ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 91

More Americans OK with businesses not serving gays based on religion, survey finds

By Tim Fitzsimons Support for LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections edged up slightly from 2015 to 2019, but during that same time, support for “religious refusal” laws that allow businesses to deny service to gay men and lesbians increased, according to an annual survey released Tuesday by the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute, or PRRI. Seventy-two percent of the …

Child sex abuse in Pakistan’s religious schools is endemic

By Kathy Gannon Muhimman proudly writes his name slowly, carefully, one letter at a time, grinning broadly as he finishes. He’s just 11 years old and was a good student who had dreams of being a doctor. School frightens him now. Earlier this year, a cleric at the religious school he faithfully attended in the …

Prominent Virginia pastor who said ‘God is larger than this dreaded virus’ dies of covid-19

By Michelle Boorstein A prominent Richmond-area evangelical pastor died on the eve of Easter after contracting the novel coronavirus. Bishop Gerald Glenn, 66, founder and leader since 1995 of the New Deliverance Evangelistic Church in Chesterfield, was the first black chaplain of that community’s police department and was a police officer before becoming a pastor, the Richmond …

Student sues Liberty University, demands refund due to coronavirus response

By David K. Li A student at Liberty University — which is under fire for opening its campus during the coronavirus pandemic — filed a class-action lawsuit against against the school, demanding a refund. The anonymous plaintiff said if the university, established by Moral Majority founder Jerry Fallwell Sr., is to remain open at full cost, then it should also …

A food safety expert on why you’re unlikely to get the coronavirus from groceries or takeout

By Rebecca Jennings I was the 136th journalist to interview Ben Chapman this month. That’s not exactly surprising — we are in the middle of a pandemic, and Chapman is a food safety specialist who studies foodborne illness and has a podcast about how to avoid it. The North Carolina State University professor has been all …

Welcome to the Trumpocalypse

By Bob Moser Donald Trump had such high hopes for Easter. So high, in fact, that when he burst forth on Fox News a couple of weeks ago with his idea of “re-opening” the country wide this coming Sunday, he gave it an exemplary rating of three “beautifuls”: “I just thought that it was a beautiful time …  …

Atheists are the Most Politically Active Group in the United States

By Ryan P. Burge, Eastern Illinois University It’s become almost a trope at this point among people who study and write about American religion and politics – evangelicals punch way above their weight. Their voter turnout has stayed relatively steady despite their drop in population share. But, I was working through some data today and noticed something that …

How the first visitor to our Solar System may have formed—no alien technology required

By Sid Perkins When ‘Oumuamua swooped into our Solar System in 2017, the object stirred up excitement. The strange shape and trajectory of this first known visitor from interstellar space prompted even some serious scientists to suggest it might be an alien probe. But a new study arrives at a much more mundane explanation. ‘Oumuamua—“scout” or “messenger” in …

Kentucky Cops Sent Warnings to Dozens of Christians Who Went to Church on Easter

By Hemant Mehta Last week, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear warned people — not just Christians, but everyone — that if they gathered in groups in defiance of his stay-at-home order, law enforcement officials would record their license plates so that the state could send out orders urging people to self-quarantine for the next 14 days. As with all governors, …

DOJ says to ‘expect action’ on religious gatherings and social distancing regulation

By Evan Perez and Veronica Stracqualursi The Department of Justice said it expects to take action next week regarding the impact social distancing regulations are having on religious institutions across the country. Attorney General William Barr “is monitoring (government) regulation of religious services,” said Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec on Twitter late Saturday. “While social distancing policies are appropriate …