Saturday 8 September 2012

Democratic process gone wrong in the US!

An open letter to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa


September 6, 2012 at 6:03 pm  Matt Dillahunty

Based on this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cncbOEoQbOg&feature=BFa&list=FLry4eIS1_98ZxFO0geP7xJw

I sent the following letter to Mayor Villaraigosa and the Democratic Party:


Mr. Mayor,

I’m not a citizen of Los Angeles, but I am a Democrat. When Ted Strickland offered his amendment, calling for the party platform to recognize his god, I was disappointed, but not surprised. This sort of religious pandering has become common, but as someone who does not share his religious views, I continue to hope for the day when people will recognize that the party of inclusion should not be including divisive language that is disrespectful to and excludes anyone who doesn’t share the religious views of the majority.

Yesterday was that day – and you destroyed it.

In any rational society, that amendment proposal would have failed, but I expected it to pass. It’s clear that you expected it to pass, as well, and when it didn’t, you looked very puzzled. After calling for a second and third vote, you then had the audacity to toss aside the actual vote and declare that you heard a 2/3 majority in favor of the amendment.

You, sir, were lying.

I don’t care if the amendment called for the inclusion of pancakes at every breakfast – I’m upset about the utter disregard for the actual voting results.

As a representative of the party that has been preaching about the dangers of voter reform and the value of every vote, you willfully ignored the clear desire of the people, spat upon the democratic process, and collaborated to alter the party platform by lying about the result of that vote.

Your decision is an embarrassment to the democratic process, the Democratic party and the people you were chosen to represent. Your actions sacrificed the political high ground and brought disgrace upon the party.

I’m calling for you to issue a public apology and to request that the party respect the vote, as offered, and remove that amendment from OUR platform.

- Matt Dillahunty
Austin, TX

http://freethoughtblogs.com/axp/2012/09/06/an-open-letter-to-mayor-antonio-villaraigosa/

Tuesday 4 September 2012

God doesn't exist?

Let’s be careful to remember the limitations on the claim, “God doesn’t exist.” Science is always provisional. Any claim could be wrong—from matter being made of atoms to disease being caused by germs. As Austin Cline said in “Scientifically, God Does Not Exist,” (http://atheism.about.com/od/argumentsagainstgod/a/GodScience.htm) a scientific statement “X doesn’t exist” is shorthand for the more precise statement:

This alleged entity has no place in any scientific equations, plays no role in any scientific explanations, cannot be used to predict any events, does not describe any thing or force that has yet been detected, and there are no models of the universe in which its presence is either required, productive, or useful.

(Extract from the excellent http://crossexaminedblog.com/2012/06/21/god-is-nonexistent/ by Bob Seidensticker author of the book Cross Examined http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1468011332/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=galiluncha-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1468011332)