Carlton Coon | December 21, 2007

Why aren’t there more open, committed humanists in the United States? Many of my acquaintances think like humanists in all important respects but shy away from having the label attached to them. As far as I can determine from the various polls that deal with religious affiliation, this is true of at least a strong [...]

Category: Essays | 2 Comments »
Tags: American Humanist Association;, Council for Secular Humanism;, Cuba;, Jimmy Carter;, Kofi Annan;, United States;

Chuck Lesher | December 19, 2007

In June 2007 the AARP released the results of a survey where 1011 over-fifty Americans were asked about their beliefs regarding life after death, heaven and hell, religion and spirituality, spirits and ghosts, and other afterlife issues. Soon after, the AARP magazine published an article based on this survey claiming that 94% professed belief in [...]

Category: Eloquent Engineer | No Comments »
Tags: Arizona;, California;, cell phones;, chemical froth;, Colorado;, final product;, Massachusetts;, Stephen King;, Wisconsin;

Marilyn Westfall | December 17, 2007

Danny Cackler is a founding member of the Western Colorado Atheists in Grand Junction, CO. Recently, the group built and displayed a pro-Atheist Display in the Free Speech area of a local Grand Junction library. The display has garnered significant local attention, and has been mentioned nationally. He was interviewed this week by Marilyn Westfall [...]

Category: Interviews | 1 Comment »
Tags: Anne Landman;, Atheism;, Carol Anderson;, Christmas;, Colorado;, Danny Cackler;, Farmer's Market Festival;, food chain;, Grand Junction CO.;, Grand Junction library;, Grand Junction Sentinel;, Grand Junction;, humanist network;, local media;, Marilyn Westfall;, Market Festival;, media attention;, Mesa County Library;, New Life Church;, New Year's Day;, U.S. Supreme Court;, United States;, USD;, Western Colorado Atheists in Grand Junction;, Western Colorado Atheists;, Yahoo;

Marilyn Westfall | December 16, 2007

From a presentation made by Marilyn Westfall at the Theatre of the Upper Arlington Library, Columbus, OH August 4, 2007.
When I originally was asked to speak on this topic-”The New Atheists, Are They Saying Anything New?”-my memory went back to the time when I was a Catholic, which was at least nominally until about age [...]

Category: Essays | 3 Comments »
Tags: America;, Bush;, California coast;, California;, Christian Nation;, Christopher Hitchens;, Columbus;, Comfort;, Copenhagen;, Dan Dennett;, Denmark;, Dutch parliament;, East Coast;, Elizabeth Cady Stanton;, Europe;, Hirsi Ali;, Iraq;, Junípero Serra;, Malcolm Margolin;, mania;, Marilyn Westfall;, neuroscience;, Noam Chomsky;, Richard Dawkins;, Robert Ingersoll;, Sam Harris;, Saudi Arabia;, Somalia;, Stephen Jay Gould;, Submission;, Susan Jacoby;, Texas;, The Netherlands;, Theodore van Gogh;, United States;, Upper Arlington Library;, Ursula Goodenough;, virtual reality;, Washington State University;, West Coast;

Tibor R. Machan | December 14, 2007

This essay is a slightly revised version of a chapter from Tibor Machan’s memoir, The Man Without a Hobby (Hamilton Books, 2006). It had an earlier life as an essay in Liberty Magazine, although in a much-shortened version.
IN RETROSPECT, despite my strong desire to connect with Rand and her clique, I am glad I was [...]

Category: Essays | No Comments »
Tags: Ayn Rand;, Chris Matthew Sciabarra;, David Kelley;, Doug Den Uyl;, Doug Rasmussen;, Frank O'Connor;, Leonard Peikoff;, Liberty Magazine;, Tibor Machan;

Tibor R. Machan | December 13, 2007

This essay is a slightly revised version of a chapter from Tibor Machan’s memoir, The Man Without a Hobby (Hamilton Books, 2006). It had an earlier life as an essay in Liberty Magazine, although in a much-shortened version.
When I had been at Claremont McKenna College for a while and had begun writing for the student [...]

Category: Essays | 2 Comments »
Tags: Ayn Rand;, Claremont McKenna College;, Contrast;, David Kelley;, Davis Keeler;, Denver;, Douglas Rasmussen;, free professional services;, Greg Smith;, Harry Binswanger;, Institute for Objectivist Studies;, John Hospers;, John O. Nelson;, Leonard Peikoff;, Liberty Magazine;, Los Angeles;, Nathaniel Branden;, NYU;, Objectivist Center;, Peter Crosby;, Plato's Academy;, Robert Hessen;, University of Denver;

Tibor R. Machan | December 12, 2007

This essay is a slightly revised version of a chapter from Tibor Machan’s memoir, The Man Without a Hobby (Hamilton Books, 2006). It had an earlier life as an essay in Liberty Magazine, although in a much-shortened version.
BECOMING AN atheist was not an easy decision to live with, at least not at first.
I struggled [...]

Category: Essays | No Comments »
Tags: Air Force;, Ayn Rand;, Claremont McKenna College;, Emery Walker;, Europe;, Germany;, Howard ;, Hungary;, John Galt;, Liberty Magazine;, mania;, Nathaniel Branden Institute;, Nathaniel Branden;, National Review;, New York;, Russell Kirk;, Soviet Union;, Stanley Gardner;, Taggart Building;, United States;, Walter;, Washington

Kenneth E. Nahigian | December 11, 2007

Faith is personal, if nothing else—for some a font of life, for others a wound that never closes, but bleeds mystery, fear and grief, and aches within them long after leaving. And some leave but then heal, grow stronger, and return with a power of mind to face down the fear, to glean it and [...]

Category: Essays | No Comments »
Tags: aches;, Alzheimer's disease;, Billy Graham;, CBS;, Charles Bradley Templeton;, Chicago;, depression;, Frank Scott;, Grace Hospital;, Larry Zolf;, Lewis Scott;, Maclean's;, Maclean;, men I;, Ontario;, The Toronto Star;, Toronto Star;, Toronto;, Torrey Johnson;, USD;, Will Graham;

Ānanda Selah Ősel | December 9, 2007

Nearly forty-five years after federal civil rights legislation was passed, the idea of treating people equally under the law is hardly controversial. However, sexual-oriented minorities have faced constant opposition from government officials and the people who elect and support them. Gays and Lesbians have been, and continue to be, legislated against and demonized. [...]

Category: Essays | 6 Comments »
Tags: American Humanist Association;, American Psychiatric Association;, American Psychological Association;, Bantam Press;, Belgium;, Belize;, Berkley Women's Law Journal;, Britain;, Canada;, Christian Science Monitor;, Clarke County;, Congress;, Connecticut;, Council of Secular Humanism;, Czech Republic;, Denmark;, Europe;, Federal Government;, federal law;, Finland;, France;, George W. Bush;, Georgia;, Great Britain;, health insurance;, House of Representatives;, International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission;, Islamic Republic of Iran;, James Wood;, Japan;, Jim Crow;, Massachusetts;, New Hampshire;, New Jersey;, New York;, Nigeria;, Norway;, Paul Bell;, Pierce County;, religious law;, respective law makers;, Saudi Arabia;, secular law;, Senate;, Spain;, Supreme Court;, Sweden;, Syria;, The Christian Science Monitor;, The Netherlands;, the New York Times;, Uganda;, United States Congress;, United States Supreme Court;, United States;, Vermont;, White House;

Elly Zupko | December 7, 2007

As I’m sitting on the carpet stretching out my hamstrings, I’m nose-level with the litter box, and I can smell it needs changing. I just finished chasing my cat around the apartment. His pupils were dilated until they almost completely eclipsed his golden irises. Hiding under the bed now, he’s frightened witless. I often wonder [...]

Category: Creative Non-Fiction | 12 Comments »
Tags: car keys;, Fantasia;