New Disqus is live (sigh)

Welp, it’s official: All those long and tedious hours of work, planning and troubleshooting I’ve put into customizing the appearance and function of this blog’s comments have been promptly rendered moot with the imposition introduction of the New and Improved Disqus 2012™.

Highlights (compared to the previous version) include:

• Inability to customize general appearance (sizes, spacing, colors, etc.);
• Inability to modify code to allow for automatic hyphenation (something I was quite happy with);
• Inability to change position of comment input box;
• Inability to change avatar size or placement (avatars now create a wide margin of wasted space);
• Inability to remove superfluous bells & whistles (fave-like “star” system, “Community” and “My Disqus” tabs, “share” buttons, etc.);
• Inability to disable comment “likes”/“dislikes” (which I’m sure spammers and trolls would never abuse);
• Inability to set a default site-wide comment thread sorting method (by date, popularity, etc.);
• Inability to set custom text colors via CSS classes (which really came in handy for moderation;)
• Inability to hide attached media (though attachment should be disabled for newer threads);
• No more one-click comment editing (now requires browsing through several menus);
• No more “absolute” timestamps (eg. “12/30/2012 12:00 AM”), though you can see it by hovering your mouse over the uselessly vague “3 months ago”;
• Automatic hiding of longer comments by default that can’t be disabled;
• Forced comment nesting (with depth limited to only three reply levels); and
• Presumably several more issues that will surface over time.

Meanwhile, basic functionality like backlinks is still inexplicably missing despite being a quasi-standard almost everywhere else.

In short, Disqus has taken what was a mostly functional and customizable system and rejiggered it until virtually every helpful feature has been either lost or buried under layers of useless, unwanted and irremovable crap, whilst stripping admins of the ability to repair virtually any of the damage. And they call it an “upgrade”.

Look, I’m not opposed to all these new gadgets and trinkets being included in the new platform. If others enjoy them, so be it. But would it really be too difficult to at least give admins the option of enabling or disabling said gadgets and trinkets on their own blogs? Many of the features that are now immutable used to be optional in the previous platform, so it’s not like they don’t know how to do it. Really, what’s more basic and commonsensical than giving users the choice of which features they want included in their product?

I realize I may sound a bit peevish and nitpicky over this, but I think I’m entitled to be. I quite liked the way I’d gotten the old system to work (despite its flaws). Then Disqus decided they wanted to appeal to the crowd’s dissonant whims and simply steamrollered all over it without any choice to opt out.

While it’s possible they’ll eventually improve the current system, I’m not holding my breath. I’m rather going to be looking into alternatives and seeing whether they might give me the control I want over my own blog’s comments system.

</rant>

Daily Blend: 03/13/2013

TJ Kincaid

Heads Up: Later today/tomorrow is when Disqus is slated to force its “upgraded” platform upon users (like me) who still cling to the old, customizable version. Might take a little while for changes to take effect. Stay tuned.

I’m also trying out a new title style for this Daily Blend (rather than the usual long-form date). We’ll see if it sticks. That is all.

Oh, look, it’s another bone-chilling climate study for pseudoscientists and ideologues to deny and lie about!

New Zealand votes to guarantee passage of same-sex marriage. Yay!
(via Joe. My. God.)

Some more gay (in both senses) news: Floundering “ex-gay” group National Association for the Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) loses tax exempt status, forced to slice their Rentboy budget.
(via Joe. My. God.)

This just in: TJ Kincaid ^[pictured] is still an embarrassment to the atheist community and humanity in general. (Also: Go, Anita Sarkeesian!)
(via @SallyStrange; RT: @jennifurret)

Virginia steps a little further into the 21^st Century by overturning law against “consensual sodomy”. (Wingnut outrage in 3 … 2 …)
(via Joe. My. God.)

And finally, here’s an interactive infographic of global Internet porn habits. (East Europe is amazingly perverted.)
(via Joe. My. God.)

If you have any story suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments or send them in.

Meet the new holy boss, same as the old holy boss

Pope Francis I

So, enter Pope Francis I, or the Cardinal Formerly Known As Jorge Bergoglio and the first non-European il Papa:

Anti-abortion? Check.

Anti-gay marriage? Check.

Anti-gay adoption? Check.

Anti-humane euthanasia? Check.

Anti-birth control? Mostly (he supports contraceptives to inhibit diseases like AIDS, but opposes reproductive rights).

Anti-science (evolution, Big Bang, etc.)? Possibly (no word either way).

Helped cover up clerical child sexual abuse? For all we know (it wouldn’t exactly be a shock).

Old White male prude whose dogmatically inspired opinion on everyone else’s lifestyles is suddenly considered infallible? Septuple-check.

So, in other words …

EDIT: 03/13/13 5:46 PM ET – Clarified Bergoglio’s position on contraceptives.

Catholic Charities threatens to withdraw from Colorado

It’s the same ol’ song and dance: A state passes legislation granting some or all benefits to same-sex couples, and religious organizations squawk in protest at the thought of being prohibited from discriminating against people who shack up with partners they don’t approve of. Here’s Catholic Charities, wondering aloud whether their sincerely held religious beliefs will allow them to continue helping disenfranchised children in Colorado in the wake of that state’s new civil unions law:

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Denver expressed Tuesday “disappointment” in Colorado’s Legislature, stating that if signed into law, the bill “may threaten the policies which guide us in the vital work to find families for Colorado’s children in need.”

The bill providing protections for gay couples does not provide exceptions to religious institutions wishing to withhold adoptions based on sexual preference, a decision that House Speaker Mark Ferrandino, D-Denver, said would be “discriminatory.” […]

Catholic Charities spokeswoman Tracy Murphy said the organization would not announce any concrete decision regarding adoption services in Colorado until the civil unions bill was signed into law, but the organization previously threatened to withdraw adoption services in Colorado if the legislation did not include exemptions that would allow religious organizations to withhold adoptions from gay couples.

The group has already cut ties with several states after they passed their own same-sex partnership equality legislation, typically with little-to-no deleterious repercussions once non-discriminatory (usually secular) organizations stepped in to pick up the slack. But of course, they’re always quick to dub these entirely voluntary withdrawals as being “shut down by the state”, as if they didn’t have the option to simply follow the laws that apply to everyone else and stop discriminating against perfectly eligible same-sex households. Which really says all you need to know about their priorities.

(via Joe. My. God.)

Colorado legislature passes civil unions

And the Centennial State makes six to allow the watered-down first step towards same-sex marriage equality:

The state House of Representatives voted 39-26 to pass the “Colorado Civil Union Act,” about one month after the Senate approved the bill. Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper, who said he will sign the legislation, tweeted: “#CivilUnions passes! Today, every Coloradan has equal rights.”

[…]

Same-sex marriage is not allowed in Colorado, where voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2006 defining marriage as between a man and a woman. The civil-unions legislation passed on its third try, according to Lambda Legal.

It’s a tough road ahead before full same-sex marriage can prevail in the state, judging from the difficulties other states have faced to overturn their own constitutional bans, which usually requires court action. Meanwhile, Republicans are already declaring their intent to challenge the civil unions law “because it doesn’t offer religious exemptions”, whatever that specifically means. Can’t have basic civil rights for all contradict their right to act like discriminatory bigots, now can we?

As always, civil unions are more of a lackluster compromise than anything else (contra Gov. Hickenlooper’s premature victory call), but baby steps still trump no steps at all anyday. If anything, I view civil unions legislation as a way to mollify the general voting public over time until the majority are eventually willing to vote for full marriage rights. It’s slow and pragmatic, but sometimes, that’s how politics has to be in order for there to be any progress at all.

(via @BadAstronomer)

Daily Blend: Monday, March 11, 2013

Duane Gish

Win for liberty: New York Supreme Court blocks New York City’s ban on large sugary drinks, which was to enter effect tomorrow.
(via @BuzzFeedAndrew)

Condescending asshole tries so desperately hard to make the case that the skeptical movement is actually a religion-in-disguise for condescending assholes. It was less annoyingly tedious to sit through Al Stefanelli’s “atheist cult” tirade.
(via The Daily Grail)

There’s a special irony to seeing Vox Day, who’s spent the last several months smearing John Scalzi as “McRapey” over his own bizarre misunderstanding, accuse Scalzi of exhibiting “juvenile behavior”.

Duane Gish ^[pictured], shameless Creationist liar famous for the popularizing the “Gish Gallop” style of “debating”, has died at 92.

And finally, just the thing to top off a Monday:
(via @EmergencyPuppy)

If you have any story suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments or send them in.

Ray Comfort “detests religion”

Ray Comfort

Noted preachy Christianist Ray Comfort apparently takes exception to being called by his proper label:

Call me ugly, stupid, short, weird, an idiot, or just plain ignorant. Call me anything you want, but please, oh please, don't call me "religious."

I detest religion. It has caused multiple and tragic wars throughout history. It comes in second, after atheistic communism which is responsible for more than 100 million deaths.^{[Myth A17]} I'm pleased to say that I don't have a religious bone in my body. I don't believe that anyone can obtain eternal life by being religious, or by doing religious works (what are often called "good works"). I am a sinner, saved from damnation by the grace and mercy of God, and I am proud to be called a "Christian" because I am a follower of Jesus Christ. I believe that eternal life is a free gift of God that comes through sincere repentance towards the God we have offended and trust alone in the Savior, as taught by the Scriptures.

Um …

re·li·gion [ri-lij-uhn]
noun
1. a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
2. a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects: the Christian religion; the Buddhist religion.

Sorry, Ray, but just as reluctant self-styled agnostics can’t reasonably (or accurately) declare they hold no positive belief in any deities whilst rejecting the label of “atheist”, Bible-thumping Godbots who devote their lives to (literally) preaching their pet faith don’t get to avoid the mantle of “religious”, least of all due to some sort of guilt by association. It’s also somewhat perplexing for you to claim a distinction between being granted eternal (after)life by “being religious” and by being “a follower of Jesus Christ” and putting your faith in scripture.

The dictionary (an actual higher power!) hath spoken on this one.

Doggycide Roundup: 03/09/13

Ofc. Cora

Romeoville, IL (02/19/13): Officer shoots & wounds allegedly “aggressive” loose family dog, shoots again to try and kill it out of mercy but fails. Dog is eventually euthanized at the vet’s. Investigation is underway.
(via Dogs Shot by Police | Facebook)

Pagosa Springs, CO (02/25/13): Cop checking out allegedly “aggressive” dogs at large shoots Rebel, who is later euthanized for his injuries. Witnesses dispute officer’s account.
(via Dogs Shot by Police | Facebook)

Fishers, IN (02/26/13): U.S. marshal confronted by Reese the tiny rat terrier barking at him, immediately shoots & wounds her, gets cleared of wrongdoing for “self-defense”. Owners stuck with $10,000 vet bills.
(via Dogs Shot by Police | Facebook)

Boston, IL (02/28/13): Thorough and informative police report says an officer shot a dog. Reason? Breed? Animal’s status? Witnesses? Bah, that’s not reporting.
(via Dogs Shot by Police | Facebook)

Lawrence, MA (03/01/13): Cop somehow confuses a (allegedly “aggressive”) Shar-Pei for a pitbull, shoots & kills it.
(via Dogs Shot by Police | Facebook)

Moss Point, MS (03/05/13): Police conducting drug search shoot & wound Cora the K-9 German shepherd ^[pictured] “after she was mistaken for a vicious dog”. There’s a certain irony to that, really.
(via Dogs Shot by Police | Facebook)

And finally, some good news: Two Colorado senators introduce a bill requiring police to undergo training for dealing with dogs.
(via Dogs Shot by Police | Facebook)

Statistics:
Shootings: 6
Victims: 6
Deceased: 3 (50%)
Survivors: 2 (33%)
Pitbull index: 1 (16%)

Ken Ham accuses non-Biblical literalists of “helping atheism”

Ken Ham

Infighting is funny, Christian fundamentalist edition: Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis is upset at fellow zealots like Mark Driscoll (Seattle’s Mars Hill Church) and Robert Jeffress (Dallas’s First Baptist Church) for shying away from his fetishized brand of Young-Earth Creationism and accuses them of “undermining” Christianity in the process:

During a recent interview on the Bill O’Reilly show, Dr. Robert Jeffress, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, acknowledged his belief that the earth could have been created 13.7 billion years ago.

“I think it very well could have been,” Jeffress told O’Reilly. “One of the things fundamentalist Christians mess up on is they try to say the earth is 6,000 years old. The Bible never makes that claim.”

Ham denounced Jeffress statement maintaining the Bible makes no such claim that the earth is billions of years old.

“Pastors need to be told that when you do that, you undermine the authority of Scripture,” Ham said. “They are helping atheism by undermining the authenticity of the word of God.”

Oh, don’t worry, Ken. As much as we heathens appreciate your fellow bigoted crackpots’s talent for discrediting themselves every time they open their mouths, they really can’t hold a candle to the kind of man who would sink millions of dollars into a stronghold of fantastical bullshit posing as a scientific establishment and whose intellectual/ideological equals can’t match wits with any properly educated sixth-grader.

One good thing about being an atheist: No other group needs to put in as little effort to disprove and discredit its opponents, since they’re adept at revealing their own mad idiocy all by themselves.

(via Right Wing Watch)

Headline of the Day: The Huffington Post on drones

Looks like Sen. Rand Paul’s (R-KY) filibuster is making waves in the right places:

All collateral damage, of course. And if they were a few years older, they’d all be “combatants”.

(via @BuzzFeedAndrew)

Sen. Rand Paul’s filibuster and Democrat partisan hypocrisy

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY)

Something pretty amazing (and disheartening) happened yesterday, for the two of you who may not yet have heard: Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), a certifiable regressive kook in almost every regard, took the Senate into a 12-hour filibuster – spent actually talking about policy rather than, say, reading from a phone book or some such – to stall the confirmation of John Brennan, President Obama’s chosen appointee for Director of the CIA, over concerns about the Obama administration’s use of drones.

Basically, you know something somewhere has gone egregiously wrong when a handful of stopped clocks led by a Tea Party darling are the ones who are completely and unambiguously right about something, while those who make themselves out as champions of justice and civil liberties opt for partisan pettiness, instead:

Senate Republicans took the floor on Wednesday, launching an historic filibuster in an attempt to extract an answer from the White House to a simple question: Does the administration believe it has the legal authority to kill an American citizen on American soil with a drone strike?

It's a question that seems fairly nonpartisan on its face, but a second one occurred to those watching the C-SPAN broadcast late into the morning: Where are all the Democrats?

Republicans, from Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) to filibuster-leader Rand Paul (Ky.), spoke for more than 12 hours. But only one Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, spoke in support of Paul during that time. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon) tweeted support, but otherwise progressives who might have assumed to have been supportive were absent, leaving members of the GOP as the sole defenders of civil liberties. The White House was equally silent.

A resounding silence … as opposed to immediately offering the only reasonable (and eminently obvious) answer: “No, the US Government does not have the right to order and carry out the extrajudicial and explicitly unconstitutional murder of its own citizens on its own soil (or anywhere else, for that matter).” But then, anyone paying attention has long since abandoned any hope that the President would seriously follow up on his erstwhile promises to reform the various executive travesties begun under President Bush & co, particularly given how he’s only expanded on them while in office.

Canada secretly fighting Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” bill

Min. John Baird

The last we heard of Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality (“Kill the Gays”) Bill, it was apparently being fast-tracked last November as a “Christmas gift”. Thankfully, it seems that the effort failed, though the bill is still on the table, and meanwhile, pro-equality activists in Uganda are receiving some under-the-table help from my own homeland:

Canada is quietly financing a concerted grassroots effort to aid gay Ugandans’ fight against their country’s proposed anti-homosexuality bill — and preparing them in case it passes, says a senior Department of Foreign Affairs source.

Since November, when the Ugandan Parliament renewed its effort to pass the legislation, which Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird has called “abhorrent,” Canada has spent $200,000 to kick-start several gay rights initiatives in the region. The source confirmed that the Canadian involvement was specifically focused on fighting the Ugandan bill.

The projects involved include preparing secret escape routes and emergency kits should the bill pass, establishing a hotline, and preparing legal experts for the inevitable court battles ahead, in addition to generally promoting LGBT rights and public awareness.

There’s still no word on whether or not the legislation will be enacted in the end, despite the Ugandan government’s zeal for cracking down on disenfranchised minorities. At least Canada has once again shown its true colors (of awesome) in the meantime.

(via Joe. My. God.)