THE   FOCUS
centerforatheism.org

April 27, 2008
Volume 4, Issue 17
Published by the Center For Atheism (CFA)
Editor: David Birnkrant
 
The Focus provides links to articles collected from major newspapers and magazines, and is emailed weekly.

This Week in Atheism is a cable show that discusses the articles featured below, every Wednesday at 6:30 PM (EST), Manhattan Cable station 57. 
Live streaming is available at: 
http://www.mnn.org.

Comments, suggestions and subscription:focus@centerforatheism.org.

  
SEE

CFA Programs (end of page)
Gift Of Life (Blood Donation Event) 
response to the National Day of Prayer 
May 1, 2008 (Thursday). 

         
Featured Articles
Pope's White House Visit and Larger Questions
American Chronicle - Beverly Hills,CA,USA
Reportedly, church-state due to its strong influence is covering crimes and allegedly saving criminals from facing the local justice systems worldwide. ..

If God Is Dead, Who Gets His House?
By Sean McManus Published Apr 21, 2008
The fastest-growing faith in America is no faith at all. And now some atheists think they need...

Physicists Renew Claim, in New Experiment, of Detecting Dark Matter Particles
By DENNIS OVERBYE Published: April 17, 2008
A team of Italian and Chinese physicists on Wednesday renewed a controversial claim that.....
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/17/science/space/17dark.html


House takes up Senate evolution bill
MiamiHerald.com - Miami,FL,USA
By DAVID FISCHER AP Writer A bill that would ensure teachers are not punished for challenging evolution in the classroom was debated Friday in the Florida ...
 
 
  News Articles
  (Some publications may require that you sign up for membership to view their article.)


ATHEISM
Some atheists go to church too, but not to worship
Barre Montpelier Times Argus - Barre,VT,USA
By ALEXANDRA HOROWITZ Columbia News Service Ken Novak, a marketing analyst from Evanston, Ill., is an atheist. But that doesn't stop him from going to ..

Protesting the pope: sex-abuse survivors, evangelicals, atheists
Lower Hudson Journal news - West Harrison,NY,USA
...atheists said they just wanted the pope to stop trying to bring religion into the public sphere, to respcect America's separation of church and state. ...

Learning the many faces of humanism
Ekklesia - UK
During the eighteenth century, that of the Enlightenment, humanist figures were variously atheist, deist and theist – though the bigger hitters, 
...
http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/7031

Atheist faith?
Indiana Daily Student - USA
Christopher Hitchens, one of the most read “new atheists” has said time and time again that atheism is not a “sufficient” condition for being moral.
..
http://www.idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=50642

City ahteists speak out against papal visit
NYU Washington Square News - New York,NY,USA
The group gathered Saturday to protest the pope and to raise awareness about atheism, spokespeople said. While the pope conducted a morning Mass inside 
...
http://www.nyunews.com/news/2008/04/22/Citystate/City-Atheists.Speak.Out.Against.Papal.Visit-3340775.shtml

Bad Religion's Greg Graffin Honoured For Achievement in Atheism ...
Exclaim! - Toronto,Ontario,Canada
Bad Religion front-man Greg Graffin will be honoured for a lifetime achievement in atheism, punk rock, and science. Harvard University's prominent Humanist ...

BOOKS, FILM, THEATRE, TV, YOU TUBE
Death be not proud, or maybe just ... be not
Globe and Mail - Canada
Barnes was an atheist at 20 and an agnostic by his fifties. "I don't believe in God, but I miss Him," the now-62-year-old author begins. ...

Never You Mine: Ben Stein's Selective Quoting of Darwin
Scientific American - USA
One of the many egregious moments in the new Ben Stein anti-evolution film "Expelled" is the truncation of a quote from Charles Darwin so that it makes him ...
http://www.sciam.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=61D30BEB-A65E-7583-BB264FABBD4CD879

Expelled Gets an F
The Ayn Rand Institute - Irvine,CA,USA
The film claims that advocates of "intelligent design"--the view that life is so complex it must be the product of a "higher intelligence"--are the ...

Yoko Ono sues in NY over song in movie challenging evolution
The Associated Press - 
NEW YORK (AP) — Yoko Ono is suing the producers of a movie that challenges the concept of Darwinian evolution, saying they used the song "Imagine" without ...
 
EVOLUTION, CREATIONISM, I.D.
We're not finished yet
Philadelphia Inquirer - Philadelphia,PA,USA
As a product of evolution, the design is haphazard, part fish and part monkey. By Faye Flam 'Oh what a piece of work is man," wrote Shakespeare, ...
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/health_science/weekly/20080421_We_re_not_finished_yet.html

STL schools widening gap in science education
Current - St. Louis,MO,USA
Creationism and Intelligent Design proponents present science and religion as being at odds and seeks to re-fight a scientific debate that concluded nearly ...
http://www.thecurrentonline.com/news/2008/04/21/Opinions/Stl-Schools.Widening.Gap.In.Science.Education-3338427.shtml

Protect our schools: Keep intelligent design out
Tufts Daily - Medford,MA,USA
In the end, intelligent design, like the Duesberg Hypothesis for AIDS or the geocentric model of the universe, will eventually die out as a non-scientific ...
http://www.tuftsdaily.com/news/2008/04/22/OpEd/Protect.Our.Schools.Keep.Intelligent.Design.Out-3340807.shtml
 
SCIENCE
The Amazon molly fish may be cheating laws of evolution ...
InTheNews.co.uk - London,UK
Full Story A fish swimming in rivers in the Americas is cheating some laws of evolution to avoid extinction, scientists believe. ...
http://www.inthenews.co.uk/news/science/autocodes/countries/mexico/scientists-find-fish-cheating-evolution-laws-$1219902.htm

R&D Profile: Evolution of Phage Display Towards Nanobiotechnology
Nano World News - Cambridge,MA,USA
Dr. Valery A. Petrenko, Professor at Auburn University, gave NWN an overview of his upcoming presentation at NSTI Nanotech, Evolution of Phage Display ..
http://www.nsti.org/news/item.html?id=240

Diversification and adaptive sequence evolution of Caenorhabditis ...
7thSpace Interactive (press release) - New York,NY,USA
Results: We used phylogenetic inference and sequence analysis tools to assess the evolution of lysozymes from three congeneric nematode species, ...
http://7thspace.com/headlines/279429/diversification_and_adaptive_sequence_evolution_of_caenorhabditis_lysozymes_nematoda_rhabditidae.html

UH redraws sequence of animals’ evolution
Honolulu Star-Bulletin - Honolulu,HI,USA
By Helen Altonn A four-year study led by the University of Hawaii's Kewalo Marine Laboratory has produced new insights into patterns of animal evolution, ...
http://starbulletin.com/2008/04/21/news/story03.html

Study provides new understanding of forces behind seasonal flu ...
innovations report - Bad Homburg,Germany
Do influenza viruses persist in low levels year-round in the northern and southern hemispheres, or does a new crop of the virus emerge afresh in tropical ...
http://www.innovations-report.de/html/berichte/studien/bericht-108290.html

Flavopiridol and Rhabdoid Tumors
Cancer Monthly - Raleigh,NC,USA
.. explains lead study author Ganjam V. Kalpana, PhD, professor in the Department of Molecular Genetics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. ...
http://www.cancermonthly.com/iNP/view.asp?ID=211

Migraine Increases Risk Of Severe Skin Sensitivity And Pain
Science Daily (press release) - USA
... like touching one's hair or putting on clothes," said study author Marcelo E. Bigal, MD, PhD, with Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, NY. ...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080421170300.htm

Longevity quest moves slowly from lab to life
MSNBC - USA
When Kaplan agreed four years ago to enroll in the Longevity Genes Project run by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University,...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23359040/

Distinguishing decoherence in quantum systems
PhysOrg.com - Evergreen,VA,USA
By Miranda Marquit “Over the years, work on Bose-Einstein condensates, known as BEC, have led to more and more interesting phenomena,” Artur Widera tells ...
http://www.physorg.com/news128092629.html

Entomologist Studies the Evolution of Helpful Bacteria in Insects
Fordham University - NY,USA
This random evolution is called genetic drift. To understand genetic drift, take the example of a female insect with 100000 bacteria. ...
 
SEPARATION CHURCH / STATE
Keeping faith with the American voter
Malaysia Star - Malaysia
In that sense, Americans would never vote for an atheist. “As religion equals morality, atheism is seen as the end of morality, turning society into chaos,” ...
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/19/focus/20988429&sec=focus

Evolution talk cut from bill
2TheAdvocate - Baton Rouge,LA,USA
Barbara Forrest, a member of the board of trustees for Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said Nevers’ proposal still needs to be defeated ...
http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/17949069.html

Prophecy and politics
Toronto Sun - Ontario, Canada
Which is ironic, since it's the US which separates church and state." In fact, Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms is based on the supremacy of God. ...

Prayers: Request baffles LDS official
Deseret News - Salt Lake City,UT,USA
Balovich told reporters outside the courthouse that she wants to stop the separation of the mothers from the children expected later this week. ...
http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695272746,00.html

Fla. Senate Rejects Proposal To Add Comprehensive Sex Education ...
Medical News Today (press release) - UK
... provide "scientific information relevant to the full range of scientific views regarding biological and chemical evolution," the Miami Herald reports....
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/104849.php

My View: Defending shield could embarrass city
The Saginaw News - MLive.com - Saginaw,MI,USA
Barry Lynn successfully has championed separation of state and church in courts of law border to border. This constitutionally prescribed idea is supported ...

Parents of Sect’s Children Begin Submitting DNA for Texas Officials
New York Times - United States
A mother herself, she said she more than understood the anguish of separation. “We used to have a duck one time,” Ms. McWhorter told a reporter. ...
Ruling shows Board of Ed. made right call from start
East Brunswick Sentinel - NJ, USA
.. officials to interpret federal laws regarding the separation of church and state by telling the football coach to stop participating in team prayers ...

SD Landmark Under Fire Again
The UCSD Guardian Online - San Diego,CA,USA
David Blair-Loy, legal director for the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties , said the cross’ presence violates the separation between church and state. ...

Florida lawmakers debate offering a Christian license plate
The Associated Press - 
It also could face opposition as a violation of the separation of church and state. An Indiana plate with the same "In God We Trust" phrase has been ...

Opposing groups face off in God vs. Government debate
KOAA - Pueblo,CO,USA
The argument over "separation of church and state," brought together two very different groups. The atheist supporting group Freethinkers of Colorado ..

MISCELLANEOUS
 
 
  CONVENTIONS / MEETINGS / EVENTS 
 
 Gift for Life Day                                                May 1, 2008 
 
 American Humanist Association                June 5-8. 2008       Washington D.C.

 Secular Students Association                    June 5-8. 2008       Washington D.C.

 Atheists  Alliance International                   Sept. 2008                Long Beach, Ca.
 
 Freedom From Religion                                Oct. 10-12, 2008       Chicago
 
 Gift for Life Day                                                Nov. 4, 2008    
 
             
 
        CFA Program
 
The Center for Atheism (CFA) was established by the New York City Atheists as a separate and independent national organization to propose, develop, and be a catalyst for new national activities supporting the objectives of atheists, agnostics, humanists, freethinkers, skeptics, secularists and separation-of-church-and-state advocates. 

CFA will accept and review suggestions from individuals and other secular organizations that will foster our goals.
 



  For Immediate Release
--------------
Atheists to Counter ‘National Day of Prayer'
with Blood Donations
------------------
 
Positive Life-Saving Action, Not Passive Prayer, Is the Message 

NEW YORK, March 31—What do you do on May 1, 2008, the “National Day of Prayer,” if you are an Atheist, do not believe in prayer and are opposed to the observance of a prayer day being imposed on all American citizens?
 
Some Atheists have come up with an answer: Do something positive, something active, something that may save lives and point out to the nation that there are alternatives to silently beseeching a deity to perform miracles.
 
The Center for Atheism, a New-York-City-based nationwide informational and activism group headed by Kenneth Bronstein, came up with the idea of nationwide blood donations by groups of Atheists on that day to demonstrate the power of rational thinking.
 
“We want to make a public statement about how nonreligious people can observe that day, which we have re-named The Day of Reason, and at the same time, let America know that there are millions of us who think that prayer does not work--but that medical science does,” says Bronstein. “We are offering a positive alternative to prayer, something that will reflect the life-affirming ideas of nonbelievers.”
 
Thus, on May 1st, groups of Atheists in scores of American cities will go to their local Blood Banks to donate blood and sign up for organ-donor programs—a tradition that Atheists in Manhattan have observed for four years.
 
Last year, New York City Atheists celebrated our Day of Reason by donating blood at the New York Blood Bank in upper Manhattan. A group of  Atheists arrived together to donate their life-giving blood and then celebrated together in a small anteroom with coffee, juice and light refreshment supplied by the Blood Bank.
 
“We called our blood donation program B.L.O.O.D., an acronym for Benefiting Lives of Others Donations, and we intend to do it every year on what we have renamed The Day of Reason,” added Bronstein.
 
If you want to start a B.L.O.O.D program in your locale, it’s simple. Here’s what you do:
 
1) Find your local blood bank by accessing wwwamericasblood.org 
  (Bottom left corner, type in your zip code to find your local blood bank.)

2) Phone the blood bank to make arrangements for a group donation.


  (You will find them amazingly supportive and accommodating.)

3) Notify your local newspaper, TV and other media that your group is  
   doing this and why. It’s important to alert them ahead of the event.

It's simple, it's positive, it's effective. Come on, Agnostics, Atheists, Freethinkers, Humanists, Secularists, Non-believers, Separation of Church and State advocates, join us in our positive protest against the Day of Prayer! Show the world that while religious people are on their knees, Atheists are on their feet and giving a part of themselves for the good of humanity!

For further information, contact Ken Bronstein at firebell1@aol.com or 212-535-7425
 
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          Special Notices

          There are no special notices this week.
 
 
 
Comments, suggestions, and subscriptions: focus@centerforatheism.org