The Danish Cartoons Again...

Islam really can't take criticism very well can it? Is their faith so weak that critics must be punished with death? Plotting to kill a friggin' cartoonist? How cowardly can you get? If Allah was insulted, let him do the job. He's all powerful anyway. What's a lightning bolt to Him? Why must he depend on incompetent murderer-wannabes?

In a show of defiance, 12 Danish papers published the cartoons again. I hope that more news media around the world will join with their Danish brethren and show that they will not be cowed by threats. I for one, will show my support for them by "reprinting" the most controversial of the cartoons.

Freedom of speech and freedom from tyranny are more important than political correctness and "multicultural respect". If Islam wants to be respected, then it must show that it is worthy of the respect that they so violently demand. For now, I have nothing but contempt for these Fundamentalists of the "Religion of Peace".

Church Protests against Sex Education (or, "What Else Is New?")

The Catholic Church is at it again. In a protest against teaching sex education in public schools, here's what Cubao Bishop Ongtioco had to say:

"[It's] not good to teach adolescents about sex... it will perpetuate sex early... results may be abortion..."

Really? So, does ignorance about sex prevent them from having sex early? I think not. On the contrary, teaching them what sex is all about will actually help prevent unwanted pregnancies.

Then the results may be abortion? That's a slippery slope fallacy. The whole point of sex education is to AVOID unwanted pregnancies, unnecessary abortions and raise the quality of life of the average Filipino. The only other reason the protesters gave was that it "violates the beliefs of the Church". A stunningly brilliant argument, I must say.

But of course, we all know that unwanted pregnancies or abortion isn't what the Church is whining about. It's about SEX, period. The Catholic Church (and most other religions for that matter) have this love-hate relationship with sex. They hate sex, and if given the chance to cut it out of the reproductive process, they'd do it. But they also love it! Especially with little boys.

A little tip to the Church, why not clean up your ranks first, then whine about the sexual morality of other people?

Fortunately, the Quezon City Councilors had the balls to ignore the protesters and the Church, and passed the bill anyway.

"It's time for family planning, because this is really a poverty issue," said Councilor Joseph Juico.

Damn right Councilor Juico! I guess there is still some hope for our country yet.

At least SOMEONE still has some sense

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III is right. Believe in all the supernatural stuff you want, but please, don't ignore medical science because of it.

"Healing Priest" Father Fernando Suarez claims to be able to heal the faithful of their illnesses, and has been holding "healing masses" all over the country. Of course, the danger here is that people will forego science-based medicine in exchange for "faith healing". In fact, more than a hundred people in total have fainted and 2 people actually died during these "healing masses", something a healing priest could have easily prevented, given that the limitless power of the Lord was on hand.

Some would argue that the mere hope of a cure is good for the people; that it gives them the strength to fight. I contend that false hope is worse than no hope at all. Having no reasonable hope for a cure enables the person to better accept their plight and make do with what they have left. If I had a terminal illness and had only 6 months to live, I would strive to accept the reality and make the most of my remaining six months with my loved ones.

Having false hope only ruins what is left of the person's life. If I had false hope of a cure from Father Suarez, then I would be wasting away the remaining six months of my life chasing Father Suarez, and most probably wasted all the money I would have otherwise left to my children.

Faith healing has been omnipresent throughout human history, but the desired effect of relative good health and longevity hasn't. In fact a large study has found that prayer had absolutely no effect on heart surgery patients. In some cases, those who were prayed upon actually had more complications than those who weren't.

Science, or more particularly Medical Science, isn't perfect. but it doesn't claim to be perfect. It is, however, the best tool we have. It is no coincidence that life expectancy shot up and mortality rates went down with the advent of modern, science-based medicine. Not convinced? Check out the life expectancy of countries with almost no access to science-based medicine (i.e. the African nations).

Islam and (The Fairer) Sex

I have to say, no other mainstream religion is more misogynistic than Islam. Stoning two sisters just because they happened to be caught on videotape "with other men"? Doesn't matter that they weren't engaging in any sex. What's worse, the two women have already been punished for the "crime" of being seen with other men. 99 lashes to be exact. Now they're being tried again for the same "crime"?

Even worse, according to Islamic Law, being raped is also considered a crime. They say that it is the woman's fault for tempting men by their mere presence. What kind of sick and twisted reasoning is that?

When the Danish media published a cartoon Mohammed, Muslims all over the world went up in arms and rioted in the streets, claiming to be offended. But when crap like this happens, where are the apologists? Why don't they go out and protest? When 9/11 happened, Muslim communities around the world actually celebrated! Did we hear from the apologists? They certainly should feel insulted because these events make the "Religion of Peace" look REALLY bad.