I have moved!

Due to a slight change in my life's direction, I have decided to move this blog to:

http://trisstock.com

In case you are wondering what those changes are, I am standing for election as a councillor for my town council, and want to put more of a human face to the blog. I don't really know how 'mygodlesslife' will go down with the electorate.

All the posts and comments have been transferred  and I will see if I can find a way of transfering the RSS feed over.

In the meantime, thanks for your continued support, and I'll see you on the other side.

Tris

Mykeru masterclass demolishes A+, FtB, Skepchick, et al.

This is by far the most awesome pwnage I have ever had the privilege to witness on Youtube. Or anywhere else for that matter. Do not be put off by the video's length. This is a must see video that I believe will be the downfall of the insidious lies and misrepresentations of those that have derailed the sceptic/atheist community for over a year.



Enough is enough.

That is all.

Gay man forced out of 'Muslim area' - in UK

I hope that the guy responsible for this video is prosecuted. I have nothing else to say about it. The content speaks for itself.

!!!UPDATES!!!

There have been arrests made.

Homophobic abuse 'vigilante' victim urged to come forward

Fifth person arrested in Muslim gang probe

My local news outlet, thisiscornwall, continues to publish anti-journalistic religious sermons as news

I have lost count how many times I have complained to my local on-line news outlet, thisicornwall.co.uk, about their insistence on slipping religious screeds like the following into their news feed, but I have had enough of it and am suitably pissed off enough to take them to task through whatever channels are available to me in order to bring their anti-journalistic practices to a close.

We can look forward to a brighter future with Jesus

By The Rev David Bagwell

SOMEONE crashed into me last week – I was there on the corner of Cross Street and Chapel Street when this young man banged into me from behind.

Head bowed with a mobile phone to his ear, he walked around the corner and didn't see me – a stationary pedestrian waiting to cross the road – until it was too late.

It's a growing problem as more and more people walk and phone concurrently along our narrow pavements, not looking around them let alone looking forward, which is a shame, because apart from the safety considerations one of the joys of walking is the chance to take in what's around you.

And spiritually, too, there's a message here, as the ability to look forward lies at the heart of any meaningful progress in life.

At the start of a new year, it's good to be able to look forward to something new, something different, something better. And then to plan for it, work for it and dream it.

The story of Jesus is a story of someone who gave those who had nothing to look forward to a new beginning, gave those who had lost all hope something to hope for, gave those who had no direction a wider and deeper purpose in life.

Simeon, having met with the child Jesus in the temple, expressed it: "With my own eyes I have now seen the salvation which God has prepared for all people" – Luke ii, 30 to 31.

He was saying that he was now able to look forward to a brighter and better future, knowing that God was making all things new.
For those who at the start of this year are only looking back with fading memories rather than looking forward with expectation, or looking around but not sure how to move on, Jesus can still be "the way, the truth and the life" – John xiv, 6.

Despite the economic gloom, be assured that there is still much to look forward to as we travel on together with Jesus as our guide.

I ask you, if you were to subscribe to a news feed on an on-line news media outlet, would you be surprised if - in amongst the stories about Government cuts and car crashes on the region's roads - the above was included (presumably by someone with some degree of journalistic experience)?

No. Neither would I. Hence the following was sent to them as I reported the 'article' as 'religious abuse':

Yet again, I am complaining about religious screeds under the guise of news on your site. And I am fed up with it.

Would you please stop this practice with immediate effect.

Also, would you please send me a statement of your intent on the inclusion of further 'articles' of this stripe in the future, so I can make a considered decision about what action I am to take with your insistence on promulgating anti-journalistic practices?

Daily digest - Wednesday, 16 January 2012

So much for my busy morning, I can't remember what it was I was supposed to be doing (Oh yeah. I was meant to be strimming my garden. Too wet right now, but two days of dry weather forecast, so maybe later or tomorrow).

It would appear yesterday's link to the Stephen Law podcast didn't work, so it is - perhaps - fortunate that +Kylie Sturgess posted her January interview with him today. Click here to hear it. 

As an addendum to yesterday's European Court judgement on Christian persecution (or whatever), here is a pdf of the full judgement.

Daily digest - Tuesday, 15 January 2012

Cor! Busy news day today. I have only managed to get one post out, and that was mainly copypasta. It is a good read, though.

The big news today, of course, is the European Court ruling on the four Christians that were claiming some sort of religious discrimination or wrongful dismissal, or something. Only one of them had their case upheld, and I disagree with that. Especially in light of Stephen Law's article.

One item that - for some unknown reason - didn't seem to make the news, was that the Cornwall Council General meeting voted against introducing a plan that would see the county's poorest people footing the entire bill for central Government cuts. I don't hold these people in very high regard, but the right decision was returned today. The Conservatives had better watch their backs at the local elections in May. UPDATE: BBC has a report here.

Short intro tonight. It is getting late and I plan a busy morning ahead.

Is religious freedom threatened by gay rights? Stephen Law steals my thunder

I was in the middle of preparing a long post about today's European Court decisions on the four Christians that had appealed their Supreme Court dismissals for violations of discrimination laws, when up popped an article by philosopher, Stephen Law who encapsulated everything I wanted to say (and very likely a fair bit more).

It is a weighty piece, but worth the effort. His thoughts on the subject is framed in a wider context than I would have used, but it is all the more powerful because of it. Below is a selection of what I feel are the most salient points, but you should really sit down with a cuppa and read the article in its entirety.

The results, by the way were that three of the four cases were dismissed, the fourth being upheld for BA employee, Nadia Eweida.

Daily digest - Monday, 14 January 2012

Well, I have had a busy day debating and writing about same sex marriage. Two articles have been posted (first, a letter to Andrew George MP, and the second a response to one of the commenters on the original thisiscornwall page). I am appalled that such bigots exist in my region, but perhaps, should not be surprised. Where Christianity exists, bigotry will follow. Go vote up my comments here.

There was also one of those 'lighter moments' pieces that the BBC runs occasionally. It would appear that the Queen's Bentley limousine wouldn't start when she came to leave church. It was a good job Bishop Cottrell was at hand to administer some divine vehicular maintenance.

After posting yesterday's Daily Digest, I considered the fact that - considering I don't post this until quite late in the day - perhaps the following day's tide times might be more useful to people. Done and done.

God starts Queen's Bentley

Well, so this report on the BBC News website alludes.

Bishop Cottrell said he was standing with the Queen waiting for the Bentley to pick her up.

He said: "He [the chauffeur] got into the car, put the key into the ignition and it made that kind of throaty rasping noise that cars make when they are not going to start.

"So he tried again and again it makes the noise... three or four times.

"At this point, really for a bit of fun, I just took a little step forward and made a blessing over the car, which got a laugh from the crowd. 

"The chauffeur tried the key again and it started. So then there was a great round of applause."

Surprisingly, the bishop didn't make a song and dance about vehicular intercessory blessings.

"It is one of those nice little incidents," he said. "We all saw the funny side of it."

Response to Bartribe on same sex marriage

I have already posted on this subject today (if you want to read this first, I'll wait here), and have copied my initial response to my Daily Digest (*taps toes, waiting for you to read this too)

After having gone back to check for updates (which there were. Sarah Newton MP distanced herself quite vociferously against the dishonest practices of Coalition for Marriage), I read a comment by a person who named themselves barrtribe. Have left the spelling and grammatical mistakes as they were presented.