By George Kane
In past columns I have criticized President Obama’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partner-ships. It was Obama’s attempt to correct the flaws of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives created by George W. Bush, which was nothing more than an apparatus for dispensing government funds to evangelical Christian ministries for charitable social programs. Obama promised to create a partnership between religion and government, to strengthen religion and to give it a role in setting the national agenda.
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Read more: News and Notes
By Eric Jayne
The month of March was Food Drive Month so on Sunday, March 25 the Minnesota Atheists organized a food drive party at Green Mill—one of St. Paul’s oldest and most well-known pizza restaurants.
Twenty-five atheists attended the food drive party with their donations then proceeded to settle down for lunch, conversations, and games. At the end of the party three Minnesota Atheists volunteers packed the donations in their cars and delivered the items to the Second Harvest Heartland food bank later that week.
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Read more: Food and Cash Donated to Local Food Bank
By August Berkshire
Question: What do vampires, zombies, and Harry Potter spirits have in common? Answer: They are all alternatives to the traditional Christian afterlife and they are all very popular with young people.
I see this as part of a larger trend away from Christianity and towards atheism. Let’s face it, with modern telescopes able to perceive things that are billions of light years away, we still haven’t found an afterlife. It’s hard to believe in something that supposedly has no substance, and if God and heaven and the billions of souls in it had substance, we would have found them by now.
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Read more: President's Column: After the Afterlife
Almost one year after state lawmakers passed the Marriage Amendment Bill, and just days after the house and senate passed the Voter ID Bill, it appears that Minnesota voters will be asked to approve a third constitution-altering ballot measure.
Lawmakers in both chambers rapidly worked out a narrow vote over the weekend to pass a traditional clothing bill. Like the marriage and voter ID bills, this will bypass the governor by being put on the November ballot for voters to decide. If voters approve the bill it will be illegal for women to wear pants (including blue jeans) and men to wear dresses (including kilts).
Additionally, the proposed clothing amendment will ban the manufacturing, selling, possession, and wearing of clothing made from blended fabrics.
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Read more: Traditional Clothing Amendment Added to November Ballot
Can you name a famous black atheist other than Neil deGrasse Tyson? There is a stereotype that all (or nearly all) African Americans believe in the existence of a god. Our April speaker will be pleased to dispel this notion.
Ayanna Watson, the founder and president of Black Atheists of America, headquartered in New York City, will educate us about “Famous Black Free-thinkers,” with a special emphasis on the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s-1930s. Even if you’re familiar with some of the leaders from that remarkable time period, you might still be surprised and delighted at how many of them had doubts about the existence of a god and criticized religion.
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Read more: April Public Meeting: Famous Black Freethinkers
