DigitalHobbit » Society

Richard Dawkins in Lynchburg, VA

DigitalHobbit — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 06:53:43 +0000

Richard Dawkins has posted a video of his October 23 speech at Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia. The speech contains excerpts of his latest book “The Good Delusion”, but what makes this video particularly interesting is how Dawkins answers questions from several students from Liberty University, a conservative Christian university that shamelessly teaches young earth creationism (and apparently displays dinosaur fossils dated approx. 3000 years ago…).

I haven’t seen the entire video (113GB quicktime), but the following website contains some great excerpts:

Richard Dawkins interviewed by Salon.com

DigitalHobbit — Mon, 16 Oct 2006 05:54:46 +0000

Salon.com posted a very good interview with Richard Dawkins (this link goes to the more readable printer friendly page).

As usual, Dawkins comes across as sharp and non-compromising on his views. He also defends his confrontational position on religion – after all, he has been characterized as “Darwin’s Rottweiler” and is certainly one of the most famous atheists in the world.

One quote I particularly liked (even though I have heard this in similar form before):

Everybody nowadays is an atheist about Thor and Apollo. Some of us just go one god further.

This finally prompted me to order Dawkins’ latest book, The God Delusion. Of course now I really need to make some progress to catch up on the stack of Dawkins and Sam Harris books I’ve accumulated…

Speaking of Richard Dawkins: He’s currently on tour to promote his new book, and according to his calendar he’ll be in the SF Bay Area October 29 (Menlo Park) and 30 (San Francisco). I hope I’ll be able to make it to one of these events.

Last not least, Dawkins recently formed the “Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science”. A 12-minute video on their Mission page outlines the noble mission of this foundation. I’ll definitely keep them in mind for any future charity donations.

SkepticWiki

DigitalHobbit — Mon, 16 Oct 2006 04:31:26 +0000

I just came across SkepticWiki – the Encyclopedia of Science and Critical Thinking.

This looks like a comprehensive resource for all skeptics out there, and the articles on the Wiki debunk such popular myths as UFOs, alternative medicine, pseudohistory (such as Holocaust Denial), and of course religion. The amount of information on the site (both in terms of breadth and depth) is very impressive!

Need a tax break? Go do some whale hunting…

DigitalHobbit — Sat, 25 Feb 2006 22:54:21 +0000

While working on my taxes, I just came across this little gem in the IRS instructions for itemized deductions:

Certain whaling captains may be able to claim a charitable deduction for whale hunting expenses. See Gifts to Charity on page A-6 for more details.

WTF???

The Official God FAQ

DigitalHobbit — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 06:15:39 +0000

I promise after this post I’ll shut up with the Atheist posts for a while. But first:

The Official God FAQ

This is absolutely hilarious! Pay attention to the disclaimer.

And while we’re on the subject, here’s a partly serious, partly humorous proof that there is no god. A lot of good links on that site, too.

Amazing Movie: The God Who Wasn’t There

DigitalHobbit — Mon, 02 Jan 2006 06:47:46 +0000

This weekend I’ve watched an amazing movie: The God Who Wasn’t There. It critically explores many aspects of Christianity, and in particular the myth of the existence of Jesus. It accomplishes all this in a manner that is both convincing as well as having many funny moments. Sadly, I doubt that this movie will manage to strike sense into any Christian fundamentalists, but any open minded person, religious or not, should do themselves a favor and see this movie.

You can buy the DVD directly at the website above, or from Amazon.

Kansas is officially screwed

DigitalHobbit — Thu, 10 Nov 2005 07:57:15 +0000

Not all that unexpected I guess, but in yesterday’s vote, the Kansas Board of Education actually approved the teaching of Intelligent Design in Kansas schools.

Damn, I’m glad I live in California. Still, this is a blow against all sane people in this country. Looks like we are slowly going back in time towards the Dark Ages…

FSM Update

DigitalHobbit — Sat, 29 Oct 2005 22:20:19 +0000

I hadn’t kept up with the Flying Spaghetti Monster movement for a while. It really seems to be gaining a lot of traction. In addition to many downloadable wallpapers, they now have a whole bunch of printable brochures, flyers, posters, etc., many of which are quite well done.

But the funniest happenings have to be some recent propaganda events:

Keep up the good work.

Flying Spaghetti Monster

DigitalHobbit — Tue, 23 Aug 2005 04:53:33 +0000

OK, I’m probably the last person to hear about this, but this is insanely funny. In response to the Kansas State Board of Education’s ridiculous and backwards decision to teach Intelligent Design (essentially Christian Creationism dressed up as science), somebody has created a parody religion called “Flying Spaghetti Monsterism”, which has gained a huge following in the past few months. This open letter to the Kansas School Board describes the religion and states that is is just as much science as Intelligent Design. If you have any doubts, just check out the chart that compares the decline of pirates in the world to the rise of the global average temperature and thus clearly proves that global warming is caused by the decline of pirates.

The responses from the few sane people on the Kansas School Board are also worth reading. I wish them luck for the final vote in October.

Wikipedia entry on the Flying Spaghetti Monster

BoingBoing posting with nice downloadable artwork to create a Flying Spaghetti Monster bumper sticker

RAmen.