I'd seriously never seen this argument before, but christians now seem to be coming out with this more and more often. OK, what's hard to understand that, during the last millennium, Europe was the major colonial power, and that Europe used a christian calendar? And that we still use it because to change it would be expensive, absurd and largely pointless? Are they really this stupid? Yes they are *sigh*

Scene: Garden of Eden. Newly built. Adam and Eve, sounding naive and newly minted, converse with God. Birdsong in background, gentle waters lapping.   God: So, Adam, Eve. You like it here? Adam: Oh yeah, it's great! Eve: Nice flowers! G: Good, glad you like it. Took me days. A: I'm quite fond of the trees. E: Oh yeah, just look at the trees. G: Yes, I like them myself, and speaking of trees, before I let you alone there's just one thing. A: OK. What? E: Oooh! Butterfly! G: There's this one thing, right? A: Ok.... G: There's a tree over there. With fruit on it A: The big one? G: Yes, the big...

Ruth Gledhill writes the "Articles of Faith" blog for the UK's Times newspaper. I've subscribed to her column for a while now, because as an activist atheist, it's always good to see what's going on around the world in the area of "faith". One of the problems* with Ruth is, though, that occasionally, she just doesn't get it. Take this headline, for example. Happy 'atheist bus' children are Christians Oh, Ruth! That's ironic! Those silly atheists have done a bus ad featuring children, but they're actually christians! Ho ho ho! Oh, those atheists, oh so wrong. Trouble is, here's what the ad actually says So in...

Laurence Krauss is my new hero. Explains curvature of space and higher-dimensonal geometry exactly the way I explain it in the pub - with triangles on spheres. Also touches on Hilbert's Hotel, a brilliant insight into the concept of infinity. Recommended watch. MAKE yourself an hour of free time so you can watch this. Seriously.

  Lock Up Your Mountain Bikes, by the incomparable Half Man Half Biscuit. Bonus lyrics and chords. The "E" is the high 'E' barred on the seventh fret, and the G is barred at 3 I'm using a capo at 2 in the video to make the B7 braindead easy to play for a big-fingered bass player like myself.  [correction 12/11/09 - I messed up writing out the chords. thanks to steven in the comments thread] EThere is surely nothing worse than washing sieves ...

To my knowledge, only in Christianity does this happen. You point out direct contradictions in an account, and are immediately regaled with: But that's evidence that it's true! There is no other field, that I know of, where this could happen. In the context of a scientific theory, two conflicting sets of data are an indication that your hypothesis may not be correct. In jurisprudence, two conflicting testimonies mean that one or more of the parties are either lying or mistaken. In everyday experience, if one friend tells you they saw Britney Spears in the street and the other says "No that...

From the man who brought us God's punishment in the form of bushfires, and satanic rites influencing Canberra, come some little gems: Prime Minister Kevin Rudd about to betray Australia and 3 very important links regarding the One World Goverment and President Obama Some choice extracts from these ravings: you will soon see and hear a very clear picture from President Barrack Hussein Obama himself that he is indeed a Muslim… I have not seen anything so clear before. Have you? Furthermore, President Obama is trying his very best to divide Jerusalem. I pray that the Benjamin Netanyahu the PM of Israel would stand strong...

Yes, another in the "Keeping Two Chevrons Apart" blog series. I've been a busy, busy guitar playing maniac. Arthur's Farm first appeared on the ACD album, and was on the first copied tape of HMHB stuff I ever posessed. It's obviously, a take on "Animal Farm" involving Arthur Askey and Douglas Bader. To explain would belabour the joke, but if you have no clue, read the links. Recorded on my Epi G400 SG, which desperately needs new strings, through a Zoom G1X on "accoustic emulator", with a cardioid mic through a BOSS DS-1 distortion. Anyway. Arthur's Farm. I've been having issues with de-sync of...

Questioning my own wisdom as I do so, I hereby begin the "Keeping Two Chevrons Apart" category on this here blog, in which a guy who can neither sing, nor play guitar, will post songs for the edification, amusement and possible derision of his audience. Click the date to see the vid in all its horror-filled glory