Hemant Mehta's Blog, page 1776

What ISIS Teaches Us About the Value of Arts and Humanities

The U.S., on the whole,embraces economic progress and relentless production to such an extent that art and humanities are seen as “nice to have,” rather than necessities.

Sarah Skwire, in a short, smart piecefor (of all things) the Foundation for Economic Education, presentsISIS’ heartbreaking destruction of Assyrian museum piecesas a solid argument in favor of the two embattled academic disciplines.

There is a long history of fundamentalist Islamic groups destroying cultural treasures. The Bud...

A Somewhat-Scientific Explanation of What Color That Dress Is

Using magical software, Mr. Flare explains what color that dress is.

Black/Blue? White/Gold? Or none of the above…?

(via Captain Disillusion)

Coach-Led Prayer on High School Baseball Team Comes to an End After Atheists Take Action

They have a weird way of ending baseball practices at Leesburg High School in Florida:

It is our understanding that beginning on January 26, 2015 and continuing on January 28 and January 29, 2015, and every day since at the end of baseball practice, the head coach Rich Billings or assistant coach John Meier has led the students in prayer or told the students that it is time to pray.

That’s obviously illegal. American Atheists sent a letter of concern to the principal earlier this month, and a w...

American Family Association: If Atheists Want the Same Opportunities as Christians, That’s “Anti-Christian Bigotry”

Every week, the American Family Association compiles a list of stories featuring “anti-Christian bigotry.” While these stories are usually of the “gay people want me to bake a cake for them” variety, their most recent list included this stunner:

#2 on their list is a story about how Christians had a “Prayer Station” in a Michigan city hall… and atheists requested the same kind of setup. But the mayor told the atheists they couldn’t do it. After more than a year of legal wrangling, the two side...

Tony Perkins at CPAC: The Conservative Movement is Broad Enough to Include Atheists

American Atheists’ presence at CPAC may be having an impact.

Tony Perkins, the President of Family Research Council and one of the most powerful Christian Right leaders out there, said during a CPAC panel this morning that the conservative movement is broad enough to include atheists.

Which, admittedly, is a strange thing for him to say when the policies he supports are all about advancing Christianity…

Tony Perkins (second from right)

… I know the conservative movement is broad. And there are th...

Dave Silverman Explains Why American Atheists Has a Presence at CPAC

Every time I post about American Atheists having a booth at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), people want to know why they’re there. It’s not that atheists can’t be conservative, but are those the kind of conservatives we want ties to? (Hell, do they even want anything to do with us?) The same sort of criticism was levied at Jamila Bey, an AA board member, who spoke at CPAC the other day.

To answer those questions, AA Public Relations Director Danielle Muscato interviewed AA...

Pastor’s Wife Likes To Shout Prayers Outside, Disturbing Neighbors; Says Cops’ Intervention Violates Her Rights

Christians say that Jesus cameto bringpeace–but some of his followers won’t stop disturbing it.

In Lisbon, North Dakota,

A pastor and his family’s faith is being tested by law enforcement who say his wife is praying too loud on city sidewalks.Martha Nagbe has already had two court dates and has paid a $150 in fines for “unnecessary noise,”KVLV-TV reports. Nagbe feels her rights are being denied, and she won’t stop praying in public.

Irate citizens of Lisboncharge thatNagbe likes to go out at all...

Help This Humane Society Get a $20,000 Technology Grant or the Scientologists Will Win

A Tampa Bay company is giving away a technology makeover worth $20,000 to a local non-profit group… and right now, a Scientology-based private school is in danger of winning. But a local humane society is also running neck and neck with it and they could really use the funding…

Here’s all you have to do:

Go here.Hit the big orange “VOTE” button.Vote for the Humane Society of Pinellas County (in the “16 or More” employees category)

That’s it! It takes all of 10 seconds and L. Ron Hubbard‘s techni...

Judge in Robbery Case Orders Retrial After Key Witness, a Muslim, Swore Oath on a Bible

Last August, Michael John Davies went to Victoria Kebab House near Liverpool, where he allegedly tried to rob the place with a hammer as his weapon. (He denies it.) There’s a trial underway to determine his guilt but they’re going to have to start over with a new jury due to a snafu that occurred after store manager Kerim Kurt, a witness, began giving testimony:

Recorder Patrick Thompson told the jury: “You will notice the witness isn’t in court. The difficulty that arose and I will be very st...

Coffee Enemas and Mineral Supplements Couldn’t Save the Life of Cancer-Stricken “Wellness Warrior” Jess Ainscough

When, in 2008, Australian wellness writer Jessica (Jess) Ainscoughwas diagnosed witha rare diseasecalled epithelioid sarcoma, itbecame clear that thecancer cells had grownthroughout her left arm and shoulder.

Chemotherapy seemed to help, but within a year the cancer made a comeback, and Ainscough decided that, rather thanundergo more chemo and possibly amputation, she wouldbeat the odds with Gerson therapy: a “radical detoxification” regimen pioneered by a German doctor in the 1920s. For Ainsc...