North Texas Church of Freethought

If you'd like to know more about why medications are so expensive, check this out. And while you xonsider it, ask yourself if this is more harmful to people than the "sins" that the supernaturalist churches are always compalining about.

www.ftc.gov

What has happened to peacemakers in the MidEast? Consider this:

Middle East Assassinations, 50 Years On On Friday, July 2

The 2024 GOP Platform is out. The word “abortion” is mentioned ONCE only:

"4. Republicans Will Protect and Defend a Vote of the People, from within the States, on the Issue of Life We proudly stand for families and Life. We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process, and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those Rights. After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the States and to a vote of the People. We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments)."

Republicans are running away from the anti-abortion goddist zealots. They know it's a losing issue for them and that most Americans do not believe the absurd claim that zygotes-embryos-fetuses [ZEF] are people.

s3.documentcloud.org

Here's an idea for "raising conciousness" about Freethought/atheism. If it became recognized by the general public that it is OK - indeed, laudable - to say and to feel "I DON'T KNOW" - and that this is the "prayer" of people like us, I think it would help our attitude and approach to become more "mainstream" and acceptable. Wouldn't this be a great billboard and a message much better than the Jesus and "are you going to heaven or hell when you die" ads?

https://immunologic.substack.com/p/gmos-and-genetic-engineering-are

GMOs and genetic engineering are wildly misunderstood Fear-based messaging from anti-science activist groups are harming public health and our planet

This is why women have to die in service to the religious doctrines and dogmas promulgated by the Vatican and its supporters (which, as we know, now includes the US Supreme Court):

The Texas Medical Board and the Futility of Medical Exceptions to Abortion Bans This Viewpoint describes the failure of yet another state institution to generate meaningful guidance about medical exceptions to abortion bans.

In case you missed it. (many of us did)

Alito recording plunges Supreme Court into deeper controversy The secret recording of conservative Justice Samuel Alito endorsing the idea that the country should return to a place of “godliness” has further plunged the Supreme Court into controve…

The Supreme Court's antiabortion zealotry does not extend as far as upending the whole FDA regulatory system for medications. Yet. For now, mifepristone remains available. But the Supremes only rejected the effort to get it banned on the issue of "standing." Did 2024's being an election year have anything to do with it in the wake of its miscalculation on the unpopularity of its reversing Roe v Wade?

Supreme Court Preserves Abortion Pill Access The Supreme Court unanimously rejected a challenge to curtail access to the commonly-used abortion pill mifepristone.

Hamas and its leaders are glad to see Palestinians killed:

Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar Depicts Palestinian Casualties As ‘Necessary Sacrifices’ Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who masterminded Hamas’s October 7 atrocities, portrayed the deaths of Palestinian civilians as a welcome sacrifice in his personal correspondence, The...

If you missed today's presentation on HOW TO BE A FREETHINKER it's up on youtube now here: (one of the best yet!)

https://youtu.be/0Fy9tDt6IUI

Opponents of electric vehicles commonly say that manufacturing the batteries needed to power them is environmentally destructive and that the batteries ultimately fail and have to be replaced. But here is an interesting article on what happens to such batteries: they can be recycled to recover the materials to make new ones, "dramatically reducing the need for new mining."

How Are EV Batteries (Actually) Recycled? Using recycling processes with high mineral recovery rates and lower environmental impact is critical.

Today is the 80th Anniversary of the "D-Day" invasion of WWII when the Allies successfully established a military presence in Northern France beginning at the beaches in Normandy. But what if the largest aphibious assault in military history had failed? What if the N***s has been able to repel the Allies efforts on that day?

What if the D-Day invasion had failed? What would have happened, specifically, if the Allied efforts in Normandy had failed? A historian with the National WWII Museum explains.

In case you thought misbehavior in the government went away after Watergate, or when Trump left office, or with all the Special Prosecutors looking into things. And especially if you thought the Freedom of Information Act solved the problem of the government's activities not being transparent: (and please note that The Nation has never been considered right-wing)

At the NIH, a Scandal Grows Around an Official’s Evasion of Public Records Law After a top aide to Anthony Fauci was grilled by Congress, questions emerge as to whether others may have sought to avoid transparency around the Covid epidemic.

In case you missed this last February 29th. Or the original announcment on February 14th of 2021. Many links in here to related things.

BOTH parties have been pushing such stuff though one gets the feeling that for Democrats it's in reaction to Republicans' efforts to "own" religion (and patriotism). Much to object to in this!

FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Celebrates Third Anniversary of the Reestablishment of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships | The White House Three years ago this month, President Biden signed an executive order reestablishing the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (“Partnerships Office”). The Partnerships Office is an essential part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s plan to bring people of all backgr...

Superstitious nonsense comes in many forms: Putin and many Russians bathe in blood from deer antlers.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/11/europe/russia-deer-antler-blood-intl/index.html

Here's an enlightening read. And paid for by your own taxpayer-supported government:

Daniel Dennett died today at age 82, reportedy of interstitial lung disease.

Dennett was a philosopher/writer/scientist and one of "The Four Horsemen of New Atheism" and a co-founder of The Clergy Project. His notable works include BREAKING THE SPELL, INTUITION PUMPS AND OTHER TOOLS FOR THINKING, DARWIN'S DANGEROUS IDEA (an excellent work and the first book of his that I read), and, with Douglas Hofstadter, of THE MIND'S I. To get a quick idea of his imagination and wit working together with his sharp intellect, check out his essay "WHERE AM I?" here:https://www.lehigh.edu/~mhb0/Dennett-WhereAmI.pdf

You have no doubt heard of The Spanish Inquisition, the Crusades, the persecution of Galileo, the burning-at-the-stake of Giordano Bruno and othert atrocities carried out by “good Christians” in the name of their faith. But did you know that 518 years ago today, April 19th of 1506, The Lisbon Massacre began? By the time it ended 2 days later, as many as 4,000 “New Christians,” Jews who were forcibly converted to the religion of Jesus and Paul, had been killed. It's not the sort of thing that should be forgotten. You can read more about it here:

Lisbon massacre - Wikipedia The Lisbon massacre started on Sunday, 19 April 1506 in Lisbon when a crowd of churchgoers attacked and killed several people in the congregation whom they suspected were Jews. The violence escalated into a city-wide, anti-semitic riot that killed as many as 4,000 "new Christians" (cristãos-novos),...

Here's something that is timely and worth considering: the UK's National Health Service's just-issued report on the medical management of transgender children and young people.

Final Report – Cass Review Final Report Dr Hilary Cass has submitted her final report and recommendations to NHS England in her role as Chair of the Independent Review of gender identity services for children and young people. The Review was commissioned by NHS England to make recommendations on how to improve NHS gender iden...

So the late Pat Robertson used to blame LGBT people for hurricanes and other natural disasters. But now, according to Christian Nationalist politicians in Maine, "God" uses crazed gunmen to express his displeasure. Because, you know, eternal torture in an afterlife is not good enough.

Maine Republican blames mass shooting on law expanding abortion access Maine State Rep. Michael Lemelin (R) on Wednesday said the Lewiston mass shooting in October that left 18 people dead was a consequence from God after state lawmakers passed a law expanding abortio…

One of many politicians who believe themselves knowledgeable enough to run our country and make many of our most important decisions for us:

Sheila Jackson Lee: The Moon Is Mostly Gas Democrat rep. Sheila Jackson Lee says that the moon is made up "mostly of gases." Connect with TENET Media:https://www.tenetmedia.com/https://twitter.com/wat...

England's NHS halts puberty blockers for transgender youth amid research efforts England's National Health Service has banned the use of puberty blockers for the treatment of gender dysphoria or gender incongruence in minors.

The Hong Konger: Jimmy Lai's Extraordinary Struggle for Freedom THE HONG KONGER is a documentary by the Acton Institute. Hong Kong newspaper publisher and pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai finds himself in the crosshairs of China and must choose between defending Hong Kong’s long-standing liberties or his own freedom.

Alabama Passes Law Protecting IVF Providers From Legal Liability But lawmakers shied away from addressing legal status of embryos created in IVF labs

Consider the implications for goddists' notions of the "soul" and "free will" when such technology allows people to augment their cognitive abiltiies with AI.

Computational Control of a Living Brain? | Harvard Magazine How an AI agent learned to guide an animal to food—and what it might mean for Parkinson’s patients.

Trump and other Republicans have said "not to worry" about the Alabama Supreme Court's deciding that fertilized eggs (zygotes), embryos and fetuses (ZEF) are all "children." They're promising that "something will be worked out" to maintain the availability of IVF. But they're wrong. Discarding embryos is a necessary part of the process. So if ZEF are people then IVF necessarily "murders" people. Of course, that's just fine with the Pope and his bishops since they hate IVF as well as abortion and birth control.

Why Discarding Embryos Is Inherent to the IVF Process Here's why some Alabama IVF clinics have paused operations after a state court ruling

The headlines all feature that this is the first US return to the moon. But it is perhaps more notable for being the first private group/company to put a spacecraft on the moon.

Odysseus becomes first US spacecraft to land on moon in over 50 years The Odysseus lunar lander, nicknamed "Odie" or IM-1, became the first US-made spacecraft to touch down on the moon in 50 years.