Larry Moran issues a challenge *

Sep 30th, 2010 | Filed by

Show us the very best 21st century, sophisticated (or not), arguments for the existence of God.… Read the rest



The atheist rabbi on “sophisticated theology” *

Sep 30th, 2010 | Filed by

It isn’t.… Read the rest



The Pew religious knowledge survey *

Sep 30th, 2010 | Filed by

Data from the survey indicate that educational attainment is the single best predictor of religious knowledge. No really?!… Read the rest



Badri Raina on Ayodhya and what it implies

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

Allahabad High Court will rule Sept 30 who is in rightful possession of the site where the demolished mosque stood—a Muslim organization or a Hindu one.… Read the rest



Salman Rushdie on religion and myth *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

“I don’t look to religion to answer the two great questions of life.”… Read the rest



Thousands of Nigerian women in slave camps *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

Nigerian girls are being forced to work as prostitutes in Mali “slave camps”, say officials in Nigeria.… Read the rest



Open letter from Ashtiani’s son Sajjad Ghaderzadeh *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

I tell you these words from the bottom of our hearts: I want the whole world to rush to our help.… Read the rest



Taking the temperature

Sep 29th, 2010 12:19 pm | By

Ajita Kamal defends the role of passion in social movements, in the context of explaining why heat is not necessarily or entirely counterproductive for atheism.

There is a very important role that anger, ridicule and passion play in any social movement. While intellectual understanding is key to a movement that is well-grounded, it is the primary emotions that provide the impetus for social organization. Without this, atheism would simply remain an idea to be discussed in academia and in private settings.

I think that’s spot-on. It’s also true that there are obvious dangers – self-righteousness, verbal or literal violence, confirmation bias, groupthink, tribalism, all sorts. But…we need the movement, and we need the passion. We should relentlessly self-monitor for … Read the rest



John Shook is all “can’t you read?” *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

Everybody else is all “yes, we can, thanks, and we read what you wrote.”… Read the rest



Lars Vilks to finish Uppsala lecture *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

He was interrupted by an attack in May, will complete the lecture on October 7.… Read the rest



Ajita Kamal argues for gender equality in freethought *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

Any organization that challenges superstition and religion in India must make an effort to break established patterns of gender inequality.… Read the rest



Ajita Kamal on the uses of outspoken atheism *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

Ideas die in a culture when it becomes embarrassing to hold on to them.… Read the rest



Why US universities recruit athletes, not scholars *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

Too many Jews were getting in, so universities started looking for “manliness.”… Read the rest



Religious belief linked to being a bit dim *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

As a study found that atheists know more about religion than religious people, experts said that in all fairness that should not really count as news.… Read the rest



Minnesota archbishop “defends marriage” *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

Church is sending “educational” DVDs to Catholics to reaffirm “the unchangeable nature of marriage.”… Read the rest



Cartoon rejected just for mentioning Mo *

Sep 29th, 2010 | Filed by

A satire on the fear of publishing anything Mo-related prompts fear of publishing anything Mo-related, and doesn’t get published.… Read the rest



Aliens are sabotaging missiles, US pilots claim *

Sep 28th, 2010 | Filed by

Srsly. It’s totally true. They’ve been doing it since 1948. They landed 7 years ago.… Read the rest



Give Fox News a great big hug

Sep 28th, 2010 11:46 am | By

Ajita Kamal of Nirmukta is thinking about many of the same issues we’ve been thinking about around here.

A common misconception is that freethought implies treating all ideas equally. This could not be farther from the truth. Freethinkers are extremely discriminatory of bad ideas, and adopt a refined reasoning process in judging factual claims.

Exactly, and this is why the idea that the Center for Inquiry (for example) is and should be in the business of promoting “diversity” is so silly. Free inquiry isn’t some default state that flourishes is left alone; it has to be protected and encouraged, because there are always lots of people who want to shut it down the better to promote their own … Read the rest



Whose “squawk”?

Sep 28th, 2010 10:42 am | By

It’s strange to see The Chronicle of Higher Education giving Carlin Romano space to promote the Templeton Foundation.

The Templeton Foundation, which specializes in prodding believers and nonbelievers to discuss such things in civilized ways, has published all sorts of booklets, like “Does Science Make Belief in God Obsolete?”…

That’s a very flattering way of describing what Templeton specializes in. To a less infatuated observer it looks more as if Templeton specializes in flattering its own self – as in the CHE blurb for Romano’s piece:

Carlin Romano, critic at large for The Chronicle Review, is a professor of philosophy and humanities at Ursinus College. This essay is adapted from a talk he gave this summer as a Templeton-Cambridge

Read the rest


Ajita Kamal on moderating freethought groups *

Sep 28th, 2010 | Filed by

Most freethinkers are wary of all ideologies. These are not usually the ones that are politically motivated towards promoting freethought.… Read the rest