Pagans on Parade

[JC3.0]

Yes, we have freedom of religion, but when a creed advocates harm to those of different creeds that in effect imposes on the others' right to believe as they choose.

Remember the nutcase leaders at Waco (Mt.Carmel) and the Jonestown massacre?  Should those freaks be free to wreak death and suffering on innocent followers?
Freedom is a relative thing, and one's own  freedom ends where the next guy's freedom begins. I think it is the duty of a goverment to see that innocent people are not harmed or killed by nutcase outfits.

Religious whackos-good ole red blooded white American Christians go around not only targeting but killing doctors either by bullet or bomb. Islam does not have a lock on the batshit crazy fanatacism, so let's be clear about that. We (as a nation) just tend to frown upon the "other"ness of the other and make a bigger deal about it. But religion is the basis of most (not all but most) war and conflict in this world, so what does THAT tell you?

Aside from that, unfortunately the gov't can't do the "duty" you prescribe regarding protecting innocent people without prying guns away from "clinging" hands and that will always be a problem as long as we have guns and the right to own them. The gov't can only do it's best to find the purp and bring them to justice AFTER the fact-that is if we are to allow guns so freely in our nation.It's a double edge sword...Noone wants their right to bear arms taken away, yet guns DO kill people (yes I know people kill people, not guns, but really-c'mon!)

[johnhp]

blather

i know Mornac won't answer the question but could you please try and be in the fucking ball park when you attempt?

[ivanm]

Religious whackos-good ole red blooded white American Christians go around not only targeting but killing doctors either by bullet or bomb. Islam does not have a lock on the batshit crazy fanatacism, so let's be clear about that. We (as a nation) just tend to frown upon the "other"ness of the other and make a bigger deal about it. But religion is the basis of most (not all but most) war and conflict in this world, so what does THAT tell you?

Aside from that, unfortunately the gov't can't do the "duty" you prescribe regarding protecting innocent people without prying guns away from "clinging" hands and that will always be a problem as long as we have guns and the right to own them. The gov't can only do it's best to find the purp and bring them to justice AFTER the fact-that is if we are to allow guns so freely in our nation.It's a double edge sword...Noone wants their right to bear arms taken away, yet guns DO kill people (yes I know people kill people, not guns, but really-c'mon!)

Do you own a firearm? Do you think that banning guns will keep them away from those who want to do some dirt?

Yes, religion is involved in a lot of conflicts.  So what do we do, stick our heads under a rock and hope the threat goes away? People will always have some sort of a belief system, so as long as there are people we will have wars.  Is that you see it? 

[ivanm]

Religious whackos-good ole red blooded white American Christians go around not only targeting but killing doctors either by bullet or bomb. Islam does not have a lock on the batshit crazy fanatacism, so let's be clear about that. We (as a nation) just tend to frown upon the "other"ness of the other and make a bigger deal about it. But religion is the basis of most (not all but most) war and conflict in this world, so what does THAT tell you?

Aside from that, unfortunately the gov't can't do the "duty" you prescribe regarding protecting innocent people without prying guns away from "clinging" hands and that will always be a problem as long as we have guns and the right to own them. The gov't can only do it's best to find the purp and bring them to justice AFTER the fact-that is if we are to allow guns so freely in our nation.It's a double edge sword...Noone wants their right to bear arms taken away, yet guns DO kill people (yes I know people kill people, not guns, but really-c'mon!)

You need to decide which nation you will support in this struggle. If an  Islamic country better suits your fancy then what is stopping you from going there?

[johnhp]

i guess he can't.

[JC3.0]

Do you own a firearm? Do you think that banning guns will keep them away from those who want to do some dirt?

I don't own a firearm but I used to support the right to bear arms until the Congresswoman Giffords shooting. That was the tipping point for me. There are too many guns, and not enough responsibility happening anymore. It is out of control. Taking guns away from folks won't solve everything but it will significantly decrease it. There is more 'bad" gun usage happening than "good" gun usage and we need to do something about that. I do think banning guns is a start but not a solve all. Just because it is not a solve all does not mean it is totally ineffective. It is clearly evident that there are too many nuts out there with guns. How we get rid of those nuts and the guns-I care less. For every "decent blue blooded American gun owner" who is responsible(cue the Lee Greenwood song and pound your chest and shout USA here) there are several idiots with guns, and they aren't all gang bangers, either. Some "good" Christians are gunning down doctors and a nutball white kid shot Giffords. Too many guns.....getting into the wrong hands. It is both. It needs to be stopped.

[ivanm]

The problem with a gun ban is that the bad guys will still have them or can get them.  Gun running is big business.

And there is the constitutional issue of the right to bear arms. It is plausible that the founding fathers wanted the people to have firearms in case they had to rise up and put down a despotic government like the one in England they had fled from.

[Mornac]

‘Devil worshippers’ attack church

August 17, 2011

The desecration of a sub-station of a Syro-Malankara Catholic church in Maharashtra state on Monday could have been the work of devil worshippers, Church officials said yesterday.
 
Several people “broke into our church in Warje Malwadi in the small hours on Independence Day, vandalized the altar, burnt the tabernacle, as well as tearing up the Bible and prayer books,” said Father Varghese Valikodath, who is in charge of the church in Pune.
 
The Holy Eucharist was not kept in the tabernacle as priests don’t reside there, said Father Valikodath, who is also the parish priest of St Mary’s Malankara Church in Khadki, in Pune.
 
Police investigating the crime have launched a manhunt for the culprits.
 
According to Father Valikodath, the alarm was raised at around 6:30am on Monday by the secretary of the church, who found the front door, terrace door and windows broken open.
 
Paintings of Jesus, Mother Mary and other saints were vandalized and the words “Satan is God” were written on the walls and some of the paintings, he said.
 
The priest said robbery was not the motive as collection money and valuables were not stolen.
 
“It could be some devil-worshipping group,” he said.
 
Yesterday, a Holy Mass was celebrated, purification prayers were said and the premises were blessed, Father Valikodath said.
 
Local Catholics were quick to condemn the vandalism.

http://www.ucanews.com/2011/08/17/devil-worshippers-attack-church/
 
“This is the first attack on the Catholic Church in Pune and we condemn the desecration of a place of worship,” said Diago Almeida, president of the Catholic Association of Pune.

[ivanm]

Religious whackos-good ole red blooded white American Christians go around not only targeting but killing doctors either by bullet or bomb. Islam does not have a lock on the batshit crazy fanatacism, so let's be clear about that. We (as a nation) just tend to frown upon the "other"ness of the other and make a bigger deal about it. But religion is the basis of most (not all but most) war and conflict in this world, so what does THAT tell you?

Aside from that, unfortunately the gov't can't do the "duty" you prescribe regarding protecting innocent people without prying guns away from "clinging" hands and that will always be a problem as long as we have guns and the right to own them. The gov't can only do it's best to find the purp and bring them to justice AFTER the fact-that is if we are to allow guns so freely in our nation.It's a double edge sword...Noone wants their right to bear arms taken away, yet guns DO kill people (yes I know people kill people, not guns, but really-c'mon!)

Islam is one of the few religions that advocates the killing of those who do not want to convert to Islam, and all too often the nutcase jihadists cite Islam as the justification for their barbarism. 

I think we are foolish by taking a chance on letting an Islamic foreigner on our soil, period.  It is no wonder they can do little until after the fact as these clowns are not about to publish their intended madness.

Why spill blood overseas to combat Islamic extremists while at the same time welcome them in at home?  That is like asking a fox to guard the hen house.  Euro countries are having one hell of a time of it with the growing Muslim popuiations and yet we are too damned thick headed to see it. So we go from  being a mixing pot to a sewer.

[Mornac]

I have to agree with you ivan. During WWII I don’t think we were accepting immigrants from Japan or Germany unless it was for asylum purposes. Today we are not at war with a country (accept for those ones where hawk boy is getting his kicks with American lives and resources) but with members of a religion. They struck us on our own soil. It’s not up to us to sort out who may or may not be harmful. Anyone willingly associating themselves with a religion like that should be eyed with suspicion.

[ivanm]

I have to agree with you ivan. During WWII I don’t think we were accepting immigrants from Japan or Germany unless it was for asylum purposes. Today we are not at war with a country (accept for those ones where hawk boy is getting his kicks with American lives and resources) but with members of a religion. They struck us on our own soil. It’s not up to us to sort out who may or may not be harmful. Anyone willingly associating themselves with a religion like that should be eyed with suspicion.

Agreed.  Being nice to Muslims so as not to aggravate the fruitcakes amongst them is probably a smart move, but lying down and letting the headloppers walk over us on our own soil is pretty damned stupid.  That is why we need a true American  in the WH and not some damned nut that doesn't know where his allegiance lies.

It is an insult to the taxpayer for him to coddle those freaks, and he just thumbs his nose at us taxpayers.  It must be some sort of maladjusted idealism. Frankly I think he wants to diminish white power by inviting all sorts of minorities and kooks to come to America and live. I hope they bring their checkbooks because whitey has had his belly full of this reverse discrimination.

[Mornac]

11 October 2011
Where child sacrifice is a business
By Chris Rogers

The villages and farming communities that surround Uganda's capital, Kampala, are gripped by fear.

Schoolchildren are closely watched by teachers and parents as they make their way home from school. In playgrounds and on the roadside are posters warning of the danger of abduction by witch doctors for the purpose of child sacrifice.

The ritual, which some believe brings wealth and good health, was almost unheard of in the country until about three years ago, but it has re-emerged, seemingly alongside a boom in the country's economy.

The mutilated bodies of children have been discovered at roadsides, the victims of an apparently growing belief in the power of human sacrifice.

'Sacrifice business'

Many believe that members of the country's new elite are paying witch doctors vast sums of money for the sacrifices in a bid to increase their wealth.

At the Kyampisi Childcare Ministries church, Pastor Peter Sewakiryanga is teaching local children a song called Heal Our Land, End Child Sacrifice.

To hear dozens of young voices singing such shocking words epitomises how ritual murder has become part of everyday life here.

"Child sacrifice has risen because people have become lovers of money. They want to get richer," the pastor says.

"They have a belief that when you sacrifice a child you get wealth, and there are people who are willing to buy these children for a price. So they have become a commodity of exchange, child sacrifice has become a commercial business."

The pastor and his parishioners are lobbying the government to regulate witch doctors and improve police resources to investigate these crimes.

According to official police figures, there was one case of child sacrifice in 2006; in 2008 the police say they investigated 25 alleged ritual murders, and in 2009, another 29.

The Anti-Human Sacrifice Police Task Force, launched in response to the growing numbers, says the ritual murder rate has slowed, citing a figure of 38 cases since 2006.

Pastor Sewakiryanga disputes the police numbers, and says there are more victims from his parish than official statistics for the entire country.

The work of the police task force has been strongly criticised by the UK-based charity, Jubilee Campaign.

It says in a report that the true number of cases is in the hundreds, and claims more than 900 cases have yet to be investigated by the police because of corruption and a lack of resources.

'Quiet money'
 
Tepenensi led me to a field near her home where she found the body of her six-year-old grandson Stephen, dumped in the reeds. She trembled as she pointed out the spot where she found his decapitated body; he had been missing for 24 hours.

Clutching the only photo she has of her grandson, Tepenensi sobbed as she explained that although the local witch doctor had admitted to sacrificing Stephen, the police were reluctant to pursue the case.

"They offered me money to keep quiet," she says. "I refused the offer."

No-one from the Ugandan government agreed to do an interview. The police deny inaction and corruption.

The head of the Anti-Human Sacrifice Police Task Force, Commissioner Bignoa Moses, says the police are doing all they can to tackle the problem.

"Sometimes, they accuse us of these things because we make no arrests, but we are limited. If we get information that someone is involved in criminal activities like human sacrifice, we shall go and investigate, and if it can be proven we will take him to court, but sometimes the cases are not proven."

Boy castrated
 
At Kampala main hospital, consultant neurosurgeon Michael Muhumuza shows me the X-rays of the horrific injuries suffered by nine-year-old Allan.

They reveal missing bone from his skull and damage to a part of his brain after a machete sliced through Allan's head and neck in an attempt to behead him; he was castrated by the witch doctor. It was a month before Allan woke from a coma after being dumped near his village home.

Allan was able to identify his attackers, including a man called Awali. But the police say Allan's eyewitness account is unreliable.

Some children are cut to collect blood for rituals
Local people told us that Awali continues to be involved with child sacrifice.

For our own inquiries, we posed as local businessmen and asked around for a witch doctor that could bring prosperity to our local construction company. We were soon introduced to Awali. He led us into a courtyard behind his home, and as if to welcome us he and his helpers wrestled a goat to the ground and slit its throat.

"This animal has been sacrificed to bring luck to us all," Awali explained. He then demanded a fee of $390 (£250) for the ritual and asked us to return in a few days.

At our next meeting, Awali invited us into his shrine, which is traditionally built from mud bricks with a straw roof. Inside, the floor is littered with herbs, face masks, rattles and a machete.

The witch doctor explained that this meeting was to discuss the most powerful spell - the sacrifice of a child.

"There are two ways of doing this," he said. "We can bury the child alive on your construction site, or we cut them in different places and put their blood in a bottle of spiritual medicine."

Awali grabbed his throat. "If it's a male, the whole head is cut off and his genitals. We will dig a hole at your construction site, and also bury the feet and the hands and put them all together in the hole."

 The attacks have created a climate of fear
Awali boasted he had sacrificed children many times before and knew what he was doing. After this meeting, we withdrew from the negotiations.

We handed our notes to the police. Awali is still a free man.

'No voice'
 
Allan's father, Semwanga, has sold his home to pay for Allan's medical treatment, and moved to the slums near the capital.

Sitting on the steps of their makeshift house, built from corrugated sheets of metal, I showed the footage of our meeting with the witch doctor to Allan on my laptop. He pointed to the screen and shouted "Awali!" confirming he is the man who attacked him.

Pastor Sewakiryanga says without the full force of the law, there is little that can be done to protect Uganda's children from the belief in the power of human sacrifice.

"The children do not have voices, their voices have been silenced by the law and the police not acting, and the people who read the newspapers do nothing, so we have to make a stand and do whatever it takes to stamp out this evil, we can only pray that the government will listen."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15255357