Sarah Silverman Interview On Larry King Live 04/20/2010

She and Larry both confess being agnostics at the end of the clip.

This is a picture of the leaders for every major religion, including a likeness of Muhammad (kinda) – this was how episode 200 actually showed it:

The 200th episode tries very hard not just to piss off celebrities, but pretty much all major religions as well.  If you assume everyone that self-identifies with one of these religions was not happy, then that’s:

Christianity (includes Mormons): 2.1 billion
Islam: 1.5 billion
Hinduism: 900 million
Buddhism: 376 million

Offended Celebrities: what… maybe 50?

4.9 billion people who were offended (probably).

That leaves:

Secular/Nonreligious/Agnostic/Atheist: 1.1 billion… that thought it was hilarious (I expect).  Naturally, not all of these people in the total counts have seen the episode, but it shouldn’t be long after they see this post that they’ll watch it.

If you haven’t seen it, check it out.  It’s worth it, and I’m not even a South Park regular.

http://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/267114

The script re-introducing Super Best Friends:

Announcer: In the great hall of the Super Best Friends there are assembled the leaders of the world’s biggest religions:
Jesus
Buddha
Krishna
Muhammad
Lao Tzu and Joseph Smith
…and the Mighty Seaman
Their mission… to right that which what is wrong and to serve all mankind.
Stan: Jesus, all we are asking is that you bring Muhammad to our town for like an hour.
Jesus: My son, much has changed since you were last here. Muhammad cannot make public appearances.
Buddha: We simply cannot risk any violence from the Muslim people.
Stan: Aww… not you guys too!  Jesus Fucking Christ!!

Matt and Trey talking about publishers pussing out (quite the head fucker):

http://www.boingboing.net/2010/04/13/south-park-turns-200.html

News flash: Muhammad (aka Mohammad, Mohammed, etc.) actually appears in an old episode.

Love the comments on this video.  Too funny. Click the YouTube logo to watch it over there (and read the comments).

Sensible night, appropriate night

Snow on ground, left and right

Round yon purchase of decorative things

Tolerant rewrite of carols to sing

Function with relative ease,

Function with relative ease.

That was the lovely rendition of this traditional Christmas hymn rewritten for the masses. Shirley actually has a beautiful voice, but it was more hilarious than moving. I like this show because it’s clever and Joel McHale is funny as Jeff Winger (also see “The Soup“). Best of all, the show acknowledges every week that the world is made up of many different types of people, and this week, many different religious philosophies including “none” (Comparative Religion on Hulu).

Turns out, Shirley is a Christian (WWBJD – What would Baby Jesus Do?), Jeff is agnostic, Britta is an atheist, Troy is a Jehovah’s Witness, Abed is Muslim, and Annie’s a Jew. Oh, and Pierce is part of some dope smoking cult with Buddha bongs.  And don’t forget about non-denominational Mr. Winter!  They do a really nice riff off of each characters’ beliefs while skewering religion in general and essentially highlighting what little sense it makes.  Funny aside from Shirley when she noted that Britta brought something to the party that represented what she believes in… nothing.

Check it out.  Worth your time and good for a few laughs.

Cast:

Yvette Nicole Brown as Shirley
Danny Pudi as Abed
Gillian Jacobs as Britta
Joel McHale as Jeff
Alison Brie as Annie
Chevy Chase as Pierce
Donald Glover as Troy

Bonus:

Anthony Michael Hall as the Bully

Atheist gives invocation at Cobb meeting

By MARCUS K. GARNER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

9:11 a.m. Thursday, July 30, 2009

No need to bow your heads, folks.

That’s what Smyrna atheist Edward Buckner told people before leading the invocation Tuesday night at the Cobb County Board of Commissioners meeting.

“It’s actually a protest against invocations,” the president of American Atheists said Wednesday night. “My goal is to get them to stop doing invocations.”

County board of commissioners chairman Sam Olens, reached by phone Wednesday night, said he was offended by Buckner’s actions.

“Did I find his comments repugnant and insulting? Yes,” Olens said. “He abused the process by giving an opinion … rather than providing inspiration.”

What Buckner did was thumb his nose at what he believed was an unconstitutional cross-section of religion and government, he admitted in his words Tuesday night.

Rather than any form of deity, he invoked “the 700,000 people who live in this county — especially the majority (yes, over half) of those 700,000 who are not members of any church, mosque, temple, or other religious organization,” he said.

“I speak as well for those political leaders who despair that success in politics cannot be achieved without hypocritical piety from politicians and who would prefer to run for office and to govern based on competence and political philosophy rather than on beliefs, real or pretended, in any supernatural beings.”

Olens, a candidate for state Attorney General, said he was surprised by Buckner’s tirade.

“I expected that it would be in the context of inspiration,” Olens said.

Buckner said he was disappointed that Olens made a “disclaimer” before he spoke, saying that federal law requires the county to let anyone who signs up make an invocation.

“This county is pro-religion and they act like anybody who isn’t is a second class citizen,” Buckner said.

Buckner is no stranger to protesting religion in government.

In 2005, he was one of seven Cobb residents who with the American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit to halt the practice of invocations before board of commissioners’ and planning commission’s meetings.

But last year, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed in a 2-1 ruling with a lawsuit’s contention that the Constitution permits only nonsectarian prayers.

And earlier this month, Buckner spoke out during public comment against the commissioners’ approval of a plan by the county’s development authority to issue up to $14 million in bonds to lend to North Cobb Christian School for renovations.

Olens said the county received an E-mail from Buckner requesting to do an invocation, and allowed it because of First Amendment laws.

“Had I stopped him before he started, he then would’ve had a federal action against the county,” Olens said. “That’s the price you pay for being American.”

Buckner had this to say for those he may have offended.

“Join me in asking Cobb County to stop having invocations,” he said.

Full video of the event here with a backup link here. Thank you to the Cobb County Commission for being respectful and polite during the proceedings. It’s just too bad that Olens is so chagrined by his fellow citizens exercising their rights that he had to go on record after the fact as being offended.  The price you pay…?  What an asshole…

Loved the smattering of applause at the end.  I only wish I knew what Ed said in place of “under God” during the pledge…  it obviously was not “under God”.  Cheers, Ed.

What we have learned in the past several thousand years is that we were not created at all, but evolved along a convoluted, haphazard, unpredictable line.  We understand more about our origin now than ever, we shape our living environments, we control the atom, we are driving the earth to it’s next global crisis (and that only took a couple of hundred years).  If we WERE created (say 6,000ish years ago), then why were we created in a fairly primitive state only to be allowed the recent advances to enhance our lives and destroy ourselves over the long haul?  If that were the idea of our genesis, then god naturally knew the outcome, so then… why the hell would he do that?  It makes no sense.

If you want to start to understand the world you live it, watch this video: Carl Sagan – Evolution Explained in Six Minutes.  Then, move on to Carl Sagan – Pale Blue Dot and other mind-expanding ideas — you’ll see how tiny and insignificant we are in the universe… and how fragile.