Speak, for the cup of hemlock is not yet on your lips.

Sun: 09'Cancer
Moon: 16'Aries
Last Quarter Moon

In the United States, we are very fortunate that the Constitution protects our freedoms of both religion and free speech: of all the objections raised to the original writing of the document, the rights of free speech, press, religion and assembly were the first to be preserved specifically to the populace by the Bill of Rights.  Religious fundamentalism of any stripe is at odds with both of those rights.  Christian fundamentalists attack both the freedom to believe as one wills and and the right to say it (the brainless claim that non-Christians are waging a "War on Christmas" rings a bell here) within our own country.  Islamic fundamentalists (and others) do the same elsewhere.

It is a courageous few, comparatively, who stand up and speak for all by saying they wish only to be left to their own beliefs in peace.  This blogger in Bangladesh was almost murdered - and still lives in fear for his life - for no reason other than the fact that he believes (or, more accurately, does not believe) as he chooses and speaks about it.  And his words are the title of this post, which I quote in respect.

What cowardice could motivate a person to attack from the shadows, to murder or attempt murder in defense of a theology that claims God (by any name) is all-knowing, all-powerful, all-present and created all things (including the one being murdered), and then slink back into the shadows convinced that God will protect and absolve that crime, the theft of the life and free will of another of His creations?

Speak, for the cup of hemlock is not yet on your lips.  Speak for those who cannot speak for themselves, and if those around you are silenced, let their voices join yours and roar defiance at those who would silence freedom forever in the name of religious tyranny.

National Pollinator Week kicks off - with a huge bee kill

Sun: 29' Gemini
Moon: 28'Scorpio
Waxing Gibbous - 3 days before Full

My sister Alohi, who runs the blog Tales of Alohi, tipped me off to this story on OregonLive earlier this morning:

25,000 bumblebees killed, dropping from trees in Wilsonville; pesticide suspected

 25,000 bees.  55 trees, known to have been sprayed with neonicotinoid pesticides just days before as National Pollinator Week began.

The European Union has issued a continent-wide ban on the use of these "neonic" pesticides.  Why?  Because they have found sufficient evidence for concern that the extreme toxicity of these insecticides (to bees as well as to the insects they're intended to kill) is contributing significantly to Colony Collapse Disorder - observed worldwide among farmers and beekeepers for years now.  The evidence is strong enough that Vladimir Putin almost refused to meet with Secretary of State John Kerry because his outrage and fury over America's support for the companies that make them - including Monsanto, Bayer, and Syngenta.

If you like to eat, you may want to keep reading this one...