Category Archives: Religion

Tear-Downs and Demons

Posted on Monday 1 June 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Trump’s cancellations, which I can’t keep up with; How Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill will impact public schools; How UFOs are interpreted by the religious as demons; Preisner’s “Silence, Night & Dreams” – – – I’m not sure I’m keeping up … Continue reading →

Posted in conservatives, Lunacy, Music, Politics, Religion | Leave a comment

Today’s Words of Wisdom

Posted on Friday 29 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Richard Dawkins defends being a “cultural Christian” and suggests being a cultural scientist, appreciating the grandeur of our “increasingly understood universe”; Bertrand Russell suggested that intelligent people are those who see the world as it is, not as they would … Continue reading →

Posted in conservatives, Culture, Philosophy, Religion | Leave a comment

More About the Contrast between Principles and Tribalism

Posted on Thursday 28 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

The January 6th rioters feel entitled to reparations by the US government for the inconvenience they’ve experienced from having broken the law and been arrested; Contrasting views of Christianity in Texas; How the GOP fires people who value principles over … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Nature, Politics, Religion | Leave a comment

What Scientists Do…

Posted on Wednesday 27 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

A revision to climate change predictions doesn’t discredit science, as some people would like to think; Yuval Noah Harari on the global liberal order; the stories of fascism, communism, and liberalism; redemption; and self-correcting mechanisms; Short items about Trump’s Ebola … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Nature, Religion, Science | Leave a comment

Five Years On; and, More About Morality, in a Way

Posted on Thursday 21 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Five years since my heart transplant; That IRS deal and presidential corruption; Paul Krugman describes this as “MAGA corruption reaches the point of no return”; Amanda Marcotte calls the White House ballroom “a symbol of Trump’s failure.” – – – … Continue reading →

Posted in conservatives, Lunacy, Personal history, Religion | Comments Off on Five Years On; and, More About Morality, in a Way

Morality, and the Bible, Again

Posted on Wednesday 20 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

How the world is becoming more moral, not less; Trump’s egotistical take on religion; Trump’s laughable phone; Noting Trump’s IRS deal that somehow exempts his family from tax audits forever; And how a Christian nationalist pastor thinks America needs “less … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Human Nature, Morality, Religion | Comments Off on Morality, and the Bible, Again

Superficial Christianity on Full Display

Posted on Monday 18 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Things said at last weekend’s prayer rally, and how they strike me as unhinged from reality; Heather Cox Richardson’s take: a turning away from “Enlightenment values of natural rights, equality, and self-government to one that requires Americans to accept that … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, conservatives, Human Nature, Religion | Comments Off on Superficial Christianity on Full Display

Settling Back Into the Middle Ages

Posted on Sunday 17 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

How the US is sliding back into the Middle Ages: demons, teleportation, religious practice; re-enchantment or cognitive limitations? Where real enchantment lies; About the prayer festival on the National Mall; The “universe” of Christianity; Two items about St. Paul. – … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Psychology, Religion, Science | Comments Off on Settling Back Into the Middle Ages

The World Marches On, With or Without the US

Posted on Saturday 16 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

An idea to anticipate, not react to, car accidents; How American under Trump and MAGA is moving exactly backwards in dependence on fossil fuels; Florida is whitewashing the history of slavery; Men who want women to be quiet: this idea … Continue reading →

Posted in Lunacy, Politics, Religion, Science | Comments Off on The World Marches On, With or Without the US

Haidt’s Graduation Speech, and More

Posted on Friday 15 May 2026 by Mark R. Kelly

Jonathan Haidt’s graduation speech: choose your attention, do hard things, make personal connections; Like billionaires, what Christian nationalists have is never enough: now they want to inscribe “In God We Trust” on every Federal Building in the US; Amanda Marcotte … Continue reading →

Posted in Psychology, Religion | Comments Off on Haidt’s Graduation Speech, and More