Category Archives: Religion

The Anthropocene, or Not

Posted on Thursday 7 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Experts have declined to acknowledge “Anthropocene” as an official name for our current geological time; And how to some extent the decision was political, if not in the obvious sense; And wondering why Republicans continue to nominate candidates like Mark … Continue reading →

Posted in Morality, Religion, Science | Comments Off on The Anthropocene, or Not

Conservative Fantasies: Boogeymen and Groomers

Posted on Tuesday 5 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Robert Reich on the resurgence of anti-science fundamentalism, recalling again that Scopes trial; A 60 Minutes interview with the founders of Moms for Liberty, which apparently did not go well; How Trump and his follows believe in dystopian fantasies; Short … Continue reading →

Posted in Atheism, Conservative Resistance, Lunacy, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Conservative Fantasies: Boogeymen and Groomers

The Flaw of Math, or Perhaps Just the Limits of Human Cognition

Posted on Saturday 2 March 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Veritasium on math’s fatal flaw, or perhaps just a limitation on the extent humans can understand reality; Considering why cars are built to be able to break the law; A cartoon about religious folks who believe the Bible was written … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Culture, Mathematics, Religion, Technology | Comments Off on The Flaw of Math, or Perhaps Just the Limits of Human Cognition

Steven Pinker’s HOW THE MIND WORKS, post 5

Posted on Tuesday 27 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Several quotes, in addition to those already provided. From Chapter 3, Pinker makes an essential point about how natural selection works. People aren’t driven by their genes to reproduce or even survive — not consciously; people are driven by their … Continue reading →

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Steven Pinker, HOW THE MIND WORKS, post 4

Posted on Monday 26 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Chapter 8, “The Meaning of Life,” is the last 45 page chapter of this 565 page (counting only text) book. Here he covers matters of human culture, much as Wilson did at the end of his 1978 book. Given that … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, MInd, Music, Psychology, Religion, Steven Pinker | Comments Off on Steven Pinker, HOW THE MIND WORKS, post 4

More on the IVF Brouhaha

Posted on Friday 23 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Vox summarizes the issue; Republicans are walking the issue back; they know it won’t win them votes; Amanda Marcotte on how this is about Christians controlling women; Robert Reich on the emerging Republican theocracy; A link to Connie Willis’ latest … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Music, Politics, Religion | Comments Off on More on the IVF Brouhaha

Progress, and Regression

Posted on Thursday 22 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Progress: This afternoon the US has landed a spacecraft, albeit unmanned, on the Moon, for the first time in over 50 years; Regression: the religious mindset behind the Alabama IVF decision; more examples of the ambitions of the Christian nationalists; … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, progress, Religion, Space | Comments Off on Progress, and Regression

In her soft wind I will whisper

Posted on Wednesday 21 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Paul Krugman on how people see what they believe, despite evidence, regarding Tucker Carlson and his visit to Russia; Robert Reich on how Trump, and Putin, are not leaders; they’re thugs; About selective memory among conservatives about the economy under … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Music, Religion | Comments Off on In her soft wind I will whisper

More Behaving Badly

Posted on Sunday 18 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

Robert Reich on Trump, ever the con artist; David French on the warping of American life by MAGA threats of violence; Trump doesn’t realize he’s the cause of US demise; The informant who inspired the Republican Biden investigation has been … Continue reading →

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Catching Up on Items from Facebook, about Conspiracy Theories and Religion

Posted on Wednesday 14 February 2024 by Mark R. Kelly

“If you don’t know how anything works, everything looks like a conspiracy.” The conspiracy theory about Taylor Swift and the Super Bowl, which seems not to have happened, today; Facebook posts about American accents, how the Bible and Quran contain … Continue reading →

Posted in Psychology, Religion | Comments Off on Catching Up on Items from Facebook, about Conspiracy Theories and Religion