Why I bicycle.

Pentacostal kids say the darndest things

Hat tip to PZ Myers of Pharyngula for this gem.

The Holy Ghost was so fucking cool. It made the adults look like idiots!

I nearly wet myself reading this.

It got me thinking about all those dreadful Sunday mornings growing up Catholic. And then I realized that in a weird way, my cycling has replaced Mass as my ritual, and that (even weirder) they have some things in common. Like the fact that they're both stupefyingly boring at times, and also that they absolutely CRY OUT for your mind to wander and to go searching for some type of stimulation that the activity just doesn't provide.

It's true kids--a mind is a terrible thing to waste. On religion.

Scientology uses...a cross?

I'm with Dan Savage:

"...was your crack team of imagineers pooped after making up a whole bunch of new horseshit to get your religion off the ground—which you had to do in order to compete with older, more established religions that made up their horseshit centuries ago..."

First, when did this happen? Second, who do they think they're trying to fool? And third, where's the outrage from the professionally outraged in the Christian community?

Cycling: Would YOU Trust It?

How about a one-wheeled motorcycle?

Via Slog.

Open Letter to Michael Behe

I love good science...



And for more good science, check out Expelled

Stein on Expelled: Sinking to a new low.

Ben Stein was awarded a silver medal in Keith Olbermann's Worst Person in the World a few nights ago for his continued whoring of his new "movie" Expelled. And this one should get him the gold. Stein was recently interviewed for Christianity Today and makes a complete sleeze of himself. Here's his "aw, shucks" opener:

How familiar were you with the subject of Intelligent Design prior to this?

Stein: Not at all. I'm still not that familiar with it. I'm more familiar with it than most people, but nowhere near as familiar with it as a genuine expert in the subject. I don't pretend to be a scientist. I'm the person who moderates the discussion between and among the scientists.

You know, if you're not a professional journalist/reporter, and you're not an expert on the subject matter, you'd better work twice as hard to convince me you've done your research. Oh, wait:

Did you do a lot of reading to prep for the role?

Stein: Some. I read one book cover to cover, From Darwin to Hitler...

Not exactly balancing the ol' scales by reading On the Origin of Species, is he?

And then he follows up with this nice piece of reportorial neutrality:

Scientists were the people in Germany telling Hitler that it was a good idea to kill all the Jews. Scientists were telling Stalin it was a good idea to wipe out the middle-class peasants. Scientists were telling Mao Tse-Tung it was fine to kill 50 million people in order to further the revolution.

And it's the Jewish Anti-Defamation League that is telling Ben Stein to shut up, already:

Using the Holocaust in order to tarnish those who promote the theory of evolution is outrageous and trivializes the complex factors that led to the mass extermination of European Jewry.

Can't really argue that, can you? But then, the creationist scum for whom Stein is the official pitch man aren't interested in facts, now, are they? They're interested in the same thing in which they've always been interested: power over people's thought and keeping the pews (and collection plates) full.

Vermin.

Tom Brokaw: The Disillusioned Generation

Short, but sweet. Money quote:

"I want leaders who when they fail to meet those tests are honest enough to acknowledge their errant ways."

Which we haven't gotten from Bush/Cheney. Which is why Obama is such a popular choice with people right now. And which is why McCain is trying to cover his tracks.

"Today" Sucks

Why I'm glad I'm not a news reporter, anymore.

Greatest cyclist of all time?

From Road Bike Rider Online:

Ageless (could any adjective fit better?) Jeannie Longo won France's Trophee des Grimpeurs (Climbers' Trophy) for the fourth time on Sunday. She covered the 62-km (38.4-mile) course in 1:40 to finish more than 3 minutes up. It was reported to be the 1,020th win of Longo's unending career. Next she hopes to make the French team for Beijing. She has won 4 Olympic medals since women's cycling became part of the Games in 1984. Longo turns 50 in October.

Playing Taps for Clinton

Time has an excellent analysis. It reminds me of an expression I recall that said armies are always prepared for the last war, but never the next one.

Truer than I like to admit

Gotta love Frazz:

McGovern deserts Clinton for Obama

Rats, sinking ships...

George McGovern (looking quite well for a man of 214) tells Hillary to beat it for the sake of party loyalty:

"I hope that she reaches that decision soon so that we can concentrate on a unified party capable of winning the White House next November."

A more succinct analysis you won't find.

And someone needs to remind everyone that the Clintons have no loyalty, except where it serves others to be loyal to them. Kick those twits out of the Democratic Party, already. And have the disinfectant on hand when you do.

Cheney Chief of Staff Subpoenaed

Better late than never, I guess.

David Addington was served with the subpoena shortly after the House Judiciary Committee approved it Tuesday morning, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

Cheney's office told the committee last week Addington would appear before a Judiciary subcommittee if subpoenaed, but only if the panel limited its questions.

How's this for an opening question: are you as afraid of US as you are of Cheney? Answer: probably not.

Altogether, now: sing like a canary. Sing like a canary...

Scientology spoof

The original:

The spoof

All hail the Flying Spaghetti Monster!

More on Scientology.

Cycling: Feherty recovering from bike crash

I'm ashamed of myself that I missed this. I'm so out of touch with the world of sports, I didn't know my favorite golf announcer nearly bought the farm being hit by a truck:

I felt a violent blow to my back, and I went flying through the air. I landed on my left side, on my left shoulder. I took a good crack to my helmet. It could have been much worse — the truck sort of pushed me off to the right, instead of sucking me underneath. Otherwise, I'd be roadkill.

This guy needs to get ahold of Dave Zabriske. The Yield to Life campaign should have a new spokesman, and they'd have a great one, as funny as Feherty is.

Ben Stein makes Olbermann's Worst

National day of prayer redux

What she said...

Quote of the day.

A classic:

“There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.”
Douglas Adams, The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

My new favorite band

OK, so the singer's a total hottie. I'm a guy--sue me. The song's still pretty funny.

National day of prayer

Let's just say I agree with everything PZ Myers says here.

Fuck the National Day of Prayer.