- Image via Wikipedia
People argue that parents and religious entities will not cease the practice of preying on vulnerable children to maintain their tribes. Religious indoctrination of children has been going on for centuries and is a universal phenomenon. Like child battering, it is a syndrome protected by an extensive protective meme complex. Parents were most likely indoctrinated, making them excellent practitioners of childhood religious grooming. They know all the techniques and evasions to use on their own kids. Likewise, adults who were physically punished will strenuously defend this cruel treatment and turn around and physically punish their own children.
Related articles
- Salvation is not a legitimate argument for indoctrinating children (endhereditaryreligion.com)
- Who Cares About Atheists? (camelswithhammers.com)
- Quiverfull Atheists (dangeroustalk.net)
- Questions for Those Raising Their Kids Without Religion (atheistrev.com)
- Indoctrinating Children In a Religious Faith is Abusive (atheistrev.com)
- “Aha!” Moments (new.exchristian.net)
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[SOURCE]
Margaret Forrester works for the NHS in England as a mental health worker in a health centre. She was suspended last year because she was distributing a booklet on abortion in an abortion clinic. She’d given the booklet to a fellow staff member because she felt that the NHS wasn’t giving enough information. She’s also a catholic. There’s a little bit of crazy on both sides, however, she appears to have been re-instated1.
We all know that religious nutters think that abortion is wrong, against the will of god and must be stopped. The trouble with nutters is that they won’t listen to the experts and flat out lie to push their own point.
The NHS says it’s normal to feel a range of emotions after an abortion:
It’s normal to experience a range of emotions after an abortion, such as relief, sadness, happiness or feelings of loss. [SOURCE]
Seems like good practical advice.
Of course, the christian world is now very excited that Ms Forrester has been re-instated. They talk about how all opinions should be offered for women who want to have an abortion, they talk about free speech and how important it is. Over at defendchristians.org they said this:
Even though everything in the booklet was true and Margaret was eventually exonerated, Margaret almost lost her job simply for sharing a politically incorrect opinion.
So, let’s have a look at the booklet that she was passing around and talking about, it’s called “Forsaken – Women from Taunton talk about Abortion” and the website explains:
This book is about the reality of Post Abortion Syndrome (also known as “Post Abortion Stress”, “Post Abortion Trauma” or “Post Abortion Stress Syndrome”).
So, what’s Post Abortion Syndrome I hear you ask? Well, I’m glad you asked, the booklet website says this about PAS:
The term “Post Abortion Syndrome” was first used in 1981 by Vincent Rue, a psychologist and trauma specialist, in testimony before the United States Congress. He had observed post-traumatic stress disorder which developed in response to the stress of abortion. He proposed the name “Post Abortion Syndrome” (PAS) to describe it.
Well, that sound fairly impressive. Like I should actually believe there is such a thing. Of course, I like to check these things, so I slipped over to Wikipedia and sure enough there is an article on PAS – in fact the first paragraph is exactly the same, but then read on:
The American Psychological Association and the American Psychiatric Association do not recognize PAS as an actual diagnosis or condition, and it is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR or in the ICD-10 list of psychiatric conditions.
Oh? But this important information doesn’t seem to have made it on the Forsaken site, in fact they go on to list a range of symptoms and they also claim that the book is about the ‘reality of Post Abortion Syndrome’ to which we are entitle to look a little surprised, purse our lips and go “oh?” with an upward inflection towards the end of the H to signify surprise.
Wikipedia goes on to say:
While some studies have shown a correlation between abortion and clinical depression, anxiety, suicidal behaviors, or adverse effects on women’s sexual functions for a small number of women, these correlations may be explained by pre-existing social circumstances and emotional health.
So when the defendchristians.org website says that everything in the booklet is true they are either deluded or flat out lying.
Ms Forrester is quoted as saying:
“Women need to be able to make a fully informed decision about having an abortion, as it will impact their lives forever. They need to be made aware of all of the risks, including the well documented mental health risks.”
I agree, we all should be fully informed about the impact on our lives for any procedure that we are undertaking, however, we need true and accurate information, not hogwash that has no support in the medical and scientific world and is driven by people’s personal opinions and unsubstantiated claims, and especially not when they are driven from some fanciful belief in an imaginary pixie fairy wombat in the sky that kills his own son because one woman made a mistake and the rest of us are to blame. That’s why Ms. Forrester you should keep your perverted version of the truth to your self. It has no place in your professional life.
It’s worth reading this blog by PERSONALFAILURE at Forever In Hell, she talks about the religious nutters and PAS – it’s very compelling.
Ms Forrester should have been sacked, and in the words of PERSONALFAILURE
Again and again and again, fuck off.
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Don’t get me wrong, I don’t need permission, but this person was polite and well-meaning, and I have no interest in making our private conversations public unless they condone it. Our exchange was largely one of them presenting me with tired clichés and my replies, but at times you could tell this person was truly trying to think of something interesting and personal to say just for me.
Regardless, I do want to focus on one particular aspect of Christianity that I think most atheists can relate to: the complete emptiness of prayer.
I’ll be honest, I have never talked to atheists about prayer, but I suspect that most have had the same experience as myself. Personally, I got nothing from prayer. I got nothing from prayer when I was raised Catholic and I did rosaries, I got nothing from prayer when I knelt down next to my bed before I went to sleep, I got nothing from prayer when protestant friends invited me to prayer circles, I got nothing from prayer when I prayed desperately while alone and searching.
Please don’t misunderstand me. To my knowledge, I have never prayed for anything. I was taught that asking for material possessions or for something to happen or for “a sign” is not how prayer works. I was taught (and I believe this is probably the predominant view) that prayer is communion with the divine.
Now, I was never expecting a full-blown conversation, or even for words to pop up in my head from an unknown source. In fact, I don’t even know what to expect. I guess I was hoping for some kind of intangible feeling, some sense of higher power or greater purpose, or something about it just feeling “right” or “good” or even “holy.” At the very least, I expected to feel something other than what I felt while praying, which was alone.
Even in large groups of people, praying has a way of making me feel completely and utterly disconnected. I can meditate with the best of them (since this is the goal of meditation; to remove oneself from where ever you are), but prayer completely eludes me. I have read thousands of accounts on the experience of prayer, and yet I have come to the conclusion that I am either incapable of experiencing what people describe, or that these accounts are lies/exaggerations.
When trying to explain this to Christians, I get the same, tired old spiel. I hear how I’m doing it wrong, and always an invitation to try it again. It kind of reminds me of talking to stoners. If you tell a pothead that getting high doesn’t really do anything for you, they tell you, “You must be doing it wrong.” They then invite me to toke up and do some inane thing like watch a movie or eat something unusual or listen to a horrible band (FYI: if a band only sounds good while stoned, they are equivalent to a person who is only attractive when you’re drunk).
Now, I have long abandoned prayer as something I am simply incapable of. I’m not opposed to prayer, and if you think you figured out the magical formula, detail it for me and I’ll give it a whirl (why not, I have time). But from what I understand about the burgeoning field of neuro-theology, there is evidence that certain individuals are genetically pre-disposed to being able to experience prayer.
I have no interest in looking up anything at the moment, but in years past I have read many articles about brain scans done on individuals who were either praying or meditating or going into trance. One particular thing I remember about those who prayed was that people who did pray often experienced stimulation in a portion of the brain that implied they recognized someone was watching them or was nearby. There are literally people whose brains are telling them during prayer that they are not alone, and I suspect that the reason prayer “works” for these people is that they have managed to trigger this brain response.
I wouldn’t bother trying to discuss things like this with Christians, because I don’t think they even believe in brains (they think with their cholesterol clogged “hearts,” after all). Still, it is interesting that religion has managed to exploit this induced state of schizophrenia in order to provide a nearly irrefutable proof to those capable of experiencing it.
Think about it… if someone explained to you a way to hack your brain (which is basically what you are doing when you pray), you might be inclined to listen to other things they have to say, especially if they work the whole thing into an elaborate folktale. I’m sure the healing power of religious ceremonies also seemed damn near miraculous before we understood the placebo effect.
As science delves deeper and deeper into understanding the true mechanics of how the universe and our bodies work, I have a feeling that religion doesn’t have a prayer (just don’t call this prediction a prophecy).
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Where I work, we have a “Rule of Three”: Cheap, Fast, or Good. Pick two.
You can do something Cheap and Good, but it won’t be Fast;
Fast and Good, but it won’t be cheap;
or Fast and Cheap, and it definitely won’t be good.
You can’t have all three!
My manager shared the “Rule of Three” during a meeting today, and another Christian coworker (a former pastor, might I add) who had never heard it before exclaimed his love for it. He added:
So it’s kind of like how God is supposed to be all-powerful and all-good, and yet there’s still suffering in the world. You can’t have all three.
BINGO! You win!
If only the words had actually sunk in.
If you’re not familiar with the origins of that claim, here’s the original oft-quoted passage from Epicurus.
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able?
Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing?
Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing?
Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing?
Then why call him God?”
–Epicurus (Greek philosopher, 341-270 BCE)
Ugh, John Boehner. I’m surprised he got through the intro without sobbing like a newborn.
Joe Biden… what can I say about the guy. He’s in a race with Rand Paul to see who has the worst solution to baldness.
This is the first update. After this, I will just keep adding comments as they come to me.
My wife is complaining that Michelle Obama never wears pants since becoming the first lady.
Wolf Blitzer would be an amazing name for a Nazi Panzer division.
The pageantry of it all… they enter the capitol like boxers entering the ring. It’s a shame it isn’t actually as exciting as the sweet science, but it would be pretty messed up if we settled who would run the country by fisticuffs. Still, it would be funny to see Obama lay the smack down on the Tan Stallion, John “Leaky” Boehner.
I just finished my Bingo card, selected at near random. I’ll take a picture of it with what I’m drinking tonight (sorry Nikk, I forewent orange juice for Pepsi Throwback, made with real sugar).
I hate twitter, but I imagine this is a good time to have it. I bet I would just get a picture of a whale being lifted by birds if I tried to load the page tonight, though. Or maybe not, I won’t bother to find out. No need to get into it after it’s already jumped the shark.
Stop saying hello to everyone… we’re going to miss Tosh.0
Holy shit, he shaved! Things are looking up, people, some dude shaved his beard (three weeks ago… thanks for noticing… finally).
Ahh, the unelected life-termers in black. Justices… the ultimate oxymoron?
A Purple tie! That means he mixed blue and red! Oh the metaphors.
Damn, I should have had “Thank” on my bingo card.
Good start. “Way to kick my ass last November.” Solid.
He said pray! My offended atheist ears! AHHHHHH! IT BURNS!!!
But seriously though, don’t reform gun laws, just pray.
Debates? Fought Fiercely? Maybe on one side. Uh oh, he’s playing the rhetoric card… say it, I have rhetoric on my card.
Damnit, say bipartisanship!
So close.
The economy is growing… among the rich. It’s a wonderful time to be wealthy. Trust me.
Vague narrative for like 8 minutes, yawn.
Change can be painful… pain we can believe in.
Sure, China had the fastest computer… until they shipped it to the person who ordered it in America.
We do have the most patents, just look at the Snuggie. “Look, I turned a robe around, patent please!”
We are going to win the future… all your base are belong to us.
Hey, they mentioned us, he said “Internet.” Nice.
Facebook was just mentioned by the president. It’s officially dead.
Solar shingles… sounds like a skin condition.
Cars that run on sunlight and water??? Oh my god… it’s powered by rainbows, people!
Ending oil subsidies… glad I drive a fuel efficient car.
I missed that… did he say by 2035? How long is he staying in office?
Yeah, our kids are stupid and our self-esteem soars, but they just take after their parents.
He told me to turn the TV off… while watching him on TV, and he compared a science fair to the Super Bowl… maybe if he had said The Bachelor.
Race to the top… well why not, it certainly is an uphill climb.
I don’t have much snark when it comes to education. We need to dump boatloads more money than we do into it, and we certainly need to raise our expectations. I was a high achiever… me… seriously.
Remember Mitch Kahle, the leader of Hawaii Citizens for the Separation of State and Church who was assaulted after protesting unconstitutional Christian prayers the Hawaii state Senate?
Not only was he found not guilty of disorderly conduct, but the Hawaii Senate has now unanimously voted to end all daily prayers.
I consider this a great victory for the Constitution and an example for the other 49 states who have failed to do the same. Way to start the ball rolling, Hawaii! I hope other legislatures will see the wisdom in guarding the necessary separation between Church and State and follow suit.
9. Botswana
8. Madagascar
7. Burundi
6. Croatia
5. Maldives
4. Belarus
3. Malaysia
2. Burkina Faso
1. Micronesia
