As someone’s hopefully told you, for the last month and a half a 2-foot-wide pipe in the Gulf of Mexico has been ejaculating oil to the tune of half a million gallons a day. We went down to Louisiana over Memorial Day to see some of the damage for ourselves.

Watch it:

Republished from: The Examiner

Recently, 18-year-old Constance McMillen has become the target of discrimination. She intended to go to her prom dressed in a tuxedo with her girlfriend as her date. The very religious school officials consider same-gender relations to be a sin and as such Superintendent Teresa McNeece told McMillen that she could not come with her female date. If they showed up they would be “ejected.”

McMillen contacted her local ACLU who notified the school that this kind of discrimination was unconstitutional and would be met with a lawsuit. The Itawamba County Agricultural High School in Mississippi in which McMillen attends, decided that it was better to cancel the entire prom for everyone rather than allow Constance to bring her girlfriend to the dance.

The school district however stated that they hoped that private citizens in the community would organize a dance. A private dance would be legally allowed to invite or in this case not invite who ever they choose. Presumably the school seemed to think that a Church or other religious organization would hold a dance which would exclude Constance and her girlfriend.

What they probably did not expect was that The American Humanist Association (AHA) would be the private group who would step in to organize the dance. Thanks to a $20,000 donation, the AHA is making preparations for an LGBT-inclusive dance. No discrimination, everyone is allowed to have fun.

Roy Speckhardt, Executive Director of the AHA had this to say, “It’s shameful that closed-minded members of the school board are prepared to deprive an entire class of students their prom over their outdated religious mores.” He went on to state that, “the ACLU is doing good work in Mississippi, and we humanists can also bring resources to the table that will defend students from a repressive school board.”

Philadelphia has a large gay community and so it is reassuring to know that should a similar situation occur in this city, atheists and humanist groups are out there that will protect the rights of all citizens against Biblically-inspired discrimination.

Republished from: The Examiner

Already several countries and non-profits have started to pull together aid efforts for Haiti.

Here’s how you can help:

The fastest way to donate may be by text. Text “Haiti” to 90999 to donate $10 to the American Red Cross relief efforts.

Save the Children. Donate at savethechildren.org or make checks out to “Save the Children” and mail to: Save the Children Income Processing Department, 54 Wilton Road, Westport, Conn. 06880

UNICEF. Go online to unicefusa.org/haitiquake or call (800) 4UNICEF.

Red Cross. Go online to redcross.org and click Donate, or call (800) REDCROSS.

Direct Relief International. Donate online at directrelief.org.

Mercy Corp. Go online to mercycorps.org or mail checks to Haiti Earthquake Fund, Dept. NR, PO Box 2669, Portland, Ore. 97208 or call (888) 256-1900

United Nations World Food Program has teams already on the scene. To aid their efforts you can make an emergency donation today.

Footage of People just after the Haiti Earthquake:

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Image credit: KPA/Zuma / Rex Features

ASHEVILLE — North Carolina’s constitution is clear: politicians who deny the existence of God are barred from holding office.

Opponents of Cecil Bothwell are seizing on that law to argue he should not be seated as a City Council member today, even though federal courts have ruled religious tests for public office are unlawful under the U.S. Constitution.

Voters elected the writer and builder to the council last month.

“I’m not saying that Cecil Bothwell is not a good man, but if he’s an atheist, he’s not eligible to serve in public office, according to the state constitution,” said H.K. Edgerton, a former Asheville NAACP president.

Article 6, section 8 of the state constitution says: “The following persons shall be disqualified for office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God.”

Rights enshrined in the U.S. Constitution trump the restriction in the state constitution, said Bob Orr, executive director of the N.C. Institute for Constitutional Law.

“I think there’s any number of federal cases that would view this as an imposition of a religious qualification and violate separation of church and state,” said Orr, a former state Supreme Court justice.

In 1961, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Maryland’s requirement for officials to declare belief in God violated the freedom of religion guaranteed by the First Amendment.

Additionally, Article VI of the U.S. Constitution says: “no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”

Bothwell’s campaign treasurer, Jake Quinn, said everyone should be entitled to their own beliefs.

“The test occurred on (Nov. 3),” Quinn said. “It was called an election.”

Fliers mailed before the election criticized Bothwell over his atheism and his book, “The Prince of War,” which denounces evangelist and Montreat resident the Rev. Billy Graham for pushing what Bothwell says is a theocratic agenda.

Now, denizens of Internet message boards and the blogosphere are arguing over whether he can legally serve.

Edgerton said City Council should hold off swearing Bothwell into office until a constitutional question can be resolved.

“If they go ahead, then the city of Asheville and the board of elections could be liable for a lawsuit,” said Edgerton, who is known for promoting “Southern heritage” by standing on streets decked out in a Confederate soldier’s uniform and holding a Confederate flag.

Bothwell didn’t respond Monday to requests for an interview, but he wrote in an e-mail to the Citizen-Times: “I am not ‘an avowed atheist.’”

He has told the Citizen-Times in the past he believes in the Golden Rule, not a deity.

Bothwell labels himself an atheist on his MySpace page, though he wrote in an online post last week on fellow incoming councilman Gordon Smith’s blog, Scrutiny Hooligans, that he prefers the term “post-theist.”

Bothwell added: “I don’t ‘deny the being of Almighty God;’ I simply consider the question of denial or acceptance irrelevant.

“Could make for a very interesting court case, seems to me.”

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Original article at The Citizen Times

Today, as the tragic events unfolded at U.S. Army post Fort Hood (outside Killeen, Texas) a nation watched in shock and dismay. Major Nidal Malik Hasan, opened fire on his fellow solders killing twelve and injuring 31 others; two of the mortally wounded reportedly were civilians.

Regardless of your opinion on the war in Iraq, the senseless murder of the U.S. soldiers who volunteer their lives for their country is intolerable and unimaginable. Worse is that this attack happened on U.S. soil at their home base, referred to by some as the soldiers’ haven.

Major Hasan, age 39, is a graduate of Virginia Tech and a licensed psychiatrist who was practicing at Darnall Army Medial Centre at Fort Hood. Military officials said that Hasan had previously worked for six years at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington where he had received a poor performance evaluation before transferring to Fort Hood in Texas.

It was initially reported that the shooter was killed in the take-down but in a military press release tonight at Fort Hood, Lt. Gen. Robert Cone clarified that the gunman was still alive and in custody, contrary to earlier reports. Although Hasan was shot multiple times, Lt. Gen. Cone said that he is currently in stable condition and that his death was not viewed to be imminent.

While immediate concern is focused on the recovery of the injured and sincere condolences pour out to the families of the victims who lost their lives today, in the wake of this shocking event and as information continues to flood the airwaves, the speculation on Hasan’s motive begins.

Across news media, people are being warned not to jump to any conclusions as to Hasan’s motivation for this crime. All the while, some are suggesting post traumatic stress disorder (although Major Hasan was never deployed outside the United States at any time during his military career). Others suggest the possibility of some other kind of psychological disorder. Aside from that, people are being urged not to jump to conclusions.

What is being left unsaid it quite akin to ignoring the 800 pound gorilla in the room. It seems that everyone is avoiding even the mere mention that this man could possibly have been motivated by Islamic ideology. On Larry King Live, Doctor Phil calls out a fellow panelist for even suggesting the man’s connection to Islam, insinuating that the mere thought is dangerous and irresponsible.

But as the media coverage continues and more-and-more information comes to light, suspicions are increased and rightly so.

Law enforcement officials have reported that Hasan came to the attention of the authorities roughly six months ago because of Internet postings that discussed suicide bombings and other threats. One of the Web postings is a blog that likens suicide bombers with a soldier throwing himself on a grenade to save the lives of his comrades.

“To say that this soldier committed suicide is inappropriate. Its (sic) more appropriate to say he is a brave hero that sacrificed his life for a more noble cause,”

“Scholars have paralled (sic) this to suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers.”

Although authorities were aware of these Internet postings, there was no formal investigation.

Hasan was scheduled to be deployed to Iraq and reportedly was upset about that. His brother told the media that he had wanted to get out of the military and had even sought legal help at one point to do so.

One of Hasan’s fellow soldiers told media about a number of incidences when Hasan discussed things about the war in Iraq, expressing his disagreement with U.S. foreign policy. And purportedly, Hasan had complained about anti-Muslim harassment, despite the fact that he was a high ranking officer.

All told, what we know for sure at this point is little. Surely as the days go by we will learn more. The military will be launching a full scale investigation, which will be a collaborative endeavor between the FBI and potentially other agencies. We are told that Hasan’s computer will be dissected to gain any further insight as to his motives, along with any cell phone records, and that there will be an exhaustive interview process on the base.

What seems clear is that for some reason people are afraid of calling a spade a spade, or even considering it as an option, even if there is evidence to suggest it is a possibility.

Understandably, authorities want to avoid any kind of civilian retaliation towards American Muslims and rightly so. But one has to wonder if the world has really come to that point – where rational discussion can not be had because it is in itself as Dr. Phil put it, “dangerous and irresponsible.”

Watch the Press Release:

Lt. Gen. Robert Cone says that the suspected gunman is not dead but in custody.

I found this interesting little tid-bit on the Huffington Post.

Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network posted a blog by Kimberly Daniels that warned Christians about the evils of Halloween. The blog has since been removed but you can read the original text here.

In her article, Daniels evokes Lucifer, says that curses are sent through candy and that it is consecrated by demons:

“The word “holiday” means “holy day.” But there is nothing holy about Halloween… If this holiday is hallowed, whose service is it set apart for?… It is Lucifer’s! Lucifer is a part of the demonic godhead.”

“I do not buy candy during the Halloween season. Curses are sent through the tricks and treats of the innocent whether they get it by going door to door or by purchasing it from the local grocery store. The demons cannot tell the difference.”

“During this period demons are assigned against those who participate in the rituals and festivities. These demons are automatically drawn to the fetishes that open doors for them to come into the lives of human beings. For example, most of the candy sold during this season has been dedicated and prayed over by witches.”

If this wasn’t enough to turn you off Halloween, Daniels takes it a step further:

The word “occult” means “secret.” The danger of Halloween is not in the scary things we see but in the secret, wicked, cruel activities that go on behind the scenes. These activities include:

• Sex with demons
• Orgies between animals and humans
• Animal and human sacrifices
• Sacrificing babies to shed innocent blood
• Rape and molestation of adults, children and babies
• Revel nights
• Conjuring of demons and casting of spells
• Release of “time-released” curses against the innocent and the ignorant.

Interestingly, where the article was republished on Charisma magazine, the Editor found it necessary to preface Daniels’ article with a disclaimer, saying that it was controversial and reflected her own personal views and not the magazine’s.

Well, at least that’s something.

The Idea.

It all began in June of 2008 with an idea: when comedy writer Ariane Sherine saw an ad on a London bus featuring the Bible quote, “When the Son of Man comes, will He find Faith on this Earth?”. A website was listed underneath, and when Sherine visited the site she learned that, as a non-believer, she would be “condemned to everlasting separation from God and then spend all eternity in torment in hell”.

Sherine was unsettled due to the fact that a religion was able to publicly advertise that non-believers would suffer destruction and eternal torture. This lead her to write in the ‘Comment is Free’ section of the Guardian. As she was writing the article and doing research, she contacted the Advertising Standards Authority inquiring about the ad she had seen but learned that the website wasn’t part of the remit for the advertisement. This sparked an idea.  In her article for the Guardian’s CIF she proposed the following,

“[if all atheists reading this] contribute £5, it’s possible that we can fund a much-needed atheist London bus ad with the slogan: “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and [enjoy] your life.”

The result.

Today (January 6, 2009) marks the launch of the Atheist bus campaign in the UK after receiving more than £135000 (the original goal was £5500 and was surpassed in a matter of hours). There will be 200 buses seen throughout London and hundreds more across Europe and as word reaches the rest of us in the west the campaign is going global. A total of 800 buses will sport the campaign ads.

Sherine says that the “rational slogan [There's probably no God] will hopefully reassure anyone who has been scared by this kind of evangelism” referring to the orignial bus ad she saw in the summer of 2008.

The big deal.

In addition to ads on buses, ads will also be present on two large LCD screens in London near the bery busy Bond Street tube station. Because of the enormous show of support from the atheist community, every advertisement will include the words, “This advert was funded by public donations.”

This is perhaps the first time in history when there has been such a visible and highly public show of support for rationality and atheism. This speaks to the fact that atheists are a growing minority and are also growing in strength and influence. The many atheists who have been forced to hide their beliefs from fundamentalist believers such as family members, friends, employers, teachers, and whole communities can take some comfort knowing that a huge leap forward has been made today, a step towards equality for non-believers. Perhaps we’ve inched a little closer to the end of anti-atheist prejudice.

Word of the campaign has spread, causing other organizations (Atheists, Freethinkers, Rationalists, and Humanists) to roll out their own version of the campaign in countries like Spain, Italy and the United States.

A Positive Campaign.

The important thing in my mind is that this is not a malicious attack against religion. Rather, it is an attempt to counter the unsubstantiated position of a fundamental religion that advertises that people will die and suffer if they don’t believe. This is a balancing act which offers the public an opportunity to view more than one perspective. The positions are clear: a warning that if one doesn’t believe a particular ancient text which has been translated and interpreted over the course of centuries but that no one ever agrees on, or the rational views of individuals who observe through science that there are other explanations to our existance that do not require a god.

Sherine says, “The advertisements were designed as a response, an affirmation for people that it’s OK not to be religious; that if you are not religious, there is absolutely no reason to worry about that, and that one can lead a happy, enjoyable and rewarding life without religion.” This is not atheist proselytising or an attack on religion, rather in my opinion it is an exceedingly positive campaign, though I’m sure a deeply religious person would disagree with me.”

The word “probably” is meant to soften the blow of the statement to what is anticipated to be a largely sensitive audience. However, it was also used because it doesn’t imply an absolute. Rationalists, scientists and honest atheists do not presume to imply absolutes, but base their views on observable evidence rather than defaulting to a traditional or simply emotional belief.

This afternoon Richard Dawkins said of the slogan that he would have preferred the term “There Almost Certainly is no God.” and explained that he was, “not going to say there positively isn’t because you can’t say that even about fairies and unicorns.”

There hasn’t been a warm reception everywhere though. The Atheist Foundation of Australia tried to place the slogan “Atheism – celebrate reason” on buses, but were rejected by Australia’s biggest outdoor advertising company.

I hope that we will soon see the Atheist bus driving the streets of Vancouver, Canada.  I would be one of the first in line to help push the campaign forward.

Please visit the official campaign website at www.atheistbus.org.uk

Ariane Sherine and Richard Dawkins at the launch of the Atheist Bus Campaign in London on January 6, 2009. Photo credits: Flickr

A banner at the launch of the Atheist Bus Campaign in London on January 6, 2009. Photo credit: Flickr