I conducted this little experiment on an Indian matrimonial website… Some background: I’m a macaca. And just like Jewish people have JDate, Indian people have Shaadi.com. Shaadi.com claims 710,000+ success stories. Some of these are arranged marriages (your profile can be created by your parents, siblings, or friends). Of course, you can also put up your own ad to potentially meet a spouse. It’s not a dating site like Match or Craigslist. When you register, they ask you for your… Read more
New Jersey recently became the third state to approve civil unions. Much of the opposition to this came from religious groups. However, that opposition may be dissipating. The state’s attorney general, Stuart Rabner, said last Thursday that members of the clergy will not be required to perform the ceremonies. Everyone else will have to abide by the anti-discrimination laws. They must perform all ceremonies or none. I’m not sure what the “news” is. Churches have never been forced to perform… Read more
NPR’s Morning Edition ran an interesting piece a couple days ago. Correspondent Judy Woodruff has been speaking to members of Generation Next. In this case, she spoke to them about religion. One student, Gillian Siple of Davidson College in North Carolina, spoke about how even though she was raised as a Christian, she felt a urge to explore other faiths. She is pursuing a religion major, after all. What led her to learn about other religions? Here’s what Gillian said… Read more
Last month, Dan Neil of the LA Times wrote an article proclaiming that atheism was becoming increasingly popular. He dubbed it “Atheist Chic.” Unfortunately, part of the article included the following statement: Despite the recent gains among free thinkers, atheism is still hugely unpopular. There are no atheists in foxholes or in Congress… I normally don’t refer much to letters-to-the-editor. but Fred Edwords (of the American Humanist Association) had a short, straightforward response to Neil in today’s LA Times: I… Read more
Richard Dawkins delivered a lecture at McGill University in Canada (as part of the “Best of Ideas” series) last week where he discussed why “human beings are unable to grasp the reality that exists beyond our perceptions.” It’s called The Strangeness of Science. Download the mp3 here. (Thanks to Peggy for the link!) [tags]Richard Dawkins, podcast, science, atheist, atheism, McGill University, Best of Ideas, The Strangeness of Science[/tags] Read more
Ok, ok, so the last one didn’t make you laugh. This one from last year makes up for it. [tags]Doonesbury, science, atheist, atheism[/tags] Read more
Theresa at Frasch Ideas lost a beloved relative recently. Among other things, she talks about how she is dealing with the loss as an atheist and whether there is any harm in religious people believing they will see their loved ones in Heaven. Read her piece. It’s very touching. Theresa ends with an optimistic, Humanistic thought: I think to myself: That is why we should live the best life possible in the here and now. Enjoy the life you have… Read more
Today’s Doonesbury talks about the Grand Canyon controversy. It’s not particularly funny, but it’s good that the story isn’t flying completely under the radar. (Click on the comic for a larger view.) [tags]Doonesbury, Grand Canyon, atheist, atheism, young earth, Creationism[/tags] Read more
James Randi, the legendary skeptic, and his nonprofit group have long been willing to fork over $1,000,000 to anyone who could prove his/her supernatural abilities. The reason for the challenge is to show that paranormal claims are a bunch of %*&# and we shouldn’t be manipulated by psychics/charlatans/John Edward trying to take our money. So far, the people who have taken the challenge (and failed miserably) are random people that you haven’t heard of… the big names in the Psychic… Read more
Life Decisions International, a pro-life group that apparently enjoys sticking its head into events that have nothing to do with abortion whatsoever, is angry with Conan O’Brien. What has he done? The show airing Wednesday night featured Conan introducing “new characters” to the show (characters who never actually appear after the one episode). One of the characters was a “homophobic country western singer.” He was introduced by Conan, who said, “Our last new character’s heart is in the right place,… Read more
