The View from Number 80

Tainted Saint - Many of our heroes when examined closely can be seen to have feet of clay - in fact many take a joy in deflating the reputations of those held up as good examples and role models. If someone is making claims that go beyond the ordinary and court the supernatural then they should be prepared to undergo the utmost scrutiny - in fact such scrutiny is invited by the very nature of the claims. One such claimant is the Roman Catholic Church with its custom of conferring sainthood on certain paragons of virtue - based not only on having lived an exemplary earthly life but also the ability to do good from beyond the grave - by miraculous healings or apparitions. (The current Pope is more than a little saint crazy and has been accused of running a saint factory) One paragon is the woman known as Mother Teresa (MT) of Calcutta who is considered by many, and not exclusively Roman Catholics, to have been a selfless toiler for the poor in her chosen area of work. In fact recently the RC Church has begun the process that will inevitably lead to her sainthood, which even exorcism cannot stop. In such cases the church can appoint a devil's advocate who tries to find fault with the case for canonization. How widely and how deeply the advocate delves into the life of a subject is not known, but just for thoroughness 80 thought to provide some documentation for the advocatus diaboli. As there is a wealth of adulatory material on the web concerning MT it is instructive to look at the less flattering side of her life and activities.

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Ghoul? - author and journalist Christopher Hitchens is one person who has looked behind Teresa's popular image and found something far from admirable. He traces the beginnings of the MT myth to an Englishman, Malcolm Muggeridge. Muggeridge, an iconoclast when young, found God when he was confronted by his own mortality in old age. It was he, in the role of TV broadcaster, that first drew attention to MT and her work in Calcutta. It is in this 1993 piece, Ghoul of Calcutta, that Hitchens first traced the links between MT and some of the world's dictators such as Papa Doc of Haiti and Hoxha of Albania - strange company for one considered saintly. Hitchens also noted that her work with the poor in the slums of Calcutta was to advance her own spiritual salvation - her Catholic anti-contraception stance meant there were always plenty of poor to minister to, with more arriving every minute. It has been said that if she had handed out condoms instead of Bibles she might have achieved some lasting good. Hitchens has written a book about MT "The Missionary Position" reviewed here and here and also here and which formed the basis of a film "Hell’s Angel: Mother Teresa of Calcutta" which unsurprisingly was banned from being shown at a festival celebrating Teresa. To the casual observer it would appear that Hitchens alone is out to blacken MT's reputation, but this is not so.

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Myth Mother - here are some pages from Aroup Chatterjee who introduces his subject thus "It is relevant that I am Calcuttan born, bred and educated. Please note that my work is factual and wholly evidence-based. I am neither a leftist nor a Hindu, hence my brief is neither ideological nor religious. But THE CELEBRATION OF UNTRUTH SHOULD NOW STOP" He has written a book on the MT story entitled The Mother of All Myths and supplies several chapters on his site. He has also written a submission to the committee for the beatification/canonisation which makes some very telling points about the mismatch between MT's words and deeds. This is a paragraph from that submission " If the Committee wants to confer sainthood on Mother Teresa for being an exceptional Catholic, then no doubt such honour is deserved. If on the other hand, sainthood is something the Committee would confer on somebody who is also more than ordinarily honest, "humble", dedicated to the poor, free of falsehoods and above all a person of unique integrity, then in my opinion Mother Teresa falls short of a being a shining example."

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Beautiful Suffering - this piece by journalist Sunanda K. Datta-Ray who interviewed MT in 1997 again emphasizes that her good deeds for the poor and dying were but "stepping stones in her relentless ascent to sainthood." Anybody who works to alleviate poverty by means of contraception, education and healthcare will surely find this statement of MT's quoted by Datta-Ray to be at once baffling and disgusting "I think it is very beautiful for the poor to accept their lot, to share it with the passion of Christ, I think the world is being much helped by the suffering of the poor people." Not the world, but rather her own personal pursuit of salvation and everlasting life is more to the point, according the material here. These final quotes from Datta-Ray shows where Mother Teresa's priorities lay

" "So, the good work that you do is for your own sake?" I asked. "The beneficial effect is only incidental, the real purpose is your personal salvation?" Mother Teresa did not disagree."
"Navin Chawla, Indian author of her "authorised biography", asked if there were fewer destitutes as a result of her efforts. Mother Teresa laughingly said she did not know. "But those who die with us, die in peace ... for that's for eternity." "

Teresa is set for beatification, the step before full-blown sainthood, on October 19th and already the commercial trinkets are being churned out. Amongst all the landfill merchandise being produced are echoes of the old style of Catholicism and its love of the grisly. According to this San Francisco Chronicle report "The Missionaries of Charity are planning for the beatification and have arranged for relics of Mother Teresa -- samples of her blood framed in an Indian-made reliquary -- to be put on display at Rome's St. John Lateran basilica." Showbiz is also making a contribution "An "inspirational" musical on the nun is scheduled for a Rome theater next month." 80 can't wait to see the chorus line in that show- the mind boggles. Perhaps they can persuade Julie Andrews to take the lead.

(80 has looked at the sainthood business before. Thanks to Atanu Dey for quoting material on his website. Here is another page worth reading on Mother Teresa and the latest word on her miracle from beyond the grave.)

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Doom Boom - the end of the world is a subject that has had humankind at once fascinated and petrified for a hundreds, if not thousands, of years. The most recent and vocal bunch of doomsayers are the many strains of Christian Fundamentalists - only they hope that the Last Trump is coming soon to bring about God's Kingdom in which they naturally will have a share. It never seems to occur to them that they might end up in hell for all eternity - it is one of the joys of the complete certainty that only blind faith can bring. They all have different ideas about how this End Time will come about but they are sure (and they are so sure about many things) that it will not come through the agency of water - after all God used that one back in the days of Noah and he is loathe to repeat a trick. Beyond the religiously influenced Doomsday expectations there are any number of secular ones, although out there on the web the distinction can become blurred. There are enough real dangers to our continued life on Earth that are attested to by a great deal of evidence that one wonders why folk fret about even less likely eventualities. The real threats fall into two broad categories - natural disasters (the hand of God?) and human-made ones.

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End Time Choices - it is undeniable that the Earth's creatures have suffered several mass extinctions (unless you a creationist of course, who come in two nutty flavors, openly religious or the latest idea, religious, but hiding behind the Intelligent Design figleaf). These extinctions are attested to in the fossil record although there is some considerable debate about the mechanisms involved. The most well-known perhaps is the doomsday asteroid scenario to which popularly the demise of the dinosaurs is attributed. At about the same time (not necessarily simultaneously, this is geological time which has a very slow tick) there were great outgushings of basalt lava in India (the Deccan Traps) which would have disastrous effects on life - perhaps the Earth's flora and fauna were subjected to a double whammy. Such huge eruptions are calculated to happen every so often and are certainly implicated in at least one other mass extinction. According to one school of thought we are overdue the next one. A somewhat more exotic threat, like the asteroid, comes from space - gamma ray bursts - which have been suggested recently as the cause of the extinction at the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443 million years ago. Now with an asteroid threat we theoretically could do something about it if the thing is spotted while still far enough away - although we seem happier to put vast expenditure into the technology to kill each other rather than mount a decent all-sky survey for a rock on the wrong course. With super-volcanoes, flood basalts and gamma ray bursts we seem to have no chance at all - even the ideas put forward by the Mars Society for colonization of that planet would not allow us to escape the sweep of gamma rays that could sterilize the Solar System. And there is the possibility of some super-disease resistant to all our best efforts to eradicate it - this threat could be natural or artificial - see below. And of course sooner or later the Sun will fail us - but that is so far away in time on present evidence that worrying about it is on the level of fearing instant asphyxiation because there is a small but non-zero possibility that all the oxygen molecules in the room are going to spontaneously jump into one corner.

The human-made disasters can be of various sorts such as an old-fashioned nuclear war (if anything the chances of this are increasing with wide nuclear proliferation - the Korea/Iraq lesson has been learned by Iran and others - if you have already developed nuclear armed long-range missiles the USA is more likely to negotiate than pre-emptively attack) And warfare has also provided many biological weapons that could do the trick - and that's before borderline stuff like escaped GM organisms or grey-goo nanoplagues are considered. (Two other pages looking at Doomsdays past and present are It's The End of the World As We Know It......Again and Greg Easterbrook's We're All Gonna Die! - both are recommended)
 

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Armageddon Exit - given the above threats why do people insist on dreaming up (as opposed to discovering) new ones, surely these are enough to worry about? A swift glance around the web will soon show that folk need far more than reality to scare them. In fact there are sites around, of greatly variable quality, that list the various likely and extremely unlikely ways we are going to shuffle of this mortal coil. One such is Armageddon Online  mentioned in a previous 80, although some of the threats listed here fall short of a true Doomsday, featuring super-volcanoes (there is one under Yellowstone by the way) and mega-tsunamis, which likely will not bump off everyone. It also lists Biblical Prophecies and Alien Invasions which register as "not bloody likely" on the Number 80 Threats to Earthlife Scale and happily seem to have a similar effect on Armageddon Online. Wringing prophecies out of the Judaeo-Christian literature may be fascinating for some but is little better than paying overmuch attention to the quatrains of Nostradamus, for both you need the eye of faith. Alien Invasions are even dafter - any civilization capable of faster than light travel, interdimensional hopping or whatever to get about are unlikely to covet our little planet - with that kind of power they could build one to spec. for themselves. (As for interbreeding with us for nefarious purposes you are more likely to have a successful union between a human and a seaslug - compared to an alien we are at least close relatives.) In the world of doomsday sites Armageddon Online is definitely one of the better efforts. The style of Exit Mundi is different in its attempt to be more humorous and snappier - the effort is mainly wasted. One doomsday scenario mentioned is Mass Insanity "Just picture it: a world full of nutcases. On the streets, you’ll see people flapping their arms and shouting they’re airplanes. In the president’s office, a moron will say: `I wonder what this button does’ – and promptly start (sic) a nuclear war" (Given the present incumbent maybe this isn't too far-fetched after all.) The list of other threats contains many bizarre and unlikely scenarios all described in the same breathless, jokey style. Here are just a few the Big Rip, Robots, Holograms and Strangelets.

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OpTerra - then there are the complete-flight-from-anything-resembling-reality sites such as Operation Terra (it is funny that some people think that calling the Earth by a Latin name makes it somehow special - in fact Operation Terra sounds more like something from the plot of a Sixties spy movie.) The page About OpTerra (that sounds even cooler) puts you in the picture - "The term "Operation Terra" refers to both a body of information and an operational concept. The information is being telepathically transmitted to Sara Lyara Estes (aka Lyara) by a group of higher-dimensional beings who refer to themselves as "The Hosts of Heaven." " This is one of those explanations that just add more layers of bafflement as things progress. Apparently Earth is to be assisted to the next stage where it will be called Terra (hmm, maybe the Romans were onto this already) and be colonized by "a group of pioneers from the present planetary civilization" aided by those dwelling around our planet on "many levels of being". Now slow as 80 can be at times this seems clear, or at least clearish and then pow! you are told this "Since ALL beings are projections of their Oversouls, none of us are really "from here," so all of us could be said to be extraterrestrials" Rereading the previous paragraph sheds no light on this but scrolling further down 80 was relieved to find this instruction which helped greatly " "Let go, let God [handle the details]" is the operative order of the day." Only one thing jarred the reassurance of this advice "The Hosts have given us a roadmap for OUR journey..." based on mundane life, particularly Middle Eastern politics, roadmaps can be tricky things.

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Holy Host - the messages from the Hosts of Heaven are available on the site (and also in book form) so 80 looked at the first message to see what triggered the revelation of Operation Terra, from June 30th 1999. Whoever the Hosts are they seem to have a liking for the Earthly Old Testament, at least in their use of terms like elohim and sabayoth (sic) and quotes from Ecclesiastes. Sadly the rest of the messages are the usual New Age stuff with a creepy touch of Heaven's Gate (see below). Also the concept of those deemed suitable being physically "taken" has echoes not only of alien abduction vocabulary but also of the looney Rapture, awaited by some Fundamentalist Christians (they crop up everywhere.) The FAQ page makes it clear that being taken is on an individual basis so don't expect to bring along your pets or family members. There is also a mini-discourse on dimensions or "densities" in OpTerra speak - although the following explanation seems to treat densities and dimensions totally differently and when you throw in the time dimension things get pretty involved. Try this for size "We use the system of densities, which to us is a more accurate way of describing the particular band of material reality that we are referring to. There is the whole separate issue of the different "planes" of reality. There is space/time and time/space. They are analogs of each other." Luckily even the Hosts realize this is pretty heavy stuff "There is much confusion about these terms, especially in the metaphysical field and the so-called "New Age" parlance. We prefer clarity to confusion, so we use the term density rather than dimension." For which we must all be grateful.

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Dark Side - so far Operation Terra seems little different from a myriad other sites of this type, but first glances can be deceptive. The title page of the site opens thus -

Operation Terra - Preparing for the Harvest - A new revelation on Earth Changes, ETs, the End Times and the journey to the new Earth, Terra. "....the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels." Matthew 13:39

The next two verses from Matthew which are not quoted are more indicative of the dark side of Operation Terra which is explored below...

As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 13:40

The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; 13:41

And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 13:42


Also in the FAQ page the similarity to the beliefs of the Heaven's Gate suicide cult is acknowledged and any explanation of that tragedy is sidestepped in a totally irresponsible fashion. The fact is that some deluded people, following the powerful personality of their cult leader committed mass suicide, believing benevolent aliens were going to lift them up to the "the next level above human". Here are some extracts from the version the Hosts offer when asked about Heaven's Gate and the obvious similarities (do read the whole piece to form your own opinion). "We cannot answer that question fully, for to do so would breach a "rule" of noninterference. They have passed on, and we can assure you that they did exactly what they came to do. There are no accidents." This is on the mass suicide "You have seen the apparent result, but which of you knows what REALLY happened? You can only speculate, and we have to leave it that way." And yes the "next level above human"does exist the Hosts say, "There IS a "next level above human," and Terra is where you will express and experience that."None of you who are part of Operation Terra will go through physical death. You will be taken aboard our ships, complete your transformation, and be prepared to occupy Terra."

Reading through this site is instructive - it is easy to laugh at the wacky New Age/Old Religion mishmash little different from many others but then things turn decidedly unpleasant. It is an illustration of how belief in such irrational claptrap can have many outcomes - and one of those outcomes was a group of 39 people, in Rancho Santa Fe, Southern California, dressed identically in black shirts and black sweat pants, new Nike tennis shoes, dead, having ingested barbiturates and vodka. They all lay on bunk beds, plastic bags over their heads and little overnight bags containing lip balm and clothing nearby. This was not a start of a new life, contact with aliens or anything of the sort - it was the mass suicide of people who had believed much the same sort of outwardly harmless, inwardly deeply sinister claptrap peddled on this website. Sara Lyara Estes is playing with fire here and will be fully responsible for any outcome of this Operation Terra - it is to be hoped that history does not repeat itself.

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Miscellany - as a welcome relief from the above here is a mix of sites (why else would it be called Miscellany?) The first two are useful and highly recommended and the others...well the others are just silly. First up is Tony Youens website - Tony's name will be familiar to many as a founder member of the Association for Skeptical Enquiry in the UK, as an authority on cold reading which he demonstrated in a very original way on TV's Ultimate Psychic Challenge and as a tireless promoter of the skeptical point of view in the media. The site is new and material is being added - go and check it out. An established page full of information is Jim Loy's Pseudoscience Page with well over 50 essays tentatively titled The Idiots Guide to Stupidity? He covers an amazing range of topics from Astrology to UFOs to Creationism. Fittingly for a page mentioned in Miscellany the largest category is Other - and fascinating stuff it is too. "On 12 February, 2001 the United States landed the NEAR-Shoemaker spacecraft on the privately owned planetoid, prompting OrbDev to send an invoice to NASA for parking & storage fees totaling $20.00 for one hundred years storage." Yes this is for real -  see SpaceDaily for the story. Now whether these other pages are real is left to the reader to decide. First up is a tailor for cats - CatPrin - the photos are weird but hilarious. Have you ever seen a cat dressed as Anne of Green Gables? No, I thought not. On the subject of pets - what will you do when Rover or Kitty pass on - bet you won't freeze dry them. And finally after years of preparation, standing out in the desert with your flashlight aimed at the night sky you have finally caught your very own alien - now the big question is - how are you going to cook it? A great page on extraterrestrial culinary excellence - great stuff.

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Quotes

"When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us." Alexander Graham Bell

"Men freely believe that which they desire." Julius Caesar

"Men think epilepsy divine, merely because they do not understand it. But if they called everything divine which they do not understand, why, there would be no end of divine things." Hippocrates

"To be rational is to look the universe in the face and not flinch." Anon.

 "Fear of things invisible is the natural seed of that which every one in himself calleth religion." Thomas Hobbes

"Often it does seem a pity that Noah and his party did not miss the boat." Mark Twain

"Trust a witness in all matters in which neither his self-interest, his passions, his prejudices, nor the love of the marvellous is strongly concerned. When they are involved, require corroborative evidence in exact proportion to the contravention of probability by the thing testified." Thomas Henry Huxley