You may know of journalist Matt Taibbi because of his articles in Rolling Stone and his reporting on Real Time with Bill Maher. Next month, Taibbi’s book The Great Derangement will be published. Matt discovered in his travels across the country that the resilient blue state/red state narrative of American politics had become irrelevant. A large and growing chunk of the American population was so turned off—or radicalized—by electoral chicanery, a spineless news media, and the increasingly blatant lies from… Read more
The Salon article on the history of bananas takes on so much more meaning when you know the true significance of the fruits — and why we should be afraid of them: … attempts to breed a disease-resistant banana… … The banana men, however, saw themselves not as ruthless corporate overlords but as a force for all that’s good in civilization… … But the banana men’s mastery of spin didn’t stop at catchy jingles… Ok, you win this round, Ray… Read more
On Friday, Expelled made $1,200,000. On Saturday, receipts totaled less than $1,000,000. On Sunday, the movie made even less than that. Expelled was the only movie on the weekend box office list to make less money on Saturday than Friday. I’d still like to see the comparison of how much the movie cost to make versus how much it made in theaters… but it’s doubtful that anyone will be able to call it “successful” by any conventional means. [tags]atheist, atheism[/tags] Read more
The Humanist Symposium can be found this week at Spanish Inquisitor. Go read it! The next HS is at Letters From A Broad in three weeks. Submit your entries here! [tags]atheist, atheism[/tags] Read more
May 1st marks the 75th anniversary of A Humanist Manifesto. Fred Edwords, the director of communications for the American Humanist Association, explains its significance (emphasis mine): Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany in January, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was inaugurated as president of the United States in March, Mohandas Gandhi carried out a hunger strike in May on behalf of the lower castes of India, the Vatican signed an accord with the Nazi regime in July, physicist and humanist Leó… Read more
Mayor Larry Langford was worried about the “skyrocketing” murder rates in his city of Birmingham, Alabama. He was also being criticized for not doing enough to stop the crime. So he came up with a solution: “I’m gonna give you something far better than a gun to protect yourself with. I’m gonna give you the word of God,” Langford said. “He is the only source of protection you’ve got. I make no apologies for it. I serve a good God… Read more
How badly did Expelled do on opening weekend? The weekend isn’t over yet, but it is possible to extrapolate based on Friday’s receipts. Things don’t look too good. [Insert your own “Expelled from the box office” joke here.] … Playing in 1,052 theaters, the pic distributed by Rocky Mountain Pictures earned $1.2M Friday for what should be a $3.4M weekend. But the per screen average for Friday was a feeble $1,130… showing there wasn’t any pent-up demand for the film… Read more
Evolved Rationalist shares a story from a Young Earth Creationist, James, who changed his ways. James now believes in theistic evolution. You don’t have to agree with James’ current views, either — I don’t — but the way he made the switch indicates that we atheists shouldn’t keep our mouths shut when it comes to religion. Don’t be afraid to ask religious fundamentalists about their beliefs. Make them defend their views. Then it came, when [I] was about eight years… Read more
After all the talk of tithing and how atheists donate less than many religious people, here’s a place all of you can send the extra funds you may be entitled to this year. A brief description: … Modest Needs compiles “grant applications” from people who are on the verge of entering the poverty cycle. Through this organization you can give to help a specific individual with a specific need – provide auto repair payment so the family provider can get… Read more
