Hemant Mehta's Blog, page 1726

Comedy Troupe’s Sketch Featuring Muhammad Gets Censored by University Chaplains and Students’ Union

The Comedy Writing Improvisation and Performance Society (CWIPS) is a sketch comedy troupe at England’s University of Bath. Last month, they were scheduled to perform a show featuring skits based on Bible stories — with references to Richard Dawkins and pop culture mixed in — but they were censored just before the first performance took place.

… during the opening week one of the [Students’ Union] officials quietly attended one of the rehearsals. Just four hours prior to opening night the comm...

Creationist Propaganda Film Received Nearly $500,000 in Funding from Australian Taxpayers

Darwin: the Voyage that Shook the World is a 2009 film produced by Creation Ministries International. It deceptively interviewed professors under false pretenses, not telling them it was being produced by a Creationist group. It only made an estimated $116,000.

And it cost the Australian taxpayers $500,000.

That’s according to an article in The Australian:

Screen Australia approved a tax rebate to Creation Ministries International to fund the documentary, relying on a loophole in the law that ma...

Here’s What Happened at the Supreme Court’s Oral Arguments on Marriage Equality

This morning, the United States Supreme Courtheard oral arguments inObergefell v. Hodges, the landmark case that could finallylegalize marriage equality nationwide.

The Court will consider two primary questions: First, whether state bans on same-sex marriage are constitutional, and second, whether states that outlaw marriage equality can refuse to recognize same-sex marriages legally performed in other states. Marriage equalityis currently legal in 37 states (plus Washington, D.C.). The four s...

British Politician Nick Clegg: Stop Calling Me an Atheist

More than seven years ago, the newly-elected leader of the Liberal Democrats, Nick Clegg, told a radio host that he was an atheist:

During a round of media broadcasts on the morning after his election to the post, he was asked by one interviewer: “Do you believe in God?”

“No,” Mr Clegg answered simply, during an appearance on BBC Radio 5 Live.

Wow. Very straight-forward for a politician. I love it!

But Clegg quickly clarified that his wife was Roman Catholic and their kids would be raised in that...

Valerie Tarico Explains, in an Excellent Article, Why She’s Pro-Abortion

Valerie Tarico does a wonderful job at Salon talking about why she’s not simply pro-choice, but pro-abortion:

A pregnant woman holding a pro-choice sign

I am pro-abortion like I’m pro-knee-replacement and pro-chemotherapy and pro-cataract surgery. As the last protection against ill-conceived childbearing when all else fails, abortion is part of a set of tools that help women and men to form the families of their choosing. I believe that abortion care is a positive social good. I suspect that a...

John Oliver: Dr. Oz is the “Worst Person in Scrubs Who Has Ever Been on Television”

Last night, John Oliver went after Dr. Oz and his pathetic “response” to critics.

You are the worst person in scrubs who has ever been on television, and I’m including Katherine Heigl in that.

Do you have any idea how difficult it is to be worse than Katherine Heigl?

You are also the admittedly handsome ringmaster of a middling, mid-afternoon televised snake oil dispensary. And it says something that, even when you do a show with seven fake models of human feces, the biggest piece of shit on the...

Friendly Atheist Podcast Episode 52: Mystery Science Theater 3000‘s Trace Beaulieu And Frank Conniff

Our latest podcast guests are Trace Beaulieu and Frank Conniff, best known for their work on Mystery Science Theater 3000.

At the American Atheists 2015 convention in Memphis, Tennessee, Jessica spoke with Trace and Frank about the genesis of MST3K, what they think about podcasts, and whether it’s tough to be known only for the show rather than their other projects.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on the podcast. If you have any suggestions for people we should chat with, please leave them in t...

Ken Ham: Creationism is True Because a Teenager Drew This Picture

Ken Ham loves to talk about children and how they really grasp his message… which makes sense since he can really only get through to people who haven’t learned how to ask critical questions.

His latest post involves a picture drawn by a 13-year-old fan from Minnesota:

This drawing illustrates the battle between creation and evolution, and I am thrilled to see young people understanding these issues and standing firmly on God’s Word from the very beginning.

Besides the fact that the doodle doesn...

Tony Perkins Forgot That He Supports Impeaching Supreme Court Justices if They Vote for Marriage Equality

On Sunday’s Face the Nation, host Bob Schieffer asked anti-gay-rights leader Tony Perkins whether he ever said Supreme Court justices who rule in favor of marriage equality should be impeached (at the 3:33 mark).

Perkins denied every saying such a thing.

Schieffer: Did you really say that justices who come down on the side of gays on this should be impeached?

Perkins: No, I didn’t say that.

Schieffer: Because there are reports to that effect.

Perkins: No, I didn’t say that.

Schieffer: What did you...

Media Outlets Backtrack on Their Reporting After Famed Wellness “Guru” Belle Gibson Admits Cancer Hoax

Retractions on Internet news sites have been quite the common sight for the last few days in the wake of a shocking admission of a hoax that’s shaken the alternative health community.Will the media finally start paying more attention to skeptics who saw this coming?

Until last month, 23-year-old Australian Belle Gibson (above)was the world’s latest darling ofwellness woo and holistic healing. Gibson was renowned for her claim that shewas successfully treating herterminal brain cancer with vega...