By Eric Jayne

About an hour after Alabama governor Bob Bentley was inaugurated on Martin Luther King Day, he delivered a speech saying that he would serve all Alabamans regardless of party affiliation or race. In the next breath, however, the governor indicated that anyone “who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior” is not his “brother” or “sister.” After receiving unfavorable news coverage over his remarks, Governor Bentley publicly apologized two days later. But did he really need to apologize? If we recognize how much God is invoked and whored out in the United States we might be able to cut the Governor some slack and focus our energy on the more problematic bigger picture.

 

By George Kane

 

Since I started writing this column in 2001, I have covered litigation over the Mt. Soledad Cross many times. It has been of particular interest to me because I could see the cross from Rancho Bernardo, where I lived in the early ‘90s before I came to Minnesota. I think that we are likely no closer to a resolving the fate of the cross now than we were when I lived about 20 miles away from it.

 

By Matthew Richardson

Minnesota Atheists has taken official positions on a number of social and political issues, and has subsequently written policy papers on these issues. These positions and policies are based on separation of state and church, human rights, and humanitarianism. I think the time is long overdue for Minnesota Atheists to take a position on the War on Drugs, namely, that Minnesota Atheists advocates an end to the Drug War and that drug use be legalized for adults.

 

Internationally acclaimed science-atheist blogger PZ Myers (http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula) will be in the Twin Cities on Saturday and Sunday, February 19th and 20th. Professor Myers will give different presentations at each of the three following venues.

Humanists of Minnesota
Saturday, Feb. 19, 10:00 a.m.-noon
Nokomis Recreation Center
2401 East Minnehaha Parkway, Minneapolis
Myers will present on the topic “The Evolution of Creativity.” Lunch will be held afterward at a nearby restaurant


Atheists Talk Radio
Sunday, Feb. 20, 9:00-10:00 a.m.
KTNF AM 950
http://www.am950ktnf.com/listen
Interviewed by Greg Laden.

Minnesota Atheists
Sunday, Feb. 20, 2:00-3:30 p.m.
Roseville Public Library
Myers’ presentation will be preceded by a Minnesota Atheists business meeting, which will include elections to our board of directors, and followed by a trip to Panda Garden Buffet - 1706 Lexington Ave. N., Roseville.

 

Please join us.

By August Berkshire

I’m very excited about our upcoming year. We start out having restored our membership to the level it was at two years ago, mostly through lapsed members having renewed, but also through gaining many new members (welcome!).