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Weekly columns:
Feb - Dec 2005
Jan - Dec 2006
Jan - Jun 2007
There were no opinion pieces
Jul 2007 - Jul 2008
Blog
August 2008
2007 Columns
112. A plague on all your houses
Sunnis and Shias in the Middle East
June 17, 2007
111. Victory or defeat?
Tibetan and the Chinese occupation
June 10, 2007
110. A natural state
We all were - and will be - atheists
June 3, 2007
109. A question of scale
The universe and me
May 27, 2007
108. The mask of compassion
The face of evil
May 20, 2007
107. Adults only
Sex, drugs and religion
May 13, 2007
106. A conversation with ourselves
The pointlessness of prayer
May 6, 2007
105. Pain and loss
The inevitability of suffering
April 29, 2007
104. Seduced into religion
Why faith persists
April 22, 2007
103. Ignorance is not evidence of God
Debating God's existence (iii)
April 15, 2007
102. Lack of cause
Debating God's existence (ii)
April 8, 2007
101. Clinging to faith
Debating God's existence (i)
April 1, 2007
100. Reasons to believe
Why God must exist
March 25, 2007
99. Where did Christ go?
The Ascension
March 18, 2007
98. From one fantasy to another
Anne Rice and the seven-year-old Christ
March 4, 2007
97. The Buddhist idyll
Peace and quiet in Luang Prabang
February 25, 2007
96. Happy Reasonday!
Socrates and March 20
February 11, 2007
95. An atheist's credo
Knowledge and belief
February 4, 2007
94. Faith as fashion
Following the crowd
January 28, 2007
93. Good news for atheists
The Bible is not the word of God
January 21, 2007
92. SQUID, missing cats and the afterlife
Morality and the death penalty
January 14, 2007
91. An eye for an eye
Morality and the death penalty
January 7, 2007
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT
"As conscious beings we
are fully aware that we will die, and as conscious beings we are, not
surprisingly, reluctant to do so. Faced with the prospect of extinction,
most of us who are healthy, active and free would prefer to live as long
as possible."
How many virgins?
"How familiar are you with the names of Baruch Goldstein and
Muhammad Abd al-Basset Oudeh?
Both were mass murderers. Both were circumcised monotheists who spoke a
Semitic language and refused to eat pig meat. And both killed for the
right of their fellow-believers to occupy a piece of land smaller than
New Jersey."
Why not Hawaii?
"Here we are with a couple of hours to spare and nothing
better to do than translate Genesis from ancient Hebrew into modern English.
That version of chapter one, verse one looks all right, but there's something
missing. Let's check the original again. What's the fourth word? "Elohim" Of
course; the -im ending means it's plural, like cherubim and seraphim. Let's try
again. 'In the beginning, the gods created heaven and earth.' "
How many gods?
"Today belief in God is crazy, pointless and sometimes downright harmful, but that wasn't always the case. Religion
helped us evolve from primates dominated by short-term instinct into human beings
capable of forming sophisticated societies."
The evolution of religion
"The United States
prides itself on championing freedom and in enshrining the pursuit of
happiness in its constitution. It is ironic that so many Americans
espouse a moral code whose impact is to restrict both freedom and
happiness. America needs moral values, but values that respect and honor
every citizen."
What moral values?
"Maybe Noah had some help building the Ark; he may have contracted some
of the men on God's death list. 'No, no. there isn't going to be a Flood. I just
want to give the wife something to look at while she's washing dishes.' "
How did the koala get to Australia?
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If God existed, he would...
admire the beauty of a universe that he did not create
recognize that eternity is meaningless
deny both heaven and hell
disown all men and women who speak in his name
denounce the harm caused by religious "morality"
help the human race to thrive without him
If God existed, he would be an atheist.
What is the difference between science and faith?
science is certain of nothing and requires proof of everything
faith is certain of everything and requires proof of nothing
Which do you trust?
"I know there is no God"
or
"I believe there is no God"
???
Check the answer
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