Two Questions for D.J. Grothe by Greta Christina

I want to ask D.J. Grothe this: Are you really not aware that one of the most common ways to dismiss and trivialize serious women is to say that we’re just trying to get attention? Are you really not aware that men’s ideas are generally taken seriously, and when they express them they’re generally considered to be sincere unless they prove otherwise… but women’s ideas are generally considered to be trivial, and when we express them, our motivations are called into question? Are you really not aware that men are generally seen as having an automatic right to express their ideas and to have them listened to and taken seriously… but that women are not, and that we commonly get treated as shrill, strident, insecure attention-hogs when we ask that our ideas be listened to?

Ban the use of drug dogs. Now.

Obviously, the ultimate goal here is to call off the War on (Some People Who Use) Drugs, which is run on magic and bigotry, and does more to destroy communities than to prevent drug addiction. But in the more immediate future, we must demand an immediate end to all use of drug dogs, certainly until it can be demonstrated in double blind studies run by experts that the dogs are detecting drugs and not reacting to subconscious signals sent by police

Wow, I’d never even thought to question that assumption.

AIDS Denialism on World AIDS Day

doubtingmarcus:

For all the intellectual and financial damage that pseudoscience does nothing in the realm of skepticism really compares to the colossal harm that can be and has been done by the spread of misinformation about AIDS. The South African government’s AIDS denialist policies alone are estimated to have caused more than 330,000 premature deaths. Fortunately those policies ended when then end of Thabo Mbeki’s reign as Prime Minister in 2008 but it demonstrates that even a handful of ill-informed individuals in positions of power can devastate a population.

The good news is the misinformation surrounding HIV/AIDS is largely divorced from the types of political and religious baggage which makes combating creationism and climate denialism extremely difficult. There are also numerous internet outlets outlining the basics of HIV/AIDS, and a short list of those can be found below, so there’s little reason why anyone should continue to be lead astray by repeatedly debunked myths and by conspiracies about drug companies. Just as the spread of HIV can be limited by knowing basic facts the spread of AIDS denialism, which in turn leads to the spread of HIV, can be largely curtailed by creating an informed population.

AIDS Denialism

AIDSTruth.org - A site presenting the scientific evidence on HIV/AIDS and with a wonderful FAQ on common AIDS denialist myths.

Ben Goldacre: The Doctor Will Now Sue You - A chapter on AIDS denialism and alternative medicines for HIV/AIDS initially left out of his book Bad Science

AIDS Denial is Pseudoscience - Perhaps the largest collection of articles and resources about AIDS denialism on the web

C0nc0rdance: 30 Million Lives - A great video series on AIDS denialism which details the science of HIV/AIDS and the culture of denialism

General HIV/AIDS Information

Avert.org - Likely the most popular site online regarding HIV/AIDS information and with good reason as it’s information is plentiful and easily understandable for a layperson

AIDSvideos.org - An alternative to reading lengthy texts this site provides all of the basic information about AIDS in videos in many different languages and can  also can be found on Youtube.

Mental Illness and Why The Skeptic Community Should Give a Shit: JT Eberhard’s Talk at Skepticon 4

[tw: frank discussion of mental illness, disordered eating, self-harm, ableist slurs]

This video was very difficult for me to sit through because it runs very close to my own triggers but I think it’s important for the skeptical community as a whole.

Source: freethoughtblogs.com

Asexuality on RationalWiki: a most irrational entry

anothertheletter:

ignatius-m:

ofpaperandponies:

ignatius-m:

sidneyia:

Last night I edited the page on asexuality on Rational Wiki, one of my favorite atheist/skeptic sites. The page, as it was, took a flippant, mocking tone and basically concluded that asexuality isn’t an orientation. Oh, and it repeated the old chestnut that asexual people are a-okay in the eyes of biblical literalists because we don’t experience lust.

They’ve already put it back the way it was. Apparently someone thinks shaming and slurring sexual minorities is an appropriately “rational” activity. 

Admittedly, my edited version was pretty dry and basic. So if any of the amazing asexuals on Tumblr want to have a crack at composing an entry with more staying power, here is the link. 

Wow, that is incredibly frustrating and disappointing.

Is anyone who follows me part of the political structure of RationalWiki?

It’s a symptom of privileged, educated, heterosexual males forming the basis of the online skeptical community. They’re comfortable in their position, don’t accept the “concept” of implicit privilege, have fully absorbed the sexist and implicitly judgmental/discriminatory viewpoints that are fostered by every elitist class.

Now, there are MANY skeptics that are a far cry from that, especially the bigwigs in the skeptical community (not talking about who the public sees as “the Skeptics”, like Dawkins etc, but the real leaders within the community like PZ), but as a whole, the smaller figures in the community definitely reflect every other privileged group in society who think that they’re above others. 

It’s way easier to just dismiss people or things that aren’t at least similar to them…after all, humans are pre-programmed to band together. We want to promote our genes, and subconsciously assume that those who look like us/think like us share our genetics. It takes actively thinking about a new concept to understand it. It’s not always comfortable to see things differently than you always have. Joking around about and mocking a concept is the most basic expression of being uncomfortable.

When the concept is something as basal as sexuality, that’s especially difficult to grasp. Sure, you can accept homosexuality, transexuality, bisexuality, that’s still sexuality. It’s as difficult for some people who see sexuality as part of being human to accept that asexuality is real, as it is for some incredibly indoctrinated religious people to accept that atheism is real (see the “you’re just angry at god/you really believe in god and are just denying it arguments).

I hope someone higher up at RationalWiki takes control of this. It’s just promoting the sentiment of skepticism/atheism being an old/older white man’s club, with no room for new concepts.

^^

These are the problems that I was referring to, more or less. There’s definitely an air of superiority as well that gets on my nerves.

Yeah. I think that is often a problem in the skeptical community. I can understand a certain amount of it when dealing with tired old issues and opponents who haven’t done their research, but it should not be the face of the community toward people’s identities.

(via dressedforthehbomb)

Source: sidneyia

Asexuality on RationalWiki: a most irrational entry

ofpaperandponies:

ignatius-m:

sidneyia:

Last night I edited the page on asexuality on Rational Wiki, one of my favorite atheist/skeptic sites. The page, as it was, took a flippant, mocking tone and basically concluded that asexuality isn’t an orientation. Oh, and it repeated the old chestnut that asexual people are a-okay in the eyes of biblical literalists because we don’t experience lust.

They’ve already put it back the way it was. Apparently someone thinks shaming and slurring sexual minorities is an appropriately “rational” activity. 

Admittedly, my edited version was pretty dry and basic. So if any of the amazing asexuals on Tumblr want to have a crack at composing an entry with more staying power, here is the link. 

Wow, that is incredibly frustrating and disappointing.

Is anyone who follows me part of the political structure of RationalWiki?

It’s a symptom of privileged, educated, heterosexual males forming the basis of the online skeptical community. They’re comfortable in their position, don’t accept the “concept” of implicit privilege, have fully absorbed the sexist and implicitly judgmental/discriminatory viewpoints that are fostered by every elitist class.

Now, there are MANY skeptics that are a far cry from that, especially the bigwigs in the skeptical community (not talking about who the public sees as “the Skeptics”, like Dawkins etc, but the real leaders within the community like PZ), but as a whole, the smaller figures in the community definitely reflect every other privileged group in society who think that they’re above others. 

It’s way easier to just dismiss people or things that aren’t at least similar to them…after all, humans are pre-programmed to band together. We want to promote our genes, and subconsciously assume that those who look like us/think like us share our genetics. It takes actively thinking about a new concept to understand it. It’s not always comfortable to see things differently than you always have. Joking around about and mocking a concept is the most basic expression of being uncomfortable.

When the concept is something as basal as sexuality, that’s especially difficult to grasp. Sure, you can accept homosexuality, transexuality, bisexuality, that’s still sexuality. It’s as difficult for some people who see sexuality as part of being human to accept that asexuality is real, as it is for some incredibly indoctrinated religious people to accept that atheism is real (see the “you’re just angry at god/you really believe in god and are just denying it arguments).

I hope someone higher up at RationalWiki takes control of this. It’s just promoting the sentiment of skepticism/atheism being an old/older white man’s club, with no room for new concepts.

^^

Source: sidneyia

Asexuality on RationalWiki: a most irrational entry

sidneyia:

Last night I edited the page on asexuality on Rational Wiki, one of my favorite atheist/skeptic sites. The page, as it was, took a flippant, mocking tone and basically concluded that asexuality isn’t an orientation. Oh, and it repeated the old chestnut that asexual people are a-okay in the eyes of biblical literalists because we don’t experience lust.

They’ve already put it back the way it was. Apparently someone thinks shaming and slurring sexual minorities is an appropriately “rational” activity. 

Admittedly, my edited version was pretty dry and basic. So if any of the amazing asexuals on Tumblr want to have a crack at composing an entry with more staying power, here is the link. 

Wow, that is incredibly frustrating and disappointing.

Is anyone who follows me part of the political structure of RationalWiki?

My Gawd! It’s a Miracle!

This is the introduction to an article written by Norm Allen for Black Skeptics on Freethought Blogs. Please follow the link at the end to read the entire article.

On October 29, 2011, the Associated Press ran a heartwarming story about an adorable dog that cheated death. (“Stray dog awaits adoption after surving gas chamber,” The Buffalo News, p. A7.)

On October 3rd, a new operator of a gas chamber run by the Animal Control Department in Florence, Alabama, placed the dog into the chamber with other animals. Carbon monoxide was fed into the chamber. The lucky dog was the only survivor.

Surely a genuine miracle of a religious nature must have occurred. After all, there is no other possible explanation as to how the dog could have survived. Indeed, workers at the animal shelter named the dog Daniel, after the biblical hero that made it out of the lion’s den.

Not so fast.

[Read More]

Faith-Healing Parents Sentenced to Six Years

helvetebrann:

An Oregon judge on Monday (Oct. 31) sentenced two members of a faith-healing church to more than six years in prison, saying the death of their newborn son was easily avoidable.

A jury in September unanimously found Dale and Shannon Hickman guilty of second-degree manslaughter after their son, David Hickman, died after less than nine hours. The boy was born approximately two months premature and weighed less than four pounds.

Close to 100 people packed Judge Robert Herndon’s courtroom for the sentencing, nearly all of them fellow members of the Followers of Christ church, an Oregon City congregation that shuns medicine in favor of faith-healing.

Herndon gave the couple 75 months in prison, the mandatory minimum under state sentencing guidelines. The sentence also has three years of probation.

“As the evidence enfolded and the witnesses testified, it became evidence to me and certainly to the jury … that this death just simply did not need to occur,” Herndon said.

Before the sentencing, both parents tearfully asked Herndon for mercy, specifically for their 7-year-old child and new baby. Shannon Hickman mentioned she spent “24 hours a day” with her children, and Dale Hickman asked the court to specifically have mercy for his wife.

“These generally are good, decent, law-abiding folks, except in this one narrow area of their lives,” Regan said. “One (area) where they have told us stubbornly — and arrogantly, if I may — that ‘We are not going to change.’”

“The law of civil society demands that they change,” Regan continued. “It demands that we sent a message to all of them that whether you believe this or not in Oregon, you cannot act upon that belief.”

Dale Hickmans’ defense attorney, Mark Cogan, pushed for probation, saying the Hickmans would be compliant with any court orders for medical care. The couple has already taken their two children — a seven-year-old and a new baby — to see a pediatrician, Cogan noted.

This is an update to the story originally reported here.

What do you think of the sentence?

Not nearly long enough. These sentences need to be long enough to dissuade other faith “healers” from skipping doctors when children are involved.

We would never think of going to our doctors and saying ‘Gee, treat me the way doctors treated people in the nineteenth century.’ Yet that is what we are demanding in food production for the world, and at the same time we are seeing the number of people who don’t have enough to eat grow and grow.
Nina Federoff - molecular biologist and former science adviser to Hillary Clinton on the a priori resistance to genetically engineered foods from Michael Specter’s book Denialism (via doubtingmarcus)

Year Anniversary of Spinal Surgery

helvetebrann:

Last year on this day, I was admitting myself to the hospital at 4AM to receive a full disc replacement for a severely damaged L5-S1 spinal disc.  Today marks the one year anniversary of receiving an artificial spinal disc and reclaiming my life.

In May of 2009, I was in a severe car accident.  I had been driving on the freeway when the traffic in front of me came to a full and complete stop.  While I was able to stop, the car behind me was not, and I was rear-ended by a car going 45mph.  Both cars were totaled and had to be towed from the scene.

While I did not know it at the time, I had received a serious disc injury that caused my disc to herniate and leak fluid.  After seeking medical and legal aid, I discovered the injury in August of 2009.

It took a year and a half of medical care and legal aid to finally receive my badly needed disc replacement.  The month before my surgery, I was essentially bedridden due to chronic, debilitating pain.  I was unable to do much of anything, including the outdoor sports that I adore.  I couldn’t even clean the house.  I was unable to work and unable to function.  High doses of morphine made the pain somewhat bearable, but transformed my personality making me extremely irritable and angry.

A year ago today, surgeons, surgery assistants, nurses, my lawyer, and my lawyer’s assistants helped me regain my life.  Medical advancements that made life-long disc replacements possible helped me regain my life.

I now have a nifty artificial disc that will last me a lifetime and has allowed me to regain the ability to do the things I love.  I can wakeboard, dirt bike, and do just about anything that my heart desires. 

The only scar I have is about three inches long on my stomach.  (In order to do a disc replacement, they must come in through the front.)

Some would thank god.  I thank the countless individuals who helped make this process a reality.  I thank the countless individuals who helped me through the chronic pain process.  I thank the skilled medical staff who performed a flawless surgery.

I don’t know that I will ever be able to express the depth of my gratitude to them.  Gods had nothing to do with this amazing process; humans did.  I am so grateful to the humans who restored my life.

Thoughts: Christian Privilege

helvetebrann:

Yesterday, I posted a story about a woman who was receiving conservative support for refusing to do her job.  She refused to issue marriage licenses to gay couples because she felt that it violated her religion.

As I thought about the issue more and more, I realized that this woman truly feels that she is being persecuted for her beliefs.  How incredibly sad.  And not in the, wow-it-sucks-to-be-her way, but in the, wow-I-can’t-believe-that-you-honestly-believe-that kind of way.

The idea of Christian persecution in the United States is becoming more frequently voiced and I find the whole debacle to be entirely trite.  It reminds me of an only child gaining a new sibling and being outraged that they now have to share.

In this country, Christians are extremely privileged.  They are the vast majority and yet, any instance where they are expected to be tolerant of other beliefs or allow for non-discrimination policies, they claim that they are being persecuted.  How absolutely absurd.  I doubt that most US Christians would even know what persecution was if it stared them in the face.

Being expected to maintain a secular country isn’t Christian persecution, it’s following the Constitution and the wishes of our Founding Fathers.  Being expected to treat everyone fairly isn’t Christian persecution, it’s the law.  Being held to the same laws and legislation as every other citizen isn’t Christian persecution, it’s equality.

So please Christians, before you start claiming that you’re being persecuted for your beliefs, take a look at your own privilege.  Making such outlandish statements will just embarrass you and make you look incredibly ignorant.

Personal: One of MY Students Wrote About Being Afraid of Hell

helvetebrann:

If you don’t already know it by now, I’m a 7th grade English teacher at a Northern California public charter school.  Our grade is having serious bullying issues this year, so I decided to address the issues head-on.  I also asked each student to write me a check-in, where they had the opportunity to express anything to me that they wanted me to know. 

Some of the notes were heartbreaking.  I have a meeting to discuss all of my concern students with the counselor on Monday.

One of my students, in particular, wrote a two page note full of several different concerns ranging from friends to life goals.  However, in the middle of the note was something that absolutely broke my heart.

Ms. Stark I’m scared that my religion isn’t real and that what does death feel like.  I don’t want to die there is so much stuff to do.  I can die right know.  I just want to make life real and go to heaven.  What if the devil tricks me and I got to Hell when my family is in heaven.  Please respond.

This, THIS right here is one of the many reasons that I am an anti-theist.  No child should be terrified of being tricked by an imaginary creature.  No child should be terrified that they will be eternally tortured and separated from their family.  No child should be scared to question their religion.

Teaching your children about hell should be considered child abuse.  Scaring a child into thinking that there is a place of eternal torture that they can go to for just questioning religion is WRONG.

Agreed a million times over.

Teaching the doctrine of eternal damnation to children is child abuse.

A Reminder In Honor of Columbus Day

doubtingmarcus:

No I’m not honoring Columbus himself but a day in his name is a good reminder of the dangers of disease and the triumph that are modern vaccines.

I’d like to remind everyone to get your flu-shots if you haven’t already done so. Remember the flu-shot protects more than just you but helps to create herd immunity to the virus and helps to prevent others, specifically the elderly and those with weakened immune systems, from contracting the flu.

The U.S. government actually has a pretty good article on the common flu myths and covers the basics of why these claims are indeed myths with some links to research which supporting the effectiveness of the flu vaccine.

That is all.

Oh, I mean to talk about this the other day. Not Columbus because he was an ass.

My workplace was offering vaccines for people in my category for $5. So, I totally got my flu vaccine. After living through H1N1 Novel, I did not want a repeat. Vaccination is great if you can afford it. $25 is a bit too much for me to spend on it, but there was a chance to get it for $5 so I did.

If anyone has any hints on how to get the vaccine for cheap without using a time machine and becoming my co-worker, share it and I’ll reblog.

tl;dr: get vaccinated if you can.

9/11 Really Was A Conspiracy… But Not Like That: New York

doubtingmarcus:

The Twin Towers

“Controlled demolition” are the words of choice for many who don’t believe the damage done by the planes crashing into the buildings and the ensuing fires were enough to bring down the towers. Is this claim supported the evidence? In order to know we’ll have to consider a few basic facts. Though there were some initial rumblings in the initial 9/11 truth crowd about what actually hit the towers on September 11, 2001 few now disagree that a Boeing 767 hit each one of the Twin Towers which had a steel frame. Steel melts at 2732° Fahrenheit (1500°C) and despite being started by jet fuel the fires couldn’t have reached these temperatures say some doubters[1]. They claim without temperatures of near this level being reached the steel would have maintained structural integrity despite the structural damage indisputably done by the planes that crashed into the towers.

Well the first part is actually agreed upon, the fires didn’t reach temperatures required to melt steel, but they wouldn’t have to in order to bring down the building. What would need to happen to bring down the building from the fire and initial structural damage is the steel frame be sufficiently weakened to expand causing the trusses to sag before that compromise would bow the columns inward causing collapse. After the collapse began a process known as pancaking would begin cause the floors above to slam into those below with progressively more weight leading to what some have seen as giving the impression of a demolition [2]. Official estimates suggest the fires rose as high as 1800°F (1000°C) a temperature well above which the steel columns would have lost most of their strength and at which the heat would deform materials putting additional pressure on the already weakened strained support columns supporting additional weight because of the damage done by the initial collision[3]. Even if you argue it never made it near 1800°F you can literally see that this process of steel weakening leading to floors sagging in pictures like the one below so it’s very difficult to argue this process was not happening.

Sagging floors

Read More

Doubting Marcus: Amazing.