From today’s New York Times: Secret U.S. Memo Made Legal Case to Kill a Citizen The Obama administration’s secret legal memorandum that opened the door to the killing of Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-born radical Muslim cleric hiding in Yemen, found that it would be lawful only if it were not feasible to take him alive, [...]

Here is Sir Roger’s advice on asylum seeker/immigration policy for Julia Gillard, Tony Abbott and the rest of Australia’s panicked, “pragmatic” [=unethical, immoral and stupid] political elite who are slavishly, and in terror, reacting to the unholy self-righteousness of the christian right, the egomaniacal commentariat and the ignorant unwashed. It comes straight from the bible [...]

  …pluck it out, and cast it from thee. – Mark 9, 47 You know … everyone knows … Rupert Murdoch is an evil genius. And this latest move is certainly worthy of his deep-seated amorality. If Murdoch believes in anything he believes in two things: nothing and money. His latest move is pure evil [...]

  How far is this from the truth about the Catholic Church? Especially the last line?    

What a fucking load of motherfucking dickheaded bullshit those cunts in the Victorian parliament are, trying to impose old-fashioned tight-arsed, pursed-lipped, prune-faced, shrivelled-up, broomstick-arsed moral values on a free people, with their proposed laws against swearing in public. Goodbye barracking at fucking footie matches, for one thing. Or having a bloody beer in the pub. [...]

  David Hume, hero of the Enlightenment, father of skepticism, linchpin of democracy and human rights and freedoms, Happy 300th Birthday! Sir Roger has some understanding of how Hume felt when he said this: “Here am I who have written on all sorts of subjects calculated to excite hostility, moral, political, and religious, and yet [...]

From The Onion News Network: Al Qaeda Populating U.S. With Peaceful ‘Decoy Muslims’”>Al Qaeda Populating U.S. With Peaceful ‘Decoy Muslims’

“Sexual Positions for Christian Couples”, with images of sex which are “not pornographic”, came across Sir Roger’s desk. Well! A glass of iced water please?

A Sciencey Xmas celebration with Robin Ince, Ben Goldacre and Brian Cox, Weird Placebo Effects, Amazing Universe and Onion News is Back with the Palin Effect!

What Christians actually believe (on pain of eternal death and torment)

“writing science fiction for a penny a word is no way to make a living. If you really want to make a million the quickest way is to start your own religion”

Yes, here it is just in time for Xmas: the shocking photographic proof from Wikileaks that America is indeed a christian nation, founded on christian principles

Sir Roger is grateful for the unending genius of Mr Fish

This sweet Christmas song by Tim Minchin is on a charity Christmas CD being sold in Myer. The vocal is by Kate Miller-Heidke. Bit of a fuss about it, apparently

Carl Sagan’s birthday present was delivered with a big bang by the Large Hadron Collider this week. Meanwhile a US politician bases science policy on Genesis.