Archive for June, 2008
92% of Americans believe in God or a universal spirit, Pew survey finds
Americans overwhelmingly believe in God and consider religion an important part of their lives, even as many shun weekly worship services, according to a national survey released today that also found great diversity in religious beliefs and practices.
Ninety-two percent of those interviewed for the U.S. Religious Landscape Survey said they believe in the existence of […]
Obama Making Christian Push
WASHINGTON — With the Democratic presidential nomination in his grasp, Sen. Barack Obama is making a full-throttle push for centrist evangelicals and Catholics.
It’s a move that’s caught some conservative evangelicals off guard. They say they are surprised and dismayed to see a liberal-minded politician attempting to conscript their troops. At the same time, they say […]
Christianity ‘could die out within a century’
By Laura Clout
Last Updated: 2:40PM BST 20/06/2008
More than half of Britons think Christianity is likely to have disappeared from the country within a century, according to a survey.
Research by the Orthodox Jewish organisation Aish found that just over a third of people thought religions like Christianity and Judaism would still be practiced in Britain in […]
Austin Cline: Atheist Mailbag
From: “Mason”
Subject: None
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God” I wouldn’t fool with God, He is, and He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. It is appointed unto man once to die, and after that JUDGEMENT, Where will you spend eternity, Heaven or Hell?
Free EA software release spawns ’sporn’
It’s a double-edged sword, this user-generated content thing
It’s a simple equation that marketers can’t seem to grasp: The Internet plus free modeling tools equals giant dancing penises.
So it goes for Creature Creator, the free trial tool Electronic Arts released on Tuesday to herald the marketing blitz for the September shipment of its long-awaited “Spore” game. […]
Firefox claims download success
Mozilla is claiming a download record for the release of Firefox 3.0.
In the first 24 hours the web browser was available the software was downloaded more than eight million times, says its creator Mozilla.
Statistics from the download servers are being scrutinised to produce an official figure that will be passed to the Guinness World Record […]
A Naturalist System of Virtues
A system of virtues is like a how-to manual or road map describing how to thrive and be effective in the world.
A system of virtues is superior than a moral code because it is up to each individual to decide how best to actualize these virtues in their own lives. In addition, a moral […]
Ohio board reviews report of teacher burning kids
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Members of the Mount Vernon school board met Friday to discuss a finding that a middle school teacher preached his Christian beliefs despite staff complaints, even using a device to burn the image of a cross on students’ arms.
Mount Vernon Middle School teacher John Freshwater also taught creationism in his science class […]
Street Evangelist Saves 300 Souls From Enjoying Park
SAN FRANCISCO—Open-air preacher “Brother Sam” Hilson rescued more than 300 of God’s children from appreciating a cloudless spring day at Golden Gate Park Tuesday by informing them of their sins and the swift approach of Judgment Day.
A former building superintendent, Hilson said he was directly called by God to bring Christianity to San Francisco’s unholy […]
The Freethinker
“Cutting”, “abrasive”, “sarcastic”, “offensive” … These are just some of the words used to describe the Freethinker magazine, which was launched in Britain in 1881 and has continued publishing without a break ever since. But it was the word “blasphemous”, dropped from the lips of a hostile judge, that that got its founder and first […]
19Jun2008 | Admin | 0 comments | Continued
How Bad Is the FISA Deal?
House and Senate negotiators reached agreement today on a new bill to amend FISA, which looks like it will be brought up for an up-or-down vote in both houses of Congress, and will almost certainly pass. Opponents in Congress (like Patrick Leahy and Russ Feingold) and liberals and libertarians in the blogosphere are unhappy, primarily […]
19Jun2008 | Admin | 0 comments | Continued
Teen’s death blamed on faith healing
GLADSTONE, Oregon (AP) — Authorities say a teenager from a faith-healing family died from an illness that could have been easily treated, just a few months after a toddler cousin of his died in a case that has led to criminal charges.
Tuesday’s death of 16-year-old Neil Beagley, however, may not be a crime because Oregon […]
Darwin Pond - free download
Darwin Pond is an imaginary gene pool, a primordial puddle of genetic surprises. More technically, Darwin Pond is an Artificial Life Simulation: a virtual world exhibiting the emergence of life-like behaviors. But it’s more than just a fun and informative thing to watch, you can participate in this […]
17Jun2008 | Admin | 0 comments | Continued
Inside “The Family”: Jeff Sharlet Speaks About His Unique Look at American Evangelicals
Six years ago journalist Jeff Sharlet went undercover in the underground evangelical organization known as the “The Family.” The group consists of Congressmen, members of the executive branch and many other D.C. powerbrokers. Unlike Pat Robertson and other widely known Christian conservatives, the Family operates outside of the public eye — but that by no […]
17Jun2008 | Admin | 0 comments | Continued
Why the Nations Rage: Killing in the Name of God
By Christopher Catherwood. Published by Rowman & Littlefield.
Religious leaders normally argue that religion is a force for good and love in the world. Yet, at the same time, we see religion regularly used for war, mass murder, and even genocide. Why does this difference exist - how can religion be claimed as a basis […]
Does Science Make Belief in God Obsolete?
I wanted to alert eSkeptic readers about a free beautifully produced booklet on the question “Does science make belief in God obsolete?” published by the Templeton Foundation and edited by myself. The booklet contains 13 essays of varying answers to this question, which itself is part of the Templeton Foundation’s “Big Questions” project (a […]
17Jun2008 | Admin | 0 comments | Continued
MySpace can collect $6 million from spammer
BOSTON - MySpace can collect $6 million from a notorious Internet marketer accused by the popular online hangout of spamming its users.
An arbitrator has ruled that Scott Richter and his Web marketing company, Media Breakaway LLC of Westminster, Colorado, must pay MySpace $4.8 million in damages and $1.2 million in attorney’s fees for barraging MySpace […]
Does Barack Obama Support Secular Government and Equality for Secular Atheists?
Democratic Senator and presidential candidate Barack Hussein Obama has made a number of comments about secularism, church/state separation, religion, and the role of religion in the public square. Unfortunately, some of these comments have been contradictory — one time he’ll say something which appears to support strict separation and secular government, then he’ll turn around […]
15Jun2008 | Admin | 0 comments | Continued
One in four don’t believe in God, poll finds
Fewer than three-quarters of Canadians believe in a god, suggests a new Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey.
“Religion in Canada today is not a particularly divisive subject and tolerance levels for different beliefs are high,” said Harris-Decima president Bruce Anderson. “This is evident in the fact that one in four people feel comfortable saying they do not […]
Alzheimer’s leads atheist Terry Pratchett to appreciate God
TERRY PRATCHETT, the fantasy writer suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, has suggested he may have found God after years of atheism.
The 60-year-old creator of the Discworld series has spoken of an unexplained experience shortly after his diagnosis with the condition.
“I’m certainly not a man of faith, but as I was rushing down the stairs one day […]
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