This is a guest post written by Anonymous. [Note: Among the many things conservative radio broadcaster Paul Harvey was known for was his essay “If I were the Devil,” versions of which you can see here. This piece is a rebuttal to Harvey’s essay.] … If I were the Prince of Darkness I would want to engulf the world in the darkness of ignorance; I would use this ignorance to cause divisiveness among men, and my success would give me control of every nation in the world. Read more
Last year, 7-year-old Lylah saved more than $200 by doing chores and donated it all to Toys for Tots. This year, she has a new focus with her giving: This year I have been saving all year for the Uganda Humanist Schools Trust. My goal is to pay tuition for two kids to attend school for four years. This includes meals and uniforms. I would also like to fundraise to help with improvements. I am reaching out for your help, please donate and lets change the life of someone in need. Read more
In “No Ordinary Violence,” a new article on his site, Sam Harris tries to classify those who commit mayhem and murder. His attempt was inspired by a media question: After the Boston Marathon bombing, a journalist asked me, “Why is it always angry young men who do these terrible things?” She then sought to connect the behavior of the Tsarnaev brothers with that of Jared Loughner, James Holmes, and Adam Lanza. Like many people, she believed that similar actions must have similar causes. But there are many sources of human evil. Harris sees four main groups of perpetrators (though he readily admits that one perp can have more than one psychological “driver”). Read more
Since a lot of people aren’t able to attend an atheist conference in person for a whole variety of reasons (costs, kids, etc.), there’s a growing effort to bring the conferences to people wherever they are, whether that means putting the talks up for free on YouTube afterwards, holding the conferences entirely online, or allowing viewers access to the conference from home. The Humanists of Florida Association is taking that third approach, live-streaming its upcoming conference (Nov. 2-3) for $12, hoping to reach those who are interested in hearing the speakers but who can’t make it there live: Read more
Foundation Beyond Belief just released the results from the Third Quarter of 2013. Check out the donations — $65,470 in total given by atheists — to the following organizations: This marks the first time we’ve ever given more than $10,000 to three organizations in one quarter. We also raised $9,300 to help Syrian refugees. Read more
If you were to drive through Middleboro, Massachusetts, you would see this unusual structure on a median on Route 28: The 12-foot by 7-foot Christian cross has been there for more than 50 years, and sits on public property, half of which is owned by the city, half of which is owned by the state, and all of which is illegal. The proposed solution to this problem was that the state would sell its half of the property to Middleboro, and Middleboro would then sell all of the property to the local (private) Kiwanas Club. Which is a very roundabout way to keep promoting Christianity through the government. Jeff Stevens had the good sense to speak out against that plan at a town meeting earlier this week: Read more
The Franklin County School Board in Tennessee had a very important discussion this week at their monthly work session: Should the Parent-Teacher Organization pray at meetings? The school board’s attorney suggested that a moment of silence would be okay, but a prayer crossed the line — Since the PTO was a school-sponsored group, it was violating the law. But the residents of the community didn’t accept any of that reasoning. Read more
It’s not surprising that a liberal like myself would find fault with something Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said. But after a recent interview in which Scalia described his belief in the Devil, some people are saying he deserves to catch a break from the resulting mockery and contempt. I’m not ready to let up just yet. In fact, saying you believe in the devil should be an embarrassing revelation. Scalia’s unlikely defenders don’t seem to understand why anyone could be so stunned by his comments. It’s not that we were surprised that a devout Catholic would say he believes in the Devil or even that he said as much in a “bold” fashion. (I mean, is Scalia ever not bold about something?) It’s the fact that a grown man, in a position of serious power, would believe in something that’s utter nonsense. Read more
It’s bad enough when Christian Science practitioners or Jehovah’s Witnesses allow their children to die because their religious beliefs forbid them from seeking out the proper medical care. It’s far worse when you think God wants you to sacrifice your children to her… and you comply without question: Read more
On last night’s Real Time, Bill Maher explained that “loony” Rep. Michele Bachmann and “brilliant” Justice Antonin Scalia are really “the exact same idiot” — they believe the same kind of supernatural bullshit, after all: Read more
