Showing posts with label Young Turks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Young Turks. Show all posts

Monday, August 4, 2014

The New Ku Klux Klan?

The Ku Klux Klan got attention in March when they distributed fliers to a neighborhood in Chesterfield, Virginia.  It's part of what appears to be an attempt to revamp the public image of a group best known for murdering people.
The Ku Klux Klan papered several Chesterfield County neighborhoods this week with fliers proclaiming it is nonviolent, not a hate group and not “enemies of the colored and mongrel races.”
I'm not sure how they figure they can be taken seriously in their claim to not be a hate group while referring to people as "the colored and mongrel races", but at least they're advocating non-violence.  Hopefully they're at least also practicing it.

But they're not the only group attempting to make the Klan more palatable for the modern world.  A Pennsylvania Klan group wants to start a neighborhood watch.  In the article about the neighborhood watch, Imperial Wizard Frank Ancona said,
It’s just like any neighborhood watch program. It’s not targeting any specific ethnicity. We would report anything we see to law enforcement
That would be great if they could believed.  But he also said,
We don’t hate people. We are an organization who looks out for our race. We believe in racial separation
In other words, they're still racists.  The fact that they do not understand that they're racists is what has them being surprised when people react negatively to them attempting to police their neighborhood, however passive they claim to be with it.

Even if their violent past really is behind them, it's not that far behind them. Earlier this year, a Jewish center was shot up by "former Grand Dragon of the Carolina Knights of the Ku Klux Klan".  Ancona's reaction was to condemn the violence.
"I believe in racial separation but it doesn't have to be violent," he told CNN. "People in the Klan are professional people, business people, working types. We are a legitimate organization."
Cross, who founded the Carolina Knights of the KKK in the 1980s, went "rogue," Ancona said.
The Young Turks covered the basics pretty well.



Although, they did miss one thing about Ancona's attempt at reimaging.
The leader of the Traditionalist American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan is tired of “a few rogue Klansmen” ruining the group’s reputation, and argues that the group is a non-violent Christian organization.
I'm sure many non-violent, non-racist Christians today would take exception to the Klan declaring itself Christian, but they'd have to deny a lot of history to do so.

Photo Credit: Dallas Voice
If the Ku Klux Klan wants a palatable image, they'll need to do 2 things.

  1. Change their name.
  2. Stop being racists.

Even then, I don't see many people buying it.  But it's not like the Klan has ever been accused of being all that smart.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Amy And The War On Christmas

Sometimes you see something so stupid that you just have to share it even though you're dumbfounded about what to say about it.  With that, I give War On Christmas warrior, Amy.


I found this via the Young Turks, who were as dumbfounded as I was.  It feels like a parody, but it's apparently being promoted by a church.

Multiple comments by the channel hosting the video have said:
The WAR ON CHRISTMAS can only end through UNDERSTANDING.
Understanding of what?  What is it they think we don't understand that they think we're supposedly waging a war on their holiday?

Although, I do agree that understanding would end the "War On Christmas" nonsense.  If these people understood that Bill O'Reilly is full of shit, they'd stop thinking they need to worry about fake threats.

If these people understood that atheists don't give a fuck what Christians celebrate in their own lives, they could stop thinking we give a fuck enough to try wage a whole goddamn war on it.

If people understood that many atheists celebrate Christmas too, they could stop freaking out over nothing and share the holiday with atheists like Richard Dawkins.

If people understood that we give zero fucks about what greeting my cashier uses between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, they wouldn't have to make asses of themselves boycotting good businesses who've done nothing wrong.

If the people caring for Amy understood that no one is attempting to keep her from celebrating Christmas however she likes, they wouldn't have to scare the shit out of a child for no good reason.

Christians are taking a lot of damage in this "War On Christmas", but it's all self inflicted.  Keep your religion out of government, and you'll be otherwise free to celebrate your holidays however you like.

This ad, that seems to only be confusing people, certainly cost them a decent amount of money to run.  I bet that money could have bought a lot of coats for people who would definitely benefit from them.  But fuck the poor people who are cold in Winter.  It's obviously more important to keep people from saying "Happy Holidays" in December.

Assholes.

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Young Turks On Reacting To Tragedy

Since learning of the Boston Marathon Bombing, I've had various thoughts about who I think might be behind it.  I've intentionally kept them to myself because I hate how speculation & misinformation get out of hand so easily[1] in the immediate aftermath of events like this.  That's why I like what the Young Turks had to say about it.


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1.  http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/regret-the-error/158541/a-year-later-false-reports-of-rep-giffords-death-still-reverberate-for-the-press/
2.  http://youtu.be/7lYzjZp9SJg

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Saturday Morning Shares - 03-23-2013

Here's the links & tweets to share from the last week.  Most were also shared on this Facebook page or retweeted.  Please add any fun or informative stories I missed in the comments.

Random Stuff:


(via George Takei)

Science!:

There Are Whales Alive Today Who Were Born Before Moby Dick Was Written (via Sarah)

Two ships passing in the night: neuroscience and social media (via @Alyssa_Milano)

Shorter-winged swallows evolve around highways (via Mark)

Secular Coalition of America's Weekly Update:

National Secular Movement Update Call (03/21/2013)




Religion Stuff:

The High School Performing a Play About ‘Adam and Steve’ Isn’t Being Anti-Christian (via @hemantmehta)




(via Atheism)

Cardinal asserts that child raping priests shouldn’t be punished. (via @jteberhard)

Frans de Waal's Bottom-Up Morality: We're Not Good Because Of God (via Omaha Coalition of Reason)

(via @tsh1118)
An Increasing Number of Atheist and Agnostic Alcoholics Anonymous Groups Are Altering the Twelve Steps (via @hemantmehta)

Digital Bible Reaches 100 Million Listeners (via @mashable)

Atheist Student Questioned By Police For Being an Atheist (via Kansas City Atheist Coalition (KCAC))

Expert: Gay Rights Opponents Misrepresenting Religious Liberty



ACT NOW:  Tell your Senators not to use your taxpayer money to fund religious schools! (via @OmahaCoR)


Pope Stuff:

Geography of the Conclave: Where Do the Cardinals Come From? (via @ZacharyNelson)

(via Rational Hub)


Asshole Of The Week:

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Let's Get American Atheists & Wolf PAC To Netroots Nation

Netroots Nation[1] is a popular political convention for progressives.   This year, they're giving away 6 free booths.
We are offering six free booths in this year’s Netroots Nation Community and Exhibit  Hall. The top three vote-getters in this online contest will automatically get a booth in the Hall. The rest of the entrants will go through a second round where a panel of judges will decide, based on merit, which three entrants will receive the last three spots.
Please go here[2], to vote for the atheists[3]Wolf PAC[4].  You probably know who American Atheists[5] are, but you may not have heard of Wolf PAC[6] They are a political action committee dedicated to fixing our broken political system by addressing the very core of the problem[7].  Money in politics.

Both organizations do great work.  Both deserve a spot at Netroots Nation.

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1.  http://www.netrootsnation.org/
2.  http://www.netrootsnation.org/hallcontestvoting2013/
3.  http://www.netrootsnation.org/HallcontestAtheists/
4.  http://www.netrootsnation.org/hallcontestWolfPAC/
5.  http://www.atheists.org/
6.  http://www.wolf-pac.com/
7.