All posts by Thomas Smith

AS294: Michael A. Wood Jr, Part 1

Today’s guest is Michael A. Wood Jr! Michael is a retired Baltimore police officer and veteran of the USMC. He originally went viral in 2015 for publicly speaking out against police brutality and has become an advocate for police reform. We had a wide ranging discussion, with part 1 focused more on his background and how he came to realize the problems that face policing in this country.

Find Michael’s website here.

Check him out on twitter @michaelawoodjr

AS293: President Trump’s Second Term, with Eli Bosnick and Andrew Torrez

Here is part 2 of my truly excellent recording with Andrew and Eli. We commiserate, we give our answers to a lot of the common questions, we laughed, we feared and I feel slightly better knowing I’ll still have these two amazing people and more to get me through this. I hope everyone else is as lucky as I am!

AS292: President Trump, with Eli Bosnick and Andrew Torrez

It f*cking happened. President Trump. We elected President Trump. The first 12 minutes of this episode are my live reaction from Tuesday night when it happened. It may make you uncomfortable. It’s raw and emotional but it’s how I was feeling. I left it in in case it helps anyone feel less alone in this. Feel free to skip it though. After that, I’ve got a truly excellent recording with Andrew and Eli. We commiserate, we give our answers to a lot of the common questions, we laughed, we feared and I feel slightly better knowing I’ll still have these two amazing people and more to get me through this. I hope everyone else is as lucky as I am!

This recording went long and will be in 2 very very action packed parts. Part 2 can be found immediately for Patrons over at http://www.patreon.com/atheist

AS291: What In the World Is The SPLC Thinking?

On October 25th, the SPLC released this report identifying 15 individuals who they view as anti-Muslim extremists. Some inclusions make total sense, but 2 stood out: Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Maajid Nawaz. Do their claims about Maajid and Ayaan survive scrutiny? Find out.

Here are some links I reference:

Great Atlantic article

Guardian article on Quilliam list

Quilliam’s response

NYT article written by Nawaz

 

AS290: Are We Living In A Simulation? With Phil Torres

Got a nice long action packed episode for you today. In what was originally going to be a two parter, Phil Torres and I talk about the simulation argument made popular by Nick Bostrom. I highly recommend you read the original paper and some of the other resources found here. In the second half, I make a lot of reference to the FAQ on that website, so please check it out. Specifically question 4.

 

AS289: Abortion Clinic Escort, Michelle

Today we are joined by Michelle. Michelle works with a group that defends abortion rights by volunteering as safe escorts for patients through protestors. Recently some of the tactics the protestors have used are against local laws and local police have not been responsive. We talk to her about the experiences of her and the group, and how it affects the patients that are seeking women’s health services.

AS288: A Final Election 2016 Episode (VOTE!!!)

I’ve got plenty of interviews loaded up for the coming weeks, so I wanted to get in one final commentary on this election before we vote Trump out of relevance. I’ve got several new thoughts that I haven’t yet expressed in Tommentary form, so don’t worry it’s fresh stuff! I talk about my final verdict on who is to blame for Trump, and how we can learn from it. I talk about different ways republicans have dealt with Trump, from outright support to turning to Hillary. And more.

Please vote! Hillary is way ahead in polls but polls aren’t votes. VOTE!!!

Then, please fill out this very very brief survey: https://survey.libsyn.com/atheist

AS287: Atheist Ethics and Implicit Biases, with Alonzo Fyfe

Joining me today is Alonzo Fyfe, who publishes the blog “Atheist Ethicist.” We talk about some really interesting topics including implicit biases and how they’re affecting this election. Alonzo has a theory that, though they might not be aware of it, most people who are anti-Hillary are actually victims of their own implicit biases.

We talk that and plenty more!

AS286: Dr. Robert Price on Jesus Mythicism, Part 2

Today we are talking to Dr. Robert Price about the historicity of Jesus.  Dr. Price is a former Baptist minister and current Professor of Biblical Criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute. He has written and spoken extensively on this topic.  In this part 2 we cover the references to Jesus found in Josephus. Find out Dr. Price’s response!

AS285: Dr. Robert Price on Jesus Mythicism, Part 1

Today we are talking to Dr. Robert Price about the historicity of Jesus.  Dr. Price is a former Baptist minister and current Professor of Biblical Criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute. He has written and spoken extensively on this topic.  In this episode we talk about Jesus as the Mythic Hero Archetype and combination of multiple themes from the dying-rising god stories of the day.

Price will be at the Mythinformation 3 Conference to debate this topic, and don’t forget to come see me there as well!