This is the weekly summary of the Humanist Network News (HNN). The HNN is published every Wednesday via e-mail and on the Institute for Humanist Studies (IHS) Web site. This diary is a slightly reformatted copy of the weekly email they send me, which I post here every Thursday (Yes, I have permission from the IHS). (CP @ MLW, BT, SP)
March 8, 2006
Humanist Network News
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- Court: Schools can’t turn away military recruiters for anti-gay policy
- Now Hiring: IHS seeks 2 new employees
- AHA also now hiring
- Freethought convention season almost here
- Pro-evolution columnist deftly debates Young Earth’er
- Agnosticism: The power of not knowing (and enjoying it)
- Film Review: Cache
- Sweet Reason, my girlfriend’s gone religious on me
- Letters to the Editor
- Media Roundup
- Strange Times
- Cathartic Comics
- Humanist Humor
- Poll of the Week
Summaries, links, and MY TAKE across the break.
1. Court: Schools can’t turn away military recruiters for anti-gay policy
Can law schools refuse to allow military recruiters on campus to protest it’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policies against gays and do so without forfeiting federal dollars? MORE
MY TAKE: I don’t know how DADT has been upheld 5 times. I mean, how is this Constitutional?
“Sexual orientation will not be a bar to service unless manifested by homosexual conduct. The military will discharge members who engage in homosexual conduct, which is defined as a homosexual act, a statement that the member is homosexual or bisexual, or a marriage or attempted marriage to someone of the same gender.” — quoted in “The Pentagon’s New Policy Guidelines on Homosexuals in the Military”, The New York Times (July 20, 1993), p.A14.
Now, I know there is a military code of conduct that gives the military far more control over soldiers than what an employer could legally claim over employees, but how can saying one is gay be the same as performing a sexual act? I’m no legal expert, but a simple declarative statement seems to clearly fall far short of the legal definition of a speech act. More importantly, the schools involved in this case ARE LAW SCHOOLS, so THEY ARE LEGAL EXPERTS and they clearly think DADT is illegal. I think that what will eventually kill DADT is this administration’s war lust. We are in desperate need of troops, and DADT allows an easy out for those who want to avoid deployment to the war zone. I know that I would declare myself bisexual were I to be drafted. Much easier than moving to Canada.
2. Now Hiring: IHS seeks 2 new employees
The Institute for Humanist Studies is looking to hire two new staff members: a half-time editor for Humanist Network News, and a full-time systems analyst/web developer. MORE
MY TAKE: I don’t have the experience needed for either job… do you?
3. AHA also now hiring
The Institute for Humanist Studies is not the only organization looking to hire a humanist editor. The American Humanist Association (AHA), a national nonprofit organization of people working for the advancement of humanism, seeks an enthusiastic individual to edit the Humanist magazine. MORE
MY TAKE: See above.
4. Freethought convention season almost here
Spring is the season for freethought. HNN compiles spring Freethought conferences. MORE
MY TAKE: Gee, a movement that can support so many conventions/conferences must be pretty big. I wonder why there aren’t any political parties pandering to the 30 million non-religious in our country. That’s right: 30 million, an equal number to those who call themselves “evangelical Christians.” I guess the non-religious must not be as politically active as the Evangelicals. After all, you don’t see the non-religious holding conventions or rallies or taking cases to court to defend their right to non-belief, or sending a lobbyist to congress, or… wait a second… the non-religious do all of those things. Are you listening Democratic Party?
5. Pro-evolution columnist deftly debates Young Earth’er
A newspaper writer and a nuclear chemist verbally duked it out recently over evolution vs. Creationism in widely publicized debate in upstate New York. Read what one local humanist has to say about the event. MORE
MY TAKE: A design does not require a designer. A designer does not have to be intelligent or even sentient, but can be simple natural mechanisms (such as natural selection). But even without getting into how science debunks the Bible, all you have to do is look at the Bible itself. The Bible (especially the Old Testament) is so riddled with internal inconsistencies and contradictions that any attempt to interpret it literally is absurd. Pile on top of that the fact that the Bible is a translation of copies that are who-knows-how-many generations removed from the original written documents, and that those original written documents are who-knows-how-many generations removed from the original stories that likely began as oral traditions, and the assertion of literal truth becomes even more ridiculous. Beyond that, you have the historical accounts of other cultures that contradict some biblical stories, and you have clear parallels in other mythologies from the same geographical area and time. The Old Testament is part history, part fiction.
6. Agnosticism: The power of not knowing (and enjoying it)
Canadian humanist columnist Doug Thomas says: “Every once in a while someone takes a swipe at agnosticism based on the mistaken impression that we agnostics are just unable to make up our minds. Atheists attack because they think we are soft on theists and theists attack because they think we are just lost people who, with the right encouragement, will find our way back into the theist fold. Both miss the point completely.” MORE
MY TAKE: I get the agnostic thing and can respect it. I suppose deep down I am technically an agnostic myself, since I admit there is a chance that there could be a higher power and that it can neither be proven nor disproven. But, I think it is so unlikely that I consider myself an atheist.
7. Film Review: Cache
Cache examines some of the darker sides of human nature. MORE
8. Sweet Reason, my girlfriend’s gone religious on me
A freethinker in France has a rude awakening when girlfriend becomes “practicing” Christian. Sweet Reason dishes out the advice. MORE
MY TAKE: Dump her. Seriously. You are talking about your fundamental world view. If that isn’t compatible, you will have tons of problems.
9. Letters to the Editor
Letters on agnosticism, hunting, and a variety of other topics. MORE
10. Media Roundup
“South Dakota’s abortion ban: Watching the extremist right in action”, “Missouri bill attempts to declare Christianity ‘majority’ religion”, “Bush Orders DHS to Create Center for Faith-Based Aid” MORE
MY TAKE: The latest steps in the building of the American theocracy/fascist state. Scary, but hopefully America will wake up this year and put a halt to this crap.
11. Strange Times
“Backward evolution” spawns ape-like people. MORE
12. Cathartic Comics
…an assortment of cartoons and comic strips about humanism, atheism, religion, science and freethought. MORE
13. Humanist Humor
An Irish “prostitute” returns home. Get the joke
14. Poll of the Week
What do you think of the U.S. military policy of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell”? CAST YOUR VOTE
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If anything here interests you, or if you are one of those people who doesn’t “get” humanism, you may also be interested in my diary on what secular humanism is and what it is like to be a secular humanist in today’s political climate: I Am The Boogeyman.
