American Freethought Podcast

Original release March 29, 2014. Encore release October 24, 2018. Encore release July 17, 2017. As promised in podcast 198, here's David's reading of an article from the old Secular Nation Podcast, in which Nate Phelps tells of his experience growing up under his infamous father, the late Fred Phelps of Westboro Baptist Church.

Original release March 29, 2014. Encore release October 24, 2018. Encore release July 17, 2017. This summer's Supreme Court ruling on the Hobby Lobby case will decide whether or not private, for-profit employers can opt out of federal legislation based on sincerely held religious belief. (Cartoon from RobRogers.com.) Fred Phelps, founder of the infamous Westboro Baptist Church, has died. If you live in the Washington, DC, area, check out author Lawrence Wright's new play Camp David (about the Egypt-Israel peace accord brokered by Jimmy Carter). It stars Richard Thomas and Ron Rifkin. The Baseball Bat of Doubt returns! We read an excerpt from David Mahlar's Kindle short "Forming a Worldview: One Man's Journey." Finally, if you're in metro Atlanta, put the upcoming SkeptiCamp on your calendar, May 3-4, 2014.

Original release March 14, 2014. Encore release October 23, 2018. Encore release July 16, 2017. We discuss the pilot episode of COSMOS: A Spacetime Odyssey, Neil deGrasse Tyson's reboot of Carl Sagan's classic 1980 documentary miniseries. It airs on FOX TV Sundays at 9PM Eastern. Plus: Former Tennessee Judge Lu Ann "You Can't Name Your Kid 'Messiah'" Belluw is in more trouble. Not only has she been fired for letting her religious beliefs get in the way of her judicial obligations, now she's been censured by the state Board of Judicial Conduct. Darren Aronofsky's upcoming film Noah is under fire. Fundamentalist Christians (including Ken Ham) are upset it's not a literal interpretation of the Old Testament story, and some Muslim-majority countries are banning the film because it dares to depict one of the prophets of Islam.

Original release March 1, 2014. Encore release October 22, 2018. Encore release July 15, 2017. We look at the recent rash of legislation (either proposed or actually passed) in several states that try to protect anti-gay discrimination under the banner of religious freedom. Briefly, these broadly-worded bills require the state to show that there is a compelling state interest and no practical alternative when infringing on the religious freedom of citizens. That's all fine and dandy, but what it's really sets out to do is allow discrimination against homosexuals, among other things. Arizona Governor Jan Brewer just vetoed one such bill, arguing (correctly, but much to her chagrin, we are sure) that she could not find "one example in Arizona where a business owner’s religious liberty has been violated." Plus: (Another) snake-handling preacher dies handling a snake. Herbert and Catherine Schiable have just been sentenced to no more than seven years in prison for allowing their infant son to die of pneum

Original release February 16, 2014. Encore release October 21, 2018. Encore release July 14, 2017. We analyze the recent Bill Nye/Ken Ham debate on the scientific viability of Creationism. While we're at it, we discuss the new HBO documentary Questioning Darwin and Kevin Jackson's e-book Darwin's Odyssey: The Voyage of the Beagle (available for Kindle). And in a related story, we listen to the disturbing responses regarding Creationism from all four Republican candidates for Lieutenant Governor of Texas. Plus: President Obama speaks at the National Prayer Breakfast, and (finally) Tennessee Judge Lu Ann Ballew is removed from her post for letting her religious beliefs interfere with her Constitutional duties. Finally, we look at the cinematic train wreck (haha! get it?) that is Atlas Shrugged Part II.

Original release January 28,, 2014. Encore release October 20, 2018. Encore release July 13, 2017. [Illustration from http://www.politico.com/story/2013/05/virginia-gay-rights-terry-mcauliffe-ew-jackson-91763.html] President Obama mentions "atheists and agnostics" in his annual Religious Freedom Day proclamation and there's hardly a peep from the conservative blogosphere. In year's past Obama has made occasional mention of "non-believers" so I guess an explicit mention is a step up. On the down side, the President is still schedule to attend the National Prayer Breakfast, sponsored by the secretive conservative religious organization The Family. On the gay rights front: Amazing what a few weeks can do. On New Year's Eve Virginia had a Republican Governor, Lt Governor and Attorney General. Now they've been replaced by Democrats. Virginia's newly-elected AG Mark Herring has said he won't defend the commonwealth's constitutional ban on same-sex marriages. Meanwhile, in Maryland, a mother is in jail, accus

Original release January 17, 2014. Encore release October 19, 2018. Encore release July 12, 2017. The sports world continues to be rocked by controversy over gay rights. NFL punter Chris Kluwe (who's straight, for what it's worth) claims he was let go because of his advocacy for gay rights. (Kluwe is also the author of the humorous and thought-provoking essay collection Beautifully Unique Sparkleponies, (available in hardcover and for Kindle). Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, recently retired footballer Thomas Hitzlsperger has revealed that he's gay and is calling for people to put pressure on Russia over that country's anti-gay developments ahead of the Sochi Olympics. (And speaking of athletes, 95-year-old Belgian masters athletics champion Emiel Pauwels decided to end his own life rather than suffer the physical, emotional and financial pain of terminal cancer. With his family's support, Pauwels organized a farewell party and was allowed to die in accordance with Belgian law. Would that it were so in Am

Original release December 31, 2013. Encore release October 18, 2018. Encore release July 11, 2017. We interview Troy Fitzgerald, founder of Secular Safe House, a new organization devoted to providing a voice, support and safe refuge for those coming out of religion, cults, or as LGBT. Troy shares his personal account of leaving a cult AND coming out as gay in his book Cults and Closets: Coming out of Chaos (available in paperback and for Kindle). Troy blogs at CultsandClosets.com.  That's it for 2013. Happy New Year!

Original release December 17, 2013. Encore release October 17, 2018. Encore release July 10, 2017. Recent Supreme Court rulings on Ten Commandments displays on government property have opened the door to all kinds of groups (including Satanists, Hindus, and even American Atheists) wanting to clutter the landscape with their own monuments. Oy! Now there's a War on Hanukkah. A Florida minister is in hot water over posting "CHRISTMAS - EASIER TO SPELL THAN HANUKKAH" on his church's outdoor sign. Is this just harmless humor, or something more sinister? Meanwhile, a security guard in Tennessee has pled guilty in federal court to spitting on a Torah and writing anti-Semitic and Satanic messages on materials belonging to a Jewish group staying at his hotel. Some say it's a simple property crime, but he's being charged for civil rights violations. Finally, Arkansas Senator Mark "You Don't Have to Pass an IQ Test to Be in the Senate" Pryor is facing a challenge in next year's re-election campaign. In order to h

Original release November 25, 2013. Encore release October 16, 2018. Encore release July 9, 2017. Not much of a war this year, and if there is one it looks like Christmas is winning. The American Family Association's "Naughty or Nice" list features far more companies that are Christmas-friendly than not. Sarah Palin has a new book out: Good Tidings and Great Joy: Protecting the Heart of Christmas. It's more word salad from the former governor of Alaska, in which she laments the supposed assault on the Baby Jesus' Birthday. Check out Katy Steinmetz's humorous review at TIME. Here are our suggestions for holiday gifts for non-believers: David's suggestions: 5. A gym membership ('cause this the only body you'll ever have) 4. One or more of the following books: The Great Agnostic by Susan Jacoby; What You Don't Know about Religion (but Should) by Ryan Cragun; Last Ape Standing by Chip Walter 3. A Nice Trip (David recommends Vegas) 2. Contribution in their name to American Atheists (or some other secular ch

Original release November 15, 2013. Encore release October 15, 2018. Encore release July 8, 2017. A high school track-and-field athlete in Kentucky decides to skip the state championship rather than run with race number 666. We discuss Denise Spellberg's book Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an: Islam and the Founders, which explores what Enlightenment thinkers thought about Islam and how that influenced the Founding Fathers' opinions on religious freedom (available in hardcover and for Kindle). Finally, the Supreme Court hears Greece v. Galloway. The Court's ruling next year could shape how city and county governments handle prayer before public meetings.

Original release October 27, 2013. Encore release October 14, 2018. Encore release July 7, 2017. We discuss the puzzling sideshow of Diane Reidy, the stenographer who works for the US House of Representatives, who grabbed the microphone after the vote to end the government shutdown, ranting about the Freemasons, the Constitution, and how this was never One Nation Under God. Why did she do it? And what is a stenographer, anyway? See the whole thing here. Plus: Police in Montgomery, Alabama are dispatching clergy to crime scenes. While their intentions may be good, they are creating a dangerous and unnecessary relationship between government and religion. American Atheists and the Freedom From Religion Foundation have sent letters of objection. Support a Kickstarter campaign to animate the story of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Check out the new miniseries documentary from Roderick Bradford called "American Freethought" (no connection to the American Freethought podcast), which explores "the history of

Original release October 14, 2013. Encore release October 13, 2018. Encore release July 6, 2017. We interview linguist Karen Stollznow, author of God Bless America: Strange and Unusual Religious Beliefs and Practices in the United States (available in paperback and for Kindle). Also check out her ebook Haunting America. Karen has spent two decades writing about a diverse array of topics, including language, culture, religion, science, pseudoscience, and the paranormal. She pens the “Bad Language” column for Skeptic magazine and is a Research Fellow of the James Randi Educational Foundation. For more about Karen and her work, visit KarenStollznow.com.

Original release October 1, 2013. Encore release October 12, 2018. Encore release July 5, 2017. Seriously, IS the Pope Catholic? We look at several eyebrow-raising comments about atheists, homosexuals and women made by still-new-at-the job Pope Francis. Does he really intend to steer the church in a fresh direction, or is he just employing soothing rhetoric? After all, he's only excommunicated ONE person since he came into power: an Australian priest who advocates ordaining women (gasp) into the priesthood. Plus: Is "sexual jihad" a real thing? Or is it just an urban legend? And...listener feedback!

Original release September 14, 2013. Encore release October 11, 2018. Encore release July 4, 2017. We interview George Hrab, musician, songwriter, humorist, podcaster and outspoken skeptic/atheist. He's the mastermind and host of the Geologic Podcast, and he has just released a new live concert DVD called "21812: A Gneiss Night Out."

Original release September 7, 2013. Encore release October 10, 2018. Encore release July 3, 2017. It's our annual live presentation on the SkepTrack at Dragon Con! Among the topics discussed: A Boy Named Messiah, Holey Scripture on Demons and Demon Possession, God Is My Attorney, and Obama's Scorecard on Secular Issues. Thanks again to Derek Colanduno for organizing the track, and to Mark Ditsler of Abrupt Media for audiovisual support.

Original release August 15, 2013. Encore release October 9, 2018. Encore release July 2, 2017. We interview Ryan Cragun, sociologist and author of What You Don't Know about Religion (but Should) (available in hardcover and for Kindle). Ryan is also the co-author of Could I Vote for a Mormon for President? as well as the landmark study "How Secular Humanists (and Everyone Else) Subsidize Religion in the United States." For more about Ryan Cragun, visit RyanTCragun.com. Plus: David and Vonda will miss it this year, but John and Allison will be at the upcoming Atlanta Star Party, Thursday, August 29, 7PM on the campus of Emory University. Guests will include astronomers Phil Plait, Nicole Gugliucci, Pamela Gay and Derek Demeter. For more visit AtlantaStarParty.com. John will be introducing Dr. Frans de Waal (The Bonobo and the Atheist) at the Decatur Book Festival, Sunday, September 1, 5PM. For more visit DecaturBookFestival.com. Finally, our live presentation of American Freethought will be Sunday, Sept

Original release July 24, 2013. Encore release October 8, 2018. Encore release July 1, 2017. We interview scholar Reza Aslan, author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth (available in hardcover and for Kindle). In this new book, he seeks to separate the mythological Jesus from the actual, historical figure. For more about Reza Aslan, visit RezaAslan.com. Plus: David and Vonda will miss it this year, but John and Allison will be at the upcoming Atlanta Star Party, Thursday, August 29, 7PM on the campus of Emory University. Guests will include astronomers Phil Plait, Nicole Gugliucci, Pamela Gay and Derek Demeter. For more visitAtlantaStarParty.com. John will be introducing Dr. Frans de Waal (The Bonobo and the Atheist) at the Decatur Book Festival, Sunday, September 1, 5PM. For more visit DecaturBookFestival.com. Finally, our live presentation of American Freethought will be Sunday, September 1, 10PM at Dragon*Con's SkepTrack! For more visit SkepTrack.org. See you there!

Original release July 17, 2013. Encore release October 7, 2018. Encore release June 30, 2017. We interview humanist and activist Leo Igwe on his research into witchcraft accusations in rural Ghana. Belief in witchcraft is widespread in Africa, and it's common for people to make false accusations in order to get rid of handicapped children, the elderly, romantic rivals, and other problematic persons. You can support Leo's research by contributing through the Foundation Beyond Belief's Pathfinders Project. Plus: A Christian listener challenges us to explain the seeming contradiction between inherent homosexuality and evolution by natural selection. 

Original release July 7, 2013. Encore release October 6, 2018. Encore release June 29, 2017. The Supreme Court ends its session with historic decisions affecting marriage equality, including overturning the federal government's so-called Defense of Marriage Act, and letting stand a challenge to California's Proposition 8, which would have made same-sex marriage illegal in that state. The Catholic Church is moving forward, with flimsy evidence indeed, with its plan to make the late John Paul II a saint. Virginia's gubernatorial election is coming soon, and the Republican ticket includes climate-change denier Ken Cuccinelli for governor and E. W. Jackson (who denies evolution, believes yoga opens your mind for Satanic possession, and thinks government programs for the poor have harmed black people more than slavery ever did) for lieutenant governor. Plus: One listener brings our attention to another state legislature/secular invocation controversy, and another takes John to task for (hopefully inadverte