Ok, so I REALLY need to get better at keeping to a set schedule, trying to do this on a daily basis with a full-time day job isn't the easiest, as a result I think I'm going to try cutting this down to a once a week type deal.
So there area a few things I wanted to chat about, firstly if you remember I was talking a while ago about rapist Bob Hewitt and his appeal to the constitutional court to try and block his incarceration after being convicted of rape, well thankfully sense has prevailed and his appeal has been overturned, meaning that he now has seven days to present himself to a police station to be put into prison.
Next up is the American Baptist Pastor Steven Anderson who had applied for a visa to enter the country on a soul winning mission. For those who don't know, Stevie boy is a bit of a cunt, in his own words he celebrated after the shooting in Orlando left 50 gay people dead, "there are 50 less paedophiles in the world". More than that, he has also publicly called for the execution of all homosexuals. So you know, all round great guy!
Well the South African Minister of Home Affairs has denied his visa application on the basis that he will most likely incite social violence. personally I'm very much in two minds about this, is the guy a complete twat? I don't think there are many that would disagree. Does that mean that the South African government has the right to restrict his travel and free speech? Technically yes. According to the South African constitution, freedom of speech can be limited if it discriminates and incites violence, lines that Anderson clearly crosses.
My problem is that I have a very difficult time whenever free speech is impeded, I think that the argument could definitely be made that neither Anderson, nor any of his ilk would have the balls to actually DO anything and thus doesn't actually pose a danger. That's just my view though and certainly doesn't line up with the constitution.
In other infuriatingly ironic news Richard Keenen, formerly the mayor of Hubbard, Ohio, who was quoted as saying "I'm a Christian. Dedicating my life to Jesus has changed my life," going on to say "Don't preach it, but live it". That was back in 2010 after being sworn in as mayor holding the position for two years. So what's the wanker been up to lately? Why nothing other than raping a four year old of course! He voluntarily admitted to this after checking himself into a psychiatric facility after feeling suicidal. Even worse the arsehole blames the victim, saying that she initiated the acts and was a willing participant. Here's a free tip Richard, I'd actually respect you if you had gone to a psychiatric ward and admitted that you had an attraction to kids BEFORE you raped a four year old, that way you could at least get some help!
Well, that's all folks, as usual, comment and subscribe. Have a good one!
Ta,
G
Showing posts with label Africa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Africa. Show all posts
Wednesday, 14 September 2016
Sunday, 26 June 2016
Weekley news roundup 26/06/2016
Evening all,
I've decided to leave Saturdays open for the moment, even I need a little sleep occasionally, as a result, blogs will run from Sundays to Fridays, with Saturdays open for the moment to allow me to recover. That said, let's have a look at the recap for the week.
On Monday we chatted about the worldwide refugee problem, the lychee and dog festival and an inflatable Donald Trump, (not the sex toy). With regards to the refugee crisis, there's not much that we can say. The past year has been particularly bad what with ISIS being the shitheads that they are, inevitably creating more refugees. The lychee and dog meat festival in China has gone on despite calls from thousands online to stop it. To those who missed the picture of an inflatable Donald Trump dressed up as a member of the KKK, have a look below.
Tuesday's blog was in honour of Mthetho Sandla, a policeman killed in Cape Town in an attempt to stop an ATM robbery. unfortunately there have been no new announcements. If anyone has any information that could lead to the arrest of his killers, please sms your tipoffs to Crime Line: 32211. As usual, the court case regarding SABC censorship concerning the Tshwane riots drags on, Hlaudi Motsoeneng argues that his decision has been based on concern for public safety, claiming that broadcasting the images would have made the riots worse. I for one am not buying it. The last story from Tuesday was regarding good news from the cancer treatment front. Australian scientists have discovered a drug that seemingly helps fight breast cancer in women.
Wednesday's blog started off criticizing Facebook for their bad company policy, the fight continues under the #FacebookVsFreeSpeech hashtag, please remember to share posts concerning this, the more pressure we put on facebook the more likely something will be done about it. No news regarding the charges laid against police for assault and intimidation, it's doubtful that anything will come of the charges though I hold onto hope. By all accounts, Nadia Murad is still doing well all things considered, she continues to campaign for the extermination of ISIS and I wish her all the best.
Thursday was an interesting day to say the least, Andre Slade forgot to stop digging and in an interview with a black reporter told her that she wasn't Homosapien. A short read through of Slade's book shows that his grasp of scientific concepts is minimal at best and you do have to wonder just how much acid the fucker has taken to end up so fucked up. It turns out that the German shooter was most likely not using real weapons, I almost hope that this was a stunt for a YouTube video, anyone that's watched some of the more idiotic prank videos on YouTube will know what I mean. Lastly I talked about Isabelle, the 10 week old baby that ended up contracting whooping cough because fucktards didn't have the sense to vaccinate their kids. Remember people, vaccines save lives!
Well, that's me done for a Sunday night, hope you guys enjoyed. Please remember to comment and follow this, as well as to like the Facebook page!
Ta,
G
I've decided to leave Saturdays open for the moment, even I need a little sleep occasionally, as a result, blogs will run from Sundays to Fridays, with Saturdays open for the moment to allow me to recover. That said, let's have a look at the recap for the week.
On Monday we chatted about the worldwide refugee problem, the lychee and dog festival and an inflatable Donald Trump, (not the sex toy). With regards to the refugee crisis, there's not much that we can say. The past year has been particularly bad what with ISIS being the shitheads that they are, inevitably creating more refugees. The lychee and dog meat festival in China has gone on despite calls from thousands online to stop it. To those who missed the picture of an inflatable Donald Trump dressed up as a member of the KKK, have a look below.
Tuesday's blog was in honour of Mthetho Sandla, a policeman killed in Cape Town in an attempt to stop an ATM robbery. unfortunately there have been no new announcements. If anyone has any information that could lead to the arrest of his killers, please sms your tipoffs to Crime Line: 32211. As usual, the court case regarding SABC censorship concerning the Tshwane riots drags on, Hlaudi Motsoeneng argues that his decision has been based on concern for public safety, claiming that broadcasting the images would have made the riots worse. I for one am not buying it. The last story from Tuesday was regarding good news from the cancer treatment front. Australian scientists have discovered a drug that seemingly helps fight breast cancer in women.
Wednesday's blog started off criticizing Facebook for their bad company policy, the fight continues under the #FacebookVsFreeSpeech hashtag, please remember to share posts concerning this, the more pressure we put on facebook the more likely something will be done about it. No news regarding the charges laid against police for assault and intimidation, it's doubtful that anything will come of the charges though I hold onto hope. By all accounts, Nadia Murad is still doing well all things considered, she continues to campaign for the extermination of ISIS and I wish her all the best.
Thursday was an interesting day to say the least, Andre Slade forgot to stop digging and in an interview with a black reporter told her that she wasn't Homosapien. A short read through of Slade's book shows that his grasp of scientific concepts is minimal at best and you do have to wonder just how much acid the fucker has taken to end up so fucked up. It turns out that the German shooter was most likely not using real weapons, I almost hope that this was a stunt for a YouTube video, anyone that's watched some of the more idiotic prank videos on YouTube will know what I mean. Lastly I talked about Isabelle, the 10 week old baby that ended up contracting whooping cough because fucktards didn't have the sense to vaccinate their kids. Remember people, vaccines save lives!
Well, that's me done for a Sunday night, hope you guys enjoyed. Please remember to comment and follow this, as well as to like the Facebook page!
Ta,
G
Saturday, 25 June 2016
It's all bullshit
Evening all,
I can't help but feel as if I've been harping on at the Abrahamic religions for too long and think I ought to turn my attention towards some of the more contemporary, though no less ridiculous beliefs held by a good number of people. It has become fashionable to throw away old beliefs without so much of a 'by your leave' and look to other superstition to fill the void.
I have again chosen the above words with care, I personally have had a long hard struggle to get to where I am in my journey of discovery, many hours of research and inner searching have lead me to the conclusion that the supernatural is nothing more than a hoax. Personally, losing my faith was a long, hard road, biut one that has been all the more worth it in the end.
I can't help but feel as if I've been harping on at the Abrahamic religions for too long and think I ought to turn my attention towards some of the more contemporary, though no less ridiculous beliefs held by a good number of people. It has become fashionable to throw away old beliefs without so much of a 'by your leave' and look to other superstition to fill the void.
I have again chosen the above words with care, I personally have had a long hard struggle to get to where I am in my journey of discovery, many hours of research and inner searching have lead me to the conclusion that the supernatural is nothing more than a hoax. Personally, losing my faith was a long, hard road, biut one that has been all the more worth it in the end.
Scientology
Before the christians, jews and muslims start sneering, I'd like to point out that Scientology has no more bizarre beliefs than you. Fuck, at least they don't have a talking snake or a burning bush, (though I still think Moses just had a case of the Clap). Claiming a weird affinity to science, which any scientist will deny, scientology tries to fit everyone's ideas of god into one neat bundle. The major problem being that 99% of religions are exclusive. John 14:6 - "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me." It's not exactly a new idea and one can find examples in almost every religion in the world.
One of the problems that I have with scientology is the cult like overtones. much like the mormon church, it becomes nigh impossible to leave once your life is intertwined with the church. It's not as bad as islam which demands death for the sin of apostasy, but there are multiple accounts of people whose lives have been ruined because they decided to take their journey another way. Another problem with scientology is it's obvious falsehood. I mean com'on, the crafty fucker wrote (bad) science fiction before he decided to start his own religion.
Buddhism
Another religion that seems to be popular at the moment, buddhism at least has the credit that it's a couple of thousand years old. Most people who follow "buddishm" follow a more than half bastardized version of it, barely touching the surface of the true intricacies of the religion, though seemingly admiring it's views on reincarnation. I'd not like to degrade the struggle of the Tibetan people with the Chinese government, but let's be honest, it's easy for you to to tell the poor that in the next life their going to be millionaires when you have everything now.
At first glance, buddhism seems harmless, "do good and good will be done to you". Where it all starts to go awry is when we start to incorporate previous lives. No matter how one looks at it, the idea of learning lessons from previous lives is sinister at best. I don't remember any of the previous lives that I've lived, so how the fuck am I meant to remember the lesson that taking taking advantage of an elderly person is wrong. I don't remember any lesson's in my next life, so how the fuck is the future "me" meant to avoid the same pitfalls on the road to nirvana as me?
Naturalism
I may have the definition of naturalism worng but I'm pissed enough on a Friday night not to care. What I mean by naturalism or naturalists is the group who can't stop talking shit about mother nature, as if nature is a conscious entity that makes decisions. Nature has no conscious, it is incapable of giving a shit what we do to this planet. It doesn't send plagues to wipe mankind out in an effort to rid the world of overpopulation, nature just is. If you want to know what nature really is, do a little research on evolution. It's simply process that all living, and for that matter non-living, matter experiences on a daily basis. Nature not only doesn't care, it lacks the ability to care. If all life on this planet was extinguished, nature wouldn't have the capacity to care.
Ok, I'm going to leave his one here as I'm struggling to make sense of what I'm writing. I may or may not come back to this post later to clarify thoughts but hope that I'm being understood. the video od the day is again from Tim Minchin.
Please remember that I own none of the material, visit Tim's site to download the origionals.
Well, that's me for the evening, I hope tat my drunkenness hasn't marred quality too badly, I figure I'm going to read this in the morning and cringe, but regardless, I hope I've been entertaining and that you've had a good time. please remember to like, subscribe and follow the blogs.
Ta,
G
Please remember that I own none of the material, visit Tim's site to download the origionals.
Well, that's me for the evening, I hope tat my drunkenness hasn't marred quality too badly, I figure I'm going to read this in the morning and cringe, but regardless, I hope I've been entertaining and that you've had a good time. please remember to like, subscribe and follow the blogs.
Ta,
G
Thursday, 23 June 2016
No cure for being a cunt...
Evening all,
I trust you all had a good day, I know I did considering that tomorrow is Friday, can't fucking wait! The first thing I want to talk about is Andre Slade. For those of you who don't know, Slade is the owner of Sodwana Bay Guesthouse who it appears has some rather archaic ideas when it comes to race, OK that's a little inaccurate. Basically the man makes the AWB look like an anti-racism organization. He's written a book, "Where to from here, Cognition" which explains his theories in detail, he sights some interesting scientists, namely Carelton S. Coon, an American scientist who's work on the origin of races has been widely criticized by multiple scientists from multiple disciplines.
I would also like to point out that the entire premise of the second chapter of his book, (Ironically entitled Scientific Fakt) is based on Coon's theories, which in turn rely heavily on evolutionary science. The funny part is the fact that on the books website, (wtfh.org/chapters.html) says that the third chapter completely disproves evolution, (still getting there, should be an interesting read).
The reason Slade is in the news is the fact that he sent an e-mail to a black lady who wanted to book into his guest house. Essentially the e-mail informed her that the Sodwana Bay Guest House was no longer accepting either blacks or government officials. Now I know some of you may be thinking that the man deserves the same protection I have pointed should be implemented for Penny Sparrow. The problem for Slade is the fact that he took his racism from thoughts and speech into action. I only hope that the courts can pick this up and prosecute Slade to the full extent of the law.
I would also like to make a personal appeal to anyone reading this, first and foremost, please don't threaten or do Slade or his loved ones any harm. I am simply asking that you spread the word that Sodwana Bay Guest House is to be avoided at all costs, let's hit this fucker where it hurts, his wallet. Having said that, I somehow doubt he will change, as Bron from Game of Thrones said of Jeoffrey, "There's no cure for being a cunt."
On to other matters, there's been an incident in Viernheim, Germany where an armed gunman took hostages inside a movie theater late this afternoon, no one died other than the gunman though over 29 people were injured. Details are still sketchy at the moment but police seem certain that the motive was terrorism. What I wanted to talk about was a comment I saw from an American, something along the lines of, "So how's that gun control working for you Germany?". As someone who is very much pro-gun control I can't help but say, "Pretty well? our shooting ended in one death, that of the gunman's, remind me how yours ended again?"
I really don't mean to take the Orlando Shootings lightly but one really does have to wonder when America as a nation is going to wake up to the fact that making guns easier to get hold of is making the problem worse. Of course there will always be guns available illegally, but when someone can happily walk into a shop and but semi-automatic assault rifles without a background check it's no wonder you end up with tragedies like Orlando.
Last but by no means least is a story about a 10 week old baby named Isabelle. Isabelle's mom isn't an idiot, she plans on getting Isabelle vaccinated as soon as she's old enough, but Isabelle has contracted whooping cough. Isabelle is too young to get the vaccine, but she should have been perfectly safe except for one problem. Not everyone is as smart, (or simply not stupid) as Isabelle's mom, and so some fucking moron has now endangered poor Isabelle by not vaccinating their child. Please people, there are mountains of evidence that show that vaccines are safe and harmless, with little to non showing that there is any link at all between vaccines and autism.
The video for today is another Tim Minchin piece, a nine minute beat poem entitled Storm:
As always, I don't own the above, please do check Tim's stuff out, the man is funny as all hell.
Well, that's my rant over for tonight, please feel free to comment and follow. Also please remember to like the Facebook page.
Ta,
G
I trust you all had a good day, I know I did considering that tomorrow is Friday, can't fucking wait! The first thing I want to talk about is Andre Slade. For those of you who don't know, Slade is the owner of Sodwana Bay Guesthouse who it appears has some rather archaic ideas when it comes to race, OK that's a little inaccurate. Basically the man makes the AWB look like an anti-racism organization. He's written a book, "Where to from here, Cognition" which explains his theories in detail, he sights some interesting scientists, namely Carelton S. Coon, an American scientist who's work on the origin of races has been widely criticized by multiple scientists from multiple disciplines.
I would also like to point out that the entire premise of the second chapter of his book, (Ironically entitled Scientific Fakt) is based on Coon's theories, which in turn rely heavily on evolutionary science. The funny part is the fact that on the books website, (wtfh.org/chapters.html) says that the third chapter completely disproves evolution, (still getting there, should be an interesting read).
The reason Slade is in the news is the fact that he sent an e-mail to a black lady who wanted to book into his guest house. Essentially the e-mail informed her that the Sodwana Bay Guest House was no longer accepting either blacks or government officials. Now I know some of you may be thinking that the man deserves the same protection I have pointed should be implemented for Penny Sparrow. The problem for Slade is the fact that he took his racism from thoughts and speech into action. I only hope that the courts can pick this up and prosecute Slade to the full extent of the law.
I would also like to make a personal appeal to anyone reading this, first and foremost, please don't threaten or do Slade or his loved ones any harm. I am simply asking that you spread the word that Sodwana Bay Guest House is to be avoided at all costs, let's hit this fucker where it hurts, his wallet. Having said that, I somehow doubt he will change, as Bron from Game of Thrones said of Jeoffrey, "There's no cure for being a cunt."
On to other matters, there's been an incident in Viernheim, Germany where an armed gunman took hostages inside a movie theater late this afternoon, no one died other than the gunman though over 29 people were injured. Details are still sketchy at the moment but police seem certain that the motive was terrorism. What I wanted to talk about was a comment I saw from an American, something along the lines of, "So how's that gun control working for you Germany?". As someone who is very much pro-gun control I can't help but say, "Pretty well? our shooting ended in one death, that of the gunman's, remind me how yours ended again?"
I really don't mean to take the Orlando Shootings lightly but one really does have to wonder when America as a nation is going to wake up to the fact that making guns easier to get hold of is making the problem worse. Of course there will always be guns available illegally, but when someone can happily walk into a shop and but semi-automatic assault rifles without a background check it's no wonder you end up with tragedies like Orlando.
Last but by no means least is a story about a 10 week old baby named Isabelle. Isabelle's mom isn't an idiot, she plans on getting Isabelle vaccinated as soon as she's old enough, but Isabelle has contracted whooping cough. Isabelle is too young to get the vaccine, but she should have been perfectly safe except for one problem. Not everyone is as smart, (or simply not stupid) as Isabelle's mom, and so some fucking moron has now endangered poor Isabelle by not vaccinating their child. Please people, there are mountains of evidence that show that vaccines are safe and harmless, with little to non showing that there is any link at all between vaccines and autism.
The video for today is another Tim Minchin piece, a nine minute beat poem entitled Storm:
As always, I don't own the above, please do check Tim's stuff out, the man is funny as all hell.
Well, that's my rant over for tonight, please feel free to comment and follow. Also please remember to like the Facebook page.
Ta,
G
Wednesday, 22 June 2016
So long and thanks for all the... free speech?
Evening all,
It was all of six days ago that I was praising Facebook for their awareness in terms of their social responsibility by releasing tools to assist those thinking of suicide or self harm internationally. Well, six days later it seems I have a bone to pick with Mr Zuckerburg, to those who have not seen what's been happening, Facebook seems to be deleting Facebook groups dedicated to Atheism in Northern Africa and the middle east.
Now to clarify, Facebook aren't simply going around deleting these pages on a whim, the pages have had complaints laid against them by various users in the region. The basis for their complaint? Apparently the pages violate so-called "community standards". The Atheist Alliance - Middle East and North Africa (AA-MENA) have been rallying atheist worldwide to bring attention to the violence and censorship that atheists are subjected to in Muslim communities under the hashtag #FacebookVSFreeSpeech.
Obviously this is not something that Facebook is at fault for, current policy in the company says that community standards are violated when enough of a particular demographic lays the complaint against a page or person, so all that needs to happen is that Facebook needs to change it's policy and stop strangling free speech in Africa.
In local news, two reporters have laid charges against members of the SAPS for assault and intimidation following an incident earlier today where the police tried to stop the reporters from filming them using rubber bullets to disperse crowds of protestors in Pretoria. Having lived in London for five years, I remember the furor when members of the London police tried to stop people filming them and I happen to agreed, if the police are doing as they should, why would the be afraid of public scrutiny?
Last but by no means least is the tale of a very courageous woman named Nadia Murad. Nadia is a 23 year old Yazidi woman who was taken as a slave by members of ISIS when they took control of parts of northern Iraq in 2015. She was beaten and raped but in a supreme display of human courage and tenacity managed to escape and has had a few words for the rest of us. "ISIS will not give up their weapons unless we force them to".
Anyone who knows me knows that I'm by no stretch of the imagination a pacifist, my personal opinion is that if ISIS wants a war, the world as a whole should set everything else to one side and give them one. Every nation should band together to wipe this stain from the face of the earth. To those who point to freedom of speech, please remember that ISIS is not a big fan of talking, they are and always have been all about action against anything that they feel is anti-islamic and the free people of the world need to respond in kind. We will not be terrorized, we will not be cowed, we will fight you and we will win.
Anyway, that's my rant for the night over, tonights clip comes from Jimmy Carr regarding the most offensive joke in the world:
As always, I don't own any of the content, please do check out Jimmy's website here though a word of warning, the man has a very dark sense of humour.
Please remember to comment and subscribe and as usual, please like the Facebook page, there is a button at the top of the page that links to it.
Ta,
G
It was all of six days ago that I was praising Facebook for their awareness in terms of their social responsibility by releasing tools to assist those thinking of suicide or self harm internationally. Well, six days later it seems I have a bone to pick with Mr Zuckerburg, to those who have not seen what's been happening, Facebook seems to be deleting Facebook groups dedicated to Atheism in Northern Africa and the middle east.
Now to clarify, Facebook aren't simply going around deleting these pages on a whim, the pages have had complaints laid against them by various users in the region. The basis for their complaint? Apparently the pages violate so-called "community standards". The Atheist Alliance - Middle East and North Africa (AA-MENA) have been rallying atheist worldwide to bring attention to the violence and censorship that atheists are subjected to in Muslim communities under the hashtag #FacebookVSFreeSpeech.
Obviously this is not something that Facebook is at fault for, current policy in the company says that community standards are violated when enough of a particular demographic lays the complaint against a page or person, so all that needs to happen is that Facebook needs to change it's policy and stop strangling free speech in Africa.
In local news, two reporters have laid charges against members of the SAPS for assault and intimidation following an incident earlier today where the police tried to stop the reporters from filming them using rubber bullets to disperse crowds of protestors in Pretoria. Having lived in London for five years, I remember the furor when members of the London police tried to stop people filming them and I happen to agreed, if the police are doing as they should, why would the be afraid of public scrutiny?
Last but by no means least is the tale of a very courageous woman named Nadia Murad. Nadia is a 23 year old Yazidi woman who was taken as a slave by members of ISIS when they took control of parts of northern Iraq in 2015. She was beaten and raped but in a supreme display of human courage and tenacity managed to escape and has had a few words for the rest of us. "ISIS will not give up their weapons unless we force them to".
Anyone who knows me knows that I'm by no stretch of the imagination a pacifist, my personal opinion is that if ISIS wants a war, the world as a whole should set everything else to one side and give them one. Every nation should band together to wipe this stain from the face of the earth. To those who point to freedom of speech, please remember that ISIS is not a big fan of talking, they are and always have been all about action against anything that they feel is anti-islamic and the free people of the world need to respond in kind. We will not be terrorized, we will not be cowed, we will fight you and we will win.
Anyway, that's my rant for the night over, tonights clip comes from Jimmy Carr regarding the most offensive joke in the world:
As always, I don't own any of the content, please do check out Jimmy's website here though a word of warning, the man has a very dark sense of humour.
Please remember to comment and subscribe and as usual, please like the Facebook page, there is a button at the top of the page that links to it.
Ta,
G
Tuesday, 21 June 2016
#Fuckyouiwontdowhatyoutellme!
Evening all,
First and foremost I feel I have to honor a hero, Mthetho Sandla, an SAPS officer in Cape Town was brutally murdered in the early hours of the 13th of June while he and his partner are believed to have thwarted an ATM robbery as there were explosives found at the scene. To ntate Sandla's family from the people of South Africa, our heart felt thanks to you for giving us your son's life in serving his country and it's people. We can offer little by way of comfort but hope that knowing he died to protect the people of South Africa gives some sense of pride and solace. One can only hope that the bastards who killed him are caught and have the full weight of the law thrown at them. It's stories like these that make me want capital punishment to be reinstated.
In other infuriating, though hardly surprising, news, the SABC is censoring any and all coverage of protests around the country in the run up to the local elections in August. Clearly an apartheid-like ploy to censor what news the majority of South Africans have access to. Thankfully though, the SOS Coalition have created an online petition with over 4000 signatures to hand over to ICASA tomorrow when the regulator will hear arguments from the SABC as to why it has made the decision. For those wishing to sign the petition (I have just done so) please go here.
To put a positive spin on this story, the fact that this has been caught by ICASA is one of the reasons I still have faith in this country, as well as our democracy. Sure, we have corruption, and the current government is trying every trick in the book to try and stop word of their misdeeds getting to the majority of South Africans, but thankfully we live in a country where even the mighty are held accountable. (Unless their name is Jacob Zuma of course) :P.
To end on a more positive note, scientists in Australia have discovered a drug to help combat breast cancer in women. Not to get into the sciencey jargon, the drug essentially helps prevent breast cells with a high likelihood of mutating into cancerous cells from doing so. The previous recommended solution was a mastectomy, though this will hopefully allow this life altering surgery to become a last resort. It will be a good few years before it will be available to patients outside of clinical trials but initial research looks very promising.
For tonight's entertainment I've chosen the music video for Rage Against the Machine's Killing in the Name. Please remember I don't own the media, if you are into something heavy with a bit of hip-hop thrown in, give them a look up.
Well, that's all folks, please remember to follow and comment, also remember to like the Facebook page :)
Ta,
G
First and foremost I feel I have to honor a hero, Mthetho Sandla, an SAPS officer in Cape Town was brutally murdered in the early hours of the 13th of June while he and his partner are believed to have thwarted an ATM robbery as there were explosives found at the scene. To ntate Sandla's family from the people of South Africa, our heart felt thanks to you for giving us your son's life in serving his country and it's people. We can offer little by way of comfort but hope that knowing he died to protect the people of South Africa gives some sense of pride and solace. One can only hope that the bastards who killed him are caught and have the full weight of the law thrown at them. It's stories like these that make me want capital punishment to be reinstated.
In other infuriating, though hardly surprising, news, the SABC is censoring any and all coverage of protests around the country in the run up to the local elections in August. Clearly an apartheid-like ploy to censor what news the majority of South Africans have access to. Thankfully though, the SOS Coalition have created an online petition with over 4000 signatures to hand over to ICASA tomorrow when the regulator will hear arguments from the SABC as to why it has made the decision. For those wishing to sign the petition (I have just done so) please go here.
To put a positive spin on this story, the fact that this has been caught by ICASA is one of the reasons I still have faith in this country, as well as our democracy. Sure, we have corruption, and the current government is trying every trick in the book to try and stop word of their misdeeds getting to the majority of South Africans, but thankfully we live in a country where even the mighty are held accountable. (Unless their name is Jacob Zuma of course) :P.
To end on a more positive note, scientists in Australia have discovered a drug to help combat breast cancer in women. Not to get into the sciencey jargon, the drug essentially helps prevent breast cells with a high likelihood of mutating into cancerous cells from doing so. The previous recommended solution was a mastectomy, though this will hopefully allow this life altering surgery to become a last resort. It will be a good few years before it will be available to patients outside of clinical trials but initial research looks very promising.
For tonight's entertainment I've chosen the music video for Rage Against the Machine's Killing in the Name. Please remember I don't own the media, if you are into something heavy with a bit of hip-hop thrown in, give them a look up.
Well, that's all folks, please remember to follow and comment, also remember to like the Facebook page :)
Ta,
G
Monday, 20 June 2016
All apologies
Evening all,
First and foremost I need to apologize for the lack of posts over the weekend, I've no real excuse for Saturday other than laziness, (and getting caught up in playing Borderlands 2 again). In typical South African style, I had no electricity for around 8 hours on Sunday and so was unable to post then. The plan had been to reserve weekends for a more personal blog, discussing what I've been up to in the past week etc but I'm not sure if enough people would give a fuck to make it worthwhile writing about. As a result I think Saturday's will be up in the air, if anyone has any suggestions regarding content please let me know, Sunday's I will do a weekly roundup and catch-up of stories covered in that week.
So with the apology out of the way, let's have a look at some of the news from over the weekend. A pretty scary statistic is the fact that the number of refugees worldwide has reached over 65 million, the largest that number has ever been. I suppose it's not difficult to understand why, considering the rise of ISIS but it's definitely still a startling number, especially when you consider the burden on the countries that refugees are fleeing to. One needs only to look at what's been happening throughout Europe to know that this has had far reaching effects.
For those who don't know, the Lychee and Dog Meat Festival in Yulin, China is around the corner again, sparking debates around the world concerning animal rights and welfare. Now before I go on, I must confess to being a carnivore, there is little in this world as good as a good rare steak, I don't feel particularly guilty about the fact, humans are omnivores after all and whilst we are now able to survive without meat, provided that we take various supplements, I'm holding out on the vegan train until we can grow a decent steak in the lab, (we aren't too far off either).
On that note, I feel more than a little conflicted regarding the Festival. First let's assume that the reports of dogs being tortured or skinned alive are false, (though sadly these reports seem to be accurate) and that the animals are treated humanely, killed quickly and do not suffer. As a dog person my first emotional reaction is still to shout "...but you can't do that to man's best friend!!" but intellectually, I understand that there are people who keep pigs, (or raw bacon as I call them) as pets. They, I assume, feel just as outraged at my Saturday morning breakfast.
The point that I'm trying to make is that we need to separate the issue's at hand. For most the worst part may be the incredible pain suffered by the animals, but added to that is the species of animal the pain is being inflicted upon. Well, what makes a dog's life any more valuable than a pig or cow? The emotional connection is what leads the majority of us to feel disgust, but surely that makes us nothing more than hypocrites? My opinion is that provided that the animal is not endangered, and does not suffer unduly, there cannot be any animal "safe" from our plates, at least not until we can inexpensively grow good tasting meat in a lab for human consumption.
In more light-hearted news, did anyone else see the inflatable Donald Trump dressed up like a KKK member? To those that didn't it's a please :)
Right, That's me done for the evening, thanks again for reading and please remember to comment and follow.
Ta,
G
First and foremost I need to apologize for the lack of posts over the weekend, I've no real excuse for Saturday other than laziness, (and getting caught up in playing Borderlands 2 again). In typical South African style, I had no electricity for around 8 hours on Sunday and so was unable to post then. The plan had been to reserve weekends for a more personal blog, discussing what I've been up to in the past week etc but I'm not sure if enough people would give a fuck to make it worthwhile writing about. As a result I think Saturday's will be up in the air, if anyone has any suggestions regarding content please let me know, Sunday's I will do a weekly roundup and catch-up of stories covered in that week.
So with the apology out of the way, let's have a look at some of the news from over the weekend. A pretty scary statistic is the fact that the number of refugees worldwide has reached over 65 million, the largest that number has ever been. I suppose it's not difficult to understand why, considering the rise of ISIS but it's definitely still a startling number, especially when you consider the burden on the countries that refugees are fleeing to. One needs only to look at what's been happening throughout Europe to know that this has had far reaching effects.
For those who don't know, the Lychee and Dog Meat Festival in Yulin, China is around the corner again, sparking debates around the world concerning animal rights and welfare. Now before I go on, I must confess to being a carnivore, there is little in this world as good as a good rare steak, I don't feel particularly guilty about the fact, humans are omnivores after all and whilst we are now able to survive without meat, provided that we take various supplements, I'm holding out on the vegan train until we can grow a decent steak in the lab, (we aren't too far off either).
On that note, I feel more than a little conflicted regarding the Festival. First let's assume that the reports of dogs being tortured or skinned alive are false, (though sadly these reports seem to be accurate) and that the animals are treated humanely, killed quickly and do not suffer. As a dog person my first emotional reaction is still to shout "...but you can't do that to man's best friend!!" but intellectually, I understand that there are people who keep pigs, (or raw bacon as I call them) as pets. They, I assume, feel just as outraged at my Saturday morning breakfast.
The point that I'm trying to make is that we need to separate the issue's at hand. For most the worst part may be the incredible pain suffered by the animals, but added to that is the species of animal the pain is being inflicted upon. Well, what makes a dog's life any more valuable than a pig or cow? The emotional connection is what leads the majority of us to feel disgust, but surely that makes us nothing more than hypocrites? My opinion is that provided that the animal is not endangered, and does not suffer unduly, there cannot be any animal "safe" from our plates, at least not until we can inexpensively grow good tasting meat in a lab for human consumption.
In more light-hearted news, did anyone else see the inflatable Donald Trump dressed up like a KKK member? To those that didn't it's a please :)
Right, That's me done for the evening, thanks again for reading and please remember to comment and follow.
Ta,
G
Saturday, 18 June 2016
Through Skeptical Eyes
Evening all,
I figured I'd use tonight's post to share a little of my own story and how I came to the inevitable conclusion regarding a lack of god/s and that follows unbiased self reflection and inquiry into reality. I was born in Durban South Africa to a Roman Catholic father and Methodist mother. Neither were particularly religious, though I was baptized Roman Catholic. Parental guidance in terms of religion pretty much stopped there, (for the (ex)Catholics out there, I didn't even have my first holy communion.
Fast forward around nine years to a rather rebellious little shit at age 16. My mom had recently had a stroke and my whole family was learning to adjust ourselves to having to care for her, it was most definitely a difficult time in my life and I grasped for anything that would give meaning to what had happened to my mom and so I researched. Anyone that knows me knows that I have a lot of difficulty with half measures, for me it's all or nothing.
As a result I researched every religion I could think of (other than Christianity funny enough) and found nothing that felt right except LaVeyan Satanism. For those of you who don't know, LaVeyan Satanists do not believe that either Satan or God are actual beings, they see Satan as more of an idea representing pride, carnality and enlightenment, they do however practice magic. For the South Africans among you it will come as no surprise that I kept my newfound "faith" very much to myself.
This stage of my life did not last long, it was at around this time that I first came into contact with marijuana, something that helped me deal with the realities of having to help care for a recently disabled mother. Combined with the fact that none of my spells ever came to fruition, the fact that the use of illicit drugs is forbidden by the Church of Satan made me re-asses my beliefs again and became atheist almost by default.
The next few years were fairly troubling, both for myself as well as my family, I became more and more rebellious, caring less and less for those closest to me. My school work suffered, at one stage I was an A student, though dropped out of high school without finishing. Eventually my parents could no longer deal with me and I was shipped off to a christian rehabilitation center.
I would be lying if I said that Christianity had no part in me managing to grow up enough to realize that being constantly stoned was not a solution to my problems. In my typical fashion, after embracing the idea of Christianity, I threw myself at it with vigor. Once leaving rehab I quickly found a church and became a regular, I attended at least three church related events a week, studied my bible, and genuinely believed every word. I was the kind of annoying christian who would happily debate anyone and everyone who had a different point of view and would dismiss scientific data out of hand if it did not agree with my opinion.
It was around this time that I met my wife (we are separated), and moved to England. My wife and I had a beautiful daughter and life couldn't have been better. It took around four years for the romance to wear off (we had known each other for little over a month before getting married). That last year in England was both the best and worst time of my life, I was a young single man in England and took advantage to my new found freedom. Partly by visiting various clubs (I remember the crowbar, just off Tottenham Court Road fondly) and partly by giving myself the opportunity for honest self reflection and research. It was during that last year in England that I finally got what all the Atheists I had previously debated were trying to tell me.
It broke (and breaks) my heart when I was forced to leave England because I could not renew my VISA, but here I am, back in sunny, (though bloody cold at the moment) South Africa and finding an anger building inside me. Colonialism has a lot to answer for but the Christian faith is certainly one of the worst. It seems almost every day we see stories in the news about con-men *cough*preachers*cough* who are stealing from an already impoverished people. So I decided to see what I could do to help. If I am able to do nothing else, hopefully I will be able to help as many people as possible see reason and logic.
Anyway, that's my story, I hope I haven't bored anyone to death, to lighten the mood I'm posting another Tim Minchin video, this time entitled "The Good Book":
As always, please feel free to comment and follow, also remember to like the facebook page.
Ta,
G
I figured I'd use tonight's post to share a little of my own story and how I came to the inevitable conclusion regarding a lack of god/s and that follows unbiased self reflection and inquiry into reality. I was born in Durban South Africa to a Roman Catholic father and Methodist mother. Neither were particularly religious, though I was baptized Roman Catholic. Parental guidance in terms of religion pretty much stopped there, (for the (ex)Catholics out there, I didn't even have my first holy communion.
Fast forward around nine years to a rather rebellious little shit at age 16. My mom had recently had a stroke and my whole family was learning to adjust ourselves to having to care for her, it was most definitely a difficult time in my life and I grasped for anything that would give meaning to what had happened to my mom and so I researched. Anyone that knows me knows that I have a lot of difficulty with half measures, for me it's all or nothing.
As a result I researched every religion I could think of (other than Christianity funny enough) and found nothing that felt right except LaVeyan Satanism. For those of you who don't know, LaVeyan Satanists do not believe that either Satan or God are actual beings, they see Satan as more of an idea representing pride, carnality and enlightenment, they do however practice magic. For the South Africans among you it will come as no surprise that I kept my newfound "faith" very much to myself.
This stage of my life did not last long, it was at around this time that I first came into contact with marijuana, something that helped me deal with the realities of having to help care for a recently disabled mother. Combined with the fact that none of my spells ever came to fruition, the fact that the use of illicit drugs is forbidden by the Church of Satan made me re-asses my beliefs again and became atheist almost by default.
The next few years were fairly troubling, both for myself as well as my family, I became more and more rebellious, caring less and less for those closest to me. My school work suffered, at one stage I was an A student, though dropped out of high school without finishing. Eventually my parents could no longer deal with me and I was shipped off to a christian rehabilitation center.
I would be lying if I said that Christianity had no part in me managing to grow up enough to realize that being constantly stoned was not a solution to my problems. In my typical fashion, after embracing the idea of Christianity, I threw myself at it with vigor. Once leaving rehab I quickly found a church and became a regular, I attended at least three church related events a week, studied my bible, and genuinely believed every word. I was the kind of annoying christian who would happily debate anyone and everyone who had a different point of view and would dismiss scientific data out of hand if it did not agree with my opinion.
It was around this time that I met my wife (we are separated), and moved to England. My wife and I had a beautiful daughter and life couldn't have been better. It took around four years for the romance to wear off (we had known each other for little over a month before getting married). That last year in England was both the best and worst time of my life, I was a young single man in England and took advantage to my new found freedom. Partly by visiting various clubs (I remember the crowbar, just off Tottenham Court Road fondly) and partly by giving myself the opportunity for honest self reflection and research. It was during that last year in England that I finally got what all the Atheists I had previously debated were trying to tell me.
It broke (and breaks) my heart when I was forced to leave England because I could not renew my VISA, but here I am, back in sunny, (though bloody cold at the moment) South Africa and finding an anger building inside me. Colonialism has a lot to answer for but the Christian faith is certainly one of the worst. It seems almost every day we see stories in the news about con-men *cough*preachers*cough* who are stealing from an already impoverished people. So I decided to see what I could do to help. If I am able to do nothing else, hopefully I will be able to help as many people as possible see reason and logic.
Anyway, that's my story, I hope I haven't bored anyone to death, to lighten the mood I'm posting another Tim Minchin video, this time entitled "The Good Book":
As always, please feel free to comment and follow, also remember to like the facebook page.
Ta,
G
Thursday, 16 June 2016
Facebook FTW!
Evening all,
The first thing I want to chat about is Facebook's new Suicide prevention tool. The idea is a pretty cool one, the idea being that if you see a post from a friend or family member that you feel indicates that they may be thinking about suicide or self-harm, you can flag the post. The post then gets analyzed by a dedicated team within Facebook, (one assumes properly trained) who then assess the risk level and intervene accordingly. It has been trialed in the US since 2015 and has been fairly successful. This is a prime example of a company that takes it' social responsibility to it's clients very seriously.
Lord Martin Rees, the Astronomer Royal has said that the European Space Agency should devote it's budget to robotic space missions rather than sending astronauts into space. His thinking being that all of the tasks performed by humans can now be performed by machines, for longer and cheaper. Whilst I can see his point it doesn't address something huge. Surely the end game to space exploration has to be colonization of other planets. We know for a fact that the human population growth is unsustainable, with nothing in sight to indicate that the growth will change, we need to be looking towards sustainable solutions like colonizing other planets if we hope to survive much longer as a species.
In more positive news, following the large scale arrest of at least 3000 people suspected of being involved in recent attacks by islamic radicals in Bangladesh, one of them has been charged with the murder of Faisal Arefin Dipon because the publishing house that he headed had published books by atheist author Avijit Roy. A victory, not only in that it seems that the perpetrator will be brought to justice, but also because it seems as if police in Bangladesh are taking the matters very seriously. Let's just hope that this can bring some peace to Faisal's family.
Tonight's video comes courtesy of Chris Hadfield, the Canadian astronaut who made a music video in space. It may seem small but to me it embodies all that is good and right with this world, as well as our hope for the future.
Please remember that I don't own the content, Chris Hadfield has also done a lot in terms of Education and encouraging students to go into the sciences, please visit his youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/ColChrisHadfield/featured.
Well, that's it for tonight, please remember to comment, subscribe and like the Facebook page.
Ta,
G
The first thing I want to chat about is Facebook's new Suicide prevention tool. The idea is a pretty cool one, the idea being that if you see a post from a friend or family member that you feel indicates that they may be thinking about suicide or self-harm, you can flag the post. The post then gets analyzed by a dedicated team within Facebook, (one assumes properly trained) who then assess the risk level and intervene accordingly. It has been trialed in the US since 2015 and has been fairly successful. This is a prime example of a company that takes it' social responsibility to it's clients very seriously.
Lord Martin Rees, the Astronomer Royal has said that the European Space Agency should devote it's budget to robotic space missions rather than sending astronauts into space. His thinking being that all of the tasks performed by humans can now be performed by machines, for longer and cheaper. Whilst I can see his point it doesn't address something huge. Surely the end game to space exploration has to be colonization of other planets. We know for a fact that the human population growth is unsustainable, with nothing in sight to indicate that the growth will change, we need to be looking towards sustainable solutions like colonizing other planets if we hope to survive much longer as a species.
In more positive news, following the large scale arrest of at least 3000 people suspected of being involved in recent attacks by islamic radicals in Bangladesh, one of them has been charged with the murder of Faisal Arefin Dipon because the publishing house that he headed had published books by atheist author Avijit Roy. A victory, not only in that it seems that the perpetrator will be brought to justice, but also because it seems as if police in Bangladesh are taking the matters very seriously. Let's just hope that this can bring some peace to Faisal's family.
Tonight's video comes courtesy of Chris Hadfield, the Canadian astronaut who made a music video in space. It may seem small but to me it embodies all that is good and right with this world, as well as our hope for the future.
Please remember that I don't own the content, Chris Hadfield has also done a lot in terms of Education and encouraging students to go into the sciences, please visit his youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/ColChrisHadfield/featured.
Well, that's it for tonight, please remember to comment, subscribe and like the Facebook page.
Ta,
G
Wednesday, 15 June 2016
A self perpetuating cycle
Evening all,
I feel like I'm harping on a bit about this but with the latest news coming from Orlando I can't help but feel I need to share my opinion. To those who haven't seen the latest, it turns out that the shooter was most likely gay, and had been frequenting the same bar the incident happened at. Now please don't take this as sympathy for the shooter, loads of people have been through similar circumstances and not walked out the other side guns blazing, but at the same time I think that society needs to at the very least take a long hard look at how we accept discrimination of the LGBT community.
Here is a man who despised who and what he was with every fibre of his being. Despised it enough that he felt the need to end a large number of people's lives with the knowledge that his would most likely end as well. The more I read and learn about this man, the more I can't help but find his story sad. Do I think he's a piece of shit? Without a doubt, but one can't help but wonder what would have happened if he would have been supported by his family rather than ostracized.
So rapist Bob Hewitt (Fuckit, the doos is no better than rapist Brock Turner) has applied for his bail to be extended so that he has time to appeal to the constitutional court for his sentence of 6 years, (yup, 6 years of his life for ruining the lives of two women, pretty fucking pathetic if you ask me). As you may have gathered from my tone, I have little sympathy for rapist Bob Hewitt, the man is a pedophile, yes I commend him for not acting out for decades but that by no stretch of the imagination excuses him for his past crimes. Let the fucker rot!
For us here in South Africa, tomorrow is a public holiday, Youth Day to be exact. The holiday is to commemorate the youth uprising that began in Soweto on the 16th of June 1976. The crux of the matter was twofold, firstly Afrikaans had just been introduced as a compulsory subject nation wide, this brought the main reason for the uprising to boiling point, inferior education for the native black population.
The march began peacefully enough with students simply wanting to voice their grievances, however the police soon arrived and the situation was exploded into violence that lasted almost a year. The official death toll claimed that only 23 students were killed. By the time that the violence simmered down there were close on 700 people dead.
I think it's important to remember and reflect on the reasons that we have these public holidays, especially in a time where racism in South Africa seems to be rearing it's ugly head again. We as the people of South Africa need to remember the pain and suffering that racism has brought us in the past, we need to remember the brave students who gave their lives on that fateful day so that all of us could live free and happy.
Well I think that's enough rambling from me tonight, I'll leave you with a video featuring a very talented spoken word artist named Prince ea:
Please remember, I don't own the content. If you like what you watched please visit his website: http://www.princeea.com/
As always, please feel free to comment and follow, also remember to like the facebook page above.
Ta,
G
I feel like I'm harping on a bit about this but with the latest news coming from Orlando I can't help but feel I need to share my opinion. To those who haven't seen the latest, it turns out that the shooter was most likely gay, and had been frequenting the same bar the incident happened at. Now please don't take this as sympathy for the shooter, loads of people have been through similar circumstances and not walked out the other side guns blazing, but at the same time I think that society needs to at the very least take a long hard look at how we accept discrimination of the LGBT community.
Here is a man who despised who and what he was with every fibre of his being. Despised it enough that he felt the need to end a large number of people's lives with the knowledge that his would most likely end as well. The more I read and learn about this man, the more I can't help but find his story sad. Do I think he's a piece of shit? Without a doubt, but one can't help but wonder what would have happened if he would have been supported by his family rather than ostracized.
So rapist Bob Hewitt (Fuckit, the doos is no better than rapist Brock Turner) has applied for his bail to be extended so that he has time to appeal to the constitutional court for his sentence of 6 years, (yup, 6 years of his life for ruining the lives of two women, pretty fucking pathetic if you ask me). As you may have gathered from my tone, I have little sympathy for rapist Bob Hewitt, the man is a pedophile, yes I commend him for not acting out for decades but that by no stretch of the imagination excuses him for his past crimes. Let the fucker rot!
For us here in South Africa, tomorrow is a public holiday, Youth Day to be exact. The holiday is to commemorate the youth uprising that began in Soweto on the 16th of June 1976. The crux of the matter was twofold, firstly Afrikaans had just been introduced as a compulsory subject nation wide, this brought the main reason for the uprising to boiling point, inferior education for the native black population.
The march began peacefully enough with students simply wanting to voice their grievances, however the police soon arrived and the situation was exploded into violence that lasted almost a year. The official death toll claimed that only 23 students were killed. By the time that the violence simmered down there were close on 700 people dead.
I think it's important to remember and reflect on the reasons that we have these public holidays, especially in a time where racism in South Africa seems to be rearing it's ugly head again. We as the people of South Africa need to remember the pain and suffering that racism has brought us in the past, we need to remember the brave students who gave their lives on that fateful day so that all of us could live free and happy.
Well I think that's enough rambling from me tonight, I'll leave you with a video featuring a very talented spoken word artist named Prince ea:
Please remember, I don't own the content. If you like what you watched please visit his website: http://www.princeea.com/
As always, please feel free to comment and follow, also remember to like the facebook page above.
Ta,
G
Forbidden love
Evening all,
It never ceases to amaze me how often an institution apparently dedicated to love so often pushes it's followers in the opposite direction. Mpho Tutu van Furth, the daughter of our always smiling Desmond Tutu has remarried, this time for love, to her wife, Marceline, a Dutch atheist academic in a private civil ceremony in Franchhoek. Mpho was an ordained reverend with the South African Anglican church until they took exception to the fact that she married someone of the same sex, (though apparently not so much to the fact that she is divorced) regardless, I wish Mpho and Marceline many happy years together, may their love shine as an example to others not to allow anyone to stifle who they are.
In other infuriating news, Social Development Minister, Bathabile Dlamini has been accused of spending R11000.00 of government money to stay overnight in a hotel while attending the ANC Kwazulu-Natal manifesto launch. This after she insisted that R753 was sufficient for those receiving social grants. One has to wonder if the Minister remembers what it's like having to live on next to nothing from month to month.
In developing news, Henri van Breda has handed himself over to police after they contacted his attorney to inform them of his imminent arrest, for those who don't know, Henri and his sister were the lone surivors of an attach on his family that made headlines back in January 2015. at the time, Henri claimed he had been attached as well but had managed to lock himself away while the rest of his family was butchered. The state is now saying that Henri's superficial wounds are all indicative of being self inflicted. It's not looking good for the young man but we'll see what other evidence the state provides.
The video for the day comes from Bo Burnham, a brilliant musical comedian who got his start on youtube:
Please remember that I don't own the content for the video, please do also check out Bo's website, the dude is brilliant and funny as all hell: www.boburnham.com.
Thanks for reading everyone, please remember to comment and subscribe and also remember to like the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist/
Ta,
G
It never ceases to amaze me how often an institution apparently dedicated to love so often pushes it's followers in the opposite direction. Mpho Tutu van Furth, the daughter of our always smiling Desmond Tutu has remarried, this time for love, to her wife, Marceline, a Dutch atheist academic in a private civil ceremony in Franchhoek. Mpho was an ordained reverend with the South African Anglican church until they took exception to the fact that she married someone of the same sex, (though apparently not so much to the fact that she is divorced) regardless, I wish Mpho and Marceline many happy years together, may their love shine as an example to others not to allow anyone to stifle who they are.
In other infuriating news, Social Development Minister, Bathabile Dlamini has been accused of spending R11000.00 of government money to stay overnight in a hotel while attending the ANC Kwazulu-Natal manifesto launch. This after she insisted that R753 was sufficient for those receiving social grants. One has to wonder if the Minister remembers what it's like having to live on next to nothing from month to month.
In developing news, Henri van Breda has handed himself over to police after they contacted his attorney to inform them of his imminent arrest, for those who don't know, Henri and his sister were the lone surivors of an attach on his family that made headlines back in January 2015. at the time, Henri claimed he had been attached as well but had managed to lock himself away while the rest of his family was butchered. The state is now saying that Henri's superficial wounds are all indicative of being self inflicted. It's not looking good for the young man but we'll see what other evidence the state provides.
The video for the day comes from Bo Burnham, a brilliant musical comedian who got his start on youtube:
Please remember that I don't own the content for the video, please do also check out Bo's website, the dude is brilliant and funny as all hell: www.boburnham.com.
Thanks for reading everyone, please remember to comment and subscribe and also remember to like the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist/
Ta,
G
Monday, 13 June 2016
and the piece of shit of the day award goes to...
Evening all,
So to those who haven't been following the news, there was a massive shooting in Orlando, Florida at around 3am on Sunday. A piece of shit (who I will not name purposefully) had taken as a personal insult the sight of a happy couple kissing in front of him and his family a few days earlier. Spurred on by his holy book and imam, he took it upon himself to end the lives of 49 innocent homosexuals. My heart breaks at the thought that innocent people are having to deal with the pain and suffering of losing a loved one in such a terrible manner. Should anyone reading this know of anyone affected, please let them know that they have sympathies and support from as far away as South Africa. Rather than give the piece of shit who committed these heinous crimes any recognition, I've attached a link below to celebrate the lives of those who were senselessly murdered.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-orlando-nightclub-victims-who-they-were-snap-htmlstory.html
In other troubling, (though far less so) news, Penny Sparrow has been ordered by a court of law to pay a fine of R150,000.00 to the Oliver and Adelaide Tambo Foundation, whose official mission is to "Impact on the quality of life by consolidating and promoting a value based society" whatever the fuck that means. Now anyone who knows me, or has read previous posts of mine, knows that I think that Penny's conduct was despicable, but I cannot see how it in any way constitutes hate speech and thus is lawful, I have defended the idiot that went on at the white waitress about giving back land under the same banner, freedom of speech. It doesn't end just because I disagree with you.
Lastly I'd like to take this opportunity to highlight an incredible human being, a young man by the name of Shagam Newman. Shagam's living situation is less than ideal, currently homeless, he lives in a two bedroom shack on the slopes of Table Mountain, along with around 10 dogs and more than a few cats. Despite his own desperate situation, Shagam loves animals and spends his days trying to help as many as he can, often manning a trolley outside the local spa asking for donations of dog and cat food. Once he has a full trolley this legend then goes around his local neighborhood and helps anyone that has animals and is short on cash to feed them. He is currently working together with DARG (https://www.facebook.com/DARG.org.za/?fref=nf) so if anyone wants to donate or just offer messages of encouragement, please send them through DARG.
Youtube clip of the day, talented Canadian rapper Baba Brinkman with his song titled "Darwin's Acid":
As usual, I don't own the media, please visit Baba's official page and download his music here: http://www.bababrinkman.com/
Well, that's my piece for today, please remember to comment, subscribe as well as like the facebook page (www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist) and remember, the world may be full to the brim with hate and violence, but the only thing that can make a positive change is you.
Ta,
G
So to those who haven't been following the news, there was a massive shooting in Orlando, Florida at around 3am on Sunday. A piece of shit (who I will not name purposefully) had taken as a personal insult the sight of a happy couple kissing in front of him and his family a few days earlier. Spurred on by his holy book and imam, he took it upon himself to end the lives of 49 innocent homosexuals. My heart breaks at the thought that innocent people are having to deal with the pain and suffering of losing a loved one in such a terrible manner. Should anyone reading this know of anyone affected, please let them know that they have sympathies and support from as far away as South Africa. Rather than give the piece of shit who committed these heinous crimes any recognition, I've attached a link below to celebrate the lives of those who were senselessly murdered.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-orlando-nightclub-victims-who-they-were-snap-htmlstory.html
In other troubling, (though far less so) news, Penny Sparrow has been ordered by a court of law to pay a fine of R150,000.00 to the Oliver and Adelaide Tambo Foundation, whose official mission is to "Impact on the quality of life by consolidating and promoting a value based society" whatever the fuck that means. Now anyone who knows me, or has read previous posts of mine, knows that I think that Penny's conduct was despicable, but I cannot see how it in any way constitutes hate speech and thus is lawful, I have defended the idiot that went on at the white waitress about giving back land under the same banner, freedom of speech. It doesn't end just because I disagree with you.
Lastly I'd like to take this opportunity to highlight an incredible human being, a young man by the name of Shagam Newman. Shagam's living situation is less than ideal, currently homeless, he lives in a two bedroom shack on the slopes of Table Mountain, along with around 10 dogs and more than a few cats. Despite his own desperate situation, Shagam loves animals and spends his days trying to help as many as he can, often manning a trolley outside the local spa asking for donations of dog and cat food. Once he has a full trolley this legend then goes around his local neighborhood and helps anyone that has animals and is short on cash to feed them. He is currently working together with DARG (https://www.facebook.com/DARG.org.za/?fref=nf) so if anyone wants to donate or just offer messages of encouragement, please send them through DARG.
Youtube clip of the day, talented Canadian rapper Baba Brinkman with his song titled "Darwin's Acid":
As usual, I don't own the media, please visit Baba's official page and download his music here: http://www.bababrinkman.com/
Well, that's my piece for today, please remember to comment, subscribe as well as like the facebook page (www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist) and remember, the world may be full to the brim with hate and violence, but the only thing that can make a positive change is you.
Ta,
G
Sunday, 12 June 2016
5 most common arguments for god's existence and why they are at best illogical
Evening all,
So for those who don't know, there was a shooting in an Orlando, Florida club last night. Calling the perpetrator a despicable human being is to insult human beings everywhere. I'll do a proper opinion piece on this tomorrow but I just want to let the people affected by this know that my thoughts are with them.
It's always difficult to write something after hearing news like this but I can't help but feel that not carrying on would be akin to the fucktards forcing me to stop, something that I sincerely hope never happens, so without further ado:
So for those who don't know, there was a shooting in an Orlando, Florida club last night. Calling the perpetrator a despicable human being is to insult human beings everywhere. I'll do a proper opinion piece on this tomorrow but I just want to let the people affected by this know that my thoughts are with them.
It's always difficult to write something after hearing news like this but I can't help but feel that not carrying on would be akin to the fucktards forcing me to stop, something that I sincerely hope never happens, so without further ado:
5.) but evolution is only a theory...
The problem with this argument is the fact that all it serves to do is highlight the persons ignorance of what scientific phrases mean. Did you know that gravity is also "just" a theory? A theory in a scientific context is more than just someone's wild idea, it's a way to interpret facts and has mountains of scientific data and proof to back it up. So yes, evolution is a theory, but one that has yet to have a single shred of scientific evidence to contradict it, and mountains of evidence to back it up.
4.) The second law of thermodynamics.
In layman's terms, the second law of thermodynamics says that any closed system left to it's own devices will inevitably move towards entropy. It's often pointed to as proof that god has to exist or the universe would collapse into chaos. The major problem with this idea is the fact that the universe is not a closed system, meaning that the second law of thermodynamics cannot be used to interpret it, or make predictions about it.
3.) Something as complicated as an eye can't simply have come about by chance.
One of the main obstacles to most people's understanding of evolution is time, as humans we can envisage 5 minutes, 5 years, even 500 years, we can sort of grasp the concept of 5000 years but it's almost impossible to envision much more than that. It's this difficulty that we humans have that leads to out lack of acceptance of evolution. I think the best person to explain the evolution of they eye is Professor Richard Dawkins:
2.) I don't understand how you can believe that we are just here by chance.
Aka the argument from personal credulity, I still remember this same response to atheists who said something similar about believing in god when I was a bible believing christian. If you are tied to some train tracks with a train bearing down on you, no matter how much you believe the train isn't there, the train isn't just going to disappear. Just because you can't or won't believe the truth, doesn't change the truth.
1.) What if you're wrong?
To whose who don't know, Pascal's wager is an argument for a belief in god devised by the 17th century French philosopher, Blaise Pascal. Basically it says that non-belief in god is the less rational standpoint because if you are wrong, you burn in hell, whereas being wrong when you believe in god means little to nothing. I think I'll leave the answer to this one to Stephen Fry;
Per usual, none of the media in this post is owned by me, please do have a look at both Richard and Stephen, amazing people with awesome senses of humour.
Well, that's all folks, Thanks again for reading, any questions or suggestions, please feel free to comment and do please subscribe. also remember to like the facebook page: www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist
Ta,
G
Well, that's all folks, Thanks again for reading, any questions or suggestions, please feel free to comment and do please subscribe. also remember to like the facebook page: www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist
Ta,
G
Saturday, 11 June 2016
parkrun!
Morning all,
Had a fun but tiring time this morning at parkrun, got to walk the puppies and breath in some fresh air, today was the first time I've done it and believe me when I say, 5kms is farther than I remember, though all in all a good time was had. Apologies to the owners of the smaller dogs that D'artagnon, our ridgeback, kept rushing towards, the (not so) little shit really is friendly and he just gets so excited about meeting new friends. Zeus, our pitbull, was on good behavior as always.
One thing that annoyed me was the amount of dog shit on the route, I will say that every dog I saw take a dump got it picked up by their owners but there was still a fair amount lying around. It makes me wonder why people feel it's OK to just leave it there, I mean the organizers were handing out free poop bags in case you had forgotten some so there really is no excuse. Perhaps we should find them and take a dump on their car's windscreen with a note mentioning that stepping in their dogs shit is just as annoying. For those interested in finding out more about parkrun South Africa, please visit their website here: http://www.parkrun.co.za/
For the readers out there I thought I'd share what I'm currently reading, book five of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. For those of you into high fantasy I'd strongly suggest you give it a read, think Lord of the Rings on steroids, (Wheel of Time is 14 books). Jordan can be a little frustrating to read at times, I occasionally find myself thinking, "OK, I get it, there's a tree on a hill, unless it's vital to the story I didn't REALLY need to know how many leaves it had on it!" but if you can plough through the annoying bits, the story is enchanting, and Jordan has a very unique way of looking at and explaining the use of magik in the universe he's created. For a bit more on the lore and universe, have a read here: http://wot.wikia.com/wiki/A_beginning
Socially I've got a dinner party to go to later, It's been ages since I've had oxtail so I'm seriously looking forward to some good food, good wine and good company. Now I'm rambling so I guess I'll leave this post there. Remember to like the facebook page here: www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist As always, thanks so much for reading and have a good one!
Ta,
G
Had a fun but tiring time this morning at parkrun, got to walk the puppies and breath in some fresh air, today was the first time I've done it and believe me when I say, 5kms is farther than I remember, though all in all a good time was had. Apologies to the owners of the smaller dogs that D'artagnon, our ridgeback, kept rushing towards, the (not so) little shit really is friendly and he just gets so excited about meeting new friends. Zeus, our pitbull, was on good behavior as always.
One thing that annoyed me was the amount of dog shit on the route, I will say that every dog I saw take a dump got it picked up by their owners but there was still a fair amount lying around. It makes me wonder why people feel it's OK to just leave it there, I mean the organizers were handing out free poop bags in case you had forgotten some so there really is no excuse. Perhaps we should find them and take a dump on their car's windscreen with a note mentioning that stepping in their dogs shit is just as annoying. For those interested in finding out more about parkrun South Africa, please visit their website here: http://www.parkrun.co.za/
For the readers out there I thought I'd share what I'm currently reading, book five of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. For those of you into high fantasy I'd strongly suggest you give it a read, think Lord of the Rings on steroids, (Wheel of Time is 14 books). Jordan can be a little frustrating to read at times, I occasionally find myself thinking, "OK, I get it, there's a tree on a hill, unless it's vital to the story I didn't REALLY need to know how many leaves it had on it!" but if you can plough through the annoying bits, the story is enchanting, and Jordan has a very unique way of looking at and explaining the use of magik in the universe he's created. For a bit more on the lore and universe, have a read here: http://wot.wikia.com/wiki/A_beginning
Socially I've got a dinner party to go to later, It's been ages since I've had oxtail so I'm seriously looking forward to some good food, good wine and good company. Now I'm rambling so I guess I'll leave this post there. Remember to like the facebook page here: www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist As always, thanks so much for reading and have a good one!
Ta,
G
Friday, 10 June 2016
Eat your drugs, stay in vegetables and don't do school!
Evening all,
So as you may or may not have deduced from the title, today's post is all about drugs, more specifically my opinion in terms of the legalization, legislation and control thereof. It's a difficult subject to be sure, my initial thoughts are that adults have the right to do with their bodies as they please, provided that their actions do not infringe on the rights of others (suicide bombers and rape come to mind). Though as anyone who has had an addict in their lives will attest to, drug addiction is not quite that simple. Addicts have an unfortunate knack of pulling those close to them into their drama, whether it be theft to maintain their addiction or drug dealers showing up uninvited to collect outstanding payments, through to the agony of having to watch a loved one spiral downwards on their road to overdose and death.
In most nations, what most of us consider illegal drugs have traditionally been criminalized, with hefty jail time attached to anyone caught in possession of them, though the worlds opinions have slowly started changing. The Netherlands have had a relatively lax attitude towards drugs since the 1970's, with cannabis being legal in designated areas, magic mushrooms enjoyed the same conditions up until 2008 when they were completely banned due to a sharp increase in accidental deaths related to the drugs hallucinogenic effects. More recently, various American states have legalized cannabis, some strictly for medicinal purposes and others to include recreational use. Uruguay has also recently legalized the recreational use of cannabis, though the law itself has not been implemented due to legal requirements regarding suppliers.
The fact that current worldwide drug policies are at best ineffective and at worst a black-hole that authorities throw money into is well documented, in America in 2009 the feral government spent over $2 billion housing drug related prisoners, with a total bill to fight the war on drugs reaching an astonishing $15.9 billion annually. A massive 46% of Americans today admit to having used illegal drugs, most saying that it is now easier to buy purer, cheaper drugs than it has ever been despite the record amounts being spent to curb them. The war on drugs has failed, and it is without a doubt time for change.
My suggested solution is not by any stretch of the imagination popular, but what you have to remember with the worldwide drug problem is the fact that the problem actually has little to do with the drugs themselves, but rather with the actions that addicts take in order to maintain their habit. Most drug users steal because they have prior convictions for drug possession and are unable to fulfill their potential earning capacity. Ending the prohibition on drugs would not only free up the money that is currently being spent on fighting the war on drugs, but increase revenue as governments are able to tax the drug trade. Conservative estimates say that in the US alone, the federal government could add an additional $80 billion annually to it's coffers over and above the savings it would make.
This additional money could then be pumped into education and healthcare of addicts. This tactic has proven it's effectiveness with tobacco as more and more people come to the conclusion that the negative consequences outweigh the benefits. With not a single cent being spent on prohibiting tobacco, the number of adult smokers in the US has been cut almost in half thanks to campaigns aimed at education.
The additional benefit to legalization, legislation and control of the drug market is quality. The average gram of cocaine or heroin found on the street contains astonishing amounts of other substances that dealers cut the drugs with in order to increase their profits. It is more often than not these other substances that lead to the medical conditions that are so often fatal.
Most of the research I've done for this bit has been from a NPO in America called LEAP, (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition), for more info please feel free to have a look at their website: http://www.leap.cc/
The funny clip of the day comes from Australian comedian Jim Jefferies explaining what a coke wank is (yes, it's exactly what it sounds like)
Per usual, I don't own the content, though the man is funny as all hell, so please feel free to check out his other stuff. I've linked his official page below:
http://www.jimjefferies.com/
As always, thanks for reading, please comment, subscribe and remember to like the facebook page!
https://www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist/
Ta,
G
So as you may or may not have deduced from the title, today's post is all about drugs, more specifically my opinion in terms of the legalization, legislation and control thereof. It's a difficult subject to be sure, my initial thoughts are that adults have the right to do with their bodies as they please, provided that their actions do not infringe on the rights of others (suicide bombers and rape come to mind). Though as anyone who has had an addict in their lives will attest to, drug addiction is not quite that simple. Addicts have an unfortunate knack of pulling those close to them into their drama, whether it be theft to maintain their addiction or drug dealers showing up uninvited to collect outstanding payments, through to the agony of having to watch a loved one spiral downwards on their road to overdose and death.
In most nations, what most of us consider illegal drugs have traditionally been criminalized, with hefty jail time attached to anyone caught in possession of them, though the worlds opinions have slowly started changing. The Netherlands have had a relatively lax attitude towards drugs since the 1970's, with cannabis being legal in designated areas, magic mushrooms enjoyed the same conditions up until 2008 when they were completely banned due to a sharp increase in accidental deaths related to the drugs hallucinogenic effects. More recently, various American states have legalized cannabis, some strictly for medicinal purposes and others to include recreational use. Uruguay has also recently legalized the recreational use of cannabis, though the law itself has not been implemented due to legal requirements regarding suppliers.
The fact that current worldwide drug policies are at best ineffective and at worst a black-hole that authorities throw money into is well documented, in America in 2009 the feral government spent over $2 billion housing drug related prisoners, with a total bill to fight the war on drugs reaching an astonishing $15.9 billion annually. A massive 46% of Americans today admit to having used illegal drugs, most saying that it is now easier to buy purer, cheaper drugs than it has ever been despite the record amounts being spent to curb them. The war on drugs has failed, and it is without a doubt time for change.
My suggested solution is not by any stretch of the imagination popular, but what you have to remember with the worldwide drug problem is the fact that the problem actually has little to do with the drugs themselves, but rather with the actions that addicts take in order to maintain their habit. Most drug users steal because they have prior convictions for drug possession and are unable to fulfill their potential earning capacity. Ending the prohibition on drugs would not only free up the money that is currently being spent on fighting the war on drugs, but increase revenue as governments are able to tax the drug trade. Conservative estimates say that in the US alone, the federal government could add an additional $80 billion annually to it's coffers over and above the savings it would make.
This additional money could then be pumped into education and healthcare of addicts. This tactic has proven it's effectiveness with tobacco as more and more people come to the conclusion that the negative consequences outweigh the benefits. With not a single cent being spent on prohibiting tobacco, the number of adult smokers in the US has been cut almost in half thanks to campaigns aimed at education.
The additional benefit to legalization, legislation and control of the drug market is quality. The average gram of cocaine or heroin found on the street contains astonishing amounts of other substances that dealers cut the drugs with in order to increase their profits. It is more often than not these other substances that lead to the medical conditions that are so often fatal.
Most of the research I've done for this bit has been from a NPO in America called LEAP, (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition), for more info please feel free to have a look at their website: http://www.leap.cc/
The funny clip of the day comes from Australian comedian Jim Jefferies explaining what a coke wank is (yes, it's exactly what it sounds like)
Per usual, I don't own the content, though the man is funny as all hell, so please feel free to check out his other stuff. I've linked his official page below:
http://www.jimjefferies.com/
As always, thanks for reading, please comment, subscribe and remember to like the facebook page!
https://www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist/
Ta,
G
Blog Format moving forward
Evening all,
Before I begin I firstly wanted to thank everyone for the views, I've made it to 100 page views in just three days, makes me think this may not be a complete waste of time, regardless, I intend to continue this, the ultimate goal being to be able to do this full time.
In blog related news, those with a keen eye will notice that I've added different tags to the posts, the format will be a post everyday, Monday to Thursday will be newsy type stuff, basically my opinion on what's happening in the world in general. Friday will basically be my opinion piece, with Saturday and Sunday being dedicated to more entertainment type stuff, games, movies, books, series, anything light that I form an opinion on.
It's a hectic writing schedule but I will definitely do my best stick to it. Thanks in advance for all your support.
Ta,
G
Before I begin I firstly wanted to thank everyone for the views, I've made it to 100 page views in just three days, makes me think this may not be a complete waste of time, regardless, I intend to continue this, the ultimate goal being to be able to do this full time.
In blog related news, those with a keen eye will notice that I've added different tags to the posts, the format will be a post everyday, Monday to Thursday will be newsy type stuff, basically my opinion on what's happening in the world in general. Friday will basically be my opinion piece, with Saturday and Sunday being dedicated to more entertainment type stuff, games, movies, books, series, anything light that I form an opinion on.
It's a hectic writing schedule but I will definitely do my best stick to it. Thanks in advance for all your support.
Ta,
G
Thursday, 9 June 2016
Nkandla was a bargain! (Let's just be grateful there were minimal protests about it)
Evening all,
Blade Nzimande announced on Wednesday that the price tag associated with the #FeesMustFall protests have reached an astounding R460 million Rand. To put that into perspective, old Jacob could have built two Nkandlas for the same price! Now don't get me wrong, I have absolutely no problem with student protests, which have a long history of changing the world for the better, (just look at the protests in the America during the sixties). What I DO have a problem with is the rampant violence and destruction by the protestors. As far as I'm concerned, the idiots that are causing damage should be locked up and made to contribute to the restorations required, a percentage of future earnings to be taken, for the rest of their lives if necessary.
In an update to the Jesus Dome saga, there are reports about scammers creating false social networking adverts to raise money to help rebuild the Dome, something that the church leadership is less than happy about. Apparently the church wants exclusive rights to people's wallets, saying that they never solicit funds using social media, and if anyone wishes to donate money that they should contact the church directly. Not funny when the shoe is on the other foot I suppose, (though one church official was quoted as saying that the scammers should go to their church, perhaps he's wanting to recoup some of their losses?)
This leads me to wonder why government lets itself be scammed by religious institutions, just look at some of the mega churches or some of the bigger mosques, surely if they can afford to build something that has capacity for thousands of people they can afford to be taxed on it? As far as I'm concerned we need to remove "Religion, Belief or Philosophy" from the list of Public benefit activities, I'd love to hear how any of those things are of benefit to the general public.
In good news, the former professional tennis player, Bob Hewitt's appeal against his six-year jail sentence has been dismissed by the Supreme Court of Appeals in Bloemfontein. I will say that the hugely troubling thing about that is the fact that the sick fucker only got 6 years for two counts of rape and one of sexual assault, all on minors. Also troubling was the fact that the judge considered Hewitt's age, health as well as the length that had passed since the crimes were committed when considering sentencing. Personally I feel that none of these things should play any contributing factors when determining the term of a prison sentence. six years for ruining three (that we know about) women's lives? Doos should have had his cock chopped off.
The comedy clip comes from George Carlin again, a brilliant piece from him about the best bullshit story ever, religion:
Please note that the content isn't owned by me, I also figured it might be a good idea to post a link to the official George Carlin homepage:
http://georgecarlin.com/
As always, please feel free to comment, and subscribe. I've also started a facebook page, just follow the link below:
https://www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist/
Thanks for reading,
G
Blade Nzimande announced on Wednesday that the price tag associated with the #FeesMustFall protests have reached an astounding R460 million Rand. To put that into perspective, old Jacob could have built two Nkandlas for the same price! Now don't get me wrong, I have absolutely no problem with student protests, which have a long history of changing the world for the better, (just look at the protests in the America during the sixties). What I DO have a problem with is the rampant violence and destruction by the protestors. As far as I'm concerned, the idiots that are causing damage should be locked up and made to contribute to the restorations required, a percentage of future earnings to be taken, for the rest of their lives if necessary.
In an update to the Jesus Dome saga, there are reports about scammers creating false social networking adverts to raise money to help rebuild the Dome, something that the church leadership is less than happy about. Apparently the church wants exclusive rights to people's wallets, saying that they never solicit funds using social media, and if anyone wishes to donate money that they should contact the church directly. Not funny when the shoe is on the other foot I suppose, (though one church official was quoted as saying that the scammers should go to their church, perhaps he's wanting to recoup some of their losses?)
This leads me to wonder why government lets itself be scammed by religious institutions, just look at some of the mega churches or some of the bigger mosques, surely if they can afford to build something that has capacity for thousands of people they can afford to be taxed on it? As far as I'm concerned we need to remove "Religion, Belief or Philosophy" from the list of Public benefit activities, I'd love to hear how any of those things are of benefit to the general public.
In good news, the former professional tennis player, Bob Hewitt's appeal against his six-year jail sentence has been dismissed by the Supreme Court of Appeals in Bloemfontein. I will say that the hugely troubling thing about that is the fact that the sick fucker only got 6 years for two counts of rape and one of sexual assault, all on minors. Also troubling was the fact that the judge considered Hewitt's age, health as well as the length that had passed since the crimes were committed when considering sentencing. Personally I feel that none of these things should play any contributing factors when determining the term of a prison sentence. six years for ruining three (that we know about) women's lives? Doos should have had his cock chopped off.
The comedy clip comes from George Carlin again, a brilliant piece from him about the best bullshit story ever, religion:
Please note that the content isn't owned by me, I also figured it might be a good idea to post a link to the official George Carlin homepage:
http://georgecarlin.com/
As always, please feel free to comment, and subscribe. I've also started a facebook page, just follow the link below:
https://www.facebook.com/theangryafricanatheist/
Thanks for reading,
G
Wednesday, 8 June 2016
RIP Muhammed
Evening all,
So, the first thing I want to talk about is the fact that a giant among men died on Saturday. I must stress that whilst I can certainly appreciate Muhammad Ali's athleticism, I am by no stretch of the imagination a boxing, (or general sports for that matter) fan, over and above his sporting prowess, I do not particularly agree with his view on life. I find islam to be a vile religion, made more so by the number of adherents who actually believe the entirety of it (in stark contrast to the more moderate christians who don't seem to be a fan of stoning rape victims). Moreover, I am not by any stretch of the imagination a pacifist. Pacifism is a wonderful concept that, much like communism, only works when everybody buys into it. What I do admire about the man was his courage and determination to stand for his beliefs no matter the personal consequences. In light of that my thoughts go out to his family, I only wish that there was something concrete that I could do to help you through this sad time.
On lighter (haha) news, was the fact that the Jesus Dome in Durban burnt down last night. No doubt part of god's plan to convince the world of his existence and divinity before the rapture. It always amazes me how easy it is for the religious to give god the glory when a surgeon slaves for 16 hours to save their life but when it all goes wrong it's suddenly all a part of his divine plan. On the note of divine plans, if god has a plan, what's the point of praying? I mean, I get the idea in terms of maintaining a relationship with him, but put yourself in god's shoes for a second. You've been planning every single persons destiny, quite literally forever, when some guy pops on his knees and prays, asking that you save his dying mother. What if that wasn't in your plan? What's the point of being god if any twit with a R20 prayer book can fuck your plans up?
On to news that makes my blood boil, a man in Greeneville, Tennessee has been sentenced to life in prison for SELLING HIS THREE DAUGHTERS TO A PEDOPHILE! Now there is little in this world that makes me think that simply erasing an entire group of people from this planet would be a good idea, though pedophiles that act on their impulses are definitely high up on the list. Now I've worded the previous sentence specifically for a reason, the word pedophile is defined as a person who is sexually attracted to children. I find the idea nauseating to say the least but simple sexual attraction cannot and should not be considered a crime, quite frankly what you think about while tugging the one eyed snake or flicking the bean is your business. What is rightfully a crime is the act of pedophilia. I would suggest that the answer to this scourge is not only stronger sentences (the death penalty would be a good start here), but also help for pedophiles that are struggling to control their urges, more support from governments would see far fewer offenses and increase control over people known to have the problem.
The relevant comedy of the day comes from legend George Carlin with his musings regarding prayer:
As always, I in no way own any of the above material and if you've not seen any of his stuff before, I urge you to do yourself a favor and watch more, the man really was a true legend.
And that's tonight's blog, if you enjoyed (or didn't) any of what I've posted, please feel free to comment and as always, please subscribe.
Ta,
G
So, the first thing I want to talk about is the fact that a giant among men died on Saturday. I must stress that whilst I can certainly appreciate Muhammad Ali's athleticism, I am by no stretch of the imagination a boxing, (or general sports for that matter) fan, over and above his sporting prowess, I do not particularly agree with his view on life. I find islam to be a vile religion, made more so by the number of adherents who actually believe the entirety of it (in stark contrast to the more moderate christians who don't seem to be a fan of stoning rape victims). Moreover, I am not by any stretch of the imagination a pacifist. Pacifism is a wonderful concept that, much like communism, only works when everybody buys into it. What I do admire about the man was his courage and determination to stand for his beliefs no matter the personal consequences. In light of that my thoughts go out to his family, I only wish that there was something concrete that I could do to help you through this sad time.
On lighter (haha) news, was the fact that the Jesus Dome in Durban burnt down last night. No doubt part of god's plan to convince the world of his existence and divinity before the rapture. It always amazes me how easy it is for the religious to give god the glory when a surgeon slaves for 16 hours to save their life but when it all goes wrong it's suddenly all a part of his divine plan. On the note of divine plans, if god has a plan, what's the point of praying? I mean, I get the idea in terms of maintaining a relationship with him, but put yourself in god's shoes for a second. You've been planning every single persons destiny, quite literally forever, when some guy pops on his knees and prays, asking that you save his dying mother. What if that wasn't in your plan? What's the point of being god if any twit with a R20 prayer book can fuck your plans up?
On to news that makes my blood boil, a man in Greeneville, Tennessee has been sentenced to life in prison for SELLING HIS THREE DAUGHTERS TO A PEDOPHILE! Now there is little in this world that makes me think that simply erasing an entire group of people from this planet would be a good idea, though pedophiles that act on their impulses are definitely high up on the list. Now I've worded the previous sentence specifically for a reason, the word pedophile is defined as a person who is sexually attracted to children. I find the idea nauseating to say the least but simple sexual attraction cannot and should not be considered a crime, quite frankly what you think about while tugging the one eyed snake or flicking the bean is your business. What is rightfully a crime is the act of pedophilia. I would suggest that the answer to this scourge is not only stronger sentences (the death penalty would be a good start here), but also help for pedophiles that are struggling to control their urges, more support from governments would see far fewer offenses and increase control over people known to have the problem.
The relevant comedy of the day comes from legend George Carlin with his musings regarding prayer:
As always, I in no way own any of the above material and if you've not seen any of his stuff before, I urge you to do yourself a favor and watch more, the man really was a true legend.
And that's tonight's blog, if you enjoyed (or didn't) any of what I've posted, please feel free to comment and as always, please subscribe.
Ta,
G
Tuesday, 7 June 2016
Discrimination in modern South Africa
Evening
all,
Well, I'm
the sad sack sitting at home trying to think of a first topic, and why not dive
right in to something that affects every South African, discrimination. I've
chosen to label it that specifically because I intend to touch on more than
just racism, though being an obvious point, I'll take the easy way and start
there.
Racism:
I think it's fair to say that every South African faces it on a daily basis, though rarely overtly, (the fucking morons who were been charged with forcing one of their workers to rape their dog comes to mind). Whether it's the white man turned down for a job because of his race, (please note that I am by no stretch of the imagination against affirmative action, though that's a topic for a later discussion) or the innocent black domestic worker who is accused of stealing and fired because her boss refuses to admit to himself that his kid has a drug addiction, we all experience it every day in some form or another.
Before I
continue I feel I need to clarify what I mean when I say discrimination.
Discrimination is an act, not a thought or vocalization, I
agree wholeheartedly that Penny Sparrows opinions are vile and
that we, the people of South Africa should boycott any business that even
vaguely associates itself with her.
What I
disagree with on a fundamental level is the South African governments attempt
to criminalize hate speech. Incitement to violence is a very different animal
all together and is and should be grounds for a criminal conviction.
Criminalizing hate speech on the other hand is censorship at the very least.
South Africans enjoy, (or endure, depending on your point of view), the fact
that our government is bound by one of the most progressive constitution in the
world, a constitution that specifically protects freedom of speech.
Comparatively,
if we are happy to criminalize Penny Sparrow because of her personal
convictions and utterances regarding race, we open the flood gates to include
the religious right for speaking out against homosexuality. I admit again that
not all of the religious right are outspoken against homosexuality but let's be
honest, that's a pretty hefty majority.
Note that
the constitution specifically excludes the right to freedom of speech should it
constitute advocacy of hatred based on race, ethnicity, gender or religion, AND
that constitutes incitement to cause harm, (I will point out the glaring
absence of the mention of sexual orientation). The point is that Penny Sparrow
cannot be effectively accused of inciting to cause harm. Are her views backward
and idiotic? Of that I have no doubt, but I for one believe that she is entitled
to her opinion, and to express he opinion in whatever medium that she chooses,
provided that she doesn't also incite others that share her opinion to cause
harm.
I've used
a few choice words and I hope that by reading the above, the reader gets a good
idea on what my point of view regarding racism is. Something that I always try
and do is back my opinions up with a few hard facts and/or case studies. I've
recently had the disconcerting experience of being subjected to the kind of
vitriol that one often encounters, sadly enough, particularly in older, white
South Africans and realized that, much like homophobia and sexism, is VERY
difficult to debate from a logical point of view with people who hold to the
irrational ideas of yesteryear. Having said that, I do feel it's my duty to
try:
- There is not a single study using the modern scientific method that links race with a propensity towards violent crime. Indeed, a study conducted between 1995 and 2002 in America found that far and away the biggest contributing factor towards a life of violent crime was socio-economic circumstances. (https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/www/external/labor/seminars/adp/pdfs/adp_ajph.pdf)
- The idea that particular
races are either superior or inferior is simply absurd. Humans have
studied the genome to the point where we can tell individuals within our
species apart and have come to the following conclusion: "IT'S JUST
FUCKING SKIN COLOUR!!!" There is NO reason on a genetic level to
believe that a Nigerian is all that much different to a Thai. Indeed, the
Thai may well have more genetically in common with an Ethiopian than the
Ethiopian to the Nigerian, (or German, or Indian, or Native American) Race
is indeed nought more than a human construct. For a more in depth look at
research pertaining to this:
(http://www.nature.com/ng/journal/v36/n11s/full/ng1435.html)
In
short, there is absolutely no scientific data that correlates the feelings
and opinions of those who discriminate based on nothing but race with reality.
Onto a lighter subject, though no less frustrating for me, smoking;
Is it
just me, or do we smokers seem to be driven further and further away from the
rest of society? I've noticed, (in Gauteng particularly) that there seems to be
less and less smoker friendly restaurants, and when they do have a smoking
section, (I'm looking at you Wimpy in Centurion Mall), it's absolutely tiny,
and stuck next to the children's play area. It used to be that you could enjoy
a smoke and some nice peace and quiet, now, not only do you have to put up with
being squeezed in like sardines but also have to endure the eardrum popping
squeals, crying and shouts of, "mommy, look at ME!" that comes with
being seated next the play area for the spawn of others.
Here's a
tip for restaurateurs, yes, we may be in the minority, but I'd be willing to
bet that if you properly looked at it, your smoking section generates more
money for your business than any other section of equivalent size. And yes, we
get it, smoking is harmful, I'm not saying that we need to be able to sit in
the non-smoking section and puff away, but we as consenting adults have decided
to continue smoking despite knowing the consequences. It's essentially the same
as deaminizing overweight people because of the choices they make. In short,
discrimination.
Homophobia;
If you've been watching the news coming out of America for the past while you will have noticed this has reared it's ugly head again, personally I hate the word, it's not a phobia, you aren't afraid, you're just an arsehole, and I think that some of the more popular psychological theories on the subject are correct, homophobes are simply secretly worried that dicks are delicious, perhaps the better word would then be sexualism?
Something
I've noticed is the prevalence of sexualism within the christian black
community. I'll be honest and say that black christians confuse the fuck
out of me for a start. You are worshipping the very god that ordered your
enslavement in the first place! IF the Abrahamic god exists, (and that's a
pretty fucking huge if) why the fuck wouldn't you tell him to go fuck himself?
Many a time I've had discussions regarding homosexuality with black people and
the bible is almost always pointed at as the reason they feel that it should be
criminalized, yet when I point out that the very same bible not only advocates
slavery but gives specific guidelines on how to practice it, I'm suddenly
taking scripture out of context.
Unfortunately
sexualism in South Africa is alive and well, from "corrective" rape
of lesbians to the physical assaults and murders of gay men, it's something
that in our country ruled by a wonderfully progressive constitution needs to be
rectified with immediate effect.
Another
thing that irks me about both sides of the debate is the heavy importance put
on choice. What difference does it make? In almost all other aspects of our
lives we are given the right to choose, provided that our choices do not have
negative consequences to those around us. I would love for someone to explain
to me how my decision as to where to stick my dick has any bearing on their
life whatsoever. In fact, there are many studies that show that statistically
speaking, homosexuals make better, more considerate citizens than their
straight counterparts.
As a side
rant to this is the flip side to the coin, I know of people, (straight guys
specifically) who have been accused of homophobia purely because they turned
down a gay man hitting on them. WTF??? You have extra parts where I don't like
extra parts, period. Just because I don't want to fuck you doesn't mean I think
you are a freak, it just means I don't think dicks are delicious!
Sexism;
Another form of discrimination based on absolutely zero evidence whatsoever is sexism. I'd like to preface this section by saying that I am by no stretch of the imagination a feminist, (at least not in the modern sense of the word).
Men and
women are different on a biological level, that's a fact that cannot be
escaped. Do I believe that women should be afforded the same opportunities as
their male counterparts? Of course I do, your life, your choice. Having said
that, I'd love to challenge any feminist that insists that women are the same
as men to find a female rugby team that would be able to PHYSICALLY match the
Springboks. Not gonna happen. Why? Because physiologically, men are stronger
than women.
With that
in mind, one need only look at the world of business to realise that women are
just as, (if not often more) competent as men are in their chosen field.
Religious intolerance, (apparently there is no 'ism' regarding religion);
As an atheist, this is something that I personally face on a reasonably regular basis. I've been told I'm going to burn in hell if I don't repent, (the irony of which seemed lost on the person I was speaking to at the time). My girlfriend has been told by friends parents the same thing because at the time she held to the wiccan beliefs, (it was only out of respect to the friend that I managed to bite my tongue and not ask why her parents imaginary friend was any better than my girlfriends).
As mentioned
in the bit about racism above, I have no problem with my friends parents right
to hold their opinion, sure it made dinner a little awkward, (and diminished my
view of them as people) but whatever. What I DO have an issue with is when that
religious intolerance manifests itself in real world situations, I know of
people who have been fired for "coming out" as atheists, I've seen
video footage of muslims being assaulted and we've all seen the terrible things
muslim extremists do to people of other faiths, (I've mentioned the two biggest
Abrahamic religions but you can find similar examples globally by *insert
random religion here* against *insert another random religion here*).
Something
I do want to do is comment on something I have found good in the world for
every post, as such I guess I should give a shout-out to this kid: http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/im-not-gifted-sa-pupil-who-scored-highest-maths-mark-in-the-world-20160419 who blew international
competition away to score the highest mark for maths in the world, (as measured
by the international Cambridge AS levels.)
Another
thing I’m going to try and do is find videos that I find amusing and are
hopefully pertinent to the topic at hand, as such, I give you, Tim Minchin’s
Cont(exct). It should
go without saying that I don't own the content, and please do check Tim's other
work out, the man is damn funny.
Well, I
think I'm going to leave it there for the moment, if anyone disagrees with
anything I've mentioned above, or just wants to add a rant of their own, please
feel free to comment. If you like what you read, please subscribe and share.
Ta,
G
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