There’s a wonderful feature-length article by Ann Grauvogl in The Daily Page about Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor, the co-presidents of the Freedom From Religion Foundation: For Gaylor, being at the helm of an advocacy group for nonbelievers is hard work, and she often feels marginalized and demoralized. She cites a Minnesota poll showing that every minority group in the nation is more widely accepted now than in the 1960s — except atheists. Barker, a former true believer, is… Read more
If Jesus can appear on an iron, then reader AnonyMouse would like you all to know that Cthulhu appeared on her dining room table just last week. I see the resemblance: I think there’s also a dash of the Flying Spaghetti Monster thrown in there. It’s like a hybrid of freakish awesomeness. Read more
Aron Campisano is the director of a film called The Master Plan, “about Christian youth culture in suburban America, and a teen girl’s struggle with evangelical Christianity.” If you haven’t had a chance to see it yet, you can now see the entire film here: Or, better yet, you can download it to watch on your iPod, iPhone or iPod Touch, PSP and Zune. If you like it, please let us know and pass it along to your friends! Read more
Cecil Bothwell is the atheist who recently won an election to become a city councilperson in Asheville, North Carolina. His story has been covered on FOX News and The Rachel Maddow Show. American Atheists has decided to honor him as a result of his handling of the situation: American Atheists Inc., a national nonprofit educational group, has named Bothwell its Courageous Elected Official of 2009. Yep, Cecil is now a CEO. Bothwell will speak and be honored at the organization’s… Read more
This is a repost from 10/26/09. There is still time to apply but the deadline is approaching and picks will be made soon. If you haven’t applied yet, please consider doing so! … This is a program I’ve been eagerly looking forward to ever since we began discussing it. Last year, the Secular Student Alliance and the Secular Coalition for America began talking about getting non-religious students up on Capitol Hill. It was a service the SSA wanted to offer… Read more
Our Forum admin JulietEcho has a wonderful piece up at Daylight Atheism where she responds to common myths about polyamory. Here’s a brief excerpt: When it comes right down to it, perhaps the biggest unspoken reason people have for objecting to (or being offended by) polyamory is fear. It’s common for monogamous people to fear that a partner might leave them for a polyamorous relationship (or might demand opening up the existing relationship) if polyamory becomes normalized. But if your… Read more
Friend-of-the-blog Jessica Hagy has a wonderful Indexed cartoon in a new, free ebook conceived by Seth Godin: The book is called What Matters Now (PDF) and it’s a quick, wonderful read. I finished it the other day while my students took their final exams. There’s quite a bit of useful information in it. Except for page 27. There, you see an equation from Christian financial man Dave Ramsey that makes no sense whatsoever: Right. (At least God isn’t in the… Read more
This is what I get for not living in Britain. I miss Nine Lessons and Carols for Godless People: And that means I miss graphic novelist (and the genius behind Watchmen) Alan Moore: On the up side, New Humanist Magazine is uploading a number of interviews with guests of the show on YouTube. Check them out! (Someone bring a traveling version of the show to America, please.) Read more
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer knows her priorities: In a formal executive order, Brewer said any executive branch agency that reports to her cannot stop employees from “personally celebrating” either holiday [Christmas or Hannukah]. That includes putting items “traditionally associated” with the holidays on their desks. She similarly barred those agencies from stopping state employees from wishing others either “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Hanukkah.” And Brewer said state agencies cannot participate in any “censorship of the lawful celebration and acknowledgement of… Read more
