You may have seen this “Bizarro” comic strip in your local paper yesterday: On his blog, artist Dan Piraro elaborated on his comic with a level of honesty you don’t expect from a syndicated cartoonist: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Camp Quest Oklahoma is trying to raise money for this summer’s camping session and they partnered with a local restaurant for a fundraiser last night. The idea was that if you ate at Oklahoma Joe’s BBQ in the city of Broken Arrow, 10% of your receipt would go back to Camp Quest (as long as you mentioned the organization or showed them the following flyer): Sounded like a great idea and it’s a typical way to fundraise; many organizations do it and many restaurants love to help out — it means more customers for them and they’re helping out a local group. Win-win situation for everybody, right?! That was the case until Camp Quest supporters arrived at the restaurant and saw this on the door… [Click headline for more…] Read more
John Corvino, a professor at Wayne State University, recently wrote a book called What’s Wrong with Homosexuality? and he has put out a couple of videos specifically talking about the intersection of homosexuality and the Bible. (Spoiler: If you accept the typical “Biblical” view on homosexuality, then, to be consistent, you have to accept a lot of awful things along with it.) [Click headline for more…] Read more
Last month, the Atheists, Humanists, and Agnostics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison held their second annual Freethought Festival. Videos of the event are now going up and they’re definitely worth your time to watch. In the following video, author Dale McGowan talks about 20 things he learned when writing the book Atheism for Dummies: [Click headline for more…] Read more
The great thinkers of the Enlightenment had grandiose dreams for the progress of human civilization. They envisioned a world in which all men were created equal, reason triumphed over superstition, and human beings in all their natural variability were free to pursue their own pursuits. Are we there yet? That forms only part of the question astrophysicist and former NASA staff scientist Stuart Jordan seeks to answer in The Enlightenment Vision: Science, Reason, and the Promise of a Better Future (Prometheus Books, 2013). [More…] Read more
Question: How do you get atheists to listen to a church sermon? Answer: You spend an hour talking about how those other, bigger, more popular churches are terrible, horrible, no good, very bad places. Say hello to our friend Pastor Steven Anderson of the Faithful Word Baptist Church in Tempe, Arizona. The good stuff begins at the 1:48 mark: You know, the church that you’re sitting in right now, Faithful Word Baptist Church, is not the type of church that… Read more
Last month, the Atheists, Humanists, and Agnostics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison held their second annual Freethought Festival. Videos of the event are now going up and they’re definitely worth your time to watch. In the following video, American Atheists’ Managing Director Amanda Knief talks about why the Faith-Based Initiative needs to be sacrificed: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Over the weekend, Pastor Rick Warren’s son Matthew committed suicide. In an email to his congregation, Warren explained what few people outside the church might have known: But only those closest knew that he struggled from birth with mental illness, dark holes of depression, and even suicidal thoughts. In spite of America’s best doctors, meds, counselors, and prayers for healing, the torture of mental illness never subsided. Today, after a fun evening together with Kay and me, in a momentary wave of despair at his home, he took his life. My heart sincerely goes out to the family. Differences aside, Matthew’s struggle was one so many people share and we have no idea what life was like for him or his family. One question that may be asked in the wake of this tragedy is how the Warrens will respond to the tragedy: will they do it privately or publicly? I hope they respond publicly, in a specific way, and I want to explain why. [Click headline for more…] Read more
Over the weekend, magicians Penn & Teller were presented with a star on the Walk of Fame by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce… because, for some reason unknown to me, they didn’t already have one. David Copperfield and South Park’s Trey Parker were on hand to present them with the honor: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Last week, Virginia Tech philosophy grad student Dan Linford went to Liberty University to take part in a debate on God’s existence. Talk about walking into a lion’s den… I haven’t had a chance to watch the exchange yet, but the video just got posted: If any part of the debate stands out to you, please leave the timestamp and summary in the comments! Read more
