Yeah, I know that sounds like a LOLCATS caption (it also sounds like one of those news-that’s-not-news items like “World’s Oldest Person Dies”), but apparently it’s true. California State Senator Roy Ashburn is the latest anti-homosexual crusader who is himself a homosexual. What is it with these people? What’s worse than his political bigotry is the explanation he offers for his voting record: that that’s how he thought his constituents would want him to vote. Now, I’m all for democracy, but not just undiluted mob rule. Representative democracy means the people get a voice, but it also means that elected representatives have an obligation to do the right thing based on their own best judgment, not by putting a wet finger to the wind. How sick do you have to be to repeatedly vote against the very thing that defines you?
Anti-gay Senator is gay
March 10th, 2010
Violence continues in Nigeria
March 9th, 2010Agnostics continue to slaughter atheists in Nigeria.
Ah, who am I kidding? It’s Muslims slaughtering Christians (and vice versa). Nigeria’s Acting President–the ironically named Goodluck Jonathan–has promised to quell the violence, but I suspect he’ll do no more than tamp it down temporarily.
Podcast #83 – Secular Coalition at the White House
March 8th, 2010
John C. Snider with Christopher Hitchens, Emory University, February 26, 2010
American Atheists president Ed Buckner reports on the recent meeting between representatives of the Secular Coalition for America with White House officials.
Plus: We meet the Hitch! Allison joins us to talk about “The Only Subject Is Love,” a seminar we attended at Emory University featuring Salman Rushdie, Christopher Hitchens, and filmmaker Deepa Mehta (who is developing a film adaptation of Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children). The event celebrates the opening of Rushdie’s archives at Emory. Surprises included spontaneous recitations of poetry (Hitchens selecting the heartwrenching “Dulce et Decorum est,” Rushdie the humorous “The Walrus and the Carpenter.”) And…we learned that Hitchens’ memoir–Hitch 22–is due out in June!
Homeschooled = Evangelical?
March 7th, 2010I’m not opposed to homeschooling on general principle. I think it’s possible for reasonably intelligent parents to provide their children a decent education at home. Unfortunately, in the United States the word “homeschooler” has an incredibly strong correlation with “evangelical brainwasher.” This recent news article reveals that the vast majority of American homeschoolers do so, not because they think they are better at teaching math at home, but rather for religious reasons. Indeed, as the article discusses, there’s a frightening number of publishers who put out textbooks that are really just delivery systems for fundamentalist propaganda–especially when it comes to evolution. Alas.
The Reason Project is now Project Reason
March 6th, 2010From Sam Harris:
Same foundation, same people, (almost) the same name:
In order to avoid ongoing confusion between The Reason Project and The Reason Foundation (with which we are not affiliated), we are changing our name to Project Reason.
Please note our new URL: www.project-reason.org
The Project Reason Advisory Board: Clifford S. Asness, Peter Atkins, Jerry Coyne, Richard Dawkins, Daniel C. Dennett, Brent Forrester, Rebecca Goldstein, Anthony Grayling, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Christopher Hitchens, Lawrence Krauss, Harold Kroto, Bill Maher, Ian McEwan, Dan Pallotta, Steven Pinker, Salman Rushdie, Lee M. Silver, J. Craig Venter, Ibn Warraq, and Steven Weinberg.
Podcast #82 – Creation
February 26th, 2010
Allison’s back–yay! She joins us to discuss the new Charles Darwin bio-pic Creation, starring real-life husband-and-wife Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly as Charles and Emma Darwin. Creation is based on the nonfiction book Annie’s Box (published in the US as Darwin, His Daughter, and Human Evolution, and reissued in conjunction with the film as Creation) by Darwin descendant Randal Keynes. Creation is currently in limited release, so check your local art cinema to see if and when it might play in your neighborhood. For more visit CreationtheMovie.com.
Thanks to the many fellow science fans who joined us for the Creation screening at Atlanta’s Landmark Midtown Art Cinema. And thanks to Royal Orchid Thai Cuisine for accommodating our unexpected horde.
Podcast #81 – Announcing Unity 2013
February 19th, 2010
Margaret Downey (former president of Atheist Alliance International, now a “freethought free agent”) announces the formation of the Unity 2013 Event Committee. What is Unity 2013? Nobody knows just yet, but what we do know is that it’ll be big, it has the blessing of such notables as Daniel Dennett, and it’ll involve many (if not most) of the major freethought-friendly organizations. To keep abreast of the details as they unfold, check out the Unity 2013 Facebook page.
Podcast #80 – Simon Singh
February 8th, 2010
We interview science journalist Simon Singh, co-author (with Dr. Edzard Ernst) of Trick or Treatment: The Undeniable Facts about Alternative Medicine (which both John and David highly recommend). For more about Simon visit SimonSingh.net. Please also visit LibelReform.org, a website devoted to changing the United Kingdom’s disgraceful libel laws (Simon is currently in the midst of a court battle with the British Chiropractic Association over his reporting on chiropractic treatment of children in the UK’s Guardian newspaper.)
Trick or Treatment is available at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.
Continuing this episodes alternative medicine theme, we take a look at aromatherapy. Can smells trigger the body’s healing ability, or do they offer only a temporary placebo?
See “Creation” with American Freethought
February 6th, 2010The new Charles Darwin bio-pic “Creation” (starring Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly) opens in Atlanta on February 19th. The guys from the American Freethought Podcast (John C. Snider and David Driscoll) would like to invite you to join us on Saturday, February 20th, to see this film, with dinner and drinks at Royal Orchid Thai Cuisine (literally right next door to the theatre) immediately following. Dutch treat.
We have a Facebook event set up for this outing.
Exact showtimes are not yet available, but we’re shooting for a 4PM-ish screening. Details to follow.
See you there!
Hitchens rewrites the 10C
March 5th, 2010Tags: christopher hitchens, ten commandments
Posted in atheism, commentary, ethics, history, religion | 1 Comment »