Reading Time: 2 minutes I’ll begin with the lede: There is a critical petition launched by the Center for Inquiry on behalf of Alexander Aan, the jailed Indonesian atheist (I promise this won’t be the only thing I write about here, but this is very important). We want the White House to speak out on his behalf, but I […]
Paul Fidalgo
Posted inGeneral
A Letter of Thanks from Alexander Aan
Reading Time: < 1 minute Indonesian atheist Alexander Aan, jailed for stating his atheism, has heard us. Last week, I wrote about the significance of Alexander’s plight, making the case for putting serious energy toward his struggle both for the sake of atheism-writ-large and for Alexander himself. It moves me to no end to know that he knows we’re rooting […]
Posted inGeneral
Alexander Aan: Both a Symbol and a Real Person in Need
Reading Time: 3 minutes Many of the bigger secular and civil rights organizations have been making noise about the case of Alexander Aan, the 30-something civil servant of West Sumatra, Indonesia, who was beaten by an angry mob and then arrested and convicted… all for stating his atheism on Facebook. At the Center for Inquiry (where I work), Aan’s […]
Posted inEducation, Politics
Let Them Learn Bullshit!
Reading Time: 3 minutes The problem of the public funding of religious schools — let alone those explicitly promoting Creationism — seems so self-evident to even the most lightly secular of us, that it can be shocking to see how those on the other side view the entire issue. We’ve heard time and time again the arguments for vouchers […]
Posted inGeneral
Playing a North Dakota-Size Religion Card
Reading Time: 3 minutes Over at the Center for Inquiry, we’re trying to get a little more attention for a very troubling development in North Dakota, and I’m hoping against hope that the Friendly Atheist readership in the Roughrider State is huge. For the sake of my sanity, I will presume this to be the case. Listen: There is […]
Posted inEducation, Politics, Science
Missouri Right-to-Pray Amendment Has a (Literally) Hidden Purpose
Reading Time: 4 minutes Soon Missourians will take to the polls to decide the fate of a new amendment to the state’s constitution that would, at first blush, do nothing. Surely I jest. Let’s look, with a little help from BallotPedia. The measure would ensure… That the right of Missouri citizens to express their religious beliefs shall not be […]
Posted inGeneral
New Jersey is God-Fearing, Not So Much Devil-Fearing
Reading Time: 3 minutes You know what they say about New Jersey. No, not that thing. The other thing: Only the strong survive. If this is so, basic science literacy is just barely surviving, though starving, abused, and neglected. Though I make my home in Maine and have spent years in Virginia and DC, I am a native New […]
Posted inGeneral
Is Obama's Support of Gay Marriage an 'Imposition' of His Religion?
Reading Time: 3 minutes Same-sex marriage opponent Matthew J. Franck in Washington Post‘s On Faith section talks about Obama using his faith to justify his support of marriage equality, and almost — almost! — has a point: The mere fact that the president claims to have religious reasons — specifically Christian reasons — for supporting same-sex marriage has occasioned […]
Posted inPolitics, Science
Jeff Flake Will Decide What Is and Isn't Science, Thank You Very Much
Reading Time: 3 minutes Nearly missed by the Beltway media, a tiny little amendment was brought to the House floor on May 9th by Rep. Jeff Flake of Arizona. Here’s what the gentleman suggested should be law: None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to carry out the functions of the Political Science Program […]