---Five youths detained after a Jewish teenager was beaten into a coma by a gang in Paris have been released without charge, AFP reported Wednesday quoting judicial officials. The minors, aged 14 to 17, were held for questioning as witnesses following Saturday's attack in the multi-ethnic 19th district of the capital. The Paris prosecutor Jean-Claude Marin said Tuesday the 17-year-old victim, Rudy Haddad, was beaten by a gang after street brawls between Jewish teenagers and youths of north African and sub-Saharan descent. The boy was so badly beaten by a gang wielding metal bars that he went into a...

A nice snapshot of contemporary values: I saw that Coca-Cola is promoting the movie [The Golden Compass], and I wrote to them to express my feelings about it -- including mentioning that the villains are called "The Magisterium" in the movie. Here is the response I got: "We appreciate the opportunity to respond to your concerns." The Golden Compass movie is a story about friendship, love, loyalty, tolerance, courage and responsibility. This movie also provides an opportunity for Coca-Cola to help raise awareness about climate change and the perilous state of the polar bear.""We do not believe that this...

Corey Larsen spent years hiding the feelings that drew him to other men, at first refusing to acknowledge them and then praying daily for them to be taken away. As a teenager in Clearfield, Utah, he tried to banish the thoughts. As he grew older, the attractions grew stronger, but so did his religious convictions as a Mormon. The contradiction tormented him. After moving to Manhattan several years ago, he remained a respected young leader in his church ward. Behind closed doors, though, he sank into despair. “I was either going to stay in the church, in what I believe...

The History of a Nationwide Protest Against The Da Vinci CodeSumming it up: Rallies Take Sony to Task for The Da Vinci CodeA Time for Action—The Da Vinci Code RejectedFor all the Stories Telling the History of this Campaign, Click here  Where We Protested:Click the map below for a state-by-state look at the protest effort See the Protest Pictures   Click here for Photo Gallery Read the Blog of the CampaignClick The Da Vinci Code banner below for a two-week day-by-day account of the campaign's most intense days. Da Vinci Code Chronicle: Get the Arguments Against The Da Vinci...

Union Thug (1000+ posts) Thu Dec-02-04 09:40 AM Original message Barf... I actually saw a personalized license plate that said.... "FREEPER" on the trunk lid was a jesus fish. This was in Issaquah, Wa. during the rush home at about 5pm yesterday. I didn't know whether to go into a berserker rage or run quickly away to avoid exposure and possible lethal levels of contamination. It was truly disturbing. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x2126582