At the E3 conference this week, Electronic Arts’ marketing department had a unique way to promote their new video game Dante’s Inferno. They acted like Fred Phelps and members of the Westboro Baptist Church, protesting their own game: The few ‘protestors’ can be seen carrying signs which read “EA = Electronic Anti-Christ”, an ironic sentiment, given the source, that most gamers would not disagree with. Armed with pamphlets that read “Our high score is heaven!” and “There is no reset… Read more
This post is courtesy of Ron Gold. A court has ruled that the Bible shouldn’t be read during show-and-tell for kindergartners: A kindergartner’s mother cannot read Scripture during show and tell, even if the Bible is the boy’s favorite book, a U.S. appeals court ruled. “Parents of public school kindergarten students may reasonably expect their children will not become captive audiences to an adult’s reading of religious texts,” Chief Judge Anthony J. Scirica wrote in Monday’s split 2-1 opinion, which… Read more
***Update***: A response to the situation from current CEO of the Center for Inquiry, Dr. Ronald A. Lindsay, can be found here. … This comment from Center for Inquiry founder Paul Kurtz was left on the thread about CFI’s recent changes in leadership. I didn’t want it to get lost, so I’m reposting it here in full: Dear Friends and Colleagues: May I set the historical record straight. I was unceremoniously ousted as Chairman of the Center for Inquiry/Transnational on… Read more
This post is by Jesse Galef, who works for the Secular Coalition for America. He also blogs at Rant & Reason … The nontheistic movement is being shaken up a bit. As Hemant wrote, it looks like Paul Kurtz is no longer going to be leading CFI. The very next day, the Secular Coalition will be gaining a new leader, as we’re announcing the hiring of Sean Faircloth as our new executive director. Who is this man who will be… Read more
Pastor Ed Young, who once told his congregation to sex it up for a week, doesn’t like pastors who swear just to be “cool”… (Hello, Pot. Meet Kettle.) The reference is to people like Marc Driscoll, a guy known as “The Cussing Pastor.” Young’s examples of swearing include such horrendous words as: Sucks Pissed Screwed Hell Damn Umm… right. He wants pastors to use “encouraging” and “healthy” words. (Like “Hell” and “Damnation”?) He says you can more effectively communicate this… Read more
It’s not very surprising, I’ll admit, to see a gay relationship portrayed on a theater stage. But in this play, there’s a bigger twist: One of the men is a Christian; the other is an atheist. “Next Fall” is the play — opening night was tonight. It’s playing at the Playwrights Horizons in New York. Even as you’re being entertained by the witty talk of ingratiatingly imperfect people, feeling as comfortable as if you were watching your favorite long-running sitcom,… Read more
I mentioned the semi-drama occurring with Paul Kurtz and the Center for Inquiry yesterday, courtesy of R. Joseph Hoffmann. You can get the background information here. Now, we get a different perspective from current CEO of CFI, Dr. Ron Lindsay. Charles McAlpin, the Portland Skepticism Examiner, spoke to Lindsay today about the situation. Here’s what he had to say: Wednesday evening, the chief executive officer (CEO) and president of the organizations founded by Kurtz disagreed with Hoffmann’s characterizations. “I was… Read more
Who needs the unnamed fruit from the Garden of Eden when you can have Skeptical Fruit?! That is *so* how it works! (via Toothpaste for Dinner. Thanks to Lauren for the link!) Read more
I don’t know why it took this long for someone to tell me about Barry Louis Polisar: This man is a genius. Just check out the lyrics: I always thought that cows looked prettier in a field Than on my plate at supper being served up as the meal. And though I do like hamburger, fried chicken or a steak, I prefer my chickens cackling to fried, cooked or baked. I stopped eating animals and I’m glad I finally did;… Read more
Reader PrimeNumbers informs me that his daughter is quite the logician. Look what she came up with: Magic is not real. God is magic. Therefore, God is not real. Not too shabby for a four-year-old. Most atheists I know didn’t figure that out until they were teenagers. What other logical statements have your children impressed you with? Read more
