MUSIC – PROGRESSIVE ROCK: Rush / “The Trees” / 1978


There is unrest in the forest
There is trouble with the trees
For the Maples want more sunlight
And the Oaks ignore their pleas

The trouble with the maples
And they’re quite convinced they’re right
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light
But the oaks can’t help their feelings
If they like the way they’re made
And they wonder why the maples
Can’t be happy in their shade

There is trouble in the forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the maples scream ‘Oppression!’
And the oaks, just shake their heads

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights
‘The oaks are just too greedy
We will make them give us light’
Now there’s no more oak oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet,
Axe,
And saw

CHRISTIAN BIGOTRY: Lawrence M. Krauss / Does Religious Liberty Equal Freedom to Discriminate?

[…]

. . . [T]he right to marry, . . . is a secular legal issue. Even if the state were to recognize same-sex marriages, churches, mosques or synagogues or other places of worship would not be required to hold wedding ceremonies within them or sanction such marriages because the no legal standing is attributed to such ceremonies or sanctions. Where is the attack on liberty?

[…]

. . . [T]he banner of ‘religious liberty’ is effectively more akin to the ‘right to discriminate.’ For the state to treat organized religious groups differently than it does other organizations implies special rights for these groups to behave differently than others. But this requires such religious groups to determine who is in the “in’ group, and who is in the ‘out’ group, and because religious doctrine guides moral behavior, it provides an opportunity for members of the group to condemn the behavior of those not in the group.

[…]

. . . [W]hen organized religious groups gain power of any form, power over the state, power over women, or power over children, the results inevitably lead to restrictions on liberty based on discrimination [bigotry].

Read more . . .

Thom Hartmann: What’s More Important – Capitalism or Democracy? / Cubans get doctors – we get Porno X-ray scanners – who’s safer? / The DOJ vs. Sheriff Joe’s Racist Abuse



Why Does [Bigot] Tony Perkins Even Bother Going on TV…? (VIDEOS)

Repost from: Friendly Atheist

Tony Perkins, the head Christian at the Family Research Council, made news this week when he appeared on Piers Morgan‘s show and said this incredibly stupid thing:

Morgan: You have five kids, right?

Perkins: Yes, I do.

Morgan: What would you do if one of them came home and said, dad, I’m gay?

Perkins: Well, we would have a conversation about it. I doubt that would happen with my children, as we are teaching them the right ways that they are to interact as human beings.

In other words, his kids wouldn’t turn out gay because he raised them “right.”

Chris Matthews invited Perkins on Hardball to elaborate on the comment… and, for some reason, Perkins accepted. Barney Frank was there, too, and both he and Matthews went off on Perkins for 15 glorious minutes:

Read more, and watch Barney Frank school Tony Perkins video here . . .

[…]

To add insult to injury, Lawrence O’Donnell took Perkins to task for suggesting there has only been one definition of marriage throughout mankind’s 5,000-year history (wait, what?):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQWxWk1wTAs&feature=player_embedded