Friendly Atheist Podcast

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- 50 years ago, the pope said birth control was immoral. (1:15) -- Did you know Gwyneth Paltrow hired a fact checker for Goop? (9:40) -- This 11-year-old college grad wants to pursue astrophysics so he can prove God's existence. (19:44) -- Computer models could help us understand the future of religion. (30:25) -- A Republican candidate for office thinks the Founding Fathers put "One Nation Under God" in the Pledge... which wasn't written until after they all died. (45:35) -- Two South Asian atheists face blasphemy charges in their countries. One's currently filming a reality show. (56:25) -- This alternative Ten Commandments is incredible. (1:02:20) -- We answer a question about whether or not to show off your shoulders in a very Mormon part of Utah. (1:07:17)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- Republicans just passed another bill to repeal the Johnson Amendment. (0:22) -- If you're running for governor, don't belittle someone who asks a good question about climate change. (6:35) -- Russian spy Mariia Butina infiltrated the government via the National Prayer Breakfast. (12:25) -- Science denier Jenny McCarthy has solid verifiable proof that a ghost is in her house. There's even video! (25:45) -- Why a gay Catholic could help end the blood donation ban on gay men. (29:15) -- Richard Dawkins doesn't like the sound of Muslim prayers. Should we be offended? (40:05) -- White evangelicals don't like that America is becoming less white. (55:26) -- An Alabama county commissioner with the endorsement of Jesus lost her election. (59:20) -- Darla Shine, wife of the new Trump administration appointee, thinks women are just asking for harassment if they join the military. (1:02:17) -- House Republicans passed a bill effectively allowing anti-gay discrimination at adoption agencies. (1:04:19) -- Ken Ham's merry band of Creationists tried explaining the discovery of a new planet, since it violates their beliefs. (1:10:45) -- The Humanist Legal Society, an atheist response to the Federalist Society, just launched. (1:16:04)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- The new Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, the one right-wing group that opposed him (temporarily), and his claim that church/state separation is "based on bad history." (0:30) -- This is why it's a problem believing communion wafers are the literal body of Christ. (20:14) -- Apparently you're not a real man unless you have a first-born son. (25:29) -- Kentucky can't decide if religious license plates should be allowed because atheists would get to have them. (27:44) -- Donald Trump's spiritual adviser Pastor Paula White says (wrongly) Jesus never broke the law. (33:00) -- A judge ruled against the least offensive atheist bus ad ever. (38:09) -- What did you do, Papa John? (43:47) -- The studio behind God's Not Dead wants to make a movie about the Thai kids trapped in a cave. (46:53) -- The Center For Inquiry is suing CVS for selling homeopathic medicine in misleading ways. (52:40) -- Australia is punishing parents who don't vaccinate their kids. Good. (57:52) -- The UK government is planning on banning gay conversion therapy. (1:01:10) -- A 12-year-old girl is working to bring a Pride parade to Buffalo Grove, Illinois. (1:04:20)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- Is Ark Encounter lying about attendance again? (0:39) -- A Republican congressional candidate thinks women are best described as "helpers." (15:52) -- What does Scott Pruitt's resignation letter say about God? (26:22) -- The man who destroyed the Ten Commandments monument in Arkansas doesn't regret it. (30:40) -- In Virginia, a new city council was sworn in... and they got rid of prayer. (36:21) -- A priest conducting a funeral went crazy after someone bumped into a chalice. (39:30) -- Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a potential Supreme Court pick, has a church/state separation problem. (43:58) -- Southern Baptist donors are furious that a seminary fired Paige Patterson, a man who downplayed or ignored sexual abuse. (58:22) -- This church protested Donald Trump's immigration policy by locking the Holy Family up in a cage. (1:02:37) -- There's a cultural vacuum in Trump's White House. (1:04:37) -- The issue of government-led prayer is in chaos because of the Supreme Court. (1:10:26) -- Don't get suckered in by Christians saying "I'm sorry" at a Pride parade. (1:21:30) -- The new season of the StartUp podcast is looking at a church plant. (1:31:08) -- We've got listener mail! (1:33:10)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In January, Jessica found out her brother Kevin was reading a book about the Satanic Panic and she thought it would be fun to sit down and have him walk her through the ins and outs of that era. They recorded in February. They had technical issues and had to scrap it. They tried again in April. It went very poorly. They scrapped it. But, third time's a charm, and so now we present to you "The Bluemke Sibling Dollop Tribute Journey Through the Satanic Panic." Notes: This podcast is a hat tip to The Dollop, a favorite American History comedy podcast hosted by Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds. (We suggest starting with Episode 2: Purity Balls if you enjoy the FA Podcast.) Kevin's sources are from Satanic Panic: Pop-Cultural Paranoia in the 1980s edited by Kier-La Janisse and Paul Corupe. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- What does Anthony Kennedy's retirement mean for church/state separation? (1:05) -- The Supreme Court banning abortion will backfire on evangelicals. (18:25) -- A Walgreens pharmacist refused to fill a prescription for a woman who miscarried. (32:00) -- Your thoughts and prayers alone won't help the victims in Annapolis, Maryland. (37:50) -- The American Family Association thinks a man spying on women in a Target dressing room is a good reason Target should ban trans people from using the right bathroom. (43:50) -- Joel Davis, a man who fought to stop sexual violence, has been charged with committing sexual exploitation against children. (51:50) -- El Al, Israeli's national airline, vows to kick off ultra-Orthodox Jews who refuse to sit in seats next to women. (54:20) -- The GOP's tax bill accidentally hurt churches. (57:42)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- Should Catholic Church confessionals about child abuse be reported to the cops? (2:01) -- Apparently, Australia doesn't exist. (9:45) -- Two Christian women released a marriage checklist. It's disturbing. (13:14) -- In Alberta, religious schools want the ability to "out" members of Gay-Straight Alliances to their parents. (26:00) -- PA State Rep. Brian Sims had a one-finger salute for Mike Pence. (36:27) -- "Hot Dog Water" isn't a thing. But people are buying it. (39:13) -- Focus on the Family doesn't care about families being ripped apart by Donald Trump. (43:05) -- Country musician Rory Feek accepted his gay daughter's marriage. Now Christian bookstores won't sell his memoir. (45:54) -- Gwyneth Paltrow's GOOP tried to get more scientific... and failed. (53:36) -- The governor of Texas promised a dying boy that he would ban abortion completely. (59:26) -- Attorney General Jeff Sessions was accused of immigrant child abuse by 600 members of his own religion. (1:07:13) -- Muslim reformer Maajid Nawaz won a huge settlement from the Southern Poverty Law Center (yay!) and the Religious Right is using it to their advantage (boo). (1:14:45) -- Can you separate art from the artist? (1:27:03)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- The Trump administration is using Bible verses to justify tearing children away from their parents. (1:29) -- Canada's Supreme Court says legal societies can reject the accreditation of an anti-gay Christian law school. (14:52) -- Abortion: Why won't anyone think of the men? (28:14) -- A Christian Right group plans to spend $20 million for the upcoming midterms. How will you respond? (40:42) -- A study says religious people live several years longer than atheists. Don't believe it. (50:09) -- These cities are in danger of outbreaks due to parents not vaccinating their kids. (58:30) -- Ireland has set a date for a referendum to overturn the law banning blasphemy. (1:02:12) -- Another Bangladeshi atheist was murdered. (1:08:38) -- Why would a UK legislator block this bill? (1:13:25) -- We got mail! (1:16:34)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this bonus episode, Hemant spoke with David Ellis Dickerson. He's a writer mostly known for his many appearances on "This American Life," telling stories about growing up a conservative Christian in Tucson, Arizona. In 2013, he became an Emmy-nominated game show writer for his work on the Christian game show "The American Bible Challenge," which aired on the Game Show Network and can now be seen on Netflix. We spoke about how our paths inadvertently crossed about a decade ago, how an atheist gets a job writing for a Christian game show, and what "SEX DUO" has to do with the Bible. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica and I sat down to talk about several stories from the past week involving religion and politics. -- The Catholic League's Bill Donohue is already using Anthony Bourdain's suicide to celebrate himself. (0:50) -- The Masterpiece Cakeshop decision was the worst of all possible worlds for conservative Christians, even though they won. (12:08) -- Does a Muslim beautician have the legal right to tell a trans woman she won't wax her private parts? (23:44) -- A Texas church's list of dangerous "isms" includes Judaism and atheism, but not racism and sexism. (31:23) -- What is up with college professors who commit acts of sexual misconduct against students? (35:45) -- CrossFit fired a high-ranking employee for his anti-LGBTQ rhetoric on Twitter. (44:52) -- Dr. Oz is promoting astrology again. (49:37) -- Did an Ethiopian pastor get fatally attacked by a crocodile during a baptism? (59:24) -- TV tattoo artist Kat Von D will not be vaccinating her baby. (1:05:45) -- Denmark's burqa ban is a big mistake. (1:11:59) -- This ex-lesbian wants Christian women to avoid the #MeToo movement. (1:17:43) -- We got mail! (1:21:50)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.