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Search found 35 matches

by GPJ
February 7th, 2008, 9:26 pm
Forum: Religion
Topic: THE "DARK BIBLE"
Replies: 5
Views: 1543

Re: THE "DARK BIBLE"

I had some JWs at my door recently, and they were trying to convince me that there were prophecies in the bible that had come true. Naturally I suggested that either the statements were open to many different interpretations, or else were in fact written after the event. One that they seemed keen on...
by GPJ
February 7th, 2008, 9:06 pm
Forum: Religion
Topic: The Archbishop and Sharia Law
Replies: 27
Views: 4985

Re: The Archbishop and Sharia Law

You can email the "World At One", which featured the interview, from here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/news/wato/

There are already many responses posted, and they are overwhelmingly critical.
by GPJ
December 30th, 2007, 8:52 pm
Forum: Club Soda
Topic: Quiz
Replies: 1
Views: 2142

Quiz

I conducted an end of year quiz for the IDEAS Group of Leicester Secular Society. Readers here might like to try the questions: http://www.leicestersecularsociety.org.uk/ideas_quiz.htm One of the rounds is specifically about the Leicester society, but you can ignore that (or search for the answers o...
by GPJ
November 29th, 2007, 10:12 pm
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

The point is that not all religious believers fit the ideological straitjacket you are trying to put them all in. A huge number don't. Religion and religious believers come in all shades of grey and that is why a nuanced approach is needed. It is impossible to argue rationally with people who use t...
by GPJ
November 28th, 2007, 11:41 pm
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

That would be the christ who is coming back bringing armageddon? Most accept it reluctantly but would rather the world wasn't really like that, while those with scientific qualifications (like Ken Miller) try to get their god to work through the uncertainties of quantum theory, or some such fudge. ...
by GPJ
November 28th, 2007, 1:01 am
Forum: Religion
Topic: If you go down to the woods today.....
Replies: 38
Views: 6579

Can we get a manufacturer to bring out a "Mo Bear" for christmas?

It could go down a bomb!
by GPJ
November 28th, 2007, 12:39 am
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

No, from what I've seen, the response to Dawkins' argument that any creator must be complex, and therefore improbable (complexity being a condition of evolved beings), has been to challenge the idea that a deity must be complex. Dawkins' argument, I mean, is not a response to the idea that God is a...
by GPJ
November 28th, 2007, 12:28 am
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

I'll try one final time to define the people the “many good, sensitive, intelligent and sometimes wonderful religious people” that Richard Norman and I know. 1. They believe in a supernatural God and the ones who call themselves Christians believe in the supernatural Jesus Christ. That would be the...
by GPJ
November 23rd, 2007, 7:17 pm
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

George, I've had a quick skim and I've only got five minutes so I'll use them just focussing on what you say here: Well, I thought I was cutting you some slack by admitting the concept of "humanistic religion" (by which I mean people who place emphasis on the "love your neighbour" aspect of the tea...
by GPJ
November 22nd, 2007, 3:42 pm
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

OK, here is my second response to Maria you categorically state that Norman says it is reasonable to believe that 1=0 if we have faith enough. Of course, Norman does no such thing. What I stated was that Norman's reasoning: ("The argument fails. But it is still an argument. As so often, deciding whe...
by GPJ
November 20th, 2007, 7:50 pm
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

Maria's post obviously calls for a point-by point reply, which I will attempt here. Thank you George. I can find little to agree with in your piece and I think some of the things you say about Norman’s article are very mendacious. I read the article very closely and thought I got the sense of what h...
by GPJ
November 19th, 2007, 1:24 am
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist
Replies: 17
Views: 4933

Responses to Richard Norman article in New Humanist

{This discussion has been split from the Is this cartoon offensive? thread - admin} I've now posted a full response to the Richard Norman article: http://secsoc.blogspot.com/2007_11_01_archive.html On the Leicester Secularist blog. My complaint is against the article being an attack by one group of...
by GPJ
November 14th, 2007, 6:06 pm
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: Is this cartoon offensive?
Replies: 37
Views: 12014

I voted "Yes" because I find ALL of Rowson's cartoons offensive. Many cartoons by others of the same ilk (Scarfe, Bell, etc) are also intentionally offensive. It's their style. It's the current fashion. When I first saw the cartoon I thought the intention was to send up Dawkins' tendency to find "aw...
by GPJ
November 7th, 2007, 1:12 pm
Forum: Humanist Ethics & Morality
Topic: Mum aged 22 dies for Jehovah
Replies: 29
Views: 4913

I feel sympathy for the doctors in this case. It seems they are prevented from giving the best available treatment, either because of a law which respects the right of people to hold ridiculous beliefs, or because of fear of being sued for large sums for violating such supposed human rights. If the ...
by GPJ
August 26th, 2007, 8:56 pm
Forum: Sciences and pseudo-science
Topic: Tax the Homeopaths
Replies: 5
Views: 1745

Rather than tax homeopathic remedies, which I think was a somewhat tongue-in-cheek proposal by the writer, I have an alternative proposal. This is that the NHS sets up Placebo Clinics, run by people with a good bedside manner, not necessarily qualified doctors, who are permitted to spend an hour or ...
by GPJ
August 26th, 2007, 8:32 pm
Forum: Education
Topic: Sectarian schools
Replies: 3
Views: 2725

Sectarian schools

What is your experience of sectarianism in schools?

The Scottish and NI commenters to this article on richarddawkins.net seem to have mixed views.

http://richarddawkins.net/article,1570, ... obin-McKie
by GPJ
August 25th, 2007, 9:14 pm
Forum: Miscellaneous Discussions...
Topic: This is awesome
Replies: 13
Views: 2378

Moose, is it OK to copy your pictures of the planets and stars, or are they copyright? Are they yours or copied from somewhere else?

They certainly illustrate the enormous scale of the universe very graphically.
by GPJ
August 25th, 2007, 8:46 pm
Forum: Miscellaneous Discussions...
Topic: Assorted brain teasers
Replies: 68
Views: 9423

It's the only number whose letters: f o r t y are in alphabetical order. ein works, in German 40 is the smallest number that may be the side of 8 distinct Pythagorean triangles (this is according to Table 56 in "Recreations in the Theory of Numbers" by A. H. Beiler). It is also the first case of th...
by GPJ
August 22nd, 2007, 3:30 pm
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: The Brights
Replies: 51
Views: 12055

/// My final comment is on the comparison between the word "Gay" and the word "Bright". The Brights Movement claim that you have to use the word bright as a noun - eg. I am a bright, as opposed to I am bright, which can give the wrong message. The problem is that the person who chose the word Brigh...
by GPJ
August 21st, 2007, 11:14 am
Forum: Humanism, secularism, freethought...
Topic: A Humanist Thesis
Replies: 15
Views: 6481

I’m certainly suggesting that people can choose their beliefs. And what I’m saying is that people generally – not just humanists – should and have every right to believe ‘instrumentally’ whatever they need to believe in order to live their lives in ways they find acceptable and satisfying, rather t...