Hemant Mehta's Blog, page 1771

Justice Department Recently Hired American Imam Fouad ElBayly, Who Wanted Ayaan Hirsi Ali Put to Death

Is anybody minding the store over there?

An Egyptian-born imam who in 2007 said that Somali-born activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali should receive the death penalty for her criticism of Islam is now a Department of Justice contractor hired to teach classes to Muslims who are in federal prison.

According to federal spending records, Fouad ElBayly,the imam at Islamic Center of Johnstown in Pennsylvania,was contracted by the DOJ’s Bureau of Prisonsbeginning last year to teach the classes to Muslim inmates a...

Harold and Kumar and Chris(t): Thank God For Marijuana, Pot Priest Says

Judge less, love more. That’s the message that the Rev. Chris Schuller,55, wants to spread in a video aimed at asking tolerance for marijuana users.

“[T]hanking God for weed might feel a little awkward at first,” says the Rev. Chris Schuller — a former rector at St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church in the Snell Isle neighborhood [in St. Petersburg] — in the short video that’s punctuated with the reggae rhythms of Bob Marley. “Thanking God is going to feel so much better than throwing stones at people...

This Handy Flow Chart Will Help You Figure Out Whether or Not to Vaccinate Your Child

Cartoonist and mother Chelsea Carr guides us through the vaccine question:

There are plenty of other awesome cartoons where that one came from. You should really click through her whole archive!

Another Compilation of Christopher Hitchens’ Best Comebacks

Here’s another compilation of Christopher Hitchens‘ best arguments and comebacks.

You can see previous videos in the series featured on this site here, here, and here.

(via Agatan Fnd)

A Reporter Searches for Evil Atheists Listed on the American Family Association’s “Bigotry Map” but Comes Up Empty

Josh Kruger of Philadelphia Weekly wanted to know just how awful the atheist/Humanist groups listed on the American Family Association’s Bigotry Map were, so he called up the groups’ leaders to figure out why there’s so much hate in their hearts.

He was in for a surprise.

“We run booths at festivals for outreach,” [Pennsylvania Nonbelievers president Brian] Fields says. “We also have monthly meetings in several areas across central Pennsylvania. Occasionally, we take complaints from individuals...

Unaware of Praying Pig’s Sudden Celebrity, Chinese Farmer Slaughters It

A Chinese pig that caused a viral sensation afterit was seen “praying” close to a Buddhist temple in China apparently didn’t pray hard enough to avoid being killed.

A pig has become a viral star in China after escaping from its farm and bowing its head in front of a Buddhist temple in what appears to be a prayer pose.

The pig was photographed and videotaped Feb. 22 outside the temple in Wenzhou when the animal struck a bowed pose that witnesses said made it appear the pig was praying — although...

Ohio Requires Abortion Doctors to Conduct Non-Existent Fetal Viability Tests on Women

Conservatives are often lambasted for their ignorance of science and medicine, particularly when taken in combination with their desire to pass laws about these same topics. Pro-life “gynoticians” are particularly infamous for this… like Vito Barbieri, who graced his fellow Idaho state representatives with his musings about whether women could swallow a camera for remote gynecological exams.

Ohio’s anti-abortion warriors might have topped him, though, when it comes to sheer ignorance. Among a...

Bryan Fischer Claims Job, Far from Being a Biblical Hero, Should Have Done More to Defend God’s Wrath

What’s the moral of the biblical story of Job?

My understanding of it has always been that it’s about a man who — despite all the horrible things that happen to him during his life — remains completely loyal to God. For that loyalty, he is later rewarded.

Apparently, I have no idea what I’m talking about.

On Bryan Fischer‘s show recently, he explained that the story is really all about how Job didn’t do enough to defend God’s wrath (around the 6:00 mark):

… This was the basic problem that God had...

Diner Told (Once Again) That He Can’t Sue for Injuries Sustained While Praying Over Sizzling-Hot Fajitas

As far as bad ideas go, hovering over a skillet full of sizzling fried food, even if it is to commune with the divine, would certainly make the list… and credit goes to a prayerful diner in Burlington County, New Jersey for coming up with it.

In March of 2010, Hiram Jimenez ordered fajitas from an Applebee’s restaurant. When the food was brought out and set before him, he leaned forward to pray. That’s when things turned unpleasant.

The man said he bowed his head, then heard a loud sizzle follo...

Oregon City Council Member Receives Death Threat After Opposing “In God We Trust” Display

Last month, I mentioned that Klamath Falls, Oregon was the latest city to considering putting an “In God We Trust” display in City Hall. But unlike most other cities, there was actually resistance from elected officials:

“If ‘In God We Trust’ is going to be placed on that wall, shall we then place ‘Allahu Akbar’ on this wall for our Muslim citizens? Or ‘Yahweh is God, you shall have no other god before him’ on that wall for our Jewish citizens? Or ‘We bow down to our Mother Earth at this time...