I was asked a few days ago by the Colorado Gazette do do a series of email interviews on a variety of subjects. They wanted an Atheist's perspective on a number of issues ranging from gay marriage to Internet access, and I was happy to oblige. The responses I wrote were probably too lengthy and detailed for them to be able to publish, and so I asked if I could post them up on the site for you who may find s ...

People who live in a bubble of delusion have a difficult time getting in touch with reality. Michael Jackson is the poster boy for delusion; this was the same man whose home was called 'Neverland', and who arrived at the Grammy Awards with a 12 year old boy as a date. In order for Mike to find redemption and hopefully lose his leper status, he's decided to convert to Islam, and Al-Qaeda sees this as a sign ...

I am often reminded one does not win popularity contests when attempting to shatter the delusions of others. I can certainly appreciate the fact no one wants to believe that they might be wrong, especially if this belief represents a form of comfort. It is then that I carefully remind people the truth is not a matter of popularity; we have plenty of examples in history of when popular beliefs have been held ...

I've always found it amusing when studies are performed on religion. Most of these consist of finding if religious people are happier, and now, there's a new one that came out saying if you subscribe to religion, you'll live up to 20% longer. Before I tear down how specious this line of reasoning is, I'd like to point out the sentence "can cut your chances of dying by 20%" sounds impressive, but like all go ...

Here's a quote to stick on your fridge: It has been my view that the steady secularizing and insistent effort at [sic] dereligioning America has been dangerous. That danger flashed red in the fall into subprime personal behavior by borrowers and bankers, who after all are just people. Northerners and atheists who vilify Southern evangelicals are throwing out nurturers of useful virtue with the bathwater of ...

I mentioned before that many individuals believe in religion because of what they perceive to be logical reasons, and it is often based on the illusion of design, both here on earth, and in the cosmos in general. The universe, as far as we can observe, seems to be both extremely complex and mysterious at first glance. Here on earth, the complexity of life is staggering; in a handful of dirt, there are milli ...

In today's culture, things change rapidly. We almost seem to take it for granted that something you know today will be different tomorrow, maybe radically so. But human beings historically haven't been accustomed to rapid change for very long. It used to be what your father knew, and what his father knew, wouldn't be different from what you knew too. There were certain ways of doing things, and that's all t ...

Yesterday, I argued the selective advantage of belief was too attractive for individuals in a community not to partake. But this advantage, as humans became more prosperous in the West, became increasingly marginal. In the 15th century, Europe began to experience newfound prosperity from the most unusual source: the aftermath of the Black Death. Over a third of the population is estimated to have been kille ...

When trying to explain the origin of religion, we must answer the question of how it came together, since although human beings are social animals, the act of creating a stable institution is an extreme rarity. Consider how many cults come and go; obviously, even if there is a fundamental need to be religious, there must be some explanation as to why humans would continue to participate and develop their re ...

I came across this website, Charter for Compassion, which is the latest attempt by religious moderates to extend an olive branch to other religions in the hope of curbing fundamentalism. The site asks people to discuss stories of compassion that they have experienced in their lives. I believe it is their hope to communicate through these stories the idea all people share the need for acts of kindness regard ...