Sadly, not as much as I’d like. I’m still very skittish after the incident that happened last autumn that prompted me to give up expressing my opinions publicly; and then, at work yesterday, I had to deal with someone who seems to be obsessed and has been harassing people here at work multiple time a day for weeks. Then there’s the guy from Montreal who’s been sending crazier and crazier death threats to skeptics and atheists around the world, and has begun being seen at skeptical events.

There are some real effed-up people out there, and I’m not too keen on making myself a bigger target.

So, if I start posting again on here, it’ll probably be mostly banal stuff. Yeah, I’m sorry to say, I give in to terrorist threats. That’s not to say that what I’ll post here might not be of interest — it will be to me. And I’m really itching to post some thoughts on how culture is created and how it affects the way we think and believe, but I’ll probably keep it all at a higher, theory level and try to stay away from things that may trigger personal buttons of this-person-doesn’t-believe-the-same-things-I-do-so-I-must-fuck-with-their-life!

I keep thinking I’m an idiot and a fool for putting my thoughts and opinions out there for people to read; but then, that’s like blaming the rape victim for wearing a skirt and leaving the house. I’m not advocating violence, I’m not advocating revolt or rebellion, I’m not advocating hate, I’m not advocating irresponsible actions — if I’m advocating anything, it’s for people to think critically, skeptically, and outside your comfort zone. I express opinions and share uncommon info because I want to, primarily, to express myself, but also to give people a chance to look at the world they live in just a little bit differently. Do I deserve to be harassed and terrorized for that?

(comic by Nina Paley)

In the meantime, I plan to do a lot more blogging of SF, writing, literature, reviews, and scholarly stuff. And for that, I’m using my blogs: GrogMonkey and Tragic Sans.
Right now they just mirror each other; I need to decide on how to separate their roles and make them unique. Shoulda done that before today.
Anyway, so there’s the update.

Have a good year!

It’s official, I am now a regular contributor to the new, up-and-coming blog site for atheism advocacy: Atheism Resource.

Their… er, I guess our tagline, is: “Big questions deserve big answers.” In that spirit, my first offering over there is a two-part essay on atheism and its role (or lack of) in determining ethics and meaning to life. Big enough for ya?

• What Does Atheism Have to Offer? Part 1
• What Does Atheism Have to Offer? Part 2

I end the essay with what I think is one of the best observations about appreciating life from the humanist perspective, by Paul Kurtz.

Well, go check the site out, it has some great contributors (me notwithstanding), including the incredible and impressively intelligent and well-read (if somewhat crass and crude) JT Eberhard. He’s embarrassingly young for being so enviably sharp and effective, and even lives in the same town as I do. While I will always be some curmudgeony blogger, I fully expect JT to become one of America’s foremost advocates for rational atheism. People will one day in the not-too-distant future be including Eberhard in the same breath as Dawkins, Hitchens, and Harris.

Anyway, I hope I can add something of value, or at least interesting, to the discourse. T’would be cool for Atheism Resource to at least place around the likes of The Friendly Atheist and Debunking Christianity. (…whom we need to get plugged by on their sites, hint-hint, Adam. *grin*)

Hmm, maybe we can be looked at as the BoingBoing of atheism?

I’m currently working on the big-ole Weekend Retreat Alpha post. It was a 3-for-1 weekend of Nicky videos and some interesting group discussion — so look for that (and a regular weekly Alpha post) sometime during the evil spooky weekend.

I’m also working on a post about voting that may be heretical to some. That’ll be good for some laughs, and coming in a day or so.

And breaking from religion and politics (well, religion at least), I have a reaction to SF author extraordinare Charles Stross’ reaction to my beloved sub-genre of steampunk coming up.

Lots of goodies; stay tuned!

I’m really going to miss being able to post during the day, and I can’t copy n paste on iPhone, so that limits the ability for me to react to articles or the like. I’m going to try to post in the evenings, but it’s difficult after work around making dinner and studying, before falling asleep on my books.

Hopefully later this week I’ll do a review of a new album from one of my favorite artists and maybe a book or two.

Anyway, just wanted to post a reminder I’m still around! Stay tuned.

Unfortunately, it’s completely stopped my RSS/blog reading and writing. In my last job it was easy to just take a few minutes each day and read the latest newsfeeds and if inspired by something, spend 5 to 15 minutes as a break to write a blog. Well, that’s when I was in control of the network. Now I work at a place where the ‘net is monitored and my PC can even be VNC (remotely viewed) stealthily. So, no news/blog reading and no posting.

It’s annoying, but I’m not angry about it: it’s their job to have strict ‘net policies. In my opinion (and practice as Network Admin at the last job) though, if the work gets done and done well and on time–I didn’t care if an employee of mine (and I only had two) did some non-work stuff now and then. Hey, some people in the office went out to smoke every 20 minutes, I and my minion browsed nerdy Web sites. The tough thing is I just don’t have any more time at home to do it than I do at work. As soon as I get home in the evenings it’s right to dinner making, then cleaning up, then an hour or so of homework before I can’t keep my eyes open anymore. This is the first moment I’ve had in a while to write–and I shouldn’t. I have an important presentation next week to work on, a paper due soon, and comprehensive exams questions to research and formulate. Ugh!

Well, I’m inspired to say something briefly in a moment on another subject. Enjoy the babble.

Anyway, there’s a conversation in the comments for my post:
♦ On sexuality, feminism, and being a man, baby.
with Amy from the site Stands to Reason (as ironically named as “The Discovery Institute”, but she sure seems very nice and reasonable), that starts talking about sex and religion and ends (as usual for me) discussing the absurdity of religion in general and Christianity in particular.

Then over on Soujourner:
♦ Where Does ‘Ought’ Come From?
Mark calls naturalism’s claiming that there are “oughts,” that is, moral and ethical behavior, “a bunch of hogwash.”
So, I call him on it as he tries to deflect the issue into a false dilemma and complete and utter mischaracterization of the naturalist worldview. He’s comfortable attacking and mocking something he has no interest in actually learning anything about; but like most believers, ignores reasoned and rational challenges to their attacks. Ignores, moves the goalposts, or deflects. I will guarantee you that within 90 days he’s going to have another post attacking and mocking naturalism and he’s going to use the same misrepresentation and false understanding with no attempt to understand what he’s attacking.

Like how Ray Comfort still uses his “banana argument” to prove God’s existence and ridiculous drawings of duck-bunnies to ridicule evolution, even though for literally years he’s been shown how fallacious and absurd his arguments are in pure logic, not even with refutations with counter arguments or positions or evidence–his banana shtick is utter garbage from a purely logic point of view. His duck-bunny pictures are laughably…I’m sorry, stupid and gross misunderstandings of what evolution even claims to describe. But, he has no interest in changing or learning or understanding or reasoning. He’d rather go blithely on with his absurdities, thinking he’s got it all understood while people are literally laughing at his ridiculousness.

Even people who are supposed to be more educated and intelligent, like Michael Behe, ignore evidence that disprove their claims. Behe made challenges to evolution in his early books (books, not scientific journal articles or science symposium or conferences where real science debate happens). And then slews of response was generated with painfully detailed and evidence supported refutations of his claims. But not only has he subsequently ignored these refutations, but has the audacity to claim his challenges have been unmet by the scientific community!
You really have to ask yourself, do these people really exist in their own little worlds? Are they that deluded and honestly don’t see the evidence? Or do they see it, but choose to ignore? Which is worse? Delusion or willful dishonesty?

In Comfort’s case, I think he’s delusional. Behe, I’m not sure I can give him that much leeway.

Well as much fun as this is, typing long sections does get tiring. Time to go see what else this can do! (OK, the inability to copy textmakes adding links to the blog or images impossible. Oh well.)

♦ The GrogMonkey

Here’s the “About” page on the site:

This blog is designed to feature my work in English/Cultural Studies education.

I’m currently working on my Master’s Degree in English with a focus on Creative Writing. While I don’t plan, at the moment, to put any of my fiction up here, I do plan on publishing my non-fiction works–of which I’ve done more this last year and a half than I would have thought I’d have in me two years ago. After my M.A,, which should be finished in another year and a half, I plan on going on for my Ph.D. with a focus in posthuman fiction and cultural studies. (Over on another page I plan on profiling some of the people in the field that I’m modeling my career path on, such as Slavoj Žižek.)

I plan on submitting some of what I will be placing on this site to journals (both academic peer reviewed and otherwise), and some I wouldn’t normally want anyone to see–but there may be something to it that compels me to put it out there for critique, entertainment, or for some twisted sense of vanity. (Yeah, that’s probably the most likely reason.)

I encourage anyone to read what I’ve put out, comment, and even debate or argue some of the presented points with me. Some of what I’ve written and will write about I’m only scratching the surface of my understanding and would love to better my apprehension of the subjects in the crucible of debate (how’s that for some fancyshmancy grad student prose?)

While this blog is pretty esoteric and comments on general issues: tech, news, politics, etc., The GrogMonkey is going to be only for my scholarly work. Probably mostly reprints of papers, occasional posts on issues and events that deal directly with my studies and education. I anticipate that site will have even a smaller audience (than the 2 or 3 this one gets…) but that’s OK. I’m doing it mainly for my own benefit. (What that benefit is, I don’t quite know yet.)

At the moment there’s only one post up there. I have probably around 10 to 15 papers I can upload, but I don’t want to inundate the site just now–I’ll probably upload a file a week. If you’re interested, check it out.

So I wrote a script into my blog that changes my top blog image throughout the day. Every 4 hours it gets lighter or darker depending on the time of day. It’s kind of subtle, but I think kind of cool.
But I really love the idea of doing it with an image instead of just some silly swash of color. Once I find the image I like, I’m going to get all Photoshoppy on it and made it change daylight throughout the day…and even seasons throughout the months! Oh that rocks. =)

♦ New York Times uses story, neglects to mention blogger is the source

Here’s a few that I do actually pay some attention to:

• Facebook profile
• last.fm radio profile (I’ve added a last.fm widget up there on the side that shows what music I’ve been listening to. Kinda cool.)
• MySpace I rarely check (I irked off this former co-worker who once asked me if I was on MySpace–I said, “No, I’m neither an emo teen nor a pedophile.”)

I know I have a Blogger account and LiveJournal, and some other accounts, and they can be pretty cool. Some interesting features, so long as you can get an ad-free account. But, nothing quite beats developing your own blog space with the help of a WordPress template and making whatever changes and adjustments you want by editing the scripting yourself.

So do I want to try to separate the blog into one where I try to only include those serious and important issues as I strive to become more journalistic and professional and critical in my writing, and another where I can randomly say “I’m listening to a lot of The Tea Party right now” or “boy ‘Rome’ was a good show,” or do I continue to put it all in one blog and deal with the random bouncing between trivial tripe and serious analysis?

I shall think on this.

Well, a few years ago I finally stopped using FONT tags and started using style sheets for all my font stuff at least. But I’ve been reticent to go all out. I’ve learned how to make border boxes, but I still use tables for all my positioning and widths.

Now this blog. Well, this blog software, WordPress. I’ve been using MoveableType for a few years and except for a few of my own manual changed, had used a downloaded template.
I’m still currently using a downloaded template with this new blog, but at its very core WordPress is so customizeable that I’ve been spending a lot of time trying to get it “just right”. And that requires not only my more than mediocre knowledge of PHP *grin* but a crash-course in more advanced (read: “standard”) CSS’s.

For example. Blockquotes. If you’re reading this blog while I’m using the “borderlinechaos” theme, then you will see the blockquotes style like this:

All this text you are reading right now is in “blockquote”. It brings the margins in and separates the text from the main body of the blog.
The appearance of this blockquote is very different than what it originally looks like in this theme “off the shelf.”

I’ve gone into the CSS of the theme and added margins and a background and borders and padding to make it look “better” (according to me.)

(The big problem with this blog entry, is it’s very likely that within 30 minutes I may be using a different theme entirely. I’m trying first to learn what all I can DO with a theme, with what features I can add and create, for example, over there to the side with the various menus and lists. Then, I plan on finding a theme as close to what I want and then revamping it to what I want permanently. This borderlinechaos theme, if that’s what you’re seening now, is fun, but it’s temporary.)

Anyway, I’m having alot of fun playing with CSS. It’s a little daunting, like learning a new programming language (hey guess what? It IS! *g*) But it certainly does make doing large or comples visual changes a LOT easier!

..:::YETISPORTS:::.. by chris hilgert // powered by edelweiss medienwerkstatt

OK, this site is way too much fun!
Beware the time wasting potential!

So, while I get things setteled around, just ignore all the weird changes you’ll see. =) Thanks!

blog @ SPHAMISEVIL(take that part out) celticbear dAWt com

I figure spammers surely have tools now that can interpret spelled out “dot” and can take out remarks like “NOSPAM” that people use to mask their addresses from spam spiders. =)

So, over on the right there, in the side-bar, there’s a PayPal “Donate” button for anyone who feels very charitable.

Do I feel deserving of donations? Nope. Sure don’t. But hey, Why not?
Of course a donation is not like a political contribution. If you do suddenly come down with psychosis and decide to donate something, and put a message “I’d like to see more nekkid girlies,” I will tank you for your contribution to my bandwidth and hosting fees and then direct you to Playboy.com.

Of course, if I do get the ocassional contribution to my bandwidth and hosting fees, I will be compelled to write more and more interesting things…just be warned that it may not be to your interest. =)

So, thanks in advance, and don’t laugh TOO hard. =)

Anyway. I feel bad that the only other blog out there I read is Vertias Center* and I’m constantly posting caustic vitriol over there in response to his posts. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, Mark who runs that blog is a great guy. Smart, friendly, generous, outgoing, a great father, someone who I had the fortune to be both a student under and a co-worker of. He’s curious and I’ve never seen him in a bad mood, even during times of stress. Although I bet I’ve really taken him to the edge of patience with some of my post comments. =)

I’m a pretty confrontational guy. Well, in writting at least. In person I think I’m kind of a meek geek and have a VERY hard time speaking my thoughts. So when I find something I feel passionately about, I will write passionately and confrontationally and often with a lot of bloated self-importance. And I’ve left a lot of that over on Vertias Center.

I say that to say this: If you want to read a well spoken and passionate advocate for the side of religious certainty, head on over there and support his blog. He puts a lot of work into finding sources and quotes and articles and whatnot to express his beliefs and opinions. If yo uagree, let him know and link his site to yours. If you disagree, be kinder than I have. =)

* I do also read Wil Wheaton’s blog although I don’t send comments. =)

————-
(ADDED A FEW HOURS LATER)

Well, for reasons as yet unknown, Veritas Center no longer exists. Which disappoints me. While we had (have…I mean, Mark is still alive and all *g*) very significant philisophical and theistic differences, I was glad for his opinions and insight.

While I take ownership of a certain amount of “I’m right, you’re wrong” attitude and mentality, I’m certainly not a fascist who believes differing opinions should be repressed! On the contrary, I think every and all opinions should have an outlet! (Well, to be honest, there are SOME opinions I can conjure up that really probably shouldn’t, and believers in such opinions should probably be exiled from society if not outright eliminated for the sake of innocents….)

And so, I’m disappointed the fact Veritas Center is no more. R.I.P.

(Added later…)
OK, I see there’s a problem. MT-Blacklist isn’t accepting any comments at all now. *sigh* Working on it….