All posts by Thomas Smith

AS83: Category 5 Shitstorms, with James Lindsay

This week I have James Lindsay on the show, @goddoesnt on Twitter, to discuss the recent shitstorm that resulted from Peter Boghossian’s tweets. This is a chance to talk at a deeper level about what’s going on when these shitstorms happen. Does the phrase “gay pride” make sense? If so, is it the most effective slogan? Should it be changed in order to avoid negative connotations that the word “pride” carries? And most importantly, are these questions simply too offensive/ignorant/hateful for two straight white guys to discuss? I sure hope not!

AS82: Catcalling with Lydia (and Actual Cats)

Lydia returns! You likely have seen the video going around featuring a model being catcalled hundreds of times throughout New York. I’ve mentioned before my stance on catcalling and how absolutely idiotic it is. Lydia joins me as a repeated victim of catcalling to talk about it and how it makes women feel. Important stuff for all the men out there who maybe haven’t considered how this makes women feel.

AS81: Conversation with Ex-Muslim, Ben

Today I have listener Ben on, who is of course much more than simply an ex-Muslim, but having an episode named “Ben” seemed weird. Ben had a great comment on the site about the Affleck/Maher debate, and seeing as how his background is a lot different than mine, I wanted to have him on to get his views in more detail.

AS79: The Portable Atheist, Part 3

We’re back to our Portable Atheists studies! I love these! This time, we’re reading Of Religion by Thomas Hobbes, from his book called Leviathan. It’s very fascinating, and brilliant of course. Tune in and hear my summary and analysis!

Also, I discuss a couple comments about the pro-life debate. Since I asked specifically for comments regarding the right to actually kill the child (rather than just not give it sustenance) I figure I ought to actually read the comments I got!

AS78: Islamophobia; Reza Aslan and Nathan Lean

In this episode I’m revisiting some of the Islamophobia ideas. This time I’m reading some new articles and blog posts about the subject. Here are some links:

http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119898/bill-maher-ben-affleck-islam-debate-there-no-muslim-world

http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2014/10/reza-aslan-on-what-the-new-atheists-get-wrong.html

http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/on-the-mechanics-of-defamation

AS77: Observations on CJ Werleman

Please note that CJ is not actually on this episode. He’s been a guest several times before but this time I wanted to talk about what’s happening with him, and not have him in the proverbial room. He has been very vocal about his dislike of Harris’s views, as seen in this video:

And now he’s being accused of plagiarism: http://www.gspellchecker.com/2014/10/is-cj-werleman-a-plagiarist/

Serious charges, but are they appropriate? Listen for an honest take, as is the norm with your fake Norm McDonald, Thomas Smith.

AS76: Dying with Dignity and Abortion Debate Follow-Up

In this episode I talk way too long about this article: http://www.theblaze.com/contributions/there-is-nothing-brave-about-suicide/

It’s very relevant to topics we’ve discussed recently. Apparently there are people who think you owe it to someone to stay alive in the face of terrible suffering. I’m sure if they were being tortured or something they would never want to have the choice to end their life, right?

Then, I talk about the abortion discussion from Monday with Kristine. I got a ton of comments but I’d like to have you guys focus them on a particular aspect of the arguments. Tune in and find out which!

AS75: Pro-Life Humanist, Kristine Kruszelnicki

Today I have the executive director of http://www.prolifehumanists.org, Kristine! Oftentimes it seems as though atheists are 100% pro-choice, but Kristine is here to represent the other side. She contends that there are perfectly reasonable secular arguments to be pro-life. I’m really excited to get into these arguments!

AS74: Holy Codified Doctrine of Islam, Batman!

On this episode I first discuss the Ben Affleck Sam Harris Bill Maher video that has made some waves. Here’s a link: http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/can-liberalism-be-saved-from-itself

Then, I spend a lot of time going back on the circumcision discussion from Monday. I received a ton of comments and unfortunately couldn’t get to them all, but I went through a few. Here are some links I referenced:

http://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/Newborn-Male-Circumcision.aspx