David Hayward shows us a phenomenon I’m sure many Christians have experienced: But for so many of them, it doesn’t mean goodbye. If anything, they try to rationalize for the fact that god never actually responds. I just need stronger faith. That voice I just made up was God speaking to me, right? God will come back soon. God’s just testing me right now. It’s a cruel joke, really, that they can’t always distinguish between the invisible and the non-existent…. Read more
I’m used to politicians pandering to religious Americans. There’s more of them, so there are more votes to be gained by speaking their “language.” That coupled with the fact that President Obama is a Christian just meant we could expect a lot of religious references in his speech in Tucson, Arizona yesterday. I wasn’t disappointed: There is nothing I can say that will fill the sudden hole torn in your hearts. But know this: the hopes of a nation are… Read more
***Update***: Vanderbilt will be changing their application. It now reads: “While Vanderbilt expects all health care providers, including nurses who participate in the Nurse Residency Program’s Women’s Health Track, to provide compassionate care to all patients… no health care provider is required to participate in a procedure terminating a pregnancy if such participation would be contrary to an individual’s religious beliefs or moral convictions.” I think they’re caving unnecessarily. They’re also giving the Christians a victory they don’t deserve, but… Read more
John Freshwater, the Creationism-spewing science teacher who branded his students with a cross, has finally — finally! — been fired. In his wake, he leaves several students who are very likely undereducated when it comes to basic science and a $900,000 bill. The dismissal should’ve happen a long time ago. But the administrators just looked the other way… until it was too much to slide under a rug. So while it’s sad to see a public school district spending so… Read more
The BCS championship game between Oregon and Auburn is over but there’s one tangential story worth sharing. The Oregonian had a side-by-side comparison of the two schools in advance of the game… one of the items was “Notable student club/organization” and guess who was mentioned? Go, Alliance of Happy Atheists! Meanwhile, anyone else notice the crazy amount of money spent on the football program operating budget for both schools? It’s ridiculous to say this is money well spent when just… Read more
