Freethought Radio

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Censorship and Fighting Back Jul 11, 2016

Show notes

This week we'll report that FFRF's first billboard in Mississippi managed to stay up only 5 days before being censored, play Oliver Sacks' poignant last interview in honor of the upcoming anniversary of his birth, honor poet Sherry Matulis and listen to a little Stephen Foster to celebrate that freethinker's July 4 birthday. Then we'll hear from three FFRF insiders: Attorney Patrick Elliott will talk about how he's challenging the Madison, Wis. diocese seeking unfair tax privileges; Director of First Impressions Lisa Treu (known in the radio world as Lisa Miller) will help co-host part of the show while Dan Barker is on the road, and we'll get acquainted with Amit Pal, FFRF's new and expert director of communications. Among FFRF's news making activities of the past week are actions regarding the Ark Encounter, which just opened.

The Case Against God Jul 04, 2016

Show notes

This week we celebrate the Fourth of July, as well as the Supreme Court's decision on abortion rights. We announce FFRF billboard activism in Mississipi, Minnesota, and Cleveland, Ohio, where we welcome visitors to the RNC this month with the face of Ronald Reagan advocating for state/church separation. We report legal victories in Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado and California. After hearing the music (!) of actor and atheist Kevin Bacon, we talk with author George H. Smith, whose classic 1974 book, Atheism: The Case Against God, has been reprinted with a Foreword by Lawrence Krauss.

Atheist Activist Jun 27, 2016

Show notes

FFRF protests the city of Hondo, Texas, sign saying "This is God's Country." After an FFRF complaint, Ex-Muslims of America finally get their cake that was denied by a local Wegman's food store. We hear the song "Salvation" by Elliott Ingersoll (great grandnephew of Robert Ingersoll), and then talk with FFRF's Legal Assistant and activist Calli Miller, who has been handling state/church entanglement intake and case management for FFRF's legal department, and who is now headed for Harvard Law School.

Graham is Crackers Jun 20, 2016

Show notes

FFRF protested Rev. Franklin Graham's "Decision America" rally in Wisconsin this week. We hear FFRF staff members Alyssa Schaeffer and Calli Miller interviewed by the press during that event. After hearing Roy Zimmerman's poignant song, "To The Victims Of This Tragedy," bemoaning the ineffectiveness of prayer and moments of silence after tragedies like the shooting in Orlando, we talk with Jesse Castillo and Kevin Price, the two brave plaintiffs who helped FFRF successfully sue Brewster County, Texas, over Christian crosses on police vehicles. [Photo by Ingrid Laas]

Keystone Courage Jun 13, 2016

Show notes

This week we protest the Iowa Governor's proclamation to read the bible. We speak with FFRF attorney Sam Grover about our lawsuit successfully removing Christian crosses from Brewster County, Texas, police vehicles. After hearing the witty and brilliant Julia Sweeney on CNN talking about the Reason Rally, we interview Marie Schaub, the courageous plaintiff in an FFRF lawsuit challenging the Ten Commandments monument in her daughter's Pennsylvania high school.

American Infidel Jun 06, 2016

Show notes

Psychologist, author and songwriter Elliott Ingersoll, descendant of the family of the great 19-century agnostic orator Robert G. Ingersoll, tells us about his TED talk challenging the notion of "chemical imbalances" in the brain, which, he says, can be better treated with talk therapy than with drugs. After hearing his performance of his song "American Infidel," we introduce a drawing for free downloads of the audiobook of Dan's book GOD: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction by listening to Richard Dawkins reading his Foreword. We also are treated to an in-studio reading from the book by Dan Barker and Buzz Kemper, who pays the role of "God."

The Big Picture May 30, 2016

Show notes

FFRF stopped an Ohio high school from singing "The Lord's Prayer" during graduation. Port Neches, Texas, divests itself of a Christian cross in their city park. FFRF bus signs and bike kiosk displays promoting secular values and atheist voters go up in Washington DC, with resultant controversy. Full-page ad about FFRF's House Chaplain lawsuit will be published in DC during the Reason Rally. After hearing "No Gods, No Masters," celebrating the life of Margaret Sanger, we talk with physicist Sean M Carroll, whose newest book is The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself.

Tiny Houses May 23, 2016

Show notes

FFRF challenges prayer at a Florida school district, encourages the "Do No Harm" bill, supports "One nation indivisible" and reports on our Pennsylvania lawsuit challenging the Ten Commandments at a public high school. After celebrating the birthday of feminist Margaret Fuller, giving away a free copy of Annie Laurie's book Women Without Superstition, and honoring the life of Dan's father Norman Barker (1925-2016), we talk with Bruce Wallbaum and Luca Clemente of Occupy Madison about the "Tiny Houses" they have built for the homeless and the new OM Village where they now permanently reside.

Serengeti Rules May 16, 2016

Show notes

You won't believe what a Colorado legislator said about FFRF's lawsuit challenging high-school discrimination against our scholarship for freethinking students. Nonbelief Relief is helping seven Bangladeshi freethinkers on a fatwa hit-list. FFRF's "What Does the Bible Really Say About Abortion?" ads are up in Kansas and Oklahoma. After hearing the freethought anthem "Die Gedanken Sind Frei," we talk with molecular biologist and geneticist Sean B. Carroll about his new book, Serengeti Rules: The Quest To Discover How Life Works and Why it Matters."

The Secular Life May 09, 2016

Show notes

We are suing the US House Chaplain! Dan Barker, with the help of FFRF attorneys Andrew Seidel and Sam Grover and litigation attorney Rich Bolton, filed a federal lawsuit May 5 challenging Chaplain Father Conroy's refusal to allow an atheist to offer a secular invocation before Congress. Andrew and Sam join us on the show to discuss the 2-year saga that led to this lawsuit. After hearing Irving Berlin's irreverent 1922 song "Pack Up Your Sins and Go To the Devil in Hades," we talk with sociologist and author Phil Zuckerman about his newest book Living the Secular Life: New Answers to Old Questions.

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