tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47312598585383056842011-07-07T23:38:30.741+01:00Irish scallywags on life, love, religion and all that jazzDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.comBlogger321100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-21829896570304969042009-11-30T21:55:00.001Z2009-11-30T21:58:30.591Z

C0nc0rdance hits another one out of the park:

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-84122882586624493202009-11-12T17:41:00.005Z2009-11-12T17:47:09.870Z

Carolyn Porco examines how science and scientists are portrayed in the film industry (video by Josh Timonen for RichardDawkins.net):

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-88680984167315311322009-11-12T01:59:00.002Z2009-11-12T02:02:48.289Z

YouTube user C0nc0rdance posted a couple of superb videos exploring the topic of confirmation bias. Enjoy!

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-62060265686492434722009-11-11T22:53:00.008Z2009-11-11T23:11:47.148Z

Those wacky folks at Alive! are at it again, offering up one of the most stunning examples of self-serving circular reasoning I have ever seen, courtesy of an editorial by one Dr. John Murray, a lecturer in Moral Theology at Dublin's Mater Dei Institute. But don't take my word for it - here, for your reading pleasure, is the entire text of the piece:We can know, by reason alone, that God

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-91332727435889227412009-10-13T00:05:00.003+01:002009-10-13T00:26:38.078+01:00

The Irish Independent ran an interesting article yesterday, one which may have faith-heads up in arms or contemplatively stroking their beards depending on the level of their personal attachment to dogma. God, it seems, was never meant to be labelled 'creator' in the Old Testament, a mistake resulting from the mistranslation of a verb (bara) meant to denote 'spatial separation' rather than

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-82532847924376451882009-10-12T19:51:00.004+01:002009-10-12T22:20:33.948+01:00

Move over 'Yu-Gi-Oh!', stand back 'Magic! The Gathering' and hold onto your balls 'Pokémon', there's a new game in town!Whilst bouncing merrily across the information superhighway I came across this fun little link.Here!Enjoy!-K

Khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17280567858437496479noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-41440288885139896332009-10-12T17:27:00.004+01:002009-10-12T17:46:56.942+01:00

Thanks to Dublin-based 'clairvoyant' Joe Coleman, Ireland has managed to make a tit of itself on the international scene once more as thousands of rapturous mooks descended yesterday on the Knock Shrine, Co. Mayo, in anticipation of an appariton of Our Lady herself. Following several hours of staring at the sun observers noted shimmering coloured patterns in their eyes and proclaimed it a miracle

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-11482536273027916222009-10-08T18:16:00.003+01:002009-10-08T18:26:28.616+01:00

Are we all tingling with anticipation at the prospect of bombing the Moon? You can follow the eruption of interstellar war live at www.nasa.gov/ntv. Naturally some balderdash cover story about 'finding water on the moon' (psssh!) was released to the press, but I'm not fooled! An outline of the mission can be found on YouTube.

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-38458748304823384512009-10-05T00:07:00.001+01:002009-10-05T00:13:21.967+01:00

YouTube user Geochron lays the smack down on Eric Hovind:

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-70070154957588916302009-10-02T00:59:00.006+01:002009-10-02T01:22:31.894+01:00

Thanks to, amongst others, Hemant at Friendly Atheist and PZ at Pharyngula, the folks over at blasphemy.ie received a great many messages of support and solidarity from all over the globe as they took the opportunity on International Blasphemy Day to reiterate their protest of the new Irish blasphemy law and raise awareness of their ultimate goal of a secular Irish constitution. As they rightly

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-25023562046419820762009-09-30T21:05:00.006+01:002009-09-30T21:19:25.571+01:00

In celebration of International Blasphemy Day, an appropriately irreverent video from YouTube user DarkMatter 2525:

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-30676071163377796332009-09-28T17:53:00.004+01:002009-09-28T18:20:39.463+01:00

Another shameful chapter in the sadly ongoing saga of the Magdalene Laundries looks set to begin, following confirmation from Minister for Education Batt O'Keeffe that women who were 'resident' in the country's Magdalene Laundries are not eligible for compensation from the Residential Institutions Redress Board. Naturally, the remaining surviors and those who support them are incensed and have

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-1322334243942988042009-09-25T03:14:00.005+01:002009-09-25T03:23:42.463+01:00

Just when you're ready to announce your blanket dismissal of all things RTÉ (and after the Tubridy/Dawkins debacle one's resolution to do so could only be strengthened) they blindside you with a diamond in the rough. The upcoming 4-episode debate show Does God Hate...?, if it lives up to its premise, should be an absolute corker! Though the title gives one the nagging urge to answer "Yes!" and be

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-67454824349365364492009-09-25T03:00:00.004+01:002009-09-25T03:07:55.482+01:00

After a brief period of uncertainty, Creation has found a US distributor! The Darwin biopic, starring real-life couple Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly, was picked up by indie distributor Newmarket, who, coincidentally, distributed The Passion of the Christ!

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-64018395403925775882009-09-24T21:46:00.002+01:002009-09-24T21:53:20.248+01:00

"For years, London has had the reputation of being the place to go to court if one wants to divorce, and fleece a partner while doing so. Less publicly, however, it has equally become a place to sue, or threaten to sue, scientists and those writing about scientists" writes Mark Hennessy in The Irish Times. Commented upon recently by Richard Dawkins in the Guardian, the worrying trend of

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-70273050512816784552009-09-24T20:02:00.002+01:002009-09-24T21:19:44.185+01:00

I’ve been debating recently that perhaps the best way to follow a religion is in private. The moment you begin preaching at someone you violate a lot of the rules you’re meant to be following.People who are not the same faith as you, or without a faith, don’t want to hear that they are living their lives wrong and that they are going to roast like marshmallows.Hell, as I said, I’m a Christian,

Khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17280567858437496479noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-22021440400207034072009-09-23T18:41:00.005+01:002009-09-23T18:53:34.410+01:00

Buddhism gains more points as a contender for World's Best Religion as the Karmapa Lama Trinley Dorje, one of its senior leaders, has stated that not only does he play violent video games, he also thinks they are "as effective as meditation in freeing the mind of worldly passions". Quote:'I view video games as something of an emotional therapy, a mundane level of emotional therapy for me. We all

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-60299479982441573812009-09-23T17:05:00.004+01:002009-09-23T17:17:16.344+01:00

'[I]f you thought creationism was too farfetched to be taken seriously here in the UK, just take a day trip to Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm in Somerset' writes Caspar Melville in the latest issue of New Humanist. I particularly like the 'Creation Research' part - hard to believe this place is endorsed by many public bodies, including BIAZA: the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums, South

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-44303327595391753522009-09-23T16:27:00.003+01:002009-09-23T16:34:25.386+01:00

'Award-winning comedian Tommy Tiernan has been "floored by a belt of the crozier" for allegedly making offensive remarks about the Holocaust' writes John Cooney in today's edition of the Irish Independent. The criticism came in the form of an outburst by Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin at the end of Mass last night in Bray, where, without mentioning Tiernan by name, Archbishop Martin

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-36009187494405057392009-09-23T15:34:00.003+01:002009-09-23T15:56:24.762+01:00

I spent yesterday evening, as many evenings, curled up with a good book, in this case The Complete Idiot's Guide to String Theory, a highly informative and eminently readable introduction to the current leading contender for a unified theory. I was struck however by one particular passage, as the author, George Musser, following on from an anecdote from his own life, digressed for a paragraph or

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-71626510414773384302009-09-23T04:34:00.005+01:002009-09-23T04:41:48.630+01:00

YouTube user DarkMatter2525 offers salvation in handy pill form!Also, The Cranberries! Up the Irish! :)

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-7078163586015811622009-09-23T00:16:00.003+01:002009-09-23T00:36:49.292+01:00

Admittedly, nobody goes to fstdt to see reasonable opinions and rational commentary but this took even me by surprise! The poster is referring to the British Prime Minister's recent posthumous apology to Alan Turing:"Rightly or wrongly, the man was guilty of transgressing the law of the land at that time. Whether or not he was a giant in his field is totally immaterial. Had he been a paedophile,

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-34260488398451985762009-09-22T23:47:00.004+01:002009-09-23T04:20:15.188+01:00

Unlike my esteemed colleague, I am, you may be surprised to know, not an atheist.I’m a Christian. Lapsed by many a definition, though not in the ways that truly matter.I found something worthwhile in the idea of a man who stood his ground and promoted peace, harmony and tolerance.It doesn’t matter if he had a supernatural force backing him or not (though maybe that’s what it takes in this world).

Khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17280567858437496479noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-92139762543854936682009-09-22T23:19:00.002+01:002009-09-22T23:25:18.794+01:00

The UK's Liberal Democrats party has demanded that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair (he of the Faith Foundation) should not be nominated to be the first President of the European Union Council - a post he has apparently expressed interest in - until a full and independent inquiry has been launched to ascertain his (and the British government in general's) involvement in and knowledge of

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-67211392369858813222009-09-22T22:44:00.004+01:002009-09-22T22:54:59.051+01:00

"An outspoken Irish priest has called for a radical rethink [of church policy] on relationships" writes reporter Andrea Byrne in the latest issue of the Sunday Independant. Fr. Tony Flannery, author of a new book 'Responding to the Ryan Report', has called on the church to "break the rigid connection between sexual activity and marriage, allowing for appropriate sexual relationships between

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-85363903192827236372009-09-22T19:00:00.005+01:002009-09-22T19:13:43.833+01:00

YouTube user GStolyarovII on the concepts of Eden and the "Fall".

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-62801784356171518452009-09-22T18:33:00.003+01:002009-09-22T18:39:45.343+01:00

...some enterprising folks are putting the domain name catholic.ie to very good use.Regrettably, irishcatholic.ie was already taken.

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-28503370107631535682009-09-22T17:40:00.008+01:002009-11-11T23:08:25.699Z

An editor's piece in the latest issue of the always interesting Alive! "newspaper" has some rather bold statements to make regarding proposed legislation concerning same-sex marriage et al and how this will apparently contribute to the breakdown of society (really, that old canard again?). Full text of the article follows:Tax-payer to be hit, Christian basis of society being underminedMinister

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-65778769016757476702009-09-22T14:21:00.002+01:002009-09-22T14:32:05.222+01:00

Following Richard Dawkins' appearance on last Friday's episode of The Late Late Show, a segment one could hardly call an "interview", given the complete lack of structure, pertinent questions and a bizarrely hostile attitude on the part of host Ryan Tubridy, I cynically expected to see the Irish blogosphere light up in support of that chinless wonder and his petty attempts to ambush his guest.

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-67911454184746967572009-09-22T12:53:00.003+01:002009-09-22T14:32:44.947+01:00

Back in the days of cave drawings and living in trees we were animals.We followed instinct and necessity and nobody spoke of a ‘magical sky daddy’ and his promises of life everlasting.And you know what? We did ok. We developed a thing called ‘higher thought’ somewhere along the way. Some of you out there may be aware of it. It’s what separates us from our primate relatives. We are only above

Khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17280567858437496479noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-10775159097138829052009-09-22T01:27:00.007+01:002009-09-22T02:25:58.373+01:00

...wasn't the world supposed to end yesterday?http://home.flash.net/~evt/rapture.htmThe sad thing is, somebody somewhere is pissed off that it didn't...

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4731259858538305684.post-70270405817059162922009-09-22T00:44:00.003+01:002009-09-22T02:26:09.020+01:00

The trials and travails of the United States' education system are many and well-documented and my friends across the Atlantic will surely forgive me if I admit to, on more than one occasion in the past, smugly surveying the statistics that placed Ireland, as with many European nations, firmly ahead of the world's only remaining superpower in the key areas of mathematical, scientific and reading

Davehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16791459028837762412noreply@blogger.com1