Agnostic & Atheist Patriots Discussions - 12160 Social Network
2024-03-19T02:27:51Z
https://12160.info/groups/group/forum?groupUrl=patriotic-atheists&feed=yes&xn_auth=no
WORLD FAMOUS DEAD SEA SCROLLS AT MUSEUM OF THE BIBLE 'ARE FAKE'
tag:12160.info,2018-10-24:2649739:Topic:1836420
2018-10-24T12:17:31.736Z
Central Scrutinizer
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<div id="newsheader"><h2>SOURCE:<span> </span><a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/dead-sea-scrolls-face-museum-of-the-bible-washington-artefacts-a8596636.html#Echobox=1540233828">INDEPENDENT UK</a></h2>
<div class="div_clear">Five of the most valuable exhibits at the <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/bible-museum-washington-dc-open-hours-funding-building-a8066366.html">Museum of the Bible</a> in …</div>
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<div id="newsheader"><h2>SOURCE:<span> </span><a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/dead-sea-scrolls-face-museum-of-the-bible-washington-artefacts-a8596636.html#Echobox=1540233828">INDEPENDENT UK</a></h2>
<div class="div_clear">Five of the most valuable exhibits at the <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/bible-museum-washington-dc-open-hours-funding-building-a8066366.html">Museum of the Bible</a> in <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/WashingtonDc">Washington DC</a>have been found to be fake.</div>
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<div id="newsdetail"><p>The artifacts, thought to be part of the historic <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/dead-sea-scrolls">Dead Sea Scrolls</a>, will no longer be displayed.</p>
<p>Academics tested the fragments and found that the “show characteristics inconsistent with ancient origin and therefore will no longer be displayed at the museum,” the institution said.</p>
<p>The Dead Sea Scrolls are the oldest copies of Bible text ever found, and include passages of the Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament, that range from 1,800 to more than 2,000 years old. </p>
<p>“Though we had hoped the testing would render different results, this is an opportunity to educate the public on the importance of verifying the authenticity of rare biblical artefacts, the elaborate testing process undertaken and our commitment to transparency,” said Jeffrey Kloha, the chief curatorial officer for Museum of the Bible, said in a statement.</p>
<p>“As an educational institution entrusted with cultural heritage, the museum upholds and adheres to all museum and ethical guidelines on collection care, research and display,” Mr Kloha said.</p>
<h4><a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/dead-sea-scrolls-face-museum-of-the-bible-washington-artefacts-a8596636.html#Echobox=1540233828">READ MORE...</a></h4>
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Texas gunman was an ‘outcast’ who preached atheism
tag:12160.info,2017-11-07:2649739:Topic:1729328
2017-11-07T00:52:04.248Z
Central Scrutinizer
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<p><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-120989" height="422" src="http://govtslaves.info/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Screen-Shot-2017-11-06-at-8.20.47-AM.png" width="739"></img></p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">The Texas church shooter who mercilessly shot dead 26 people and injured 24 others was an ‘outcast’ who ‘preached his atheism’ online.</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Former classmates say Devin Patrick Kelley, 26, who stormed First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs in Texas and opened fire on Sunday, was ‘creepy’, ‘crazy’ and ‘weird’.</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Patrick Boyce, who attended New Braunfels High School with the killer,…</p>
<p><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-120989" src="http://govtslaves.info/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Screen-Shot-2017-11-06-at-8.20.47-AM.png" alt="" width="739" height="422"/></p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">The Texas church shooter who mercilessly shot dead 26 people and injured 24 others was an ‘outcast’ who ‘preached his atheism’ online.</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Former classmates say Devin Patrick Kelley, 26, who stormed First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs in Texas and opened fire on Sunday, was ‘creepy’, ‘crazy’ and ‘weird’.</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Patrick Boyce, who attended New Braunfels High School with the killer, told DailyMail.com: ‘He had a kid or two, fairly normal, but kinda quiet and lately seemed depressed.</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">‘He was the first atheist I met. He went Air Force after high school, got discharged but I don’t know why.</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">‘I was just shocked [to hear the news]. Still haven’t quite processed how he could have done that.’</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Nina Rose Nava, who went to school with the gunman, wrote on <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/facebook/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>: ‘In (sic) in complete shock! I legit just deleted him off my fb cause I couldn’t stand his post.</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">‘He was always talking about how people who believe in God we’re stupid and trying to preach his atheism’</p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Christopher Leo Longoria replied: ‘I removed him off FB for those same reasons! He was being super nagtive (sic) all the timd (sic).’</p>
<p><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5053013/Devin-Kelley-outcast-preached-atheism.html"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-87445" src="http://govtslaves.info/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/CONTINUE-READING-BANNER.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="50"/></a></p>
<p class="mol-para-with-font">Thanks <a href="http://govtslaves.info" target="_blank">Govt Slaves</a> ;)</p>
AI is God: Ex-Google Engineer Creating New Religion
tag:12160.info,2017-09-30:2649739:Topic:1718837
2017-09-30T00:35:04.764Z
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<p><a href="https://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/105781/68/1057816832.jpg" target="_blank"><img class="align-full" src="https://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/105781/68/1057816832.jpg"></img></a></p>
<div class="b-article__lead"><p>As a former Google engineer is out to create a god based on artificial intelligence to make society better, many scientific experts warn that our current love affair with artificial intelligence could get us all killed.</p>
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<div class="b-article__text"><p><strong>Anthony Levandowski</strong> of …</p>
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<p><a href="https://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/105781/68/1057816832.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/105781/68/1057816832.jpg" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<div class="b-article__lead"><p>As a former Google engineer is out to create a god based on artificial intelligence to make society better, many scientific experts warn that our current love affair with artificial intelligence could get us all killed.</p>
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<div class="b-article__text"><p><strong>Anthony Levandowski</strong> of <a href="http://sputniknews.com/science/20170225/1051028967.html" target="_blank">Google's self-driving car</a>’s fame, has set up a religious nonprofit organization called Way of the Future and devoted to the worship of artificial intelligence.</p>
<p>According to the organization’s founding documents, it intends to “develop and promote the realization of a Godhead based on artificial intelligence and through understanding and worship of the Godhead contribute to the betterment of society.”</p>
<p>An AI god sounds like something coming from a sci-fi flick or computer game and as such could certainly appeal to Silicon Valley futurists and transhumanist more than to espousers of traditional religions. <span>However, many scientists and technology experts, including Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk, believe that ... <a href="https://sputniknews.com/us/201709291057816953-artificial-intelligence-god-new-religion/" target="_blank">SOURCE 4 MORE</a></span></p>
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Even atheists view non-believers as less moral
tag:12160.info,2017-08-18:2649739:Topic:1709082
2017-08-18T18:11:10.792Z
Central Scrutinizer
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<div class="article-header"><div class="article-info"><div class="m-bar">Stephanie Pappas<br></br><a href="https://www.livescience.com/60069-atheists-judge-atheists-less-moral.html" target="_blank">Live Science</a><br></br>Tue, 08 Aug 2017 20:25 UTC</div>
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<div class="article-header"><div class="article-info"><div class="m-bar">Stephanie Pappas<br/><a href="https://www.livescience.com/60069-atheists-judge-atheists-less-moral.html" target="_blank">Live Science</a><br/>Tue, 08 Aug 2017 20:25 UTC</div>
<div class="article-print"><a href="https://maps.google.com/?q=38.030651,-84.503967&z=6" target="_blank" class="usrb-mapit" title="View location on Google Maps"></a> <a href="https://www.sott.net/article/358921-Even-atheists-view-non-believers-as-less-moral#" class="usrb-print" title="Print this article"></a></div>
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<div class="article-body"><div class="article-image-large to-center"><a href="https://www.sott.net/image/s20/412685/full/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5saXZlc2NpZW5jZS.jpg" rel="ibox&ignore_target=true" target="_blank" title="© muratart/Shutterstock"><img src="https://www.sott.net/image/s20/412685/large/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5saXZlc2NpZW5jZS.jpg" alt="" title="Click to enlarge" border="0"/></a><div class="image-caption"><span class="tiny">© muratart/Shutterstock</span><br/><span class="caption">Both believers and nonbelievers tend to think atheists are less moral.</span></div>
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Even people who don't believe in God judge other nonbelievers as less moral than religious types, new research finds. <br/><br/><strong>The study showed that in 13 very different countries, people were more likely to think that a serial killer must be </strong><a href="https://www.livescience.com/17299-atheists-religious-zealots-believers.html" title="https://www.livescience.com/17299-atheists-religious-zealots-believers.html" target="_blank"><strong>an atheist rather than a believer</strong></a><strong>. These findings persisted even in highly secular countries such as Finland and China; they were also true even for people who reported zero belief in God.</strong> <br/><br/>"Even as secularism reduces overt religiosity in many places, religion has apparently still left a deep and abiding mark on human moral intuitions," study researcher Will Gervais, a psychologist at the University of Kentucky, wrote with his colleagues Aug. 7 in the journal Nature Human Behaviour. <br/><br/><span class="BoldGrey">Atheism's reputation</span> <br/><br/>Though there's no precise count of the number of atheists worldwide, the group of nonbelievers seems to be growing. In the United States, about 3 percent of adults call themselves atheist, and 4 percent say they're agnostic, <a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/06/01/10-facts-about-atheists/" title="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/06/01/10-facts-about-atheists/" target="_blank">according to a 2014 Pew survey</a>. Those numbers were up from 1.6 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively, in 2007. (Nearly 16 percent of American adults also said that they were "nothing in particular" with regard to religion as of 2014 but did not explicitly disavow belief in God.) However, <strong>because there is a social stigma against atheism, some researchers think that atheists are undercounted</strong>. A 2017 study that asked the question more indirectly - by having participants count statements that were true about them, <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/edzda" title="https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/edzda" target="_blank">including some statements about religious belief</a> - estimated that about 26 percent of Americans are nonbelievers. In 2016, <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/norwegians-believe-in-god-majority-do-not-for-first-time-ever-a6943706.html" title="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/norwegians-believe-in-god-majority-do-not-for-first-time-ever-a6943706.html" target="_blank">an annual survey in Norway</a> found that 39 percent of the population identified as atheist - more than the 37 percent who said they were religious. <br/><br/>Still, atheists get a bad rap compared with most other groups. In 2017, Pew asked people to <a href="http://www.pewforum.org/2017/02/15/americans-express-increasingly-warm-feelings-toward-religious-groups/" title="http://www.pewforum.org/2017/02/15/americans-express-increasingly-warm-feelings-toward-religious-groups/" target="_blank">rate their warmth toward various religious groups</a> on a scale of zero to 100. The results placed atheists at 50, making them the least-liked group other than Muslims, who came in at 48. (For comparison, Jews were the most-liked group, with a rating of 67 on the 100-point scale.) One 2015 study found that in people's minds, atheism is linked <a href="https://www.livescience.com/50872-atheists-remind-people-of-death.html" title="https://www.livescience.com/50872-atheists-remind-people-of-death.html" target="_blank">with thoughts of death</a>, perhaps because of atheists' implied lack of belief in the afterlife. <br/><br/>It might seem natural that religious people would resent atheists, but atheists should feel good about themselves ... right? That wasn't the case, according to the new study. <br/><br/><span class="BoldGrey">Judging a serial killer</span> <br/><br/>The researchers didn't ask people directly for their views on atheists, because they were ...<a href="https://www.sott.net/article/358921-Even-atheists-view-non-believers-as-less-moral" target="_blank">REST OF IT</a></div>
Church of England Admits it ‘Colluded’ to Cover-Up Decades of Child Rape
tag:12160.info,2017-06-28:2649739:Topic:1697702
2017-06-28T17:16:47.663Z
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<div class="td-post-featured-image"><img alt="church" class="entry-thumb" height="366" src="http://thefreethoughtproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/church-696x366.jpg" title="church" width="696"></img></div>
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<p>London — In one of the most damning admissions to date by the Church of England, the head of the church admitted they “colluded” with and helped to hide the long-term sexual abuse of children and young men.</p>
<p>On Thursday, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby apologized to the victims who spoke out and helped bring their attacker to justice. However, according to the report on how the church handled the…</p>
<div class="td-post-featured-image"><img width="696" height="366" class="entry-thumb" src="http://thefreethoughtproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/church-696x366.jpg" alt="church" title="church"/></div>
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<p>London — In one of the most damning admissions to date by the Church of England, the head of the church admitted they “colluded” with and helped to hide the long-term sexual abuse of children and young men.</p>
<p>On Thursday, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby apologized to the victims who spoke out and helped bring their attacker to justice. However, according to the report on how the church handled the case, as well as the slap on the wrist ex-bishop Peter Ball received for decades of abuse, ‘justice’ is a loosely thrown around term.</p>
<p>According to the <a href="https://apnews.com/62a9dbc58c784b36881ea8cf970493c9?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=AP">AP</a>, Welby ordered the report after Ball was convicted and imprisoned in 2015 for misconduct in public office and indecent assaults against teenagers and young men over a period of 20 years.</p>
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<p>Despite admitting to sexually abusing 18 people, this serial child rapist was let out of prison after only serving 16 months.</p>
<p>Welby’s report noted that Ball’s conduct “caused serious and enduring damage to the lives of many men,” and that “the church at its most senior levels and over many years supported him unwisely.”</p>
<p>After admitting that the church not only looked the other way for decades, the report also concedes that they helped to hide the abuse.</p>
<p><strong>“The church colluded and concealed rather than seeking to help those who were brave enough to come forward,”</strong> Welby said.</p>
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<p><strong>“This is inexcusable and shocking behavior,”</strong> he said, according to the AP, adding that while most of what happened took place years ago, <strong>“we can never be complacent, we must learn lessons.” <a href="http://thefreethoughtproject.com/breaking-church-england-admits-colluded-cover-decades-child-rape/" target="_blank">REST OF IT</a></strong></p>
Atheist Loses Lawsuit Against Church, Can Never Sue Again
tag:12160.info,2016-05-25:2649739:Topic:1624687
2016-05-25T00:53:51.997Z
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<h1>Atheist Loses Lawsuit Against Church, Can Never Sue Again</h1>
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<h1>Atheist Loses Lawsuit Against Church, Can Never Sue Again</h1>
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<p class="byline"><span class="by-author"><span class="by">by</span> <a class="byauthor" href="http://www.breitbart.com/author/breitbart-texas-2/">BREITBART TEXAS</a> </span><span class="bydate">24 May 2016</span></p>
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<div class="entry-content"><h2>Atheist activist Patrick Greene lost his lawsuit today against Abundant Life Fellowship Church in Corpus Christi, Texas—a church represented by <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/firstliberty.org">First Liberty Institute</a>—admitting that his lawsuit was “baseless,” and submitting to a court order never to bring such a frivolous lawsuit in the future.</h2>
<p>Updating Breitbart Texas’ <a href="http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2016/05/23/atheists-lawsuit-against-tallest-cross-in-america-heads-to-texas-court/">report</a> by Lana Shadwick on Monday about Greene’s suing Abundant Life Fellowship when Pastor Rick Milby started building a 230-foot cross on his church’s property. Greene’s lawsuit claims that a church’s erecting of a cross on private property is unconstitutional because a local mayor and city council members attended the church’s groundbreaking ceremony.</p>
<p>As detailed in the previous report, Greene has a record of repeatedly bringing lawsuits that many consider “vexatious,” meaning predatory lawsuits that have no merit, but are designed to threaten and harass defendants into ....<a href="http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2016/05/24/atheist-loses-lawsuit-church-can-never-sue/" target="_blank">REST OF THE STORY</a></p>
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Texas Governor Demands Removal of Satirical Atheist ‘Nativity Scene’ from Capitol
tag:12160.info,2015-12-23:2649739:Topic:1602816
2015-12-23T05:32:57.307Z
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<h1>Texas Governor Demands Removal of Satirical ‘Nativity Scene’ from Capitol</h1>
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<h1>Texas Governor Demands Removal of Satirical ‘Nativity Scene’ from Capitol</h1>
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<p class="byline"><span class="bydate">Dec 2015</span><a rel="nofollow" class="bycount" href="http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/12/22/exclusive-texas-governor-demands-removal-satirical-nativity-scene-capitol/#disqus_thread">1,054</a></p>
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<div class="entry-content"><h2>Texas Governor Greg Abbott has sent a letter demanding that a tasteless nativity from a nontheistic foundation be removed immediately from the Texas Capitol building.</h2>
<p>Governor Abbott pinned the letter to John Sneed, the Executive Director of the State Preservation Board that charges that a <a href="http://ffrf.org/" target="_blank">Freedom From Religion Foundation</a> nativity is a “juvenile parody [that] violates the Preservation Board’s regulations and should be removed immediately.”</p>
<p>A copy of the letter was exclusively provided to Breitbart Texas and is attached below.</p>
<p><em>Update: Breitbart Texas spoke with Texas State Representative <a href="http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/member-page/?district=99" target="_blank">Charlie Geren</a> (R-River Oaks) who said he called John Sneed, the Executive Director of the State Preservation Board and told him to take the nativity scene down today. He said the Governor wanted the nativity scene from the foundation removed. Geren, a member of the State Preservation Board, told Breitbart Texas that Sneed said the “nativity” scene will be removed from the Capitol today.</em></p>
<p>The exhibit, located in the basement of the state’s Capitol, has the bill of rights in a manager instead of a baby Jesus. It also has three founding fathers and the Statue of Liberty “worshiping one of America’s founding documents as a replacement for Jesus Christ,” wrote the Texas Governor.</p>
<div id="attachment_2630583" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="http://media.breitbart.com/media/2015/12/Satyrical-Nativity-Scene.jpg"><img class="wp-image-2630583" src="http://media.breitbart.com/media/2015/12/Satyrical-Nativity-Scene-1024x682.jpg" alt="(Photo: Freedom From Religion Website)" width="560" height="373"/></a><p class="wp-caption-text">(Photo: Freedom From Religion Website)</p>
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<p>Abbott continues in his letter,<em> “</em>Christians and Christianity. The Biblical scene of the newly born Jesus Christ lying in a manger in Bethlehem lies at the very heart of the Christian faith. Subjecting an image held sacred by millions of Texans to the Foundation’s tasteless sarcasm does nothing to promote morals and the general welfare.”</p>
<p>The Governor adds, “To the contrary, the Foundation’s spiteful message is intentionally designed to belittle and offend, which undermines rather than promotes any public purpose a display promoting the bill of rights might otherwise have had.”</p>
<p>The Texas Governor states that the Board should allow diverse viewpoints to be expressed in Capitol displays, “But it has no obligation to approve displays that purposefully mock the sincere religious beliefs of others.”</p>
<p>As<a href="http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/12/14/fight-texas-cops-displaying-god-trust-cars/"> reported</a> by Breitbart Texas, the <em>Freedom From Religion Foundation</em> had threatened a lawsuit over the display of the national motto “In God We Trust” on patrol cars in Childress, Texas. The Office of the Texas Attorney General issued an opinion saying the national motto could be displayed on law enforcement division patrol vehicles.</p>
<p><em>Lana Shadwick is a writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as an associate judge and prosecutor. Follow her on Twitter </em><em><a href="https://twitter.com/LanaShadwick2" target="_blank">@LanaShadwick2</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>Note: This article has been updated with a statement from State Representative Charlie Geren.</em></p>
<p><a title="View 293867122 Texas Governor Greg Abbott Letter Re Freedom From Religion Foundation Nativity on Scribd" href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/293870600/293867122-Texas-Governor-Greg-Abbott-Letter-Re-Freedom-From-Religion-Foundation-Nativity" target="_blank">293867122 Texas Governor Greg Abbott Letter Re Freedom From Religion Foundation Nativity</a></p>
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<h3><span class="by-author"><span class="by">by</span> <a class="byauthor" href="http://www.breitbart.com/author/lana-shadwick/">LANA SHADWICK</a></span><span class="bydate">22 </span></h3>
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Scientists Claim Zapping Brains with Magnets Can Treat Belief in God
tag:12160.info,2015-10-16:2649739:Topic:1593658
2015-10-16T02:27:44.220Z
Central Scrutinizer
https://12160.info/profile/H0llyw00d
<p>Here’s the breathless headline: “<a href="http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/611992/Scientists-experiment-magnets-immigrants-God-magnetic-waves" target="_blank">Scientists claim they can change your belief on immigrants and God — with MAGNETS.</a>”</p>
<p>Wait. Attitudes toward God and <em>immigrants</em>? Are these a natural pair? The newspaper thought so. They tell of an experiment which “claims to be able to make Christians no longer believe in God and make Britons open their arms to…</p>
<p>Here’s the breathless headline: “<a href="http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/611992/Scientists-experiment-magnets-immigrants-God-magnetic-waves" target="_blank">Scientists claim they can change your belief on immigrants and God — with MAGNETS.</a>”</p>
<p>Wait. Attitudes toward God and <em>immigrants</em>? Are these a natural pair? The newspaper thought so. They tell of an experiment which “claims to be able to make Christians no longer believe in God and make Britons open their arms to migrants.” How’s it done? “Using a technique called transcranial magnetic stimulation” researchers can “safely shut down certain groups of neurones” in the brain.</p>
<p>It seems to have worked. Volunteers were coaxed into having their brains zapped by giant magnets. And, lo! “Belief in God was reduced almost by a third, while participants became 28.5 per cent less bothered by immigration numbers.”</p>
<p>The news report was based on the paper “<a href="http://scan.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2015/09/03/scan.nsv107.abstract">Neuromodulation of group prejudice and religious belief</a>” by Colin Holbrook and four others in the journal <em>Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience</em><em>.</em> This paper is one in a long line of studies that purport to explain the workings of the human mind based on responses to simple questionnaires.</p>
<p>It’s true. Scientists in some fields have convinced themselves they can quantify the unquantifiable. They believe hideously complex human emotions can be adequately represented on scales of 1 to 5 (or some other bounds). For instance, on a scale of -4 to 4, how much do you agree with the statement, “There exists an all-powerful, all-knowing, loving God”?</p>
<p>Before you answer, consider. Is the distance in belief from 3 to 4 the same as it is from 2 to 3, and from 1 to 2, and so on? Are these distances exactly the same in all people? What happens if the scale were to be changed from -4 to 4 to one from 1 to 9, which is the same length? Would the results be the same? Does everybody agree on the precise definitions of “all-powerful,” “all-knowing” and so on?</p>
<p>The answer is obviously no to all these questions, but Holbrook’s results, and the results from thousands of such investigations, assume the answer is yes. It’s worse than this. Consider the same question about God but <em>after</em> you answer these two questions: “Please briefly describe the emotions that the thought of your own death arouses in you” and “Please jot down, as specifically as you can, what you think will happen to your body as you physically die and once you are physically dead.”</p>
<p>Why? Because, the authors say (in the supplementary material to the main article), these “threat-inductions” have an “evident link between the prospect of death and palliative thoughts of God and the afterlife, and also because” thinking about your own death “has been shown to reliably heighten both intergroup prejudice and religiosity in prior studies.” Thinking about life after death increases intergroup prejudices? That must explain the riot in the pews each Sunday after the Nicene creed is read (“I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come”). And are <em>palliative</em> thoughts about death the only reason people believe in God? Of course not. This prejudicial prompting is of dubious value.</p>
<p>In the study, questions about belief in God, the niceness of immigrants, and several other subjects were asked of volunteers, half of whom were zapped with magnets. These magnets were aimed at a region in the brain the researchers thought was related to emotions about God and immigrants. Yet brain “regions” of complex emotions are far from well understood. In <a href="http://wmbriggs.com/post/8248/" target="_blank"><em>Brainwashed: The Seductive Appeal of Mindless Neuroscience</em></a> Sally Satel (psychiatrist) and Scott Lilienfeld (psychologist) say “the half-life of facts can be especially brief” in this field. New results disprove older ones continuously.</p>
<p>After the zapping, all participants were re-asked the same questions. Turns out participants “reported an average of 32.8% less conviction in positive religious beliefs” than those who weren’t zapped. That’s 32.8% and not 32.7%, mind you. In science we demand precision! A wee <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FtlH4svqx4" target="_blank">p-value</a> confirmed that this change was “statistically significant.” There isn’t space here to explain the horror of this statistical approach, but interested readers can <a href="http://wmbriggs.com/post/8295/" target="_blank">learn more here.</a></p>
<p>This is where it gets interesting. There was, as we have just seen, a small change in the answers to pseudo-quantified questions about <em>positive</em> religious beliefs, but there weren’t any “significant” changes in the answers to pseudo-quantified questions about <em>negative</em> religious beliefs. The same sort of thing happened in the questions about immigrants: Some had wee p-values and some did not. And there were no changes in any of the other questions asked. Yet which “findings” got the headlines?</p>
<p>We still haven’t answered the big question: <em>why</em>. Why did the authors design a study about belief in God and attitudes about immigrants? From their conclusion, written in the impenetrable prose typical of such “studies”:</p>
<blockquote><p>History teaches that investment in cherished group and religious values can bring forth acts of both heroic valor and horrific injustice. Understanding the psychological and biological determinants of increases in ideological commitment may ultimately help us to identify the situational triggers of, and individuals most susceptible to, this phenomenon, and thereby gain some leverage over the zealous acts that follow. …The results provide evidence that relatively abstract personal and social attitudes are susceptible to targeted neuromodulation, opening the way for researchers to not only describe the biological mechanisms undergirding high-level attitudes and beliefs, but also to establish causality via experimental intervention.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Did you catch that? These scientists hope that in the future belief in God, or in some other politically incorrect question that might — only <em>might —</em> lead to “zealous acts,” can be <em>treated, maybe even </em><em>cured,</em> by magnet zappings. And there you have the real danger that follows from believing you can quantify the unquantifiable.</p>
<p><a href="https://stream.org/scientists-claim-zapping-brains-with-magnets-can-treat-belief-in-god/" target="_blank">STREAM</a></p>
ATHEISTS ARE DEMANDING TOWN REMOVE ITS CROSS.
tag:12160.info,2015-10-13:2649739:Topic:1593329
2015-10-13T05:57:26.771Z
Central Scrutinizer
https://12160.info/profile/H0llyw00d
<h1 class="entry-title">ATHEISTS ARE DEMANDING THIS TOWN REMOVE ITS CROSS. WHAT THE MAYOR JUST SAID WILL INFURIATE THEM</h1>
<div class="post-info"><span class="date published time" title="2015-10-12T11:10:30+00:00">OCTOBER 12, 2015</span> </div>
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<div class="post-info"> …</div>
<h1 class="entry-title">ATHEISTS ARE DEMANDING THIS TOWN REMOVE ITS CROSS. WHAT THE MAYOR JUST SAID WILL INFURIATE THEM</h1>
<div class="post-info"><span class="date published time" title="2015-10-12T11:10:30+00:00">OCTOBER 12, 2015</span> </div>
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<div class="post-info"> <span class="post-comments"><a href="http://www.impeachobamacampaign.com/atheists-are-demanding-this-town-remove-its-cross-what-the-mayor-just-said-will-infuriate-them/#idc-container" id="IDShowCommentLink169313" target="" name="IDShowCommentLink169313"><br/></a></span></div>
<div class="entry-content"><p>A group of atheists are trying to push around a small Kentucky town. However, cheered on by The Rev. Franklin Graham, the town of Wilmore, Ky., is not planning to budge.</p>
<p>“These anti-god activists are trying to get their way against the will of the people. Let’s pray that they get nowhere!” Graham recently wrote on Facebook, praising Wilmore residents for “standing their ground.”</p>
<p>The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) of Madison, Wisc., have asked Wilmore officials to remove a cross from the local water tower. The cross is owned by the city, but sits on lands owned by Asbury University, a private, Christian school.</p>
<p>“The Wilmore cross, displayed on the city water tower, unabashedly creates the perception of government endorsement of Christianity,” said an emailed letter from the FFRF. “It conveys the message to the nearly 30 percent of the U.S. population who are not Christians that they are not ‘favored members of the political community.’”</p>
<p>Wilmore Mayor Harold Rainwater has no plans to heed FFRF’s demands.</p>
<p>“There’s a groundswell of support to keep [the cross] and I’m certainly going to fight to keep it with everything I’ve got,” Rainwater said. “I think it’s symbolic of our town. I 100-percent support keeping it there. We won’t take it down unless we’re forced to take it down.”</p>
<p>“In nearly 40 years, no one has ever complained about this cross except this group from Madison,” said Rainwater. “It means a lot to us. It’s <a href="http://www.kentucky.com/welcome_page/?shf=/2015/10/11/4082831_despite-lawsuit-threat-mayor-says.html">important</a> to our town. There’s nothing that’s drawn our town together more than the possibility of losing this cross.”</p>
<p>Wilmore took over the tower from the college in 1976. The transfer required that the cross be kept in place. The college pays the electric bill for the cross, with no cost to Wilmore, Rainwater said.</p>
<p>“When [the cross] was put there, Wilmore was called ‘the town under the cross.’ I think ‘the town under the cross’ is symbolic of Wilmore,” he said.</p>
<p>“They may make us pay money to take it down…but I believe the university will actually raise it up higher,” he said. “They don’t want to do that and it’s silly to have to do that, but that’s where we’re at.”</p>
<p>Rainwater said that so far all he has received from the anti-religion group is an emailed letter.</p>
<p>“To be honest with you, I look at an email as <a href="http://www.centralkynews.com/jessaminejournal/news/local/wilmore-asked-to-remove-cross-from-water-tower-by-freedom/article_a3a16090-6ebf-11e5-b98c-e71fd9bc650c.html">spam</a>. That is not the way you contact someone in a legal position,” he said. “I don’t underestimate the reach of well-funded liberal agendas. When I get a subpoena or I get served, then I know I have to respond…but I’m not going to take a cross down because of an email.”</p>
<p>“I’m not going to reply to an email,” Rainwater emphasized. “I’m not going to respond to a leftist, liberal foundation that wants to tell me in Wilmore what is appropriate.”</p>
<p> <span class="author vcard"><span class="fn"><a href="http://www.impeachobamacampaign.com/author/jack-davis/" rel="author">JACK DAVIS</a></span></span></p>
</div>
Church Now Sending Collection Notices To Members who Don’t Tithe Enough
tag:12160.info,2015-07-16:2649739:Topic:1575803
2015-07-16T03:57:05.486Z
Central Scrutinizer
https://12160.info/profile/H0llyw00d
<p>A Florida church sent a delinquency notice to a new member reminding her that worshipers were expected to pay $1,000 in required fees or face possible removal.</p>
<p>Candace Petterson said she started attending the Greater Mount Moriah Primitive Baptist Church about six months ago after moving to a new home in the Tampa area, but she received a troubling letter last week from the church, …</p>
<p>A Florida church sent a delinquency notice to a new member reminding her that worshipers were expected to pay $1,000 in required fees or face possible removal.</p>
<p>Candace Petterson said she started attending the Greater Mount Moriah Primitive Baptist Church about six months ago after moving to a new home in the Tampa area, but she received a troubling letter last week from the church, <a href="http://www.abcactionnews.com/news/hillsborough-regional-news/church-members-complain-about-collection-notices" target="_blank">reported WFTS-TV</a>.</p>
<p>The single mother said she received what amounted to a delinquency notice from her new church asking her to contribute $50 a month, along with other assorted fees, to remain a member in good standing and vote on church matters.</p>
<p>The predominantly black church, which has operated for more than a century, asked her to pay a yearly $250 anniversary fee and another $150 for Mount Moriah Day – amounting to $1,000, some of which would be set aside to pay off church debt.</p>
<p>“What church charges you to help pay off what they’re going through?” Petterson said. “I’m not there for that.”</p>
<p>The letter, from assistant administrator Ladreda Spencer and Pastor B.R. Fulton Jr., also reminded Petterson that children – including her 11-year-old daughter – were expected to pay $5 a month to the church in addition to two annual $15 fees.</p>
<p>The letter notified Petterson, who said she had been unaware of the required contributions, that members fell into delinquency if they failed to make payments for three months or more, <a href="http://www.christianpost.com/news/florida-church-threatens-to-boot-member-for-financial-delinquency-gives-her-90-days-to-overcome-hardship-141514/" target="_blank">reported the <em>Christian Post</em></a>.</p>
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<p>“In order to not be removed from the church roll, your attention to this matter [is] greatly appreciated,” the letter warned, but offered to grant her a 90-day “hardship” exemption.</p>
<p>Church officials acknowledged they sent the notice to Petterson, the TV station reported, but they declined to offer additional comments or explanation.</p>
<p>Petterson posted a copy of the letter on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mount-Moriah-Primitive-Baptist-Church/143042735726329" target="_blank">church’s Facebook page</a>, where one church member in “good standing” scolded the younger woman for publicizing her complaint.</p>
<p>“I love my church and my pastor,” said member Bonnie Maxwell. “I know people have their opinions regarding the letter that was sent out to this young lady and put over social media. I don’t understand why so much negativity about paying a monthly assessment of $50 a month, that you already knew about. If you go to a club or a bar whatever you wish to call it every weekend, you are paying about $10 or maybe more to get in the door and then paying again for drinks.”</p>
<p>“As Christians we are required to be obedient,” Maxwell added.</p>
<p>Another Florida church lost its tax-exempt status earlier this year after officials in Panama City determined that it was <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/2015/03/florida-church-loses-tax-exempt-status-over-raunchy-wet-n-wild-spring-break-twerking-parties/" target="_blank">operating as a nightclub</a> that charged $20 “donations” to participate in raunchy themed parties.</p>
<p>Greater Mount Moriah Primitive Baptist Church doesn’t offer anything remotely like those activities, but tithes must be made voluntarily to remain tax deductible.</p>
<p>Petterson said the experience had soured her on the church, and she’s looking for another place to worship.</p>
<p>“It’s like you say to me, if you want to be a member of this church, you need to pay this,” she said. “If you want to find God, it don’t say anything like that in the Bible.”</p>
<p><a href="http://www.rawstory.com/2015/07/florida-church-sends-1000-collection-notice-to-single-mother-because-she-didnt-tithe/" target="_blank">Travis Gettys</a></p>