Saturday, October 31, 2009
Beware of Demonic Candy!
October 30, 2009 on MSNBC
With Rev. Barry W. Lynn, Executive Director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State
Friday, October 30, 2009
'The Evolution of Confusion' by Dan Dennett, AAI 2009
Dan Dennett talks about purposely-confusing theology and how its used. He also describes his new project interviewing clergyman who secretly don't believe anymore, and introduces a new term: "Deepity."
Dan Dennett is the author of many excellent books, including "Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon" and "Darwin's Dangerous Idea". He is also featured in the video "The Four Horsemen" along with Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens.
Watch "The Four Horsemen" in HD on YouTube
Filmed by
JOSH TIMONEN
Edited by
JOEL PASHBY
Allan Gregg Interviews Richard Dawkins | TVO
October 23, 2009 on TVO (Canada)
His controversial bestseller "The God Delusion" angered some, inspired others. Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins. Now the world's most famous atheist has come out with a new book that sets out to make the open-and-shut case for evolution. It's called "The Greatest Show on Earth".Updated with info from RichardDawkins.net
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Feds: Michigan Imam Called Government the Enemy
October 29, 2009 on AP - An update on this story
A leader of a radical Islam group killed in a shootout near Detroit repeatedly told followers that the government was the enemy and they must be willing to take on the FBI, even if it meant death, authorities said. They say two at large fugitives could be dangerous.See also: FOX: Detroit photographer roughed up by members of Islamic group
Scientists Create Artificial Sperm and Eggs
October 29, 2009 on CBS News
Maggie Rodriguez spoke with Dr. Jennifer Ashton about scientists that successfully grew artificial sperm and eggs from stem cells.
Reptile Fossil Provides Missing Link
October 28 2009 on Reuters
The 165-million-year-old Darwinopterus is a newly discovered fossil which proves an interesting link in the evolutionary chain.
Radical Group Aims to Establish Islamic State in the US
October 28, 2009 on AP
Federal authorities say a leader of what they describe as a nationwide radical Sunni Islam group has been fatally shot during an FBI raid in the Detroit area.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Israeli Coffee Shop Predicts Future with Mocha
October 28, 2009 on ITN News
A successful coffee shop chain in Tel Aviv has launched a campaign to offer free reading of your coffee grounds with its coffees to beat its rivals.
Russia Today on Koran Boy: Miraculous Markings or Religious Hoax?
October 28, 2009 on Russia Today
Thousands of pilgrims are flocking to a small village in Russia's republic of Dagestan after versus from the Koran apparently started appearing on the skin of a nine-month-old boy. While doctors are searching for a medical explanation, the predominantly Muslim society is celebrating what it sees as a miracle.
Richard Dawkins at the Edinburgh Book Festival 2009
Richard Dawkins talks about his latest book "The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence For Evolution" at the Edinburgh Book Festival 2009.(via RichardDawkins.net)
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
French Court Finds Church of Scientology Guilty of Fraud
David Deutsch: A New Way to Explain Explanation
Filmed Jul 2009; Posted Oct 2009 on TED
For tens of thousands of years our ancestors understood the world through myths, and the pace of change was glacial. The rise of scientific understanding transformed the world within a few centuries. Why? Physicist David Deutsch proposes a subtle answer.
Monday, October 26, 2009
FOX News: 'Atheism vs. Christianity' with Christopher Hitchens
October 26, 2009 on 'FOX & Friends' with Christopher Hitchens and Pastor Douglas Wilson
See also: COLLISION: Christopher Hitchens vs. Douglas Wilson (DVD)
Genetic Therapy Restored Boy's Sight
October 26, 2009 on CBS News
A 9-year-old boy toured New York City for the first time since being cured of blindness thanks to gene therapy. Harry Smith reports.
CBS News Interviews Former Polygamist Cult Member
October 26, 2009 on CBS News
Harry Smith spoke with former polygamist Flora Jessop about a Texas polygamous religious sect whose members are on trial for child sex abuse and bigamy.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Richard Dawkins on The Hour
Play all videos (3)
September 29, 2009 on The Hour with George Stroumboulopoulos
(via RichardDawkins.net)
Father Knows Best: What Happens When We Die?
Send in your questions to Father Morris: redeye@foxnews.com
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Russians Flock to See 'Miracle' Baby
October 24, 2009 on Reuters
Pilgrims flock to see a 'miracle' baby in southern Russia's Dagestan whose skin appears to be a canvas for verses from the Koran.Related article
Thursday, October 22, 2009
'A Universe From Nothing' by Lawrence Krauss, AAI 2009
Lawrence Krauss gives a talk on our current picture of the universe, how it will end, and how it could have come from nothing. Krauss is the author of many bestselling books on Physics and Cosmology, including "The Physics of Star Trek."
Books by Lawrence Krauss
Filmed & Edited by
JOSH TIMONEN
The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science
http://richarddawkinsfoundation.org
Atheist Alliance International
http://atheistalliance.org
World: Held by the Taliban
by The New York Times:
For seven months, The Times's David Rohde was held captive by the Taliban. Much of what he learned during that time came from watching videos- day after day- with his captors.
Related article
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Witch Hunts Return to London
October 21, 2009 on Reuters:
As part of Halloween festivities, visitors to a London tourist attraction are given a tongue-in-cheek reminder of the methods used to detect witches in the 17th Century.
The 'Scare Witch Trials' at The London Dungeon challenges the public to sit on human-sized scales and be weighed against an over-sized Bible.
If they are lighter than the Bible they are declared guilty of witchcraft.
An actor playing the part of English witch-hunter Matthew Hopkins took great relish in declaring a passing traffic warden to be a witch.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Richard Dawkins on Minnesota Public Radio
October 20, 2009 on Minnesota Public Radio:
A vociferous defender of Darwin, Richard Dawkins has a new book that lists the evidence that the theory of evolution explains how life on Earth came to be.(via RichardDawkins.net)
Benny Hinn: 'I Would Not Do This for Money' | ABC Nightline
October 19, 2009 on ABC Nightline:
Miraculous cures for cancer and AIDS, people in wheelchairs getting up and dancing. It's business as usual for Benny Hinn, perhaps the world's most famous, successful and controversial televangelist. Hinn is a faith-healer who almost never grants interviews -- until now.
"I'll try to explain it to you," said Hinn in a wide-ranging interview with ABC's "Nightline." "The anointing, which is God's power, comes on me. ... I can actually feel it. And people start getting healed. 'From the cancer, the pain is gone. ... I was sitting on my wheelchair and I can walk now,' such things like that."
Hinn took questions about disillusioned followers and about the U.S. senator who is investigating him. The questions clearly dismayed Hinn's handlers.
Read more
Life: The Amazing Bouncing Pebble Toad
From David Atenborough's new documentary series "Life"
Available now on BBC iPlayer (UK Only)
(via Cynical-C Blog)
Monday, October 19, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Discovering Ardipithecus
Play all videos (10)
Aired October 11, 2009 on The Discovery Channel
Following publication in the journal Science on the discovery and study of a 4.4 million-year-old female partial skeleton nicknamed "Ardi," Discovery Channel presented a world premiere special, DISCOVERING ARDI on Sunday, October 11 that documented the sustained, intensive investigation leading up to this landmark publication of the Ardipithecus ramidus fossils.
'Discovering Ardi' begins its story with the 1974 discovery of Australopithecus afarensis in Hadar, northeastern Ethiopia. Nicknamed "Lucy," this 3.2 million year old skeleton was, at the time, the oldest hominid skeleton ever found. As the Discovery Channel special documents, Lucy's title would be overtaken twenty years later by the 1994 discovery of "Ardi" in Ethiopia's Afar region in the Middle Awash study area. It would take an elite international team of experts the next fifteen years to delicately, meticulously and methodically piece together "Ardi" and her lost world in order to reveal her significance.
Chupacabra? Creationist Museum Displays Mystery Beast
October 18, 2009 on FOX News
From Live Science:
Last week a most unusual animal made its world premiere in an equally strange museum in the small town of Phoenix, New York.
The mounted and stuffed beast is claimed to be the elusive chupacabra (the vampiric "goat sucker" of Hispanic folklore), and is on display for an exclusive engagement through Halloween at the Lost World Museum, run by real estate agent John Adolfi.
Adolfi's chupacabra was found thousands of miles away in Blanco, Texas, in August. A local man presented the dead animal (half jokingly) as a chupacabra to a taxidermist named Jerry Ayer. It had been attacking chickens a few days earlier, and succumbed to poison left as bait. The canid creature weighed about 80 pounds and resembled a coyote or dog. But its front legs were a few inches longer than most coyotes', and it was mostly hairless except for around the feet and along its backbone.
Read more
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Richard Dawkins: God Among Atheists
October 16, 2009 on Salon.com:
It's been a rather big year for Charles Darwin. 2009 is the bicentennial of the man's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of "The Origin of Species," and the explorer and naturalist has been the subject of books (including a graphic novel adaptation of "The Origin of Species"), a movie starring Jennifer Connelly (with its own ensuing controversy), and even a viral video hit starring "Growing Pains" actor Kirk Cameron. Given that evolutionary biology is Richard Dawkins' area of expertise, it's unsurprising that the British scientist, atheist and controversial author of "The God Delusion" has also gotten on the bandwagon -- in rather ambitious fashion.(via RichardDawkins.net)
In "The Greatest Show on Earth," Dawkins has written what is essentially a layperson's primer for the theory of evolution. Dawkins aims to explain to the everyday reader why evolution isn't a "theory" but a fact and that we need only look around us to find evidence of its existence -- from continental drift to the reproductive habits of wasps. Dawkins uses simple language, elaborate metaphors and color photographs to make his point, and the result is a convincing, if occasionally dry, overview of evolutionary biology. It's also clear, from the book's first pages, that Dawkins isn't very tolerant of his creationist opponents (the book includes a memorably confrontational encounter with Wendy Wright, the creationist president of Concerned Women for America).
Salon spoke with Dawkins via Skype about creationism's popularity in America, its connection with religion, and how he feels about his own notoriety. A video excerpt of the conversation is posted below.
Read more
Friday, October 16, 2009
Controversial Dutch MP Geert Wilders Arrives in the UK
October 16, 2009 on ITN News
Muslim protests met the arrival of controversial Dutch MP Geert Wilders who's film Fitna criticised the KoranSee also: Fitna the Movie
Sell The Vatican, Feed The World
Sarah Silverman's ambitious plan for feeding the world.(Thanks Mike)
Thursday, October 15, 2009
'From the Heavens or From Nature: The Origins of Morality' by Dr. Andy Thomson, AAI 2009
Dr. Andy Thomson gives a talk on morality at the Atheist Alliance International 2009 Conference in Burbank, California. Dr. Thomson uses Francis Collins' claim that morality is proof of God as a jumping-off point to discuss what we know about how morality works and where it came from.
The conference was co-sponosored by The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science, which brought in several well-known scientists to give talks.
Filmed & Edited by
JOSH TIMONEN
The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science
http://richarddawkinsfoundation.org
Atheist Alliance International
http://atheistalliance.org
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Colbert: Cross Honors All War Dead
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| The Word - Symbol-Minded | ||||
| ||||
Viewers in Canada can watch it here
The cross has nothing to do with Christianity -- it's just the normal symbol of the resting place of the dead.
NC Baptist Church Plans Bible Burning
October 13, 2009 on AP
A North Carolina church plans to burn what it considers satanic books on Halloween and that includes certain versions of the Bible.
Intelligent Alien Intervention Institute
by Beyond the Firmament
A hypothetical dialogue between Gordon J. Glover and the official spokesperson of the Intelligent Alien Intervention Institute on Science NEWS. They discuss the Academic Freedom legislation that recently became law in Louisianna and how it might also help various theories of Paleo-Contact to be taught alongside mainstream archaeology in the public science classroom. Hint: this video is a parody mocking Intelligent Design theory and the Discovery Institute.(via Pharyngula)
LDS Apostle: Religious Freedom Under Attack
October 13, 2009 on KSL TV (NBC):
REXBURG, Idaho -- Elder Dallin H. Oaks, an Apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, spoke Tuesday of religious discrimination members of his faith experienced following the passage of California's Proposition 8. He compared it to voter discrimination African Americans suffered in the 1960s.See also: Black People and the LDS Church (Until 1978)
Respect for religion in American life is deteriorating was what Elder Oaks told BYU-Idaho students. He said people of faith must insist on their constitutional rights to practice their religion and vote their consciences.
"While our church rarely speaks on public issues, it does so by exception on what the First Presidency defines as significant moral issues," Elder Oaks said.
One of those issues was California's Proposition 8 to end same-sex marriage. Latter-day Saints in that state joined a coalition of faiths to help it pass.
Read more
(Thanks Allison)
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Quick Fix: Atheist Comedy
Also available on YouTube (Embedding disabled)
Comedian David Cross chats with Dan Harris about the humor in not believing(Thanks MC)
'View' Guest Co-Host: Obama's Abortion Position Should Disqualify Him From Nobel
October 12, 2009 on 'The View' with co-host candidate Rachel Campos-Duffy
See also: 'Hell's Angel: Mother Teresa' by Christopher Hitchens
(Thanks Malfunky)
Monday, October 12, 2009
Mr. Deity and the Science Advisor
Mr. Deity is told that his design for the humans leaves something to be desired.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Pope Benedict Canonizes 5 New Saints
October 11, 2009 on AP
Pope Benedict XVI canonized five new saints Sunday, including a 19th century priest who worked with leprosy patients on an isolated Hawaiian island, praising them as models of perfection for sacrificing themselves for others.
Among the pilgrims packing St. Peter's Basilica was Hawaii resident Audrey Toguchi, an 80-year-old retired teacher whose recovery from lung cancer a decade ago was called miraculous by the Vatican.
She had prayed to Belgium-born Jozef De Veuster, more commonly known as Father Damien, who himself died from leprosy on Molokai island in 1889.
Read more
Obama Says He Will End 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
October 10, 2009 on AP
Pres.Barack Obama pledged to end the ban on homosexuals serving openly in the military, but acknowledged that changes may not be coming as quickly as expected. He made the comments to thousands of gays and lesbians at a fundraising dinner.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Richard Dawkins at Berkeley
October 7, 2009 at Berkeley, CA - Link
Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion created a storm of controversy over the question of God's existence. Now, in The Greatest Show on Earth, Dawkins presents a stunning counterattack against advocates of "Intelligent Design" that explains the evidence for evolution while keeping an eye trained on the absurdities of the creationist argument.
More than an argument of his own, it's a thrilling tour into our distant past and into the interstices of life on earth. Taking us through the case for evolution step-by-step, Dawkins looks at DNA, selective breeding, anatomical similarities, molecular family trees, geography, time, fossils, vestiges and imperfections, human evolution, and the formula for a strong scientific theory.
Dawkins' trademark wit and ferocity is joined by an infectious passion for the beauty and strangeness of the natural world, proving along the way that the mechanisms of the natural world are more miraculous -- a "greater show" -- than any creation story generated by any religion on earth.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Richard Dawkins on CBC Radio Tapestry
LinkDownload MP3
From CBC Tapestry:
“I would be glad if you didn't use the word ‘strident’, Richard Dawkins tells Newsweek magazine in the current issue. “I'm getting a little bit tired of it.”(Thanks '1984')
Not a trace of stridency on Tuesday, when the world’s most famous atheist sat down with Tapestry - a programme about religion - for an hour-long conversation. His chat with Mary Hynes encompassed evolution, Darwin, creationists, wildflowers, atheism - and Dawkins’ lingering affection for the Church of England(?!).
A very dry sense of humour was in evidence during more than one exchange. At one point, Dawkins and Mary talked about the apparent hunger of religious believers to score converts among atheists, recent examples being the putative conversions of the novelist Terry Pratchett and the philosopher Antony Flew.
Read more
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Brother Richard of Atheist Nexus at AAI 2009
Play all videos (4)
From Secular Examiner:
I had just enough battery power in my two cameras to record 80 percent or so of the talk given by Richard Haynes of Atheist Nexus (a.k.a. "Brother Richard"). Haynes, a former preacher, is a natural speaker, and he has an earnest, simple quality about his oratory.See also: AtheistNexus.com
Haynes' talk addressed his loss of faith, his reasoning for the founding of Atheist Nexus (a social networking site exclusively for nonbelievers), and what atheists need to do to raise their profile and make progress toward social equality. (There was also a Q&A that went a little off the rails, so you'll see that's somewhat edited.) It, along with Parra's, were easily the most relevant and useful talks of the conference, particularly for me with their political and organizational focus, areas almost totally unaddressed in the other talks I attended.
Here, in four parts, are what I was able to record of Haynes' talk. The video quality is not great, my pocket-size cameras can get a little shaky, and I must say, I had a load of trouble with both my versions of iMovie getting this all to work. But the substance should all be there. You see, the rest of the conference's talks were professionally video recorded, leaving only these last to disappear into the ether.
Read more
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Christopher Hitchens and Tony Jones: Does Religion Poison Everything?
October 6, 2009 on ABC Fora:
If there were any doubts about writer and general provocateur Christopher Hitchens' ability to pull a crowd, they were entirely dispelled by the sold-out opening night of the first ever Festival of Dangerous Ideas. Presented by the Sydney Opera House and the St James Ethics Centre, the Festival brought together some of the more controversial thinkers from Australia and around the world. Hitchens' keynote address, followed by a discussion with our own Tony Jones, was an expansion on his bestselling, "God is Not Great: Religion Poisons Everything". Hitchens was at his polemical best, delivering a beautifully constructed speech supporting his argument that religion is not only completely implausible, but often actively destructive.(Thanks John)
Christopher Hitchens' other books include "Letters to a Young Contrarian", "Why Orwell Matters" and "The Missionary Position: Mother Theresa in Theory and Practice." He also writes a regular column in "Vanity Fair".
Monday, October 5, 2009
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Richard Dawkins: Endless Forms Most Beautiful, Indeed!
VideoFrom The Globe and Mail:
Richard Dawkins is the world's atheist-in-chief. His last book, The God Delusion, sold millions of copies and sparked a worldwide debate about the place of religion in a modern world. His new book is defence of the theory of evolution, which has lately come under attack from religious fundamentalists. He spoke to the Globe and Mail's John Barber.(via RicharddDawkins.net)
Richard Dawkins on 'The Greatest Show On Earth'
by The Guardian
Richard Dawkins talks about why it's time for a book setting out the evidence for evolution, when calling someone ignorant isn't an insult, and how the media have made him into a militant atheist(Thanks Nigel)
Christopher Hitchens on ABC Radio Sydney
Link | Download MP3
October 1, 2009 on ABC Radio:
The author, journalist and literary critic, Christopher Hitchens is in Sydney for the Festival of Dangerous Ideas.(Thanks Keith)
He spoke today with Richard Glover on Drive about a range of issues including religion and the war in Iraq.
Not afraid of controversy, his views sparked a lot of interest from 702 Drive listeners, and so here it is in case you missed it, or would like to hear it again.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Bible Verse Ban at Football Field Angers Town
October 2, 2009 on AP
A high school football team in Georgia took the field on Friday night without Bible verses written on the cheerleaders' banner. The verses were banned by the school district last week.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Gallup News: Non-Religious Most Likely to Approve of Obama
October 2, 2009 on Gallup News
At 65%, non-religious Americans are the most likely of any religious group in the U.S. to approve of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as president, Jewish Americans are the second most likely group to approve at 64%, and Mormons are the least likely group to approve at 32%.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Richard Dawkins on The Colbert Report
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Richard Dawkins | ||||
| ||||
Instead of giving the evidence for evolution, Richard Dawkins wants to see the evidence for God. (05:42)Viewers in Canada can watch it here
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