[QUOTE=davar55;355627]I thought spellling it G-d was a show of respect for the "entity".

As an atheist, I almost never spell it that way.[/QUOTE]

One response would be that it is hard to have respect or non-respect for a thing that doesn't exist. But, that wouldn't really fit my world-view. I have some grudging respect for certain belief systems. One of which is the notion that if you believe in a deity and hold it as the Ultimate concern then you should be careful about how you speak of it.

So a less long-winded answer would be: I respect some aspects of the belief system.

Also it screws with people.


Back on topic:

[URL="http://dailycurrant.com/2013/10/08/pope-francis-says-he-supports-gay-marriage/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=pope-francis-says-he-supports-gay-marriage"]Parody websites just make me sad sometimes[/URL]...New Pope is better than Classic Pope, but he's still the choice of a few generations ago.

[QUOTE=chappy;355645]One response would be that it is hard to have respect or non-respect for a thing that doesn't exist. But, that wouldn't really fit my world-view. I have some grudging respect for certain belief systems. One of which is the notion that if you believe in a deity and hold it as the Ultimate concern then you should be careful about how you speak of it.

So a less long-winded answer would be: I respect some aspects of the belief system.

Also it screws with people.
...
[/QUOTE]

OK, I can't hold respect for parts of that belief system as a negative.
So you certainly may do as you wish ITO messing with their minds.

I personally can still feel respect for the people who accept their
religious beliefs, though the beliefs themselves get no respect
from me.

Didn't mean to (momentarily) hijack this thread.

[QUOTE=davar55;356013]

I personally can still feel respect for the people who accept their
religious beliefs, though the beliefs themselves get no respect
from me.[/QUOTE]

That's as good a way of stating it as any.


[QUOTE=davar55;356013]

Didn't mean to (momentarily) hijack this thread.[/QUOTE]

bah, this thread has become an echo chamber anyway. I eagerly await the return of "The moving goalpost" Zetaflux.

Speaking of goalposts, one thing holding back acceptance of gay marriage is a larger problem with acceptance of LGBT people and issues. So it is germane to notice trending improvements in more general acceptance too. Harvey Milk will be on a US postage stamp next year.

[URL="http://www.salon.com/2013/10/11/gay_political_icon_harvey_milk_gets_his_own_stamp/"]Gay political icon Harvey Milk gets his own stamp[/URL] [noparse][salon.com][/noparse]
[QUOTE]The Harvey Milk Foundation announced the news on Facebook, noting that the stamp will feature one of Milk’s “most enduring” messages, “Hope will never be silent.”

“On behalf of the Milk family and the Harvey Milk Foundation, we are thrilled that our campaign for the stamp has succeeded and we thank all our partners including the USPS in this effort,” said Stuart Milk, Milk Foundation president and founder. “Harvey’s story, example and courage continues to inspire across the globe and the issuance of the first U.S. postage stamp for a openly LGBT in my uncle’s name will not only educate but will provide hope, hope that is still critically needed today.”[/QUOTE]

Tonight for Halloween I'm dressing up as a Pro-Gay Marriage Bill. I don't believe there's any way I make it out of the House.

[COLOR="White"]Actually I'm going to turn out all the lights and huddle underneath a heavy blanket until all the little Ghouls and Goblins go away![/COLOR]

[QUOTE=chappy;358049]Tonight for Halloween I'm dressing up as a Pro-Gay Marriage Bill. I don't believe there's any way I make it out of the House.

[COLOR=White]Actually I'm going to turn out all the lights and huddle underneath a heavy blanket until all the little Ghouls and Goblins go away![/COLOR][/QUOTE]
All the little ghouls and goblins are sent out by the likes of Bryan Fischer, E.W.Jackson and Linda Harvey. They will be absolutely terrified of you when they see you as Bill.:devil:

New "third gender" provision for births in Germany
 

[URL]http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/131030/germany-allow-third-gender-option-at-birth[/URL]

It's interesting that Germany, which is now in a minority of countries in Western Europe in that marriage is still restricted to opposite sex couples with the government having no plans to change that, should be the first European country to allow for children whose gender is as yet undetermined. The new law takes effect today.

Marriage is just one area which is as yet unclear with regards to how people with undetermined gender are provided for. Perhaps most people whose gender is undefined at birth will have registered as male or female by the time they marry, but genuinely intersex adults occur too. And as the article mentions, life for children growing up is highly oriented towards whether they are boys or girls, and it is not clear what this will mean for those children not assigned a gender.

The above paragraph just concerns the new legal situation in Germany, of course. There has always been the problem for some people in society that they have been assigned the wrong gender at birth and have to deal with the consequences when this becomes clear to them, which is often quite early in childhood. The difference now is that the law is acknowledging this, or at least making a start.

Is this new "third gender" law in Germany, brought in while other areas of the law and society in general still hold fast to gender-specific areas of life, the right way to have gone about providing for trans and intersex people?

[YOUTUBE]ovKa2wXUO-0[/YOUTUBE]

apparently I don't care about teh gayz. only about my evil plots.
At least we know that Ted came by his crazy naturally.

[QUOTE=chappy;358397]apparently I don't care about teh gayz. only about my evil plots.
At least we know that Ted came by his crazy naturally.[/QUOTE]
Fascinating stuff! It's so jaw-dropping in fact that I'm keen to know more about the scientific credentials of this man (he identifies himself as "a scientist" in the video as a means of imploring people to "trust" his wisdom) but I've drawn a blank. Google turns up plenty of other activity by this father of a US senator but is less informative about his credentials. Wikipedia only seems to have heard of the Brazilian footballer of the same name. Can anyone help?

Well, the guy is the best proof that god does not exist, or, if it exists, it is insane. Because only an idiot god could create a man like that... Sorry if I offended any christians here...

[QUOTE=Brian-E;358486]Fascinating stuff! It's so jaw-dropping in fact that I'm keen to know more about the scientific credentials of this man (he identifies himself as "a scientist" in the video as a means of imploring people to "trust" his wisdom) but I've drawn a blank. Google turns up plenty of other activity by this father of a US senator but is less informative about his credentials. Wikipedia only seems to have heard of the Brazilian footballer of the same name. Can anyone help?[/QUOTE]

Ted's birth certificate claims that Rafael Bienvenido Cruz is a 'geophysical consultant' whatever that means. Geological engineer of some sort?

According to [URL="http://presspass.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/09/28/20733447-7-things-to-know-about-sen-ted-cruz-r-tx?lite"]this article[/URL] he received a degree in mathematics from UT Austin

many news clippings I've read refer to him as a pastor of some sort or other.


aha! [URL="http://www.nationalreview.com/article/356934/rise-rafael-cruz-robert-costa/page/0/1"]the motherload[/URL]! forget all that speculation above. Mathematics and Chemical Eng. from UT. worked for an oil company that moved him to Canada where he became a citizen. Moved to US (Texas) worked for himself in an oil related business, converted from Catholicism to an unspecified Evangelical Protestant denomination. Started his own church. (still vague on what sect if any) and became a US citizen in 2005.

So not really a scientist of any sort.