Thanks for clearing that up, Boyd Thomas

From here. The original letter to the Lexington Dispatch (North Carolina) here.

Well, now about THAT

From Psychology Today:

And here's the meta-analysis in question.

Why Are Religious People (Generally) Less Intelligent?

Understanding the negative relationship between IQ and religiosity

Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins reads his "fan" mail

Even-toed ungulates prove the Bible is mere fantasy!

Via.

The ancient Jews didn't have or use camels. Yet they're mentioned in the Bible constantly! What gives? The New York Times piece "Camels Had No Place in Genesis" explains:

These anachronisms are telling evidence that the Bible was written long after the events it narrates and is not always reliable as verifiable history. These camel stories “do not encapsulate memories from the second millennium,” said Noam Mizrahi, an Israeli biblical scholar, “but should be viewed as back-projections from a much later period.” 

Dr. Mizrahi likened the practice to a historical account of medieval events that veers off to a description of “how people in the Middle Ages used semitrailers in order to transport goods from one European kingdom to another.” 

What now? Will Christianity be discarded to the scrap heap? After all, as David Haskell asks, "To whom shall we turn for moral guidance now that the cud-chewing, even-toed ungulates have been unmasked as dissemblers?"

Nothing provokes God like a civil union

Susanne Atanus (Republican) is an Illinois congressional candidate. She is also a moron:

"I am a conservative Republican and I believe in God first. God is angry. We are provoking him with abortions and same-sex marriage and civil unions. Same-sex activity is going to increase AIDS. If it's in our military it will weaken our military. We need to respect God." 

And the ants rejoiced

Via.

If Mohammed used social media

Via.

prophet mohammed did not update his profile picture

Notice anything unusual about how CostCo categorized The Bible?

Yep, it's fiction!

Okey-dokey.

Via.

That's a ... surprise.

"Most holy water harbors fecal matter" via MSNBC.

The odds are 46% that the Small Mind of the Day is You

Via.

From Gallup: “Forty-six percent of Americans believe in the creationist view that God created humans in their present form at one time within the last 10,000 years. The prevalence of this creationist view of the origin of humans is essentially unchanged from 30 years ago, when Gallup first asked the question.” Now here's the kicker:

Majority of Republicans Are Creationists
Highly religious Americans are more likely to be Republican than those who are less religious, which helps explain the relationship between partisanship and beliefs about human origins. The major distinction is between Republicans and everyone else. While 58% of Republicans believe that God created humans in their present form within the last 10,000 years, 39% of independents and 41% of Democrats agree.

I love that one sentence:  "The major distinction is between Republicans and everyone else." What have I been saying, people?

*chuckle*

Via.

"Hey guys, hurry up. That guy from the pet shop's coming, and he wants his fishbowls back."

Begging your indulgence: Follow me on Twitter!

Vatican Museum

In the Roman Catholic Church, “indulgences” reduce the amount of time devotees believe they will have to spend in purgatory. And I was taught that purgatory sucked as hard as hell—the only difference was, at least you got out at some point and got to go to heaven.

I also remember learning that clergy sold indulgences in the Middle Ages—they were your basic “Get Out of an Unpleasant Afterlife Free” card. What I didn’t know till today was that indulgences still exist. Catholics can shave seven years off their time in purgatory by days climbing the Sacred Steps, in Rome.

It’s not even fun to mock this kind of nonsense. Even so, I was surprised to read this article in the Guardian:

In its latest attempt to keep up with the times the Vatican has married one of its oldest traditions to the world of social media by offering "indulgences" to followers of Pope Francis' tweets…. 

But attendance at events such as the Catholic World Youth Day, in Rio de Janeiro, can also win an indulgence. 

Mindful of the faithful who cannot afford to fly to Brazil, the Vatican ... has also extended the privilege to those following the "rites and pious exercises" of the event on television, radio and through social media. 

"That includes following Twitter," said a source, referring to Pope Francis' Twitter account, which has gathered seven million followers. "But you must be following the events live. It is not as if you can get an indulgence by chatting on the internet."

Right. Because that would be ridiculous!