Posts tagged: Humanism
My Doctor
I’ve given Matt Smith a full season to woo me over but sadly, he’s just not doing it for me. Therefore, I hereby state… Now and forever after… David Tennant, the Tenth Doctor, is MY Doctor.
Now, I’ve been a Doctor Who fan for a while. I have fond memories of watching Tom Baker era episodes during family dinner & I quite like the Peter Davison era as well. I missed initially when the series returned but caught up pretty quickly a few of years ago and have been loving the ride ever since. I liked Christopher Eccleston fairly quickly with his big grinned humor just barely concealing a starch seriousness and pain of recent losses. When the first season came to a close and all we got from Tennant was,
“Hmm, new teeth. That’s weird. Now where was I? Oh yeah, Barcelona!”
… I wasn’t really sure. But then came four seasons of the absolute best television I’ve ever watched. Tennant’s Doctor immediately embodied every humanistic value and idea I hold dear. He approached every situation with compassion, curiosity and reason with a skeptical mind seeking for and usually finding the natural explanation. He engendered the best of humanity in those he met and left them all better people. (Even Jackie)
Tennant’s Doctor also had a dense pain hidden on his face that could come out at any moment in a way that made you realize he’d been holding it back for far too long. He carried a burden but never let it get in his way of doing what he thought had to be done for the good of the universe.
There’s always the possibility that Matt Smith or some future Doctor could swoop in and steal the crown… but I’m highly skeptical. Well, I say skeptical, I mean doubtful. Well, pretty impossible actually, now that I think about it…. anyways… Oh, look at that… That is beautiful!
Merry Christmas
And Remember…
Tour the known universe in 6 minutes
The AMNH has put together this amazing tour of the entire known universe based on the most up-to-date astronomical data. Every object is in its correct location, with proper scale and movement.
Here’s the full article to go with it.
Via: Pharyngula
Nell McCafferty gives the church a piece of her mind
Nell McCafferty lashes out at the catholic church, questioning their continued use of titles like “Father”, “Your Grace” and “Lordship” in response to the Vatican’s cover-up of sexual abuse of children by catholic priests and how the reputation of the church was deemed more important than the welfare of children.
I love when she goes off on “What’s holy about the Vatican?” and “What’s holy about the Pope in this context?”
Via: Pharyngula
You only live one life
You only live one life and you make all your mistakes and learn what not to do and that’s the end of you. – Richard P. Feynman
Don’t Diss Darwin
The NCSE has created a new site, Don’t Diss Darwin, to combat Ray Comfort’s mutilated copies of Darwin’s Origin of Species to be given away at “100 top universities” in the US (19 18, Nov. 2009) and Canada (24, Nov. 2009).
I thought someone should do the same thing to some of Comfort’s books, but if you added an introduction and cut all the nonsense out, you’d be left with nothing but the introduction.
Via: RichardDawkins.net
UPDATE: Comfort changed his plan in an attempt to counter some rationalist’s plans. He’s giving the books out TODAY. (Via: Pharyngula)
Surrounded by ignorance
Just watch this… as the video progresses, try to NOT let your mouth hang open in disbelief.
Oh… My… God! Now, I know many people are genuinely ignorant of things that don’t really affect them in their day-to-day lives. But really, America? This level of ignorance is just absurd. Apparently there are people living among us who don’t know how many sides a triangle has and don’t see something wrong on a map where the entire country of Australia is labeled “Iran” or “North Korea”.We also seem to have had THREE world wars and Hiroshima and Nagasaki are only famous for sumo wrestling.
Wow.
Via: Unrelated TechCrunch post.
Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort are giving away copies of ‘Origin of Species’
So, banana man and his right hand guy will be giving away some 50,000 copies of Charles Darwin’s ‘Origin of Species’ at universities across the country. There’s only one problem.
Each copy will include a 50 page intro attempting to explain how evolution has never been proven and how Darwin helped inspire the Holocaust.
This is sad and pathetic at the same time. But something good can come of this.
If you are in college, then you are in a good position to help. Check your campus on November 19th, and if you see a group distributing copies of the book, then get as many as you can. Get a copy for yourself, ask if you can have extra copies for your friends, ask your friends to go ask for copies, and ask other people you see carrying the book if you can have their copy. Remove the 50 page intro, and then donate perfectly good copies of ‘Origin of Species’ to schools, libraries, and Goodwill. We can actually make this into something positive.
I guess the banana wasn’t enough proof after all.
You can watch this video for more information.
Via: Richard Dawkins
UPDATE: The NCSE has created the Don’t Diss Darwin site to combat Comfort’s copies of Origin.
Bill Maher: Biblically Incorrect (Audio)
What constitutes a Bible-based marriage?
Mrs. Betty Bowers makes it easy.
Via: Atheist Media Blog
God: The Computer
A very humorous take on Genesis as a 1980′s computer program.
Whoever created this, it’s hilarious. Day 6 is particularly brilliant.
Via: Daily Cup of Tech
Isaac Asimov – The Answer for Humanity (1989)
Isaac Asimov delivers a keynote speech for the Humanist Institute’s 1st Annual Meeting on January 14, 1989. The topics lay an interesting parallel with current events. It’s almost like nothing’s happened in all this time.
The Arrival Of Homo Evolutis
In this humorous and inspirational talk, Juan Enriquez discusses the present state and future advances awaiting the human species.
Via: TED
2009 Cultural Humanism Awardee: Joss Whedon!
Joss Whedon will receive the 2009 Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award in Cultural Humanism.
I never really knew Joss Whedon considered himself a Humanist but always enjoyed the humanistic values, morals and lessons portrayed in his TV shows and projects. I never got into Buffy, but Firefly was particularly important to me with a near-openly atheist lead character, Malcolm Reynolds. (“You’re welcome on my boat, preacher. God ain’t.”) And we all know how I feel about Dr. Horrible.
So, congratulations Mr. Whedon. Well deserved.
Via: The Friendly Atheist
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday. And remember…
