How not to attack religion...

A friend of mine, someone I hold in esteem, recently posted the following quote by Sam Harris which is found in his little book "Letter to a Christian Nation":

"The president of the United States has claimed, on more than one occasion, to be in dialogue with God. If he said that he was talking to God through his hairdryer, this would precipitate a national emergency. I fail to see how the addition of a hairdryer makes the claim more ridiculous or offensive."

This seems disingenuous of Harris to me. He cannot be unaware that all nations of humankind have religious traditions and that all of them recognise some sort of communication with the divine, whether directly in contemplation, through the agency of magic mushrooms or the like, or by casting runes and other kinds of divination. And as far as I know all modern societies also set limits beyond which claims of communication with the divine are held to be at least suspicious and potentially insane at worst. The details vary between societies and religions. He must also be aware that throughout recorded history rulers have sought to legitimate themselves and their policies by associating them in some way with the divine will. And we, skeptics that we are, tend to think that there is less sincerity in these claims and more cynicism than might have been thought by most people at the time. It also seems to me that it is precisely the interposition of a hairdryer that, in any modern society, would tip the balance from an accepted, if disparaged, norm into lunacy. If he cannot see why this is so, then his imagination is sadly lacking and his human empathy is in need of an upgrade.

As an atheist I think it is a sad, and sometimes a dangerous, thing that political leaders still resort to these tactics. It is even more sad that some of them even believe the claims that they make. But my opinions in this matter do not licence me to deride human history and the human emotions that drive religious hunger, nor do they make snide quips that I dream up an acceptable form of rational discussion.

Civil Liberty

I have long been interested in the idea of Liberty and the way it is worked out in different ways and places. And while this country was one of the pioneers of liberty (my own references go back to John Milton's Areopagitica - published in 1644, but I am only an amateur scholar - a real scholar will do much better than that) the present age has seen hard won civil liberty steady eroded. Right now there is a proposal to record all everyone's internet activity which I regard with horror. It's equivalent to opening everyone's post in the hope that some misdemeanor might emerge. But it is far worse than that.

My friend Paul Vella informs me that, under a bill passed into law a few years ago, the police in the UK have the power to remotely install monitoring software on your computer without the need for a search warrant - all they need is the approval of an Inspector and the belief that you are involved in a crime that would attract a 3 year custodial sentence. That's "belief" and we all know how flakey beliefs can be. Worse, if they can't install this software remotely, the same legislation provides for them to secretly enter your home, workplace or hotel room and install it by hand - again, without the need for a search warrant. And you thought your home was your castle. Not any more.

Did you know that under the Lisbon Treaty, passed by our government, they are allowed to intern people who have a communicable disease (see the list here). "Intern" - that's lock them up. The same treaty only recognises our right to life if we don't resist arrest. The death penalty was abolished in 1969 wasn't it? Well it has been stealthily re-introduced for acts of terrorism that could lead to or prolong a war.

There's more. We live in a country where the council dog warden can put you and your family under surveillance and obtain details of your Internet browsing and mobile phone calls! Yes - the Dog Warden. 

Are you interested in the Olympics? If you're lucky enough to be in the stadium and make a video of an event on your mobile phone you are not allowed to upload it to YouTube. Nor may you wear a Pepsi Cola T-shirt to the Olympic stadium. It may be your own favourite T-shirt which you wear often, but Coca-Cola are official sponsors and they wouldn't like it. And you can't even buy chips at the Olympics unless it is from McDonalds, or is served with fish. Curry and chips? Forbidden.

Free country? Not in a way John Stuart Mill, the great 19th Century philosopher of liberty, would recognise. And who cares? People are too distracted with Britain's Got Talent and David Beckham to notice what is really important.