Hi,
I thought you’d like to see my pic of the FSM demo I held in Parliament Square (London). I’ve also sent you a copy of the pamphlet I made.
Perhaps a little background is in order.
In 2005, the British Government passed a law called the “Serious Organised Crime And Police Act” (SOCPA). Buried deep within new regulations dealing with money laundering etc was an additional, entirely unrelated provision that made it illegal to protest anywhere within 1 kilometre of Parliament without getting express permission from the Police a week before the protest (yup - protesting is a serious organised crime!). The rules were designed to get rid of a guy called Brian Haw, who has been protesting about Iraq (first sanctions against, and now the war) for 5 years non-stop (it hasn’t worked - he’s still there!).
Since the law came into force on August 1st 2005, people have been arrested AND convicted under SOCPA for such heinous crimes as standing at the Cenotaph (the UK’s national war memorial) reading the names of British soldiers killed in Iraq.
Under the principal of “defiance through compliance”, the 3rd Wednesday of every month has seen a series of Mass Lone Demonstrations against SOCPA. The idea is this: what if loads of protesters all turned up at the same time all wanting individual permission from the police to demonstrate? As the police can only really turn down an application on the grounds of public safety or public order, that means if 100 people turn up and apply for permission, then the unfortunate police have to license and approve 100 lone demonstrations. So we all troop down to Charing Cross police station a week before and apply. Come the 3rd Wednesday, we all meet in Parliament Square to demonstrate about - well whatever you feel like.
Anyway.
Last month I read in the paper that since the Creationists have had an arse whipping over “intelligent design” in US schools, they’ve turned their attentions to the UK, on account of we don’t have rules about the separation of church and state.
In September a creationist group calling themselves “Truth in Science” sent a pack to every secondary school (read ‘high school’ if you’re in the US) promoting the teaching of intelligent design as a counterpoint to the proven science of evolution, and including lesson plans and materials for GCSE students (GCSEs are the UK’s centralised secondary education school exit exams).
As it is just as important for UK students to learn about the Flying Spaghetti Monster alongside the scientific theory of evolution and non-scientific metaphysical ideas such as “Intelligent Designâ€, I figured I’d use my Mass Lone Demo for this month to spread the truth of His Noodliness to the people in and around Parliament Square.
It worked really well - I made an anglicised version of the FSM leaflet to distribute and stood by the gates of Parliament in full pirate dress extolling the virtues of Flying Spaghetti Monsterism. Mostly I got just smiles, but there were enough “yars” from people to make me think there are a lot of closet pirates in London. I even got some people to stop and listen to my brief description of the history of the Flying Spaghetti Monsterism, how the FSM created the world and why they should become pirates as well.
Peace
Jo Selwood
Attached: leaflet.pdf
Link to propaganda materials
Hey, that’s an awesome idea! And congrats to you! Since everone now knows they aren’t alone, more pirates are sure to join you in the future. The Noodly One will surely lend his aid to such a noble goal.
RAmen.
FSM International! No one expects a spaghetti inquisition!
FSM be praised!
RAmen
Jo Selwood,
The world needs more people like you and your friends.
You guys rock! May FSM grant you fair seas and large bounty for your endeavours.
RAmen
Would you mind if I used a copy of your leaflet in Australia? I would include an aknowlegement of the author.
RAmen
Spread the word, my English brother.
Let the Almighty Noodly Appendage grace the Parliament and have mercy on their pasta-lacking souls.
Praised be He, whose Noodly Appendage has graced thee
RAmen
Good work Sister Jo. Be not afraid, for you are not alone in facing the horror that is Blair’s England. Your brethren in Sussex support your noble deeds.
RAmen
Well done sir! I have also seen this “Truth in Science” stuff and agree that our kids need to be told the truth which is of course about the great and almighty FSM. Let us all spread the word in Blighty.
Jo, you are an absolute star. If I ever get round to moving down to London, I’ll sign up right away (with my own, one-man protest, of course).
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I hadn’t noticed this matter of Creationism wafting its poisonous spores into our schools. I still have a list of contacts of local schools from my last job. I wonder if they’d benefit from some counter-propaganda.
all hail his noodlyness, in all his spagetti glory, and spread the pasta word.
Henderob - Is there an official UK arm of the Church? If not, perhaps I feel a schism coming on. We could believe in all the same stuff except for a few minor details, like maybe our Beer Fountain delivers bitter to the worthy rather than lager? Obviously, there’d be decades of debate on whether bitter is a better representative of His Noodliness’ love for His people than lager, and in the end we’d not be speaking to each other (unless some mighty alliance of the unholy required it, or maybe just if we felt the need to ditch our long-held beliefs ’cause they weren’t selling well in the Third World….) but I believe that with our status as an island nation and long history of piracy, we could offer much to the battle against ignorance in our schools - as evidenced by Jo’s post.
My Noodle! Is ID really coming to UK schools by stealth? Alas it’s true, here we have an odious individual who (genuinely) is a millionaire, evangelical used-car salesman. His name is Reg Vardy and he has partnered with the government (who will drop their pants for anyone with some cash) to set-up Christian faith schools where ID is being stealthily introduced to the science curriculum. We need the strong logical arguments behind FSM to combat this evil!
most (pirates) or..yourselves. Don’t understand Christ, so you make your own idea based on proofs and facts, worldly stuff.
you have to make scrafices and give things up , part of being a christian.
and about the war protesting…how can people do that?! if they were not fighting , you might not even have the chance to go protest!
they signed up to fight, SO LET THEM!!
geeeeezzzzz
Oh great, more literate and well written criticism from the God-botherers.
You do know that ‘geeeeezzzz’ comes from the exclamation ‘Jesus’ and hence you have just blasphemed?
Sry - cheap shot. But you did set the tone
De-lurking for the first time to say arr! Great pirating, Jo!
great idear dude :) lol think i mite protest meself with some friends
p.s i think we should have a sub church for the midgit XD
Good for you Jo! Not only are you spreading the word of his Noodlyness, but you are also taking a stand against unjust legislation. The FSM would be proud. I’m sure there are lots of Pastafarians in London, and we deffinitly need a UK branch of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. And don’t let those creationists get ID into your schools. It’s not just about the seperation of church and state, it’s about not teaching bad science.
good man!!
Pamphlet is free to use for anyone. Help yourselves.
We really must form a FSM church in the UK - we’re obviously dotted around the place - I’m in Oxford, there’s some in Sussex, London.
As for the whole bitter thing - as His Noodliness is onmipotent, I presume the beer volcano would provide beer of your choice.
Peace
Cardinal Fang (aka Jo Selwood)
P.S. If you’re a Brit, more info on the Mass Lone Demos at www.markthomasinfo.com
@Cardinal Fang
Great! Printer warming up. Brand new 500 sheet pack of printing paper there. All set.
Print.
RAmen
“closet-pirates”. Now THAT’S something you don’t hear everyday.I don’t think any of those Intelligent Design packages reached us (in Northern Ireland) but that may have been just in Secondary Schools instead of my Grammar school. Anyway I hope that your demonstration did something to stop these creationists as I was disgusted at being forced to do a short-course GCSE in R.E. Apparently the only truly “religious” subject is, yup you guessed it, Christianity.
“you make your own idea based on proofs and facts, worldly stuff.”
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Must..
resist..
urge..
to..
yell..
RETARD!
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Uuurghhhhhh, oh noodly lord, why do you send these fools to try my patience so?
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Anyway, Birmingham UK fundamental atheist here, all fired up and ready to un-spread the word. Anyone who would like to take advantage of my sheer stamina when it comes to ranting can contact me via my website. Oh, and Mark Thomas is the man. Saw him on his last couple of tours. Did anyone see him wioth Rob Newman last year? Totally awesome. I seem to recall reading something of an atheistic slant in his book “As used on the famous Nelson Mandela”.
Oxford, Sussex, London and Birmingham, hmm? I’m in Manchester. Anyone else want to chip in a UK location? I’ll keep track by sticking some broken dry spaghetti in a map and hopefully the British Isles will come to resemble a tasty hedgehog.
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Then our revolution can proceed nationwide.
Uomo,
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Don’t know what it’s like to study GCSE RE but looking at the completed exam papers is fascinating. I did some temporary clerical work at an exam board a few years ago and, during one very slow afternoon, had a flick through some of the RE papers. Some were hilarious, some were terrifying.
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It was very obvious that one popular reason for choosing to study RE is that it’s perceived as easy. You could see the examiners desperately trying to find ways of awarding marks to answers almost as incoherent and irrelevant as the hatemail we get here. The religious mind at its finest.
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The more worrying answers came from schools which clearly required all of their students to sit GCSE RE. These were often Catholic schools which had chosen to answer a particular paper on Catholicism and its history. Time and again, students supplied almost word for word exactly the same answers as one another. Near-identical paragraph-long responses. Religious education methods at their finest.
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What stuck in my head particularly, though, were a few endearingly honest responses written by students who gave the impression of having not bothered to attend any of their RE lessons and who were consequently addressing the examination in a spirit of uninformed free thought. I particularly remember:
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‘People say God can see everything but how could he be that big?’
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and
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‘God can’t be in the sky because he’d fall through the clouds and he can’t be underground because he couldn’t breathe so where is he hiding?’
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Perhaps some kids are just naturally immune to indoctrination. Pastafarians in the making.
If there any creationist/ID pamphlets (1 page prefered) out there similar to the FSM one that Jo & Co. produced, I’d like to get my hands on a copy. I think it would only be fair to display them side by side.
@nikkiee:
“I think it would only be fair to display them side by side.” - Why?
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Richard Dawkins said this: “…when two opposite points of view are expressed with equal intensity, the truth does not necessarily lie exactly halfway between them. It is possible for one side to be simply wrong.”
Dawkins is in love with himself. He lights scented candles, lubes up, and makes sweet love to himself in the moolight.
@Davey. An awareness campaign. Also a recruitment drive. People can choose for themselves between the two alternatives. Ulterior motive: Point out the stupidity of ID. I have already picked out the areas where I will post them. There was a push in Aust. last year for teaching of ID. Has been relatively calm lately, but is due to raise its ugly head again. The religeous right doen’t give up that easily. Please has anyone got one of these pamphlets. I think I saw posts saying they were handed out at schools or halloween maybe?
RAmen
Where did you get the pirate hat? :P
Not a religious message, but just a comment on how truly, astoundingly, sadly pathetic you are. If you’ve got a problem with creationism, then why not attack it in a vaguely sensible way, with intellectual criticism? All you’re doing is offending people, and providing money for a guy who can’t be bothered getting off his arse to get a job, so comes up with this instead. Just pathetic.
@nikkiee:
With you all the way, you’re v v cool to be actually *doing* something. Good on ya!
Good luck with that. It took a revolution to change England’s mind about us in the USA, but you’ll manage. FSM be with you my pirating brother.
RAmen
So it’s good to hear that there be many a pirate in the isles, but what of me mateys in the great white north?
Come on Canada! let us support his noodleyness as our brethren in the sea do….
and Fageghetti, leave Dawkins alone. he has a wife…..
RAmen
@Davey
Thanks Davey. It’s just something I feel passionate about. Doesn’t take much long to stick up a few pamphets. I’ve got a few recruits, so maybe we’ll dress up while doing it.
Might have to go to a few ID/creation sites and see what propaganda I can dig up myself.
RAmen
To Spoon Tang
eBay
CF
It is important to note that the majority of the blessed Pirates were English in origin (other countries produced poor imitations such as corsairs, imposters like Bucaneers etc) and as the motherland of REAL Pirates it is important that we defend the faith in England. As soon as we can get Richard Dawkins to wear a Pirate Costume I know that the blessed FSM will visit us all with bounty and beer. RAmen.
Chunkylimey,
I think it is inaccurate to call Pirates English in origin. Piracy has been around for millennia. Although the Elizabethian image of a Pirate is best remembered, Vikkings and others predate this.
Arrrr!!!
Oh yeah, Vikkings are a type of Religious, Norse, Seagoing, Rape and Pillaging sort. Just like Vikings - except they wear a dog collar.
The English had the best Pirates though, so while it may not have its origins here, I think you could say that England is its spiritual home.
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I’m a tropical pirate, my spiritual home in South Pacific (or Western Indian - Especially Madagascar).
I basically believe in evolution, but to be factually accurate and fair, it actually hasn’t been proven. (Scientific theories must be proven through experimentation. Perhaps in this case it would just require an extreme amount of incontrivertible evidence.) Microevolution has pretty strong support scientifically, but there is actually a decent amount of evidence suggesting that macroevolution may not be an entirely accurate representation of the development of life on the planet. Just random food for thought. Be careful when you use words like proven and factual and scientific.
jst wanna say well done jo n us in donny (doncaster) are also doin our best but progress seems slow
Doncaster, too! So, we have London, Oxford, Sussex, Birmingham, Manchester and Doncaster between us, at least. The Pastafarian revolution gathers force…
There was an atheist asking how he should dress to show people his faithlessness. I got this published in The Independent today (UK National newspaper)…
“Sir: Jim Bowman could do worse than the full pirate regalia of the satirical Pastafarians, atheists to a man.”
We be spreading the word up North in Carlisle as well as Manchester. Yarrrrh!
@KJ
“Scientific theories must be proven through experimentation.”
It sounds like you are regurgitating BS. You are a bit out of touch with what is actually happening in the real world aren’t you? Suggest you catch up before making more of a fool of yourself then you already have.
May His Noodiless help you seek the truth.
RAmen
ps KJ
“Microevolution has pretty strong support scientifically, but there is actually a decent amount of evidence suggesting that macroevolution may not be an entirely accurate representation of the development of life on the planet.”
Could you differentiate between and show the unrelatedness of macro- and microevolution.
Really, it doesn’t take a lot of brain cells. It won’t hurt I promise.
I just love it when people spout BS with an informed “air”. They are so embarrassing to themselves.
RAmen
Can’t help myself.
” incontrivertible” Is that a new model of car or a new religion? Maybe a god mobile?
YOUR SIK MAN
YOUR GOIN TOO HELL
dude ur all nuts this man is the true savour of us all hail the profet… Hail bobby
FORGIVAN Oct 25th, 2006 at 9:01 am
YOUR SIK MAN
YOUR GOIN TOO HELL
Maybe hell is haveing too reed postes frum forgivan peeple who cant spel?
Pastafarian. Not SIK. This is not an islamic religion.
RAmen
@Cardinal Fang
I checked out the Truth in Science site and some of the lesson plans. These people really are a joke. Each lesson is referenced to mostly the same few papers and/ or authors no matter what the subject. (Including their own text?)
I liked this cartoon in one of the lesson modules. I’m sure there are more.
http://www.truthinscience.org.uk/site/custom/GalapagosFinches.pdf
Great work Jo, add a West Wales FSM chapter to the UK list (based in the birthplace of Black Bart - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartholomew_Roberts ).
I feel motivated to don parrot and strap on my cardboard cutlass and handout your leaflets outside The Senedd.
Aww men, they doin’ it again?
lets plunder em’!!!
One of the FAQs is;
Why does the Truth In Science Board of Directors and Council of Reference include Ministers of Religion?
I think I’ve made my point.
I’ll join the west wales chapter, Malthus. :)
Thanks for the leaflet you gave me! I had a good (but quiet ;) ) laugh on the train home.
Good work telling the government where they can stick their protest ban too!
Arr! Well done on spreading the word (both FSM and the lone protest thing).
I’m in Sussex too - Brighton to be exact - and originally from Cornwall, arguably the home of British piracy. So count me in for this UK church thingy.
RAmen!
get the fuck outta here dressing up like a pirate is supposted to help eat shit you british bitch. by the way, no pirates dont cause global warming. there has always been a whole in the o-zone layer and the earth goes in 50 year cycles. for 50 years the earth heats up then the next 50 years the earth cools down. if you like to know where i got these FACTS feel free to e-mail me. that is something that is true, not the fact that insane british bastards that believe in a cult and dress up like pirates. what a joke.
email: trueshortstop@yahoo.com
Disillussioned fool you arr.
Uhhh, that ^ was a response to this Mr. “wtf”
@wtf?
“by the way, no pirates dont cause global warming”
Pull your head out of your…..
You are waffling and you have no idea of what it is you are waffling about!
50 year cycles? wtf is wtf on!? Im a chemical engineer and my g/f is finishing a PhD in eviromental science … thats weather… ‘n stuff (to translate). So Im pretty sure between the two of us we’d have heard of this 50 year Ozone cycle. Have you not seen the graph? Good lord man! There so clearly a LINE… how can you dispute the line…. its hotter these days…. and we are notably pirate-less on this side of the pond, at least! QED (I rest my case)
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I can but hope your stuck by the astral meatball of enlightenment and brought round to the true reality of FSM
Oh, and chalk up one more member to the Manchester order.
RAmen
PS Yeeaarghhhh!!
I have absolute proof against intelligent design - Just look at President Bush!
TEE-HEE-HEE
wtf?
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First off I think that your naem says it all “What the fuck is going on?” must be a come phrase coming out of your mouth.
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If you could read then you will find that the FSM is mostly a US religion, the British have taken it up but only recently.
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50 year cycle hahaha, I’ll remind you of that when millions of refuges start wanting to live in your house because you have just sunk half the worlds land mass. If you think that global warming is nothing then you are in for a big suprise you ignorant CUNT!
OrionLoki welcome mate good to see another Northerner!
Praise be!More British converts to the true faith of FSM.Here in the port city of Liverpool(home to more than a few pirates in it’s time)I’m glad to know I’m not alone.
Well done on the London protest-glad to see the bystanders were friendly.and that stupid laws are not accepted.
All I can say is well done!!
So glad that im not the only one in the UK, bout time that it finally breached the waters, cant believe the pirates never got here sooner with this amazing concept. litle off track but I have just seen the new movie Borat, and thier is a scene in it in which he is in a church in America and they are all total fruit loops, speaking in tongues and quivering, how cant they call anyone else crazy (i have been reading the hate mail section of the site,makes for some good reading. I cant believe that in the 21st century Evolution is still dismissed by so many, Darwin will be turning in his grave) when they spend thier sundays jibbering and going on when they could be using sundays for their proper use, recovering from all the previous night pillaging!!!!!!!
ships ahoy
cya when i next drop anchor
Im back, turns out it was a short journey, only a couple of lines up as it happens. This is a message to WTF?, Im not going to be abusive in any way shape or form but you are a FUCKING REJECT!!!!
Anyone these days has the common sense to see the world in the true light through science and understanding. And not through blind faith in a gospel written about a guy around 400 years after his death by a bunch of dominating control freaks who wanted to find a way to control mass populations (hence religion). As regards to your attempt at an argument regarding global warming i can only assume that you are a ignorant american (no offence to the americans who are true believers, and obviously not ignorant). There is a cycle however but i think you will find that it is slightly longer than 50years.(look up milankovitch cycles) this will maybe give you some better grounding in your next argument you try to have regarding this subect.
apologies for the long rant but people like wtf? really annoy me!!
ignorance is bliss if you live in an ignorant world, thankfully there are pockets of this world where ignorance no longer prevails
I actually completely agree with “WTF?” Even though he was very crude in what he said he does have a point. The idea that the decreasing number of pirates is the cause of global warming is insane. Actually, global warming isn’t even real. It’s kept alive by the liberal media and wacko enviormentalists. As far as your “graph” that you have to support as evidence, its moronic. I could make a graph about complete b*******, doesn’t mean that its true. I am truly not trying to get everyone upset or anything, I just strongly disagree with what you believe in.
that must have been pretty embarrassing. ill bet 95% of those people thought you had either smoked heavily that morning or you were just an asshole looking for some sort of attention.
Arrrrr big up to the British pirates in t’area. Just found out about this fsm lark today and upset my dear old mum by stating my intentions to wear a pirate costume over xmas dinner. She must tolerate or face the wrath from His Noodly Appendage. I havent perused this entire website in all its glory as of yet so could someone advise me of the festive season traditions expected of this new way of life. Is the end of december a holy season for all pastafarians or are we free to celebrate with beer and strippers anytime when one feels the urge? I do hope so…Anyhoo if theres any Scottish esp Glasgow plunderers of booty afoot then jump on board my myspace site called spiderbeak to discuss keeping an eye on the truth in science landlubbers and ways to pillage Edinburgh. RAmen
Another one up for the north :)
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That chap down in Plymouth (can’t remember his name) that beat off the Armada was a pirate. We should have a national celebration of Drake. Just remembered his name. Sir Francis Drake, and he was more interested in looting than anything else ;) Says it all.
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Can we please put a copyright on the pamphlet and ban it’s redistribution.
We are all going to do it anyway, at least it would be more fitting for the cause…
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Nikiee, slightly worried about your earlier comment on Islam. It is not a bad religion, it does not encourage ill doing to others or anything of the sort. It is just a few (yes a few) extremists who twist it and use it as an excuse. Christians, read Rep of Ireland, have been known to do the same. Ditto Hitler. He just did it on a much bigger scale (yes ‘God’ told him). Obviously it’s not the religion, just some fsck.d individuals. Lets not misunderstand the religion, that will only fuel the idiots. And, maybe unfairly upset a few.
if anyone wants to tell tony blair they dont want creationism taught in UK schools then go here—–> http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/faithschools/
Can I become the official representative of the Church of the FSM in Argentina? Some of my college mates need a lesson on tolerating those of us who do believe in our tomato-soaked omnipotent lord, and getting the title would make me feel backed up by my brothers-in-yars. :D