Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Google

2010-07-04T23:08:49Z

Synalon: Added the recent thing about gay tax breaks

[[File:Google.png|right|250px]]
'''Google''' is a company whose primary business is [[Internet]]-based services, including an extremely popular [[search engine]]. Google is associated with [[liberal]] causes and has been criticized for catering to communist [[China]] in censoring information from the people as requested by dictators:<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4647398.stm</ref>

: Reporters Without Borders joined others in asking how Google could stand up for US users' freedoms while controlling what Chinese users can search for. Its previous search engine for China's fast-growing market was subject to government blocks. The new site - Google.cn - censors itself to satisfy Beijing. While cooperating with China's govenment, Google refuses to fulfill requests by the U.S. Department of Justice. <ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4630694.stm , BBC Google defies US over search data, January 20, 2006</ref> Google counsel Nicole Wong said "..we intend to resist their motion vigorously."

Google has also been accused of delisting [[conservative]] news sites from its search engine. As one of many examples, "In February 2005, [[Michelle Malkin]] wrote of the difficulties she was having becoming part of Google News."<ref>http://newsbusters.org/node/5477</ref>

Much of Google's business depends on pornography. For example, 25% of search engine requests are for pornography.<ref>http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/internet-pornography-statistics.html</ref>

In addition, although claiming to generally avoid getting involved in matters outside their field, Google officially supports the [[liberal]] and [[social libertarian]] cause of so-called "[[same sex marriage]]."<ref>http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/our-position-on-californias-no-on-8.html , Our position on California's No on 8 campaign</ref> On June 21, 2009, Google displayed a special multicolored line for searches on the word "gay". More troubling, Google recently announced plans to compensate employees to cover taxes paid on their domestic partner's health benefits, but only offers its 'generosity' to gay couples. <ref>http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/07/01/google-raises-eyebrows-new-gay-employee-benefit/</ref>. Google is also big promoter of [[Charles Darwin]] and atheistic science, even to the point of giving special recognition to the anniversary of Darwin's birthday ("Darwin Day").

Major competitors of Google include [[Yahoo!]] and Microsoft's [[Bing]].

== Corporate Information ==

The CEO of Google since 2001 is [[Eric Schmidt]]. Google is headquartered in Mountain View, [[California]]. Google was founded on September 7th, 1998, by [[Larry Page]] and [[Sergey Brin]]. Since then, it has grown to be the largest internet search engine in the world. According to Alexa Internet, over 25% of all Internet users visit Google monthly.<ref>[http://www.alexa.com/data/details/traffic_details?url=www.google.com Alexa Traffic Results for Google]</ref>

Google also owns [[YouTube]], the homemade [[video clip]] site. [[Viacom]] is suing YouTube, and thus Google, for a reported $1 billion, arguing that the economic model of YouTube is based on copyright infringement.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6446193.stm Viacom will sue YouTube for $1bn]</ref>

After much debate about their corporate Code of Conduct, Google's founders settled on the all-encompassing "Don't be evil", saying,"It's built around the recognition that everything we do in connection with our work at Google will be, and should be, measured against the highest possible standards". <ref>[http://investor.google.com/conduct.html Google Code of Conduct]</ref> This Code of Conduct has generated much criticism, saying they have missed that mark badly.

==History==
[[Image:Google2.gif|thumb|right|300px| Google's logo on [[Earth day]], April 22, 2007.]]
===Founding===
Google was originally a research project, started by Larry Page and Sergey Brin in 1996, when the two attended [[Stanford University]]. The two registered the domain name ''google.stanford.edu'', and the small search engine went online for the first time.<ref>[http://www.google.com/intl/en/corporate/history.html Corporate Information:Google Milestones]</ref>

===Growth===
The year Google was created 1998, it had amassed 26 million unique URLs in their database. By 2000, Google had indexed more than 1 billion pages. As of July 2008, Google has indexed over 1 [[trillion]] pages. <ref>[http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-9999814-93.html Google reveals scope of Web-crawling task] CNET News, July 25, 2008</ref>

===Competition===

[[Microsoft]] has been aggressively competing with Google for a larger share of the search market. Their latest effort, [[Bing]].com, is a "next generation" search service which has generated positive reviews.

==Secular Progressive Culture==
Google's West Coast headquarters hires a majority of left-leaning personalities, explicitly in executive decision-making.<ref>See [http://www.google.com/corporate/execs.html] for a list of board members and senior staff.</ref> Google supports causes that are a radical departure from traditional American views, such as their public support of a 'no' vote for [[California]]'s [[Proposition 8]], which defined marriage as being between a husband and wife. Also in a subtle way, they favor politically-correct global liberalism, championed by secular progressives. They select certain ''days of importance'' for tribute, some of which are controversial. As such, ''Merry Christmas'' is replaced by ''Happy Holidays''. Even though, poll <ref>[http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/11/prweb1670824.htm Wish Me A Merry Christmas Campaign Crusades to Change Retail Culture] PRWeb, November 26, 2008</ref> after poll <ref>[http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/lifestyle/general_lifestyle/68_prefer_merry_christmas_to_happy_holidays 68% Prefer “Merry Christmas” to “Happy Holidays”] Rasmussen, November 27, 2008</ref> after poll <ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/12/20/poll.season/ Poll: More Americans prefer 'Merry Christmas' greeting] CNN, December 20, 2005</ref> shows the public prefers 'Merry Christmas'. The problem may be that Google doesn't respect traditional [[Christian]] holidays, in favor of a 'culturally-correct' approach. In addition, Google accepts the [[Theory of Evolution]] by [[Charles Darwin]] as fact, promotes Darwin on their homepage with a Google Doodle logo. <ref>[Scientists unveil fossil of Darwinius masillae]</ref>

Google often honors Russia with their logo of Sputnik and for composer Igor Stravinsky. However, they did not honor [[United States]] Flag Day, June 14. (Their competitor [[Bing]] prominently displayed [[Old Glory]].)

=== Google versus Conservatives ===
Many instances whereby [[information]] is comprised ideologically and displayed for the masses. Watchdog website NewsBusters.org published that Google had in fact labeled [[conservative]] [[American Spectator]] as "This site may harm your computer." <ref>[http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2007/12/28/google-claims-american-spectator-site-may-harm-your-computer Google Claims Conservative Website ‘May Harm Your Computer’] December 28,2007</ref>

Google continues to block pro-family website [http://www.massresistance.org/ MassResistance]. Some people complain his organization promotes hatred towards homosexuals. Google gives the standard legal trash as an excuse "'Users may not publish material that promotes hate towards groups based on race, ethnic origin, religion, disability, gender, age, veteran status, and sexual orientation/gender identity.'" MassResistance replies "Of course we are not promoting hate against anybody." <ref>[http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=603372 Accusation: Google targets, blocks pro-family website again OneNewsNow.com, July 15,2009]</ref>

[[YouTube]] owner, Google continues to protect [[Planned Parenthood]] by removing undercover videos exposing abortion clinic law-breaking. <ref>[http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/7416111014.html YouTube Bans Student Group's Video Showing Abuse at Planned Parenthood Christian News Wire, July 21, 2009]</ref>

Without any prior explanation or notice, Google had been terminating its News relationships with conservative e-zines and web journals. <ref>[http://newsbusters.org/node/5477 Is Google Purging Conservative News Sites? NewsBusters, May 22, 2006]</ref>

=== Google versus Anti- Obama Blogs ===
The question immediately raised, "Did Google Silence [[Barack Obama]] critics?" It turns out, no they did not. A group of separate blogs were targeted by their spam filter as a result of manipulating the 'flag' feature. This caused a temporary blockage for five days. Sites affected were Hillary supporters and all anti-Obama. They include http://bluelyon.blogspot.com, http://comealongway.blogspot.com, http://hillaryorbust.blogspot.com and http://mccaindemocrats.blogspot.com and their main associate JustSayNoDeal.com <ref>[http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/30/google-and-the-anti-obama-bloggers/ Google and the Anti-Obama Bloggers] NYTimes June 30, 2008</ref>

==Google bombing ==
Perhaps the most innovative contribution Google has made to internet searching is its '''PageRank''' algorithm. This system works by counting the number of sites that link to another site; the more links pointing to a page, the higher that page will be ranked. The engine also takes note of how often the page is updated. Due to this, [[Wikipedia]] is consistently ranked very highly by Google, due to its constant updating and heavy linkage. More recently, internet-savvy Googlers have discovered ways to game the system; creating massive numbers of pages with links pointing to one page to form what is known as a "Google Bomb". Some examples can be found below.<ref>[http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040614/news_mz1b14google.html Dropping 'Google-bombs']</ref>

*'''"Miserable Failure"''': For nearly two years, typing "miserable failure" (or even just "miserable", or "failure") and then clicking "I'm Feeling Lucky" in the Google search engine would return the [http://www.whitehouse.gov/president/biography.html White House Biography] of [[George W. Bush]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3298443.stm 'Miserable failure' links to Bush]</ref> This was orchestrated by [[Democratic]] Party supporters in late 2003,<ref>[http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/01/26/BUG3M4GVDS1.DTL In October, Johnson, a Democrat, added the phrase "miserable failure" to his Web site, Old Fashioned Patriot. He then linked the site to the online White House biography of President Bush and asked others to follow his lead]</ref> as part of the 2004 Presidential election. However, at times, [[Conservative]] supporters were able to shift the phrase to [[Jimmy Carter]], [[Hillary Clinton]] and [[Michael Moore]].
*''''"Great President"''': returns the [http://www.whitehouse.gov/president/biography.html White House Biography] of [[George W. Bush]].
*'''"Waffles"''': Also as part of the 2004 Presidential election, Conservative supporters managed to link the term "waffles" to the official website of [[John Kerry]].
*'''"French Military Victories"''': Hitting "I'm Feeling Lucky" for this term directs you to a fake Google page (in reality, it is an [[AlbinoBlackSheep]].com page, styled to look exactly like a Google page, [http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/text/victories.html here]) giving no matches, and asking if you meant "French military defeats?".
*'''"Weapons of Mass Destruction"''' would bring up a similar page with the error message 'not found.'

On January 25, 2007, Google claimed to have modified their PageRank algorithm to lessen the likelihood of future Google bombs<ref>[http://boingboing.net/2007/01/26/bush_no_longer_miser.html Bush no longer "miserable failure": Google tackles googlebombs]</ref>

==Controversy==
=== Privacy Concerns===

Google has been criticized by privacy activists and others. Recently, Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said, "We cannot even answer the most basic questions because we don’t know enough about you. That is the most important aspect of Google’s expansion." <ref>http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/c3e49548-088e-11dc-b11e-000b5df10621,dwp_uuid=e8477cc4-c820-11db-b0dc-000b5df10621.html</ref> Google has attempted to "remedy" this situation by storing search information, in effect, keeping tabs on people for two years after they search. This has led Google critic Daniel Brandt to create "Scroogle.org", which runs Google searches that users conduct through his organization's personal servers to prevent Google from being able to connect any personal information to the searchers. <ref>http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55935</ref>

===Hypocrisy on Net neutrality===
Neil Stevens of Redstate.com notes that Google says one thing and does another, tarnishing their reputation in the process. He lists where Google emphasizes support then does what they want in regards to shutting down access. <ref>[http://www.redstate.com/neil_stevens/2009/08/23/google-undermines-the-internet/ Google undermines the Internet, RedState.com, August 23, 2009]</ref>

*Exhibit A: Google supports ‘[[net neutrality]]’
*Exhibit B: Google is set to argue against Apple’s blocking of Google Voice from iPhones
*Exhibit C: Google blocks Skype from Android-based phones

== References ==

{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:Google]]
[[Category:Websites]]

Liberal tricks

2010-06-29T21:18:18Z

Synalon: #36

Here are some common [[liberal]] tricks that many people fall for:

# Try to draw a [[conservative]] in to saying or doing something which can then be dishonestly twisted to cast him in a bad light.
# So as not to show his true beliefs of supporting evil infanticide and taxpayer-funded [[abortion]], [[Barack Obama]] insists he is pro-choice, but not pro-abortion. <ref>[http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/08/16/obama-and-mccain-try-to-woo-conservative-voters-at-forum/ Obama, McCain’s Abortion Positions Contrast Sharply at Faith Forum] Fox News, August 16, 2008.</ref>
# Inserting a [[liberal]] assumption into a question, as illustrated by the classic "When did you stop beating your wife?!"
# Distracting and disrupting reasoned discussion, as in stating irrelevant claims, inconsequential tales of personal experience, or false outrage.
# Making arguments that have superficial appeal to the dimwitted, but are actually nonsensical and probably not believed by the liberal himself<ref>. For example, one might conclude that [[Michael Moore]] makes silly statements designed to appeal to the less intelligent.</ref>
# Pretending that liberals do not have a political point of view, but are just being reasonable.<ref>For example, people who insist on promoting [[abortion]] with mandatory taxpayer funding claim they are merely "pro-choice".</ref>
# Exaggerating praise for fellow liberals.<ref>For example, liberal praise by law professors for [[Barack Obama]] borders on the absurd.</ref>
# Pretending that atheism equals intelligence.
# In court decisions, holding in favor of the [[conservative]] side by using [[liberal]] reasons that will be cited for liberal outcomes in ''future'' cases<ref>''See, e.g.'', ''[[Everson v. Board of Education|Everson v. Board of Ed.]]''</ref>
# [[Liberal]]s [[liberal friendship|befriending]] you so that you become liberal. (Conversely, why don't they become [[conservative]]?)
# Citing "live and let live!" except when it comes to praying aloud in school, keeping the money you earn, building on your own property, and every other liberal issue.
# Citing "it doesn't hurt to try!" (In reference to drugs, alcohol, and other immoral behaviors such as premarital sex, worshiping other gods/many gods/no gods, homosexuality, or abortion).
# Claiming that because everyone else supposedly believes in something, therefore it must be right.
# Claiming that your [[parent]]s aren't cool; that [[Hollywood values]] are cool; that [[professor values]] are brilliant; and that you must blindly follow your government.
# There is a shortage of everything we want.
# [[Prayer]] is for dummies, or is antiquated.
# [[children|Kids]] are getting smarter than old folks.
# Smearing your adversary with a highly offensive accusation or insinuation.
# Calling someone a [[racist]] if he criticizes a ''liberal'' that happens to have a different skin color.
# Demonizing [[conservative]]s and pretending they don't care about regular people.
# If you don't like it (something offensive on [[television]]), don't watch it (but they don't seem to go for ''if you don't like [[whale]]s being killed, don't watch them being killed'').
# Believing the poor are blameless because they have nothing and the rich are to blame because they have everything.
# Accusing conservatives of libel, but forgetting that truth is the perfect defense against libel.
# In discounting other point of views, [[liberals]] use comparisons of other known "wrong actions" to justify their supposed correct stance. <ref>http://www.universetoday.com/2008/04/07/hanson-earth-at-crisis-point/ , AFP Hansen, Earth At A Crisis Point, April 7, 2008</ref>
# Inserting false information, usually lewd into a respected work or group of works.
# Defending the assuration that democrats.com is not affiliated with the [[Democratic]] party. (We are told as an independent website, Democrats do not control the views of democrats.com.)
# Claiming expertise beyond one's area of expertise, as in a "Dr." or professor implying that he is an expert in an area beyond his specialty<ref>Liberals often cited physicists who had no training or expertise in engineering for their baseless, illogical criticisms of [[SDI]].</ref>
# Pretending an honorary degree does not give someone the right to be called "Doctor".
# Pretending [[affirmative action]] is the best way to fill positions, including [[Affirmative action president|President of the U.S.]]
# Fearing the wrath of voters this election cycle, Democrats have decided not to block offshore drilling bans renewed each October. After the election, [[Americans]] get sucker-punched because restoring the ban on new offshore [[oil drilling]] leases “will be a top priority for discussion next year.” <ref>[http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=36268 Democrat Leader: Restoring Offshore Drilling Ban a ‘Top Priority’ for Next Year] CNSNews, September 24, 2008</ref>
# Saying "If you believe that abortion is murder, don't have one!" as if abortion isn't undisputably the murder of a human being.
# Supporting classlessness while pretending to care about the preservation of world culture.
# Finding a diverse individual to be appealing or “cool” until they learn that the individual does not conform to their liberal agenda.
# Claiming open-mindedness as a disguise for immorality. Such is a typical liberal claim regarding drug/alcohol abuse, promiscuity, etc.
# Defending the lives of heinous criminals (by opposing capital punishment) while encouraging murder of unborn children (by supporting infanticide, known today as abortion).
# Justifying sinful [[lie|lying]] by saying "what they don't know can't hurt them."

(please add to the list)

== Example ==

Here is an example of an actual attempt at [[liberal tricks]] that was posted on this very page:

{{QuoteBox|This article, and many others on a similar line, are a sad demonstration of incipient mental illness. Andrew Schlafly appears to be an educated man - after all, he edited a legal journal which was later edited by [[Barack Obama]] (I assume that Andy's tenure wasn't a result of [[affirmative action]] in favour of the narrow minded and the bigoted) - yet his denunciations of 'liberalism' get ever wilder and more paranoid as his definition of that beknighted state become ever more encompassing.}}

The above example (by a non-American) attempts to smear a [[conservative]] by implying that he has a mental illness, reflecting '''liberal trick''' #17 above. To someone unfamiliar with '''liberal tricks''', this can be upsetting and intimidating. But once one realizes that this is a basic trick from the [[liberal]] playbook, its silliness and ineffectiveness becomes obvious. The [[liberal]]'s foolish tactic is then revealed for what it really is.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{liberalism}}

Talk:Atheism/archive16

2010-06-29T21:03:08Z

Synalon:

== A Typo ==

There is a missing space on the first line. Could someone fix it? Thanks! [[User:Jehosephat25|Jehosephat25]] 12:30, 2 March 2010 (EST)
::::Please elaborate. [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 05:11, 24 March 2010 (EDT)

== Atheism and Mass Murder ==

A point to discuss. It is stated that more people were killed under regimes advocating atheism than any theistic regimes. However, taking the examples of the Crusades (in which hundreds of thousands of people were killed on religious grounds) and Stalin's genocide, we see that Stalin did not kill millions upon millions ''because'' he wanted them to be Atheist, whereas during the Crusades people were killed for ''not being Christian''. Perhaps a reword is necessary. [[User:Avoge|A. Vogel]] 15:26, 24 March 2010 (EDT)

:Are you communicating with Stalin from "the other side", from Hell, A.Vogel so that you have a clear idea as to why he ordered his mass-killings? I have several questions I would like you to pass on. --<big>[[User:TK|'''ṬK''']]</big>/Admin[[User_Talk:TK|/Talk]] 15:51, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
::Most definitely not, and believe me, if I could, I surely give him a piece of my mind. I'm simply questioning, with all due respect to the author of the article, if there is any evidence that he did murder in the name of atheism or whether it was based on ethnicity or opposition to his political idealogy. If there is, please provide. [[User:Avoge|A. Vogel]] 16:08, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
:::::A. Vogel, did Stalin kill anyone who was a theist due to their theism? Any church leaders killed, churches razed, etc? Please elaborate on your post. I do thank you for your input, I just added another footnote in the Conservapedia atheism article in terms of Soviet atheists being involved in the mass religious persecution of religious believers and the mass murders of religious believers. By the way, I am personally not a member of the Roman Catholic faith, but perhaps you might want to dialogue with Roman Catholics about the crusades. [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 17:19, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
::::::Yes, thousands of churches were razed and many religious leaders were sent to labor camps. However, during the period of 1941-1959 there was actually a resurgence of Russian Orthodox Christianity in the Soviet Union [http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/soviet.exhibit/anti_rel.html cited]. Now, this is purely conjecture, but could it be that Stalin persecuted said religious officials because he believed they undermined his power, or because of their religious? [[User:Avoge|A. Vogel]] 17:48, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
:::::::A. Vogel, did Stalin ease up on the church because he was a nice guy or because he needed their help in fighting the war? Lastly, you are free to speculate, but please fully support your speculations especially in the light of the Lenin quote cited in the Conservapedia atheism article. [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 17:51, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
::::::::Edited previous post. [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 17:52, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
:::::::::::A. Vogel, I many be wrong, but it seems like you deliberately dodged my last question. Did Stalin kill religious leaders? [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 17:56, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
::::::::::::My apologies, I had no intention of dodging the question. The answer is simple: Yes, he did. I fully accept the fact that he persecuted religion and religious leaders to no end, and I think he was a terrible man for it - what I am questioning is the fact that they were his only target. He also persecuted many non-religious leaders, ie, political enemies. A prominent example would be Leon Trotsky. My point is, his massacre cannot be ''purely'' blamed on atheism. [[User:Avoge|A. Vogel]] 18:02, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
:::::::::::::::::::I realise I'm late to the discussion, but I would just like to add the Hitler was a vegetarian and killed millions of meat-eaters. I'm reasonably confident that this had nothing to do with the fact they ate meat, and I think the same logic can be applied to the argument here. [[User:Soup]] 03:25, 3 May 2010 (EDT)
You do, Soup? Sorry, no soup for you. Bye. --<big>[[User:TK|'''ṬK''']]</big>/Admin[[User_Talk:TK|/Talk]] 23:03, 1 May 2010 (EDT) 
A. Vogel, Here are some books that were recommended for further reading in the Conservapedia atheism article:

'''Atheism and History''':

*Dimitry Pospielovsky, (December, 1987), ''A History of Marxist-Leninist Atheism and [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] Antireligious Policies'', Palgrave Macmillan, ISBN 0312381328
*Dimitry Pospielovsky, (November, 1987), ''Soviet Antireligious Campaigns and Persecutions (History of Soviet Atheism in Theory and Practice and the Believers, Vol 2)'', Palgrave Macmillan, ISBN 0312009054
*Dimitry Pospielovsky, (August, 1988), ''Soviet Studies on the Church and the Believer's Response to Atheism: A History of Soviet Atheism in Theory and Practice and the Believers, Vol 3'', Palgrave Macmillan, hardcover: ISBN 0312012918, paperback edition: ISBN 0312012926 [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 18:03, 24 March 2010 (EDT)

:Thank you very much! I will surely have a look at these as soon as I can. I appreciate your replies. [[User:Avoge|A. Vogel]] 18:06, 24 March 2010 (EDT)
::::No problem. There is something you said about history and I do not know if it is correct or incorrect. You wrote: "whereas during the Crusades people were killed for not being Christian." The Spanish Inquisition by the Roman Catholic church involved the issue of being killed due to the issue of whether someone was a Roman Catholic and also involved torture to try to force people to hold a Roman Catholic position. However, if I am not mistaken and I certainly maybe on this point, I think the crusades mainly involved the issue of who controlled Jerusalem. Although I may be wrong on this point, I think it mainly was a land dispute and "power game" between Roman Catholics and Muslims on who was going to control Jerusalem which they both considered significant due to its historical past and what they claimed was historical (I am not a Muslim either so I do not hold the Muslim position of what allegedly occurred there). As a Protestant of course, I think the Spanish Inquisition and crusades were based on bad theology and immoral. I am going to be away for the rest of the month for the most part, so I am afraid I cannot continue this discussion until April. [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 21:45, 24 March 2010 (EDT)

== Coming Conservapedia atheism article new content ==

I have come across some additional information plus I am going to research some additional areas. I am expecting to add some additional content to the Conservapedia anti-atheism article sometime in the near future. There are so many fallacious arguments that atheists use and so many egregious behaviors they engage in that there is certainly an opportunity to expand on the anti-atheism content offered at Conservapedia either in the main article or through additional articles. [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 15:18, 8 April 2010 (EDT)

== additional source causes of atheism plus source of new quotes ==

additional source causes of atheism plus source of new quotes: http://www.christianpost.com/article/20100318/christian-philosopher-explores-causes-of-atheism/index.html [[User:Conservative|conservative]] 05:57, 11 April 2010 (EDT)
== Arguments Against Atheism ==

Shouldn't we have an example of an ontological argument, rather than just a definition? Otherwise it does not flow with the rest.
Edit: I meant against Atheism.
{{unsigned|Prium}}

:Do you know of any beyond "I don't see any evidence (as I narrowly define it) of God" (the most common argument), "God is a big meanie!" (Dawkins' argument) and "Christians are dumb, so there!" (PZ Myers' argument)? [[User:Jinxmchue|Jinx McHue]] 10:23, 24 May 2010 (EDT)

== Richard Dawkings on leaders (religious and non-religious) ==

"I think that is missing the point, that's just simply appalling people in the world, from Henry VIII and Genghis Khan, to Hitler and Stalin, some of them were religious and some of them were not. I don't think that we should tote up the number of wicked people who have been religious and the number that haven't. The question is does religious faith, blind faith in the absence of evidence, predispose you to do evil things that you wouldn't otherwise do?"

== List of Atheists ==

Should we add a list of current and past notable atheists and create pages about some, if we don't already have them? Perhaps it should be a separate article entirely, as I can imagine it being quite long.

Cheese

2010-06-29T00:50:25Z

Synalon: removed the 'superior to European cheeses' part.

[[Image:Tillamook Cheese.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Tillamook Colby and Cheddar, American cheeses.]]

'''Cheese''' is a solidified dairy product. Cheese making starts with the solidification of milk proteins, usually by the addition of [[rennet]] (a mixture of [[enzyme]]s) or an edible acid, which produces [[curds]]. For most types of cheese, the curds are separated from the liquid, the [[whey]], and then [[aging|aged]], sometimes for many years. Salt is also often an ingredient in cheese recipes.

==Sources Used to Make Cheese==

Most cheese is made from [[cow]]'s [[milk]], although technically, any large [[mammal]]'s milk can be used. Some common sources of milk for making cheese other than cows include:

*[[Goat]] milk (e.g. Chevre cheese)
*[[Sheep]] milk (e.g. Roquefort)
*[[Yak]] milk.
*[[Buffalo]] milk

==Cheese History==

[[France]] is especially renowned as a cheese producer, and their president [[Charles de Gaulle]] famously said : "How can a country with 300 different kinds of cheese agree on anything?". However, many French cheeses are made from unpasteurized milk and their transport across international borders is therefore forbidden for health reasons owing to potentially toxic bacterium ''listeria''. Physicians recommend that the cheeses should not be consumed by [[pregnancy|pregnant]] women or young children. Certain French cheeses (such as Epoisses) are so smelly to keep up the urban legend that their carriage is banned even on French [[public transport]].

It is most likely that the invention of cheesemaking was a way of preserving excess milk for leaner times.

==Varieties==

There are literally thousands of varieties of cheese made in the world today. The best selection with more than thousand varieties is offered in the Kaufhaus des Westen, Berlin, Germany [http://www.kadewe-berlin.de/kaese_engl.php]. Some well known varieties are:

===Hard cheeses===
*Cheddar (A hard red, yellow or white cheese, originally from the [[England|English]] West country (The Cheddar Gorge), but also now made worldwide in countries including [[Ireland]], [[Canada]], [[New Zealand]], and [[Scotland]])
*Parmesan ([[Italy|Italian]] very hard cheese.)
*Romano (Another [[Italy|Italian]] hard cheese)
*Gouda ([[Netherlands|Dutch]] cheese, with a yellow wax rind.)
*Monterey Jack ([[America]]n.)
*Mozzarella (A very soft white cheese from [[Italy]], in some places it is still made the traditional way, with buffalo milk.)
*Emmentaler (A [[Switzerland|Swiss]] cheese, characterized by large holes.)
*Gruyère (A flavorful [[Switzerland|Swiss]] cheese which is very dry and hard, somewhat like Parmesan)
*Cheshire (A hard red or white cheese, more crumbly than Cheddar with a salty taste. Made in [[Cheshire]] or North Shropshire. Mrs Appleby's Cheshire has won international renown.)

===Blue cheeses===
*Blue Stilton ([[England|English]] crumbly blue cheese, a non-blue variety also exists.)
*Roquefort (The [[France|French]] king of blue cheeses, made from sheep's milk in a cave.)
*Cheshire Blue (Mild blue cheese with a salty flavour)

===Soft cheeses===
*Feta (Soft and crumbly [[Greece|Greek]] sheep's or mixture of sheep's and goat's milk cheese)
*Brie (a [[France|French]] soft cheese, not particularly smelly.)
*Camembert (a [[France|French]] soft cheese, fairly smelly.)
*Muenster (a [[France|French]] soft cheese)
*Cottage cheese (a very runny soft curd cheese).
*Cream cheese (a mild soft white cheese)
* Neufchâtel (a [[France|French]] soft and crumbly)

===Synthetic cheeses===
*American or processed cheese, a very mild [[ersatz]] cheddar with a smooth texture, often delivered by unusual methods, such as in cans, as strings, or as a spray. Though considered by many connoisseurs to have an unpleasantly chemical or plasticy taste and no significant texture, its very low cost had lead to its use as a 'generic' cheese for snacks, fast-food, burgers, or any meal in which a cheese is used to enhance another element of a meal rather than form a more significant taste.

==Non-cheese cheeses==

Head cheese, known as brawn in the [[UK]] and by other names in other parts of the world, is made from meat taken from the head of an animal - pigs, calves and cows are used - that might otherwise remain uneaten for aesthetic reasons. It sometimes includes meat from other normally unappetizing areas such as the feet or organs. The meat is chopped or shredded and set in [[gelatine]]. It is usually eaten cold or at room temperature as a luncheon meat. In the southern states of the [[US]] this is sometimes also known as sousemeat and pickled in vinegar.

[[Lemon]] cheese is another name for lemon curd in the [[UK]]. Fruit cheeses are sometimes made with other citrus fruit.

==Cheese in Culture==

In [[England]], the traditional sport of [[cheese-rolling]] remains locally popular. [http://www.cheese-rolling.co.uk/]

[[James McIntyre]], a [[Canadian]] poet, was fond of writing [[poems]] and [[ode]]s to cheese. This is not because he thought the subject was funny, or ironic. Rather, McIntyre saw cheese production in [[Canada]] as a [[symbol]] of the strong growth in the Canadian [[economy]]. Many people today find his works quite humorous, but McIntyre's "[[Ode on the Mammoth Cheese]]" is considered by most poetry [[scholars]] not only his best work, but his ultimate achievement.

The original family name of comedian [[John Cleese]] was Cheese, but was changed to Cleese by his father. Cleese is famous, of course, for playing the frustrated customer in the Cheese Shop sketch on the ''[[Monty Python|Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'' television show.

Cheese is considered by some as a palliative for various internal diseases.

In the animated series ''Wallace & Gromit'', cheese plays an important role. Not only is Wensleydale cheese their favorite variety but in ''A Grand Day Out'' they visit the moon because it is made of cheese.

==Cheese Gallery==

<gallery>
Image:Allgauer Bergkäse cheese.jpg|Allgauer Bergkäse cheese.
Image:Stravecchio Parmesan cheese.jpg|Antigo Stravecchio Parmesan cheese.
Image:Beaufort d'Alpage Cheese.jpg|Beaufort d'Alpage cheese.
Image:Bel Paese Cheese.jpg|Bel Paese cheese.
Image:Cheese.jpg|Blue Stilton cheese.
Image:Brie Cheese.jpg|Brie cheese.
Image:Couronne Brie Cheese.jpg|Couronne Brie cheese.
Image:Dorset Blue Vinny Cheese.jpg|Dorset Blue Vinny cheese
Image:Emmi Emmentaler cheese.jpg|Emmi Cave Aged Emmentaler cheese.
Image:Emmi Gruyère Cheese.jpg|Emmi Cave Aged Gruyère cheese.
Image:Lancashire Cheese.jpg|Lancashire cheese.
Image:Limberger cheese.jpg|Limberger cheese.
Image:Mozzarella Cheese.jpg|Mozzarella cheese.
Image:White Cheddar Cheese.jpg|White Cheddar cheese.
</gallery>

[[Category:Dairy products]]
[[Category:Food and Drink]]