A senior at Winthrop University in South Carolina is making plans to run for the state’s House of Representatives in 2010. If he won, he’d be the youngest legislator in United States history. It’d be a historic win for another reason, too: D.C. Swinton is the president of the Winthrop Organization of Freethinkers (WOOF). In other words: He’s an atheist. And that in itself is enough to get some people riled up: … A brief skim over his platform leads… Read more
Even at a discount of over 80%, Ray Comfort’s book is still not worth it. And with the additional magazines WorldNetDaily wants to throw in, it gets to the point where they would have to pay you to accept the package. I’ll wait till they make me an offer. (Thanks to Brett for the link!) Read more
The Secular Coalition for America is one of many groups fighting against things like Faith-Based Initiatives that allow religious groups to receive federal funding while at the same time letting them fire people who don’t adhere to their faith. It’s not right in so many ways. To fight this, it would be helpful to cite personal stories of people who have been discriminated against because of their atheism (even if you wish to remain anonymous). The following types of stories… Read more
When a newspaper reporter compliments you by saying you are, indeed, “sane,” it’s not saying very much. That’s how Washington Post reporter Monica Hesse described Brian Brown, the Executive Director of the National Organization for Marriage. That’s the group (in)famous for the “Gathering Storm” video and for using the acronym 2M4M to promote their anti-gay marriage initiative, when that acronym already had another NSFW usage… All that said, Hesse still seemed to be enthralled by Brown: The nightmares of gay… Read more
The Ship of Fools, a Christian website from the UK, is trying to figure out which verses in the Bible are the worst. The results were discussed last night by a panel of theologians at the Greenbelt Festival in Cheltenham. In 1 Timothy ii, 12, St Paul is quoted thus: “I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent.” In second place is the order by Samuel, one of the… Read more
A couple weeks ago, I mentioned that there would be a one-day Camp Quest held in Texas. It was a rousing success! (Kudos go to camp director Amie Parsons!) And it got some positive media coverage: If that was the reception after a one-day camp, I can’t wait to see what happens when it expands to a full week next summer! (Thanks to Mary for the link!) Read more
Reader Brielle is facing a dilemma: I run the Abusive Hosts Blocking List — its a spam fighting service that provides lists of questionable/dangerous/spammy IP addresses. Today, we had a contact from a Christian group, specifically a faith-based ad network that targets Christian families and values. They wanted to use the AHBL data on their end for something. We don’t usually charge for the data as we don’t care to really make a profit off of it. This Christian group… Read more
I just found out I cost only $19.95. That might explain why my phone has been ringing all day. I think it’s funny, dammit. (via Sepia Mutiny) Read more
Dear Richard, Over the last few years my beliefs have changed drastically from fundamentalist Christian (since childhood) to staunch atheist. There came a certain point in which I finally shed my fear-based beliefs and overcame my indoctrination to religion and embraced rational and free thought. It was a painful internal struggle but I felt relieved and liberated after finally shedding old superstitions, which conflicted with reason and logic. “Coming out” as an atheist is by far the hardest part. I… Read more
I’ve never seen the USA show Psych before, but this clip makes me want to start. The background: Each episode begins with a flashback of main character Shawn Spencer’s life. That flashback somehow connects to the present-day plot. Just watch the first two minutes of the most recent episode, “The Devil is in the Details… and the Upstairs Bedroom” (you’ll have to close the advertisement): I love children who question everything. (Maybe because I’m not a parent.) (Thanks to Vicky… Read more
