Morality - It doesn't take a gift from heaven

"The morality of humanity, 

Here long before Christianity, 

Yet Christianity must claim insanity, 

as it's need to claim Morality."

By Winston Watts

How to meditate... without Faith.

How to Meditate

Sam Harris finished off his brilliant book "The End of Faith" with a great chapter on Eastern meditation, a spiritual yet reasonable insight, that many Atheists, myself included, have a keen interest.  I have dabbled in Yoga and flirted with the basics of meditation, always with a hopeful eye on finding a spiritual yet genuine way of dealing with anxiety and depression, but a way that is still grounded in reason.  Sam Harris in his recent blog How to Meditate, this time, goes one step further, and suggests a technique called Vipassana (Pali, "insight"), which comes from the oldest tradition of Buddhism, the Theravada.  I just may have found my spiritual practice?   Read for yourself... and "Don't fall!".

A United Republic, not Kingdom

Campaigning for a democratic alternative to the monarchy.

http://www.republic.org.uk/index.php 

The case for a republic

This is your country. It is your future. Your democracy. Your choice. The case for a republic is clear - aspiration, responsibility and democracy, or an unaccountable political system at the heart of which is an institution based on inheritance and exclusive privilege.

 

Christopher Hitchen - All the best Sir!

Christopher Hitchens, you are a legend Sir!
Ok, your latest battle is clearly tougher than the debate you had with Rabbi Shmuley Boteach in 2008 but I have "Faith" that you can reduce this cancer to an embarrassed and feeble shell as you did with him.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnMYL8sF7bQ 

India spiritual leader Sai Baba 'critical' in hospital

One of India's most revered spiritual leaders, Satya Sai Baba, is in a critical condition, doctors say..... (Follow link for more details, courtesy of BBC)   http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-12968238

Note: Sai Baba is considered, by many, a fraud and a conman, due to his claims of performing miracles.  He has also allegedly committed many acts of sexual abuse against those that have been deceived into trusting him. 

The remarkable Basava Premand (died Oct 2009) was an avid opponent of Sai Baba and a true Guru Buster, Rationalist and skeptic.  Check out his Wikipedia page for more info - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basava_Premanand

Did you hear the one about the Catholic Priest and the........

March of 2011 was a busy month with regards to world news - Japan Earthquake & Tsunami, Libya rebellion followed by Civil war and International bombing and so on.  These are big and important stories that deserve our full attention but one story that only briefly skimmed the headlines was the Philadelphia Catholic Peadophile scandal.  I honestly believe that even 10 years ago this story would have demanded greater coverage and the reports of child molestation by 21 bishops would have been viewed as important enough to live in the headlines alongside the Japan tragedy.  Have we just grown immune to reports of child sex abuse by priests that we now see it as just another one of those things?  Its almost as though Catholic priest sex scandals are now just good material for jokes.

"The U.S. Cardinals said they are going to develop a code of ethics to help them deal with the sexual scandal. Wait a minute, I thought their already was a code of ethics, it's called the Bible." —Jay Leno

There are some games our children should not play...