Here’s your Canadian Atheist Weekly Update for to .
![[Poster for the play "Unholy".]](https://www.canadianatheist.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/unholy-poster-200x288.png)
Unholy
I was away travelling over the holidays, so the last two Weekly Update posts were cancelled. To make up for that, here’s a whopping big Weekly Update – easily the biggest Weekly Update yet.
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[] Donald Trump claims torture ‘works’ – but what does the science say?
Despite decades of research showing otherwise, there are still many people – some even on this very blog – who still believe that torture might be effective.
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[] The Biggest Mistake in the History of Science
Even considering other
massive blunders
anddubious discoveries like luminiferous aether, the expanding earth, vitalism, blank slate theory, phrenology, and Piltown Man
, Darren Curnoe opines that the biggest mistake ever made in science was the invention of race. -
One of the many excuses progressives use for not taking action is that “the kids are alright”, meaning that the attitudes of young people is broadly liberal and progressive, so if we just wait for the old, conservative, bigots to die off, society will progress automatically. It turns out that racism and white victimization rhetoric – even when blatantly contradicted by reality – is quite alive and well among the young. This is US data, but it stands to reason the same effect exists here – certainly it’s something that warrants research.
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[] Noam Chomsky: Randomly Surfing the Web Is No Way to Educate Yourself; Internet Is a ‘Cult Generator’
Chomsky describes the Internet as
basically neutral
,kinda like a hammer… the hammer doesn’t care whether you use it to build a house or a torturer uses it to crush somebody’s skull
, which seems to imply that he thinks the problem is that people aren’t being taught how to properly use it. Sounds like an argument in favour of early education in critical thinking to me. -
[] McDonald’s could be forced to issue refunds if lawsuit proves ‘Value Meals’ lack value
Okay, this one made me chuckle. Basically, some dude used math to prove that McDonald’s “Extra Value Meals” don’t actually offer any extra value, and in fact cost 41¢ more than they should by any objective measure. A frivolous lawsuit? Perhaps, but consider this: We should be able to demand that any claims made in advertising – whether about magical health effects, or even just cash value – should not be false, and should be supported by evidence, shouldn’t we?
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[] New ultrasound technique is first to image inside live cells
It may now be possible to look inside cells, then afterwards re-implant them into the body still alive.
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[] CFI Discourse #5: Blasphemy
Russell Pangborn writes about the injustice of blasphemy laws in a letter that was published in the Toronto Star.
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[] Trudeau Promised To Bring Us Out of Canada’s Anti-Science Era, But We’re Not There Yet
It’s hard to grok fully just how horrifically bad the Harper government was for Canadian science. The Trudeau government, despite all they’ve done – and they have done quite a bit – still hasn’t yet managed to fully undo the damage Stephen Harper’s Conservatives did.
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[] Canada’s New Climate Plan Could Shift Billions from Highway Expansion to Public Transit
The Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change recently signed by the PM and most premiers (all except Brad Wall of Saskatchewan and Brian Pallister of Manitoba) has a neat clause buried in its pages. In the past, the federal government has funded infrastructure without regard to climate costs. This policy is arguably why transportation is the second-highest emission sector and has risen enormously in the last twenty-five years. But now the federal government funding will shift to lower-emission forms of transportation, such as public transit. But will they follow through? Hard to say.
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[] 10 Scientific Studies From 2016 Showing Marijuana Is Safe and Effective
In 2016, the Trudeau government’s big issue may have been assisted dying (with electoral reform a close second), but the big issue in 2017 might be the legalization of cannabis. If that’s the case, it’s nice to see more evidence coming in that it is a smart move.
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[] Five Surprisingly Good Things That Happened in Canada in 2016
The Trudeau government gets a lot of well-deserved criticism, particularly for its environmental record. What with its bizarrely hypocritical approvals of massively polluting LNG terminals and oil pipelines despite talking the talk about environmental responsibility, it’s not hard to see why. But the Trudeau government has done some things to live up to its lip on the climate change file, some of them quite good.
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[] Evangelicals May Be Turning on Trump Before He’s Even Sworn In
Nonbelievers can point out the hypocrisies, absurdities, and outright fraud in prosperity gospel preachers until they’re blue in the face and never get paid any attention, so there’s a certain amount of satisfaction is seeing that even other Christians think Paula White is a crook. Of course, some of the actual reasons given for disliking her, such as
[rejecting] the Council of Nicaea’s creed
, are pretty stupid. -
[] Why 2017 will be a make-or-break year for Internet freedom
Net neutrality will be an important issue up for grabs in 2017, along with the repeal of Bill C-51 and the proposed “Internet tax”.
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Ontario’s Wynne government has caved to pressure, and allowed hospitals – not physicians – to “conscientiously object” to providing legal end-of-life services.
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[] “Against Empathy: Yale psychology professor says too much emotion leads to bad moral decisions”(Audio: 24:17)
Freethought is usually described as eschewing tradition, mysticism, and dogma in favour of reason and evidence, but perhaps emotion should also be included in the list of things to be frowned upon.
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[] “Slacktivism Defeats ISIS: The Beaverton”(Video: 1:38)
That’s right! Just keep liking those posts and taking part in those polls, and we’ll eventually win the war against violent extremism! What’s that? You retweeted a social justice meme? You, hero, you!
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[] Growing list of Liberal hypocrisies risks ushering in right-wing populism to Canada
I’ve made this observation elsewhere, and I’m glad to see I’m not the only one making it: Trump-ish facist populism can happen here, if the alternatives – in this case, the Liberals – don’t smarten up.
Upcoming items
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[] Unholy opens at the Buddies in Bad Times Theatre
The show’s description:
Four female panelists face-off in a wild, whip-smart public debate about religion and misogyny. With opinions flying from a progressive Muslim lawyer, an Orthodox Jewish spiritual leader, an excommunicated nun and a lesbian atheist pundit, Unholy delivers a hilarious, no-holds-barred look at contemporary women in organized religion.
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