I love news articles where reporters write about how atheists exist in their region!. They’re always so surprised… In Modesto, California, reporter Sue Nowicki spoke to a number of atheists about their beliefs. Whether stable or shrinking, it’s clear that atheists are an overwhelming minority, and area atheists say there are several misconceptions about their beliefs. Several strongly make the point that they are not satanists, immoral or dumb. Those who spoke with The Bee range in age from 20s… Read more
Congratulations to fellow blogger Rebecca Watson who is mentioned in the new issue (9/2008) of Wired! (As is Steven Novella) #10 in “What’s Wired This Month”: Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe Ever been tempted to have your palm or your cards read? If you answered “Never!” then you’re the target audience for this weekly podcast, produced by the New England Skeptical Society. Neurologist Steven Novella and his team (including blogger Rebecca Watson, aka the Skepchick) debunk news stories, creationism, pseudoscience,… Read more
After Michael Phelps won his 8th gold medal: Dad: He is going to get so many millions in endorsements now… he’ll be more famous than Michael Jordan. Everyone in the world is watching this. Me: He won’t be that famous. Other countries aren’t paying that much attention to him. China doesn’t know who Phelps is. They’re just paying attention to basketball. Dad: They’re just watching Ho Chi Minh. Me: You mean Yao Ming? Dad: Same thing. Read more
Barack Obama and John McCain are appearing at Pastor Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church. Refresh the page for the latest updates. All times are Eastern: 8:00: Rick Warren says his church “believes in separation of church and state.” No one seems to be laughing. I’m confused. 8:04: Obama goes first because he won a coin flip. He should get out while he’s ahead. 8:04: Obama has to name the three wisest people he knows. Say your wife. Say. Your. Wife. He… Read more
Margaret Downey, president of Atheist Alliance International, appeared on the PBS show Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly yesterday to talk about naming ceremonies. You can now see the video of her appearance. Here’s some of the transcript: Our ceremonies are based on real things such as love and honesty and commitment and the beauty of nature. We conduct “Welcome to the World” ceremonies, and they focus on appreciation of the birth of a child. In our case, we had two children… Read more
I’m moving over the course of the next couple days (yay!) and will not have Internet access at my place until midweek (boo…), so things may be choppy on this site until then. But for all of you who want to get me an apartmentwarming gift… If you’re planning on buying any books/textbooks in the near future (school is starting soon, after all), please use this link to get to Amazon! Then buy whatever you want and a small bit… Read more
Karen Frantz, the policy and advocacy associate at the American Humanist Association, weighs in on Barack Obama’s plan to both expand and reign in George W. Bush’s Faith Based Initiatives. First, what will Obama’s plan include? They were required to set up a separate 501(c)3 organization to receive federal funds. This prevented federal money from being funneled directly to houses of worship, where oversight of how those dollars were being spent (i.e. for secular vs. religious purposes) would have been… Read more
Hi everyone, Richard Wade here. “The silent majority” was a phrase first made popular by Richard Nixon in 1969 in part from his wishful thinking that a majority of Americans silently approved of his disastrous conduct of the Vietnam War. By applying this phrase to atheism I’m not saying that a majority of Americans are secretly atheists, I’m saying that I think the majority of atheists in the U.S. and in the world are silent, unseen, unknown and not typified… Read more
I know you’ve been wondering for a while now: Is Barack Obama the antichrist?! We finally get word that he, in fact, is not. From the authors of the Left Behind series, Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins: “I’ve gotten a lot of questions the last few weeks asking if Obama is the antichrist,” says novelist Jenkins. “I tell everyone that I don’t think the antichrist will come out of politics, especially American politics.” “I can see by the language… Read more
