Michelle Duggar caused quite a stir in the news media when she gave birth to her 17th child not that long ago. I posted about it in this story: “Quiverfull as God allows.”

Michelle Duggar continues to be “quiverfull” for the Lord”

Happy Mother’s Day: Woman pregnant with 18th child

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - It’s a happy Mother’s Day for an Arkansas woman — she’s pregnant with her 18th child.

Michelle Duggar, 41, is due on New Year’s Day, and the latest addition will join seven sisters and 10 brothers. There are two sets of twins.

“We’ve had three in January, three in December. Those two months are a busy time for us,” she said, laughing.

The Duggars’ oldest child, Josh, is 20, and the youngest, Jennifer, is nine months old.

The fast-growing family lives in Tontitown in northwest Arkansas in a 7,000-square-foot home. All the children — whose names start with the letter J — are home-schooled.

Duggar has been been pregnant for more than 11 years of her life, and the family is in the process of filming another series for Discovery Health.

The new show looks at life inside the Duggar home, where chores — or “jurisdictions” — are assigned to each child. One episode of the new show involves a “jurisdiction swap,” where the boys do chores traditionally assigned to the girls, and vice versa, Duggar said.

“The girls swapped jurisdictions, changing tires, working in the garages, mowing the grass,” she said. “The boys got to cook supper from start to finish, clean the bathrooms,” among other chores.

Duggar said she’s six weeks along and the pregnancy is going well. She and her husband, Jim Bob Duggar, said they’ll keep having children as long as God wills it.

“The success in a family is first off, a love for God, and secondly, treating each other like you want to be treated,” Jim Bob Duggar said. “Our goal is for each one of our children to be best friends, and everybody working together to serve each other makes that happen.”

The other Duggar children, in between Joshua and Jennifer, are Jana, 18; John-David, 18; Jill, 16; Jessa, 15; Jinger, 14; Joseph, 13; Josiah, 11; Joy-Anna, 10; Jeremiah, 9; Jedidiah, 9; Jason, 7; James, 6; Justin, 5; Jackson, 3; and Johannah, 2.

They just keep plopping out babies because they believe it’s the Lawd’s will, but what about this “free will” and personal choices that Xians say they have? To me, this is highly irresponsible, and selfish. Why not adopt some of those children out there who need homes if you have so much desire to have children? Why does not their God call them to take in the needy and homeless children of our country instead of mindlessly plopping out more and more of their own?

Maybe it’s not so mindless. Maybe they are doing it for money and publicity? This comment might explain it all:

Duggar has been been pregnant for more than 11 years of her life, and the family is in the process of filming another series for Discovery Health.

I wonder how much they get paid for that?

Jeez, all this hostility on this blog. Why are atheists so angry?…

McCain’s Spiritual Guide: Destroy Islam

The leader of a 12,000-member congregation, Parsley has written several books outlining his fundamentalist religious outlook, including the 2005 Silent No More. In this work, Parsley decries the “spiritual desperation” of the United States, and he blasts away at the usual suspects: activist judges, civil libertarians who advocate the separation of church and state, the homosexual “culture” (”homosexuals are anything but happy and carefree”), the “abortion industry,” and the crass and profane entertainment industry. And Parsley targets another profound threat to the United States: the religion of Islam. In a chapter titled “Islam: The Deception of Allah,” Parsley warns there is a “war between Islam and Christian civilization.” He continues: I cannot tell you how important it is that we understand the true nature of Islam, that we see it for what it really is. In fact, I will tell you this: I do not believe our country can truly fulfill its divine purpose until we understand our historical conflict with Islam. I know that this statement sounds extreme, but I do not shrink from its implications. The fact is that America was founded, in part, with the intention of seeing this false religion destroyed, and I believe September 11, 2001, was a generational call to arms that we can no longer ignore.[…] Parsley claims that Islam is an “anti-Christ religion” predicated on “deception.” The Muslim prophet Muhammad, he writes, “received revelations from demons and not from the true God.” And he emphasizes this point: “Allah was a demon spirit.” […] At the end of his chapter on Islam, Parsley asks, “Are we a Christian nation? I say yes.” Without specifying what actions should be taken to eradicate the religion, he essentially calls for a new crusade. Parsley, who refers to himself as a “Christocrat,” is no stranger to controversy. In 2007, the grassroots organization he founded, the Center for Moral Clarity, called for prosecuting people who commit adultery. In January, he compared Planned Parenthood to Nazis. In the past Parsley’s church has been accused of engaging in pro-Republican partisan activities in violation of its tax-exempt status.

I don’t know about all you non-believers. You’re all way too hostile, and you just don’t understand the right path.

The nutball stories abound. I found this in Yahoo Odd News category, and that is right where it belongs because it’s so bizarre. Some people go to such extremes just to maintain their sky daddy beliefs. I am embarrassed to say this fruitball is from my state of Illinois. (Actually, he lives up near ChuckA!) And this doofus is allowed to drive bus loads of children around.

Man asks court to change his name to ‘In God We Trust’

ZION, Ill. - Steve Kreuscher wants a judge to allow him to legally change his name. He wants to be known as “In God We Trust.”

Kreuscher (CROY’-shir) says the new name would symbolize the help God gave him through tough times.

The 57-year-old man also told the (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald he’s worried that atheists may succeed in removing the phrase “In God We Trust” from U.S. currency.

He recalls that the phrase “God Reigns” was removed from the Zion city seal in 1992 after courts deemed it unconstitutional. Zion was founded as a theocracy — by a sect that believed the Earth was flat.

The school bus driver and amateur artist in the northern Chicago suburb says he has filed a petition to change his name in Lake County Circuit Court.

Recently, I had a visit by a 17-year-old snotty creationist high-school junior (she goes to a fundie school, of course and plans to go to fundie college) who came by my personal blog to tell me that I was “ridiculous” in my critique about the IDiotic film, Expelled. After 150 comments, and several educated atheists trying to convince Lauren to round up some real books on evolution, pointed her to some excellent evolution resources, and after we had asked Lauren some very direct questions that she was not able to answer, Lauren said she was far too busy to “waste time” responding to anything we asked her. (Even though she wasn’t too busy to keep coming back to tell us she loves gawd and to tell us we will find out for ourselves one day and it will be too late, yadda, yadda, yadda.) The reality is, Lauren has decided to remain willfully ignorant. This is quite sad, and it happens to millions of fundie kids.

Lauren feels that the Expelled film is brilliant. Lauren says she believes the world was created “with all her heart” by an invisible sky daddy. Lauren believes in this sky daddy “with all her heart”. Lauren believes in Intelligent Design. She wants it taught side by side with evolution. So, since Lauren and other IDers want creationism taught side by side with science, then I pointed out that it should be held to the same standards as science. I asked Lauren repeatedly these following questions:

What are ID’s scientific predictions?

What experiments have been done to support your ID theory? WITHOUT THE MYTHOLOGY BOOK.

I must have asked her a dozen times at my blog, and at her’s. No answer, of course.

I have asked these questions of several IDers in the past several days, and they evade the question, ignore it or just flat out get frustrated and pull out the “you’re persecuting me” card.

Try it yourself. In debates with fundies, ask them these three simple questions and see them get all pissy, frustrated, and even outright angry. They all end up leaving, choosing to remain willfully ignorant.

For those who might not have known…

A beautiful response…

It’s time to raise our voice in prayer,
And pray to–well, there’s no one there.
No god to urge to do our bidding;
Go on and pray–just know you’re kidding.

It’s time to all sit on our asses,
And pray forgiveness for trespasses
(Or is that to forgive our debtor?
Who cares, as long as we feel better.)

It’s time we all embrace god fully,
Feel all righteous, good, and holy–
Or be some atheistic jerk,
Roll up your god-damned sleeves, and work!

It’s time to say “I do not care
To join you in this day of prayer.”
Sure, a day off looks like fun,
But there is work that must be done.

Our problems will not fix themselves
There is no god to send in elves
To do the work of human ranks
So… join, today, in prayer? No thanks.

And another good response…

Women Seeking Abortions Must Have Ultrasounds Against Their Will

Under the guise of obtaining informed patient consent, this new law requires doctors to withhold pregnancy termination until an ultrasound is performed. The law states that either an abdominal or vaginal ultrasound, whichever gives the best image of the fetus, must be done. Neither the patient nor the doctor can decide which type of ultrasound to use, and the patient cannot opt out of the ultrasound and still have the procedure. In effect, then, the legislature has mandated that a woman have an instrument placed in her vagina for no medical benefit. The law makes no exception for victims of rape and incest. By existing law, women already must be told where to find information about fetal development and referred to locations for a free ultrasound before a termination can be scheduled. […] In a further reversal of standard medical practice, this bill defines failure to perform this unnecessary medical procedure as “unprofessional conduct” and suggests that the state medical board may remove the physician’s license. Failure to perform the ultrasound also leads to fines beginning at $10,000 and increasing to more than $100,000. By comparison, the highest fine for negligent homicide or driving under the influence in Oklahoma is $1,000.

“Whichever gives the best image of the fetus” — ah, yes, a woman now has to get more stuff shoved into her (against her will) to compound her decision to get an abortion. How nice.

Why not just cut to the chase? Let those goddam sexually active women have their abortions, and then we’ll just smack the shit out of them for ever having sex.

This is just another example when things are beyond our control, humans resort to superstitious incantation, not only for weather and natural events, but now some god botherers think that their god can influence the oil cartels.

Choir director brings prayers for lower gas prices to SF

SAN FRANCISCO - A choir director who hopes prayer can bring down high gas prices is trying out his approach at some of the costliest pumps in the country.

Rocky Twyman of Washington, D.C., came to San Francisco over the weekend to stage a pray-in at a Chevron station. He is also calling on churchgoers to ask for God’s intervention where he says politicians have failed.

BUT, he also says:

. . . people praying for cheaper fuel should also walk more and use car pools.

No duh. He already is prepared for prayer not to work. Nothing happens unless HUMANS DO SOMETHING.

LINK TO THE FULL SILLY STORY

Here is a WhyWontGodHealAmputees.com video about prayer

Seriously, at this stage of the game, are we really that surprised?…

Soldier Sues Army, Saying His Atheism Led to Threats

FORT RILEY, Kan. — When Specialist Jeremy Hall held a meeting last July for atheists and freethinkers at Camp Speicher in Iraq, he was excited, he said, to see an officer attending.

But minutes into the talk, the officer, Maj. Freddy J. Welborn, began to berate Specialist Hall and another soldier about atheism, Specialist Hall wrote in a sworn statement. “People like you are not holding up the Constitution and are going against what the founding fathers, who were Christians, wanted for America!” Major Welborn said, according to the statement.

Major Welborn told the soldiers he might bar them from re-enlistment and bring charges against them, according to the statement.

Last month, Specialist Hall and the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, an advocacy group, filed suit in federal court in Kansas, alleging that Specialist Hall’s right to be free from state endorsement of religion under the First Amendment had been violated and that he had faced retaliation for his views. In November, he was sent home early from Iraq because of threats from fellow soldiers.

So, if people ever uses the old “atheists in foxholes” canard in your presence, you can (1) tell them that they’re probably right, because the other xian soliders in their platoon would turn their guns on them and shoot them if they said anything else; or, (2), simply point them here (or here).

Ah, xians — just gotta love ‘em…

(You know, because they’ll KILL YOU if ya don’t…)