ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 148

Virginia teacher sues school after being fired for not using transgender student’s pronouns

By Minyvonne Burke A Virginia high school teacher who was fired for refusing to use a transgender student’s preferred pronouns has filed a lawsuit against school officials and the board. Peter Vlaming, who was a French teacher at West Point High School, said he was fired because he would not use pronouns such as “him” and “his” …

The Catholic Church and Boy Scouts are lobbying against child abuse statutes. This is their playbook

By Marisa Kwiatkowski, and John Kelly Pennsylvania state Rep. Tom Murt slid into a pew at his childhood church, seeking a break from politics and the stress of work. Instead, Murt got an earful. In his sermon, the priest talked about a bill pending in the state Legislature that would give survivors of child sexual abuse more time …

NASA lander captures marsquakes, other Martian sounds

By Marcia Dunn CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s InSight lander on Mars has captured the low rumble of marsquakes and a symphony of other otherworldly sounds. Scientists released an audio sampling Tuesday. The sounds had to be enhanced for humans to hear. InSight’s seismometer has detected more than 100 events, but only 21 are considered strong marsquake candidates. …

Judge rejects bid to dismiss atheists’ free-speech suit against state senator

By Linda Satter A First Amendment showdown between an atheist group and Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Conway, can proceed to trial, a federal judge said Monday. In an 81-page order, U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker refused to dismiss a Jan. 8 lawsuit alleging that the senator violated the First Amendment rights of atheists who disagreed with …

Alaska shelter can turn away transgender women following city decree

By Associated Press ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A faith-based Anchorage women’s shelter claimed victory Monday in a lawsuit against the city over a requirement that it accept transgender women. The city has agreed to make permanent a judge’s recent order affecting the downtown Hope Center shelter, conservative Christian law firm Alliance Defending Freedom and city attorneys …

Arizona man killed a 6-year-old boy trying to ‘cast the demon out,’ police say

By Amir Vera An Arizona man forced hot water down a 6-year-old boy’s throat in an attempt to “cast the demon out” Thursday, police said in a criminal complaint Pablo Martinez, 31, who lives on the Pascua Yaqui Indian Reservation near Tucson, was arrested on a federal charge of first degree murder, according to a …

Somerset cider firm boss who unearthed century old family secret has put it on display for first time

By Alice Simmons A Man whose Victorian ancestors buried a stunning fossil because it threatened their religious beliefs has had it dug up and put it on display for the first time ever. Cider brandy maker Julian Temperley knew that a 90 million-year-old ichthyosaurus fossil was buried in the garden at his family’s home in …

Trump’s DOJ just escalated the fight over whether religion is a license to discriminate

By Ian Millhiser The Trump administration filed an unusual brief in a dispute between a gay teacher and the Catholic Church on Friday. Should the administration’s position be adopted by courts, it could expand the universe of employers who are allowed to defy laws banning discrimination in the workplace. The case is Payne-Elliott v. Roman Catholic Archdiocese of …

I Was Never Taught Where Humans Came From

By Olga Khazan Here’s what I remember from biology class at my public high school in Texas: We learned everything there is to know about the Krebs cycle. We collected bugs in the heat and suffocated them in jars of nail-polish remover. We did not, to my recollection, learn much of anything about how the …

As an Afghan immigrant, Britain and atheism showed me the bright side of democracy

By Mohadesa Najumi There’s so much I wish I could tell people about me, like the fact that my dad doesn’t know how old he is (in Afghanistan they didn’t used to record birthdays), or that every day I am thankful to be living in a democratic state. I was naturalised as a British citizen when I …