Being the reasonable adult in 2012

Will the world end on December 21, 2012?

No. No. NO. A thousand times NO.

No Fraud, No God – Drinking Skeptically

In February 2009, I organized Harrisburg’s outlet for Drinking Skeptically – a casual, social meetup for those who value science and critical thinking. Drinking Skeptically has meetups all over the country (including Philadelphia and Pittsburgh) with the numbers growing every month. Originally begun in the UK as Skeptics in the Pub, it served as a new way to get like-minded individuals together in a comfortable setting. It’s been a great success as part of what I view as a growing skeptical movement.

There is plenty of overlapping territory between skepticism and atheism. Several PA Nonbelievers members attend Drinking Skeptically – Harrisburg.

PAN members are skeptical of not only god(s) but also spirits, angels, faith healing, miracles and special creation/intelligent design. We reject the religious claims that a “sky father” affects us humans partially because no good evidence has been presented for this while considerable evidence exists to support reasonable, alternative explanations for nature. Skepticism is a method by which we can look for confirming or disconfirming evidence in other aspects of life.

I’ve been a skeptic since about age 20 when my science-prone mind, curiosity about the truth and intellectual influences poked gaping holes in the validity of claims about ghosts, Bigfoot, UFOs and lake monsters. Ultimately, this epiphany led me to discard organized religion altogether. I’m now a secular humanist – agnostic.

Skepticism and non-theism are closely aligned but not mutually inclusive. There are nontheistic people who believe in an inordinate amount of new age goofiness. And, there are great scientists and skeptics who are people of faith. Harry Houdini is an example of someone who exemplified one who can be against fraud without being against God. He was a masterful debunker of psychics and spiritualist mediums while remaining respectful of his Jewish heritage.

I would be glad to ‘drink skeptically’ with other skeptics who accept religion. I think we all should be open to this for several reasons: Not all religious people are irrational – many are downright moderate and value science. We shouldn’t exclude via stereotype since we don’t like it when people do that to us. Exchange of ideas is good for everyone. Most importantly, we need allies to fight against teaching nonsense in schools, fraudulent health therapies, scams and magical thinking. If people wish to compartmentalize their faith in a separate area of the brain than the one that criticizes astrology, alien abductions and homeopathy, we can stand on some common ground. So, when you join us for Drinking Skeptically, don’t assume the entire group is of nonbelievers. It may be a diverse crowd in attendance enjoying some common doubt.

To pass on ideas or to get info on Drinking Skeptically events email idoubtit00(at)gmail.com (those are double zeros in the address) or visit the Facebook page for Drinking Skeptically – Harrisburg.

*This was originally published on the PA Nonbelievers blog and in PANViews.

New PA bigfoot sighting? Set your skeptical flags flying.

Oh, dear. Out of the news loop for a day or two and another Bigfoot sighting comes along.

Scholarly Saturday night: Singing ’bout Darwin

Last night was the Concert for Darwin – a special event presented by Jefferson Pepper, Lauri Lebo and folks from the Central PA ACLU. PA Nonbelievers helped with ticket sales. It was held at the incredible Midtown Scholar bookstore in Harrisburg. It was quite amazing that such an intelligent and unique event took place inside a new venue for a successful, independent bookstore. If you ever pass through downtown Harrisburg, you will notice blight, crime, garbage and poverty. Yet, in midtown, around the Broad Street Market, there is occuring a revitalization. Thanks to the Harrisburg Community College’s downtown campus and other investments, this place is shaping up. I’ll be visiting the bookstore again and again for books (of course) and what will certainly be more outstanding events such as this.

It would be hard to top this. Lauri Lebo was jumping around, getting stuff ready, saying ‘hi’ and signing autographs of her book. She began the night by introducing a very special guest, Dr. Eugenie Scott of the National Center for Science Education. Genie is a hero to so many of us. I was so, so pleased to meet her and have her back in Harrisburg for such a positive event. Genie played a pivotal role in the Kitzmiller v Dover trial. Many of the plantiffs, including some of the kids, were in the audience this evening. Smiles were all around.

Lauri then introduced Jefferson Pepper who played solo and with his band folk and americana tunes that expressed the raw feelings many in the audience had about the state of American culture. I DO NOT like country music but the lyrics and themes felt very personal to me. Plus, I’m partial to a fiddle (being a violin player a while ago). The sound was excellent and I enjoyed every minute. Find out more about Jeff’s music here.

Next, was the remarkable and unmatched Dr. Ken Miller. I’ve seen him speak before and would so love to have him as a teacher. Well, he is a teacher every time I listen to him. Dr. Miller sat in the front row to watch the incomparable Baba Brinkman – evolutionary rapper. I have never heard anything like this. I only wish I had such an exceptional grasp of language and rhyme. I was blown away.

If you missed it, YOU MISSED SOMETHING. I think everyone had an outstanding time. We should all do this more often.

Intermission – Idea for new kids site

That creepy picture of JesusJayZombie is freaking me out so I needed a post to bump it down.

I should be reading some papers for school but I’m not. They are BOR-ING. Why is academic writing so boring? I can read some long-haired stuff but, man, this crap puts me to sleep.

I’m in the process of starting yet another blog. But, it’s not very bloggy just yet. I am constructing a web site for kids (middle readers) about monsters and spooky stuff.