b.rox

The LA Times has an interesting interview with Julia Sweeney of SNL fame about her one-woman show, “Letting Go of God.”

Xy and I were listening to iTunes over our stereo, and we had it cranked loud so we could hear it in the next room. Just as Jello Biafra’s great “Grow More Pot” rant drew to a close, there was a knock at the door. I was in bed, basking in the afterglow, ifyouknowwhatimeanandithinkyoudo, so [...]

Dr. Michael Newdow is back with a vengeance. He’s just filed another suit against the “under God” phrase in the Pledge of Allegiance — this time with eight other plaintiffs. Strangely enough, the New York Times article about this doesn’t make mention of the fact that he’s also filed suit against the saying of a [...]

I’m astonished to read a Newsweek poll that says 79% of Americans believe in the miracle of the virgin birth. That means you get five Americans together, and four will believe Jesus was born of a virgin. That just seems incredible.
And to think I just ordered my solstice cards.
According to the same poll, 55% of [...]

The North County Times is running a story titled “For local atheist, Southwest County no paradise” about an activist in California. I’m sure this is what many people have in mind when they think of an atheist: a guy with inflammatory bumperstickers who puts the kybosh on prayers at the city council meeting.
Yet it’s interesting [...]

Christopher Reeve died yesterday.
He was an atheist.

For years, whenever I have referred to myself as an atheist, some friends have inevitably made a suggestion: Perhaps I should call myself an agnostic.
Such advice is well-intentioned but confusing. I think some people may suggest this because they have strong negative associations with atheism. It’s a nasty word, and they don’t want to have [...]

The word atheist provokes a strong and negative reaction amongst many of my fellow human beings, so I thought perhaps I should explain why I use that term to describe myself.
This is not a label I picked for myself; it has been thrust upon me by circumstance. I am surrounded by theists, by people [...]

One of the neighbor girls was over at our house tonight, helping Xy water the garden. She’s three years old, cute as a button, and her name is Willanita, but everyone calls her Mamaw or just Maw.
Willanita said she was hungry, and Xy asked me to fix her some oatmeal. She also likes [...]

National Library Week is almost over.
I work in a library. To be more precise, I work in a building which houses a library. I don’t actually work for or in the library proper. But I do have to pass through the library to get to my office.
And so I’ve been aware of [...]

I drafted a number of e-mails back in late September that I never sent. Most of them were intended for my extended family, as we discussed the events of September 11. I’m not sure why I never sent them. I guess I just despaired of getting my point across.

The Apostle Paul warns, [...]