Chris C. Mooney's Blog, page 3

Why the NRA Won’t Take “Yes” for an Answer

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Cartoon by David Horsey

This is a guest post by Dylan Otto Krider,a skeptic, journalist and science fiction author whose work on the politicization of science has appeared in Skeptic, Dissent and other outlets(www.dylanottokrider.com).

I live somewhere between Columbine and Aurora, site of the recent shooting at a midnight showing of Batman.And if the reports coming out now are correct, the shooter at a Wisconsin Sikh temple this weekend hails from neighboring Littleton. In other words, all the...

Re-Debating Ideological Asymmetry: My Opening Response to Dan Kahan

[image error]In the past week, Dan Kahan of Yale has done a series of posts—laden with new experimental evidence—in reaction my book The Republican Brain. The posts are here and here, and a third (at least) is promised.

Here, I want to offer an initial, brief reaction to Kahan, to be followed by a series of in-depth replies.

Overall, I’m of two minds about Kahan’s approach. On the one hand, he has been very complimentary to the book—unlike most of my critics, he has actually read it!–and has offered up some...

My Upcoming APA Keynote: Making Psychological Research Matter for Society

[image error]I’m speaking this weekend at the American Psychological Association’s mega-conference in Orlando, at the invite of one of the organization’s divisions–the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues. Basically, my talk will be a call to arms to psychologists to make their research relevant to policymakers and the public.

Frankly, it is hard for me to think of a scientific field that is more policy relevant, and yet also more widely ignored by the D.C. chattering classes, than psycholo...

Smart(Phone) People For Obama

This is fascinating. Via Velti (which teamed up with Harris to poll the matter), we learn that the cool cats who use smart phones are considerably more likely to support President Obama than Mitt Romney in the November election.

More specifically: “49% of iPhone/Android owners say they would vote for President Barack Obama, while only 31% say they would vote for Mitt Romney to replace Obama.” Here’s a graphic that the site provides:

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Given what we know about liberals, of course, it is not surpri...

Indonesia: Where Atheism is Illegal

Tomorrow in New York, the Center for Inquiry is staging a protest at the Indonesian consulate over the disturbing *jailing* of a man, Alexander Aan, simply for questioning the existence of God on Facebook. We covered this very disturbing story on the new video Point of Inquiry–a story that the rest of the press seems to be ignoring:

For the full episode of the new video Point of Inquiry, see here.

Point of Inquiry Video–Fox News Bashing, When Doubt is a Crime, Jamie Kilstein, Ed Brayton, and More

Well, folks, here is my newest project–after a break from promoting The Republican Brain–the pilot video edition of Point of Inquiry. Enjoy:

Here’s what the show contains:

When Doubt is a Crime: Michael De Dora, director of the Center for Inquiry Office of Public Policy in Washington, D.C., discusses the disturbing case of an Indonesian man who was recently sentenced to two and a half years in prison, just for questioning whether God exists.

Fox News Bashing, Redux: Chris Mooney responds to rece...

Point of Inquiry Video–Coming Soon

[image error]I’ve just finished a weekend of recording the first video edition of Point of Inquiry–and, well, I think it came out very well, thanks to the talent and skills of my producer, Adam Isaak. We should be able to release the show on Monday, July 2. This is just a pilot, of course–and hopefully will lead to much more.

Our guests were Michael DeDora, of the CFI Office of Public Policy in Washington, D.C.; Ed Brayton of Dispatches from the Culture Wars; Jessica Ahlquist, the high-schooler who just wo...

Announcing Two New Point of Inquiry Guests: Ed Brayton, Jamie Kilstein

Later today, I’m off to Amherst, New York to speak at the 2012 Center for Inquiry student leadership conference. The topic will be The Republican Brain.

However, while there, I’ll also be recording a special video pilot edition of Point of Inquiry. In other words, for a trial run, we are turning Point of Inquiry into a web based TV show, to be broadcast through YouTube as well as the usual audio-streaming, iTunes downloading, and so forth. And we need your help.

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Ed Brayton

The show will contain...

Rio+20: Or, 20 Years of Conservatives Getting Worse on Global Warming

Last night, I was on The Alyona Show on RT to discuss the Rio conference that opened today, what it all means, whether there is any hope–and why Republicans are so much worse on climate than they were 20 years ago. Here’s the video:

I want to note–upon further research, the sources that I’ve found conflict on whether we get enough sunlight in a minute, or an hour, to power the planet. I’m not sure the difference matters much from an energy policy standpoint, but it is always important to get i...

Scalia’s Republican Brain: Why He’ll Come Up With a Reason to Overturn the Healthcare Mandate

[image error]This is a guest post by Dylan Otto Krider,a skeptic, journalist and science fiction author whose work on the politicization of science has appeared in Skeptic, Dissent and other outlets(www.dylanottokrider.com).

In anticipation of the Supreme Court decision on the constitutionality of the healthcare mandate later this month, I wrote elsewhere: “With the Supreme Court set to release their decision on the healthcare mandate in days, experts agree there is little to no legal basis by which any re...