- Book Update
The Foyer • January 31, 2008
I've finished chapter 8 of my book. (It's considerably longer than the last few chapters, which is why it's taken so long.) The chapter is titled "Universal Utilitarianism" and addresses the basis for an atheist's morality and the flaws in divine command ethics, drawing on my essays "The Ineffable Carrot and the Infinite Stick" and [...]
- On the Character of Jesus
The Library • January 30, 2008
One of the most common tenets of Christian faith, believed by denominations across the spectrum, is that Jesus Christ taught and displayed some kind of unique, superlative moral virtue, unmatched by any other individual from myth or history. I've also heard this belief advanced as a counter to the argument from religious confusion, claiming that [...]
- Wolves in the Fold
The Garden • January 28, 2008
In February of 1906, Pope Pius X issued an encyclical titled "Vehementer Nos", which denounced France for its passage of a revolutionary law establishing the separation of church and state. This document contained a blunt insight into the Catholic view of the relationship between religion and government:
That the State must be separated from the Church [...]
- Heaven at the Price of Hell
The Loft • January 26, 2008
In my essay "Those Old Pearly Gates" on Ebon Musings, I raised what is, to my mind, one of the strongest moral arguments against the traditional monotheist conception of the afterlife:
The point is this. How can anyone enjoy Heaven, knowing that while you have eternal bliss there are people experiencing eternal suffering? Unless you belong [...]
- Popular Delusions VIII: Anti-Vaccine Hysteria
The Observatory • January 25, 2008
In all of human history, the invention of vaccination should be classed as one of our greatest medical triumphs. This innovation has saved millions of lives and prevented untold suffering and misery; it has brought many once-epidemic diseases under control, and eradicated others altogether. Tragically, our era has seen a dangerous new strain of pseudoscience [...]
- Crazy for God: The Apostasy of Frank Schaeffer
The Rotunda • January 23, 2008
Ask any observer of American politics today to name the most influential figures of the religious right, and some familiar names are likely to come up - Pat Robertson, Tim LaHaye, James Dobson, John Hagee, Tony Perkins, Roy Moore, and others. But one name that's not as likely to appear is Francis Schaeffer. That is [...]
- On the Limits of Knowledge
The Observatory • January 21, 2008
A common argument made by religious apologists is that atheism is unreasonable because, to exclude the possibility of God, a person would have to have total knowledge of all that exists in the universe. Otherwise, we might overlook a deity hiding in one of the gaps in our knowledge. As one Christian put it to [...]
- To Be As Gods
The Loft • January 19, 2008
I have to admit, I cringe when I read quotes like this:
Max may be a long way from his old home, but he plans on going a lot further than America. Extropianism is a "rational transhumanism", he explains. There may not be any supernatural force in the universe, but pretty soon, suggests More, once we [...]
- An Impoverished Infinity
The Library • January 17, 2008
In Christian theology, God is presented as the omnipotent creator, able to bring about literally any world it is possible to imagine. His power has no limits, he never suffers from weakness or fatigue, and he possesses the omniscient knowledge necessary to shape the world according to his overarching plan.
Or so Christian apologists say, anyway. [...]
- Help a Fellow Atheist
The Foyer • January 16, 2008
I've written in the past that atheists and freethinkers, if we ever want to truly compete with religion on its own terms, have to create a secular community that offers the same kind of social support network which believers are accustomed to finding in church. I hope we can put that principle into action tonight.
The [...]
- In Defense of Free Speech
The Rotunda • January 16, 2008
In the last few days, both Ed Brayton and Glenn Greenwald have written about the story of Ezra Levant, a Canadian conservative who's currently under investigation by the Alberta Human Rights Commission. Levant's "crime" was republishing the Mohammed cartoons first printed in 2005 in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which spurred the filing of a complaint [...]
- A Profile in Atheism
The Garden • January 14, 2008
The Washington State Tri-City Herald ran a lovely story last month profiling a local atheist: Atheism - A belief in the here and now. Fernando Aguilar, the story's subject, is the kind of person every atheist should strive to be like: a dedicated and courageous humanitarian, an outspoken activist, and a loving family man.
When mortar [...]
- Poetry Sunday: Gravelly Run
The Foyer • January 13, 2008
Today's edition of Poetry Sunday introduces another freethinking poet, the American A.R. Ammons. Born in North Carolina in 1926, Ammons grew up on his family's farm during the Great Depression and attended a Pentecostal church, whose hellfire sermons terrified the young man. He first began to write poems while serving on a destroyer in the [...]
- Book Review: The Portable Atheist
The Library • January 11, 2008
(Author's Note: The following review was solicited and is written in accordance with this site's policy for such reviews.)
Summary: Not "essential" as its title claims, but a usefully broad sampling of atheist thought for the reader who wishes to be better versed in the voices of nonbelief.
The Portable Atheist, edited by Christopher Hitchens, is intended [...]
- Daylight Atheism in the News
The Foyer • January 10, 2008
I wasn't going to post today, but I was going through my Google news alerts and what do I find:
The Daylight Atheism author states, "Over the past several years, I have observed to my dismay the forces of militant religious fundamentalism gaining in strength, both in my home country, the United States of America, and [...]
- The Curiously Postmodern Modern Apologists
The Observatory • January 9, 2008
Back in November, a debate with a Christian in another comment thread took a curious turn:
But I have faith in the gospel and what it promises me, just like you have faith in your readings. Your suposed facts and my suposed facts, what makes mine so wrong and your so right. Are facts from the [...]
- New Post on Dangerous Intersection
The Foyer • January 8, 2008
I have a new post up on Dangerous Intersection, "How the mainstream media has failed us". The post is about an essay by John Hockenberry, an award-winning reporter and former correspondent for NBC's Dateline, that's a devastating indictment of the standard operating practices of network TV news.
- On Varieties of Moderation
The Garden • January 7, 2008
The rise of the atheist movement is drawing attention in popular society, even from bastions of the traditional press. However, most of the media organizations paying attention to atheism show little interest in why atheists are finding a voice, instead preferring to repeat the usual stereotypes. A recent column in Newsweek, "Moderates Storm The Religious [...]
- Why Atheists Shouldn't Vote for Ron Paul
The Rotunda • January 6, 2008
With the 2008 presidential primary season soon to be in full swing, I figured it was worth the effort to write a post like this. I've received several pieces of unsolicited e-mail in the past few weeks, some from atheists, exhorting me to support the libertarian Republican candidate for president, Ron Paul. This, I believe, [...]
- Saudi Arabia's Biblical Justice
The Rotunda • January 5, 2008
Lately in the news, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has pardoned a rape victim who had been sentenced to prison and 200 lashes. This brutal sentence was handed down because the woman in question was meeting a male friend in public without an escort - violating the country's repressive sharia laws - when she was [...]
- Blogroll Meme
The Foyer • January 4, 2008
I don't normally do these things, but Greta Christina started this one, and it seemed the least I could do was to participate.
The idea of this meme is to pick three sites from your blogroll that, together, form a combination that no one else has, and that you think says something about the unique nature [...]
- On Torture and "Tribulation Saints"
The Loft • January 3, 2008
"What if she doesn't flip? How long do you give it?"
"If you can't get to 'em somehow in the first forty-eight hours, more of the same isn't going to be any more effective."
"Starvation isn't a motivator?"
"Would be for me, but I guess they've proved it with prisoners of war. The ones who can survive that [...]
- Pat Robertson's Pathetic Predictions
The Rotunda • January 1, 2008
At the beginning of last year, I mentioned a prediction made by Pat Robertson:
As reported by Americans United, Pat Robertson has joined in the fun, predicting "mass killings" to occur on American soil due to a terrorist attack sometime this year. (Robertson said he expected this to come in the form of a nuclear attack, [...]
