Disturbing agenda

 

Doreen Virtue´s most recent YouTube video has the absurd title "Oprah´s Demonic Agenda - Insider Tells All", the insider in question being Virtue herself. I have essentially zero interest in Oprah Winfrey and her show, so it came as something of a surprise to learn that she was *so* into New Age spirituality, including channeling and similar stuff. But yes, that would explain a thing or two. Indeed, Doreen Virtue herself (during her New Age period) was one of the people propelled into mega-fame by Oprah. Another was none other than Marianne Williamson, today mostly known for her two quixotic attempts to run for US president. 

I can´t say I like this clip. Virtue´s born again Christian fundamentalism makes her condemn essentially everything else as "demonic". Oprah is apparently an abuse survivor and it seems many female survivors are drawn to New Age and New Thought, perhaps because of its magical positive thinking message, which these people may found empowering. Or at least more empowering than, say, Christian fundamentalism? 

Virtue spends a good portion of her video to argue that abuse victims should embrace her form of fundamentalism rather than the "demonic" New Age messaging, which in her estimation is simply "disassociation". The New Age believers live in a fantasy world of love, but its somehow created by the Devil himself who acts as their "sugar daddy". So survivors of sexual and physical abuse should turn to Christ instead. 

Virtue´s version of Christ, that is. Since he tortures billions of sinners in an eternal hell, somebody might argue that he is the ultimate serial abuser. And hardly a good alternative to the metaphysical sugar daddy.

Frankly, I found this video to be pretty disturbing. Maybe we should pray for...Doreen Virtue.  

Storm Shadow

 

So it´s official now. Ukraine has used both American ATACMS missiles and UK Storm Shadow dittos to target military bases on recognized Russian territory. 

As already mentioned, Moscow has changed its nuclear doctrine, threatening everyone who attacks the Russian Federation and its allies (and presumably its occupied territories!) in the way Ukraine just did with nuclear retaliation. 

The only ally explictly mentioned is Belarus, but it does raise questions about what would happen during a shooting war between, say, North Korea and South Korea...

The storm shadows are gathering. 

Fallout

 

A headline from "Breitbart Confidential", so it´s locked for non-subscribers. LOL! Oookay.

But then, we´ve been there already, haven´t we? Look what I reviewed way back in 2018...

How Vermont can survive a nuclear war  

Bright insight

 

A short article arguing that the differences in intelligence between atheists and religious people is a matter of cognitive style. Atheists think more logically, religious people more intuitively. But then, somebody might argue that this does make atheists smarter...

Are religious people really less smart than atheists? 

*That* Edward Dutton

 

LOL. This provocatively titled article from 2017 at the site Live Science actually references - wait for it - Edward Dutton?!

The idea seems to be that atheists are more intelligent than religious people since religion is an instinct, and you need intelligence to rise above your instincts. Maybe, but as a critic astutely points out, how do you define "religion"? Communism is atheist and used to be very strong, veganism is popular among many atheists today, but are they really "smart"?

Personally, I wonder about the instinct part. Our instincts must have survival value, otherwise they wouldn´t have evolved, so how did religion evolve if religious beliefs lack a referent? Social insects have created "complex societies" based on pure instinct, so it´s not even clear whether "intelligence" is needed at all, evolutionarily speaking. 

Still, an interesting little article.   

Why are atheists generally smarter than religious people?

Embrace the spoiler

 

Kshama Sawant from "Revolutionary Workers" and "Workers Strike Back" defends the strategy to deliberately spoil the elections for the Democrats.

Probably not a popular message right now...   

The Democrats deserve to lose 1000 times over

SD-washing

 

De ljuger såklart, men det väcker ändå frågor om dessa partiers sociala bas. Eller blivande sociala bas...

Nya Miljöpartiet ska bli mindre "woke"

S lägger fram program för minskad invandring

Back in bizniz

 

Old call boy David Bruce Hughes is back in the sex guru fold. Probably just as well if you ask me, his intellectual peregrinations through the Upanishads were frankly boring!   

Doomsdays real and fake

 

Sabine Hossenfelder times three. If there is any underlying theme at all in these Science News videos, it is doomsday scenarios. 

The Kessler Syndrome is fast approaching, although Hossenfelder thinks solutions to it may be possible. AI has probably peaked, confirming all our suspicions that the whole "Terminator" thing was just hype to *promote* AI. Nor is technology epistemology, so don´t expect robotic pseudo-brains to solve the mysteries of quantum physics any time soon. 

Climate change is real, though, so I suppose we just might go extinct after all, although probably not this Xmas... 

Revolution´s tired

 

When I was much younger than today, some anarchist somewhere expressed concern that maybe capitalism would co-opt things such as gay rights, anti-racism or feminism. Few people believed him. I mean, capitalism is homophobic, racist, sexist and deeply oppressive, right? Surely movements fighting these things are inherently revolutionary!

Flash forward about 40 years...

A mafioso-looking billionaire governor of Illinois, part of the imperialist United States, promises to double down on "sex changes" during Transgender Awareness Week.

Revolution´s tired.   

Illinois governor doubles down on "sex changes"