Religion

Continuing the postings of The Arizona Skeptic; you can find volume 1 (1987-1988) here. An index to all issues by title, author, and subject may be found here. The Arizona Skeptic vol. 2, no. 1, July/August 1988: "Lippard Disgraced!" by Ron Harvey "A Visit to the 'Psychic Showcase'" by Jim Lippard "Color it Absurd" by Ken Morse "Handwriting Analysis" by Jim Lippard "Recognizing Destructive and Manipulative Groups" by Al Seckel Upcoming Meetings "Ghost Busters or Lease Breakers" by Ken Morse "June PS Meeting" by Judy Sawyer: speakers Craig Nichols and Lee Earle of Manifestations "July PS Meeting" by Judy Sawyer: speaker Anita O'Riordan of the Arizona Attorney General's Elderly Abuse Project Correction (of omission to "Psychic Detectives" article in previous issue) Editor's Ramblings The Arizona Skeptic vol. 2, no. 2, September/October 1988: "Hype-nosis" by Jim Lippard (title typoed in published copy) "Recipe for Successful Local Group" by Kent Harker "Book Review: Nostradamus and His Prophecies by Edgar Leoni" reviewed by Jim Lippard Upcoming Meetings August PS Meeting: speaker Michael Preston on hypnosis "September meeting" by Mike Stackpole: speaker Gary Mechler on astrology "October meeting" by Judy Sawyer: speaker Janet Lee Mitchell on out-of-body experiences Editor's Ramblings The Arizona Skeptic vol. 2, no. 3, November/December 1988: Predictions for 1989 and Beyond "Psychological Factors Conducive to Paranormal Belief" by Jim Lippard "Book Review: The Art of Deception by Nicholas Capaldi" reviewed by Ted Karren "Book Review: Hypnosis, Imagination, and Human Potentialities by Theodore X. Barber, Nicholas P. Spanos, and John F. Chaves" reviewed by Jim Lippard Upcoming Meetings November PS Meeting: skeptics' predictions "December PS Meeting" by Judy Sawyer: speaker David Alexander on faith healers "TUSKS Lecture" by Ken Morse: speaker Conrad Goeringer on "Bimbos for Satan" Editor's Ramblings The Arizona Skeptic vol. 2, no. 4, January/February 1989: "Let's Be Serious: Defensive Skepticism" by Mike Stackpole "Behaviorism and Consciousness" by Jim Lippard (on January speaker, Erv Theobold) "In Response" by Erv Theobold, Ph.D. "Book Review: Mindspell by Kay Nolte Smith" reviewed by Judy Sawyer "Book Review: Science and Earth History by A. N. Strahler" reviewed by Roger Mann "Book Review: Eyewitness Testimony by Elizabeth Loftus" reviewed by Jim Lippard "Book Review: ESP and Psychokinesis: A Philosophical Examination by Stephen E. Braude" reviewed by Jim Lippard Upcoming Meetings January PS Meeting Editor's Ramblings This volume had only four issues, and marks the end of Ron Harvey's editorship. The next volume picks up in January 1990 with Mike Stackpole as editor.

Three historians interviewed for the Creation Ministries International docu-drama, “The Voyage That Shook the World," published a response maintaining that their views were not accurately represented by the film. Peter Bowler, Janet Browne, and Sandra Herbert wrote a note to that effect in the July 2009 issue of the Newsletter of the History of Science Society, which was also publicized by the National Center for Science Education’s website (and see John Lynch’s commentary at a simple prop). CMI has now published a response to the historians on their website, noting that “The historians’ description of the film, while not totally accurate at all points, is not unreasonable and in some respects complimentary.” It also uses the historians’ statement that had they known the nature of the film, they might not have participated, as evidence that they were justified in concealing that information from them. CMI takes issue, however, with the two specific allegations by Bowler and Herbert that their words in the interviews were taken out of context and misrepresented in what appears in the film. To rebut them, CMI’s website publishes more extensive quotations from these two historians and compares them to how they were edited and placed in the context of the film. Although I haven’t yet had an opportunity to view the screener copy of the film in my possession, the CMI rebuttal appears to be sound with respect to those two specific allegations. The CMI web page concludes by noting that each of the participants was given their raw footage, as well as a copy of the film, and ends by saying, “We are hopeful that it will turn out to have been a case of not having checked the raw footage sent to them, instead relying on memory. We would be delighted to publish news of a retraction of either or both of these two claims in this space, should that occur." So we can add up the lessons here: 1. Do due diligence about the production company and find out who’s behind it before agreeing to appear in a documentary. 2. Make sure your release gives you some way to defend yourself if misrepresented, e.g., make sure you get the raw footage. 3. If you [think you] are misrepresented and go public with it, consult the raw footage to make sure your charges of misrepresentation are themselves accurate. ...

Florida’s Community Issues Council, a Christian group that believes that the separation of church and state as advocated by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison is a “lie we have been told,” has taken to defending its position with billboards containing a fabricated quote from George Washington: The billboards showcase quotes from early American leaders like John Adams, James Madison and Benjamin Franklin. Most of the quotes portray a national need for Christian governance. ...

This is a reverse-chronological list of conference and talk summaries I’ve written up, either at my blog or elsewhere. Most pertain to skepticism and critical thinking in some way (and I’d like to think that all involve the application of skepticism and critical thinking to the topics at hand), some are political, and some involve information security. I’ve got a few more of these in print form that are online in the issues of the Arizona Skeptic. Bruce Wagman on “Many Species of Animal Law," April 7, 2010, Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Tempe, Arizona, Armstrong Hall 116. Joel Garreau on Radical Evolution, November 18, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, Coor 5536, CSPO Plausibility Project. Richard Carrier on “Christianity and Science (Ancient and Modern)," November 8, 2009, Humanist Society of Greater Phoenix, Home Town Buffet, Scottsdale. Robert B. Laughlin on “The Crime of Reason," November 5, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law, Great Hall; 2009 Hogan & Hartson Jurimetrics Lecture in Honor of Lee Loevinger. Roger Pielke Jr. on climate change adaptation, November 5, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, Decision Theater. Roger Pielke Jr. on climate change mitigation, November 5, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, Coor 5536. Robert Balling on climate change, October 30, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, Coor L1-74. Personalized medicine research forum, October 23, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, The Biodesign Institute. Atheist Alliance International convention, October 2-4, 2009, Burbank Marriott, Burbank, California. Speakers: P.Z. Myers, Ed Buckner, Lawrence Krauss, Carolyn Porco, Martin Pera, Jerry Coyne, Daniel Dennett, Richard Dawkins, Gerardo Romero, Jonathan Kirsch, Eugenie Scott, Brian Parra. Marco Iacoboni on imitation and sociality, August 27, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, psychology department colloquium, MU202. Joel Garreau on the future of cities, August 26, 2009, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, Consortium for Science, Policy, and Outcomes colloquium, Coor L1-10. The Amazing Meeting 7, July 9-12, 2009 at the South Point Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. Part 1: Introduction, Hal Bidlack, Phil Plait, James Randi, Bill Prady keynote. Part 2: Fintan Steele, Phil Plait, Robert Lancaster. Part 3: Jamy Ian Swiss/James Randi, Jennifer Ouellette, anti-anti-vax panel (Steven Novella, David Gorski, Joe Albietz, Harriet Hall, Michael Goudeau, Derek Bartholomaus), Joe Nickell. Part 4: Skeptics Guide to the Universe/Rodrigues-Watson wedding, Michael Shermer, Adam Savage. Part 5: Panel on ethics of deception (D.J. Grothe, Penn Jillette, Teller, Ray Hyman, Jamy Ian Swiss), Stephen Bauer, panel on skepticism and the media (Penn Jillette, Teller, Adam Savage, Bill Prady, Jennifer Ouellette), Phil Plait. Part 6: Sunday paper sessions, Million Dollar Challenge with Danish dowser Connie Sonne. Science-Based Medicine Conference at The Amazing Meeting 7, July 9, 2009 at the South Point Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. Part 1: Steven Novella on science-based medicine. Part 2: David Gorski on cancer quackery. Part 3: Harriet Hall on chiropractic. Part 4: Kimball Atwood on evidence-based medicine and homeopathy. Part 5: Mark Crislip on chronic Lyme disease. Part 6: Val Jones on online health and social media, and Q&A panel. American Humanist Association annual conference at Tempe Mission Palms Hotel, Tempe, Arizona, June 5-9, 2009. Sorry, only covered my own talk from the pre-conference workshops and the ArizonaCOR press conference. Jeff Benedict on the Kelo case and his book Little Pink House, Goldwater Institute, Phoenix, Arizona, April 15, 2009. SkeptiCamp Phoenix, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, March 28, 2009. Speakers: Tony Barnhart, Abraham Heward, David Jackemeyer, Don Lacey, Jim Lippard, Shannon Rankin, John Lynch, Jack Ray, David Weston, Mike Stackpole, Charlie Cavanaugh Toft, Xarold Trejo. Daniel Dennett’s 2009 Beyond Center Lecture, Galvin Playhouse, Arizona State University, February 18, 2009, on “Darwin’s ‘Strange Inversion of Reasoning.’" Bill of Rights celebration event at the Wrigley Mansion, Phoenix, Arizona, December 14, 2008. The Amazing Meeting 6, June 19-22, 2008 at the Flamingo Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. Overview and photo link. Part 1: Banachek memory workshop. Part 2: Hal Bidlack, James Randi welcome, Ben Goldacre on homeopathy, Neil deGrasse Tyson keynote, Alec Jason on Peter Popoff and criminal forensics, Penn & Teller Q&A, George Hrab musical interlude, P.Z. Myers on bat wings, Richard Saunders on educational materials for kids, panel discussion on identifying as a skeptic (James Randi, P.Z. Myers, Michael Shermer, Margaret Downey, Phil Plait, Hal Bidlack, and a member of the NYC Skeptics whose name I didn’t catch). Part 3: Michael Shermer on the Skeptologists and why people believe weird things, Sharon Begley on creationism and other weird beliefs, Derek and Swoopy on Skepticality and podcasting, Steven Novella on dualism and creationism, Jeff Wagg JREF update, Jim Underdown on the Independent Investigations Group and award to Randi, Randi on patching up relations with CSI (formerly CSICOP), Skeptologists pilot. Part 4: Phil Plait on astronomy, Adam Savage on his Maltese falcon, Matthew Chapman on creationism and Science Debate 2008, Richard Wiseman on the “colour changing card trick” and mass spoonbending lesson, panel discussion on the limits of skepticism (Goldacre, Daniel Loxton, Radford, Savage, Novella, Hrab, Randi, Banachek, and Saunders), Sunday conference papers: John Janks on Marfa lights, Don Nyberg on pseudoscience, Steve Cuno on myths in marketing, Tracy King on viral video. Part 5: Lee Graham on artificial creatures and real evolution, Christopher French on anomalistic psychology, Tim Farley on building skeptical tools online, Brian Dunning on The Skeptologists. Gene Healey on his book The Cult of the Presidency, Goldwater Institute, Phoenix, Arizona, May 1, 2008. Richard Dawkins 2008 Beyond Center Lecture, Grady Gammage Auditorium, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, March 6, 2008, on “The God Delusion." New Mexico InfraGard Member Alliance “$-Gard” conference, February 22, 2008, Albuquerque, New Mexico. Speakers: Frank Abagnale on protecting yourself from fraud, Anthony Clark and Danny Quist on malware secrets, Alex Quintana on current trends in malware, Melissa McBee-Anderson on the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Ayaan Hirsi Ali at the Phoenician Resort, Goldwater Institute award banquet, Phoenix, Arizona, December 7, 2007. Screening of “Mr. Conservative” documentary about Barry Goldwater, Goldwater Institute, Phoenix, Arizona, August 16, 2007. Features Barry Goldwater, George Will, Barry Goldwater, Jr., Sandra Day O’Connor, Ben Bradlee, Sally Quinn, Al Franken, Julian Bond, Hillary Clinton, and Jack Valenti. Ron Paul launches Arizona campaign at private home in Paradise Valley, Arizona, March 30, 2007. Followed up by Einzige’s “Ron Paul, Religious Kook," my “Spammers and criminals for Ron Paul," and “Ron Paul connected to white supremacists?" Skeptics Society conference on “The Environmental Wars," Caltech, Pasadena, California, June 2006. Intro and links to other summaries. Jonathan Adler on federal environmental regulation. Eugenie Scott on “Creationism and Evolution: Current Perspectives," Robert S. Dietz Memorial Lecture at Arizona State University, Physical Sciences building, February 3, 2006. National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C) Economic Crime Summit, November 8-9, 2005, downtown Phoenix, Arizona, and Freedom Summit, November 12-13, 2005, Grace Inn Ahwatukee. Economic Crime Summit and Freedom Summit comparison/contrast/overview–prayer vs. atheism debate, Terry Goddard, Roger Vanderpool, John Vincent, Kevin Robinson, Charles Cohen, George H. Smith, Eric Lounsbery, David Friedman, Chris Heward, Karen Kwiatkowski, Jim Bovard. Freedom Summit: Stuart Krone on technology and why we’re screwed. Freedom Summit: Steven Greer on aliens and conspiracy. Freedom Summit: Links to photos and other summaries. CSICOP Conference on “The Psychology of Belief," Seattle, Washington, June 23-26, 1994. CSICOP Conference on “Fairness, Fraud, and Feminism: Culture Confronts Science," Dallas, Texas, October 16-18, 1992. Part 1: Panel on multicultural approaches to science (moderator Eugenie Scott, Diana Marinez, Joseph Dunbar, Bernard Ortiz de Montellano), unofficial session on faith healing with Ole Anthony. Part 2: Intro remarks by Lee Nisbet, panel on gender issues in science and pseudoscience (moderator James Alcock, Carol Tavris, Susan Blackmore, Steven Goldberg), Richard Dawkins keynote on viruses of the mind. Part 3: Fraud in science panel (moderator Ray Hyman, Elie Shneour, Paul Friedman, Walter Stewart), Sergei Kapitza and Evry Schatzman on international skepticism, panel on crashed saucer claims (Philip Klass, James McGaha). Part 4: Robert Young on the Kecksburg meteor, Donald Schmitt on Roswell, awards banquet (Richard Dawkins, Henry Gordon, Andrew Skolnick), entertainment by Steve Shaw (now better known as Banachek), visit to Dealey Plaza. CSICOP Workshop on UFOs, Ramada Inn Airport Hotel, Tucson, Arizona, November 16-17, 1990. James McGaha, Robert Sheaffer, Robert Baker, and Ronald Story, all on UFOs.

Arizona State Senator Sylvia Allen (R-Snowflake), arguing in favor of a bill to allow uranium mining north of the Grand Canyon, casually says that the earth is 6,000 years old, and therefore a little uranium mining isn’t going to hurt anything. Snowflake, the home of the logging team that included claimed UFO abductee Travis Walton, also has a large Mormon population, and Mormons have power in the Arizona legislature far beyond their numbers. The ignorant Senator Allen should step on over to the Talk.Origins Archive and read the Age of the Earth FAQ. (UPDATE: For a more readable introduction, how about Chris Turney’s Bones, Rocks and Stars: The Science of When Things Happened, or G. Brent Dalrymple’s The Age of the Earth.) (Via the Bad Astronomy blog.) ...

The third part of the St. Petersburg Times story on Scientology, “Ecclesiastical justice," is out, and it’s a bit of a disappointment. It’s a few more charges of abuse by the four high-ranking defectors that were already summarized in the first part, plus some accounts of the well-known Sea Org practice of “overboarding,” used with swimming pools when ships aren’t available. Surprisingly, the story doesn’t mention that the Olympic-sized swimming pool at the Scientology “Gold Base” compound in Hemet has a faux ship, the Star of California, built into the hill next to it. Today’s stories also include some more detail about the departures from Scientology of the four senior-level defectors interviewed for the story, and some media and Internet reactions. All in all, I think this new series of stories is not as damning as, say, Janet Reitman’s “Inside Scientology” that appeared in Rolling Stone in 2006, nor as any of the older classic exposures like the six-part Los Angeles Times series by Joel Sappell and Robert W. Welkos from 1990, Richard Behar’s “The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power” from Time magazine in 1991, or Richard Leiby’s work in the Clearwater Sun in the 1970s and 1980s and the Washington Post in the 1990s. I hope someday we’ll see a more detailed exposure of Scientology’s battle with the IRS, and the role of the Church of Spiritual Technology/L. Ron Hubbard Library in the Scientology organizational structure, and why its trustees are lawyers who aren’t Scientologists, including a former Assistant Commissioner of the IRS. UPDATE (August 2, 2009): Other Scientology defectors are now coming forward with their stories, some of which confirm the accounts of abuse given by Rinder, Rathbun, and De Vocht. ...

Via John Lynch’s blog, I see that Creation Ministries International has made a docu-drama about Darwin titled “The Voyage That Shook the World,” featuring professional historians who are well-known experts on Darwin. And why did these historians participate in a creationist project? It seems that CMI took a page from the producers of “Expelled” and set up a separate production company, and failed to disclose the nature of their production to the historians in question. That suggests to me unethical deception–lying by omission–though I’d like to know what exactly the historians were told and what releases they signed before they participated. Updates to come if I find out. UPDATE (June 27, 2009): CMI describes its process for the documentary, including the document sent to interviewees, on its website. No mention is made of CMI or a creationist slant to the film. The director says that “if anything, CMI’s influence was one of moderation, ensuring that all sides were fairly represented,” but if he is himself a creationist and set out to make the film from a creationist viewpoint, this isn’t much of a defense. Note that at least one participant questioned who was providing the funding, and was told only “private investors.” And one participant tried to return his fee in order to not appear in the film. The proof will be in the pudding–it will be interesting to see what the film’s narration says and how they fit the interviews into it. There’s clearly no defense if it says things that are false or misleading. Implicit in the CMI position is that creationism is a valid, reasonable, and evidence-supported viewpoint that deserves equal representation, but that’s not the case. One thing that’s clear is that anyone being interviewed for a documentary in the age of Borat and Expelled should do some due diligence before signing a release. UPDATE: John Lynch has responded further, as well, and I agree with everything he says. Their statement about atheists having “no compunction to be truthful at all” is false and offensive, and their analogy to an investigation of the Communist party is a bad analogy. UPDATE: P.Z. Myers has weighed in. This may be the sort of online media coverage they’re hoping for–the film is showing at so few places that the biggest place in Arizona to see it is a church in Miami, AZ (population < 2,000). UPDATE (June 29, 2009): The CMI web page contains this statement under the movie poster image: “The Voyage that Shook the World, CMI’s documentary, has atheists ranting and raging. Rather than critique the film, they falsely accuse CMI of deception.” This statement itself is dishonest–the accusations of deception are accurate, and the current complaints are not necessarily in lieu of critiquing the film, if it becomes feasible to view it. UPDATE: John Lynch responds further to CMI, and notes that he has been incorrectly identified as an atheist (he’s an agnostic). ...

Part two of the three-part series in the St. Petersburg Times on Scientology has been published, and it’s a detailed account of the death of Lisa McPherson. Some of the previously unpublished details include that David Miscavige was personally monitoring McPherson’s auditing over closed circuit television and deemed her “clear” in 1995, prior to her minor car accident and subsequent death after being held for 17 days in the Fort Harrison hotel and being subjected to the “introspection rundown.” This is according to Tom De Vocht and Don Jason, both former high-ranking Scientologists in Clearwater. The Church of Scientology denies that Miscavige was even present in Clearwater. In December 1999, when a judge ruled that Miscavige could be added as a defendant in the McPherson wrongful death case, he allegedly became more abusive and irrational. The criminal case against the church fell apart when the medical examiner changed her ruling from undetermined cause of death to accidental death. Former Scientologist Marty Rathbun, one of the critics speaking out for this series, agrees with the church on this point that the medical examiner’s decision was based on the evidence rather than on blackmail or pressure from the church. (Previously.) (Photograph is of a Scientology Sea Org bus near the Fort Harrison Hotel, with a couple members of the Sea Org in uniform, on June 25, 2005. Sea Org members sign billion-year contracts.)

More on Zion Oil and Gas, a company tied to Hal Lindsey that picks sites to drill for oil based on misinterpretations of the Bible–and they’re looking in Israel. The Bronte Capital blog writes about the company as a counterexample to the claim that all oil exploration work uses mainstream old-earth geology, so now, to be accurate, you need to say that this is true of all successful oil exploration work. (I believe Uri Geller allegedly helped in some oil or mineral exploration in the past, so the former claim had already been falsified, though I think the latter still holds.) Bronte Capital notes that since Zion can claim that it is making its decisions based on constitutionally protected religious belief, that may be a defense against accusations of stock fraud. Zion’s stock trades on the American Exchange under stock symbol ZN. It has a market capitalization of $85.17 million, and closed last week at $8.00/share, near the bottom of its 52-week range ($5.07-$17.68). The company formed in 2000 and has offices in Texas and Israel. The company’s stock is, unfortunately, not available for shorting. Here’s a Zion promotional video: (Previously.) ...

It turns out former head of Scientology’s Office of Special Affairs Mike Rinder, who left the Church of Scientology in 2007, has decided to speak out after all. And so has Marty Rathbun, who was Inspector General of the Religious Technology Center, the organization that acts as agent for all of Scientology’s intellectual property and was prominent in legal action against online critics. The St. Petersburg Times is running a multi-part story on their allegations of corruption and abuse inside the Church of Scientology, confirming and expanding upon stories that have long been staples of online criticisms of the church: ...