Marriage Equality, Religion, Intolerance, LGBT; Culture Clash, Abortion and Birth Control, Sexism, Rape; Fog of War, World Protests

Marriage Equality

• Obamacare Insurance Must Now Cover Gay Spouses, Too
• Court: Tenn. must recognize 3 same-sex marriages
• Judge: Married Women Can't Divorce In Alabama
• Gay military widow not getting death benefits
• Homosexuality and racism: Why gay marriage and interracial marriage are different.—A differing point of view.

Religion

• Right-Wing Pastor Worried That Satan Is Using 'Frozen' To Turn Kids Gay
• KY churches withhold $7 million from children's home to force anti-gay policies
• Methodists drop church charges against minister who conducted gay wedding

Intolerance

• The Miserable End Of The Miserable Fred Phelps
• S.C. legislature keeps colleges' budget penalty for gay-themed books
• Florida man charged with hate crime in attack on teen he thought was gay

LGBT

• Heineken and Sam Adams boycott St. Patrick's Day parades—"Two of the country's biggest beer companies are withdrawing their sponsorships of upcoming St. Patrick's Day parades because gay and lesbian groups aren't allowed to march openly."
• Gays in Lebanon Just Snagged a Major Victory
• Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia top list of gay-porn watching states

Culture Clash

• Lebanon protesters march over domestic violence bill
• Women protest against proposed Iraq law that would allow marriage of nine-year-old girls
• Sudan court convicts gang-raped teenager of 'indecent acts'—She was originally faced death by stoning.

Abortion and Birth Control

• Federal judge strikes down Arkansas early abortion ban
• As Abortion Clinics Close, Student Creates Travel Fund
• Spain: Thousands protest against tougher abortion laws

Sexism

• Professor dies of lung cancer after doctors dismiss illness as 'purely psychological'—"I can't prove it, and this is just my opinion, but I have no doubt in my own mind that my misdiagnosis was in large part due to the fact that I was a middle aged female and that my male doctors were preconceived towards a psychological rather than a physiological diagnosis."
• Watch Lena Dunham in "SNL's" hilarious "Girls" parody—"Before there were "Girls," there was "Girl" -- the story of Adam and Eve." Salon
• Beyonce, Victoria Beckham front campaign to ban the word 'Bossy' for female empowerment

Rape

• Chinese woman chops off alleged rapist's penis and beats him to death with a hammer
• Mom has two babies by age 13, sues state for millions—"According to legal documents, she was repeatedly raped by her mother's boyfriend starting at the age of 9."
• 100 serial rapists identified after rape kits from Detroit Crime Lab are finally processed

Fog of War

• Foes of America in Russia Crave Rupture in Ties—"I am afraid that I am interested in a cold war with the West," said Mr. Prokhanov, 76, in a lull between interviews on state-controlled television and radio. "I was very patient. I waited for 20 years. I did everything I could so that this war would begin. I worked day and night." NYT
• Ukraine crisis: Crimea votes in referendum that divides Russia, U.S.
• Vladimir Putin's phony war in Crimea: The Russian president's invasion of Ukraine is based on his paranoia
• Crimea has Russian oligarchs panicked—"Russian bankers and industrialists close to Vladimir Putin fear Western sanctions." Salon
• Russian companies withdraw billions from west, say Moscow bankers FT

World Protests

• Moscow rally opposes Crimea intervention
• Australia: Tens of thousands gather for March in March protest
• Canada: March against police brutality declared illegal, broken up
• Venezuela's Maduro gives ultimatum to Caracas protesters
• Algeria Activists Stage Rare Anti-Gov't Protest

Ex-Benedict, Sex Abuse; Scientology; Religion; History

Ex-Benedict

• Pope Benedict XVI to resign citing poor health
• Vatican plans big send off for pope, consultations begin—They're considering holding the conclave earlier. Who are possibly in the running to succeed Pope Benedict?
• Catholics everywhere have something to say Salon
• Pope Benedict XVI resigns: What you need to know
• Church in Crisis: Pope Benedict Polarized More Than Unified
• Benedict's Radical End
• Book Talk: Papal resignation a PR coup for Vatican journalist

Sex Abuse

• Ex-Pope Benedict will have security and immunity by remaining in the Vatican—Most probably because when he was still a cardinal and overseeing the sex-abuse cases, "Ratzinger ordered bishops to keep allegations secret."
• Nostra Maxima Culpa
• Proud Of His Humility—Oh the magnanimity of Cardinal allegeded-child-rape-cover-upper Mahoney
• LA Catholics may hold "massive" fundraiser for child-rape settlements
• What went wrong in the Catholic Church?—"Why have its leaders been unable to deal with the priest sex abuse scandal in an honest and convincing way?"

Scientology

• 15 Scientology Revelations from Lawrence Wright's 'Going Clear'
• Scientology, Hollywood, & The Prison of Belief: How Scientology Lured Tom Cruise
• How Scientology ensnares celebrities—Jenna Miscavige Hill on Tom Cruise: "Either he does know what's going on and he's not talking about it, or he is willfully ignorant." Salon

Religion

• The Last Supper: Germany's Great Church Sell-Off—"Dwindling church attendance and dire financial straits are forcing the Catholic and Protestant Churches in Germany to sell off church buildings en masse. Some are demolished, while others are turned into restaurants or indoor rock climbing centers."
• Secular Britain is ruled by religious bureaucrats—"Why is the church still such a force in our society when most of us disregard its clerics' teachings?"
• Modesty in Ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn Is Enforced by Secret Squads—"Shadowy committees have threatened shop owners over mannequins they don’t like, and reportedly have invaded homes to seize computer equipment." NYT
• Grieving Family Shocked To Learn Of 2nd Service For Uncle
• Applebee's Server Gets Stiffed By Pastor Who Gave Her Tip To God, Promptly Gets Fired By Applebee's
• Tennessee Christian quits job, refuses to file taxes over '666' on W-2 form
• Two of Phelps' granddaughters leave Westboro Baptist Church

History

• Inside the Vatican: The $8 billion global institution where nuns answer the phones
• Moon Man: What Galileo saw—"The new (and, unsurprisingly, Church-endorsed) view is that Galileo made needless trouble for himself by being impolitic, and that, in the circumstances of the time, it would have been hard for the Church to act otherwise. The Church wanted, as today's intelligent designers now say, to be allowed to 'teach the controversy.' All Galileo had to do was give the Church a break and say that you could see it that way if you wanted to. He wouldn't give it a break."
• Dead Sea Scrolls online library launched by Google and Israel
• Islam and science: The road to renewal—"After centuries of stagnation science is making a comeback in the Islamic world."
• Decoding facial hair in the Arab world

Bill Nye the Science Guy, Creationism, Educamation, Sex Abuse Scandal, Butler, Catholic Guilt, Christianity, Ecce Mono

Bill Nye the Science Guy

• Bill Nye on the dangers of creationism
• Bill Nye the Science Guy defends anti-creationist video
• Bill Nye: Creationism Threatens U.S. Science

Creationism

• Science-vs.-Religion Rigidity May Help Perpetuate Creationism, Other Antiscience Beliefs
• Kansas' evolution debate just keeps evolving
• Kentucky Evolution Fight: GOP Lawmakers Upset State Exams Test Students On 'Made Up' Theory
• Creationists Boycott Dr. Pepper over "Evolution of Flavor" Facebook Ad
• Science wins over creationism in South Korea--"Government asks publishers to retain examples of evolution in science textbooks."

Educamation

• 14 Wacky "Facts" Kids Will Learn in Louisiana's Voucher Schools--"Thanks to a new law privatizing public education in Louisiana, Bible-based curriculum can now indoctrinate young, pliant minds with the good news of the Lord—all on the state taxpayers' dime." And 99% of them are religious.
• What do Christian fundamentalists have against set theory?
• Colbert skewers Texas GOP on 'critical thinking'--"And you know who I blame? I blame Galileo.... For centuries we had a perfectly good explanation for the order of the universe. Bible says the sun goes around the Earth, making us the center of the universe. And you know what? Everyone was happy. And then numnuts over here gets a telescope for Christmas, uses his precious critical thinking skills and suddenly the Earth goes around the sun, blah blah blah and now we have lesbians."

Sex Abuse Scandal

• Australian Roman Catholic Church admits child sex abuse--"The Roman Catholic Church in the Australian state of Victoria has confirmed that more than 600 children have been sexually abused by its priests since the 1930s."
• Joliet Diocese: Bishop Can't Be Removed From Ministry Despite Having Molested Boy--"The bishop says Rome has decided that at the time Ryan allegedly molested a teen, what he did was not considered a serious crime by the Church according to Church law at the time [...] actually said a 14-year-old was at an age of consent."
• Psychologist provides analysis of Catholic church's sex abuse scandal

Butler

• Pope is both victim and supreme judge in trial of ex-butler accused of leaking documents
• Paolo Gabriele trial: Pope butler evidence thrown out
• Can the Vatican Survive the Age of Digital Media?

Catholic Guilt

• In final interview, liberal Cardinal says Church '200 years out of date'--"Our culture has aged, our churches are big and empty and the church bureaucracy rises up, our rituals and our cassocks are pompous."
• German Catholics lose church rights for unpaid tax--Unsurprisingly, they're not happy about it.
• Bishop urges support for controversial Amendment 8--"Catholic Bishop John Noonan on Monday urged local Catholics to support a controversial measure on the November ballot that would delete the 'no aid' provision of Florida's constitution that prevents state support of religious institutions."

Christianity

• Son of a bigot--"His dad founded the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. Nate Phelps is dedicated to reversing that legacy of hate." Salon
• Surge in Satanism sparks rise in demand for exorcists, says Catholic Church
• Blast from the Past: Dude, is snowboarding spiritual?--"A snowboarding priest from British Columbia has earned what could well be the first-ever doctorate in the sport for his exploration of spirituality on the slopes."

Ecce Mono

• Botched restoration turns Spanish church into tourist attraction
• Spanish woman who disfigured painting of Christ lawyers up, wants money
• Beast Jesus Halloween Costume Is Surely The Best We've Ever Seen

Vatican, Catholic Guilt, Sex Abuse Scandal, Judaism, Scientology, Atheism, Westboro

Vatican

• A poisonous Pentecost for the Pope--"The Vatican faces a widening scandal that in one short week has seen the butler of Pope Benedict XVI arrested, the president of its bank unceremoniously dismissed and the publication of a new book alleging conspiracies among cardinals."
• Vatican leaks: Why is the Pope's butler in a cell beneath the fortress?
• Emanuela Orlandi 'was kidnapped for sex parties for Vatican police'--"A teenage girl whose disappearance in Rome has remained a mystery for 30 years was kidnapped for sex parties by a gang involving Vatican police and foreign diplomats, the Roman Catholic Church's leading exorcist has claimed."
• Vatican crisis highlights pope failure to reform Curia
• Inside the Vatican's power struggles: The latest on the 'Vatileaks' scandal, as the Pope fights back

Catholic Guilt

• Catholic Church Sexual Abuse Scandal: Vatican Investigates 7 Legion Of Christ Priests For Allegedly Assaulting Minors
• Vatican: Pope has immunity in sex abuse trials
• Vatican letter told Ireland's Catholic bishops not to report child abuse
• Vatican confirms report of sexual abuse and rape of nuns by priests in 23 countries
• Blast from the Past: Catholics Outraged Over German Cartoon

Sex Abuse Scandal

• Charges dismissed against Utah Mormon bishop--"A Utah judge dismissed all charges against a Mormon bishop accused of failing to report a teenage girl's disclosure that she had been sexually abused."
• Ultra-Orthodox Shun Their Own for Reporting Child Sexual Abuse NYT
• Brooklyn DA refuses to release details of Orthodox sex abuse suspects

Judaism

• Jewish School’s Team, Refusing to Play During Sabbath, Loses Trip to State Semifinals NYT
• Israeli Court Rules To End Military Exemption for the Ultra Orthodox NYT
• Benefits Granted for Full-Time Torah Study Are Questioned in Israel NYT
• Rabbi's little helper--"Forget 'Big Brother': Psychiatric drugs are frequently administered within the Haredi community at leaders' requests, in order to bring members in line with norms, say sources."
• 60,000 ultra-Orthodox Jews fill Citi Field and Arthur Ashe Stadium to denounce evils of the Internet--They want to ban the Internet.

Scientology

• Australia's 'child labour camp'
• My Scientology Excommunication--"I was one of the world's top 50 church members -- then one mistake changed my life." Salon
• Church of Scientology in Australia demands right to underpay workers
• Scientologist-run rehab centre ordered closed in Quebec
• Scientologists push anti-drug classes in schools

Atheism

• Why Atheists Have Become a Kick-Ass Movement You Want on Your Side--"Atheists are becoming a force to be reckoned with. They are a powerful ally when inspired to take action -- and a powerful opponent when they're treated like dirt."
• Pastor's loss of faith started with loss of hell
• Atheist student who sued school: You can’t imagine the things I’ve heard

Westboro

• 9-Year-Old To Westboro Baptist Protesters: 'God Hates No One'
• Fred Phelps is a Con Man
• Logic

Vatican Scandal, Science vs. Religion, Creationism, Evolution, Westboro

Vatican Scandal

• Vatican admits 'grave failures' in child sex abuse scandal
• Swiss Catholic Church reveals scale of sex abuse by priests
• Church sex-abuse victims urge ICC prosecution

Science vs. Religion

• A Point of View: Can religion tell us more than science?
• Science and religion: God didn't make man; man made gods
• A few Catholics still insist Galileo was wrong

Creationism

• Why the Anti-Science Creationist Movement Is So Dangerous
• Evolution Ascendant: Polls Show Darwin's Explanation of Human Origins Up, Creationism Down
• US judges rule for teacher who called creationism 'superstitious nonsense'
• Kentucky Gives Creationist Theme Park 75 Percent Tax Discount For The Next 30 Years
• Adam And Eve Did Not Literally Exist. Period.--Even some evangelicals are questioning their existence.
  

Evolution

• Victory for evolution in Texas
• The evolution of Darwin's theory
• How did humans really evolve?
• Why did mammals evolve to enormous sizes - then get smaller again?
• Why stupidity can be the smartest survival strategy
• Why the NCAA tournament is a metaphor for human evolution
• Dinosaur feather evolution trapped in Canadian amber

Westboro

• 300 Bikers Foil Westboro Baptist Church’s Obama Joplin Protest
• The day Nashville united against the hate-filled Westboro Baptist Church and honored our fallen hero-An essential guide on how you can organize your communit
• Illinois Law Undermines Westboro Baptist Church Ruling

PATRIOT Act and Your Privacy, Rapture, Politics and Religion, Science vs. Religion, Westboro, Philippines, Sex Abuse

Contact Congress Now Before it Deals Away Your Privacy Rights!--"With a week left until three of the most controversial Patriot Act provisions expire, last night, Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) made a back-room deal to reauthorize the Patriot Act for four years, avoiding the protracted debate over the extension that was sure to ensue, given the bipartisan opposition to the provisions."

Rapture

• Despite Careful Calculations, the World Does Not End NYT
• End-time comes ... and goes
• 'Judgement Day' passes, world didn't end -- but it will, California broadcaster says--In 19-fuckin-94

Politics and Religion

• Evangelical Idiocy: The Death of America?
• Damon’s Contribution: Louisiana Graduate Stands Up For Constitution – And Gets Grief For It
• David Barton’s Pants Are On Fire… For Jesus--"David Barton wants your kids to believe that America was founded on Christianity."
• Newark's Prayer-Based Crime Fighting Effort Isn't Working
• While Cutting Social Services, Kentucky Gives $43 Million Tax Break To Bible-Themed Amusement Park
• US prisoners refused all books except Bible
• US town sued over denial of mosque proposal--"An Islamic group has sued a suburban town it says engaged in religious discrimination by abruptly changing zoning regulations to prevent the opening of a mosque."

Science vs. Religion

• Some walk out on Bill Nye for saying moon reflects light
• Proving Atheists Wrong with Science #1--It's more like that this proves whoever wrote this claptrap flunked Science.
• Evolution Battle Brews In Texas

Westboro

• Westboro Baptist Church protest raises $44,000 for gay men's group--Comedienne Lisa Lampanelli "promised to donate $1,000 to the Gay Men's Health Crisis, the nation's oldest HIV/AIDS organization, for every member of WBC that protested her show at the Topeka Performing Arts Center."
• Westboro Baptist Church Goes To Mississippi – And Loses
• West Virginians: 1 Wingnut Westboro: 0
• Westboro Baptist Church Pwned!
• What is legal is not always right

Meanwhile, in the Philippines...

• [President] Aquino ready to be excommunicated--For his support of the country's reproductive health bill, which will slow down population growth.
• Philippine condom supporters labeled "terrorists"--Hyperbole, much?
• Celdran released; 'Damaso' draws raves in cyberspace--The issue was already brewing since last year.

Church Report Cites Social Tumult in Priest Scandals--Sexual Revolution Cited as Cause of Priest Abuse NYT