I think this is the third fake story “reported” by Fox News’ Todd Starnes in the past two weeks. But I could be wrong since I’ve only read three of his stories in the past two weeks. His latest version of “fair and balanced” spin takes us to Frisco, Texas, where Starnes writes that an elementary school has “banned Christmas trees and the colors red & green from an upcoming ‘winter’ party”: Read more
Last week, the Chicago chapter of the Freedom From Religion Foundation placed an 8.5-foot-tall Scarlet A monument and banner in downtown’s Daley Plaza (on Dearborn and Washington): Chicago Sun-Times columnist Neil Steinberg, himself a self-hating atheist in the style of S.E. Cupp, can’t stand the displays. But before he could explain why, he took the time to complain about atheists as a whole: I am not an atheist. Atheists are zealots, too, elevating denial of the divine into a kind of faux religion, complete with pieties, and manage to be as aggressive and joyless as those who at least can blame a higher power for making them the way they are. Rather, I am an agnostic. Agnostics know what we know but don’t make a fuss. We’re the Unitarians of the nonbelief community. The reason Steinberg thinks atheists are joyless is because all the happy ones manage to stay away from him. Read more
Every time Dave Silverman appears on Fox News Channel, an atheist gets out her wallet. Washington Post media critic Erik Wemple tracks how atheists’ appearances on Fox News — which escalate around this time of year for reasons no one can explain… — coincide with increased donations and membership to their groups: Read more
It’s hard to see how Bill Nye’s open letter to President Obama will succeed, but dammit, I wish it would: Read more
The Atheists of Maine are once again raising money for a truly worthy cause: Camp Sunshine, “a retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.” Read more
Hug your kids, ’cause you just never know, Karen Dunlop reminds us in the Onion: As a parent, worrying is second nature. You’re constantly afraid that something could go wrong. Your child could get sick, or get in an accident, or even just not fit in at school. Sure, there’s joy and pride and fulfillment, but there’s also an unavoidable stream of dread. And all of these worries of course pale in comparison to every parent’s worst nightmare: losing your… Read more
Faisal Saeed Al-Mutar, who will be speaking at the opening of the Humanist Hub near Harvard’s campus this weekend, is an Iraqi refugee whose Secular Humanism is very much at odds with his cultural background. Ken Chitwood of Religion News Service tells Al-Mutar’s powerful story: Read more
If you wanted to visit the website for the Atlanta Freethought Society, all you have to do is go to AtlantaFreeThought.org. It was brought to my attention recently that if you typed in AtlantaFreeThought.com — maybe you didn’t know any better — it would redirect you to the website for nearby North Point Community Church: Typing in the website for Atlanta Freethought Society, and used ".com" instead of the proper ".org". Leads to a local church. Sneaky sneaky!— Ross Llewallyn (@Boss1000) November 29, 2013 It even shows up that way in Google when you look up “AtlantaFreeThought.com”: Your call: Savvy marketing ploy or total dick move? I contacted North Point a few days ago to find out if they seriously purchased the atheists’ domain name just to trick people looking for their site to visit the church’s instead. Read more
The Clarksburg City Council in West Virginia unanimously approved a motion this week to display “In God We Trust” in City Hall. We’ve gotten used to these resolutions by now. There’s always talk about how it’s our nation’s motto and how it’s patriotic… but the council members here didn’t even bother to hold back their contempt for church/state separation and anyone who would advocate for it: Councilman Jim Malfregeot said council decided to take the action after learning about a nationwide initiative to put those words in all city halls. Malfregeot said he thinks other cities will get on board as well. “They’re taking God out of everything. The country’s going to Hell in a handbasket, so I thought, ‘wow. What a great thing to do.’ And to be the first city hall and city chambers in the state of West Virginia to have In God We Trust,” said Malfregeot. Say what now? Who’s taking God out of everything? Certainly not atheists or First Amendment groups that simply want God to remain separate from government. Want to pray in your home? Your church? Your office before a city council meeting? Have at it. Go wild. But Malfregeot didn’t just stop there… Read more
The serial kidnapper and rapist Ariel Castro hanged himself in his cell on September 3rd, a police investigation has confirmed. The report, released by Ohio law enforcement authorities on Wednesday, also confirmed something else: Castro’s devotion to God. I noted earlier this year, shortly after his arrest in May, that Castro loved to praise the Lord. In his last Facebook status update before he was finally arrested, he wrote of how excited he was about the birth of his fifth grandchild and about the arrival of spring. He concluded Miracles really do happen, God is good 🙂 Castro had been enjoying additional religious musings on the day of his suicide. Read more
