RSA Daily

For atheists, rationalists and secular humanists in Australia

Wednesday, November 8, 2023

Good morning ,

I've always had the impression the NSW govt, be it Labor or Coalition, was the most conservative in the country, Jo Bjelke-Petersen notwithstanding. Labor has been dominated by its Labor Right faction (coming from the old 'social justice' Catholics) and the Libs have been dominated by the Sydney Anglicans, the most conservative Anglican diocese in the world.

So it's no surprise that our nomination for the Labor govt's new Faith Affairs Council, Sydney Atheists president Steve Marton, has been rejected. The govt said that non-religionists like atheists "could be appointed to other bodies". Such an irrelevant response reveals starkly the problem - they just don't get the power and influence they are giving away to unrepresentative clerical leaders.

Lead stories

The NSW govt will allow religious clerics direct access to ministers while denying such access to representatives of a third of the community. Does this matter? Yes - because they have already said the sort of topics these clerics will be able to discuss with decision-makers include "objections" to "euthanasia" (voluntary assisted dying) and religious discrimination laws. 

Massimo Pigliucci explains the purpose of Stoicism - to "live in harmony with Nature". But by "Nature", Stoic philosophy does not mean the physical environment. Rather, they mean to live according to virtue, "for Nature leads us to virtue." Why? Because humans are naturally social animals capable of reason.
 

Believe it or not, a federal election could be held as soon as August of next year, 2024. A petition for a bill to protect elections from blatant political lies has been started (not by us). Please sign and share!

Other stories of interest

Directing expenditure to where it's needed most for Indigenous Australia - Rationale Magazine

Former finance journalist David James investigates the claim that $40 bn a year is spent on Indigenous people in Australia.

Our minds handle risk strangely - and that's partly why we delayed climate action so long

"people motivated to avoid or deny climate risk are actually better able to do so when they have more scientific training .. the tendency to rationalise away risk was also clearly visible among people who downplayed the impact or even denied the existence of COVID-19. Is there an antidote?"

A new Silicon Valley manifesto reveals the bleak, dangerous philosophy driving the tech industry

Tech billionaire Marc Andreessen, who funds firms like Facebook, Github, Lyft adn Twitter, seems to be another piece of the emerging fascist movement in the US. "The mission of techno-optimists appears to be to pick up where the European and American empires of the 19th century left off, using technological, political and economic power to bully, coerce and bludgeon other societies into acquiescence."

Battle of the gods - Pearls and Irritations

"beneath the reams of journalistic analysis and the political posturing on both sides of the conflict, the real cause of the death and destruction is simple: it is a throwback to the absurd biblical contest between the gods of yesteryear .. The problem for the participants is that the issue by its very nature is insoluble. Both are spiritual concepts – ‘beliefs’ if you will – that defy rational discussion and compromise. The only means left to decide the winner is force."

Got a comment on any of these stories? 

Write to me at president@rationalist.com.au

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