All Blog Posts (7,363)

Octans - the octant

The southernmost constellation in the whole sky, Octans, is named after a celestial navigation instrument called an octant, which is better than a quadrant, but not as good as a sextant, and no where as good as GPS. Isaac Newton invented the…

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Added by Brad Snowder on January 29, 2017 at 10:10am — 1 Comment

Ophiuchus - the serpent bearer

You gotta be crazy, taking on a big bruiser like him.

The constellation of Ophiuchus represents a big guy who figured out how to kill snakes and then bring them back to life. He figured if it worked on snakes it should work on humans too. The gods killed him of course, because…

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Added by Brad Snowder on January 21, 2017 at 6:29pm — 5 Comments

How does religion (fundamentalism) affect empathy?

So I have not given this a lot of thought nor have i often encountered it in books or conversation. The knee jerk answer is (especially for theists who equate religion with morality and good character) that it enhances empathy.

My guess is that in general the greater the degree of fundamentalism the greater the degree of reduction in empathy. What say you?

Added by Jake LaFort on January 18, 2017 at 12:56am — 21 Comments

Orion - the hunter

After the Big Dipper, Orion is easily the most known and the most pointed out constellation by the people who recognize at least some of them. There is the obvious belt, although Orion lived BP (Before Pants) so he wears a short skirt, or kilt or such, and below that hangs his…

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Added by Brad Snowder on January 14, 2017 at 12:49pm — No Comments

Save our Secular Bloggers

The numbers of missing persons are increasing day by day in Pakistan .…

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Added by Noon Alif on January 10, 2017 at 10:11am — 10 Comments

Pavo - the peacock

There is a constellation way down in the southern part of the sky named Pavo which means Peacock, and its brightest star is named Peacock. Coincidence? Are there really any coincidences? Twenty four hours in a day, twenty four beers in a case. Okay that one maybe. Although…

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Added by Brad Snowder on January 7, 2017 at 1:13pm — No Comments

ZOJAIN

ZOJAIN IS AN ARABIC WORD ACCORDING TO GOOGLE ITS MEANING IS SPOUSES

CHAPTER (51) SŪRAT L-DHĀRIYĀT (THE WIND THAT SCATTER) VERSES 49 KORAN SAYS

وَمِنْ كُلِّ شَیءٍ خَلَقْنَا زَوْجَینِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ”

AND OF ALL THINGS WE CREATED TWO MATES; PERHAPS YOU WILL REMEMBER…

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Added by Noon Alif on January 7, 2017 at 10:16am — 2 Comments

And the difference is……???

What is the difference between believing that a god actually exists and a delusion?

If someone can give me a reasonable answer I might be willing to change my understanding of reality.

Added by Reg The Fronkey Farmer on January 5, 2017 at 1:00pm — 91 Comments

Returning After a Long Hiatus

I joined the think atheist community many years ago because I felt that I could not fully express my views about life to friends on Facebook and Twitter.I am back now and in need of a place to vent. I hope you will read my words and show me support. More to come...

Added by Michael R Moore on January 4, 2017 at 11:20am — 4 Comments

Pegasus - the winged horse

One of the bigger autumn constellations is in the Perseus group, Pegasus. It's just the front half of a horse, and the wings of course. These figures in the sky are not always the whole figure, sometimes it's half. It's good that they chose to use the front half of the horse…

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Added by Brad Snowder on January 1, 2017 at 12:47pm — No Comments

New Year & Pakistan

In 2017 nothing gonna change in Pakistan but it will bring a huge wave of extremism & sectarianism. Last ten days of December has very much made this clear. State has not implemented the National action plan which was introduced to eliminate the violence , hate speech & terrorism.

‏Sunni clerics are openly accusing people for blasphemy & they are crossing the Mount Everest of ignorance but the state is helpless.

At Christmas Shan Taseer wished Merry…

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Added by Noon Alif on December 31, 2016 at 9:00am — 2 Comments

Perseus - the hero

The story behind the constellations of Perseus and those of his group is an ancient tale that is usually told from the perspective of the hero himself. It's his patriarchal privilege.

There were two brothers, Acrisius and Proetus, who always…

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Added by Brad Snowder on December 24, 2016 at 5:16pm — No Comments

Religious mongers & Russian Ambassador

In the West people are told that Sufis are very peaceful people in Pakistan. Every 2nd day these Sufis come on roads & demand death plenty for Asia Bibi.

I dont like theologies but in west I find Christmas a very healthy & commercial festival. At least Christians in the West don't compel me to believe in their theology thats why i like this festival.

Last night a man attacked a…

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Added by Noon Alif on December 20, 2016 at 5:00pm — No Comments

Phoenix - the mythical bird

Most constellations are a Latin word that translates to some generic thing. But a few are their own translation such as a specific person's name. The Phoenix is a unique mythical bird that is pretty much only known as Phoenix, the bird that's hard to get rid of. As we all learned…

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Added by Brad Snowder on December 18, 2016 at 11:39am — 3 Comments

Pictor - the painter's easel

Pictor is part of the Lacaille Group, the handful of constellations named after a bunch of 18th century stuff by a 18th century French guy. In this case it is the easel which held the artist's canvas in the days before Photoshop. Fun fact, the word "easel" is the old german…

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Added by Brad Snowder on December 11, 2016 at 10:07am — 6 Comments

PK661 & Desi Bedouins

Pakistan is a corrupt state where the heads of all institutions are morally corrupt & their moral values based on religion.

Big scams are routine matters when new projects are launched. Kickbacks are taken & this becomes a burden for the poor as inflation increases. Nobody cares about this & sometimes the consequences are that people pay with their lives.

Two days ago a flight PK661 crashed & a favourite singer of my childhood died with other 47 people…

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Added by Noon Alif on December 9, 2016 at 5:30pm — No Comments

Catholic Vegetarians??

Before I get to the questions I would like to suggest that one of the biggest predictors of a person’s religion is geography. A person born and raised in Alabama is most likely to become a Christian while a person born and raised in Riyadh is most likely to become a Muslim and in India a 95% chance of being a Hindu.

I recently spoke with a Hindu who has very little knowledge of Christianity and even less of Catholicism. We were discussing religious beliefs and I was asked to explain…

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Added by Reg The Fronkey Farmer on December 7, 2016 at 4:00pm — 16 Comments

An Election & Corruption

Few days ago there was a by-election in Jhang Pakistan. A banned terrorist organisation openly campaigned & won.

These terrorist organisation are having a hand of establishment on their back thats why they are openly allowed to run their campaign. Followers of such organisations openly campaign on social media for promoting their extremism. Cyber crime bill has been passed but nobody takes any action against them.

From my knowledge most of the religious countries… Continue

Added by Noon Alif on December 5, 2016 at 7:37pm — 4 Comments

Pisces - the fishes

The Autumn constellation of Pisces is a good example of how a group of stars can get a name without being a connect-the-dots sort of thing. It appears to have been started in ancient Mesopotamia by astronomers in the easternmost region of the fertile crescent, or in biblical…

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Added by Brad Snowder on December 3, 2016 at 2:07pm — 1 Comment

They're Here

Time of reckoning. Aliens have arrived. Superior beings are in charge. So much so that the cosmos is understood. All adults are compelled to take a stand as to whether god(s) exist(ed). Answer incorrectly and you are dispatched with extreme prejudice.

Are you tied in knots and filled with fear? Or do you walk into the moment of truth confessional with aplomb?

Is the typical atheist as certain/carefree in giving her answer as the orthodox theist?

Added by Jake LaFort on November 29, 2016 at 11:54am — 20 Comments