Barriers to Access (Via Randi Rhodes)

North Carolina has passed a harsh new law on voting... or more correctly, on not voting. This law is being described as the most draconian yet passed. For those of you who were home-schooled, that means “worse than Texas.” It imposes strict voted picture ID, curtails early voting, and repeals same day registration. It’s got everything except a poll tax and literacy test.

North Carolina Governor Patrick McCrory described the measure as a “common sense law.” That is true—common sense tells you that if you want Republicans to win, you’ve got to stop black people and young people from voting. Governor McCrory said we need ID to board a plane, why not to vote? He wants voting to be like boarding a plane! If he had his way, there would be a separate line and early boarding for first class voters.

If you’ve ever wondered how Ted Cruz turned out so slimy and reptilian, check out his father. It’s a real testament to the power of heredity. Ted’s father became a US citizen... 48 years after leaving Cuba. His path to citizenship was blocked by the fact that he evidently didn’t give a crap until his son wanted to run for high office. When asked why he took so long, Rafael Cruz said “I don’t know. I guess laziness or—I don’t know.” Just beautiful! Isn’t that inscribed on the base of the Statue of Liberty?

Rick Santorum says the term “middle class” is “Marxism talk” since America doesn’t have any classes. No classes? Are you talking about society, or the public school systems in red states. If the term “middle class” is “Marxism talk,” then every politician in America for the past century has been a communist… including Rick Santorum.

Finally, the Missouri State Fair this year featured a rodeo clown wearing an Obama mask being chased around the ring by a bull. I’m pretty sure that local fire ordinances are the only reason they didn’t burn a cross as well. The announcer asked if anyone wanted to see Obama get run down by a bull, and the crowd went crazy. Check that—they were obviously already crazy.

At one point, another clown ran up to the Obama clown and started bobbling his lips, to the delight of the crowd. In one sense, that second clown was a genius. He looked at the most tasteless situation imaginable... and found a way to make it even more disgusting. The second clown was like the guy during the torture and murder of Emmitt Till who came up with the idea to gouge his eye out—always finding a way to take it to the next level.

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Read more: http://www.randirhodes.com/articles/daily-blog-380723/on-todays-show-tue-aug-13-11569284/#ixzz2bt30Qin9

Religious people are less intelligent than atheists, study finds (Via Yahoo News)

Rob Waugh August 12, 2013 Yahoo! News

Religious people are less intelligent than non-believers, according to a new review of 63 scientific studies stretching back over decades.

A team led by Miron Zuckerman of the University of Rochester found “a reliable negative relation between intelligence and religiosity” in 53 out of 63 studies. Even in extreme old age, intelligent people are less likely to believe, the researchers found - and the reasons why people with high IQs shun religion may not be as simple as previously thought.
[Backlash after Dawkins' Muslim jibe]
Previous studies have tended to assume that intelligent people simply “know better”, the researchers write - but the reasons may be more complex.

Famous atheist Richard Dawkins (ZUMA / Rex Features)

For instance, intelligent people are more likely to be married, and more likely to be successful in life - and this may mean they “need” religion less.

The studies used in Zuckerman's paper included a life-long analysis of the beliefs of a group of 1,500 gifted children - those with IQs over 135 - in a study which began in 1921 and continues today.

Even at 75 to 91 years of age, the children from Lewis Terman’s study scored lower for religiosity than the general population - contrary to the widely held belief that people turn to God as they age. The researchers noted that data was lacking about religious attitudes in old age and say, “Additional research is needed to resolve this issue.”

As early as 1958, Michael Argyle concluded, “Although intelligent children grasp religious concepts earlier, they are also the first to doubt the truth of religion, and intelligent students are much less likely to accept orthodox beliefs, and rather less likely to have pro-religious attitudes.”

A 1916 study quoted in Zuckerman’s paper (Leuba) found that, “58% of randomly selected scientists in the United States expressed disbelief in, or doubt regarding the existence of God; this proportion rose to nearly 70% for the most eminent scientists.”
[Did Archaeologists Find a Piece of Jesus' Cross?]
The paper, published in the academic journal Personality and Social Psychology Review, said “Most extant explanations (of a negative relation) share one central theme—the premise that religious beliefs are irrational, not anchored in science, not testable and, therefore, unappealing to intelligent people who “know better.” 
The answer may, however, be more complex. Intelligent people may simply be able to provide themselves with the psychological benefits offered by religion - such as “self-regulation and self-enhancement,” because they are more likely to be successful, and have stable lives.

[Long backlog for godless wedding services in Ireland]

“Intelligent people typically spend more time in school—a form of self-regulation that may yield long-term benefits,” the researchers write. “More intelligent people get higher level jobs (and better employment (and higher salary) may lead to higher self-esteem, and encourage personal control beliefs.”

“Last, more intelligent people are more likely to get and stay married (greater attachment), though for intelligent people, that too comes later in life. We therefore suggest that as intelligent people move from young adulthood to adulthood and then to middle age, the benefits of intelligence may continue to accrue.”

The researchers suggest that further research on the “function” of religion may reveal more.

“People possessing the functions that religion provides are likely to adopt atheism, people lacking these very functions (e.g., the poor, the helpless) are likely to adopt theism,” the researchers wrote.