…and this is a 
Blog Against Theocracy
Category: Religion • Weblogs
Posted on: March 21, 2007 6:53 PM, by PZ Myers
Neural Gourmet has put out a call for everyone to blog against theocracy:
I'd like invite you all to Blog Against Theocracy. This is a little blog swarm being put together by everybody's favorite panties blogger Blue Gal for Easter weekend, April 6th through the 8th. The idea is simple. Just post something related to, and in support of, the separation of church and state each of those three days. Something big, something small, artistic, musical, textual or otherwise. The topic is your choosing. Whether your thing is stem cell research, intelligent design/Creationism, abortion rights, etc., it's all good. Separation of church and state impacts so many issues and is essential.
This is hardly a challenge for me—I have to consciously restrain myself from turning this blog into one long sustained growl against religion anyway, so all I have to do is take the muzzle off for three days. And as it is, you people will probably tell me that you don't notice that the 6th is any different than the 5th of April.
Comments
PZ- I'd like to see what it means for you to take off the muzzle. One of my favorite posts of yours is the one you did for Easter 2006, "Easter Mourning."
Posted by: dukkamon | March 21, 2007 7:09 PM
Ooh, and it starts on my birthday! Happy Birthday to me! :)
(I was born, as it happens, on Easter Sunday, for which poor judgment I was rewarded with the middle name Christian. Pity me.)
Posted by: Scott Simmons | March 21, 2007 7:51 PM
Ha, I was born on Christmas and am named after not one but two saints.
Posted by: Rasputin | March 21, 2007 7:59 PM
Might I suggest speaking out publicly as well as on blogs?
Posted by: vertalio | March 21, 2007 8:34 PM
Blog Against Theocracy. Outstanding.
The WAAGNFNP will be there. I've already written it on my calendar. In ink.
Posted by: Oaktown Girl | March 21, 2007 8:38 PM
I'll try to get a new cartoon ready, though the last few might suffice.
Posted by: dhonig | March 21, 2007 8:53 PM
Separation of church and state? I am against it.
It is high time we got those religous nutters under some kind of control, and the government is about the only thing powerful enough to do it.
Of course, here in the good old USA, we may have to wait for a regime change for this plan to have the desired effect.
Posted by: Tex | March 21, 2007 8:53 PM
You know, this kind of thing would be easier to plan every year if they didn't keep moving Easter around. I'll do something about this Church and State thing on my blog. I all ready have an idea.
Posted by: Mike Haubrich | March 21, 2007 9:55 PM
@Scott Simmons:
I pity you. :,(
It would be worse if you were born on christmas day with a star sudeenly becoming visible.
YOu would never live that down.
Posted by: cv | March 21, 2007 11:08 PM
Cool idea. I'm in. (Now all I have to do is remember..)
Posted by: beepbeepitsme | March 21, 2007 11:44 PM
RE raputin
"Ha, I was born on Christmas and am named after not one but two saints."
I was named after greek pagans. Damn good choices they were too. My brother didn't fair as well, he got at least one name from the bible.
Posted by: beepbeepitsme | March 21, 2007 11:47 PM
OK PZ- this will be an unpopular post... but here goes. While I whole-heartedly agree with you about most things that you write about, I think that, while fun, it is too easy to target the wingnuts with the most extreme views and outlandish behavior. If you are going to "blog against theocracy," why don't you use the opportunity to address Barack O'bama's personal statement about faith and politics?
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/faith/
I just listened to it and was prepared to be disgusted... and while it made me cringe for all of the obvious reasons, I think that this is still a more mature and reasoned position. Furthermore, I think if reason and logic is going to win, we must be able to argue against these more moderate positions rather than waste time on the wingnuts.
This speach O'bama gives is about a 1/2 hour in length, and while I was pleasantly surprised by parts of it, I realized that we have a new war to fight... and we shouldn't come off looking like the wingnuts with extreme rhetoric.
Posted by: scott | March 22, 2007 12:23 AM
Hasn't PZ already addressed Obama's nattering about faith, and his reluctance to endorse him?
Posted by: Mandolin | March 22, 2007 12:47 AM
Only slightly off-topic: I have just seen Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion advertised on MSNBC. It quite took my breath away to see the words "Imagine no religion" being broadcast on American TV, even if it was only cable, and even if it was during Keith Olbermann's show. It was probably very targeted advertising.
Posted by: talapus | March 22, 2007 1:39 AM
Well, on the bright side, I was raised in a small, unpopular Christian denomination that was therefore very much in favor of church/state separation. You know, that idea that was pushed so hard by the Baptists way back before they got big enough to like the idea of theocracy ...
Posted by: Scott Simmons | March 22, 2007 8:22 AM
I think a takedown of Obama-style faith is a great idea. Somewhere between Spinozan Isis and the Creepy Old ThunderChucker is where most people stick their superstitions.
Unfortunately, there's a lot of wiggle room there, and the creamy middle slip-slides its goalposts all over the place.
Posted by: stogoe | March 22, 2007 1:06 PM
Oh PZ, you know when you take the muzzle off you make me totally hot.
But seriously, I am so excited that the science blogs are going to take this on. It's going to be huge.
We're also getting some atheist bloggers involved, too, they being some of the best bloggers on religion out there, in the opinion of this divinity school graduate.
Love on ya for the major, major props. You're the best. (and please, keep that muzzle off more often. It's not like James Dobson wears his all the time. Feh.) xoxoxo
Posted by: Blue Gal | March 23, 2007 10:39 PM