DN Speak: 9/28/14

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Dr. Richard Carrier: Did Jesus Even Exist? A Historian Questions the Evidence ACSJ

If you wish to skip ahead to Dr. Carrier's presentation, go to the 24 minute mark.

The Atheist Community of San Jose was proud to welcome Dr. Carrier on April 2, 2014. This was the 1-year anniversary event of our founding, so we included the entire meeting on this video, complete with introductions from ACSJ President Brian Broome and our "In the News" segment with ACSJ Vice President Scot Haire.

Dr. Carrier gave a lecture on elements of his upcoming new book "On the Historicity of Jesus Christ". For more information on Dr. Carrier and his books, please visit http://www.richardcarrier.info/

Interview:

http://youtu.be/HMyudP5z2Xw?t=24m1s

The End Of William Lane Craig (Scott Clifton)

Scott explains the Kalam Cosmological Argument and shows why it is not valid.

Interview:
http://youtu.be/o8c3q6gPisc

Martine Rothblatt: The Tranhumanist, Transgender CEO (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

Martine Rothblatt may be the most interesting woman on the planet. Futurist, Sirius Radio founder, pharmaceutical tycoon, philosopher. The highest-paid female executive in America. And born a man. Now Rothblatt wants to knock down the wall between biological and digital. Between life and death. What’s coming, she says, are digital clones. Mindclones. We will all have them. Stuffed with our images, memories, attitudes, voices. Living by us and beyond us. Doing chores. Demanding rights. This hour, On Point: the world’s most interesting woman, on digital clones. / Tom Ashbrook

Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2014/09/11/martine-rothblatt

American Labor At A Crossroads (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

Labor Day is a time to dust off the grill and gather with friends and family. But it’s also a time to celebrate, and think about, the American labor force. And to look how the economy, how technology, is changing work. Wages are stagnating. Manufacturing jobs disappearing. Technology upending whole industries. Many people who hold jobs that once put them squarely in the middle class are finding it hard to stay afloat. There are small pockets of the country that are thriving, and large pockets that are not. This hour, On Point: Labor activist Van Jones and others on the American labor force. / Tom Ashbrook

Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2014/09/01/labor-day-union-afl-cio-right-to-work

New Thinking About Treating Cancer (Diane Rehm Show)

It has been more than 40 years since President Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act. The law was designed to bolster efforts to find cures for cancer. While progress has certainly been made, nearly 600,000 Americans will die of cancer this year. Some recent advances in research have led a number of doctors to call for a rethinking of our entire approach to cancer. Maybe the goal should not be to destroy cancer cells but to change them. Or to figure out how to use the body's immune system to fight the disease. Or, in certain cases, not treat the cancer at all. We explore new ideas about combating cancer.

Interview:

http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2014-09-18/new-thinking-about-treating-cancer

An Insider’s View Of The Bob Dylan Story (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

For a music giant, a cultural touchstone, Bob Dylan has long been one of the most inscrutable of artists. Beyond his towering music, he doesn’t share. Doesn’t open up. We do not get close. But Victor Maymudes did. For forty years, from Dylan’s earliest days in Greenwich Village. He was tour manager and a lot more. Left the tapes that tell the inside story. His son Jake was written them up. He’s with us. This hour, On Point: Another Side of Bob Dylan. Deep Dylan. / Tom Ashbrook

Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2014/09/17/insiders-view-bob-dylan-story

Factory Farming and the Meat Racket: Christopher Leonard on our Irrational Meat Industry (Point of Inquiry)

"It’s National Chicken Month! But rather than celebrating the consumption of fowl, Point of Inquiry is asking what exactly is going on in America's meat industry? Is the way we consume meat at all rational?

Joining us this week is Christopher Leonard, investigative journalist whose work has appeared in Fortune, Slate, and The New York Times. He is a fellow with The New America Foundation, a nonpartisan public policy institute in Washington, DC., and the author of The Meat Racket: The Secret Takeover of America’s Food Business.

Leonard and host Josh Zepps explore the morality of super-industrialized meat production, the iron grip of certain large corporations, and how the centralized system of factory farming is, to Leonard, “Soviet-esque.”"

Interview:
http://www.pointofinquiry.org/factory_farming_and_the_meat_racket_christopher_leonard_on_our_irrational_m/

Bedtime Bible Stories (that will terrify your kids) (TheThinkingAtheist)

Children raised in Christian homes are almost always surrounded by beautiful and inspiring tales hand-picked by parents for bedtime. They're inspired by Jesus' miracles. They learn about Zacchaeus and the sycamore tree. They sing about Joshua and the walls of Jericho. They read the joyous tale of Noah's Ark and the boat filled with (often colorfully-drawn) animals. In this podcast, we talk with Joey Kirkman, co-author of "Bedtime Bible Stories," about the darker tales of scripture and his recent book (complete with parental advisory label), and we take your calls and emails on the bible tales that might just keep Christian children wide awake with terror when the lights go out. Bedtime Bible Stories website: http://www.bedtimebiblestories.com Ed Suominen: Jehu's Jihad http://blog.edsuom.com/p/jehus-jihad.html - See more at: http://www.thethinkingatheist.com/podcast/bedtime-bible-stories-that-will-terrify-your-kids#sthash.MeGyMplQ.dpuf

Interview:
http://www.thethinkingatheist.com/podcast/bedtime-bible-stories-that-will-terrify-your-kids

The Grand Canyon: Threatened By Development? (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

One hundred and eleven years ago, Teddy Roosevelt, then President, stood on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon – the marvel that he would make a national monument – and said he had one request: “Keep this wonder of nature as it is now,” he said. “Leave it as it is. You cannot improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it.” Now, there is a fight over plans for commercial development right there. Pro, con, Navajos, Italians. On the rim and at the bottom of the canyon. This hour, On Point: the fight over the future of the Grand Canyon. / Tom Ashbrook

Interview:
https://onpoint.wbur.org/2014/09/15/grand-canyon-development

Friday News Roundup - Domestic (Diane Rehm Show)

A Liberian man in Texas is the first to be diagnosed with Ebola on U.S. soil. Health officials assess up to one hundred people that may have been put at risk. And a cameraman working for NBC news in Liberia tests positive for the virus. Secret service director Julia Pierson resigns, following a grilling on Capitol Hill and emerging details about security breaches on her watch. California passes a law allowing family members to request guns be seized from a relative they fear is dangerous. And the U.S. economy added 248,000 jobs in September, dropping the unemployment number to a six year low of 5.9 percent.

Interview:

http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2014-10-03/friday-news-roundup-domestic

Friday News Roundup - International (Diane Rehm Show)

Hundreds of pro-government demonstrators in Hong Kong clashed with supporters of the Occupy movement. Now, protesters are threatening to cut off talks with government officials. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended plans for Jewish homes in East Jerusalem. Turkey voted to authorize military force against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with President Barack Obama at the White House. And new Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, signed a security deal allowing American soldiers to remain in the country past the end of the year. A panel of journalists joins Diane for analysis of the week's top international news stories.

Interview:

http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2014-10-03/friday-news-roundup-international

Week In The News: Secret Service, Hong Kong, Ebola In America (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

Ebola in the USA this week. Great. Not flown home for treatment, but walking into a Dallas hospital and out again, undiagnosed. And in again. One hundred people being tracked for contact. Stay tuned. At the White House, a bad week to be Secret Service chief. She’s out. In Hong Kong, protestors shouting big for democracy. China, unmoved . A deal on US stay-behind troops in Afghanistan. India’s prime minister gets a rock star welcome in New York. US unemployment – 5.9 percent. Less than six for the first time in six years. This hour On Point: our weekly news roundtable goes behind the headlines. / Tom Ashbrook

Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2014/10/03/secret-service-ebola-hong-kong

7 Myths You Probably Believe About Social Security

When it comes to retirement planning, there's a lot of focus on saving and investing for retirement, and rightfully so. After all, this is the piece o... Read more

Avoid Being 'That Boring Retiree'

"...recent research sheds light on what new, existing, and soon-to-be retirees can do to make sure they don’t take on the wrong persona and end up being labeled as that boring, dreary, or comatose retiree that everyone avoids..."

Read more

Former Top Official Says Kim Jong-un Is No Longer in Control of North Korea.

"...According to Jang — a former counterintelligence official and poet laureate under Kim Jong-il — members of the government's Organization and Guidance Department (OGD), a powerful group of officials that once reported only to Kim Jong-il, have stopped taking orders from his son, Kim Jong-un. The OGD, Jang says, has effectively taken control of the country, and a conflict is simmering between factions that want to maintain absolute control over the economy and others seeking to gain wealth through foreign trade and a slightly more open market... "Read more

Giants Causeway, Ireland [1300x897] by Daniel Kordan

Sweden to recognize state of Palestine

"The conflict between Israel and Palestine can only be solved with a two-state solution, negotiated in accordance with international law," Lofven said during his inaugural address in parliament.
Read more

CDC Head: Budget Cuts 'Eroded Our Ability To Respond' To Ebola Threat

"If even modest investments had been made…the current Ebola epidemic could have been detected earlier, and it could have been identified and contained." -- Dr. Beth Bell
... Read more

Arkansas GOP Outraged About Voter Suppression After Candidate Gets Kicked Off The Voter Rolls

Arkansas Attorney General candidate Leslie Rutledge is crying foul over the cancellation of her voter registration form. Rutledge, the Republican nominee for Attorney General, was kicked off the voter rolls after it was discovered that she failed to cancel previous voter registrations in Washington, DC and Virginia, and re-register in Pulaski County when she moved. Pulaski County Clerk Larry Crane, a Democrat, said he was legally obligated to remove her after receiving a letter flagging this issue.
.. Read more

Michael Savage Says Obama Wants Ebola Epidemic To Make U.S. A Third World Nation

They're not hiding their hate now. It's fully out in the open. Michael Savage, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, all of them. But Michael Savage's little r... Read more

Republicans Eye Forcing CBO To Use Special GOP Math To Justify Tax Cuts

Top Republicans, eyeing full control of Congress next year, are considering changing the rules of the budget process so as to make tax cuts appear les... Read more

Still Leading the Way on Slavery

A member of Colorado's state Board of Education argued that the fact that the United States voluntarily ended slavery proved "American execptionalism" and this perspective should be taught to students in a recent Facebook post about the AP U.S. History curriculum....

"As an example, I note our slavery history. Yes, we practiced slavery. But we also ended it voluntarily, at great sacrifice, while the practice continues in many countries still today! Shouldn't our students be provided that viewpoint? This is part of the argument that America is exceptional. Does our APUSH Framework support or denigrate that position?"

Michigan Resident Confronts Natural Gas Pipeline Surveyors With Shotgun

Michigan residents aren't happy about a proposed natural gas pipeline running through their properties, and they aren't letting ... Read more

‘I’m Not A Scientist’: A Complete Guide To Politicians Who Plead Ignorance On Climate Change

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on Thursday joined the growing ranks of politicians and political figures who ... Read more

Bloomberg Pledges $50 Million This Year To Fight NRA

WASHINGTON (AP) — Gun control groups say this is the year they finally go toe- to-toe with the National Rifle Association and match their foe's imposi... Read more

GOP Sends Out Mailer With Phone Number Of Dem's 91-Year-Old Mom

A Democratic candidate for the Michigan House said Thursday that the state GOP sent out campaign mailers this week that urged voters to call him to co... Read more

Economy Added 248,000 Jobs In September; Unemployment Fell To 5.9 Percent

Analysts had expected 215,000 jobs to be added.The post Economy Added 248,000 Jobs In September; Unemployment Fell To 5.9 ... Read more

Home Solar Plus A Battery Could Be Cheaper Than The Grid In Germany In Just A Few Years

An analysis by HSBC suggests a solar-plus-battery home system will be cheaper than grid power in Germany within a few years. ... Read more

Friday, October 3, 2014

Rowan Co. Schools under fire for biblical course

"...the Freedom From Religion Foundation says at least one teacher instructs the class as though it's "literal fact"."

http://www.wcnc.com/story/news/local/2014/10/02/rowan-co-schools-under-fire-for-biblical-course/16595831/

Antonin Scalia Says Constitution Permits Court To 'Favor Religion Over Non-Religion'

"In a dissent joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, Scalia argued that “at a minimum,” the Supreme Court should remand the case for reconsideration, noting that “the First Amendment explicitly favors religion.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/02/antonin-scalia-religion-government_n_5922944.html

Is The New AP U.S. History Really Anti-American?

"...And while it’s true the new course framework does not mention Martin Luther King Jr., Benjamin Franklin, George Washington Carver, James Madison or Rosa Parks, neither did the previous course description, in effect from the 2010-2011 school year through the end of the last school year..."

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/is-the-new-ap-us-history-really-anti-american/ar-BB6PPL2

Cop Cleared After Shooting Unarmed Man Complying With Order to Remove Hands From Waistband

Twenty-year-old Dillon Taylor was fatally shot after a Salt Lake City police officer ordered him to get his hands out of his pants.

Florida Officer Tases 62-Year-Old Woman In the Back Just for the Hell of It

No charges have been brought and the officer is currently on paid leave.
... Read more
http://youtu.be/d8BQakQ7rPY

The American Family Is a Myth: Why Our National Moral Panic Must Stop

As a kid, I thought I'd be married with three kids by now. But now I see "family" as something totally different.

Vatican Investigates Kansas City Bishop

VATICAN CITY — Father Shawn Ratigan of Independence, Missouri, liked to take pictures of naked little girls. He especially liked little girls between ... Read more

Rand Under Attack Over Birth Control

Rand Paul's opposition to abortion may not be enough to convince certain social conservatives that he warrants their support. Not even a week after t... Read more

This Cop Oversaw The Torture Of More Than 100 Black Men. Now He's Out After Less Than 4 Years In Jail.

An ex-police commander who oversaw the torture of more than 100 black men in Chicago police custody walked out of federal prison Thursday, after servi... Read more

US criticises Israel over settlements

Washington says the move will distance Israel from even its 'closest allies' Read more

Massive Fraud In PA Charter Schools Under Corbett's Leadership

What could $30 million lost dollars mean to students in Pennsylvania? Maybe more teachers, more textbooks, better classrooms? Well, forget about it, b... Read more

Teapublican State Senator: 'Being Christians In USA Is Like Being Jewish In Nazi Germany'

"...Is it not the same than when our government continues to perpetuate laws that lead citizens away from God? The only difference is that the fraud of the Germans was more immediate and whereas the fraud of today's government will not be exposed until the final days and will have eternal-lasting effects."... Read more