Pastafarian wins right to wear spaghetti sieve on driving licence.

[downbeatplumb]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14135523

An Austrian atheist has won the right to be shown on his driving-licence photo wearing a pasta strainer as "religious headgear".

Niko Alm first applied for the licence three years ago after reading that headgear was allowed in official pictures only for confessional reasons.

Mr Alm said the sieve was a requirement of his religion, pastafarianism.

The Austrian authorities required him to obtain a doctor's certificate that he was "psychologically fit" to drive.

The idea came into Mr Alm's noodle three years ago as a way of making a serious, if ironic, point.

A self-confessed atheist, Mr Alm says he belongs to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, a light-hearted faith whose members call themselves pastafarians.


A medical interview established the self-styled 'pastafarian' was mentally fit to drive The group's website states that "the only dogma allowed in the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is the rejection of dogma".

In response to pressure for American schools to teach the Christian theory known as intelligent design, as an alternative to natural selection, the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster wrote to the Kansas School Board asking for the pastafarian version of intelligent design to be taught to schoolchildren, as an alternative to the Christian theory.

Straining credulity

In the same spirit, Mr Alm's pastafarian-style application for a driving licence was a response to the Austrian recognition of confessional headgear in official photographs.

The licence took three years to come through and, according to Mr Alm, he was asked to submit to a medical interview to check on his mental fitness to drive but - straining credulity - his efforts have finally paid off.

It is the police who issue driving licences in Austria, and they have duly issued a laminated card showing Mr Alm in his unorthodox item of religious headgear.

The next step, Mr Alm told the Austrian news agency APA, is to apply to the Austrian authorities for pastafarianism to become an officially recognised faith

[Doubting Thomas]

That's totally awesome.

[Handprint]

This is weird lol

[Minimalist]

The next step, Mr Alm told the Austrian news agency APA, is to apply to the Austrian authorities for pastafarianism to become an officially recognised faith

All they have to do is not buttfuck the altar boys and they'll be way ahead of the catholics!

[Napoléon]

Bloody brilliant!

We just need the law changed so we can eat babies in the name of religion now, then we're all set.

[Shell B]

It's funny and everything, but I don't think anyone should be allowed to wear "headgear" in government identification photos. It's fucking stupid that religious people get so many liberties that we must resort to farce to be on equal footing.

[Epimethean]

However, if it makes enough of a mockery to draw attention to the "real" religions, it could be a good thing.

[Shell B]

However, if it makes enough of a mockery to draw attention to the "real" religions, it could be a good thing.

I don't think the colander in itself is necessarily bad thing. I think the driving forces behind doing something that ridiculous are bad.

[Minimalist]

It's funny and everything, but I don't think anyone should be allowed to wear "headgear" in government identification photos. It's fucking stupid that religious people get so many liberties that we must resort to farce to be on equal footing.

We are legion.

[Epimethean]

That's an Imperial Storm Colander, isn't it?