A user on Reddit described what he thinks of when he hears “Radical Muslim” (and “Extreme Fundamentalist”): Heh 🙂 I’ve never thought of it that way… because I’m a math nerd and this is the first thing that pops up in my mind when I hear the phrase… Math: Where some numbers are imaginary, just like god. Read more
In honor of Pi Day (on March 14th), the students at my high school voted on the math teacher they’d most like to throw a whipped cream “pie” at. We do this a little before Pi Day so the TV students can film it for their weekly newscast. Guess who won this year…? I’m not sure if I should be flattered or offended. I’ll just assume all the kids immediately thought of me when they saw the blank line on… Read more
Good news out of Oregon: The loophole that gave religious parents a “Get Out of Jail Free” card when they killed their sick children by praying for them in lieu of taking them to a real doctor has been nixed. The bill passed unanimously, though two Republican representatives raised concerns that the legislation was taking the issue away from juries and sending the state down a slippery slope. The legislation comes in response to an Oregon City church, the Followers… Read more
Some students at publicly-funded-despite-being-Catholic St. Patrick High School in Ontario, Canada recently participated in the Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity. They wore red tape with the word “LIFE” written on it and “didn’t talk for the day to display their belief in the injustice of abortion.” It’s a student-run event, similar in nature to the Day of Silence for allies of the GLBT community. Completely legal. Sophomore Alexandria Szeglet wasn’t a fan of that message, though, so she decided to… Read more
It’s not just the Religious Right that’s the problem. It’s the Right in general: (via Toothpaste for Dinner) Read more
Sean Faircloth of the Secular Coalition for America wants church leaders to be treated just like the rest of us: Right now, church leaders receive all sorts of special privileges because of current tax loopholes. To fix that problem, Sean offers Congress three suggestions: 1) Eliminate the tax loophole for clergy 2) Subject churches to an IRS audit 3) Churches should file tax returns It all makes sense. But you won’t hear Christian leader clamoring for fairness when it comes… Read more
David Hayward, as usual, summarizes in a cartoon something atheists understand all too well: It brings to mind this old joke (I’m paraphrasing): After a horrible flood, the waters rose so high that one man was forced to climb onto the roof of his house. As the waters rose higher and higher, a man in a rowboat appeared, and told him to get in. “No,” replied the man on the roof. “I have faith in the Lord; the Lord will… Read more
Note: Letter writers’ names are changed to protect their privacy. Richard, My wife and I are atheists. Some of our close friends are non-denominational Christians, and are very involved in their church and have active spiritual lives. I’m writing because they (our friends) hold regular discussion/bible study groups in their home, and we have been invited as ambassadors of the faithless. Exciting! We (I think I speak for both of us here) welcome the discourse, and our friends have described… Read more
***Update***: The Facebook link mentioned below has been fixed. … A couple of months ago, Cranston High School West in Rhode Island was making news because of a certain banner hanging in its auditorium: Our Heavenly Father. Grant us each day the desire to do our best. To grow mentally and morally as well as physically. To be kind and helpful to our classmates and teachers. To be honest with ourselves as well as with others. Help us to be… Read more
They’re not Catholic religious. They’re not even old enough to know what religion is. There’s no need to put ashes on them. That is all. Read more
