- Out of the Mouths of Babes
The Loft • November 30, 2010
From the Win section of Failblog, this was too good not to share:
- Bowing to the Text
The Observatory • November 29, 2010
By way of The Panda's Thumb, I came across this story that just had to be shared.
Regular readers of this site are probably familiar with the arch-creationist William Dembski, one of the founders of the intelligent-design movement. When I last wrote about him, I mentioned that he, like other creationists who insist their work is [...]
- Photo Sunday: Monticello
The Foyer • November 28, 2010
Earlier this year, I took a tour of Jerry Falwell's Liberty University and wrote about the experience. But on that same trip, I also had a chance to see a more hopeful sight, a monument to human reason rather than to false dogma: Monticello, the former home of Thomas Jefferson, now restored and turned into [...]
- New on Ebon Musings: The Origins of Orthodoxy
The Foyer • November 27, 2010
Over the past several months, I've been writing a lengthy new essay for Ebon Musings. I've finally put the finishing touches on it, and I'm quite proud of the result: go check out "The Origins of Orthodoxy".
This essay covers a topic I've been interested in for a long time: the origins of the Christian New [...]
- Theocrats on the March in Israel
The Rotunda • November 24, 2010
Since I wrote recently about the evil mullahs of the Middle East who ferociously resist the slightest spark of progress, I think it's worth pointing out - in the name of fairness - that destructive, theocratic insanity can be found in every religion. Christopher Hitchens has written an excellent column this week in Slate to [...]
- Making Non-White Atheists Feel Welcome
The Garden • November 22, 2010
I was reading this outstanding essay by Alom Shaha, an atheist and ex-Muslim of Bangladeshi descent, who describes what it's like to come out as a nonbeliever in a tightly-knit, intensely religious community. But as he makes clear, the social and cultural pressure on people in his situation isn't just a matter of happenstance; [...]
- Help the Foundation Beyond Belief Finish Off 2010
The Garden • November 20, 2010
Earlier this year, I wrote about the Foundation Beyond Belief and encouraged atheists to join, and I'm happy that some people took me up on that invitation. Well, the end of 2010 is almost here, and it's fair for FBB members and potential members to look for a year-end recap of the group's achievements. What [...]
- The March of Tyranny in the Middle East
The Rotunda • November 19, 2010
The invasion of Iraq was cheered by right-wing Christians as a way to bring democracy to a people oppressed by tyranny. And, on paper at least, it achieved that goal. But in reality, Iraq as a nation hardly exists anymore. The anarchy of the invasion unleashed a wave of sectarian bloodshed, and the fragile stability [...]
- This Holiday Season, Consider Atheism!
The Garden • November 17, 2010
I was happy to read that this week that atheist groups are launching a new ad blitz, with ads extolling the virtues of atheism on billboards, buses, trains and print media. Significantly, atheist ads are also hitting the airwaves for the first time ever - thanks to a $150,000 donation from the Stiefel Freethought Foundation, [...]
- A Personal Dilemma
The Foyer • November 16, 2010
I do my best to live consistently with my principles and to stand up for atheism in my personal life, as well as on the Web. But sometimes, even I fall short. I had one of those experiences this past weekend, and I'm still not sure how I should have handled it. I'm posting this [...]
- The Language of God: A Shoddy Harmonization
The Observatory • November 15, 2010
The Language of God, Chapter 4
By B.J. Marshall
Collins mentions some creationist positions in light of the fossil record. It's obvious he doesn't agree with these arguments: "[n]o serious biologist today doubts the theory of evolution to explain the marvelous complexity and diversity of life. In fact, the relatedness of all species through the mechanism of [...]
- Return to the Desert IV: The Xenophobe
The Loft • November 14, 2010
I kept walking, leaving the canyons behind. The eerie stone pillars and rugged topography of the badlands faded away like a mirage, and soon, the land was flat and featureless again.
This part of the desert was what geologists called a hamada, a low, level plain of boulders and stony soil. Low, wind-carved dunes rose [...]
- A Brief and Amusing Encounter
The Loft • November 13, 2010
Yesterday on my lunch hour, I was sitting outside the library, eating lunch and enjoying a rare day of warm weather, when I was approached by two young men in Orthodox Jewish garb.
"Hello, are you Jewish?" one of them greeted me.
"No," I said, as cheerfully as possible. "I'm an atheist."
Give them credit for one [...]
- From the Mailbag: Atheism in Nigeria
The Garden • November 12, 2010
I've said in the past that the internet is an incredibly beneficial invention for atheists, since it provides a truly global platform for speech. Sometimes, you get a potent reminder of just how true that is. A few days ago, I got an e-mail from a young man in Nigeria - about the same age [...]
- The Pope's Martyrdom Complex
The Rotunda • November 10, 2010
Lately, it seems that every time the Pope shows his face, it's to scold a country that's giving people more rights than the Catholic church would prefer them to have. Just consider this report from his recent trip to Spain:
Pope Benedict XVI criticized an "aggressive" anti-church sentiment in Spain that he said was reminiscent of [...]
- Where, Oh, Where Are the Atheist Women?
The Garden • November 9, 2010
Last week, I noticed a pingback on my blog from a post on Ms. Magazine by Monica Shores, "Will New Atheism Make Room for Women?"
There are some good things about this piece. I have to say that I'm glad to see the atheist movement making an impact in wider, more traditional media circles. The need [...]
- The Language of God: A Biologist in His Element (Sort Of)
The Library • November 8, 2010
The Language of God, Chapter 4
By B.J. Marshall
This chapter is entitled "Life on Earth: Of Microbes and Man." Right from the beginning, you should probably know that there's a lot in this chapter that Collins gets right. It's like how William Lane Craig is totally in his element when he talks about cosmology, because he's [...]
- Return to the Desert: The Eschatologist
The Loft • November 7, 2010
The salt-crusted stone shack disappeared before I had been walking more than a few minutes, swallowed up in a sandstorm gust. Squaring my face to the wind, I kept walking.
The salt flats soon fell away behind me, and I entered a new region of the desert. It was a badlands: a barren landscape of mesas [...]
- The Fiction of Corporate Religious Freedom
The Rotunda • November 5, 2010
A recent column by Stanley Fish concerns the relationship between believers and the state, specifically how far the state should go in accommodating the beliefs of religious communities - such as Muslims who want to live under sharia law.
Although Fish never explicitly states his own views, he gives the strong impression that he's on the [...]
- Nice Job Breaking It, Democrats
The Rotunda • November 3, 2010
The 2010 midterms are over and done with, and the results speak for themselves. I wanted to say a few words about how we came to this.
Over the past two years, the Democrats had historic majorities, and they utterly squandered them. Except for health care, all the major progressive policy initiatives that should have been [...]
- Snapshots from the 2010 FFRF Convention
The Foyer • November 1, 2010
Welcome to the convention!
Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton addresses the convention on the first night.
The FFRF also gave an Emperor Has No Clothes award to Rep. Pete Stark, the only openly nontheist U.S. congressperson, who accepted in a pretaped message.
Linda Greenhouse discusses the Supreme Court.
Dan Barker presents the Emperor Has No Clothes award to Ayaan [...]
- Return to the Desert: The Scholar
The Loft • November 1, 2010
A gust of stinging wind assailed me as soon as I passed through the portal, blowing fine grit into my face. I coughed and staggered back a step, tasting a bitterness in my mouth. It was a few moments before I could clear my eyes and look up, and when I did, the lay of [...]
