ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 233

God Declares Swamp Drained at Mar-a-Lago Super PAC Fundraiser

By Lachlan Markay God told attendees of a political fundraising event at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate last month that the president is, indeed, draining the swamp. The message was enthusiastically passed on by an evangelical pastor attending the lavish late November gathering for the American Pro-Israel PAC, a new pro-Trump political group courting donors with an …

Catholic Chastity Speaker Tells TX Public School Students “Safe Sex Isn’t Safe”

By Hemant Mehta A Texas school district invited an abstinence-only advocate to speak to students during the school day recently, and they were rewarded with the exact kind of misinformation you’d expect from someone whose sex education résumé consists solely of the word “Don’t.” Jason Evert, a Catholic author, told kids at Industrial High School in Vanderbilt …

China Preps for Launch of Historic Mission to Moon’s Far Side on Friday

By Leonard David China is getting set to launch the first-ever surface mission to the moon’s far side. The robotic Chang’e 4 mission is scheduled to launch atop a Long March 3B rocket on Friday (Dec. 7) at around 1:30 p.m. EST (1830 GMT; 2:30 a.m. on Dec. 8 local China time). If all goes according to …

Republicans are taxing churches to help corporations. Really.

By E.J. Dionne, Jr. Republicans tax churches to help pay for big corporate giveaway. You would be forgiven for thinking this is a headline from the Onion or the fantasy of some left-wing website. But it’s exactly what happened in the big corporate tax cut the GOP passed last year. Now — under pressure from churches, synagogues …

Every President Recited The Apostles’ Creed Except Trump, And People Definitely Noticed

By Ed Mazza People on Twitter are calling out President Donald Trump for failing to recite the Apostles’ Creed at the funeral for former President George H. W. Bush on Wednesday. Footage from the event shows much of the church, including the former presidents seated with Trump, standing to recite the profession of faith. Trump and …

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules Names Of Predator Priests Will Be Kept Secret

By Michael Stone What about the children? Pennsylvania Supreme court rules that the names of 11 priests accused of sexual abuse in an explosive grand jury report will remain secret. CNN reports: The Pennsylvania Supreme court has ordered that the names of 11 priests accused of sexual abuse in a grand jury report remain permanently …

These dusty young stars are changing the rules of planet-building

By Rebecca Boyle Some 100,000 years ago, when Neanderthals still occupied the caves of southern Europe, a star was born. It appeared when a ball of gas collapsed and ignited within a stellar factory known as the Taurus Molecular Cloud. Then, leftover material began to cool and coalesce around it, forming dust grains and a hazy …

A hectic week of orbital flights continues with a SpaceX launch Wednesday

By Eric Berger This is an extraordinary week for orbital launches. On Monday, alone, a Soyuz rocket carried three humans into space, en route to the International Space Station. Then, a Falcon 9 rocket launched 64 smallsats into orbit about 500km above the planet. On Tuesday, the flurry of activity continued when an Ariane 5 rocket lofted two …

Couple claims they were driven out of workplace for being ‘too gay’

By Rosa Marchitelli A lesbian couple says they were driven out of their jobs as paramedics and firefighters in a small Alberta town for being “too gay.” Sheri and Alyssa Monk say they were discriminated against and expected to follow different rules than their heterosexual colleagues, saying they were told not to talk about their personal lives at …

Southern Baptist minister embroiled in election fraud controversy

By Jack Jenkins The Rev. Mark Harris, a Southern Baptist pastor turned aspiring congressman, is facing allegations of election fraud in North Carolina, where authorities are investigating whether an operative for his campaign paid workers to take absentee ballots from voters illegally. The probe is centered on Leslie McCrae Dowless, who was hired by the …