religion

The rising tide of disbelief within Islam

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Thomas Friedman writes in the New York Times about the rising tide of disbelief within islamic communities … THE Islamic State has visibly attracted young Muslims from all over the world to its violent movement to build a caliphate in Iraq and Syria. But here’s what’s less visible — the online backlash against the Islamic … Read more

Lord Mayor leaves Islamic charity lunch after his lady consort told she had to sit downstairs

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Sometimes I never cease to be amazed at the weird behaviour of some religious people. So the story is that Labour councillor John Thomas (pictured), 70, the Lord Mayor of Leicester, arrived at an annual fundraising event supported by around 20 university Islamic societies in the UK last Sunday with consort Margaret Corley, 72 and was … Read more

Saudi Arabia human rights violations get even worse

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Not too long ago I blogged about the utterly absurd case of Raif Badawi, who was sentenced to 10 years in jail and 1,000 lashes for the (from the viewpoint of the Saudi authorities) hideous crime of starting a progressive website. The latest update is that things are getting even worse, you would not think it possible, but … Read more

Hobby Lobby has opened the door for Satanists to demand religious rights

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As I’m sure you are aware, right wing evangelical billionaire David Green, the owner of Hobby Lobby, initiated a “religious freedom” lawsuit against Sylvia Burwell, the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. The final result was that this Burwell v. Hobby Lobby became a landmark legal case, Burwell v. Hobby Lobby last year was finally decided by the United … Read more

Claim: “atheism is a nonintellectual exercise in self-deception”

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I have perhaps been guilty in times past of living inside a religious bubble, and so having now stepped outside, it is always worth pondering the thought that I have just exchanged one bubble for another, hence I often expose myself (intellectually) to things that are clearly not ideas I agree with. Today’s example comes from … Read more