“The authentic question is, ” Who am I?” And the only way to know is to be silent, be alert, be aware, watch your thoughts, and let them disappear. One day, you will find all has become silent…not even a murmue of thought. Everything has stopped, as if time has stopped. And suddenly you are awake from a long, long dream, from a nightmare. “

OSHO

Modern day atheists, our so-called “new atheists“, tend to be rather dismissive when not outright disparaging of religion - that distinctly human cultural phenomenon that seems to have become a constant source of irritation for liberals and intellectuals alike. However, arguing that secular humanism, or rather their alternative “moral framework”, is a God-free product of Western philosophy and that religion has no place in the intellectual endeavors of the enlightened modern man may be highly misleading and a gross over-simplification of the historical interconnection between philosophy, religion, morality, ethics and science. Nowhere is this more apparent than the science versus ethics debates regarding the issue of “human embryo experimentation” where human and animal genes are mixed to create hybrid species more commonly referred to as chimeras.

Angela Ballantyne writes in Humans and Hybrids: A Critique of the Western Moral Framework :

“The dualism between man and beast is central to the Western philosophical tradition and to the Judeo-Christian perspective. While other traditions such as Buddhism and Taoism emphasize a more integrated view of humanity and the animal kingdom - stressing interdependence, connection and harmony - the Western tradition has relied on the moral dichotomy between humans and animals.”

A comparison between the regulations governing human embryo experimentation and those governing animal experimentation will illustrate the persistence of the dualistic assumption that there is a clear distinction in the moral status of humans and animals. I will argue, firstly, that disallowing the use of human embryos for scientific experimentation has lead to the creation of human-animal hybrids. Second, I will contend that hybrids pose a significant challenge to the dualistic premise and that the inability of ethical frameworks that embody the dualistic premise to adequately respond to hybrids is a reason for rejecting the dualistic assumption in favor of a liberal interests account that accords moral value on non-arbitrary grounds.”

One has to wonder then if it is in fact possible to divorce ethics, morality and religion when even the most basic tenents of secular humanism or the atheist “moral framework” is deeply rooted in a “Judeo-Christian perspective”. And while attacking religion as an outdated and harmful vice that should be eradicated, are the new atheists not being dishonest and in fact advocating a new form of religion purged of the “irrational” concept of God where man has displaced God as the measure of all things ?

That phony Beatlemania has bitten the dust ???

Yeah I know : the Clash said it way back in 1979 in the good old days when a bunch of heroin shooting brats calling the queen on her “fascist regime” could still make it to number one on the UK charts.

But I beg to disagree.

The Boks finished their 2008 season off on a high note by thumping England by a record margin at Twickenham on Saturday 22 November 2008 in London, England.

The Boks completed their unbeaten run on the end of year tours with a comprehensive victory over a “young and inexperienced” England team. The truth is that England was poor and the Boks capitalized on their error riddled performance - scoring five tries to nil in a distinctly one sided affair.

South Africa: 15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Ricky Januarie, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Danie Rossouw, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 John Smit (c), 1 Beast Mtawarira,
Replacements: 16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 Brian Mujati, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Ryan Kankowski, 20 Heinrich Brussow, 21 Francois Steyn, 22 Jaque Fourie.

link : Ruthless Boks end tour unbeaten

The Boks continued their unconvincing form in another narrow win over a brave Scotland team on Saturday 15 November 2008 at Murrayfield in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The only positive in this win for the Boks was that they came from behind trailing 10-0 at half time. The match was marred by some very questionable refereeing, with the referee’s decisions at the break downs puzzling and frustrating both teams. Blaming the referees  for poor performances is unfair however bearing in mind the constant changes to a highly complex set of laws that has lead to a bizarre situation where the game of rugby is played under different laws in different parts of the world since the piecewise introduction of the controversial ELVs.

South Africa: South Africa: 15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 John Smit (c), 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Brian Mujati, 17 Gurthro Steenkamp, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Ryan Kankowski, 20 Ricky Januarie, 21 Frans Steyn, 22 Jaque Fourie.

link : Boks edge Scots

The Boks scraped home for a win against the reigning Six Nations champions in what can best be described as “a match of two halves” on Saturday 8 November 2008 at Millenium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.

The Boks’ effort can best be described as unconvincing and Wales looked very good at times against the reigning world champions with numerous line breaks but unable to finish them off due to the Springbok’s dogged second line of defense.

Ruan Pienaar stepped up to the plate in the problematic pivotal position at flyhalf, replacing Butch James who was not considered for the end of year tour due to his overlapping commitments to European club rugby.

South Africa: 15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 John Smit (c), 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Brian Mujati, 17 Gurthro Steenkamp, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Ryan Kankowski, 20 Ricky Januarie, 21 Frans Steyn, 22 Jaque Fourie.

link : Springboks limp past dominant Welsh

The Boks saved some face despite ending last (again) in the Tri-Nations competition by hammering the Aussies by a record breaking margin on Saturday 30 August 2008 at Ellispark in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The Boks were awe inspiring in all facets of the game but a huge question mark remains over the Aussies’ commitment in a match that was for all practical purposes a dead rudder.

South African wing, Jongi Nokwe replacing the injured Brain Habana, also rewrote the history books by scoring four tries while finishing off devastating Springbok backline moves.

South Africa: 15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Jongi Nokwe, 10 Butch James, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield (c), 4 Andries Bekker, 3 Brian Mujati, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Adriaan Strauss, 17 Jannie du Plessis, 18 Danie Rossouw, 19 Luke Watson, 20 Ricky Januarie, 21 Ruan Pienaar, 22 Percy Montgomery.

link : Wallabies bow to resurgent Boks

The Boks dropped out of contention in the Tri-Nations competition when they crashed to another defeat against Australia on Saturday 23 August 2008 in Durban, South Africa. Australia had not won against the Boks playing in South Africa since 2000.

The Springboks once again could not hold on to their own ball on the attack and was comprehensively outplayed in the break down. Poor defense saw the Aussies outscore the Boks by three tries to two. Both South African tries came from outside center Adi Jacobs.

South Africa: 15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Jongi Nokwe, 10 Butch James, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield (c), 4 Andries Bekker, 3 CJ van der Linde, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Adriaan Strauss, 17 Brian Mujati, 18 Joe van Niekerk, 19 Luke Watson, 20 Enrico Januarie, 21 Francois Steyn, 22 Percy Montgomery.

link : Boks out for the count