Here’s something worth debating, courtesy of an interview with atheist director Matthew Chapman (The Ledge): Interviewer: You were convinced that a movie would be more powerful in representing atheists than any number of books and speakers. Chapman: You were at the national convention in Iowa. Some of the atheist speakers were pretty good, but you can’t compare any of them to a good preacher. I think atheism leaves out a whole emotional component from the argument. That’s only a small… Read more
Loetta Johnson died recently and, at her funeral, her daughter Barbara Johnson went up to receive communion from Rev. Marcel Guarnizo. What happened next made national news: The priest refused Johnson, who is gay, the sacramental bread and wine. “He covered the bowl with the Eucharist with his hand and looked at me, and said I cannot give you communion because you live with a woman and that is a sin in the eyes of the church,” Johnson told ABC… Read more
On Friday, the Vermont Senate passed a bill and sent it on to the House, ending the ability for parents to exempt their children from mandatory vaccinations before they enter school for philosophical reasons. The ability to exempt for religious reasons however remains in place. Not surprisingly, senators and state Health Department officials agreed that there are no standards in Vermont law for what constitutes religious belief. All a parent needs to do in order to exempt their child on… Read more
It really frustrates me when religious people choose to deny themselves an activity that they enjoy because society won’t accommodate their restrictions, which have zero basis in reality. (The fact that they then tend to get angry about everyone else being stubborn and inflexible is just the icing on the frustration-cake.) But when inclusiveness costs as little as changing the start time of a basketball game, or allowing Muslim soccer players to wear hijabs, my sympathies tend to err in… Read more
Libby Anne, who grew up thinking sex was only something reserved for marriage, talks about one of the byproducts of that way of thinking: The belief that all men only wanted one thing from her. Eventually, I ended up kind of scared of guys my age, because, after all, they were all sex-crazed maniacs who couldn’t help but undress me with their eyes during every conversation and might even want to date me just so they could have sex with… Read more
Kirk Cameron appeared on Piers Morgan last night to promote his “documentary” Monumental. But the focus was on his misguided beliefs, including the notion that homosexuality is immoral: MORGAN: What is your view of gay marriage? CAMERON: I feel like I just got imported into the Christine O’Donnell interview you did back in August. MORGAN: She wouldn’t talk about stuff in her own book. CAMERON: I know, I know. MORGAN: I’m just saying these issues are interesting to me about… Read more
I can’t believe no one brought this to my attention before, but Parisian photographer Malo created a series of images of professions babies could one day fall into through the eyes of their parents. Two of them are just frightening: I think Malo spoke to my parents for this one: This little piggy went to the nursery. Omnomnom: And this one’s just awesome: There are more where those came from… (via My Modern Met — Thanks to Sophie for the… Read more
After the Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert Rally in 2010, a bunch of atheists got together at the Lauriol Plaza Restaurant in Washington, D.C. Since the Reason Rally is only weeks away, I thought I should mention a party we’re throwing afterwards! (By “we,” I’m referring to the writers at this site, the folks at Freethought Blogs, and several YouTubers.) We’re going to have a(n Unofficial) Post Reason Rally Party at the Lauriol Plaza Restaurant after the rally. The management has asked… Read more
Wouldn’t it be great if the whole “Year of the BIble” resolution in Pennsylvania backfired…? (Cartoon by Celestia Ward, reprinted with permission of the Freethought Society) Read more
