Blog Archives for July 2011
Proposed Circumcision Ban Fails To Reach Ballot
No Faith Value with Ronald A. Lindsay
July 29, 2011
California Superior Court Judge Loretta Giorgi has removed a proposed ban on male circumcision in San Francisco from the city’s November ballot. She based her ruling on two grounds: the likely conflict between the proposed law and the First Amendment’s guarantee of free exercise of religion and the certain preemption of the local ordinance by state law, which has exclusive authority to regulate medical procedures.
3 Comments
Amy Winehouse Finally in Rehab
A Skeptic Reads the Newspaper with Ben Radford
July 29, 2011
Amy Winehouse, the London singer who died last week and famously sang that she wouldn't go to rehab, is finally in rehab. It's too late for Winehouse, of course, but her image has been in rehabilitation mode since news broke of her death.
5 Comments
The Ghost Haunters
Investigative Briefs with Joe Nickell
July 27, 2011
(What the spirited duo might say, if they weren't speaking through a ghost writer.)
Can the Bible Make People more Liberal?
It’s Only Natural with John Shook
July 25, 2011
Are atheists blaming the Bible for making conservative and hateful Christians just factually wrong about the Bible?
9 Comments
A win for evolution in Texas
Democratic Discourse with Michael De Dora
July 25, 2011
The Texas Board of Education has unanimously approved scientifically accurate high school biology textbook supplements from established mainstream publishers, and rejected creationist-backed supplements.
4 Comments
Thirty percent of Americans are Biblical literalists
Democratic Discourse with Michael De Dora
July 23, 2011
The number of Americans who believe the Bible is the literal word of God has declined eight points since 1977.
6 Comments
Record attacks on women’s reproductive rights
Democratic Discourse with Michael De Dora
July 20, 2011
In the first half of 2011, states enacted a record number of laws restricting women's access to reproductive health care, according to a new report.
3 Comments
Rick Perry Is a Lying Demagogue
No Faith Value with Ronald A. Lindsay
July 18, 2011
Rick Perry is a lying demagogue who is contemptuous of the First Amendment and whose god is a monster.
10 Comments
Faith and Its Defenders
It’s Only Natural with John Shook
July 18, 2011
Critics of the New Atheism are mostly hypocrites, by relying on enlightenment reason and humanist ethics for their defenses of religious faith.
2 Comments
What Does It Mean To Say Muhammad Existed?
No Faith Value with Ronald A. Lindsay
July 14, 2011
Agamemnon. Robin Hood. Jesus. Muhammad. Many stories are told about individuals with these names. Did any of these individuals actually exist? To answer that question, we must first address some logically prior ones: What does it mean to assert that an individual existed? Are there certain key statements about a person which must be true before we can conclude the claim of existence has been confirmed?
3 Comments
“Psychics” in the Casey Anthony Murder Case
Investigative Briefs with Joe Nickell
July 11, 2011
In the travesty of justice that was the Casey Anthony Murder trial in Orlando, two things may have escaped the reader's notice. The first is that the O.J. Simpson jury must have moved with O.J. to Florida and made themselves available to serve at the Anthony trial. The second concerns the involvement of "psychics." Did, in fact, a "psychic" divine the location of the remains of little Caylee Anthony, who was long sought after she went missing from her Orlando, Florida, home in the summer of 2008?
4 Comments
God and Evolution Don’t Mix
It’s Only Natural with John Shook
July 10, 2011
What would a God who uses Evolution really be like?
3 Comments
The First Grader (A Nickell-odeon Review)
Investigative Briefs with Joe Nickell
July 08, 2011
An inspiring narrative of humanity—of strength, values, and triumph—The First Grader should attract humanists in droves, perhaps especially secular humanists (i.e., atheists with hearts), since its messages are entirely secular. The story is all the more relevant for being "Based on a true story."
Against religious freedom: a debate
Democratic Discourse with Michael De Dora
July 08, 2011
Austin Dacey and Colin Koproske argue over religious freedom with William Galston in the latest issue of Dissent Magazine.
25 Comments
Gay-Marriage Victory
Investigative Briefs with Joe Nickell
July 05, 2011
I am proud that my state government has at last, on June 25, 2011, passed legislation to legalize same-sex marriage, and that Governor Andrew M. Cuomo—who personally lobbied for its passage, as I voted for him to do—promptly signed it into law.
1 Comment
UFOs Videotaped Over London?
A Skeptic Reads the Newspaper with Ben Radford
July 04, 2011
I recently provided an analysis of a UFO video that was allegedly shot in London, England. The piece appeared on CBS News, Fox News, Yahoo News, The Free Republic, and elsewhere. Reactions to my UFO video analysis were interesting: Many people thought I was obviously wrong; some thought I was obviously right, and a small handful gave compliments. Such is the life of a professional science-based investigator.
2 Comments
Ethics Is For Everyone
It’s Only Natural with John Shook
July 03, 2011
Humanism is no optional seasoning added to spice up life -- ethical wisdom is for everyone.
2 Comments
