stcynic

Paul Kurtz, founder of the Center for Inquiry and editor of Free Inquiry, has opened an office in Washington DC to act as that organization's Office of Public Policy. The new think tank will work to promote science and reason in public policy. The Washington Post has a report on the new group. The…

In the case of Edward Crayton, the man protesting Walmart's pro-gay policies who is being represented by the ACLU, a Federal judge has granted a preliminary injunction allowing him to continue his protests pending the outcome of the case. The case is scheduled to begin January 26th.

Here's a story I bet is far more common than gets reported. A high school history teacher in New Jersey, David Paszkiewicz, has been using his position to proselytize students for Christianity. It's not a coincidence that he is also a Baptist minister. But this time, a student has been taping the…

Thanks to Bartholomew for linking me to this blog by a rabbi named Lazer Brody who almost makes Yehuda Levin seem sane by comparison. He is allied with Levin in trying to destroy the rights of gay Israelis to march through any means necessary, including violence. In this post, he talks of Levin's…

A small newspaper in Michigan, the Argus Leader, has had quite a series of letters to the editor over the last few weeks after printing an article about Dick DeVos and his position that ID ought to be taught. You'll get a good laugh out of this one from a youth minister named Jerod Jordan. He talks…

Zenoferox has a blog post about a new book put out by Answers in Genesis, a book they said previously was a secret project "to overcome the widespread censorship found in public schools concerning the creation/evolution issue." As it turns out, however, this "big secret" is just another anti-…

And it's yet another outgoing military commander saying that there was no plan for the post-war occupation of Iraq: Unfortunately, Hagee's comments only deepen the mystery. He says he was deeply concerned about who would take charge of major Iraqi cities, like Najaf, as the Marines pushed through…

In the 80s, the standard name for the enemies of the religious right was "secular humanist." The secular humanists were on the march everywhere. Roving gangs of literature professors and philosophers were alleged to be at the very gate of civilization and, like the Jews previously, they were said…

This is interesting. According to an interview with Lou Sheldon, head of the Traditional Values Coalition, he and many others knew that Haggard was gay long before the gay prostitute came out publicly over it. Then, as if things could not get worse, there was the disgrace of Sheldon's own friend…

Rabbi Yehuda Levin, the wingnut American rabbi who has been trying to destroy the Jerusalem gay pride event, is declaring victory after confining the event to a stadium and keeping it off the streets. Rabbi Yehuda Levin of the New York-based organization Jews for Morality is in Jerusalem to…

Jay at STACLU is foaming at the mouth over Patrick Leahy saying that he wants to try and pass a bill to prevent the administration from arbitrarily removing habeas corpus protection in individual cases. "Leahy Vows To "Restore" Habeas Corpus For Terrorists", the headline screams; as usual, this…

I love getting these "action alerts" from religious right legal groups. At least once a week I get a breathless, hyperbolic email designed to push the emotional buttons of their followers and get them worked up into an unsightly froth. The Thomas More Law Center's latest news alert takes aim at an…

The American Family Association is really obsessed with Walmart's decisions to court gay customers, so much so that it is willing to completely distort reality in order to whoop up its mostly mindless followers into an anti-gay frenzy. Look at this Action Alert, where they make it look as though…

Jon Rowe has a post at Positive Liberty where he deftly shreds the nonsense being spewed by Mike Adams about legislating morality. Here's what jumps out at me about Adams' screed. In the first part of his two part article on the subject, he declares himself to be the noble myth destroyer: Part of…

While I was away this weekend, I received a very kind email from Ellery Schempp that included a brief response that he has written to last week's election, which he gave me permission to post if I choose to. For those who do not know who Ellery Schempp is, you should acquaint yourself with Abington…

I am home now, but I took the redeye home last night and got in after noon today. I am thoroughly exhausted and I'm going to take a nap. I'll post some stuff later.

It seems the Vatican has decided to throw it's 2 cents in on the controversy over a gay pride event in Jerusalem. Naturally, their 2 cents involves destroying the liberty of others: Meanwhile, the Vatican said it asked its envoy to Israel to convey its regret over the decision to allow the parade…

Remember the case I mentioned last week where a Missouri State student was hauled before a university ethics committee and failed in a class because she refused a mandatory assignment to sign a letter endorsing adoption by homosexuals? The university has settled the suit, as they clearly should.…

Under increasing threats of violence, all sides have reached an agreement on the Jerusalem gay pride event. They have agreed that in lieu of a parade, they will hold a rally in the Hebrew University Stadium. The wingnuts who have been threatening violence have also agreed, apparently, not to…

I am leaving in a couple hours to head down to Grand Rapids. Tomorrow morning I'm flying out of there to San Francisco for the weekend to spend some time with Wes and Nick and my good friends at the NCSE. I also may get to meet fellow ScienceBlogger John Wilkins while I'm there. And I'm going to…

Yet another reason to view Hugh Hewitt as more of a carnival barker than a thinker to be taken seriously: President Bush will not flag in the pursuit of the war, and Senator Santorum is now available for a seat on the SCOTUS should one become available. Yikes. And if that's not bad enough, look at…

David Boaz had an article on Monday on the Fox News website suggesting that libertarians could be a key voting block in deciding the outcome of the election. Turns out he was right. He wrote: Libertarians -- people who cringe at intrusive government, high taxes, nation-building and politicians…

Ultra-Orthodox anti-gay nuts, frustrated with not being able to stone homosexuals to death as the Mosaic law demands, decided instead to try and stone the mayor of Jerusalem: Mayor Uri Lupolianski had gone to an Orthodox neighborhood for a blessing service at a community hall. Haredi protestors…

This is really weird timing. I'd love to know what really prompted this. Bush has been adamant that Rumsfeld would not be going anywhere, and you know that "resigned" means "forced out." He's certainly not leaving on intelligent grounds, like on the basis of his utter failure; if that was the case…

Arizona became the first state to vote down a referendum to ban gay marriage. And right there in the ADF's backyard (they're headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona). And in a traditionally red state as well. Very, very cool.

At Reason's Hit and Run, Jesse Walker nails CNN analysit Jeff Greenfield for this silly statement: "For weeks Republicans have been saying, 'Do you really want Charlie Rangel of New York running the Ways and Means Committee, which does taxes? Do you really want John Conyers at the Judiciary…

Another Walmart employee has quit over their association with a gay chamber of commerce, saying that it felt like "God hit me" when she saw a report on the matter. And let's just say she seems a bit...dramatic: "The minute my husband made me aware of this, I started to just cry," she said. "It…

You had to figure that the STACLU crowd would have an interesting, if predictably irrational, reaction to the election; they did not disappoint. It started with Glib Fortuna's predictions for the election, which were just a tad bit off: Everyone is posting their predictions, so I guess I am…

Here's the rundown on some of the elections I either wrote about or just took an interest in for one reason or another. In Michigan, Dick DeVos, the pro-ID candidate for governor, was voted down by a wide margin. Proposition 4, which puts strict restrictions on eminent domain in the state, passed…

Well, cable and internet is installed and working fine, so I'm back online. Got a 5 mbps connection now instead of 3 mbps, so that's cool as well. No phones yet, but they'll be here at some point today. As soon as they get here and get finished, I'll be heading out to vote.