There’s a science-fiction novel by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle called The Gripping Hand. In it, they talk about a three-armed race called “Moties” who have this interesting expression. You know how some folks say “On the one hand.. on the other hand..”? Well, because of their anatomy, in much Read more
“I’ll just leave this here, shall I,” said the Captain, her lazy Texan drawl absolutely dripping with contempt and disdain. Oh, we’ll get to work on the topic planned, no worries, but I saw this and it irritated me enough that I wanted to say something here before I forget. Read more
A social experiment is technically just an experiment run on people, to study how groups relate and react to things. The term is also used more informally to mean a poorly-thought-out, self-serving conceit that gets pushed onto an unwitting and unknowing group to enact. Typically the idea is that the Read more
After I deconverted, my husband was convinced that I’d change dramatically. I wanted to talk a bit about that, because I see that same fear playing out among the other ex-Christians I’ve met. (PS: Hi guys! You’re up kinda late, aren’t you?) Since it’s the New Year, it’s that time Read more
It’s time again for another episode of “Christians Behaving Badly.” I’ve seen some additional–and dramatic– stories of Christians who did not actually experience the 180 turnarounds that Christians like to say people experience with Jesus. I’m bringing this up because Christians like to pretend otherwise, and it’s time we really Read more
One thing that seems to crop up in the news over and over again are the constant struggles between America’s secular government and increasingly-secular citizens, and that particular brand of over-controlling zealotry that masquerades as religion. Scores of lawsuits have been filed trying to stop this overreach on topics ranging Read more
Long ago, Charles Babbage came up with designs for a machine that could accurately create tables of calculated numbers. He called this machine the difference engine. By turning a handle on the machine, gears and cranks would turn and it would calculate rows and columns of numbers in tables–the sort Read more
I love bad advice. I admit it. I’ve always had a huge affection for bad advice snark. I mean, bad advice is engineered to cause maximum grief, drama, and division, especially when you know the original advice-seeker actually wanted to hear that bad advice, and that’s all part of the Read more
I hope your holidays are going well so far! Welcome back. I realized not long ago that I’ve made references to “logical Christians” a couple of times here, and I wanted to talk about that idea a little bit now. I truly believe that “logical Christians” are about the very Read more
Christians call their religion the “good news,” but there’s even better news today in the form of an explosive new survey about religious and spiritual opinions in America: we’re getting less religious and more accepting of reality. Who’d’a thunk? Harris Interactive is apparently a big polling and research company based Read more