[Image] Jesus Cat: Haz no Interest in Physics

‘There was surprise when Prof Dawkins acknowledged that he was less than 100 per cent certain of his conviction that there is no creator. The philosopher Sir Anthony Kenny, who chaired the discussion, interjected: “Why don’t you call yourself an agnostic?” Prof Dawkins answered that he did.’

Read more: Richard Dawkins: I can’t be sure God does not exist

‘As a child, Alix Jules saw people in church speak in tongues, tremble, fall and have what appeared to be very genuine connections with God. But not him. “I never tingled,” he said.

By his twenties, Jules was an atheist. But he never told his family, who were deeply rooted in their predominantly black Catholic congregation. They believed he was having a crisis of faith — turned off by organized religion but still a believer. For years, he let them think that.’

Read more: For atheists of color, ‘coming out’ can be painful

‘According to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Iran is building nuclear weapons that pose an “existential” threat to Israel. But virtually no one believes this, including the bulk of Tel Aviv’s military and intelligence communities. As former Israeli Chief of Staff Dan Halutz said recently, Iran “is not an existential” threat to Israel. There is no evidence that Iran is building a bomb and all its facilities are currently under a 24-hour United Nations inspection regime.’

Read more: Iran, Israel and the US: The Slide To War

‘In a match that some would say was made in hell, the nation’s two leading producers of agrochemicals have joined forces in a partnership to reintroduce the use of the herbicide 2,4-D, one half of the infamous defoliant Agent Orange, which was used by American forces to clear jungle during the Vietnam War. These two biotech giants have developed a weed management program that, if successful, would go a long way toward a predicted doubling of harmful herbicide use in America’s corn belt during the next decade.’

Read more: Dow and Monsanto Join Forces to Poison America’s Heartland

‘Why has Iran’s operational competence suddenly deteriorated so badly, given that our government spokesmen represent it as such a fearsome threat? And why would it seek to hasten a bombing campaign against its own territory as the abortive embassy bombings almost seem calculated to do? And why does the evidence mostly consist of assertions by interested parties?’

Read more: Iran and the Shape of Things to Come

‘The four remaining GOP hopefuls, Gingrich, Romney, Santorum, and Paul, gathered in Arizona on Wednesday night for the final debate prior to the Arizona and Michigan primaries coming up on February 28. This debate was sponsored by CNN and the Republican Party of Arizona. It was held at the Mesa Arts Center in Mesa, Arizona. Original Air Time: Wednesday, February 22 at 8pm ET on CNN.’

Read more: [Video] CNN Arizona Republican Presidential Debate 2/22/12 (Full Length)

‘After Rick Santorum ignited controversy over the weekend by saying President Barack Obama has a “phony” and “different theology” that’s not “based on the Bible,” and amid ongoing discomfort among some politicians and religious figures over Mitt Romney’s Mormon faith, a coalition of major religious organizations is calling on presidential candidates to keep religion out of politics.’

Read more: Religion And Politics Don’t Mix, Major Religious Groups Tell Presidential Candidates

‘We may struggle with attempts at merging science and religion, when, for instance, we watch the Christmas planetarium show “Star of Wonder,” which purports to find logical explanations for the Star of Bethlehem. This is also seen in such bestselling books as The Tao of Physics and the Dancing Wu-Lei Masters, which purport to show that modern physics says the same thing as Buddhism. However, such efforts are futile, even if they’re popular.’

Read more: Religion vs. Science’s Answers to the Big Questions

‘Intelligence officials seem to be polishing up their case to take on Anonymous like a ‘stateless’ terrorist group. The director of the National Security Agency, Gen. Keith Alexander, told various high-level audiences that the loosely affiliated group, Anonymous, would soon have the capability “to bring about a limited power outage through a cyberattack,” according to an anonymously sourced article in the Wall Street Journal today.’

Read more: Who Do You Trust Less: The NSA or Anonymous?