Once again Sam Harris speaks frankly when discussing the Church and why no legal action has yet been taken and asks for help with Project Reason.

Just imagine a pious mother and father sending their beloved child to the Church of a Thousand Hands for spiritual instruction, only to have him raped and terrified into silence by threats of hell. And then imagine this occurring to tens of thousands of children in our own time -- and to children beyond reckoning for over a thousand years. The spectacle of faith so utterly misplaced, and so fully betrayed, is simply too depressing to think about.

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Fossil reveals early bird plumage

A new study of a 150-million-year-old fossil of an Archaeopteryx has shown that remnants of its feathers have been preserved.

Archaeopteryx is regarded as a "missing link" that documents a fabulous transition from dinosaur to bird.

The researchers say that it may soon be possible to work out the colours of feathers sported by these creatures.

Archaeopteryx is the most iconic of fossils: Many of the specimens beautifully capture this snapshot of evolution - showing the creature's skeleton, feathers and teeth in great detail.

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'We Don't Do God'? Secularism and Faith in the Public Square

Is secularism or some faith-based worldview a superior public philosophy? Which provides a more robust foundation for respect of human rights and liberties, and other widespread public values and ideals? Would it be fairer or more neutral to have a secular public square -- one free of appeals to religiously informed principles and arguments? Is this even possible?

Journalist and author Christopher Hitchens and philosopher John Haldane will discuss these and related issues in the third Veritas Forum at Oxford University.

May 12, 2010 at 08:00 PM

Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford

Presenters: John Haldane, Professor of Philosophy at the University of St. Andrews

Christopher Hitchens, Author and Journalist

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Cartoonist attacked by muslims in Sweden 2010

Read that title again, CARTOONIST attacked by Muslims! What for? Drawing a picture they didn't like.

Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, who sparked controversy by drawing Prophet Mohammed with the body of a dog, was on Tuesday attacked while giving a lecture at a university, police said.

"The man was sat in the first row and suddenly he rushed at me. He punched me in the head and I lost my glasses," said Vilks, adding that at the very most he was "a little bruised".

Police said around 250 people were present at the time of the attack at the university of Uppsala, north of the Stockholm.

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"When Lars Vilks arrived, five persons started to protest against him with screaming. They calmed down and the lecture continued.

"When Lars Vilks talked about religion and showed a film, 20 persons tried to attack him, probably offended by the film."

Police evacuated the lecture hall but some demonstrators resisted, forcing officers to use tear gas. Two people were arrested.

In 2007, Swedish regional daily Nerikes Allehanda published Vilks' satirical cartoon to illustrate an editorial on the importance of freedom of expression.

The cartoon prompted protests by Muslims in the town of Oerebro, west of Stockholm, where the newspaper is based, while Egypt, Iran and Pakistan made formal complaints.

An al-Qaeda front organisation then offered $US100,000 ($A110,730) to anyone who murdered Vilks - with an extra $US50,000 ($A55,365) if his throat was slit - and $US50,000 ($A55,365) for the death of Nerikes Allehanda editor-in-chief Ulf Johansson.

Anyone who thinks that a Religious world is a better world, or that religious guidance makes us better people, is fucking insane.

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Bill Gates pays for ‘artificial’ clouds

The first trials of controversial sunshielding technology are being planned after the United Nations failed to secure agreement on cutting greenhouse gases.

Bill Gates, the Microsoft billionaire, is funding research into machines to suck up ten tonnes of seawater every second and spray it upwards. This would seed vast banks of white clouds to reflect the Sun’s rays away from Earth.

The British and American scientists involved do not intend to wait for international rules on technology that deliberately alters the climate. They believe that the weak outcome of December’s climate summit in Copenhagen means that emissions will continue to rise unchecked and that the world urgently needs an alternative strategy to protect itself from global warming.

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