Fundamentalist Pastor Steven Anderson of the Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe, Arizona recently appeared on an Irish radio show. I’m not sure what the expectation was, but the host spoke with him for over an hour — with callers — and Anderson found a way to piss off just about everyone. (***Update***: For the uninitiated, you can read more posts about Anderson here, here, here, and here.) Here are some of the highlights: [Click headline for more…] Read more
A few months ago, the Bossier Sheriff’s Office in Louisiana lost $15,000 in federal funding because of the nature of its Young Marine Program. The program actually sounds decent, promoting the “mental, moral and physical development of its young recruits.” The problem lies in the more detailed description: Upon joining the Young Marines, each recruit will undergo basic recruit training for a minimum of 26 hours. During this time, the youth will have the opportunity to learn military history, customs and courtesies, close order drill,, physical fitness, rank structure and other subjects pertaining to life skills. Most importantly, the youth will learn to bond and relate with other young recruits and the opportunity to interact with caring adult mentors that are committed to providing them with a safe place to develop and grow with special emphasis on the love of God and fidelity to our country. Why is the Sheriff’s Department teaching kids about the “love of God”? [Click headline for more…] Read more
The video below, part of The Atheist Voice series, answers the question: Why do we need atheist monuments? We’d love to hear your thoughts on the project — more videos will be posted soon — and we’d also appreciate your suggestions as to which questions we ought to tackle next! Read more
The Polish band AmperA recently released a song (in English) called “Messiah” about how they’re not waiting around for God to fix things for them; they have to take responsibility for their own lives. Great song and awesome lyrics: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Pope Francis has decided that two of his predecessors were honest-to-God saints. What is the evidence that they were? Posthumous miracles. You see, Popes die, but their work is never done. While Jesus is busy helping millionaires score touchdowns, or dealing with the anger from other millionaires who blame the Son of God for making them drop touchdowns, dead Popes pick up the slack. Enter Sister Marie Simon-Pierre, a French nun whose Parkinson’s-like neurological order reportedly vanished overnight after she wrote Pope John Paul II’s name on a piece of paper, months after he died. [Click headline for more…] Read more
At the Oklahoma Freethought Convention a couple of weeks ago, Dale McGowan, author of Parenting Beyond Belief, spoke about raising actual freethinkers (instead of kids who just echo your own non-religious beliefs). Quick note: I have heard Dale speak a number of times and his wisdom never gets old. If you’re an atheist parent, listen to what he has to say; he talks about so many of the dilemmas non-religious parents face with their kids and his answers seem so obvious in hindsight. I feel fortunate that I can hear him talk about all of this before I have any of my own. If any moments stand out to you, please leave the timestamp and summary in the comments! (via TheThinkingAtheist) Read more
In a recent press release, the Freedom From Religion Foundation made it crystal clear that they’re willing to fight to keep medical care equitable and secular — particularly in Washington State, where several once-secular hospitals have entered into mergers with Catholic care providers. [Click headline for more…] Read more
A few days ago, the Senate in North Carolina tinkered with a bill called the Family, Faith, and Freedom Protection Act of 2013. It had been referred to as the anti-Sharia bill, but that was before the lawmakers pulled a creative switcheroo (or maybe adderoo). The Atlantic explains: The North Carolina Senate is not only considering an anti-Sharia (or Islamic law) bill passed in the state’s House earlier this year, they’ve tricked it out with a whole new issue. House Bill 695, which began as a cookie-cutter ban on the use of foreign law in family law and custody cases, now would implement several restrictions on abortion services in the state. [Click headline for more…] Read more
A lot of Christians say that they love gay people even if they disagree with their “lifestyle” and that it’s unfair to accuse them of “hating” gay people. Well, read this article and you’ll see why those accusations are made. Laurie Higgins of the Illinois Family Institute begins her piece by sharing stories of gay couples who did awful things to their children involving child pornography, sexual abuse, and prostitution… just awful, awful things. Of course those parents are to be condemned and put behind bars. And then she makes the Hateful Leap: I’m going to make the wildly politically incorrect statement that the male homosexual community has a serious problem with pedophilia… … the hell?! [Click headline for more…] Read more
Special heavenly powers recently descended upon a South African teenager who had gone to church for help fighting his migraines. More precisely, it was the derrière of pastor Zanokhanyo Mnyukulo that descended — right upon the boy’s groin area. Nothing to be concerned about — it was all part of the patient’s spiritual treatment. [Click headline for more…] Read more
