Trinidad Tobago Humanist Association Forum Collective Commentary 2008

Collective Commentary 2008

^Topic	^Title	^Date

Secularism	Marriage Act is Child Abuse	04 November 2008
	So rather than alter the Marriage Acts, the framers of the Children’s Bill are saying that all these sexual acts, which are deemed harmful to children 14 years and under, are magically healthy and acceptable once committed within the bounds of marriage. … "See Letter"
Secularism	Statement on TT Humanist Day 2008	19 September 2007
	There is no country in the world which has developed status and which adheres to traditional values, which include putting the good of your own religious or racial group before the good of the nation, placing women in a second-class status, opposing science, and intolerance for difference. … "See Statement"
Secularism	A "surrealistic" portrait of Trinidad and Tobago?	13 August 2008
	Our argument continues to be that a plural society is better off when religious groups are given the same weight as other groups, and not a privileged position as is now the case. In this context, it might have been useful if Professor Ryan had mentioned that, according to the World Values Survey to which MORI contributes, the most religious countries are also the least well-governed. … "See Letter"
Secularism	No Equal Opportunities Act with Government Funding?	25 July 2008
	Dr Gaynor Dick-Forde does not understand, or appreciate, the principle of separating religion and state … enshrined in our Constitution, 4(d) of which guarantees "the right of the individual to equality of treatment from any public authority in the exercise of any functions" and 4(h) which guarantees "freedom of conscience and religious belief and observance" … "See Letter"
Education	CAPE corruption reflects wider society	13 May 2008
	Corruption in CAPE exams reflects only the wider corruption that permeates all levels of the society. A good education system, underpinned by a philosophy that seeks to train individuals to be knowledgeable, sceptical, and ethical, can transform the society in one generation … "See Letter"
Crime	Dishonest arguments from Catholic Church	08 April 2008
	... religious belief does not stop the individual from committing crimes. In the prisons of Trinidad and Tobago, Roman Catholics, who make up 26 percent of our population, account for 45 percent of inmates. All other religions are similarly over-represented … "See Letter"
Education	Myth, not history, from UWI academics	28 March 2008
	In our Association’s view, this mythologizing of history to serve ethnic agendas is neither innocuous nor benign. It points to a corrupting of intellectual standards for political ends and, as 20th-century history has well demonstrated, this is a recipe for backwardness and even disaster … "See Article"
Crime	TT Humanist Statement on the Death Penalty	17 January 2008
	Crime will not be reduced by grabbing at irrational, barbaric, quick-fix ideas. Instead, the authorities, and the nation as a whole, must take the long term view, adopt policies based on dispassionate and empirical investigation, and institute pro-active and preventative solutions rather than hypocritical, emotionally-charged measures which have more to do with what is good for the political party than what is good for the society … "See Letter"