Geoff Coupe's Blog

Reflections on life at “De Witte Wand”…

Category: Society

  • Could Do Better

    I see that Daniel Dennett and Lord Winston fired the opening salvos of their debate yesterday (on the question of whether religion is a threat to rationality and science) in written form. I must admit that I was surprised at how weak the arguments of Lord Winston seem to be. But then, I don’t find the Book of Job to be "deeply mysterious and spiritual", but a rather unpleasant story of what happens when God has a bet with Satan.

  • Head, Meet Desk

    Perhaps the person responsible for this banner was in full irony mode; but somehow, I rather doubt it. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

  • Stuff of Life

    This is very strong stuff.
     
     
    Hat tip to Rachel.

  • Strawmens ‘R Us

    Dear lord, but this piece by Mark Ravenhill is pure shite. He clearly hasn’t read anything of TGD before putting up this strawman. What a wanker.

  • “I Have to do this thing for our future”

    The words of Mohammed Siddique Khan to his baby girl. Truly terrifying and sad beyond all my understanding. And here’s another example: the matyrdom video of Umar Islam. He’s clearly not the sharpest pencil in the box. Born Brian Young 30 years ago, how has he ended up as he has?

  • “God Said So”

    David Thompson ruminates on the phenomenon of believers being convinced that they are merely echoing what their particular deity meant, rather than using their deity as a label to justify their own prejudices. A common happenstance, I fear.
     
    For a measure of understanding of this whole phenomenon, I advise the reading of Martin Rowson’s The Dog Allusion. A witty, and I feel, true, explanation that "rationally, the whole enterprise of religion is a monumental and faintly ridiculous waste of time and money. But then again, so is pet-keeping".
     
    That’s as may be, but on the other hand, I don’t recall cat-owners embarking on an actual crusade against dog-owners, or the latter pronouncing death for apostates who renounce dogs in favour of goldfish. Apart from that, I think that Rowson hits the nail on the head.

  • A Secular Society

    I’ve noticed that some people seem to equate secularism with atheism. They assume, for example, that a secular society must be an atheistic society. This is not correct. Stephen Law explains secularism in a very clear fashion here. Worth reading, particularly if you’re one of the people who confuse secularism with atheism.

  • The Golden Rule

    I’ve only just got around to watching Karen Armstrong‘s speech at this year’s TED conference, in which she makes a plea to restore the Golden Rule as the central global religious doctrine. She wants leaders from the three major monotheistic religions to help her build a Charter for Compassion. It’s a very laudable aim, but it sounds rather like the Global Ethic that was drafted for, and signed by the Parliament of the World’s Religions back in 1993. From where I stand, I can’t see that the Global Ethic had much impact on this sorry world, and I fear that the Charter of Compassion will achieve the same result.
     
    Still, I wish her the best of luck, I think she’s going to need it. As she herself says, many religious people would rather be right than compassionate. 
     
    One last thought, Armstrong believes that the core of religions is the Golden Rule. Indeed, she quotes the story of Rabbi Hillel, the older contemporary of Jesus, who taught the golden rule in a particularly emphatic way. One day a pagan said he would convert to Judaism if the rabbi could sum up the whole of Jewish teaching while standing on one leg. Hillel stood on one leg and replied: "That which is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor. That is the Torah; the rest is commentary; go and learn it!" It occurs to me that one can equally dispense with all religions in that case. The Golden Rule stands alone, and all religions then become simply noise and gloss. I think I’m with Confucius on this one.
     

  • Nasty Nationalism

    I see that Rita Verdonk is playing the Nationalist card. I’m sorry, but there’s something about her views that simply makes my skin crawl. I’m reminded of Samuel Johnson’s aphorism, recorded by Boswell, that "Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel". Of course, as Boswell wrote, Johnson "did not mean a real and generous love of our country, but that pretended patriotism which so many, in all ages and countries, have made a cloak of self-interest". Somehow Verdonk’s love of the Netherlands has never struck me as "generous". She strikes me as being close to the sort of patriot described by Johnson thus:
    A man sometimes starts up a patriot, only by disseminating discontent, and propagating reports of secret influence, of dangerous counsels, of violated rights, and encroaching usurpation. This practice is no certain note of patriotism. To instigate the populace with rage beyond the provocation, is to suspend publick happiness, if not to destroy it. He is no lover of his country, that unnecessarily disturbs its peace. Few errours and few faults of government, can justify an appeal to the rabble; who ought not to judge of what they cannot understand, and whose opinions are not propagated by reason, but caught by contagion. The fallaciousness of this note of patriotism is particularly apparent, when the clamour continues after the evil is past. 

  • Cod Science

    It amazes me that tosh such as Brain Gym is apparently taught in schools. Clearly aimed at raising a gullible generation of Woo-fodder, then. I’m very thankful that I got through the school system before this rubbish was around. We got taught critical thinking instead.
     
    Update: I see that Brain Gym has also enraged Charlie Brooker. He does rants so much better than I. Go and read it.

  • Letting Them Down Gently

    While I manage to spot obvious scams fairly easily, I think it’s only fair to recognise that not everyone does. And if I come across some poor fish on the end of a scammer’s line, then I hope that I will have the sense and grace to deal with the situation just as this librarian did.

  • Wave Goodbye…

    … to Human Rights. The UN has just signed the death warrant. Depressing.

  • We Are Made For More

    It’s strange. This article misses the point on so many levels that it’s more than simply sad, it’s verging on a sin. As one of the commenters notes, it is a "breathtaking exercise in hypocrisy, cant and mendacity."
     
    Update: Justin says it far better than I could.

  • Following Procedure

    Not unexpectedly, Ama Sumani has died. As Udo Schuklenk writes, free care to medical migrants who make it to our shores seems a small price to pay for the asset-stripping that we do to the talent of the developing world.

  • Art For Art’s Sake

    As 10cc once sang: Art for Art’s sake, money for God’s sake…
     
    Alistair mentions, amongst other things, the retrospective of Derek Jarman’s art, and is touched by the passion of the amateur/auteur. I agree, even though I have not seen the retrospective, but simply carry the ever-present memories of Jarman’s art in my head.
     
    Alistair also points to the the foul review by Waldemar Januszczak of Jarman’s retrospective:
    As my 13-year-old daughter muttered harshly as she fled a show that offered her absolutely nothing in the way of shared experiences: “Okay, you’re gay. Now move on.”
    That Januszczak boldly uses this as an excuse for his own shortcomings to understand Jarman is bad enough, but as Alistair perceptively states, it says more about Waldemar Januszczak’s parenting than his daughter’s aesthetic taste.

  • James Barry

    James Barry was a 19th century surgeon, a legendary duellist and a celebrated social figure. He was also a woman.
     
    This week’s New Scientist has an article that throws new light onto an old mystery. I also highly recommend Patricia Duncker’s novel James Miranda Barry, which takes the bare threads of the known facts and weaves a very satisfying tale out of it.

  • Slavery

    It’s the 21st Century. Slavery is alive and well. I despair.

  • Planet LaLa

    Over at Obscene Desserts, the Wife shakes her head at humanity’s foibles and its cockeyed sense of priorities. Spot on.

  • Mehdi Kazemi – Update

    The news is not good.
     
    Further Update: The UK’s home secretary, Jacqui Smith, is to review the case. I’m hoping that this is the light at the end of the tunnel for Kazemi, and not merely the headlights of the oncoming train.

  • Knowing Your Death Day

    Now here’s an interesting proposition: would you be willing to take a one-way trip to Mars? I agree with Jim Downey, the one true thing is that we will all die, so, if you could advance the sum of human knowledge by volunteering for a one-way trip to Mars – would you do it?
     
    I’m not sure that I would have the courage to do this, but one thing is for sure, I would not stand in the way of anyone who, in the cold light of day, wanted to do this. I might even, on behalf of our fellow primates, salute them.