YouthSpeak No.11 November, 2009
Presidential Note
Editorial
Snippets
Column
Project of the Month
Portrait
Member in Focus
Book Review
Humor
Activism for Change: The Nepal Experience
Dear Readers of YouthSpeak,
Our 8th International Youth Conference in Nepal has come and gone; and left us with a feeling that we have had one of the best events ever, in terms of decisions, contributions and resolutions made.
We realised particularly that our conference was timely for the Nepalese nation. Nepal is on its way to become a secular country not only through its new constitution but in deed. It is therefore our strong conviction that it is time for the Nepalese to accept multi-religious beliefs and 'lifestances'. But the vital question is: how can we speak about freedom of religion in a seemingly 'one-religion' state? And how can one accept and tolerate a non-religious person, if one cannot do the same with persons having different religious orientation? That is not only a challenge for all humanists around the world, but a challenge to every living Nepalese and humans all over the world.
For us, as humanists, it is not enough to talk endlessly about freedoms, of individuals and groups, without emphasis on freedom to be free from beliefs. The most important freedom, for us as humanists, therefore is the freedom from religion for people that do not want to believe or seek to be free from any higher supernatural chain in whatever disguise. But, how can we achieve true secularism? How can a state become truly secular secular? The whole process starts with a changed way of thinking. For example: India has for years been a secular country, but is it truly a secular state? The answer has to be emphatic 'No!'. A glaring indices of this is the fact that no party is calling itself secular and almost all candidates are selected out of religious background. Maybe if you start visiting a mosque, a temple and a church, then you can say you are secular, as you show neutral interest to all. There should be no dogmatic way of thinking. The practice of secular movements can show, if a secular state can succeed. The secular attitude is the basic for a secular understanding, a cultural concept.
A lot of countries are, today, fighting for the institutionalisation of this stance, the separation of church and state. The French consitution has done something really great in the past. Before now, the state and the church were one and same but the French revolution changed that. The duty of the state should be left for the state and that of the church for the church: while the former takes care of the welfare of all, the latter should be concerned with the 'spiritual' of its adherents.
If you like, you may ask: why all these 'sermons'? The reason is simple: my mind is sickened by the stance of many global citizens against secular ideals. These are not humanists; these are religious groups who kept on exerting their privileges and power, presently, in the states. Their rigid stance have caused alot of havoc and wrecked the ideals of human rights. This is rather unfortunate!
Right now, Nepal has problems of the realisation of secularism. But it will lose a great chance to change something while following religious rules. So, hopefully the ruling elites, and the entire Nepalese, will take this chance seriously and will work further for the actualization of this serious goal. We will support this in whatever way way we can and our friend down there in Nepal with all our possibilities.
IHEYO, as a group, will give encouragement to Nepalese youngsters; and give other youngsters a voice to speak and to strengthen the committment to popularize humanism around the world. IHEYO is also important for uncovering similarities and differences of working methods, as well as for collaborations. It is a slow process to make people aware, but we have already seen some slight changes in our movements and this gives us enough strength to go further step by step.
Let´s go together!
Silvana Uhlrich,
President IHEYO
And the Skeptic discovers a blocked blade
During the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution, one morning's executions began with three men: a rabbi, a Catholicpriest, and a rationalist skeptic.
The rabbi was marched up onto the platform first. There, facing the guillotine, he was asked if he had any last words. And the rabbi cried out, "I believe in the one and only true God, and He shall save me." The executioner then positioned the rabbi below the blade, set the block above his neck, and pulled the cord to set the terrible instrument in motion. The heavy cleaver plunged downward, searing the air. But then, abruptly, it stopped with a crack just a few inches above the would-be victim's neck. To which the rabbi said, "I told you so."
"It's a miracle!" gasped the crowd. And the executioner had to agree, letting the rabbi go.
Next in line was the priest. Asked for his final words, he declared, "I believe in Jesus Christ the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost who will rescue me in my hour of need." The executioner then positioned this man beneath the blade. And he pulled the cord. Again the blade flew downward thump! creak! ...stopping just short of its mark once more.
"Another miracle!" sighed the disappointed crowd. And the executioner for the second time had no choice but to let the condemned go free.
Now it was the skeptic's turn. "What final words have you to say?" he was asked. But the skeptic didn't hear. Staring intently at the ominous engine of death, he seemed lost. Not until the executioner poked him in the ribs and the question was asked again did he reply.
"Oh, I see your problem," the skeptic said pointing. "You've got a blockage in the gear assembly, right there!"
http://www.sciforums.com/Atheist-jokes-t-80949.html
Asociación Ediciones de la Revista Peruana de Filosofia Applicada (AERPFA)
The Asociación Ediciones de la Revista Peruana de Filosofia Applicada has as its main goal the spread (through conferences, printed and audiovisual media) of differents views on:
Philosophy applied to problems of health, ecology, education, justice/law, social and general sciences, religion, politics etc.
Ethics applied to the social, professional, business- and everyday life.
Bio-ethics (abortion, genetic engineering, euthanasia etc.)
Translated from the organisation's website (in Spanish)
Contact AERPFA
Physical address: Calle El Corregidor 318, Lima 25-PERU
E-mail: rpfa@yahoo.com
Tel: +51-1-99215741
Behold the new IHEYO EC Board!
The last IHEYO General Assembly (recently concluded in Nepal) among other decisions reached also produced a new set of Executive Commitee Members. Here is what the new EC looks like:
Silvana Uhlrich, Germany - President
Uttam Niraula, Nepal - 1st Vice President
Asaba Lawrence, Uganda - Secretary General
Abhilash K., India - Treasurer
Marit E. Jacobsen, Norway - Board member
Sven Berg Ryen, Norway - Board member
Gea Meijers, Belgium - Board member
Gulalai Ismail, Pakistan - Board member
Slabe Sennay, Liberia - Board member
Betty Nassaka, Uganda - Board member
Alphonso K. Weah, Liberia - Board member
From YS team, we wish the entire EC, old and new, a wonderful and fruitful term in office!!
Book Review: The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence
The topic of evolution is one of the more controversial subjects in science, even ignoring creationism, intelligent design and other religious-leaning dogmas. The branches of the tree of life, especially that branch where humans appear, are still in dispute. In this book, Dr. Sagan takes the reader along this tree from its very root and slowly upwards to humans. By taking this path, he can show how various characteristics that evolved aeons ago are still with us; that in some sense we and every other creature are living fossils. Along the way, he takes the occasional tangent onto other branches, and shows us what was, and what might have been if certain branches had continued.
Focusing on humans, the book makes the innovative suggestion that our dreams and subconscious feelings somehow link us to our past; that many of our shared instincts and much of what we think when we sleep was determined by our evolutionary history. The title of the book is one example. Humans evolved from smaller mammals who lived during the reign of dinosaurs. As the bottom layer of the food chain, these ancient mammals lived in the fear and awe of large reptiles. Any nightmares these creatures had probably included the threat of large reptiles. Hence the common fear shared by many humans of long, skinny reptiles such as lizards; fears that are wholly out of proportion to possible threat. These then are the dragons of our Eden.
All in all, this is a great book to read. Written by an astronomer and physicist, it offers insight into the life sciences that are worthy of attention. The strands that Dr. Sagan draws together make this work a good example of an interdisciplinary work. I recommend it.
Culled from Amazon Reviews)
By Newton Ooi
(Newton lives in Phoenix, Arizona United States)
Carbon Atmosphere Discovered On Neutron Star
Evidence for a thin veil of carbon has been found on the neutron star in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant. This discovery, made with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, resolves a ten-year mystery surrounding this object. "The compact star at the center of this famous supernova remnant has been an enigma since its discovery," said Wynn Ho of the University of Southampton and lead author of a paper that appears in the November 5 issue of Nature. "Now we finally understand that it can be produced by a hot neutron star with a carbon atmosphere."
By analyzing Chandra's X-ray spectrum -- akin to a fingerprint of energy -- and applying it to theoretical models, Ho and his colleague Craig Heinke, from the University of Alberta, determined that the neutron star in Cassiopeia A, or Cas A for short, has an ultra-thin coating of carbon. This is the first time the composition of an atmosphere of an isolated neutron star has been confirmed.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091104132808.htm
Carl Sagan:The Humanist with "Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence"
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrochemist, author, and highly successful popularizer of astronomy, astrophysics and other natural sciences. He pioneered exobiology and promoted the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI).
Carl Sagan was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a Russian Jewish family. His father, Sam Sagan, was a Russian immigrant garment worker; his mother, Rachel Molly Gruber, a housewife. Carl was named in honor of Rachel's biological mother, Chaiya Clara, "the mother she never knew", in Sagan's words. Sagan graduated from Rahway High School in Rahway, New Jersey in 1951. He attended the University of Chicago, where he participated in the Ryerson Astronomical Society, received a B.A. with general and special honors (1954), a B.S. (1955) and a M.S. (1956) in physics, before earning a Ph.D. degree (1960) in astronomy and astrophysics.
Sagan was a scientist connected with the American space program since its inception. From the 1950s onward, he worked as an adviser to NASA. One of his many duties during his tenure at the space agency included briefing the Apollo astronauts before their flights to the Moon. Sagan contributed to many of the robotic spacecraft missions that explored the solar system during his lifetime, arranging experiments on many of the expeditions. He conceived the idea of adding an unalterable and universal message on spacecraft destined to leave the solar system that could potentially be understood by any extraterrestrial intelligence that might find it. Sagan assembled the first physical message that was sent into space: a gold-anodized plaque, attached to the space probe Pioneer 10, launched in 1972. Pioneer 11, also carrying another copy of the plaque, was launched the following year. He continued to refine his designs throughout his lifetime; the most elaborate message he helped to develop and assemble was the Voyager Golden Record that was sent out with the Voyager space probes in 1977. Sagan often challenged the decisions to fund the Space Shuttle and Space Station at the expense of further robotic missions.
He is world-famous for writing popular science books and for co-writing and presenting the award-winning 1980 television series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, which has been seen by more than 500 million people in over 60 countries.[2] A book to accompany the program was also published. He also wrote the novel Contact, the basis for the 1997 film of the same name. One of the last books he wrote was Pale Blue Dot. During his lifetime, Sagan published more than 600 scientific papers and popular articles and was author, co-author, or editor of more than 20 books. In his works, he frequently advocated skeptical inquiry, secular humanism, and the scientific method.
Sagan erroneously predicted in January 1991 that so much smoke from the Kuwaiti oil fires "might get so high as to disrupt agriculture in much of South Asia…" He acknowledged the error in The Demon-Haunted World: "as events transpired, it was pitch black at noon and temperatures dropped 4–6 °C over the Persian Gulf, but not much smoke reached stratospheric altitudes and Asia was spared."
After a long and difficult fight with myelodysplasia, which included three bone marrow transplants, Sagan died of pneumonia at the age of 62 at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington on December 20, 1996. Surviving him were his wife and five children.
On November 9, 2001, on what would have been Sagan's 67th birthday, the NASA Ames Research Center dedicated the site for the Carl Sagan Center for the Study of Life in the Cosmos. "Carl was an incredible visionary, and now his legacy can be preserved and advanced by a 21st century research and education laboratory committed to enhancing our understanding of life in the universe and furthering the cause of space exploration for all time", said NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin. Ann Druyan was at the Center as it opened its doors on October 22, 2006.
This year, 2009, the 75th anniversary of Carl Sagan's birth, the First "Carl Sagan Day" was celebrated on November 7.
Among the numerous awards he won during his lifetime are:
# Annual Award for Television Excellence - 1981 - Ohio State University - PBS series Cosmos
# Apollo Achievement Award - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
# NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal - National Aeronautics and Space Administration (twice)
# Emmy - Outstanding Individual Achievement - 1981 - PBS series Cosmos
# Emmy - Outstanding Informational Series - 1981 - PBS series Cosmos
# Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
# Helen Caldicott Leadership Award - Women's Action for Nuclear Disarmament
# Hugo Award - 1981 - Cosmos
# Humanist of the Year - 1981 - Awarded by the American Humanist Association
# In Praise of Reason Award - 1987 - Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal
# Isaac Asimov Award - 1994 - Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal
# John F. Kennedy Astronautics Award - American Astronautical Society
# John W. Campbell Memorial Award - 1974 - Cosmic Connection: An Extraterrestrial Perspective
# Joseph Priestley Award - "For distinguished contributions to the welfare of mankind"
# Klumpke-Roberts Award of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific - 1974
# Konstantin Tsiolkovsky Medal - Awarded by the Soviet Cosmonauts Federation
# Locus Award 1986 - Contact
# Lowell Thomas Award - Explorers Club - 75th Anniversary
# Masursky Award - American Astronomical Society
# Miller Research Fellowship - Miller Institute (1960–1962); among others
See also:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:WhatLinksHere/Carl_Sagan
http://www.csicop.org/si/2007-01/sagan.html
http://www.charlierose.com/guest/byname/carl_sagan
CFI Campaign for Free Expression Essay Contest
The Campaign for Free Expression is a CFI initiative to focus efforts and attention on one of the most crucial components of freethought: the right of individuals to express their viewpoints, opinions, and beliefs about all subjects—especially religion. To encourage free expression and to emphasize the importance of this fundamental right, CFI and its sister organization, The Council for Secular Humanism, are sponsoring this contest.
Free Expression Essay Contest: Students enrolled in an accredited college or university are invited to submit an essay about "The Importance of Free Expression and Its Limits (If Any)." Each entry must address the question of what limits national governments or recognized international bodies, such as the United Nations, may justifiably place on free expression. First prize is $2,000 (USD).
* Download Free Expression Essay Contest Rules.
* Submit entries to essaycontest@centerforinquiry.net.
* DEADLINE: Entries must be received by midnight, January 5, 2010.
Find out more here:
http://www.centerforinquiry.net/news/campaign_for_free_expression_essay_contest
Church of England gives surprise blessing to hedge funds
Much-maligned hedge funds have found an unlikely defender in the form of the Church of England, which expressed its concerns Wednesday at a proposed new EU directive to regulate the industry. The Church Commissioners, the Church's investment arm, joined five other leading British charitable foundations to warn of "serious consequences" from the measure in a letter to the upper house of the British parliament.
"We are concerned that the directive as currently drafted will significantly restrict our ability to generate funds to pursue our charitable missions and thus reduce our impact for public good," said the letter. "The directive as currently drafted will severely restrict our access both to non-EU funds and to non-EU fund managers. This will impact access to private equity funds and to hedge funds," it added.
It points out that up to 95 percent of global hedge funds are currently either not domiciled in the EU or have non-EU managers. The Church Commissioners said they feared that the legislation would lead to "a significant risk that many of the best (funds) will stop raising capital in Europe rather than attempting to comply with onerous EU regulations".
http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/britain-finance.ul/
European Court of Human Rights rules against the use of crucifixes in Italy
The European Court of Human Rights has ruled against the use of crucifixes in classrooms in Italy. It said the practice violated the right of parents to educate their children as they saw fit, and ran counter to the child's right to freedom of religion.The case was brought by an Italian mother, Soile Lautsi, who wants to give her children a secular education.
The Vatican said it was shocked by the ruling, calling it "wrong and myopic" to exclude the crucifix from education.The ruling has sparked anger in the largely Catholic country, with one politician calling the move "shameful".
The Strasbourg court found that: "The compulsory display of a symbol of a given confession in premises used by the public authorities... restricted the right of parents to educate their children in conformity with their convictions." It also restricted the "right of children to believe or not to believe", the seven judges ruling on the case said in a statement quoted by AFP news agency.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8340411.stm
Polygamist sect leader guilty of sexual assault
The first polygamist sect member to face criminal trial following the raid at the Yearning For Zion Ranch in West Texas last year has been convicted of sexual assault of a child. Jurors took a little more than two hours to convict Raymond Jessop, 38, of sexually assaulting a teen with whom he had a so-called ''spiritual marriage''.
Jessop allegedly has nine wives. He faces a bigamy charge, but that case is to be tried later. The girl in the assault case, now 21, was previously in a ''spiritual marriage'' with Jessop's brother before being ''reassigned'' to Jessop when she was 15, according to documents seized at the ranch. She became pregnant at age 16.
Jessop, who had been free on bond during the trial, was immediately handcuffed and led to the jail after his conviction. Jurors were expected to return to court on Monday to begin deciding his sentence. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
http://www.theage.com.au/world
Spreading the ideals of a democratic society
Let me start by asking a vital question: what makes a democratic country democtratic? In other words, what is that which stays in the bottle and changes the nomenclature of that mere bottle? Am asking this question, as simple as it seems, because the general belief is that mere francise power, the power to vote and be voted for, or granting such right, confers the 'democratic' title on a nation. Indeed, many are quick to define democracy, a la Abraham Lincoln (during his famous Gettysburg Address in 1863) as the: government of the people, by the people (and) for the people. Great definition! But who are the 'peope' within the context of the three usages?
The 'people' in the first instance includes 'everyone, indigenes and aliens within the territory'; the second usage meant 'those citizens of voting age' while the third means 'both the indigines, the aliens and the respective governments of the world that would interact with such government on behalf of the state'. But in all these usages, the 'People' are , undoubtedly, the fulcrum of the state. Without population, a vital characteristic, the state remains nebulus, at best, as Descartes will suggest, a malin gelin induced idea. What this means is that the people, qua people, defines how and what they want the state of their dream to look like. The social contract theorists like Thomas Hobbes are so cocksure of this fact that they see it as the sine qua non of a stable cum orderly society, without which life will be 'nasty, brutish and short'. As humans, the destiny or existence /demise of our different states lie with us. Here we have three options: be active in ensuring its sustenance and growth; work against its ideals and progress; or be less concern about what becomes of it.
As young humanists, it is our belief that we should be active (and indeed can't afford to stand aloof) in the process of democratic reconstruction or development of our states. Our driving force here is the need to protect the ideals of our lifestance: that of ensuring that everyone regardless of their beliefs are respected and treated equally like others. This to me is one of the reasons that necessitated the organisation of the IHEYO International Conference in Nepal last month. From reports so far, the meeting to me, has been a huge sucess story that no one can afford to neglect. Indeed, am very happy that the Nepalese humanist youths are able to outline the basics of secularism to their fellow countrymen. That, to me, is what we should be interested in for that is one of the ideals of a truly democratic state: the young citizens, as part of the people in all the three usages, should be active and lend their voices to the achievement of the ideals of a democratic states.
The youths are no more future leaders, but leaders today taking more responsibilities tomorrow to ensure that the ideals of a truly democratic state are not drowned in the ocean of religious blindness!
Onward!
Yemi Ademowo Johnson
Editor
Transsexual Jesus Sparks Protests
About 300 protesters held a candlelit protest outside a Glasgow theatre over the staging of a play which portrays Jesus as a transsexual.The protest was held outside the Tron Theatre, where Jesus, Queen of Heaven - in which Christ is a transsexual woman - is being staged.
It is part of the Glasgay! arts festival, a celebration of Scotland's gay, bi-sexual and transsexual culture.Festival organisers said it had not intended to incite or offend anyone. The Christian protesters gathered outside the theatre ahead of the opening night of the production on Tuesday.Jesus, Queen of Heaven, which runs until Saturday, is written and performed by transsexual playwright Jo Clifford.
The demonstrators sang hymns and waved placards.
One read: "Jesus, King of Kings, Not Queen of Heaven."
Another said: "God: My Son Is Not A Pervert."
Festival organisers described the banners as "fairly provocative" and said they could be viewed as inciting homophobia.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/8342056.stm
Ugandan Criminal Anti-homosexuality bill: We are Oppressed but not Depressed!
As a network of human rights activists, working in the areas of sexual rights as well as other human rights issues, we write to urge you to oppose a repressive bill which was tabled in Parliament of Uganda on 14th October 2009. This bill is a blow to the steady progress of democracy in Uganda. It proposes criminalization of advocacy and support for the rights of homosexual Ugandans. It also prohibits any public discussion or expression of gay and lesbian lives and any organizing around sexual orientation. In doing so, it violates the basic rights to freedom of expression, conscience, association, and assembly, as well as internationally recognized protections against discrimination. The proposed bill intention is to divide and discriminate against the Ugandan homosexual population, and exclude them from participation in public life, which goes against the inclusive spirit necessary for our economic as well as political development. Its spirit is profoundly undemocratic and un-African.
Recent Sustained violence against the sexual Minorities
Over the recent months increased campaigns of violence have gone uncontrolled. The violence directed at Homosexual Ugandans has resulted in the unwarranted arrests of many people; there are eight ongoing cases in various courts all over Uganda of which four accused persons are unable to meet the harsh bail conditions set against them. These acts of violence have now resulted in the deaths of several homosexual people, such as Brian Pande at Mbale Hospital as he awaited trial. This bill aggravates stigma and hatred; and renders all promised protections enshrined in the constitution for all Ugandan citizens void. Religious leaders and policy makers have also exhibited very hostile attitudes towards otherwise peace keeping homosexual Ugandans by publicizing slanderous and hateful messages in the media, creating serious security concerns for the lives of SMUG network members
Failure of Government
Uganda has repeatedly pledged to defend these fundamental freedoms in the Constitution; it has also signed treaties binding it to respect international human rights law and standards, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. As part of the community of nations forming sexual minorities we urge Ugandan parliamentarians and government to continue to respect these principles and reject this bill, which establishes a new and totally undemocratic level of policing private life. SMUG condemns both of these positions as undemocratic and unacceptable.
These positions will further set a dangerous precedent and send a signal that any Ugandan’s privacy is unguaranteed -that all of our civil society could be put under attack. If this bill is passed into law, it will clearly endanger the work of all human rights defenders and members of civil society in Uganda.
The Bill is Criminal
This proposed legislation violates Uganda’s most basic obligations to the rights, and well-being, of its people. By signing international treaties and entering the international community, the Ugandan government has undertaken the obligation to promote and protect the human rights of its population, without discrimination on any grounds. As the Sexual Minorities in Uganda, we urge you to act on that obligation, and to further the growth of our democracy.
How you can help?
The Ugandan sexual minorities need your support to pressurize the government into respecting their rights, please ccontact:
Frank Mugisha
Sexual Minorities Uganda – SMUG
Email:fmugisha@sexualminoritiesuganda.org
Tel: +256772616062
Or:
David Kato
Sexual Minorities Uganda – SMUG
Email: advocacy@sexualminoritiesuganda.org
Tel: +256773104971
Or:
Valentine Kalende
Freedom and Roam Uganda – FARUG
Email: vkalende@faruganda.org
Tel: +256752324249
US mourns as Muslim doctor slays 13 at army base
US President Barack Obama led his nation in mourning on Saturday (7 November, 2009) as shocked Americans struggled to understand why a Muslim army doctor killed 13 in a massacre at a US military base. Alleged shooter Major Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, a psychiatrist and specialist in combat stress who had been about to deploy to Afghanistan against his wishes, also wounded 30 people in Thursday's rampage.
Speculation swirled at Fort Hood, Texas as to whether the alleged shooter had snapped under the pressure of his job counseling thousands of war-weary troops, or was motivated by deeper convictions. In his weekly radio address Saturday, Obama sought to reassure US soldiers.
"Thursday's shooting was one of the most devastating ever committed on an American military base," he said. "And yet, even as we saw the worst of human nature on full display, we also saw the best of America." The president noted that soldiers and civilians rushed to help, tearing off bullet-riddled clothes to treat the injured and using blouses as tourniquets. Obama ordered flags to fly at half-staff at the White House and federal buildings, as troops here and around the world held a minute's silence to mourn the dead.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091107/ts_afp/usshootingcrimemilitarylead