ftcsadmin2's blog
God's Words?
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Tue, 05/05/2020 - 22:35.God’s Words?
by David Eckert
Many religious belief systems represent their gods as benevolent, omniscient, and omnipotent, and their religion's holy texts as "the word of God."
Thank You
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Sun, 12/23/2018 - 16:59.
Thank You
The Freethinkers of Colorado Springs is a 100% volunteer Colorado nonprofit charitable organization and a US IRS 501c3 non-profit organization founded in 1993 in response to Colorado's infamous "Amendment 2," which amended the Colorado Constitution to prohibit "any statute, regulation, ordinance or policy" through which gays, lesbians, or bisexuals could "have or claim any minority status, quota preferences, protected status or claim of discrimination." Amendment 2 (also known as "Initiative 2") was adopted after a voter referendum, and remains a part of the Colorado Constitution to this day as Section 30b. However, Amendment 2 never became law in Colorado because an emergency injunction prevented it from being enacted initially, and Section 30b of the Colorado Constitution was declared unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court. The 1996 Romer vs. Evans Supreme Court Decision ruled (6-3) that Amendment 2 violated the Equal Protection Clause of the United States Constitution because it explicit[ly] "prohibits all legislative, executive or judicial action at any level of state or local government designed to protect the named class."
My creed by Robert G. Ingersoll (1907)
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Sat, 07/23/2016 - 07:45.- My creed:
To love justice, to long for the right,
to love mercy,
to pity the suffering, to assist the weak,
to forget wrongs and remember benefits,
to love the truth, to be sincere,
to utter honest words, to love liberty,
to wage relentless war
against slavery in all its forms,
Je suis Bruxelles
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Tue, 03/22/2016 - 18:15.Nos pensées et nos condoléances vont aux victimes de la violence politique à Bruxelles.
Freethinkers of Colorado Springs
March 23, 2016
Nous prenons soin...
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Sat, 11/14/2015 - 09:29.Nos pensées et nos condoléances vont aux victimes innocentes de la violence politique à Paris.
Freethinkers of Colorado Springs
November 14, 2015
A patently ridiculous claim finally rejected by the Supreme Court
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Tue, 09/01/2015 - 17:58.Rowan County Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis refuses to grant Constitutional Equality Under the Law by issuing marriage licenses to every qualified couple seeking a marriage license who applies in her office. Speciffically, she cites "religious liberty" in her statements and says that having "[her] name affixed to the [same sex wedding] certificate would violate [her] [apparently Christian] conscience" - even though the bible says nothing about gay marriage. The United States Supreme Court has refused to stay a Federal Court Order instructing Ms. Davis to issue the marriage licenses or quit her job as Rowan County Clerk.
Nous sommes EAME
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 21:19.Nous sommes EAME
by Groff Schroeder
Another mass murder. Another "lone nut." Another brilliant upcoming objective Public Servant who dared to serve the People (instead of The people) dead - along with many others who dared to associate with him.
Why in America are guns beloved far above true Public Servants? Why are the taxes that pay their salaries - and fund the sewers, emergency services, public infrastructure, and public welfare we all depend upon - hated, reviled, and evaded in a way that was once illegal but now has become a way of life?
Special Rights are Not Equal Rights
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Wed, 04/01/2015 - 09:58.It appears that a small number of extremely well funded Christians and Christian groups have been relatively successful in buying (from our "elected" "representatives") the legal precedent that Christian "freedom of religion" does not exist unless Christians have the ability (special right) to deny a wide variety of freedoms from everyone else. Non-Christians and non-believers already have to put up with frank religiousity in government settings such as government sponsored prayer favoring a single religion, religious statements favoring judeo-christian religion on currency, state sponsored religiously motivated limits to reproductive freedom, unequal treatment of minorities based on religious beliefs, state support of religion through tax free status, etc., etc., etc.
Je suis Charlie
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Thu, 01/08/2015 - 16:43.by Andrew Seidel, Freedom From Religion Foundation
The satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo is the latest target for religiously-motivated violence. Three Muslim men didn't like the way the authors, journalists, and cartoonists thought, so they murdered them. Twelve lives ended. Families shattered. Children parentless. And Bill Donahue of the Catholic League says, "Muslims are right to be angry." Donahue sided with the murderers, condemning only their method but saying that we should not "tolerate the kind of intolerance that provoked this violent reaction" and that it was "too bad" Charlie's editor "didn't understand the role he played in his" own death. Isn't it just like religion to blame the victim?
Government and employers capture the employee bedroom
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Wed, 07/02/2014 - 05:24.Government and employers capture the employee bedroom
by Groff Schroeder
The stunning Burwell v. Hobby Lobby et.al. Supreme Court Decision grants "closely held" corporations newly created "religious freedoms" that trump the religious freedoms of living breathing human beings. This creates a special class of "corporate personhood" with the power to nullify the human freedoms and Constitutional Rights of its Human employees.
Science on the Defensive in Italy
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Tue, 06/11/2013 - 12:22.Nonbelievers excluded from interfaith service, despite humanist community victims in Boston bombing
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Fri, 04/19/2013 - 15:26.
Nonbelievers excluded from interfaith service, despite humanist community victims in Boston bombing
Secular News Daily
April 18, 2013
Washington, DC— The Secular Coalition for America is disappointed and saddened that the nontheist community was excluded from the Interfaith Service taking place in the wake of Monday's marathon bombing—despite that at least two of the victims of the bombing were part of the nontheist community.
Why Chaplains Should Be Contracted, Not Commissioned: Carlos Bertha, Council on Secular Humanism
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Wed, 04/03/2013 - 14:35.
ARMY OF GOD: America’s Armed Forces vs. Their Nontheists
Why Chaplains Should Be Contracted, Not Commissioned
Carlos Bertha
The Air Force Chaplain Corps provides spiritual care and the opportunity . . . [for Air Force members] to exercise their Constitutional right to the free exercise of religion.
—From the U.S. Air Force Chaplain Corps History and Mission (airforce.com)
I have always questioned the presence of, say, a dharma wheel or Jewish tablets adorning a chaplain’s military uniform. How can these displays not be seen as government endorsement of religion?
Propaganda Techniques
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Wed, 07/04/2018 - 13:54.Propaganda Techniques
Organized techniques of propaganda (a.k.a. weaponized deception) have been successfully applied in politics and war since at least World War One.
Books on propaganda and were best sellers in the 1920's.
Propaganda is so powerful it was used to trick the educated and egailarian people of Germany into a disastrous Second World War some 20 years later after their disastrous participation in the First World War.
Today, few people recognize the techniques of propaganda, or the fact that they are almost constantly immersed in propaganda.
AD HOMINEM: Personal attack.
AD NAUSEAM: Regurgitate until accepted.
AGENDA SETTING: Statements "suck all the oxygen" out of news and debate.
APPEAL TO AUTHORITY: [Leader name] likes it, you do too.
APPEAL TO FEAR: Be afraid, be very afraid.
APPEAL TO PREJUDICE: Opponents are [prejudicial statement].
APPEAL TO PRIDE: You are better than they are.
BANDWAGON: Everybody's doing it so it's good.
BIG LIE: "If you tell a big lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed."
BLIND I: Cheering actions loathed if taken by opponents.
BROKEN RECORD: Eternally repeat a lie and it eventually becomes accepted as truth.
CHERRY PICKING: Hype tiny supporting evidence, ignore massive opposing evidence.
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING: See Pavlov's dog.
CRISIS MANIPULATION: Spectacular politics buries damaging facts.
CULT OF PERSONALITY: Leader accepted/portrayed as religious figure.
DECEPTION: Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie (foundation of most propaganda techniques).
DICTAT: Leader said it, therefore it is true (even if obviously false).
DISINFORMATION: Incorrect information (see muddy the water).
DISTRACTION: Change the subject.
DOOR IN THE FACE: Slight reduction in massively inflated price achieves sale.
EUPHEMISM: Friendly sounding terms blunt ugly facts. "Imprisoning opponents is a kindness."
EUPHORIA: "We are winning!" (whether winning or not).
EXAGGERATION: "No one has ever been more successful than me."
FALLACY OF COMPOSITION: Since one [person type] does it, all persons of that type do it.
FALSE COMPARISON: Guns are like hammers.
FEAR, UNCERTAINTY, AND DOUBT: Support [dictator name] or things will go badly.
FLAG WAVING: Appeal to patriotism.
FOOT IN THE DOOR: Give a tiny gift, expect lifetime loyalty.
GASLIGHTING: Calculated deception causes targets to doubt their perceptions.
GISH GALLOP: Rapidly bombarding with complex ideas.
GLITTERING GENERALITIES: Enthralling statements with no actual meaning.
GUILT BY ASSOCIATION: Cab driver seen as guilty as murderer.
HALF TRUTH: The sky is not blue.
INTENTIONAL VAGUENESS: Broad statement allows audience to hear what they want.
LABELING: Dividing people against themselves (left/right, liberal/conservative).
LOADED LANGUAGE: WTC attack site called "ground zero" (location of a nuclear detonation).
LOVE BOMBING: Provide new family, destroy real family.
MANIPULATING THE NEWS: Whining about reporting skews future coverage.
MISINFORMATION: Children threaten national security.
MILIEU CONTROL: Social environment creates control (see love bombing, flag waving).
MINIMIZATION: Enemy agents are harmless.
MUDDY THE WATER: War is peace (see deception, disinformation, gaslighting, etc.).
NAME CALLING: Opponent is a [dirty name].
NON-SEQUITUR: "Some lies are so false they are true."
OBFUSCATION: Making the simple complex.
OPERANT CONDITIONING: Programmed imitation of leaders.
OVERSIMPLIFICATION: There is no alternative to war.
PLAIN FOLKS: Join us common people.
PROJECTION: Accusing opponent of crime you are committing.
QUOTES OUT OF CONTEXT: "My opponent says I lie" becomes "I lie."
RATIONALIZATION: "We had to kill the dissidents to save others."
RED HERRING: Claiming compelling but unrelated "shiny object" invalidates facts.
SCAPEGOATING: Assigning blame rather than addressing facts or seeking solutions.
SLOGANS: "Bumper sticker" arguments, "Stop plate tectonics."
SMEAR: Attacking opponents' character (see labeling).
STEREOTYPING: They are [stereotyped group], therefore they all do [stereotype].
STRAW MAN: Creating a false premise then attacking it.
TESTIMONIAL: Celebrity support.
THIRD PARTY: Partisan plays independent.
THOUGHT TERMINATING CLICHE: She may be correct, but common sense ain't common.
TONE ATTACK: Ignore facts, attack opponent's delivery.
VICE WORDS: Unkind incorrect words, "demonic" enemies.
VIRTUE WORDS: Kind incorrect words, "angelic" allies.
WHATABOUTISM: Ignore facts, charge opponent with hypocrisy.
--------------------------------------------------------------------- October 2, 2019 version above -------------------------------------------------------------
Propaganda Techniques
The techniques of propaganda have been successfully applied in politics and war since 1926, yet few people recognize them today.
AD HOMINEM: Personal attack.
AD NAUSEAM: Regurgitate until accepted.
AGENDA SETTING: Statements "suck all the oxygen" out of news and debate.
APPEAL TO AUTHORITY: [Leader name] likes it, you do too.
APPEAL TO FEAR: Be afraid, be very afraid.
APPEAL TO PREJUDICE: Opponents are [prejudicial statement].
APPEAL TO PRIDE: You are better than they are.
BANDWAGON: Everybody's doing it so it's good.
BIG LIE: "If you tell a big lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed."
BLIND I: Cheering actions loathed if taken by opponents.
BROKEN RECORD: Eternally repeat same thing, same way.
CHERRY PICKING: Hype tiny supporting evidence, ignore massive opposing evidence.
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING: See Pavlov's dog.
CRISIS MANIPULATION: Spectacular politics buries damaging facts.
CULT OF PERSONALITY: Leader accepted/portrayed as religious figure.
DECEPTION: Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie (foundation of most propaganda techniques).
DICTAT: Leader said it, therefore it is true (even if obviously false).
DISINFORMATION: Incorrect information (see muddy the water).
DISTRACTION: Change the subject.
DOOR IN THE FACE: Slight reduction in massively inflated price achieves sale.
EUPHEMISM: Friendly sounding terms blunt ugly facts. "Imprisoning opponents is a kindness."
EUPHORIA: "We are winning!" (whether winning or not).
EXAGGERATION: "No one has ever been more successful than me."
FALLACY OF COMPOSITION: Since one [person type] does it, all persons of that type do it.
FALSE COMPARISON: Guns are like hammers.
FEAR, UNCERTAINTY, AND DOUBT: Support [dictator name] or things will go badly.
FLAG WAVING: Appeal to patriotism.
FOOT IN THE DOOR: Give a tiny gift, expect lifetime loyalty.
GASLIGHTING: Calculated deception causes targets to doubt their perceptions.
GISH GALLOP: Rapidly bombarding with complex ideas.
GLITTERING GENERALITIES: Enthralling statements with no actual meaning.
GUILT BY ASSOCIATION: Cab driver seen as guilty as murderer.
HALF TRUTH: The sky is not blue.
INTENTIONAL VAGUENESS: Broad statement allows audience to hear what they want.
LABELING: Dividing people against themselves (left/right, liberal/conservative).
LOADED LANGUAGE: WTC attack site called "ground zero" (location of a nuclear detonation).
LOVE BOMBING: Provide new family, destroy real family.
MANIPULATING THE NEWS: Whining about reporting skews future coverage.
MISINFORMATION: Children threaten national security.
MILIEU CONTROL: Social environment creates control (see love bombing, flag waving).
MINIMIZATION: Enemy agents are harmless.
MUDDY THE WATER: War is peace (see deception, disinformation, gaslighting, etc.).
NAME CALLING: Opponent is a [dirty name].
NON-SEQUITUR: "Some lies are so false they are true."
OBFUSCATION: Making the simple complex.
OPERANT CONDITIONING: Programmed imitation of leaders.
OVERSIMPLIFICATION: There is no alternative to war.
PLAIN FOLKS: Join us common people.
PROJECTION: Accusing opponent of crime you are committing.
QUOTES OUT OF CONTEXT: "My opponent says I lie" becomes "I lie."
RATIONALIZATION: "We had to kill the dissidents to save others."
RED HERRING: Claiming compelling but unrelated "shiny object" invalidates facts.
SCAPEGOATING: Assigning blame rather than addressing facts or seeking solutions.
SLOGANS: "Bumper sticker" arguments, "Stop plate tectonics."
SMEAR: Attacking opponents' character (see labeling).
STEREOTYPING: They are [stereotyped group], therefore they all do [stereotype].
STRAW MAN: Creating a false premise then attacking it.
TESTIMONIAL: Celebrity support.
THIRD PARTY: Partisan plays independent.
THOUGHT TERMINATING CLICHE: She may be correct, but common sense ain't common.
TONE ATTACK: Ignore facts, attack opponent's delivery.
VICE WORDS: Unkind incorrect words, "demonic" enemies.
VIRTUE WORDS: Kind incorrect words, "angelic" allies.
WHATABOUTISM: Ignore facts, charge opponent with hypocrisy.
------------------------------ Original version follows, edited version of April 30, 2019 above ----------------------------
Propaganda Techniques
The techniques of propaganda have been successfully applied in politics and war since 1926, yet few people recognize them today.
AD HOMINEM: Personal attack.;
AD NAUSEAM: Regurgitate until accepted.;
AGENDA SETTING: Statements "suck all the oxygen" out of news and debate.;
APPEAL TO AUTHORITY: [Leader name] likes it, you do too.;
APPEAL TO FEAR: Be afraid, be very afraid.;
Massachusetts Supreme Court Case Alleges Pledge of Allegiance Discriminates Against Atheists
Submitted by ftcsadmin2 on Mon, 09/16/2013 - 07:35.
