Owner: Atheista URL:http://atheista.net Join Date: Sat, 17 Mar 2007 12:26:28 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: Atheista was created to inform and remind people on the existence of Atheism in society and to also expose other individuals to the principles, beliefs and practices of one person who doesn't believe in the existence of a supreme being. Site statistics:Click here
The Stone, Takagism, NotPron And Other “Intellectual” Online Games 2007-04-06 07:58:57
I first saw The Stone
back in 1999 in a review article published on Inquest Magazine (a publication dedicated to the collectible card games and role-playing games). The game featured something that in my opinion has never been seen before. The Stone’s starter kit includes a nifty black pendant that has 6 random symbols that would be then used to access the game’s official website. The code would then be the player’s key into the vast universe of puzzles that the Enigma holds. Aside from having the standard 210 game puzzles, the site also encourages players to submit their own puzzles. The clincher is the community that the site was able to generate. Due to the relative difficulty of some puzzles, Stoners often exchange hints (often referred to as &ldquo
;nudges&rdquo
;) to move closer to solving all the puzzles in the Enigma.
The pendants went for $20, but a few years back, free online sign ups were permitted thanks to “virtual stones”. I started the game b Read more:Intellectual
, Games
, Online Games
Apathy, Manner And Advocacy 2007-04-05 10:59:54 Apathy
I couldn’t really do justice to the outpouring of support from the Pinoy blogosphere. Whether it was a sign of support through logic, principle and personal stand, I want to say again that I’m extremely appreciative and grateful for your courage to stand up for what you think is right despite the possible repercussions and consequences.
I find it really odd that those who think that this shouldn’t be that big of a deal talk on their soapboxes as if every other reasonable person would be on their side. I didn’t expect christians, atheists, agnostics (i.e. everybody) would have a more or less similar stand regarding the secular nature of the event.
Whether you think what happened was wrong, right, necessary or vestigial, it’s undeniable that it brought something positive - dialogue. It definitely got people talking and it definitely sent a strong and resounding message.
If you think it shouldn’t be an issue, say your piece and take a seat. Who a Read more:Apathy
, Manner
Sweet Jesus: Offensive? 2007-04-05 09:25:47 Do you like chocolate?
Are you christian?
The six-foot (1.8m) sculpture, entitled “My Sweet
Lord”, depicts Jesus
Christ naked on the cross.
Catholic League head Bill Donohue called it “one of the worst assaults on Christian sensibilities ever”.
The sculpture, by artist Cosimo Cavallaro, will be displayed from Monday at Manhattan’s Lab Gallery.
If you’re christian, kindly answer the following items with a Yes or No. You may also elaborate on your answer if you want.
Does a 6-foot statue of Jesus Christ offend your christian sensibilities?
Does it bother you that the statue is made of chocolate? If yes, what material wouldn’t offend you other than the usual marble, plaster and stone - butter, margarine, ice?
Does the fact that the statue is naked insult you? Why?
Does the fact that it’s being displayed during Lent scream of hatred and bigotry (note: the artist is a christian)?
Do you think there should’ve been a matching chocol Read more:Offensive
No Woman Is A Whore 2007-04-07 19:46:59 Female empowerment has certainly been well upheld in the field of music. More often that not though, this has come in the form of self-promotion as only female-fronted/ predominantly-female acts dare to touch the issues regarding women’s struggle in society. This is precisely why it’s surprising and quite interesting to see a band comprised of kids in their early 20s release a song that calls out the social construct for its double standards against women.
Protest The Hero is a Canadian post-hardcore band that was formed over eight years ago when the original members were still in high school. They usually delve into socio-cultural issues regarding discrimination and strife while keeping the music frenetic, unpredictable and absolutely pounding. The members are clearly no slouches when it comes to the technical aspects of songwriting, but most songs still contain a very strong hook that could definitely sell the track to first time listener.
Give this song a chance, you mig Read more:Whore
I Hate Alcohol 2007-04-07 18:18:26
Yet another reminder why I don’t drink.
Viewed 193 times by 55 viewers Read more:Alcohol
70 Will Not Be A Reality 2007-04-07 07:20:02
And just like that, the Dallas’ Mavericks quest to be the second team to win 70 wins in the regular season comes to a screeching halt. The Mavericks yielded an eight point lead in the final quarter to lose by four against the Denver Nuggets, 75-71.
Carmelo Anthony scored 23 while Allen Iverson chipped in 22 as the Denver Nuggets ended the Mavericks’ mission to be the first team to win 70 since the Michael Jordan-led Bulls won 72 in the early 90s. Dallas lost their second-leading scorer Josh Howard with four minutes remaining in the first quarter. He did not return.
Dirk Nowitzki shot the ball poorly and finished with 22 points. The second-best win-loss record was also achieved by the Bulls during the 1996-1997 season with 69 wins and 13 losses - a mark still within reach for the Dallas Mavericks.
Yes, it’s a disappointing loss, but its ridiculous how the spin doctors are painting the situation. The Mavericks failed to win 70 wins this season - big furry deal. All tea
who.amung.us 2007-04-06 16:53:46
This is one of the coolest and most useful things I’ve seen in a while. Thanks to the guys from who.amung.us, you can now know the actual number of people browsing your site in real time.
If you want to get a real-time display of your visitors, simply go to the site. It will automatically generate a unique code for you (no need to sign up!) and you’ll just have to copy and paste the code somewhere on your site.
Too cool to pass up. hehe
Viewed 702 times by 180 viewers
Inviter Defector! 2007-04-12 05:58:55 First of all, I’d like to apologize to my loyal readers (yes, both of you). I’ve been taking a mini-hiatus of sorts for no apparent reason. Given the circumstances that are to be revealed in this post, I can probably say that the next few days will be more of the same (read: nothing).
As everybody in the Philippines know (of course!), the Third Philippine Blog Summit is scheduled to be held this weekend at the University of the Philippines-Diliman. I was aggressively inviting people who had blogs, but alas, most of the people I talked too scoffed at the idea of going of an 0ffline blog event. Realizing that the opiniated members of the UP Manila Debate Circle *might* be open to such an idea, I asked some of them to join me in the fun and learn new things about blogging (*hurray*).
Benj, PIDC na this weekend!
Great! That’s in Diliman right?! I’m also going to be in Diliman for the Blog Summit. Maybe I can drop by to cheer you guys on.
o_O. Benj, sa Tarlac y
The PIDC Running Journal (Day 1 and the Run Up!) 2007-04-20 17:48:46
For the first time in my life, I decided to travel light. I couldn’t have picked a worse time to do that. I actually ended up wearing the gray shirt you see here so that further reduced what I had in my Jansport school bag. It’s hardly the type that could accommodate enough clothes for five days.
Before every tournament, the UP Manila Debate Circle has always had a ritual of burning the participants fears. Yes, we didn’t sign the Kyoto Protocol and we risk setting off UP Manila’s smoke detectors every time we do this.
The Philippine Intercollegiate Debate Championship is the product of the now-defunct Inquirer Intercollegiate Debate Championship or IIDC. The Tarlac Provincial Government generously provided for the hosting of the event.
Friday, April 13
8:07 AM - Most of the Tarlac-bound debaters from UP Manila met up at the Ministop beside the Robinsons Tower Residences.
9:00 AM - We commuted to the Victory Liner Terminal at España where we bou Read more:Journal
Drunk Debaters: The Hundred Islands Scandal 2007-04-20 13:36:45 And by scandal, I mean podcast of course. I was hoping to put this up along with the lengthy travelogue, but this is a file of utmost importance! This one got real crazy in the end.
Damn, I recorded it using my mobile and I don’t have software that convert AMR to MP3! Help!!!
Viewed 177 times by 55 viewers Read more:Hundred
, Islands
, Scandal
I WILL JUDGE YOU… and you will like it! 2007-04-19 18:28:36
The UPMDC shortly after delivering the logical smackdown on the opposition
Ladies and Gentlemen, loyal readers of this blog, I would like to apologize for leaving you for almost a week. As I’ve hinted on my now-penultimate post, I went with my former organization (I resigned two years ago) to the first ever Philippine Intercollegiate Debate Championship. They needed an extra adjudicator (i.e. a person who judges debates) to complete their contingent and allow them to field in all five teams that they’ve prepared for the tourney.
I gave them their money’s worth. I made it to the final stages of the competition - make that the actual FINAL debate. For someone who had a two-year layoff from competitive debating (and zero political leverage), it was no mean feat to walk into a tournament and gain good reviews from Deputy Chief Adjudicators and debaters. And yes, that includes teams that lost rounds due to my decision. If you can tell a top flight team that they still lo Read more:hellip
The PIDC Running Journal (Day 3) 2007-04-22 05:21:33
Day three was red day for the UP Manila Debate Circle. C-O had to sit out for the rounds because he was already feeling lethargic due to his then-undiagnosed mumps infection.
What happened in Day 2? Well, ho-hum. I was chair for three rounds and I broke. Ho-hum. lol.
Viewed 78 times by 38 viewers Read more:Journal
PIDC Tabs! 2007-04-21 10:35:59
Just in case you haven’t seen it yet, the competition tabs are already available at the official PIDC website. Speaker scores, adjudication feedback as well as motions have all been consolidated for convenience.
Viewed 389 times by 117 viewers
The PIDC Running Journal (Day 2) 2007-04-21 07:14:54 Day 2 may seem to be somewhat of misnomer, but since I’m an adjudicator, my “competition” started one day before the debaters even started their own tournament.
5:03 AM - I was the first one up in our room. I knew there will be a log jam regarding shower schedules so I made it a point to be the first one.
5:30 AM - “Hoy, Robert, C-O! 5:30 na!!!”
5:45 AM - Robert and C-O finally wake up. By this time, I’m done with my morning rituals and I was just waiting for the subsidized breakfast.
6:01 AM -Breakfast arrives! Mmmmm… Longanisa.. and warm Zesto! Instead of drinking my juice, I chucked it to the freezer.
7:39 AM - The pugs from UPM were finally ready for some action. As you can see in the picture, all of us wore white for the first day of debates. This was taken shortly before we took a shuttle to the high school that will serve as the tournament venue for the next two days.
7:48 AM - Reality check!!! Provincial high schools don’t hav Read more:Journal
This Is What Heaven Looks Like.. 2007-04-23 15:32:47 God, Inc. Episode 1
Disclaimer: If you’re a zealot, I strongly discourage you from watching the clip. If you’re intelligent enough to appreciate wit and candor and you’re not afraid of going to hell, feel free to click the link.
God, Inc. is the work of Francis Stokes, a film maker who decided to make a sitcom out of what really happens upstairs. Each show lasts from four to eight minutes and deals with the various facets of decision-making at the highest level. Ok, enough with the puns - God, Inc is real funny. I don’t want to go into details because it’s quite easy to spoil a five minute show. hehe. (more…)
Viewed 151 times by 62 viewers Read more:Heaven
, Looks
Taking Video Blogging To The Next Level 2007-04-23 04:30:41
Yes. That’s real-time footage. For the past weeks, Justin Kan - an esteemed graduate of a school most people would like to call Harvard — has been online 24/7, sending out his daily existence for everyone to see.
He seems very determined that this is the next big thing. What do you guys think?
Viewed 334 times by 126 viewers Read more:Taking
, Blogging
Humbled In The Presence Of Genius 2007-04-27 16:01:58 For this post, I decided to honor and give due commendation to three bloggers who I feel raise the bar in terms of the quality of blogging that one would expect from upstarts. Due to their status as relative unknowns in the Philippine Blogosphere, I would like to hope that having them featured in this humble blog would somehow make them more known to a greater number of people. Trust me, these people really do deserve your attention.
In this day and age, it is quite refreshing to an artist to still use the traditional media for visual art and publish it in a digitized manner. Computer graphics artists are dime a dozen in the blogosphere and artists who continue to resort to the old and tested forms of visual art rarely showcase their works in websites and other virtual media. The picture above was drawn by Ellen, a very interesting and capable artist whose blog I first chanced upon on this thread. That’s a pretty good likeness of Michael Buble, right? On her site, you would be Read more:Presence
The Coolest Thing Ever! 2007-04-26 07:14:58 [for people who can’t code]
If you’re not code savvy to edit your themes the old school way, you would definitely appreciate this new tool.
Wordpress Theme Generator is NOT a misnomer. It does what it’s supposed to do. It generates your customized specifications to fit into your very own Wordpress themes. I’m jumping up and down as I type this. Hurray for the Luddites!!!
Viewed 972 times by 259 viewers Read more:Thing
Adjudication 2007-04-24 10:15:43
I’ve been dropping the word a lot the past week without really properly explaining what the hell it is about. Debate jargons can sound so Greek to non-debaters, but understandably for those geeky, nerdy and competitive enough to live out a passionate life as a debater, such terms are almost second nature.
During tournaments, institutions (i.e. schools and debate organizations) are required to field in N adjudicators for the N teams that have chosen to represent them. Adjudicators are the average reasonable people who decide debates by weighing the way teams argued their specific cases and assessing which team held the most water and was most relevant through the course of the debate. They may not be the ones arguing passionately, but their position as arbiter is very critical in ensuring that the best team for the round will be rewarded with the win.
To neophytes, adjudication is often seen in a negative light because let’s face it, people join debate organizations to de
Amped! Vol. 1 2007-04-24 08:47:58 This is of course, a suggestion by Mikko. Aside from an opinionated rights activist (!), I’m also a musician who bleeds with passion regarding the songs that I personally write/co-write. Now that my band is on hiatus (cue tears rolling down my cheek taking bits of kohl along the way), I have immersed myself with other people’s music. From this point on, I’ll be posting the three artists that I’ve listened the most to for that particular week as well as a little bit of an appraisal on what they sound like.
Keep in mind that I spent the week at Tarlac for a debate tourney and couple of days marooned at the Hundred Islands. How is that relevant? Good question - it’s not.
The Mars Volta
Fans of the now-defunct band At Drive-In should know that The Mars Volta is one of the most eccentric and frenetic bands in existence today (If you haven’t noticed yet, this is one of the factors that draws me towards certain artists).They have released t Read more:Amped
Window Shopping For A New Religion? 2007-04-29 23:44:44
If you’re currently asking yourself if you belong to the religion most in line with your sensibilities or you’re simply interested about the nuances about other systems of faith and belief, I encourage you to take this test. It will take a bit of time, but the appraisal that it will give you will be very comprehensive.
My Results: (more…)
Viewed 1200 times by 170 viewers Read more:Window
, Shopping
, Religion
Another Hiatus Looms 2007-04-29 14:32:07 Just shortly after my unannounced and extended break that I took while I was busy adjudicating at the Philippine Intercollegiate Debate Championships, it’s again likely that I will be missing in action for a considerable period of time this coming week. The outgoing members of the debate organization I was once part of (I resigned a couple of years ago) decided to hold their despedida by organizing a trip to Galera this week. Since I live fairly close to Puerto Galera, I’ll most definitely be the tag along for this trip.
So there, just in case I suddenly stop posting for another string of days, don’t miss me too much. That only means I’ve under the tropical sun, inducing skin cancer upon myself while having a great time with excellent company.
PS: If you’re waiting for Hundred Islands pictures, I’m also waiting for them. I wasn’t the designated photographer because I don’t have a camera other than my paltry and mediocre w800 Read more:Hiatus
Ratified, Google PR and other things… 2007-05-02 10:21:24 &hellip
; that I don’t understand.
Last month, Andrew launched Ratified.org - a site devoted to compiling Technorati and Feedburner stats to determine the top blogs in the Philippines. Unlike most (if not all) ranking sites, Ratified doesn’t take the number of hits into consideration and relies on the number of ingoing links as the major criterion in assessing quality and authority. In theory, it does seem to make sense. Unless half your links were made by critics or worse, by your self through fake blogs, a good amount of link does translate to a general sense of trust. People would not be linking to you if you’re not worth linking to, right?
I just signed up yesterday and I’m safely in the top one hundred. 132 blogs link to this humble blog as of posting.
After languishing at PR 0 for so long, the recent Google
update has found me jumping four notches to a robust PR 4! Incoming links are a big factor in determining PR so to everyone who has linked me, thank Read more:things
Symbols of Atheism: Pick Your Favorite! 2007-05-01 17:34:23 Unlike muslims, roman catholics and jews, Atheists don’t have the luxury of having a symbol to identify with. Due to the inherent nature of Atheism
as a school of thought that does not have a rigid and hierarchical structure akin to other religions, graphical representations of the philosophy will not gain overnight popularity.
This is the American Atheists logo side-by-side with hybrid logo with its European counterpart. It’s fairly easy to spot that the American logo is a bit too cartoon-y for something as cerebral and philosophical as atheism. Though allusions to the atom are well conveyed it notably lacks the depth that the European hybrid offers. Aside from the prominent orbitals, the six electrons are meant to represent the six levels on non-believers - Atheist, Agnostic, Humanist, Freethinker, Heathen and Infidel. As good as the logo is, the mark is meant to be used by a transcontinental organization and not as a general symbol for all the Atheists of Read more:Favorite
Back From Galera 2007-05-06 13:28:37 Hey kids,
I just got back from Galera. The last three has seen me get a two-toned forehead (my hair prevented a wholesale burning), an upper respiratory tract infection, a blissful scuba dive at Manila Channel (what a name) and pill after pill of Tuseran and Benadryl. Pictures to follow.
I’m really sorry for not telling anyone that I’ll be gone. Hehe. I’ll be back when I feel better. Right now, I still feel like my bed is floating in a turbulent sea.
Viewed 59 times by 17 viewers
Care to join me for a game of STUPID? 2007-05-08 17:50:38 During the Philippine Intercollegiate Debate Championships, the members of the UP Manila Debate Circle introduced me to one of the things that was spawned after my resignation - the annoyingly simple and hilariously frustrating game of STUPID.
It’s a game that combines the principles of Boggle, Scrabble, Spelling Bee and Hangman with the scoring system of the basketball playground game of H-O-R-S-E. A player loses when he or she spells out a word.
To start the game, the a player has to give a letter. The next players will have to add letters before and after the already existing and lengthening sequence of letters without forming a legitimate word. Players will have to make sure that they are forming a word though. If someone feels that the current sequence will not yield a word, he or she may challenge the last person who added a letter to produce a word.
Completing a word, inability to produce a word after being challenged, producing an illegitimate
Why An Atheist Community Is A Bad Idea 2007-05-08 16:45:00
Unlike conventional religions wherein the similarity of beliefs translates to a socio-political affinity, Atheist
s are not automatically find other atheists on the same side of an issue. There is no central body for atheism and aside from non-belief (a concept that admittedly takes many forms and may be motivated with a lot of possible reasons) and due to this there isn’t a thread that holds Atheists together. Even in our small corner of the Philippine Blogosphere, we see that Atheists don’t necessarily go with a pluralistic approach when it comes to issues.
Take for instance the issue that got everyone talking back in the first few days of April. Despite being Atheist, Andrew chose to harshly reprimand me for the approach I took. Michael was sympathetic and diplomatic towards the other side. Shari chose to be more consoling but a good number of Atheists who left their comments echoed their distaste for what happened and showed messages of support and indigna
Blogging For Goodwill 2007-05-07 20:09:46 As observed by Eugene, this blog underwent a tumultuous few weeks that saw a flurry of sponsored ads from PayPerPost. They ranged from reviews of fire place mantles, video editing firms and even a vaginal tightening sales pitch. Due to sheer greed and my inability to read the fine print, I was left unaware that Paypal accounts from the Philippines were still disqualified from receiving payments. Due to this predicament, the supposed payments that was just a few dollars shy of a hundred dollars were left unsent.
Instead of moping around and scouting for illegal ways of transferring funds, I made the call to just donate the money to a charitable institution that will be named sometime in the future. I guess this answers what I had in mind when I made this post.
Did you just realize what happened here? Bloggers can potentially turn something really ugly (and something that the people at Wordpress totally loathe) into something useful and tangible for the people who need it t Read more:Blogging
Habitat For Humanity 2007-05-11 12:53:25
Yup, I’ve made my choice. I decided to donate my small Payperpost earnings to Jimmy Carter’s Habitat For Humanity. It’s a small amount I know (roughly equivalent to two weeks’ allowance), but I’m sure it would be put to good use.
As I’ve said in earlier posts, blogging opens avenues for people who want to help without really reaching into their own pockets. After 50 to 100 hundred words worth of a gratuitous sales pitch or product review, you could already send a few dollars to a charity of your choice. Unfortunately, I have yet to see a Philippine Charity with a Paypal account so I can’t really channel the PayPerPost post earnings top them.
If you’re feeling extra generous, sign up for PayPerPost and donate to your choice of charitable institution.
Of course, if you already have the money, you may choose to donate directly without going through the course that I took. I just wanted to let people know that one could raise funds for goodw
Chiz Escudero for a Dumber Philippines! 2007-05-10 14:10:16 Originally posted February 26, 2007
Excerpt from the Philippine Daily Inquirer
Escudero also suggested a revision of public schools’ curriculum that would reduce the number of regular subjects taught to students - from the current eight to 11, to six - as one way to reduce the classroom shortage.
Essential subjects, he said, would include Languages, including English and Filipino, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies or History, Computer and Good Manners and Right Conduct.
Subjects like trigonometry, calculus, geometry, and algebra, should be taught only in college or as high school electives since these are not relevant to the everyday life of Filipinos, he said.
rest of article here
If you think that’s not enough, look at what he said in his privilege speech:
Quote:
PRIVILEGE SPEECH OF REP. ESCUDERO
………
Mr. Speaker, ang isang dahilan kung bakit kada taon marami tayong classrooms na kinakailangan ay dahil napakaraming nasisira sa kakulangan ng s Read more:Dumber
, Philippines
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