Religious Groomers

I have had cause to consider how much of a link there is between religious evangelizing and 'grooming'. There appears to be a link to me and it makes me shudder to think of the same predatory tactics used by people with unsavoury intentions are to engage and manipulate young minds into behaviours which the children are unable to give full consensual permission.

People who evangelize to young children, i.e. those under the age of consent, say less than 18 years old, should be prosecuted as breaking the law. The damage they do is similar to the damage done by paedophiles who have violated their victims without their informed consent.

Let's take an anecdotal look at their similar modi operandi:
They present a friendly face to youngsters. Set up youth friendly facilities or activities which will enable them to get closer to their subjects. Become interested in the things that the young people are interested in. Make available items like chocolate, colouring books, sweeties/candy, etc. They introduce a topic that the predator has as a main focus , either sexual interest or their religion. They spend time making their subject feel comfortable. The groomer convinces themselves that they are doing what they do because they want to share the love they have.
Don't forget paedophiles sometimes abuse children in their own families - just like religious groomers. Those children are trapped and unable to remove themselves from their abusive homes and their abusers.
Any adult, whether part of a religious organisation or not, who grooms minors, whether knowingly or unknowingly, should be prosecuted. Laws should be created to protect minors from them.
It is the same as if a person had an inappropriate relationship with a minor - poisoning a child's mind with dogmatic fairy stories designed, essentially, to confuse and create long-term damage.

Children's minds are like sponges, they are receptive to all kinds of stimuli and experiences and especially dogma. We, as adults, have a responsibility to put aside our personal views and prejudices which could have a negative impact on children who come into contact with us.

I am not someone who believes that you should not talk to children about religion - it is important to inform children of the belief systems of the world we live in but we have a duty to do that responsibly. That means ensuring our responses to their questions are age-appropriate, relevant, unbiased and are based on facts as we know them. Let children decide what they want to know. Let them teach us how they want to be taught.

Do you know someone who is a religious 'groomer'? Are you comfortable with what they do?

White English Minority in England?

I read Twining's blog (a black police officer in England) and noticed comments by a woman who complained about being a white person in England and feeling that she was being displaced in the country of her birth - where she felt she should have more rights than the 'minorities'. She used the Notting Hill Carnival to illustrate how black people were able to visibly celebrate their culture yet white people weren't able to do that. She felt in a minority.

I suddenly had an urge to discover more about the festivities in England which were part of the white culture and look at how and where they conducted these celebrations. Most of the festivities found took place in rural communities and had been established over some time. Some of them their origins were obscure but it didn't matter; this somehow mattered not a jot to the enjoyment of the activities.

Here are just some of the festivities which, to me, celebrate the English-ness of England:

The Gloucestershire Cheese Rolling Festival may see very odd to some. Over 40,000 spectators watch a 7lb block of cheese being thrown down a steep hill and people (men, in the main) scrambling down the hill as fast as they can - the first to the bottom wins the cheese!
Here is the You Tube video which illustrates this tradition the best...

The Gloucestershire Cheese Rolling Festival 2007

Other festivities are: The Sealed Knot, the Nettle Eating Contest, the Pearly King Harvest Festival, Tar Barrels in Northumberland (yes, another one!), the Great Yorkshire Show, Heddington & Stockley Steam Rally & Country Fair and not forgetting Morris Dancers appearing all over the country. These are just a few of the hundreds of 'English' celebrations occurring each year without being defined as 'celebrating English culture' - it just is.

The Notting Hill Carnival arose out of extreme oppression by the English people to the newly arrived, predominantly Caribbean people, and is enjoyed by people from all over the world. It is an example of people transcending race and just having fun for a couple of days. It is English as it has arisen from experiences in England. It is a positive part of the culture which should be applauded, not derided, considering its origins. All races take part. There are food stalls selling food from Brazil, China, France, Jamaica, Africa and many other cultural cuisines. A broad range of music, dancing, merriment, colourful floats and costumes. You go and enjoy yourself or don't attend at all. Just like the cheese-rolling competitions.

England is changing because all regions of the world experience change - it is part of the evolution of humans. There are more benefits than negatives to new fresh immigrants going into countries like the UK and the USA. If you listen to the tat-media they would have you believe otherwise.
England and Britain has a long way to go with regards to race. Ignorance, unfortunately, will be with us for a long time to come

Respect?

There seems to be an old idea running through the black community that you should 'respect your elders'. I hear that quite a lot. In fact, that was a strong feature in my childhood. You didn't ever dare call someone of my parents generation (say) by their first name, they always had a title - Mr So-and So or Mrs or Miss. If they were part of a church they were known as Brother or Sister So-and-So. Never did you call them by their first name only. Not allowed. That was an example of respecting someone.

This has me thinking about this issue of 'respect'. Being respected is a big issue. Even I have found myself, in past moments of being totally pathetic, moaning that someone doesn't respect me. Now what does that actually mean?

How do you respect someone? Why is it important, if it is, to be respected? How does respect manifest itself? Does feeling respected feel differently from not being respected? - and how can you tell the difference?

In London I have seen so many instances of people having some kind of conflict where one person felt that they weren't being given 'due respect'. I have observed hip-hop artists, for example, pushing the idea that respect is paramount. Why?

My view is it starts with feeling powerless and is an attempt to control the small world around us. I think it is to do with a lack of self-worth, poverty of the mind, lack of education, poor quality peer groups, poor parenting - all wrapped up with a view of the world not based on reality but fantasy.

If people were taught to communicate effectively and they could adapt critical thinking skills into their lives, where they did not view the bible (for example) as the word of a god, where social morals were there for them to freely choose, where people could be who they wanted to be, where the focus was on their child being given the tools to enable them to understand the world without bias nor a belief in scary stories, without fear yet with a critical eye, questioning everything (can you imagine such a scenario?) then I think the issue of respect would lose its importance.

I have featured pictures of young children being abused by supernaturalistsand their ideas on this blog.The high-level, worldwide, state sanctioned child abuse must stop. It must stop or nothing will change. I try and imagine the world without the supernatural and all its manifestations.

Although, my concern is not necessarily for myself it is sad to think that with all the marvellous, new and innovative technological advances we are still stuck where we are.

What is there to respect? Some young black men are harming themselves and others because of this idea of 'respect'. It is a stronghold that must be broken. Lives are being destroyed because of this very thing. It is easy to believe something because our parents and previous generations believed it. That is exactly why we are in the mess we are in today. Don't respect your elders just because they are older. Don't respect traditions. Don't respect old ideas.

Don't respect - think!

The Speech by Barack Obama

Barack Obama - 'A More Perfect Union'- Philadelphia, 18 March 2008

I thought I would spend some time digesting this speech and all its probable implications. So in case you missed it in its entirety...

One thing I can say about Barack Obama was his speech touched a raw nerve for a lot of people. Not only in the USA but around the world. Friends of mine, blog writers, newspapers columnists realised, or rather, hoped that a turning point had arrived. The genie was being taken out of the bottle - for some there was pain and for others, none.

A Letter to Dr James...

I am part of another net group and chanced upon a comment by a man who is a theist. He has a website page where he talks about abortion being wrong and ungodly. He has given his views of when an abortion is appropriate and inappropriate. His name is Reverend James McBean, a minister in Florida. Here's a link to his page on How To Deal with Abortion.

I decided to respond to him in the form of a letter.

Now, my letter to Dr James is not to personally attack him because I understand the historical, religious and social dynamics which enable people to feel this way about abortion.

Dear Dr James,

I started writing a response to you but thought I would reply to you on
my blog. I want to share my comments with visitors to my blog as I feel this is
a serious issue.

I will lay my cards on the table:
I am an atheist. That means I don't believe in any form of the
supernatural. I don't believe in god/gods, astrology, witchcraft, voodoo, obeah,
numerology, reincarnation, the rapture, the bible, koran or anything remotely
theistic.
So, that means that I don't believe in 'souls' either.I believe we
are all animals, mammals, still in the evolutionary process and there is nothing
special about us. When we die we die. Finito.

If a woman finds herself in a position where she is pregnant with an
unwanted child then I will support her in anyway that I can. As there is no such
thing as 'hell', or the devil or divine retribution, in my mind - a woman can do
what she likes and so can everyone else. Saying that, having an abortion can be
a very traumatic time for a woman. Yes, she may grieve and feel distressed about
that decision but her life can move on. Life is just like that.
I want women to feel in control of what happens to their bodies, take control to the point of preventing unwanted pregnancies in the first place, but we are human animals and accidents happen. I'm not going to berate a woman for her difficult choice.

Our collective aims as human beings should be to try and be empathetic to a
persons personal circumstances and respect what they want to do with their
bodies.
We only have one life. This is it. There is no other regardless of what we have been taught. If you look at the problems in the world today how much, what percentage would you attribute to a belief in the supernatural?

Also, I understand where you are coming from because I have connections
with the country which has the highest number of churches per capita in the
world - Jamaica. How did that happen? The colonial powers that was/is had a grip
so tight that their imposed religion was seen as the only respite during a
barbaric and horrible period. We don't have to live in it anymore. We can free
our minds and our children's minds by questioning the status quo. Parents aren't
always right - in fact with regard to their own faiths they did what they were
told to do - what was socially acceptable but worse...they actually believed it
too.
I am an atheist and I am free. Free to make my own decisions. Free to
decide my life's directions without having some imaginary god watching my every
move, listening to my every thought and deciding when I die whether I will go to
hell or not. I'm so not concerned.

I am concerned about the high level of child abuse (yes, child abuse) we
are visiting on the future generations. It is like a clever, tragic hoax which
has been foisted onto generations for thousands of years and it still continues
today.

We have the power to change things Joe Holman did - he was a minister who changed his life. We should focus on today and only give a fleeting nod to the past, if we have to. Live for now. Live for today. Live in the moment. The bible doesn't help you to do that.

A quote I saw today stopped me in my tracks as I realised the depth and
meaning of it:

"I freed hundreds of slaves. I could have freed hundreds more, if they had only known that they were slaves."

- Harriet Tubman.

Hoping that you view this letter as one which can inspire dialogue and change.

Regards,

Zee.

British Atheist Speaks...

Pimping For Jesus - Video

One of the great things about the internet is how it enables people to connect and share information right across the globe. What a fabulous medium!

I recently joined a group Black Atheists at Yahoo and received an email from a member pointing me in the direction of a video by Pat Condell, a British atheist. He has a really dry wit, classic British humour, which some people may not always appreciate! I chose this video as a good starting point to understand his worldview. You may actually agree with him on some fronts.

Enjoy!

Religion and Child Abuse

Some people have taken issue with me due to my belief that teaching your child, indoctrinating your child into your religious belief system, is abuse.

Let me make it clear:

if you are part of a religious organisation or even if you believe in 'the Flying Teapot' the onus is on you to ensure that your child is brought up aware of the following:

1. Alternative views;

2. The pros and cons of your belief;

3. Critical thinking skills and how to apply them.

Now considering the above 3 points: How many people can honestly say that they have guardianship of a child, are believers in god/gods/universal spirits/or some such and have applied all of the above points throughout that child's life? Very few.

The damage inflicted on children exposed to irrational thinking lead to all the negative -isms we experience today.

Being a parent is one of the most difficult jobs there is. Not enough credit is given to those who care for and raise babies into adulthood. A child looks up to their parent or guardian for guidance, love, support and is hardwired to believe what the parent/guardian says is true. If you then follow belief systems based on fallacy which does not and will not stand up to critical analysis, then this is what the child will believe.

No one is born a 'believer' - we are like sponges at birth, ready to absorb all the influences and experiences around us. We are naturally curious about this strange environment we find ourselves in called 'the world'. Nature and nurture have a major impact on how we perceive the now and the future. If our parents enable us to explore and engage with the world critically we are not weighed down by excess baggage, which includes theism and all forms of the supernatural.

In the black communities I have experienced, religion is embedded within the cultures. Black people are not a homogenous group but disparate populations, varying in size from minute to gigantic, even so religion has become a deeply ingrained part of 'black life'. If you reject religion in its various forms then you are seen as outside of 'the black experience'. I have been accused of not 'being black enough' (whatever that means!). I am considered a pariah and often times black people have offered to pray for me to help me to see the light.

Why are these belief systems so much a part of the black experience? Anecdotal evidence suggests: slavery, control and systematic abuse, social cohesion, peer pressure, lack of quality scientific education and so on. None of these are exclusive to the black community - not even slavery.

I don't object to theists. My concern is the impact that theism has on the scientific and social advancements of human beings, the damage inflicted on those who have been conditioned to view alternative views as representing 'the devil' or some other negative entity - consequently these ideas are passed on, like a virus, to our children.

If we are concerned about providing future generations with tools to action the progressive changes which are sorely needed, then how can we inflict this form of abuse on them?

Black Female Atheists

As promised I am conducting some research regarding black atheists and thought I would salute the first person who had a video worth watching. It proves there are women who happen to be black who are thinking for themselves and throwing off the shackles called theism. This woman was raised a Jehovah's Witness and after years of indoctrination was able to free her mind.

If you are a theist you could too. My aim is to make this blog a haven for all people who are freethinkers/atheists. Religion has become part of the social fabric of most black communities and it is wrong. But this site is not for black people, nor is it particularly about black people. I have a worldview that includes all - I just don't want to be part of the system that causes atheists to remain in the closet for fear of losing their job, their livelihoods, their support systems and I stand ready for all the verbal attacks coming from the mouths/pens of theists. If I don't speak up to highlight the horrors visited on humanity in the name of supernatural who will? I refuse to see 'racism' as the focal problem. It goes deeper than that. When you have a system which uses fake texts to subjugate people, when those same texts are misogynistic and racist amongst another thing and then the very people who cry foul about how 'people of colour' are treated 'praise the Lord' you know humans are in bad shape. All people.

I'm immensely pleased that black atheists are becoming more visible. I am pleased that I am one of them.

Where Are We...?

I have been trying to find black atheists on the internet and am dismayed at how few black people, particularly in the highly populated USA, are willing to publicly acknowledge themselves as rational, freethinking atheists. It is worrying.

Then like an oasis in the desert I came across Frank the Financially Savvy Atheist who's blog entry dated 6 March 2006 I have reproduced in full below:

'Where the hell are they?
Stop. Think about a famous atheist you know. My personal finance readers might have thought about Michael Newdow, the atheist who is trying to get the words "under god" taken out of the Pledge of Allegiance.

My atheist readers might have thought about Sam Harris, Isaac Asimov, or Bertrand Russell.

"Hold it!" my female atheist readers protest, "There are several famous women atheist as well". Examples include Margaret Sanger, Susan B. Anthony, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton (HT: Escape from the Meme Machine). Right you are my female atheist readers. (free thought mom and Atheist Mama)

But my question is this: Where the hell are all the black atheists famous and otherwise?

When you think of some of the famous black people in the media (that are NOT rap artists or athletes) and you have Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, quite far from atheism. There's Colin Powell and Condi, who's (ex)-boss probably required them to be Christian in order to get the job. Who else is there? Oh wait, the rest are media personalities that prey on gullible housewives (Oprah), atheletes, or rap stars. Rap stars who are at least nominally theistic who can thank god when winning awards and giving them so much "bling", while at the same time glorifying a nihilistic life-style that blacks who try to emulate it will find themselves ignorant, debt-ridden, and thinking that the lottery is the best way to get rich.

Blacks are almost always portrayed as devout believers in the media. I remember when I still went to church in high school, our pastor would rant and rave that Michael Jordan wouldn't thank god for winning games/being such a great player like he [Jordan] should. Did you get that? So it was our duty as "good black people" to penalize the "bad black people" for not praising the same god that put us in slave chains for all those years. What a crock of sh*t.

There needs to be a new spokesperson for blacks in America. Not another god-damned hypocritical preacher in the vein of the Sharptons and the Jacksons. A rational spokesperson. Someone that is not afraid to be an intelligent black person who can speak English and can evoke actions from other blacks without relying on antiquated religious notions. This person, man or woman, will be the face for the black freethinkers: the black atheist, the black agnostic, the black materialist, and everything else in-between. He/she will be a foil for the vapid, idotic, untrue sound-bites from our religious counterparts (example: see here)

No longer will rap stars, idiot preachers, and a cultish day-time talk show hostess define us to the rest of America. We will redefine what it means to be a black american. We will rise above the mediocracy that has plagued our race. We will fulfill our potential for greatenss. We will do it all without relying on unnecessary, irrational, and destructive beliefs.

But, before we can, we need to answer this question: Where the hell are the black atheists?''

The amazing thing is this is an old post that is still even more relevant 2 years later. Where are we? Why are we not brave enough to break through the mould set by those who wish to control? If we spend our time thrashing out against racism and don't see just how insidiously wicked all forms of the supernatural are to our well being, then why bother?

I will follow up on the people who made comments on Frank's blog updating us about the black atheists. You might care to do the same. I'll continue my research and do a write up on my findings shortly.

A New Dawn

Yesterday I re-connected with a friend who, for various reasons, I had not had much contact with over the last year or so. We went for a drink and a bite to eat in a very nice environment in the nearest town.

Over the few years of knowing each other we shared our views about many things. This woman is an academic with a sharp brain and could out-argue me with words to spare on any topic. I believed she was a theist and our views differed, but/and she was someone who I still regarded as a friend.

On the way driving together to our destination she told me she now describes herself as an atheist. Well...if I wasn't seated I would have fallen over. A thousand questions jostled for first place in my mind but I decided to listen to her reasons as to why she now described herself as an atheist.

She relayed what had been happening in her life, books she had recently read and how these had had an impact on her current thinking. In short, she had freed herself from the shackled, abusive, unscientific thinking and had now fully embraced the fact that she was a scientist by profession and realised the inaccurate 'truths' of all forms of theism.

Whilst enjoying each others company she advised me to watch a film, available on the internet, called 'Zeitgeist'. I checked the internet this morning and am looking forward to watching this 2hours and 2 min streaming film tonight. Here's the link for those of you who want to be informed about alternative views: Zeitgeist - The Movie. Maybe you will care to watch it and we can openly share our views of it.

What is interesting for me is how someone can have an open mind at any age. My friend is somewhat angry about the damage theism has inflicted on the world and understands that we have to live in this moment, not for the here-after but now, in this second.

If anything will 'free' black people, in fact all peoples, then this is it.

Dispelling beliefs in the supernatural can fundamentally change the world - not mythological beliefs. The escape routes have been closed by theism - if you think outside their box then you are a sinner and will suffer painful repercussions when you die.

How sad. How sick. How wasteful. How wicked.

Where Do We Go From Here?

I have been having a bit of a ding-dong with a group of African-American women on the net who seem so obsessed by race. Having been there I can honestly say it is not the healthiest route that black people can take. Of course, I don't understand everything about the American culture, nor can I really understand what it must be like to live in a society where you are defined by your race and gender so overtly as in the US.

But...I know that the way to make changes within any society is to make changes within yourself first. Attacking those who you deem to be attacking you may be the way to go until things calm down. I want black people to get smarter in terms of asking some questions before we dive in fists flying: What? Why? Where? When? Which? and How?

If we strategise, mobilise, cogitate, support, and educate with a cool head those changes which are necessary will materialise quicker than we think. Although that is not to say if someone is being physically attacked by ignorant people based on the victim's race that we should stand idly by and let it happen. No. Again whilst dealing with any issue or problem we should still keep a cool head.Whilst trying to move a woman out of a dangerous situation we should still keep a cool head. Whilst wiping dog shit off the mat - posted as a 'loving' gift from the local non-vocal racist neighbour' we should still keep a cool head. We should be cool.

Because only those who make a stand and think will succeed. Why waste energy raising your blood pressure, damaging your vital organs and enabling others to set your agenda and then nothing changes?

I now know that people are sheep and they think what they have been taught to think - hence religions. People are primarily sheep. If you go along to a meeting where everyone is having a 'love fest', basically there to be told how wonderful they are and you are the sole dissenting voice - see how many will support you, even though you are raising issues which are difficult and especially if you are focusing on the bigger picture. Answer: Very few.

It takes guts to go amongst a group of people and mention things they don't want to hear. It takes guts to draw people to the fact that race and racial differences are stupid.

Since the civil rights movement, how much has really changed? Has racism disappeared? Have black women's values been raised amongst societies, especially within black American culture? Not when you see Lil Kim, Beyonce and the like promoting and profiteering from the 'black woman sexual animal' stereotypes. Not when the images that young people of any race see are of black hip-hop artists 'bitching down' black women and flaunting the proceeds through 'bling'. These images are pumped into their brains on a daily basis.

Attacking me for raising my hand and saying 'hang on a minute' or 'what's the big deal?' isn't the answer. The answer lies within us. If you have children you have a responsibility to think about the kind of the world you want to raise them in.

Maybe you should consider how polarised your own life is. How do you talk about other people? Do you have friends who are a natural normal part of your life who happen to be of another 'race'? Do you have people who happen to be gay or bisexual in your life - or have you dismissed them because of some biblical text telling you 'it's against God's law'? Honestly ask yourself the question: Am I sheep? An open mind is just that - open.

Your children weren't/aren't born stupid - they may become that way by adults pushing them away from critical reasoning - away from analysing situations and reaching logical conclusions and also relating to people as people. They are a product of you.

Living your life by example is a good start. The great thing is you don't have to agree with me for me to have a dialogue with you. You don't have to agree with me for you to be my dearest friend. In fact, some of my friends are hardcore theists and I love them regardless. I see and understand their experiences and we share our views without heat and anger. Maybe you could try some of that today and tomorrow.

'Bless You'

I have decided to try my best to ignore the American politics for the moment - as hard as it is and share with you my take on another issue: Superstition.

When I sneeze and some one says 'Bless you' what am I supposed to say? I am an atheist, I don't believe in god or gods, I don't touch wood, I don't believe in universal consciousness or that we are here for a purpose but...is it impolite not to say 'thank you' to a 'bless you' comment?

It got me thinking also about superstitions and where they originated and so I decided to dig around for some ideas regarding the origins of saying 'bless you' to sneezes.
It would appear that throughout many cultures of the world making some kind of comment after someone has sneezed is viewed as good manners. Usually, '(God) bless you' or 'Live long' etc.
From primitive times sneezing was viewed as either the spirit or soul leaving the body and was a sign from the gods foretelling good or bad fortune - words are said to counter or enhance this.

Wikipedia has a quick summary of sneezing and has a link to an excerpt from an interesting book The Origins of Popular Superstitions and Customs.

So what do I say as an atheist? I don't say anything. I cannot see the point. On occasions when I have not said anything I watch as the person waits for me to say 'bless you' and after a big pause a few people have said for and to themselves, 'Bless me' - very funny.
What do you say when someone sneezes?

What's Going On?

I want to know, having taken a short break from blogging, what the hell is going on?

I mean, here I am thinking that Barack Obama's run for the Democratic Presidential nomination will end and there he goes jogging without breaking too much of a sweat towards the finishing line?
How did that happen? I mean aren't all Americans (even including the black ones) red-necked ignorant racists? Aren't those people supposed to only vote for people because of their colour?
How did America get to the point where big money, hardcore corporate capitalists, chucking shed-loads of cash and favours the way of a black man who has the audacity and nerve to raise his head above the parapet and run for the 'top' job, suddenly promote him as the next President?

Something just doesn't seem right to me. I mean did the KKK just disappear overnight and suddenly embrace him as a 'brother'? Where are the Al Sharptonites? - the groupies who will talk a mile a minute about everything they know nothing about just to get on Tee-Vee? What about all those polarised communities where any black person walking down certain neighbourhoods is liable to have the police called to ask them what they are doing in the area? What about the perceived negative relations between the black and hispanic communities? has everyone had a group hug and high-fived into cultural homogeny?
Maybe they have gravitated towards The Hillary and Bill Show, gnashing their teeth and wailing silently as Bill has shown his true consummate-politician colours and agreeing that it's okay to call him 'Mr President' (on Oprah - of all places) as they fawn over the dying embers of Hillary's phoney campaign.

I'm a bit worried about the media, too. Why are they so supportive of Barack? They never promote someone ad infinitum. Payback time is round the corner, folks. You have seen it before and you will see it again.

Let's get something very clear - if you believe that having a black man running for President is going to make a difference, a real difference, then you need to gen up on a little bit of history. The figurehead of President is just that - a figurehead. A puppet. The powers-that-be are shady characters behind the scene, shadowy figures who like to remain so and fund special private entities who can ensure that the status quo is maintained in their favour. Make no bones about it: On the surface, what a monumental achievement it will be for a 'person of colour' to be President of the USofA but get real - 'business as usual' says the sign on the White House door.

Here's a Jamaican Joke!

I'm getting tired of all this serious stuff that's been on my blog and I thought I would share a joke that made me laugh. It is written in the Jamaican patois and makes full use of the Jamaican swear words so if you get offended (in the style of Martin Willett) f**k off!!

No seriously - I'm going to lighten up and try and forget those theists who irritate me as they do things like spend their time 'grooming' children to convert them to their made-up belief systems by buying them chocolate and 'candies'. I'm sure I will continue to have great conversations with those who believe in the supernatural (some of the comments I receive from people I cannot publish as most want to have private conversations with me - thank you!) and my main aim is to share views - full stop. But I want to talk about other things and I thought it would be good to break the seriousness with a joke I read recently.

Anyway, here's The Jamaican Lawyer Joke:

___________________________________________________________________

In a recent trial, a Mandeville prosecuting lawyer called to the witness stand his first witness, a grand motherly, elderly woman named Miss Ivy.

The lawyer approached her and asked, "Miss Ivy, do you know me?’’

She responded, "Why, yes of course me know you, Mr. Williams. Me know yu since yu was a likkle pissen tail pickney, and wata big disappointment yu is to yu fambily. Yu is a ole liard, yu cheat pan yuh wife, yuh chat people bizniz, and yuh red-eye, grudgeful and licky-licky. Yu tink yu is a big shot now but yu no realize seh yu will never amoun to nuttin more Dan a Two-bit paper pusher! Yes, me know yuh very well alright!!"

The Lawyer was stunned! Not knowing what else to do, he pointed across the room and asked, "Miss Ivy, do you know the defense lawyer?"

She looked over at the defense lawyer and replied, "Of course, me know Mr. Bradley since him was a likkle bwoy too. Him lazy, and good-fe-nutten, him boasy, and him always a gwaan like him white. Him caan build nuh normal Relationship with any ooman. Fe him law practice a di worse eena Jamaica. Him chat nuff, him a ole teef, him dutty and narsty. A tree different ooman an four man me hear seh him a grine undah covah, an one a di ooman dem a fi yu missis (points at juror member)!!
Yes sah, me know him well."

The defense lawyer almost died of embarrassment.
The judge ordered both counselors to approach the bench, and in a very quiet voice, said, "If eeda of you rassclaat bastard arks har if she know me, a gwine lock up oonu bumbo-claat eena jail fi contempt!."
____________________________________________________________________

Funny! If you don't understand certain words - leave me a message and I will translate them so you get the giste! It helps if you understand the Caribbean psyche at least.

The Hillary and Bill Clinton Show?

So Bill has leapt to his wife's defence after she placed 3rd in the Iowa caucus - what a surprise! Methinks it smacks of 'payback time' as stained blue dress and cigars jump into my mind.

She is now steadfastly for change and is a 'problem solver' - now it would be far too easy to pick at Hillary and denigrate her for having stood by her husband at a difficult time in their lives and so I won't spend too much time on that.

But, Hillary Clinton appears to me, as a British woman, as a consummate politician and for her husband to laud her with a quote attributed to Tony Blair, of all people, smacks of desperation and a lack of strategy.

How can anyone respect politicians? How can anyone happily go along to vote for any of the candidates wheeled out by corporate capitalists? Bear in mind the puppets pushed are usually those who will do the bidding of those who hold the moneybags. Is this democracy? Is this what a modern democratic society insists on?

Will Barack Obama win the Democratic nomination? In one sense I hope not. I suspect that America won't elect a black man as the figure-head of the nation - 'we're not ready' - just the same as it wouldn't happen in the UK. Maybe either of the other main contenders will at the last minute take the lead and win and then ask Barack Obama to be the Vice-President.

I think this might be preferable due to the economic recession which has started to hit the US. If you become the President after the Bush administration then you have to deal with the complete chaos left behind by an incompetent administration who has messed up the economy, reduced scientific advances, particularly into green alternative forms of energy and on top of that single-handedly created an environment where the rest of the world seems to be hostile even to the sound of an American accent. As the President you get it in the neck when you realise it is impossible to clean up the mess in the time given - as Vice-President you don't get smeared with the same stuff as you learn from the mistakes of the President and then you make your bid again next time round. That's what Barack should do. Don't get the job when the shit is hitting the fan - let it lie low, let someone else have a go and then you go again.

Do I expect that any of this will make any difference to the world? I suspect not.

Is the US ready to elect a person who happens to be defined as 'black' as a figurehead in such a polarised society?

Imagine that.

Time For...Critical Thinking

I have a question.

When are black people going to start to be rational? When are black people going to, en masse, throw out all those tired old scriptures which bring negative, old outdated traditions which stifle and intimidate? When are we (I hate to use we when talking about race as there is only one race and that is 'human' - just humour me) going to realise that believing in a 'god' or 'gods or even one that I hear more and more, 'universal conciousness' is not promoting progress.

I listen to the news, read newspapers, magazines, and lately I have been reading a few blogs to get a giste of what the general views are out there. I have also tried to look for sites written by or about black people who are rationalists, free-thinkers and/or atheists. I am saddened to report that there are too few references to the above.

I'm tired of listening to Oprah pretending to present a balanced view of what a 'non-believer' or 'skeptic' is. I'm tired of Dr Phil, who has one of the most patronising manners in the history of television, make references to god and 'being spiritual'. I'm tired of the Pope, Benedict XVI (or Benny 16 as he is known in some circles) popping up in the news media with some crass comment about the social ills - this from the catholic church (let's not go there at this moment).

I'm tired of reading blogs about how black people are 'angry' yet skim down the text and you read some lauding of 'what god has done for me'. Arrgghhh! Please, People, please! Let us get a grip. Let us empty our minds and start using some critical thinking skills. Let us focus on what evidence we have for anything we believe. It is not only important but crucial for the development of our species. It is not okay to teach our children to believe what we believe just for the sake of it. It is not okay to pick up a book and believe every word it says because it tells you to do so. Doing that is called two things: laziness and ignorance. Both things lead to extinction.

If you have a child and teach him/her to believe without thinking, you are not doing the best for your child. It is a bug-bear of mine but I think if you are drawing up some resolutions or plans to change your life this year then you could do worse than add 'critical thinking' on your list of must do's. But please don't take my word for it! Check things out for yourself.

Carl Sagan has a Baloney Detection Kit which you would do well to print off and read often - and maybe even share it with other people who you think might benefit from this kit. You could buy 'self-help' books but I have yet to read anything which puts it in a nutshell like Carl Sagan. Save your money and click on the above link.

I don't expect everyone to think like I do but it would be nice if we were having a discussion that we followed the critical thinking path. Some people could perceive this as boring and no fun but is it fun when we are promoting ignorance and passivity when charlatans are conning you out of your hard-earned money each week? Is it fun when people are refusing to use condoms because the church says so? Or refusing to vaccinate their children against preventable diseases such as polio because the church says so? Or discriminate against gay people because the believers have scriptures to back up their bigotry? Is it fun? Is it fun when black people are killed because they are considered Hamites and there to serve as 'it says so in the bible' and therefore are born to be slaves with no rights?

The saddest part about the whole fiction-as-fact history of belief is to consider how much farther humans being would have been if we had dismissed religion and theism as concepts many hundreds of years earlier.

Start today.

Abortion: A Woman's Right to Choose?

Abortion. A word that seems to irritate and cause some people to foam at the mouth as they predict nasty painful experiences for those who 'commit such heinous crimes against humanity'.

Some Pro-Lifers enjoy harrassing abortion clinic staff - sometimes shooting them dead (the irony is somehow and for some reason lost on them).

No one likes abortion. No sane person decides to use abortion as a form of contraceptive - at least not in an environment where contraceptives are cheap and readily available. Pro-lifers tend to use graphic images of foetuses in the womb, sucking thumbs, to attempt to cause maximum distress to women who have had or are considering having an abortion. If you conducted a poll on those same Pro Lifers my guess is that a high proportion hardly bat an eyelid at the numbers of people killed in Iraq each day as a result, directly and indirectly, of the Big Nations occupation/invasion of that country. Those same people would not give two figs about the number of children dying around the world as a result, again directly and indirectly, of unfair trade policies, debt demands, impossibly high loan interest rates, financial aid provided with strings attached and many other examples. Those same people may object to 'foreigners flooding into our country', who will view them as slightly above vermin and treated as such.

I'm not saying that aborting a foetus in the 8th month of pregnancy is a good thing - obviously there has to be a cut-off point when abortions should not occur. So, how do we reduce the number of late abortions? We empower women to understand their bodies, to enable them to access support and information as early as possible, to have good quality health care available to all women, to engage with the partners of women within the services provided, to teach boys and girls about parental responsibilities from an early age, to remove religious and other forms of dogma from the arena of sex education and reproduction - to name a few.

It's not reasonable to care about unborn 'children' and yet ignore the thousands of preventable deaths each day of men, women and children globally.

I don't want to live today for a 'promised' unknown life, i.e. 'when I go to heaven'. I don't want to promote fiction and fear. I want people to choose how to live their lives for themselves.

If you want an abortion - I support you. If you want to carry the pregnancy full term - I support you. It is your choice.

Black Homophobia and an Old Time Religion

A black relative of mine ran a boarding house a few years ago and one young 'respectable looking' young man rented a room from her. One day she arrived home and found this man sobbing loudly on the stairs and when asked why he was distressed, explained that his boyfriend didn't love him anymore. She said, trying her best to be understanding, 'Can't you stop?' He wiped his eyes, trying to understand her question and realised the real question was 'can't you stop being a homosexual?'
Most black people have been raised within an environment that respects the truth of the Christian bible. The leaders of the various denominations have provided many gruesome stories of the fate of those who 'lie down' with other men. It would not be fair to say that all churches and Christians are anti-gay but it was my experience that being gay was frowned upon and seen as in the top five things that were sure to get you a banishment from 'god'.

I know many black people who are either lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or transexual and some who refuse to be categorised by their choice of partner at a particular time - things and people change. They all have horror stories of how they have been verbally and sometimes physically attacked (my ex's brother was so badly beaten whilst they were both attending a gay pride march, that he was hospitalised for several weeks), all sad reflections on a world where we criminalise people only because someone or some text has told us it is okay. Naturally the messages are confused because the text is confusing and contradictory. Love your neighbour as yourself, but moralise and stone to death those who don't conform to this other rule over here in this section. God loves you, but if you don't do this then you will burn in eternal fire.

I don't think someone should be victimised because of their 'choice' of who to have a relationship with or who they are attracted to. In fact, just like heterosexuals, gay people are not out having sex all the time. I think it is part of the fear factor that used to infect the tabloid press and silly afternoon soaps but which has seeped like poisoned gas under the noses of the majority without hardly being noticed. It's called dumbing down - the lowest common denominator. I see it when I watch the talk shows like Oprah, Dr Phil, Montel (what's with the Sylvia Browne thing?) and the rest. No-brainers. How-to-fill-your-brain-with-utter-nonsense-for-an-hour. Pap. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure they help people, but in the long run I don't think they help people to THINK! To really think. Buy this book; lose weight and you will be happier; here's a celebrity you should admire who is also selling a book and I will mention the title 45 times in the next ten minutes; the worst mother in the world is here...next...; here's a celebrity who is a complete prat but I have to say really nice things about cos s/he has a new film coming out which is as boring as hell...; do you know which brand of lipstick Paris Hilton is wearing this week...
I could go on but you get my drift??!!! It's funny but more than sad.

So how does this connect with black homophobia? It is part of the bigger problem, people making money from ignorance. People becoming famous for spouting pseudo-science as hard cold facts. Which leads us back to the same tactics of some of those sending people memes of the visions of hell, the devil and the words written in the 'good book'. The pastors, the self-appointed leaders, the Al Sharptons, the Jesse Jacksons and the other rent-a-quotes seem to always pop up when there is a high profile case with a television crew in tow.
If you fill your head with candyfloss then you won't be interested in educating yourself, freeing your mind, making decisions for you and your family based on facts and your own experience. Live vicariously and all will be well. We'll tell you what to think.

It's like another form of self-medication - just like religion.

'You're Black, ain't Ya?'

I have a question. Well, several actually.

In order to be considered 'black' do you have to be a theist? Does being categorised as a black person mean you are automatically assessed as being a believer of the supernatural?
The rhetorical question 'You're black, ain't ya?' was put to me in response to me saying to a black woman that I did not believe in any form of the supernatural. She was astounded that I do not profess any allegiance with any organised religion, do not believe in any spirits from the 'other side', ancestor worship, ancient texts, the power of prayer, etc.What she concluded was that there was something wrong with me. Everyone needs to believe in something. It was better to believe in a god, any god than not. She went on to talk about what happens after we are dead and how she had felt the energies from the ancestors, etc.
[Now I need to say here that everyone is entitled to their views. It is only through sharing and respecting our differences that we can hope to form human bonds which enable us to tear down barriers and recognise the global family we are all part of.]
But even further she cast doubt on my membership of the 'black' community. The inference was 'all black people are theists'. Period.

I have been pondering on this for a while. My conclusions are that I felt a moment of sadness that so many black people are indoctrinated into belief systems which are based on old written texts, inaccurate reports, political expedience and motives aimed at political and economic control of the masses - and yet at this point in human history, we not only believe it but partake in the further indoctrination of our children and adults. I'm not just talking about black people - all peoples. We somehow don't want to take responsibility for what happens in our lives. We leave it to a god or the gods. We praise and worship and when natural disaster occur (as they do and have done for millions of years) and thousands of bodies are washed away along with homes and livelihoods, we say it was god's will. Those who survive say they praise god for saving them, not realising the irony of such a cruel god to spare them yet kill hundreds of children.

I understand that for some people religion is a way of coping with the difficulties that life throws their way. I understand that life, most times, doesn't make sense.How did we get here? What does it all mean? Of course we must have come here for a purpose. There must be something, some entity bigger than us...isn't there?I don't believe so. I do believe we are a fantastic example of evolution. Just like crocodiles and cats and species that are yet to be discovered and given a name. We are animals. Our history is fascinating but not to be clouded by stories fashioned at a time when we as humans had little scientific advances available for us to understand the world around us.We don't need stories, we need facts, evidence, creative and rational thinking. We need experiments to understand the brain and how it works. We know very little of what there is to know so why cling onto old stories when we have evidence that they were wrong and are still wrong?
I am aware that some people who have suffered the loss of children have the hardest time thinking that they may never see them again, but that is what I believe.
When you are dead you are dead. Until we have information to the contrary, hard unshakeable evidence then I will not fill the gaps with ideas based on myths and legends and adulterated stories.Knowledge takes time and humans are by nature impatient.
Let's spend our time concentrating on not discriminating, not berating someone for their choices, not harming each other and allowing ourselves to just be. Let's foster and respect individuality and give children a good education based on what they want to know about the realities of the world and their place in it. Let's look forward and not backwards.

'You're black, ain't ya?' spoke volumes for me.

Live in the Moment

It is so easy to take life for granted. I went into to town the other day and spoke with a chemist whose son had died a few months ago. She was distraught as she spoke about his death and her loss. Her appetite had gone, her zest for life had ebbed away to just going through the motions each day. Her son had committed suicide at home, in her house and the question running through her mind constantly, she said, was 'What did I do wrong?' Her pain was huge and my words of comfort seemed so pathetic that in the end I said, 'Nothing I say is going to make you feel better' and she agreed.

We can't turn back the clock and change events. I often think of the people that I have angered or been angry with and now just try and focus on the forgiveness of myself and of others. It really helps me to live a better life. I don't always succeed but I try.

This woman can't bring her son back, can't say the things she wanted to say to him but didn't. He's gone and life has to move on but it is difficult for her.

So today I am going to be glad to be alive. To be able to breathe freely and enjoy everything that comes my way today. 'Live in the Moment' is the mantra of some of the New Age 'gurus' whose messages I normally reject but this one resonates with me. Live in the Moment.