THE FOCUS     

Section 1 of  4                           August  4, 2006                      Volume 2, Issue 31

                  

Published by the Center For Atheism (CFA)

Editor: Suzy Lanza

Email: THEFOCUSATCFA@AOL.COM

   

The Focus will provide links to articles collected

from major newspapers and magazines, and will be emailed weekly. 

 

The Focus has four sections.

Section #1:  News Articles

Section #2:  CFA Programs

Section #3:  Special Notices

Section #4:  Legislation Alerts       

Please email any comments and suggestions to THEFOCUS@CENTERFORATHEISM.ORG

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See Section #1: News Articles
And Skeletons Won't Dance - American Chronicle
... Christians are afraid atheism is the real truth. They hate the non-believers (a form of fear) for this reason. Atheism is the wake-up call they don’t want. ...
 
 
 
A Pox on Stem Cell Research - NYT
Medical progress has stirred religious and moral objections throughout history — objections that were overcome as the benefits of medical advances became overwhelmingly obvious.
 
See Section #2: Center for Atheism Programs
See Section #3: Special Notices
See Section #4: Legislation Alerts

LEGISLATION DESCRIPTION, FIND YOUR ELECTED OFFICIAL, LETTER TEMPLATE, 
           COMPOSE LETTER, SEND LETTER.
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Section 1 of  4

                                                  NEWS ARTICLES

 

Some publications may require that you sign up for membership

to view their article.

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  ATHEISM
 
And Skeletons Won't Dance - American Chronicle
... Christians are afraid atheism is the real truth. They hate the non-believers (a form of fear) for this reason. Atheism is the wake-up call they don’t want. ...

Attacking Pat Tillman’s Family with the Atheism Card - Truthdig
... in an exchange of faith for immortality or in deflecting the sorry truth onto a bereaved and angered family with cheap revival-tent accusations of ‘atheism ...

After years of hibernation, atheists Ethel Hale and Paul Wharton ... - Salt Lake City Weekly
... Both avowed atheists, Hale and Wharton have together for nearly 40 years fought what they’ve seen as the intentions of local religious, political and ...
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BOOKS / FILMS / THEATRE / TV
 
Talking to the middle ground- GetReligion
... The book seems liveliest when Collins turns his guns from atheists on the left to creationists and intelligent designers on the right, urging the abandonment...
 
Geneticist Seeks to Bridge Gap Between Faith and Science - Raleigh Biblical Recorder
... and his faith in Jesus. discredit atheism, agnosticism, creationism and Intelligent Design. At the. same time, he promotes evolution ...

Review: Francis Crick - International Herald Tribune
... Instead, it is interlaced with descriptions of Crick's vacations, parties and assertions of atheism - occasionally colorful stuff that drains the intellectual ...
 
Click here: Bill Moyers on Faith & Reason . Watch & Listen | PBS
 
Biblical Studies 101: Required Coursework for Ann Coulter - Blogcritics.org
... According to adherents, 31 percent of Americans claim to be Democrats, while atheists and agnostics combined make up less than one percent of the population. ...

Guardian Unlimited Books | By genre | Original spin
When Charles Darwin published his most controversial work, four friends took the brunt of the public storm. It is they, argues Janet Browne, ...
 
Guardian Unlimited Books | Review | Bones of contention
Tom Paine's revolutionary writings continue to be an ... So it has gone with the work and reputation of Thomas Paine: sometimes obscure, ...
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EVOLUTION / CREATIONISM / INTELLIGENT DESIGN
 
How the Phenomenon of Aging First Appeared via Evolution - Fitcommerce
... whole process of aging. ". If the mechanism of Death was chosen by evolution, then how was aging chosen? Why, for example, at certain ...
 
Revolutionary thinking on evolution forces rethink on species - Sydney Morning Herald
... His research suggests modern humans arose much more recently than had been thought. "Basically, any studies that look at evolution in the past million years ...
 
So Big and Healthy Grandpa Wouldn’t Even Know You - NYT
The past 100 years has seen a change from small, sickly people to humans who are so robust their ancestors are almost unrecognizable.
 
The language of life - Los Angeles Times
... of life can be explained best by a guiding intelligence — be it a supreme deity or a space alien — not the undirected action of evolution and natural ...
 
Evolution Fight Shifts Direction in Kansas Vote - NYT
State Board of Education election results were seen as a significant defeat for the movement of intelligent design.
 
The Evolution of Kansas - NYT
The seesaw battle over state science standards in Kansas seems to have tipped back a bit in the direction of sanity.
 
Sunday beer sales get mixed reviews - Corning Leader
... According to Wikipedia, many blue laws have been overturned on the basis of the Constitution's separation of church and state. However ...
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SCIENCE
 
A Pox on Stem Cell Research - NYT
Medical progress has stirred religious and moral objections throughout history — objections that were overcome as the benefits of medical advances became overwhelmingly obvious.
 
Life After Earth: Imagining Survival Beyond This Terra Firma - NYT
The Alliance to Rescue Civilization advocates a back-up for humanity by way of a station on the Moon replete with DNA samples of all life on Earth.
 
Researcher studies gene families to explore diversity and ... - PhysOrg.com
... In a recent paper published in the journal Evolution, Proulx and colleague Patrick Phillips, professor, University of Oregon, Eugene, show that the process of ...
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SEPARATION OF CHURCH / STATE
 
Americans United: July 06 Victory In Iowa
Americans United Wins Sweeping Federal Court Ruling Against ‘Faith-Based’ funding For InnerChange Prison Ministry. by Rob Boston ...
Families Challenging Religious Influence in Delaware Schools - NYT
A dispute in Georgetown, Del., underscores the rising tensions over religion in public schools.
 
Veteran declares war against proselytizing in the military - Houston Chronicle
... He starts to get riled up, saying that "the Christian right wants people to think that separation of church and state is a myth, like Bigfoot.". ...
 
concerns the "Responsibilities of the Department of Homeland Security with Respect to Faith-Based and Community Initiatives".
 
Executive Order 13397 - Church Under Military Control? - American Chronicle
The separation of church and state - gone with the stroke of a pen. As of March 7, 2006, our nation’s leader signed another Executive ...
 
Rent suit may have bigger impact than cross case - San Diego Union Tribune
... of keeping, in their minds, a separation of church and state,” Chadwick said. “Obviously, we completely disagree with their position. ...
 
Bad Judgment - ChristianityToday.com
... it's the finding of US District Judge Robert Pratt in deciding on June 2 the lawsuit against PF brought by Americans United for Separation of Church and State. ...
 
Religious freedom must be lawful - Albany Times Union
... state licensing law that prohibited liquor licenses for bars within 200 feet of a place of worship violated the constitutional separation of church and state. ...
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MISC.
 
Reasonable Doubt - NYT
Baruch Spinoza’s life and thought have the power to illuminate the kind of events that at the moment seem so intractable and overwhelming.
 
Disowning Conservative Politics, Evangelical Pastor Rattles Flock - NYT
Upheaval at one megachurch reflects concern over the tendency to tie evangelical Christianity to the G.O.P.
 
Our Lady of Discord - NYT 
The bottom line for the founder of Domino’s Pizza has been helping people get to heaven. But Thomas Monaghan now faces some unexpected earthly trials.
 
Conservative Pastor Steers Clear of Politics, and Pays - New York ... - NYT
Audio of Some of the Rev. Gregory Boyd's Sermons (mp3). 'Taking America Back for God?' 'The Difference Between the Two Kingdoms' ...
in the church.
 
Mel Gibson: The Speed of Scandal - NYT
The speed at which the scandal surrounding Mel Gibson unfolded was almost as stunning as Mr. Gibson’s tirade itself.
 
What's Law Got to Do with It? - ChristianityToday.com
... philosopher Jacques Maritain, and flowered further in Vatican II's endorsement of democratic freedoms and a measure of separation between church and state. ...
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Section 2 of 4 
CFA PROGRAMS

 

The Center for Atheism (CFA) was established by New York City

Atheists as a separate and independent national organization to

propose, develop and be a catalyst for new national activities

supporting the objectives of atheists, agnostics, humanists,

freethinkers, skeptics, secularists and separation-of-church/state

advocates.

CFA will accept and review suggestions from individuals and

other secular organizations that will foster our goals  

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SECTION 3 OF 4                                                            

SPECIAL NOTICES

 

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SECTION 4 OF 4
LEGISLATION ALERTS

* Click on bill to read its description
* enter your zip code to find your elected officials
* this will bring you to a message page
* use template to compose message
* send message
 
Legislative Action Center
Alert!  
'To require everyone to pay all elected and appointed officials to engage in public prayer.'

Click Here.
OPPOSE S. 1765 and Stop the Rebuilding of Churches and Vouchers

Click Here.
Stop the Broadband Investment & Consumer Choice Act

Also oppose H.R. 3146 and S. 1349 Click Here.
Stop The Religious Right From Attacking Science Classes

Click Here.
Stop Congress From Passing The Madrassas Readiness Act

Click Here.
S. 520 - A bill to limit the jurisdiction of Federal courts in cases involving god(s)

Stop the Congress from overturning the First Amendment Click Here.
H.R. 1070 Eliminates Jurisdiction of Federal Courts In Cases Involving God.

Stop The Congress From Overturning the First Amendment. Click Here.
'Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relating to voluntary school prayer.'

Another School Prayer Amendment Click Here.