Council ban on atheist websites

A city council has blocked its staff from looking at websites about atheism.

Lawyers at the National Secular Society said the move by Birmingham City Council was "discriminatory" and they would consider legal action.

The rules also ban sites that promote witchcraft, the paranormal, sexual deviancy and criminal activity.

The city council declined to comment on the possible legal action, but said the new system helped make it easier for managers to monitor staff web access.

'Very strong case'

The authority's Bluecoat WebFilter computer system allows staff to look at websites relating to Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and other religions but blocks sites to do with "witchcraft or Satanism" and "occult practices, atheistic views, voodoo rituals or any other form of mysticism".

Under the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, it is unlawful to discriminate against workers because of their religion or belief, which includes atheism.

National Secular Society president Terry Sanderson said the city council's rules also discriminated against people who practise witchcraft, which is also classed as a legitimate belief.

He said the society would initially contact the council and ask for the policy to be changed, and otherwise pursue legal action.

He said he believed he would have a "very strong case".

Mr Sanderson said: "It is discriminatory not only against atheists but they also are banning access to sites to do with witchcraft.

"Witchcraft these days is called Wicca, which is an actual legitimate and recognised religion.

"We feel very strongly that people who don't believe should not be denied the access that people who do believe have got."

He added that some opinion polls said that up to 25% of the UK population now considered themselves atheist.

A city council statement said the authority had a "long-standing internet usage policy for staff".

It added: "We are currently implementing new internet monitoring software to make the control of internet access easier to manage.

"The aim of this is to provide greater control for individual line managers to monitor internet usage, and for departments, such as trading standards and child protection, to gain access, if needed, to certain sites for business reasons."

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/7530519.stm

Published: 2008/07/29 09:31:16 GMT

© BBC MMVIII

A Wiccan priestess injures her foot accidentally with her sword during a ceremony.

See Yahoo news Associated Press section for the whole story

Check out the website link below for a very interesting Pagan festival in Belgium. There is also a translation in the English language.

PaGE is an international summer camp where people of alternative spiritual paths are welcome to share their ideas, teach one another, learn from each other, get acquainted and make new friends. It was first organised the end of August 2004. Over a hundred guests had a choice of more than 30 interesting workshops, new friendships were made and old acquaintances were revitalized.

We like to keep our promises, and hereby proudly introduce the second edition: PaGE2008. PaGE2008 will again be a gathering where people of various backgrounds and of different traditions will be welcome to meet in all honesty and sincerity to get to know each other and learn from one another. Unfortunately we are still confronted too often with misunderstanding. Unknown still is unloved... Therefore, the targets of the event remain:

• A meeting place for likeminded people, where new friendships can be made and old acquaintances can be revitalized;
• An event where everybody who agrees with the following principles of the Pagan Federation is welcome, irrespective of the path he or she follows and of degrees or initiations:
  • Love for and kinship with nature. Reverence for the life force and its ever-renewing cycles of life and death;
  • The Pagan Ethic: "If it harms none, do what thou wilt" This is a positive morality expressing the belief in individual responsibility for discovering one's own true nature and developing it fully, in harmony with the outer world and community;
    
  • Recognition of the Divine, which transcends gender, acknowledging both the female and male aspect of Deity.
• A happening full of new experiences where people can learn new things without losing their own identity;
• A place where everybody is accepted for who one is;
• And of course, a place full of unforgettable moments and FUN!

You'll find more information about the event on this website.

www.page2008.be

Just put up a Dutch weatherforecast on the left section for the Dutch members or for everyone who is planning to come to the Netherlands. As you can see we are having a wet, snowy time over here.

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Happy Tuesday to all.

Had a white Ostara this year. It's still snowing like crazy over here at the moment. It looks as if Yule came early this year.

Bright blessings,

Tourmaline