Last October, oral arguments began in front of the Supreme Court in the case of Salazar v. Buono. Today, the decision was announced and it was a disappointing one. I wrote about this before, and I’ll paraphrase a part of what I wrote then. Then, we’ll get to what happened today. The background: In the 1930s, the Veterans of Foreign Wars put up a cross in the Mojave National Preserve in California as a war memorial. No other religious group… Read more
The Women Thinking Free Foundation is a new non-profit based in Chicago: Our goal as an organization is to bring science, skepticism and critical thinking to the women of the Midwest. We’re planning some great events, campaigns and outreach programs to help provide women with the tools to fight pseudoscience. We’re taking the skeptical community offline, and giving people a reason to care about our message! Your donation will help us bring in great speakers for our lecture series, fund… Read more
I got this email from commenter Ubi Dubium, who requested my book from her local Virginia library: … I put in a request that they add it to their collection, and in the meantime asked them to try to get it on inter-library loan. They got it in, and today I went to pick it up. Taking a look to see what library they borrowed it from — the label said “Liberty University”! … Then I took a closer look…. Read more
Of course not. But that’s not stopping a Christian group from saying otherwise. Now a group called Noah’s Ark Ministries International says they’ve found the ship’s wreckage. “It’s not 100 per cent that it is Noah’s Ark, but we think it is 99.9 per cent that this is it,” researcher Yeung Wing-Cheung told Agence-France Presse. The researchers and a film crew have apparently uncovered wooden beams and compartments they say housed the animals. Carbon dating has proven the structure to… Read more
Back in December, the founder of the Southern Maine Association of Secular Humanists (SMASH), Andrew Lovley, delivered a secular invocation for Tom Coward, the new mayor of South Portland, Maine. There was a little bit of backlash from the secular community — some people objected to the very idea of invocations in the first place and didn’t like that Andrew gave a speech at all. At the recent Secular Student Alliance New England Leadership Summit, Andrew spoke about how he… Read more
Reader Abigail was cleaning her kitchen yesterday, scrubbing a few stains left by a pot on a white shelf. That’s when she saw it: Jesus! It’s not just Jesus, either. The Flying Spaghetti Monster is there, too. Double whammy! (If you can’t make out that red writing, it says “Noodly Appendage”) Clearly, it’s a sign of the apocalypse. Or a boobquake. Or something. Do you see it?! I’ll try to help… If I were Abigail, I’d never wash the kitchen… Read more
I know I’ve asked variants of this before, but I’m looking for answers to the following question: What do Christians do or say that frustrates you? A few examples of what I have in mind: Bait-and-switch: Where they become your “friend,” but really, they just want to convert you Not speaking out against other Christians who do really crazy things Assume that everyone who isn’t a Christian is “lost” or needs “saving” It’s for a project I’m working on. Your… Read more
Godless Girl explains why she doesn’t want to have any kids: I don’t want kids. That’s it. Does she really need more of an explanation? Some people might think so, but GG is comfortable with her decision: I’m delighted with my choice to not have children! I’ll miss out on some great experiences parents have, but I’ll be an available friend or relative to support them. I’ll gain the benefits of being an adult without such a lifelong responsibility: I’ll… Read more
I spent the past few days in Los Angeles where I spoke to the Bruin Alliance of Skeptic and Secularists at UCLA. (More after the jump) (more…) Read more
Note: For the last several months, the Ask Richard columns have been posted on Tuesdays and Fridays. They will now be posted on Mondays and Thursdays. Hello Richard, Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. I have been transitioning away from religion for some time now (it started in high school), and it has taken nearly 7 years for me to come to terms with my atheism. In fact I have only recently been able to call… Read more
