Noted in passing

AP today:

BALTIMORE — The nation's Roman Catholic bishops, at an annual assembly Monday, gave two standing ovations to the Vatican's U.S. ambassador who was behind Pope Francis' controversial meeting with Kim Davis.

No one in the filthy Roman Catholic landscape is more disgusting than the US Council of Catholic Bishops. Appalling creatures, each and every one. If there is a hell (and of course, there isn't), that is where these men belong.

Fighting tooth and nail against the love of two people -- because Jesus. Ugh. Just ugh.

Are we done yet?

Are the holidays over? Is 2014 over? Good. I'm happy to say goodbye to both.

The internet is filled today with blog posts and news stories about how awful last year was. "Good riddance" seems to be the mantra. But though I'm happy to see it gone, I don't think 2014 was awful. Sure, ugly people continued to do ugly things; that's what they do. But I'm pleased that the issue of racism in America has come to a head. If it hadn't happened now, when would we deal with it? Ten years from now? Fifty? The time for change is right now. And for this, I am thankful.

Something tells me the protests against police abuse will continue -- as will the police murders of innocent people of color. But soon we'll reach a breaking point, a moment when real change seems necessary to all observers. Of course, the trend could turn negative and go in the other direction -- in which our country would be lost, probably forever. But I don't hold Americans in such low contempt. Decent people will not let this issue go. It's time for change and Americans of all colors will demand it.

So I'm hopeful about the coming year. It will be incredibly tiresome, in that Hillary and all the other exhausted practitioners of old-style politics will be positioning themselves for election, and saying and doing stupid, meaningless things. But hey, that's the way we roll in this country. Nothing in politics has to make sense anymore. The Republicans (and lilly-livered know-nothing "Democrats") made sure of this. Common sense is now a rare visitor to our Congress and Supreme Court.

But something else is happening: the American populace is waking up. Gays are getting married all over the place. Transgender people are finally seeing their stories enter the mainstream. Black people are not taking it when police try to rough them up or abuse them in any way. Religion is losing its hold on young people. And longtime immigrants in this country are finally being shepherded into citizenship. And hey, just about anyone can get health insurance.

Will something go wildly wrong this year? Probably. Putin is feeling intense pressure and he would love an excuse to play with his nukes. China is trying to shut the internet (and communication in general), much to the consternation of its people. And of course, Israel is still being Israel, and Muslim extremists are still killing everyone they meet. There are so many situations that could ignite.

But human rights are finally coming to the fore. The whole world now knows that the United States tortures people, lies, snoops, employs a militarized police force largely composed of white racists, and starts spurious wars for monetary gain. This means it won't only be American citizens who push for a return to the rule of law in the US; there will be many other countries insisting that we right the human "wrongs" that everyone can clearly see. With everything that's going on, even the Bush/Cheney in-crowd is probably feeling nervous. International Court, anyone? It's time the US was hauled before that body.

These are interesting times where just about anything could happen. But I'm hopeful. How about you?

Nordic nations outrank U.S. in sexual equality

It's funny, isn't it? American religious leaders never say boo about gender equality. It just doesn't come up. In my whole life, I don't think I've ever heard a priest say that men and women are equal, which makes sense when you consider the patriarchal, misogynistic nature of religion. Let's face it: religion is a boys' club and America is religious.

And we're not only religious in America, we're downright exceptional. We're the mostest special people who ever lived. And we're quite sure of this because we hear it all the time. If the people on TV are saying it every single day, it must be true.

Well, maybe not so much.

Nordic nations led the world in promoting equality of the sexes, as they have for many years, with Iceland, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark occupying the top five spots.

The United States climbed three places to 20th, thanks to a narrowing wage gap and more women occupying political offices.

Well, golly gee. It seems those atheist countries are the ones that treat women fairly. Jeebus! Every one of the top five countries falls into this category. I wonder why?

You don't think rationality could have anything to do with it, do you? Jeepers, if that's true we're only going to fall further behind as the decades pile up. 

But we'll always be exceptional in our own heads. Hooray for us! USA! USA! USA!

Apple turns government surveillance off with iOS 8

I think this is pretty damn cool:

Apple is rolling out new privacy protections for iPhones and iPads, with a new system that makes it impossible for the company to unlock a device even with a warrant.
...
"Unlike our competitors, Apple cannot bypass your passcode and therefore cannot access this data. So it's not technically feasible for us to respond to government warrants for the extraction of this data from devices in their possession running iOS 8."

Simply and easy. I wonder how our surveillance-mad government will respond to this news. Like a spoiled child, I imagine.

CNN on the lack of atheist legislators

This rarely gets attention. Gee, I wonder why.

Why is it that we require our candidates to profess a religious faith, but not that they demonstrate even minimal scientific literacy? Our representatives in Congress make critical decisions on science policy and science funding, and yet are often hostile to the entire scientific enterprise. In 2012, Rep. Paul Broun, R-Georgia, while serving on the House science committee, famously said that evolution and the Big Bang are "lies from the pit of hell."

As one prejudice after another has fallen by the wayside and we have elected women, African-Americans, gays and lesbians, and Jewish people to represent us, we have seen that the world has not come to an end. Life continues, and our debate is enriched by the diversity of opinions. It is time to end the prejudice that keeps qualified people without faith from considering a run for public office and keeps atheist officials from being honest about their beliefs.

Mind you, the issue isn't getting attention even now. This is merely one man's opinion, presented in print on CNN's web site with a disclaimer attached, carefully stating that it's the opinion of one man, Carlos Moreno. God forbid we think CNN would actually say something like this on its own.

Fear of atheists. In git America, it's the norm. It's particularly sad since there is no god, and science is the only way out of our current problems. In a sense, if humans go down, it will be god that did it to us. Funny, since he doesn't even exist.

The hairless monkeys of Earth need help but it's doubtful whether they'll get it. And all because no one has the guts to say the emperor (god) has no clothes.

Murderous machines to be the next big thing

In an article about artificial intelligence -- and Google's intention to develop and use this capability -- there is a particularly chilling note.

The authors speak about the ways the United States currently kills enemies by using drones. That's bad enough but it's about to get much, much nastier:

"Right now everything we have is remotely controlled and there's always a human in the loop," Akerson says. "We're heading in the direction to give the decision to kill to an algorithm."

That's right. The plan is to unleash murderous drones that don't need humans to push an actual kill switch. They'll be able to do it all by themselves.

Oh, brave new world that has no people in it. Scary stuff.

What's that tune I hear?

This recent mass shooting at the D.C. Navy Yard didn't affect me in any meaningful sense. I didn't care about it (though I felt momentary disgust) and I didn't watch any of the news coverage. I've had enough exposure to shootings, thank you. I'm moving on. You may ask why.

Here's my answer -- As long as this country continues to do nothing to control the "loose guns" situation, mass shootings are merely the background music of American life. Shootings? Meh. Let's go get some pizza.

It will continue, it will get worse and the United States won't do anything to stop it.

Hey, I know what would be fun. Let's go get some ice cream!

Update: Germany's Spiegel Online takes on the issue. An excerpt:

The tragic shooting in Washington feels all too much like deja vu. But President Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats no longer even attempt to take on the real issue: America's unhindered gun mania.

Funny how they can see it clearly while we can't. Shame on Democrats. Shame on Republicans. Shame on all of us.

Sound advice

Ed Brayton today:

Foreign Policy magazine published a report that included declassified CIA documents that showed that our government had helped Saddam Hussein use chemical weapons against Iran in 1988 and had then launched a propaganda campaign to blame it on Iran (a mostly successful campaign, by the way). The Vietnam War was justified by LBJ by the Gulf of Tonkin incident, which was completely fabricated. So our government has a history of lying to justify going to war and a history of lying specifically about who is responsible for using chemical weapons. So even if it’s true that Assad used the chemical weapons, and even if the evidence actually did support that, we have absolutely no reason to believe them when they say they have that evidence. 

Our government cannot be trusted.

Kerry's little Syria chat

I found it difficult to watch John Kerry emote yesterday on the subject of Syria.

The whole bit stank. See, you can't assume the high ground when you're not standing on it. His words could just as easily apply to things the US has done repeatedly:

"What we saw in Syria last week should shock the conscience of the world. It defies any code of morality. Let me be clear. The indiscriminate torture of random suspects, the launching of a pre-emptive war against the wrong country, the use of drones to attack people who may or may not be terrorists, and the consequent drone attacks on those who come to help the afflicted after such drone attacks, indiscriminate slaughter of civilians, the killing of women and children and innocent bystanders by waterboarding, drone attack chemical weapons is a moral obscenity. By any standard, it is inexcusable."

Sorry, John. The US doesn't get to talk like that anymore. Tell you what, why don't you just go sit in a back room and listen in on some American conversations? Maybe it's best to let, you know, the other countries handle this one.

America's decline has real-life consequences. The US no longer has the right to pontificate to other countries. So get off the high horse, John. You can't ride it anymore.

U.S. needs a name change

Now that the United States is anything but united, we need a different name for our country. Besides, that old monicker was created before the country was transformed into a paramilitary, terrist-fighting, citizen-surveilling, mass-torturing, black-uniform-wearing, corporate bully.

I suggest the name "United States" be changed to "Fear, Inc." Let's roll with the times and celebrate who we really are.

On the other hand, I'm willing to consider other good, appropriate names. Any suggestions?

Frightening headline doesn't disturb Americans

"Secret court okays continued US phone surveillance", the headline said. It sounds like something from the former Soviet Union, but it's not. This is an actual headline in the United States and our sheep-like citizens didn't find it disturbing at all. 

When Americans see this sort of thing they just move along, maybe go pick up some more donuts or something. "Ho hum" is now the official American mantra. Stuff happens; why worry?

Sigh. The old United States is gone. Dog only knows what will happen next. But don't worry: the secret courts will undoubtedly take care of everything. In fact, we may not even hear about the next big thing.

Hmmm. Maybe I'll go get some Krispy Kremes.

Will Christian nitwits come to rule the US?

I used to think the wingnuts who crawled out of the woodwork during the Bush years would disappear at some point. I figured the old white Christian nitwits who led them would die off and the movement would die with them. I no longer believe this.

In the mid-East, they have a system of madrassas, little "schools" within which knowledge can find no purchase. The children merely memorize idiotic Muslim texts, and regurgitate the words. It is their only form of "knowledge". In such a society, there can be no progress.

Here in the United States we have a Christian Taliban version of these madrassas. Here, it is called "home schooling". Like the madrassas on which they are modeled, this is an environment that is completely knowledge-free. The world, science, history, real people -- none of this can make its way into the minds of home-schooled children who are supervised by Christian Taliban parents. Read the bible, regurgitate. Listen to the preacher, regurgitate. Visit Ken Ham's museum, oh squee! And so it goes.

From this sewage pit, a new generation of Christian leaders will emerge. And they will be at least as ignorant as their forebears. In this way, the Christian Taliban reaches into our future, and snatches it away. Fairness and equality will be annihilated in the society that they create: one that merges government and fundamental Christianity.

And jeebus will rule the dungheap for all eternity. Hallelujah!

I found the above image on Rich Gibson's blog. Interesting site.

Japanese conservatives as appalling as US counterparts

An outspoken nationalist mayor said the Japanese military's forced prostitution of Asian women before and during World War II was necessary to "maintain discipline" in the ranks and provide rest for soldiers who risked their lives in battle. 

That's the main thrust of this story, but you have to read the article to understand just how creepy this guy is. And it goes further than this mayor. He represents a conservative movement in Japan that is every bit as backward as U.S. southerners who think they fought a northern "war of aggression" over the "rightful" ownership of slaves.

Just go read it. It's scary because it makes you realize the US isn't an anomaly. The crazy is sprouting everywhere.

Rise of the dolts

King and Messiah are among the fastest-rising baby names for American boys.

Oy.

United States torture is confirmed

The Boston bombings overwhelmed the news cycle, causing other news to slide by without fanfare -- even earthshaking, vitally important news. One of the stories that slid by in this fashion deserves worldwide notice:

A nonpartisan, independent review of interrogation and detention programs in the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks concludes that “it is indisputable that the United States engaged in the practice of torture” and that the nation’s highest officials bore ultimate responsibility for it. 

One day, the international community will demand a trial and accountability for US torture. Let's hope the whole crew is still alive when that happens. I didn't think I could ever be happy about Cheney getting a new heart. That changed when I read this story. I hope he lives for a very, very long time.

Good column on hacktivists

The Stone, the NYT's "philosophy" column, is usually dreck -- at least when Gary Gutting writes it. But today the column is a smart opinion piece written by Peter Ludlow. "Hactivists as gadflies" tears apart the United States' inane and overbearing prosecution of computer-savvy activists.

Really, it reads like a chronicle of North Korean tactics. But this is happening at the behest of the United States -- the home of, you know, freedom and all.

It's like the government is Richard Nixon, come back to life, and the hactivists are every hippie who ever existed. It is insane that these prosecutions are conducted without a rational basis -- and with such venom. Just ask Aaron Swartz.

Good column. Go read it.

Moving forward on guns

Authorities say a shooting at a Houston-area community college that left three people wounded erupted after two men bumped into each other.

Well, that settles it. We've got to get more guns into the hands of students. But we'll have to put extremely tight controls on people bumping into each other.

Lemmings march to sea, pick up pace

Some days it's hard to blog because I'm bone-tired. Not because of anything I've done, but because the world is at least as stupid and blind as it was yesterday. The news tells the tale. As someone who's been waiting since the 1950s for the world to wake up and get sensible...yes, I get bone-tired. And sometimes this makes me feel like there's no point in blogging.

Paul Krugman makes the obvious point today. The United States is worrying about the cost of "entitlements" as the Earth slides into a future that will be inhospitable to life. This future isn't hundreds of years away. It's coming at us full-speed and we're already feeling the effects. "Superstorm" Sandy, anyone?

But we are lemmings. We have important things to do, like watching "American Idol". We can't be bothered with survival. (Just look at the resistance to sensible gun proposals.) Humans must like death, because we're hurtling toward it without a care.

It just takes the life out of me, some days. I think I'll go write a short story where rationality wins the day. At least in fiction, this is possible.

Birth defects, cancer rampant among Iraq's children

Uranium-tipped munitions used by the United States in the Iraq war are apparently causing birth defects and multiple cancers in the children of Iraq. Der Spiegel has the story. It's only conjecture at this point, but the children are all located in areas where battles were waged.

That we invaded the wrong country makes this doubly obscene.

Uh, wait a minute...

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — A U.S. law firm hired by the Ukrainian government has concluded that the trial of former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko was rife with problems including violating her right to defense and unfairly imprisoning her before she was convicted. 

You mean, like the US imprisoned Bradley Manning though he was neither convicted nor charged with a crime? Like that?

(I'm also greatly amused when the US issues sanctions against other countries because of human rights violations. Hypocrisy, thy name is United States.)