Minutes for HAT Meeting, 5/20/07

We began with announcements of future meetings. The Food & Fellowship gathering will be this Saturday, at 11:30 pm, 5/26/07, at Thai Siam on 31st. The Atheists Meetup will be next Sunday, 5/27/07, at 2:00 pm at Border’s on 21st St. We will focus upon the question, How does one talk with a Christian believer? These are the last two activities of interest to freethinkers this month of which I am aware.

And since, to quote from a Paul Kurtz document, “[w]e are engaged by the arts no less than by the sciences,” we next moved to the reading of literary selections. Randy read the poem “The Second Coming” by William Butler Yeats, followed by my reading of “Silver Jack,” an anonymous poem.

Attending today beside Randy and myself were Jan, Marilyn, Polly, Mary, and Brian. Today’s program was presented by Brian Hill. It was an excellent review of the book Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism by Susan Jacoby. Brian spoke about the book for about a half hour and then answered some questions from the audience.

Sex and Movie Night

It was good to see Bill & Sue Forney at Movie Night tonight at the Bradleys. We had a total of nine people there. I brought a DVD of Neil Young and Prairie Fire, and Gail brought a DVD about owls, but both of those DVDs would have to wait for another Movie Night. What we watched was The Education of Shelby Knox. This documentary tracked the (unsuccessful) efforts of Lubbock, Texas teenage Shelby Knox to bring sex education to her high school. A half-hour discussion (mostly about sex) followed the showing of the documentary. We also talked about NetFlix and the advantages of renting DVDs through that source versus a local DVD rental store.

Join us Saturday, February 3 for the next Movie Night. Bring you favorite DVD and we might vote to watch it.

January Freethought Activities

January 2007
Activities of Interest to Freethinkers

Sat., Jan. 6, 7:00pm
Movie Night at the Bradleys, 6705 E. 54th St. Feature presentation to be chosen that night.

Sun., Jan. 7, 1:00 pm
Either a Dennett or Dawkins DVD will be shown in one of the meeting rooms at Hardesty Library starting at 1:00 pm. This showing is being arranged by Nicole of the young atheists of Tulsa Atheists Meetup.

Sun., Jan 14, 1:00pm
Humanist Study Group at Hardesty Library, on 93rd near Memorial. Topic: Humanism and the science of happiness. Read the article at http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page=bupp_26_6&back=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.secularhumanism.org%2Flib%2Flist.php%3Fpublication%3Dfi

Wed., Jan. 17, 11:20am
ALGAE (A Little Group of Atheists Eating), luncheon at White River Fish Market, 1708 N. Sheridan.

Sat., Jan. 20, 10:00am
Volunteer work at Food Bank, 1150 N. Iroquois, Tulsa. Call Randy (622-6975) or Julia (582-6322) for more information.

Sun., Jan. 21, 1:00pm
HAT Monthly Membership Meeting at Hardesty Library, 93rd and Memorial. Brian Hill will review the book Jesus in America by Richard W. Fox.

Sat., Jan. 27, 11:30am
Food & Fellowship at LaRoma’s Gourmet Pizza, 6027 S. Sheridan.

Sun., Jan 28, 2:00pm
Tulsa Atheist Rendezvous/Tulsa Atheist Meetup We will meet at Border’s Bookstore on 21st St. near BA Expy on the second floor near the computer books. Additional details will be posted later at http://atheists.meetup.com/477 and www.tulsaar.blogspot.com.


Secular Singers will not meet in January.

Questions? Call Dan at 798-3629

HAT Minutes for 12.16.06 meeting

The December HAT meeting was held this year at the Bradleys’ house. It was our annual observance of HumanLight. There were about 20 people present.

We began the afternoon by reading the first act of the play Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. After the first act we paused for our meal. We had a great meal of chicken and rice with sweet potatoes and several desserts, including some delicious chocolate cake balls covered in semi-sweet chocolate made by Julia.

In the business part of the gathering while we were still seated at the dining table, we elected our officers for 2007. They are Randy Bradley, president; Marilyn Clarke, vice-president; Dan Nerren, secretary/treasurer, and Brian Hill, program director. Randy presented Dan Nerren a gift from the chapter as a token of appreciation for his years of service to the Humanist chapter in Tulsa. On the outside of the box is a quotation from Albert Einstein: “Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own heart.” Inside the box is this inscription: “Presented with gratitude and affection by the members of the Humanist Association of Tulsa. Winter Solstice – 2006”

Following the meal we read the second act of the play. Then the Secular Singers sang some seasonal songs, including “Human Light,” which is what the whole event was about. Some of those present joined in with the singing.

Julia said that she had communicated with someone at the Eastern Oklahoma Food Bank about HAT volunteering there. We will work at the food bank on the third Saturday of the month. In January that will be the 20th. Expect to be contacted to see if you can volunteers for this community service project.

9/11 Conspiracy Theory Questions Answered

One of my favorite quotations is by philosopher George Santayana, and it goes something like this: “Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and it is shameful to surrender it too soon or to the first comer.” When it comes to 9/11 conspiracies, I find that many people have jettisoned their skepticism and swallowed a conspiracy theory, hook, line, and sinker.

If you have bought into the idea that the events of 9/11 were perpetrated by our own government as a pretext for other actions, I beg you to read pages 30 through 44 of the current issue of Skeptic magazine (Vol. 12, No. 4). The various claims of the 9/11 Truth Movement are examined, some of which are shown to be untruthful. Many of the unanswered questions about the events of that day are addressed (e.g., Why did WTC building number 7 collapse if it was not struck by a plane?, If the temperature from the fires did not get high enough to melt steel, why did the buildings collapse?, Are the squibs shown in film of the damaged towers evidence of demolition charges?, Did the collapse of the towers look exactly like a controlled demolition?, Did WTC leaseholder Larry Silverstein actually confess to destroying WTC 7?

Toward the end of the first article, author Phil Molé poses this question: Why do so many intelligent and promising people find these theories so compelling. Molé then offers possible answers.

The magazine may be purchased at Border’s and Barnes & Noble, among other shops, for $5.95.

News from this weekend

Secular Singers

The Secular Singers met at Randy’s for a practice session Saturday evening in preparation for a musical presentation at our annual HumanLight celebration on December 16 this year. We practiced our songs and refined the program as we went through the material. We are hoping we have a good showing at this year’s observance.

Randy and Dawn Bradley will be preparing a meal of chicken and rice. Everyone is welcome to bring a side dish or dessert, if they are so inclined. Following the meal we have two entertainment events planned. We have about 15 songs of the season we have been rehearsing, but there may not be time enough for all songs. For a couple of the songs (“Jingle Bells” and “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer”), you will be invited to sing along with us.

Humanist Study Group

The Humanist Study Group met briefly before those present jumped ship to see a “9/11 conspiracy” film being shown elsewhere in the library. I knew that the meeting was a lost cause when two of our friends came into the room only to announce they were leaving to go to another room to watch the conspiracy film. So Glenn (our discussion leader) postponed the discussion until next month and most of us went to the room showing the conspiracy film. The postponement will give us time to read the book Flow, if we wish, which is the subject of the article for discussion.

Someone from the group showing the film said it was 50-minutes long, but when the film ran past an hour I asked how long the film was and was told two hours. Since I had seen previously two other films arguing for a 9/11 conspiracy and had spent an hour and 15 minutes watching this film, I decided to leave. The films I have seen on this subject, including the one today, do not strike me as an objective examination of events. Rather they seem to me to be aimed at emotionally exciting the viewer. They appeal to emotion rather than intellect. If the films should happen to contain some accurate explanation of events, I am too skeptical of their claims since their credibility has been lost with me. I am no fan of Bush and company, but when these films devolve into a vehicle to verbally attack the Bush administration, I have to question their motive and objectivity. What are they really after? According to the film I viewed today, our government, or its allies, is behind a whole host of calamities including the London bombings, the Madrid bombings, and the bombing of the Murrah building in OKC.

AHA Survey

I received by e-mail today a survey from two members of the AHA Chapter Assembly regarding our chapter and our activities. I responded and forwarded the survey with my responses to the Board. If anyone else would like to read the survey and my responses, please let me know and I will forward the same to you.

If anyone would like to comment on anything I have written, just click on the comment option feature of this blog.

December Activities Calendar

December 2006
Activities of Interest to Freethinkers

Sat., Dec. 2, 7:00pm
Movie Night at the Bradleys, 6705 E. 54th St. Feature presentation to be chosen that night.

Sat., Dec. 9, 5pm to 7pm
Secular Singers at the Bradleys. All are welcome. Rehearsal for our annual HumanLight celebration. See www.humanlight.org. The revised program has been posted on the HAT blog.

Sun., Dec. 10, 1:00pm
Humanist Study Group at Hardesty Library, on 93rd near Memorial. Topic: Humanism and the science of happiness. Read the article at http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page=bupp_26_6&back=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.secularhumanism.org%2Flib%2Flist.php%3Fpublication%3Dfi

Wed., Dec. 13, 11:20am
ALGAE (A Little Group of Atheists Eating), luncheon at White River Fish Market, 1708 N. Sheridan.

Sat., Dec. 16, 1:00pm
HAT Monthly Membership Meeting at the Bradleys. Business: Election of officers for 2007 and participation in Food Bank volunteer program. Program: Musical entertainment by The Secular Singers and the reading of a humorous play selected by Marilyn Clarke. This event will double as our December F&F.

Sun., Dec. 17, 2pm
Tulsa Atheist Rendezvous/Tulsa Atheist Meetup We will meet at Border’s Bookstore on 21st St. near BA Expy on the second floor near the computer books. Additional details will be posted later at http://atheists.meetup.com/477 and www.tulsaar.blogspot.com.


Questions? Call Dan at 798-3629

Revised song list for HumanLight celebration

1. HumanLight
2. O Tannenbaum
3. Home for the Holidays
4. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
5. Mr. Santa
6. No ‘L’
7. Sleigh Ride
8. The Good King
9. Jingle Bells (duet)
10. Frosty the Snowman
11. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
12. The First Nowell (duet)
13. I Saw Three Ships (duet)
14. Silent Night (duet)
15. We Wish You a Merry Christmas

Nine Attend November F&F

The November Food & Fellowship was held on Saturday, the 25th, at TeKei’s on Utica. Those present were Glenn, Gail, Dawn, Randy, Ron, Marilyn, Barbara, Jan, and Dan. That’s nine people – a pretty good showing.

Randy told us about a marathon race he had participated in. The course was 26 miles long, and Randy completed it. What a feat!

Barbara told us about the great view she had of fireworks from her apartment high atop the University Tower – that’s the cylindrical building on the east bank of the Arkansas River near downtown.

Other topics of conversation included Chinese food, the Prairie Home Companion movie and Robert Altman, assassinations, Edna St. Vincent Millay, whales, and tiling floors.

In December, there will be a combined HAT meeting and Food & Fellowship gathering. This will take place at the Bradleys (6705 E. 54th) on Saturday, December 16, beginning at 2 PM. The Bradleys will be providing the food. The occasion will be our annual HumanLight celebration.

Minutes for meeting on 11.19.06

At the HAT meeting today nominations were received for officers for 2007. The officers for 2006 were all agreeable to having their names placed in nomination to serve for another year. Thus we will have Randy Bradley as president, Marilyn Clarke as vice-president, Dan Nerren as secretary and treasurer, and Brian Hill as program director.

Attendance was down today with just nine people present. At today’s meeting were Marilyn, Julia, Mary, Polly, Brian, Ron, Sam, and a first time visitor, Vernon. Randy participated in a marathon run today and did not attend, but Marilyn, our vice-president, took over in Randy’s absence. Randy and I had earlier talked about getting a video recorded describing HAT and uploading it to YouTube.com. Vernon, our visitor, said he had some experience in making videos. I think he will assist us in making a video and getting it on You Tube.

Today’s program was presented by Brian Hill. He gave a book review of Piety and Politics by Barry Lynn. He gave us an informative overview of the book -- an excellent presentation, as usual.

Next month HAT will meet at the home of Randy and Dawn Bradley for our annual HumanLight celebration. The Bradleys will provide a light meal. The Secular Singers will provide musical entertainment. This meeting will be on Saturday, December 16, starting at 2:00 PM. There will be no Food & Fellowship gathering in December.

Julia is looking into the possibility of HAT members volunteering for work at a food bank as a community service project.

In January, our program will be the reading of a play. The play for this Readers’ Theater presentation will be selected by Marilyn Clarke. We don’t know at this time how many “actors” will be needed, but if this activity is of interest to anyone reading this, please contact me.

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The ALGAE meeting last Wednesday saw seven old friends coming together for a meal: Dave, Dana, Larry, Julia, Sharon, Patricia, and Dan. It’s always interesting to hear what Dave has been reading. Presently, it is the recently published The Female Brain by Louann Brizendine. This book reveals the mysteries of how the brains of women function. Other topics we talked about included a Nova program about a small group of people who walked using their arms and legs like a dog or cat, South Park TV program, geocaching, science magazines, family reactions upon learning about one’s atheism, and campaign finance reform.

On Saturday a group of five HAT folk drove to Oklahoma City to see an exhibit of Egyptian artifacts at the OKC Museum of Art. Also at the museum we saw many Chuhuly glass works, and we watched a video titled “The Way Things Go.” We then walked to Bricktown, not far away. We then returned to our cars and drove to see a sculpture commemorating the westward expansion of the U.S. We were going to eat at the nearby Bass Pro Shop but discovered there was no restaurant in the building. We drove to a Chinese restaurant a few miles away and ate there.

Weekend events

HAT folk had two opportunities to get together this weekend. The Secular Singers gathered at Randy’s to practice some music for our annual HumanLight Celebration which is scheduled for Saturday, December 16, starting at 2 pm. We have one more rehearsal scheduled before then. It will be on Saturday, Dec. 9, probably starting at 2 pm if that does not conflict with anyone’s schedule.

What a stimulating and wide-ranging discussion we had today at the Humanist Study Group meeting at Hardesty Library. In addition to myself, the others there were Randy, Glenn, Dave, Ron, Audrey, Marilyn, Mary, Richard, Sam, Russ, Polly, Larry, and Don. An attendance of 14 is pretty good for our small group. The subject of discussion was an article by Steve Paulson, “The Flying Spaghetti Monster.” No one believes there is a flying spaghetti monster, just as in Bertrand Russell’s day no one believed there was a silver teapot orbiting Mars. Yet neither of these concepts and be proven not to exist.

Randy asked that each of us put in writing our own personal philosophy. He would like for us at some future meeting(s) to read our statement to the group.

I had to miss the first ten minutes of the meeting. I have been attending Church of the Restoration on Sunday mornings, and that often puts me late getting to 1pm meetings. If any of you would like to add your recollections of the discussion, please use the comment option.

HumanLight 2006 Planning

Nothing is set in stone, but this is more or less the way I envision the program shaping up. We have a set of 15 songs. (If this seems too long, we will cut some.) The program is mostly vocal music with a few instrumental selections. Numbers 10, 11, and 12 will be sing-along.

1. HumanLight
2. O Tannenbaum
3. Home for the Holidays
4. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
5. Mr. Santa
6. No ‘L’
7. Sleigh Ride
8. The Good King
9. No Masters and No Gods For Me
10. Jingle Bells
11. Frosty the Snowman
12. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
13. I Saw Three Ships
14. Silent Night
15. We Wish You a Merry Christmas

November Calendar

November 2006
Activities of Interest to Freethinkers

Sat., Nov. 4, 7:00pm
Movie Night at the Bradleys, 6705 E. 54th St. Two piano duets (from the movies) by Gail & Dan. Feature presentation to be chosen that night.

Sat., Nov. 11, 5pm to 7pm
Secular Singers at the Bradleys. All are welcome. We will focus on getting ready for our annual HumanLight (www.humanlight.org) celebration coming in December to be held once again at the Bradleys. The program will soon be posted on the HAT blog.

Sun., Nov. 12, 1:00pm
Humanist Study Group at Hardesty Library, on 93rd near Memorial. Topic: Richard Dawkins and the Flying Spaghetti Monster. See www.salon.com/books/int/2006/10/13/dawkins/

Wed., Nov. 15, 11:20am
ALGAE (A Little Group of Atheists Eating), luncheon at White River Fish Market, 1708 N. Sheridan.

Sun., Nov. 19, 1:00pm
HAT Monthly Membership Meeting at Hardesty Regional Library. Business: Nominations for officers for 2007. Program: Brian Hill will review Barry Lynn’s new book Piety and Politics: The Right-Wing Assault on Religious Freedom.

Sat., Nov. 25, 11:30am
Food and Fellowship at TeKei’s Asian Restaurant at 1616 S. Utica.

Sun., Nov. 26, 2pm
Tulsa Atheist Rendezvous/Tulsa Atheist Meetup We will meet at Border’s Bookstore on 21st St. near BA Expy on the second floor near the computer books. Additional details will be posted later at http://atheists.meetup.com/477 and www.tulsaar.blogspot.com.

Field Trip to OKC Plans are being made to caravan to OKC to view an exhibit at the Oklahoma City Art Museum, possibly on Nov. 18. Details to follow.

Questions? Call Dan at 798-3629

Movie Night at the Bradley Abode

I feel so fortunate to know Randy and Dawn Bradley. They open their house to us the first Saturday evening each month for the HAT Movie Night.

In addition to the Bradleys last Saturday, there were Sharon, Gail, Dan, Jan, Marilyn, Sam, and Audrey present. After a few moments of light repartee and jocular banter, Gail and Dan sat down at the piano and knocked out a couple of tunes: “The John Dunbar Theme” and “Moon River.”

We next retired to the Bradley Media Center for the evening’s DVD entertainment. First we watched a five-minute segment from Buena Vista Social Club – a duet sung by Ibrahim Ferrer and Omara Portuondo. Next we watched two 30-minute episodes of Penn and Teller’s Bullshit! TV series. The episodes we watched were titled “Signs from Heaven: The Virgin Mary or Grilled Cheese Sandwich” and “Conspiracy Theories.” We talked about watching “Circumcision: Snip and Chuck” but decided instead to watch A Prairie Home Companion. Many of you are familiar with Garrison Keillor’s radio show by the same name. It’s a delightful show filled with music, storytelling, and cornball humor. The radio show serves as the setting for the movie.

In addition to the popcorn and soft drinks provided by the Bradleys, Gail brought homemade bread pudding and Audrey brought cheese and crackers. I feasted upon these treats as if I had not eaten all day. It’s good to be alive and great when you can be among friends.

Our geocaching outing

We had a great time geocaching today. The weather could not have been better. We found three of the four caches we searched for. I suspect the cache we could not find was missing since the difficulty rating was 1 star (out of five stars) and we had seven people looking for it.

The first two caches we searched for were fairly easy to find. We spent a lot of time looking for the third cache due to an error I made entering the coordinates into my GPS receiver. I was one digit off and that error put us about a mile from where we should have been. It also caused us to waste about an hour; thus we searched for only four caches today.

Afterwards, we all enjoyed food at Mazzio’s Pizza near the Bradleys.

Taking part in today’s geocaching adventure were Randy, Dawn, Dan, Jan, Sam, Gail, and Audrey.

I love this sport. Anytime any of you would like to go caching again, just let me know and I will plan another outing.

Talk at the ALGAE luncheon

There were seven of us at the ALGAE luncheon today: Julia T., Sharon B., Patricia B. (Sharon’s daughter), Jan N., Diana B., Larry H. and myself.

Sharon has been kayaking. She owns two kayaks – a single seat kayak and a two-seater. Sharon had recently been to a weekend event billed as “Becoming an Outdoors Woman” at Ft. Gibson Lake which taught a variety of outdoors skills including rappelling, kayaking, geocaching, orienteering, and basketmaking. She went with HAT member Gail S. and both of these “outdoor women” had a great time. I heard a rumor that some of those at the event had smuggled in some wine. For shame, for shame. I hope that these two HAT ladies will be able to join us as we go on a HAT geocaching adventure in Tulsa on Sunday, October 29.

We talked a little about movies we had seen recently. I mentioned Man of the Year starring Robin Williams, which I had recently seen. I recommend it. Larry and Diana had recently seen The Little Prince – a theatrical production staged in Tulsa. Julia suggested that HAT get involved in a community service project of some kind. She is going to look into the possibilities and let us know what she finds out.

By the way, the movie we will see this coming Sunday at the Tulsa Atheist Rendezvous will be The Illusionist. More on this will be sent out by e-mail tomorrow.

I learned from Larry that there is a difference between driving under the influence and driving while impaired. Larry is going to send me more info by e-mail. I figure we need to know this since at times the wine flows freely at events we attend.

Larry mentioned two websites of interest: www.greenstonemedia.net and
www.onegoodmove.org.

Other topics of discussion included sex offenders and their difficulty in finding a place to live, and traditional households now being in a minority position.

It was good to see everyone there. There were a few others I was hoping to see, but they weren’t there. Maybe next time.

HAT Minutes 10.15.06

At the HAT meeting today we had 14 people. Not a bad turnout for a rainy day. We had one visitor, and he was from Hong Kong. That’s quite a way from home. He is in Tulsa because he has a job as an instructor at a local college.

The door prize – a one-year subscription to Audubon magazine – was won by Richard Maule. Anyone interested in sponsoring a door prize for the next meeting should let me know.

Randy read a short poem. I have forgotten the title and author. I should have taken notes. Then I read some short quotations by Emily Dickinson. Next I read two of her poems: “I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died” and “Because I Could Not Stop for Death.” I concluded by reading a poem by former U. S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins, “Taking Off Emily Dickinson’s Clothes.”

Randy mentioned that we (at least five or us, that is) gathered at his house on October 7 for the monthly Movie Night. We watched a musical documentary A Vision Shared. Randy invited everyone to attend the next Movie Night on November 4. A likely candidate for the feature presentation is Buena Vista Social Club, but the selection has not been firmly decided. Since we usually consume wine at these gatherings, I suggested that we obtain a portable breathalyzer to insure no one leaves (if driving) with a blood alcohol level in excess of .80. I did not put this in the form of a motion, and no action was taken on it. But it is something we should consider.

Randy suggested that at our next meeting we all bring a joke or two to read or tell. I assume this is in addition to a presentation of some type which Brian will prepare. And for our December meeting, we will meet at Randy’s on Saturday, December 16, for our annual Human Light celebration and concert by the Secular Singers (Randy, Bea, Gail, and Dan). There will be no third Sunday meeting at Hardesty Library. The Bradleys will provide the entrée and fixings. Those attending are welcome to bring a dessert, if they so choose.

The program was a lecture on DVD presented by Edward Larsen. The title of Larsen’s lecture was “Scientific Creationism.” Discussion followed. Two of our members in attendance are retired teachers of biology. They shared their personal experiences in teaching the sometimes controversial subject in their classrooms.

October 2006 Activities

Activities of Interest to Freethinkers

Sun., Oct. 1, 5pm to 7pm
Secular Singers at the Bradleys. All are welcome. We will focus on getting ready for our annual Human Light celebration coming in December to be held once again at the Bradleys.

Sat., Oct. 7, 7pm
Movie Night at the Bradleys, 6705 E. 54th St. Feature presentation: A Vision Shared: A Tribute to Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly. This documentary includes more than a dozen songs performed by Bruce Springsteen, Arlo Guthrie, Bono, Little Richard, Sweet Honey in the Rock and others. 72 minutes.

Sun., Oct. 8, 2pm
Humanist Study Group at Hardesty Library, on 93rd near Memorial. Topic: “The Evolutionary Psychology of Religion” by Steven Pinker from The Humanist magazine, Sept./Oct. 2006. Article to be provided by e-mail.

Sun., Oct. 15, 1pm
HAT Monthly Membership Meeting at Hardesty Regional Library. Program: “Scientific Creationism” lecture (DVD) by Edward J. Larsen from “The Theory of Evolution: A History of Controversy,” produced by The Great Courses.

Wed., Oct. 18, 11:20am
ALGAE (A Little Group of Atheists Eating), luncheon at White River Fish Market, 1708 N. Sheridan.

Sun., Oct. 22, 2pm
Tulsa Atheist Rendezvous/Tulsa Atheist Meetup Plans are to see a movie at about 2pm then eat afterwards and talk about the movie. Times and locations will be announced later. To be kept informed of what’s happening, go to http://atheists.meetup.com/477 or www.tulsaar.blogspot.com.

Sat., Oct. 28, 11:30am
Food & Fellowship at Thai-Siam, 6380 E. 31st.

Sun., Oct. 29, 2pm
Geocaching adventures with Randy and Dan. Learn about geocaching at www.geocaching.com. We will start at Randy’s, go caching, and eat pizza afterwards.


Questions? Call Dan at 798-3629

HAT Minutes, 9.17.06

There were 17 people at today's HAT meetingRandy read three poems by e.e.cummings, and I read three poems by three different poets, including the freethought poet Philip Appleman. I also read a letter HAT received from Millie Vance, who now lives near Spokane, Washington. I reported that we now have $1,139.47 in our treasury and our membership stands at 24.

We decided to change the venue for the Food & Fellowship on Saturday, September 23, to the Mexicali Border Cafe restaurant at 14 W. Brady. Following the F&F gathering many of us will go to the Grand Opening of the Tulsa Peace House just west of downtown Tulsa. Take 3rd Street and go west until it becomes Charles Page Blvd. The Peace House is at the intersection with Phoenix.

A discussion began about the 9-11-01 attack on the Pentagon. Some people are of the persuasion that the plane on which Barbara Olson was traveling did not crash into the Pentagon. The destruction according to this conjecture was caused by a cruise missle. After the meeting was over some in our group went to Randy's house to view a film, Loose Change, which is about this subject.

Brian gave an excellent presentation on the book The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad written by Fareed Zakaria. Following the presentation there was discussion concerning current politics and the war in Iraq.

Evolution Song: Suggested revisions from Dr. Hill

Dan,

I am really surprised at the tenacity with which Evolution is contrasted with ID in various writings, songs, etc. ID is a philosophical speculation. It is not a scientific theory. There is no conflict between the ID and Evolution, a scientific theory. For example: one can speculate that the evolutionary process, easily visible to scientists, may reasonably be considered the process an Intelligence has Designed to cause biological mutation.

If one has a problem with the scientific theory in Genesis (it meets all the criteria for classification as a scientific theory; the "Creator" is simply the First Cause of the "Creation"), one should forget it. That theory became untenable centuries ago and was discarded by scientists--including many who are believers in a god [theists] and most professional scholars associated with the study of the Bible.

Earlier theories of evolutionary process have been discarded and the theory at present is constantly being modified. Look at Stephen Jay Gould's treatises on the subject and his own theory of evolution which accounts for more facts than earlier theories of evolution. He expected and hoped for future theories to cover yet-discovered facts. If one has a problem with the Bible as an authority, one should forget it. Very few well-educated clergy (admittedly a minority among clergy) gave up that idea long ago. But if one must attack, attack the authority of the Bible--not I. D. and Creationism; he/she should cut the tree off at its roots and avoid clinging to the illogical contrasting of ID and Evolution. And, by the way, please don't--if one does--think of atheists and agnostics as among the only enlightened "free thinkers" in human society. That's a step along the road of ignorance which leads to self-righteousness. Remember, too, that ridicule often boomerangs.

Below is my suggestion of changes to make the verse less naive and vulnerable to boomerangs:

Evolution Song
(sung to the tune of Battle Hymn of the Republic)

My bones proclaim a story of incomplete design.
My back still hurts, my sinus clogs, my teeth just won't align.
If I had drawn the blueprint, I would certainly resign,
A creationist am I. [not a "Creationist"; the verse--talking about 'blueprints' suggests design hence leads to the label 'creationist']

Evo- evo- evo- lution,
The theory seeks solutions.
How come the changes in life forms?
The search will still go on.

I appreciate your mailings, Dan, and your service to our Humanist group. Sorry about your back problems. Hope you're soon relieved of them.

Cordially, H
-------------------------

Note from Dan:

For those who missed seeing the original lyrics, here they are:

My bones proclaim a story of incompetent design.
My back still hurts, my sinus clogs,
my teeth just won’t align.
If I had drawn the blueprint,
I would certainly resign,
Incompetent design.

Evo- evo- evo- lution,
Design is but a mere illusion.
Darwin sparked our revolution.
Science shall prevail.

To hear a group of (unidentified) faculty and students sing the song with gusto (if not a lot of harmony) go to www.youtube.com and type into the search box "incompetent design."