Tag Archives: religion
Isn’t it our deference to religion that let the Taliban in?
Could it be that the Taliban’s greatest strength is not ruthlessness, lack of compassion, or their powerful external backers, but instead, their subservience to what they consider to be an unquestionable ideology? And surely then, the Western allies’ biggest mistake … Continue reading
Why you should consider joining the National Secular Society
On Saturday, for the first time, I attended the AGM of the National Secular society. It isn’t easy for me to get down to London, where they ‘re normally held, but this year, because of the pandemic, it was held … Continue reading
Religious Intrusion in Perth
Mrs Literarylad and I have recently come back from a holiday in Australia. In Perth, we metaphorically walked our legs off exploring this city that we know well from previous visits, but which is changing rapidly. Down by the waterfront, … Continue reading
Charles Bradlaugh: Forgotten Hero?
If you haven’t heard of the Victorian freethinker and rights campaigner Charles Bradlaugh, it’s probably because the establishment have done their best to write him out of history. Bradlaugh was an atheist at a time when atheists were expected to stand … Continue reading
Airbrushing Easter
Apparently some church people have accused the National Trust of airbrushing Easter. I wondered what they were worried about – after all, airbrushes do give a nice smooth effect. Maybe, I thought, they don’t want the NT to use airbrushes because … Continue reading
First Sunrise
This New Year’s Day started wet and grey, and it seemed like a bad omen – a sign that 2017 was going to continue in the same vein as 2016. But then the rain cleared. This morning I woke up and watched the … Continue reading
Bird Brain & The Maniac Street Preacher
Up until now I’ve resisted Twitter. I’ve never wanted to become a member of the ‘Twittersphere’, ‘Twitterati’ or whatever made-up twit-word you care to use, because while Twitter could be argued to give everyone the opportunity to have their say, … Continue reading
At Cross Purposes…
The British Legion sent me this cross. I like the British Legion. They’re a worthy charity, and they do valuable work, including providing social clubs for millions of people across the country (even if many of those clubs are in decline). … Continue reading
Religious schools are the problem
I’m not surprised that Michael Gove’s free school program has run into difficulties. The focus of discontent has so far been limited to fundamentalist (i.e., extreme) Muslim schools. It’s easy to see the danger of allowing a school to be … Continue reading
literarylad 