Episode 31: ‘Un-Christian’ Holidays, NASA & the Search for Life, Bumper Sticker Wars

For your winter holiday pleasures, Tom, Robin, Sam, Dalton and Chris discuss:

• “Naughty or Nice” - ‘Un-Christian’ Holiday Retailers & the “War on Christmas”
• NASA Announces Arsenic-Based Life in Mono Lake, California
• The Blair v. Hitchens Debate
• Bumper Sticker Wars

If you have any comments or questions, or have ideas for stories for the show, please feel free to drop us a comment, and thanks for listening!

Hosts: Chris Thielen, Tom Beasley, Robin Marie, Sam Won, Dalton McGee

 Episode 31: 'Un-Christian' Holidays, NASA & the Search for Life, Bumper Sticker Wars [53:44] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1447)

Hitchens-Dembski debate

AronRa, an occasional co-host on The Atheist Experience, recently posted a great commentary on the Hitchens-Dembski debate. The debate was on the topic of whether or not ‘a good God exists’. You can find the commentary of AronRa, who you should familiarize yourself with, as he is quite knowledgeable and articulate on the subject of religious criticism, here. AronRa’s commentary points, however, to a significantly more thorough overview by GreatBigBore. You can watch his series of commentary, which I highly recommend, here. Some information that BigBore points out is also poignant; below is a table of lack of religious belief and country:

He juxtaposes the graph with the following of something called a “global peace index”:

Notice that Sweden, Japan, etc. appear at the top on both lists, and the US appears very low on both. These are not outliers or exceptions, either. Check out both graphs (source 1, source 2) if you want further evidence of the correlation between religious belief in society and “global peace.”

You can watch the entire Hitchens debate with Dembski here.

Blair v. Hitch - religion is a force for good in the world

Tony Blair and Christopher Hitchens had a debate over the weekend over whether or not religion is a ‘force for good in the world’. The rhetorical flourish of both sides was something indeed, but you can see for yourself what you think of the debate. At times, the two combatants start to address the other’s points before going back to their main mantras during the debate. Hitchens says very little new to those of you who follow Hitchens, but the gravitas seems so much greater given his health and the status of his stage companion.
See Also:

Tony Blair, Christopher Hitchens debate religion

Blair, Hitchens Debate: Religion Force for Good?

The great faith debate: Blair takes on ailing Hitchens in Canada

Hitchens responds to ‘Ground Zero Mosque’

Hitchens on Anderson Cooper, taken from CNN

In the midst of battling cancer, Hitchens (who had a recent article about him in the Times of London) commented on the conflict over the Mosque placement “at Ground Zero.” His article can be found on Slate, here. An American Atheist also covered the topic some time ago. Hitchens had a compelling interview recently on Anderson Cooper 360.

Update: President Obama recently defended the mosque’s placement saying:

This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country, and will not be treated differently by their government, is essential to who we are.”

A full article can be found here.

Update #2: Roger Ebert wrote a fantastic article about Hitchens in the Chicago Sun Times.

Renowned atheist Christopher Hitchens to undergo chemotherapy

Hitchens recently canceled his book tour for Hitch-22 to undergo chemotherapy. Hitchens, a long time smoker, was recently diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus.

“I have been advised by my physician that I must undergo a course of chemotherapy on my esophagus. This advice seems persuasive to me. I regret having had to cancel so many engagements at such short notice.”

- Christopher Hitchens

Hitchens is also known to have written such books as God is Not Great and The Portable Atheist and is a well known orator on the subject of religious criticism.

Celebrations for Mother Teresa, Empire State Building not participating

On what would have been Mother Teresa’s 100th birthday, locations around the world are celebrating. The Empire State Building, however, upon request declined to help celebrate the festivities by lighting the building (the building has special lights at the top to commemorate special events). Bill Donahue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights says that this is a “mind boggling” decision. The ultimate decision rests upon the private corporation that owns the building. Mother Teresa has been an icon for peace and compassion for many in the world — Christopher Hitchens, however, called her “the Ghoul of Calcutta.” He even appeared in front of the Church during her beatification process to protest her sacred quality. You can read one of his complaints here. He also produced a film Hell’s Angel, which contained a thorough criticism of her practices and especially her actual impact in the region, rather than what is perceived by the Western world.

Hitchens and Perkins on CNN: National Day of Prayer

Here is an Anderson Cooper CNN segment highlighting the arguments in favor of and against the National Day of Prayer. There seems to be a hot debate in the media over a day that, previously, few knew existed. You can see the initial blog entry here.