Recently, news outlets have reported that Black churches have been “telling their flocks to stay home on Election Day.” Many Black ministers are upset that President Obama supports same-sex marriage and that Mitt Romney is (horrors!) a Mormon, and therefore, not a “real” Christian. They have therefore concluded that genuine Christians will have no good alternative on Election Day.
Many people buy into paranoid conspiracy theories. Perhaps this should not be surprising. After all, about 3% of the population is fantasy prone. That is to say, they are prone to believe they have been abducted by extraterrestrial aliens, or they are likely to entertain a similarly outlandish claim.
Many well-meaning people believe they know which social, political and economic systems are best for humanity. Socialists, communists, capitalists, anarchists, libertarians, anarcho-socialists (or libertarian socialists), and others all feel absolutely certain that their preferred systems are best for the human race, in particular, and the world in general.
_Playboy_ ran an interview with Richard Dawkins in their September 2012 issue. In this regard, Dawkins joins many illustrious persons throughout history, including Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, former U.S. born-again President Jimmy Carter (before his election), the late evangelist Jerry Falwell, anthropologist Margaret Meade, James Baldwin, Frank Sinatra, and countless others.
For eight grueling days in July and August, I gave lectures on humanism at the humanist summer school in Russia. On my plane trip back to the U.S., I sat next to a man from the air force. I, too, was in the air force from 1980-1984. As it turned out, we had even more in common. He is originally from Idaho, and I was stationed at Mountain Home Air Force Base for two years.
On July 6, 2012, ABC aired this “20/20” special featuring Barbara Walters. It was reported that nine out of ten people believe in Heaven. One speaker said that he believes that Heaven is the true prize that awaits us after our journey on Earth. Many people believe this. In less popular terms, they truly believe that “life is a dress rehearsal” for the after life. Oddly, many of them further maintain that such a belief actually gives meaning to their lives on Earth.
Human beings have made tremendous progress in human relations in recent decades. Many of us have learned that it is wrong to hate and discriminate against racial minorities, ethnic minorities, religious minorities, women, etc. We have learned the importance of extending equal opportunity for all and judging people, in the words of Martin Luther King, “by the content of their character,” and not on stereotypes of the groups to which they belong.
Many humanists (not merely non-theists) and religionists tend to believe that their respective groups are superior to the other. However, both groups seem to forget that we never cease to be _human beings_, and therefore fallible. The same can also be said of our worldviews, regardless of what promoters of biblical inerrancy might argue to the contrary.bad
On Sunday, May 27, 2012, Screwy Louie Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam (NOI), became the latest reactionary leader to publicly denounce President Obama’s defense of same-sex marriage. Speaking at the California Convention Center, the Sinister Minister said Obama is “the first president that sanctioned what the Scriptures forbid.” Indeed, not only does the Bible forbid sexual intercourse between members of the same sex, it condones the killing of homosexuals.
Most people profess to be in favor of freedom of speech, expression, and the press. However, for many people—if not most—there are exceptions. This fact became abundantly clear with the recent “controversy” surrounding remarks from Ozzie Guillen, the provocative manager of Major League Baseball’s Miami Marlins.
Community watch volunteer George Zimmerman—son of a White father and a Peruvian mother—shot a 17-year-old African American male, Trayvon Martin, to death, supposedly in self- defense. Martin died on February 26, 2012, but the story did not receive widespread media attention until several days after the shooting incident.
During the 1990s, evangelical Christians started wearing bracelets with the letters “WWJD.” The letters stand for “What Would Jesus Do?” This is supposed to serve as a reliable ethical guide for Christians. (Some skeptics have had fun with the question. Some have suggested that the letters actually represent “We Want Jack Daniels!”)
Rush Limbaugh is the latest reactionary icon to come to the defense of government efforts to control women’s sexuality. According to Associated Press reports, Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke was invited to testify about her university’s health plan—which excludes contraception—before a House committee. Republican lawmakers prevented her from testifying. However, Democrats invited her to speak to them at an unofficial session.
For 50 years, the anthropologist Joel Augustus Rogers researched Black history throughout the world. He traveled to 60 countries, mostly at his own expense. Rogers, a secular humanist, embraced evolutionary theory, promoted good science, and brilliantly critiqued pseudoscience. He routinely proclaimed, “there is but one race, the human race.” He spoke at rallies of Marcus
