The Agnostic and Atheist Student Group of Texas A&M heard that Brother Jed, the notorious campus preacher, was visiting them next week. A lot of schools have found clever ways of opposing Jed’s crazy Christian claims. We’ve seen Kiss-ins, a Boot Protest, and fundraising drives. Kari Bean and the members of AASG have decided to do some fundraising of their own. Specifically, they plan to raise money for the very groups Jed opposes — the ones that are friendly to… Read more
It’s always eye-opening to witness Christian “love” in full force. In Georgia, a homeless shelter ironically called House of Mercy refuses to serve gay people: … Elder Bobby Harris, who directs House of Mercy… says that his organization simply cannot tolerate homosexuality in any capacity. “That act is not tolerated here at all. Let me tell you one reason why: because of the bible, of course. And then we have little children,” Harris says. He then added that if a… Read more
When the Freedom From Religion Foundation heard that a display including the Ten Commandments was going up in Macy McClaugherty Elementary/Middle School in Giles County, Virginia, they sent the district Superintendent Terry E. Arbogast a letter explaining why this was illegal (PDF). The Ten Commandments are in a frame along with the U.S. Constitution… The bottom of the posting says: Exodus 20: 2-17 The Holy Bible King James Version And, you know, there’s all that Constitution and Establishment Clause stuff,… Read more
The Cherokee County School District in Georgia was considering holding their graduation at the First Baptist Church of Woodstock — out of “tradition.” And because the church was cheaper than other venues. (Don’t worry, though. They’ll cover up the cross. See? How could anyone be offended then?) Also, while I haven’t been able to verify this, one reader told me: [The] pastor came on with a nice “Come to church and meet Jesus” video message just before the actual event…. Read more
by Jesse Galef — I rarely come across a source of interesting material as dense and extensive as Edge’s World Question Center. I’ve been diving into their 2011 question: “WHAT SCIENTIFIC CONCEPT WOULD IMPROVE EVERYBODY’S COGNITIVE TOOLKIT?” Go take a look: One hundred sixty four intelligent people answering in quick essay format. Excuse me while I get a paper towel; I’m drooling. I’m still going through them, but here’s a taste from Rebecca Newberger Goldstein’s answer Inference To The Best… Read more
Comedian Ricky Gervais appeared on “Piers Morgan Tonight” to talk about his “controversial” stint hosting the Golden Globes. Of course, atheism came up in conversation. Gervais says that religious people shouldn’t be offended at his recent pro-atheism talk. After all, he doesn’t get offended when they thank a god in their acceptance speeches. Gervais added that religious people “haven’t got the monopoly on good.” This is why it’s a boon to have strong spokespeople for our outlook. Gervais just appears… Read more
Reader Justin went to a local Barnes & Noble the other night and noticed that the price for Richard Dawkin’s The Greatest Show on Earth had been reduced. He used his Members’ card, bought a copy, and only after did he see the final price: The only thing that would make it more amusing is if it was a Christian book 🙂 Read more
To the readers: As I was finishing my response it was vaguely reminding me of something, and when I realized what it was I had to chuckle. I might sound a little like Polonius giving parting advice to his son Laertes in Hamlet. For some reason I’m a little embarrassed if I do. This very brief letter allows for only generic suggestions, and such things can sound like trite platitudes or wise proverbs. I suppose the difference between those is… Read more
Not that you need any more evidence to convince you that horoscopes are complete bullshit, but this is one I hadn’t seen before and it’s fantastic. The folks at Information is Beautiful made a word cloud for each astrological sign compiled from 22,000 “predictions” from Yahoo. This is what they found: What do you know… the same words seem to pop up for each sign. Feel. Life. Better. Sure. Keep. Energy. The unique words to each astrological sign are in… Read more
Want to lose some weight, exercise on a more regular basis, eat healthier, or do anything else to improve yourself? The Secular Student Alliance is giving you the motivation you need to do that with our Carrot and Stick project! The rules are pretty simple: 1) Make a measurable self-improvement goal (how much weight to lose, how many push-ups to do) 2) Decide an amount to pledge 3) Choose an organization you would hate to give money to — this… Read more
