Hemant Mehta is the founder and editor of FriendlyAtheist.com, a YouTube creator, and podcast co-host. He is a former National Board Certified math teacher in the suburbs of Chicago. He has appeared on CNN and FOX News and served on the board of directors for Foundation Beyond Belief and the Secular Student Alliance. He has written multiple books, including I Sold My Soul on eBay and The Young Atheist's Survival Guide. He also edited the book Queer Disbelief.
Yesterday, #ConfessYourUnpopularOpinion was trending on Twitter. You would think people using the tag would be declaring, you know, their unpopular opinions: They think MySpace is still cool, or the Cubs will win the World Series this year, or Anthony Weiner will make another comeback. Nope. Turns out that believing in God — and being part of the powerful Christian majority — is somehow “unpopular.” Take a look: Jesus is Lord. #truth, not opinion. #confessyourunpopularopinion— Jeremiah Bonds (@JeremiahBonds) August 8, 2013 [Click headline for more…] Read more
The free, massive, amazing Skepticon conference in Springfield, Missouri takes place November 15-17, and registration is now open! (You’ll want to sign up before all the seats fill up, even though there’s no cost.) Check out the schedule and speakers’ list on their site. If you like what you see, please consider kicking in a donation to help offset the costs for the organizers. Read more
Pennsylvania State Rep. Stephen Bloom thinks he has a brilliant idea to make our science classes better: He wants everyone to debate already-settled scientific concepts like evolution and global warming: “In the real world, outside of academia, scientific theory is up for all kinds of argument,” Bloom said. “I don’t think it’s right to exclude any particular kind of argument prima facie. If a student wants to discuss a criticism, he or she should be able to.” I love that first sentence. Bloom is saying that when you talk to people who don’t know a lot about science, they debate things that real scientists already understand. No kidding. And instead of letting the experts dictate the curriculum, Bloom wants the people who know the least about it (including himself) to tell teachers what to discuss in their classrooms. [Click headline for more…] Read more
