Arkansas Atheists

Remember to be a VOTING member of ASF you must send me your correct name and an email address and or phone number. Elections will be coming up soon and everyone who wants to have a voice in the process will need to send me their email address and name. Remember these are not released to anyone except officers of ASF without your permission.

Meetings this month: (Please mark your calendars with these dates, depending on time this may be the only notice you get.)
August 1: 5pm movie at Aerospace center
6PM Recovery from Religion at Benton Library
Recovering from Religion™ - Little Rock, AR (Little Rock, AR) - Meetup.com
August 4: 7PM Vino's social gathering
August 23: 1:30 PM Discussion Greetings and visitation 1:30PM-1:45PM, Group Business meeting 1:45-2:45, discussion, presentation etc 3-4:30 pm.
August 29: Movie Night 7:30PM At Bill's house. Directions are on the forum.

Let me know of any other events you think others may be interested in and I will post them.
We need volunteers for presentations. We need a volunteer to be a greeter at the discussion group meeting and make sure everyone gets a name tag and membership application. We also need volunteers to help set up. You need to be there at 1:00 pm to help with this. The food tables and projector don't just jump into place we need people to help with this. Also let me know if you have any ideas for topics or presentations you would like to see.

Interesting sites to visit:
American Humanists: Humanist Network News-http://americanhumanist.org/hnn
The Brights:
The Brights' Net - Home Page
American Atheists:
http://www.atheists.org
http://www.americanatheist.org
http://www.atheistviewpoint.tv
BBC - Science & Nature - Human Body and Mind - Face Memory Test-
This test will determine if you're getting enough sleep or if your mind has really lost it! The test consists of three parts:
You'll be shown 12 photos in the first part,
You'll be shown another 12 photos in the second part,
You'll be shown 48 photos in the third part and asked if you saw them in the first part, the second part - or never saw them at all.
When you have finished the third part, your results will be given to you.

Click here to begin.

Sam Harris on Francis Collins nomination to direct National Institutes of Health: Science is in the details-
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/27/opinion/27harris.html

The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution
by Richard Dawkins
comes out on the 22nd of September.
It is available for pre-order at:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Greatest-Show-Earth-Evidence-Evolution/dp/059306173X/ref=pd_sim_b_3
http://www.amazon.com/Greatest-Show-Earth-Evidence-Evolution/dp/1416594787/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1249068260&sr=8-1

God Delusion Debate between Dawkins and Lennox-http://www.fixed-point.org/index.php/video/35-full-length/164-the-dawkins-lennox-debate-The God Delusion Debate (Dawkins-Lennox)
Watch the God Delusion Debate from October 3rd of 2007 in Birmingham, Alabama, Professor Richard Dawkins and his Oxford University colleague Professor John Lennox engaged in a lively debate over what is arguably the most critical question of our time: the existence of God. The debate centered on Dawkins' views as expressed in his best-seller, The God Delusion, and their validity over and against the Christian faith. Both presenters agreed to the format and topics of discussion.

Non Believers losing faith in Obama-http://www.politicsdaily.com/2009/07/31/obama-losing-the-faith-less/

British Humanist Association: Anti-witchcraft conference attacked by Christian church in Nigeria
http://www.politics.co.uk/opinion-formers/press-releases/children-and-family/british-humanist-association-anti-witchcraft-conference-attacked-by-christian-church-in-nigeria-$1315424$365873.htm
Leo Igwe, a friend of the British Humanist Association and Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Humanist Movement, was attacked yesterday during a raid by 150 to 200 members of a Christian church at a conference he had organised on "Child Rights and Witchcraft" in Calabar.

Atheist Group allowed to put ads on buses:
Atheist group allowed to put ads on buses | jconline.com | Journal and Courier

Kissing Hanks Ass:
This has been around for a few years, a member thought that other free thinkers may not have seen it either.
It's absolutely brilliant! Show it to a Christian friend, and when/if they take offense, ask them why they think this has anything to do with Christianity?
http://www.jhuger.com/kisshank.php
PDF File pamphlet format:
http://www.jhuger.com/pamphlets/kha.pdf
Cleaned up version (Butt and Snot, instead off Ass and Shit)
http://www.jhuger.com/kisshankbutt.php
Cleaned up PDF File pamphlet format (May be good for AR Freethinkers to print up and pass out)
http://www.jhuger.com/pamphlets/khb.pdf

New book about a priest coming out of religion: FORMER PRIEST PSYCHOLOGIST PUBLISHES Out of God's Closet: This Priest Psychologist Chooses Friendly Atheism http://www.OutOfGodsCloset.com

Cathartic Comics-an assortment of cartoons and comic strips about humanism, atheism, religion, science and freethought.
http://americanhumanist.org/HNN/details/2009-07-cathartic-comics-4

Obit of an atheist:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/29/us/29gardner.html
Gerald Gardner, 83, Dies; Bolstered Sex Bias Suit
Last Line: Ms. Evansgardner said her husband, most of all, was fired up by principle.
“He was an activist atheist,” she said. “A proselytizing atheist. I hope you can print that because it was important to him. He thought that not saying you were an atheist hurt the cause of reality.”

And folks complain about "Imagine no religion"!!!
See it here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5754204
"If God doesn't matter to him, do you?"

Secular Coalition of America: The Secular Coalition for America moved into a new K Street address! Of course, "K Street" is synonymous with the high powered lobbying industry in Washington, and it's an important investment in our future to expand our space and hang out our shingle on this famous - infamous - street. Make a donation: http://www.secular.org/support.html

FFRF-In the news -http://ffrf.org/news/
Group challenges move to add religious language to Capitol Visitor Center
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/washingtondc/la-na-ungodly-capitol22-2009jul22,0,6911235.story
Los Angeles Times
Richard Simon
July 22, 2009

And finally quotes from a famous Atheist: (thanks to a member)
Mark Twain on God, Trust and Money

"Some years ago on the gold coins we used to trust in God. It think it was in 1863 that some genious suggested that it be put on the gold and silver coins which circulated among the rich. They didn't put it on the nickels and coppers because they didn't think the poor folks had any trust in God....If I remember rightly, the President required or ordered the romoval of that sentence from the coins. Well, I didn't see that the statement ought to remain there. It wasn't true. But I think it would better read, "Within certain judicious limitations we trust in God, and if there isn't enough room on the coin for this, why enlarge the coin.
- Speech, 5/14/1908
The motto stated a lie. If this nation has ever trusted in God, that time has gone by; for nearly half a century almost its entire trust has been in the Republican party and the dollar--mainly the dollar. I recognize that I am only making an assertion and furnishing no proof; I am sorry, but this is a habit of mine; sorry also that I am not alone in it; everybody seems to have this disease.
- Mark Twain in Eruption
To trust the God of the Bible is to trust an irascible, vindictive, fierce and ever fickle and changeful master; to trust the true God is to trust a Being who has uttered no promises, but whose beneficent, exact, and changeless ordering of the machinery of His colossal universe is proof that He is at least steadfast to His purposes; whose unwritten laws, so far as the affect man, being equal and impartial, show that he is just and fair; these things, taken together, suggest that if he shall ordain us to live hereafter, he will be steadfast, just and fair toward us. We shall not need to require anything more.
- Mark Twain, a Biography
Leaving out the gamblers, the burglars, and the plumbers, perhaps we do put our trust in God after a fashion. But, after all, it is an overstatement.
If the cholera or black plague should come to these shores, perhaps the bulk of the nation would pray to be delivered from it, but the rest would put their trust in The Health Board...
- Education and Citizenship speech
The best minds will tell you that when a man has begotten a child he is morally bound to tenderly care for it, protect it from hurt, shielf it from disease, clothe it, feed it, bear with its waywardness, lay no hand upon it save in kindness and for its own good, and never in any case inflict upon it a wanton cruelty. God's treatment of his earthly children, every day and every night, is the exact opposite of all that, yet those best minds warmly justify these crimes, condone them, excuse them, and indignantly refuse to regard them as crimes at all, when he commits them. Your country and mine is an interesting one, but there is nothing there that is half so interesting as the human mind.
- Letters from the Earth
We have to keep our God placated with prayers, and even then we are never sure of him -- how much higher and finer is the Indian's God......Our illogical God is all-powerful in name, but impotent in fact; the Great Spirit is not all-powerful, but does the very best he can for his injun and does it free of charge.
- Marginalia written in copy of Richard Irving Dodge's Our Wild Indians

The lack of money is the root of all evil.
- More Maxims of Mark, Johnson, 1927

Some men worship rank, some worship heroes, some worship power, some worship God, & over these ideals they dispute & cannot unite--but they all worship money.
- Mark Twain's Notebook