Meal and Reel, Feb 19, Creation w/special guest Greg Laden at Edina Cinema

Edina, the home of Al Franken, the town known locally as “Every Day I Need Attention” because of their quaint suburban attitudes, the place that appears to have the only half decent woman’s hair stylist in the city (because every woman I’ve ever known has gone to the same exact one, though they don’t individually know that. Well, they will if they read this … but I digress) will be the location of a showing of Creation, the movie about Darwin. MnA is orgainzing a “Meal and Reel” event and has asked me to say a few words. About Darwin, but I may instead talk about this hair stylist thing.

Details emerging here

Any octopus experts out there wanna give this a look? (At Digital Rabbit blog)

This is the question that was raised in the wake of a Science Online 2010 session on civility. I did not attend the session so I am only addressing the issues that were subsequently discussed on blog posts written in the aftermath of a now infamous conversation that appears to have been (by their own admission, I believe) between Henry Gee of Nature and Nature Blogs Network and Zuska the Magnificent of Scienceblogs Dot Com. Much of that discussion is now happening on the Nature Network on a blog post celebrating 5 X 10⁴ comments on that network.
Continue reading Should just anyone be allowed to piss on Henry Gee’s rug? (#scio10) →

The broadcast networks that air the Super Bowl have historically rejected advocacy ads. Yet CBS, which is airing the Super Bowl this year, has accepted an anti-choice ad by the ultra-conservative group Focus on the Family.

Details here

I did not appreciate the sentiment that the New York Yankees had to win the World Series because Osama Bin Laden blew up the World Trade Center. I do not appreciate the sentiment that the New Orleans Saints have to win the Super Bowl because George Bush let poor New Orleans residents die in the Super Dome. I do appreciate the equivalence … between an uncaring homicidal mass murdering maniac and some guy from the Arabian Peninsula who seems to have been the mastermind of dozens of failed terrorist attacks and a couple of ugly ones. But that is another story.
Continue reading The True Meaning of the Super Bowl (Bonus commentary by Adolf Hitler) →

A few people asked me if I saw any polar bears during my recent trip to Antarctica. No, I didn’t…

None? Not even one? Did you even see any prints????

Polar Bears in Antarctica at Digital Rabbit

On Feb 12, Feb 19th the Darwin-related film “Creation” will debut in at least one local theater here in the twin cities. A group of us will be getting together prior at a restaurant or other appropriate venue, at which I will be asked to say a few words about Darwin. This event will be organized by the Minnesota Atheists, so please keep an eye on their web site for details!

You might as well also check out the info on Camp Quest in case you are looking for a great summer volunteer opportunity (or a place to send the kids!?!?)

One opinion you should check out:

…Obama is missing the opportunity of a lifetime to give us serious climate change legislation, and he’s blowing it by going down the middle of the road, trying to please everyone. This year could be the end of any meaningful climate change legislation, until the point where it’s obvious and too late….

Here

Howard Zinn died on Wednesday.

But first, he got very old and before that he inspired two or three generations of skeptics and questioners of history and society.

Continue reading Howard Zinn is Dead →

Dogs:

Cats:

Continue reading Who has more ESP, Cats or Dogs? →

Dogs:

Cats:
Continue reading Which has more ears, cats or dogs? →

Not the actual babies, but the birth weight of the new ones.

Continue reading Babies are getting smaller →

Skeptics ask questions (Q’s) and try to do so in a systematic, scientific, way. But what about IQ (and here I use IQ as a euphemism for smarts). The recent discussion here and elsewhere about the Skepchicks touched on this issue. I’ve been (temporarily) avoiding it, but skepchick car2d2 is staring to think about it.

Please have a look at this: Skepticism: Your IQ must be this high to ride

Negotiating with dog god…

Judaism is a religion of scepticism, made for and used by sceptics. The relationship with Jews and God is not a one-way thing in which God says ‘thou-shalt-not’ and everyone jumps. It’s a constantly evolving contract. It’s not inappropriate to remind ourselves, especially today, how a panel of rabbis in Auschwitz put God on trial and found him guilty. Such an action would hardly be possible in a religion in which obedience is unquestioning, unthinking.

This is at Henry Gee’s joint. Go piss on his rug!!!11!!

(Only kidding about the part about the rug.)