Shelley Segal comes to Portland!

Transcription

1 CENTER FOR INQUIRY Portland SEPTEMBER January 2012 The mission of the Center for Inquiry is to foster a secular society based on science, reason, freedom of inquiry, and humanist values. CFI has established centers throughout the world which provide a means of delivering educational programs and services on a local level and provide a venue for like-minded individuals to meet and share experiences. Shelley Segal comes to Portland! In aiming to foster a secular society, we do not seek to abridge the rights of believers. We vigorously object to government support of religion and the use of religious dogma to justify public policy; we do not oppose the free exercise of religion. The secular society we are building is a community of reason and compassion in which the dignity and fundamental rights of all individuals are respected. Three goals represent the focus of our activities: an end to the influence that religion and pseudoscience have on public policy, an end to the privileged position that religion and pseudoscience continue to enjoy in many societies, and an end to the stigma attached to being a nonbeliever. CFI-Portland is bringing the popular Shelley Segal to Portland! After performing this year at the Reason Rally to a crowd of 25,000 in Washington DC, Segal s music video for her single Saved has gone global. Thursday, Sept. 20, 7pm Biddy McGraws 6000 NE Glisan St, Portland, OR 21 and over $5 suggested donation tinyurl.com/8qkukxy The Melbourne based singer-songwriter became involved in secular activism over two years ago, despite her father being the president of a local synagogue. Her songs are a passionate response to dogmatic belief, inequality, religious oppression and the idea that only the devout can be grateful and good. She enjoys bringing this usually controversial topic to the public discourse and finds music to be a effective medium for expression and raising awareness. "I can say what I think for three minutes without anybody interrupting me. (Melbourne Times City Weekly). Segal s latest release, An Atheist Album, embodies her thoughts on religion and has quickly made her a new pin-up girl for the international atheist movement. (Barny Zwartz -The Age).

2 Nuts and Bolts and Beer: How'd it go? by Dani Tofte, Sylvia Benner and Cathy Whiting Those booths at Kells Brew Pub in NW Portland have a door that you can close, and they looked like the perfect place to have privacy for our first Nuts and Bolts and Beer meeting. They seat about 8-10, plenty for the number of people we were expecting. Over 20 showed up. We moved to the back room. We were floored by the great turnout. Thanks to everyone who attended, and thank you most of all for your great ideas and your willingness to help out! The purpose of the Nuts and Bolts and Beer meetings is to make Center for Inquiry Portland easier to understand, more transparent and accessible, and to give people an opportunity to become more engaged as volunteers and leaders. Several people stepped up to help out with projects that they suggested or to fill positions on our program and volunteer wishlist, which can be found here or at: tinyurl.com/8woaxm9 In particular, we now have a team that is drafting a new welcome package with easier overviews of our structure, mission, and programs, including an organization chart. We also have a volunteer who will try to assemble a list of speakers for a regular lecture program. In addition, we are working to establish electronic communications between those who want to participate in project teams. Nuts and Bolts and Beer will be a regular monthly program on the third Monday of every month. The next one will take place on September 17th, We've moved it to Java Vivace on NW 23rd but if you have suggestions for other venues, we d like to hear them. Please bring your questions and ideas. Film Fest Fights Religion, Homeopathy, & Other Superstitions Fri-Sat-Sun, October 26-28, 2012 The third annual Portland Humanist Film Festival (PHFF) is a secular cinematic event where Humanists, Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, and the curious from the Northwest and beyond can gather, mingle and share in an exciting and stimulating atmosphere. HIGHLIGHTS: This year's film festival will include a movie filmed in Portland, with many other exciting films to be announced. The venue is Cinema 21 a great theater with that Northwest vibe including microbrew beverages. CFI Portland is sponsoring, and Humanists of Greater Portland are again contributing in a big way to this event. Supporters, volunteers, advertisers all are encouraged to contact us on our website: HumanistFest.com Survey Says: Atheism is on the Rise Worldwide (and in America) By Hemant Mehta, friendlyatheist.com A new global survey on religiosity (PDF) by WIN-Gallup International has two big findings: First, the United States has gone from being 1% godless in 2005 to 5% in (The percentage of people simply calling themselves non-religious is 30%, significantly higher than ever before.) That jumps us up quite a bit on the Global Atheism Index: The other finding is that atheists are now 13% of the world population, an increase of 9% since 2005: the number of self-declared atheists in the world has risen by 9% since the measure was last taken in The massive poll, conducted in 57 countries (not, apparently, including Britain) among 51,000 people asked a single question Irrespective of whether you attend a place of worship or not, would you say you are a religious person, not a religious person or a convinced atheist? It shows that on average 59% of the world said that they think of themselves as religious, whereas 23% think of themselves as not religious and 13% think of themselves as convinced atheists. Naturally there are enormous variations from country to country. What does all this mean? For America, where only 60% of the population calls themselves religious, and an additional 30% calls themselves non-religious, politicians are making a big mistake by ignoring us during election seasons. As philanthropist Todd Stiefel pointed out in an , they go after Jews (1%),African Americans (12.6%) and Hispanics (16.3%) like crazy, but [the] non-religious+atheist crowd (35%) is larger than those three groups combined (29.9%).

3 Secular Sunday School Starting Up Again PORTLAND HOSTS FREEDOM FROM RELIGION FOUNDATION NATIONAL CONVENTION Sat-Sun, October ~ Hilton Portland & Executive Tower It s not too soon to register for the Freedom From Religion Foundation's 35th annual national convention. FFRF is committed to separation of church and state. Richard Dawkins will speak Friday night. Other convention speakers: - Mystery Novelist Sara Paretsk - Actress and Playwright Julia Sweeney - Journalist Katherine Stewart, Author of The Good News Club: The Christian Right s Stealth Assault on America s Children - Clergy Project Graduates - Teresa MacBain, who is now acting director of the Clergy Project, left the Methodist ministry in March with much media attention. Jerry DeWitt, Director of Recovering from Religion, openly parted with the Pentecostal ministry last year, and Annalise Fonza is a former United Methodist clergywoman and joined the Clergy Project in July. - Student Activists Jessica Ahlquist, a plaintiff in a successful ACLU federal lawsuit challenging a prayer banner at her high school in Cranston, R.I., and Max Nielson, a student plaintiff in FFRF's ongoing South Carolina lawsuit over a district policy that sanctions graduation prayer. September 9th, 10:30-12:00 Summer vacation is drawing to a close, and the Secular Sunday School program is starting up again! Erin Mueller and Wendi Cooksey will be organizing the program again, along with new teachers, Melissa Lucash and Chelsea Karpa. The program for K-3 students meets twice a month, and teaches children about science and comparative religion in a fun, interactive class. We also organize social events for Sunday School families to get together as a group, and participate in at least one community involvement project each school year. This year we will be traveling around the world while we explore scientists, - FFRF Co-President Dan Barker, "The Singing Friendly Neighborhood Atheist", will perform at the piano. - FFRF Co-President Laurie Gaylor will be Emcee for the weekend. - FFRF Senior Staff Attorney Rebecca Markert will discuss FFRF's legal activism. - And Andrew Seidel, FFRF's newest staff attorney will "debunk the 'Christian Nation' myth." Go to for ffrf.org for details, to register and more! culture, and religions (both ancient and modern) from various countries across the globe. If you are interested in the program or have any questions, please contact Erin at erin.c.mueller@gmail.com. We are compiling a group list to make sure everyone has the information they need prior to the first class, including class location and specifics of enrollment. We also utilize an e-vite system for RSVP's to ensure that the teachers have enough supplies ready for everyone attending each class. Please note there is a one-time suggested donation of $10 per student (max $20 per family) to help cover the costs of materials used throughout the school year (free for Friends of the Center). Dinner With Dawkins You are invited to join Richard Dawkins for a private fundraising reception, Saturday, October 13, 4pm, at the Hilton Portland & Executive Tower.This is an exclusive event, limited to a small number of people, benefiting the US Branch of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science. The mission of this foundation is to support scientific education, critical thinking and evidencebased understanding of the natural world in the quest to overcome religious fundamentalism, superstition, intolerance and suffering. RDFRS- US is expanding its effort to organize Americans to overcome intolerance and suffering caused by religious fundamentalism. Learn more at the rdfrs. com website. This is a significant fundraising event requesting gifts of $650 minimum per person and $1000 per couple. Details are presented on an individual basis to those interested in conversing with Richard Dawkins and making a meaningful investment in RDFRS-US. Space is limited. RSVP to Sean Faircloth, Director of Strategy & Policy, RDRFRS-US at sean.faircloth@richarddawkins.net.

4 DARKTOLIGHT A vision coming into view By Fred Strong December has, for a long time, been a conundrum for me. I love the pageantry, the music, the arts that flourish at that time of year but I loathe the religious pretense around which most of it is based. I knew there were others like me and so it eventually occurred to me that there might be room for one more type of celebration and performance event at year's end, one for those of us who share a nontraditional, nonreligious view. This was before I even knew of a thing called Humanism or even that there were formed groups that might represent something along those philosophical lines. And so I came up with the concept of a performance event that would connect with the natural world, not the mythological one, and became caught up in the idea of a program on or around the Winter Solstice. Almost immediately images and ideas started pouring from my capricious little mind and soon it began conniving vague plans for something (I knew not what.) along these lines (It does that often.). I had heard about the Winter Solstice concerts of The Paul Winter Ensemble in NYC but found that these were really Christmassy concerts dressed in the garb of a sort of New Age-ish aura, I further researched Winter Solstice, its traditions and perhaps legacies and found, to my shock, that this date and phenomenon had been commandeered by the Christian religion to be included in their plethora of platforms to augment their super holiday. In my research, checking out every book on Winter Solstice from the library (pre Google days), I found to my dismay that Winter Solstice had now become synonymous with Christmas. I took a deep breath and pressed on. Soon it became apparent that, if nonreligious people were ever to have their day (literally), we were going to have to begin establishing our own culture complete with our own holidays, celebrations, music, literature, art, etc. and so, with this in mind, I began writing music to that end. The first piece I composed in this vein was written for a local soprano duet with whom I d worked in the past who called themselves The Duelin Sopranos. In their heyday they did several concerts in the US, had a highly energized local fan base and toured Europe. At that time I had no idea as to when or where (or if!) this piece would be performed; all I knew is that I must write it. Titled Songs For Winter Solstice manifested itself into a three-movement work in which I tried to evoke a feeling of linking the past to the present musically and establishing a style that is both modern and ancient. I contacted the Unitarian church which presents a Winter Solstice concert but, despite several attempts at contacting the music director, never received any sort of response. Somewhere along the line I discovered Humanism and began researching any local groups that might exist. CFI had just come to town and I recall going to its first big public event at OMSI where I was impressed with the crowd that turned out, I also learned of HGP (Humanists of Greater Portland). After attending some of the HGP meetings and following the CFI emergence I was buoyed by the fact that I had, in fact, found the community I had been looking for and decided that I would attempt to put on the first Winter Solstice concert. I had come up with the name DARKTO- LIGHT (DTL) as a working title symbolic of both the transition from the darker seasons into the brighter ones and in the Human journey of evolving from the darkness of myth-based thinking into the enlightenment of self-awareness and self-responsibility. I further had a vision of adding an active arts and entertainment element to local Humanist life as it seemed that there was very little, if anything, offered in this way. And so I booked the Portland Community Music Center and proceeded in putting together a bill of performers. I had little money of my own but was able to find a varied group of performers that were willing to perform for a percentage of any donations which I could raise. The Duelin Sopranos were to premier my Songs For Winter Solstice. The year was I was convinced that I would get great support for my efforts from CFI-Portland and HGP but, to my utter dismay, I got cold shoulders from both. I tried to get CFI to list the event on their calendar, I tried to get them to let me write a few words about the performance that could be posted on their events pages and web articles, I begged the people in charge at HGP to let me have five minutes to talk about DTL and the importance of adding the arts to local Humanist agendas but was never allowed anything but to stand up at the end of the meeting for general announcements and briefly give the date and a word about the event. I was feeling pretty discouraged when at last I received great encouragement from Jon Peters who not only added the event to the SHEP calendar but allowed me time to explain the event at the SHEP meetings of the time. Then the Culture Vultures of HGP called me and took down the show info intending to add the show to their list of things to do that month. Encouraged, I began to feel better about my plunge into the unknown and proceeded with posters and whatever publicity I could manage for free. I was both excited and stressed not knowing for sure what kind of turnout there would be and what kind of debt I might be in if not enough donations came in. But, because of one of the nastiest Portland winters on record, the fate of that concert will never be known. Cont d on page 6

5 by Erin Mueller The Healing Power of Science On October 27th, the CFI Portland Light the Night Team will be carrying illuminated balloons as we celebrate The Healing Power of Science at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's annual fundraising event. This is my fourth year participating in the walk, and I am excited about the chance to start a new team with all of you this year. In the July newsletter, I shared information about Todd Stiefel's matching fund pledge that allows us to raise twice as much money for a great cause while drawing attention to non-theist giving ( files.meetup.com/ /2012-7%20 CFI%20Portland%20Newsletter.pdf ). This time I'd like to take the opportunity to share the courageous story of the person who first introduced me to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society: my 7-year-old friend Alex. Alex's family is a member of the CFI community, and he attends our Secular Sunday School program. In June of 2005, I was a new mom with a 3-month-old baby. I didn't know a lot of people in the Portland area, and I decided to attend one of those baby gym classes, with the hope of making some friends. There we met 2-month-old Alex and his mom, Sara. Sara and I started talking while our little boys played. We learned that we had so much in common, from our love of science to our views on politics, parenting, and religion. I had found a great friend, and we enjoyed watching our children grow and explore together. As time passed, it became obvious that Alex was going to charge headfirst into everything he could. He was the first of his friends to sit, crawl, walk...and then RUN! In contrast to my own, very laidback son, it was like Alex couldn't wait to get going. I remember a trip to the park when our kids were just toddlers. I was the mom relaxing in the grass while my son contentedly dug in the sandbox, and Sara was the one climbing to the top of the big kid jungle gym to retrieve her tiny, protesting son! Alex has always just been so adventurous and full of life. That's why, when Sara called me one evening in November of 2008 to tell me they had spent the afternoon in the ER, I was sure it couldn't be anything too serious. She told me that 3-year-old Alex had what the doctors thought was a lingering case of croup, but because his breathing wasn't getting better after several steroid treatments, they had ordered an x-ray. His thymus was enlarged and pressing on his airway, and everything she read on the Internet sounded very bad. Even so, I remember trying to calm her down, thinking of all the benign possibilities, and telling her to stop consulting Dr. Google. Alex was going to be fine; after all, he was the healthiest, most energetic little boy I'd ever met. The next day, when Sara called to say they were going to Doernbecher Children's Hospital for some more tests, I was still sure it had to be something simple from which he would quickly recover. A few hours later, Sara and I cried together on the phone when she told me the results of the initial tests. I was numb and just couldn't wrap my head around his diagnosis: Alex had T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Lymphoma. Over the next two years, I had a front-row seat to all of Alex's struggles and triumphs as he battled this horrible disease. I watched him lose all his hair, swell from steroids, and get sick from toxic chemicals being pumped into his small body. I watched his parents work hard to maintain a normal family life for Alex and his little sister. I watched Alex face all of his challenges with a sense of acceptance and understanding that was surprising for such a small child. I cried with each setback and re-hospitalization, and cheered when he took what we thought would be his last dose of chemotherapy in November of Medical science has come a long way since the early treatment of blood cancers, but watching Alex's battle has made me very aware of how far we still have to go. Just when his family and friends thought cancer was behind him, just as we celebrated his sixth birthday in April of 2011 with a Goodbye Cancer party, Alex started feeling sick. Sara and her husband Eric followed their instincts and brought him back to his doctor, where they received devastating news: Alex had B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, a secondary cancer caused by the chemotherapy used to treat his Lymphoma. All semblance of a normal life they'd enjoyed for the few short months since he finished treatment vanished in an instant. They began life as a family with cancer all over again. In September of last year, while most of his friends were starting first grade, Alex was receiving huge doses of radiation in preparation for the bone marrow transplant that would save his life. While we all carried our balloons at the 2011 Light the Night walk, Alex watched the event's fireworks show from a window up at Doernbecher while his new marrow took hold and began to build him a new immune system. Almost one year later, as we look forward to the next walk, Alex is a healthy kid with a head full of wavy brown hair and a contagious smile. He plays baseball and takes swimming lessons, and is looking forward to starting second grade. He also has two complete sets of DNA (one he was born with, and another in his marrow and blood that is identical to that of his donor), but you wouldn't know by looking at him. He still has regular clinic visits to make sure he is cancer-free, but is otherwise able to finally just be a normal 7-year-old. Alex is an amazing kid, and someone I am proud to know. He is still here thanks to the skill of his doctors, the generosity of a bone marrow donor living half a world away, and to Cont d on page 6

6 Dark to Light, cont'd from p. 4 Healing Power, cont'd from p. 5 Over the next few years DARKTO- LIGHT has taken a few twists and turns, going from a potluck dinner/talent show get-together, jointly hosted by HGP and CFI-Portland, to a SRO concert/theatrical event funded by CFI-Portland with a grant by HGP. But this year, thanks to the generosity of CFI-Portland, DARK- TOLIGHT has finally taken on the parameters of the concept I dreamed of many winters ago. Instead of one show we will have three and be able to serve hundreds of locals. Instead of a 140-seat recital hall or multipurpose room we have a dynamic 200-seat theater with lighting and sound, we have an alloriginal musical score, a back up fourpiece band and a cast of twelve diverse, talented actors and a theatrical director. But most importantly we have an exciting public forum to spread OUR message, an event from and for OUR and all communities that is just as valid as Christmas Revels or any other holiday program that happens in the most festive and, possibly, meaningful time of year is a special year for DARKTO- LIGHT. It is truly the beginning, we hope, of a great new holiday tradition, one that secularists have been waiting for and badly need, one that reflects our reliance on science and reason as the basis for civility, hope and progress. Please do your part, whatever that is and whatever you can do buy tickets, make a donation, volunteer: darktolight.org See you in December!!! Editor's Note: CFI did not help to organize DARKTOLIGHT in We were a new organization and had neither the funds, nor the volunteers, nor the experience to support such an endeavor. We published the event on the CFI SHEP (Secular Humanists of East Portland) Meetup calendar. CFI Portland began to support the event as soon as we had the capacity to do so. More pics from a CFI Summer amazing advances in medical science. Those advances are only made possible through funding of medical research, brought about in part by organizations like the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. You can help us make a difference in the lives of families like Alex's, who are affected by blood cancers. Join our team, walking under the banner of The Healing Power of Science. You can find out more by contacting me at erin.c.mueller@gmail.com, or by visiting our Facebook group page at com/cfiportlandltn. If you're ready to join, or if you'd like to make a tax-deductible donation to LLS through the CFI Portland team, visit our fundraising page at bit.ly/ppmfk6. Thank you for allowing me to introduce you to my good friend, Alex, and for considering supporting or joining the CFI Portland Light the Night team! To learn more about Alex's battle against Lymphoma and Leukemia, you can visit Sara's blog at alexbattle.blogspot.com/. 4th Annual Freethinkers Campout at Honeyman State Park

7 Scholar Questions Historical Jesus With Method, Criteria, Math By Alan Litchfield Here s an easy way to start an argument: Question the historicity of Jesus during your next conversation with family or friends. The location of your conversant s religious beliefs along the atheist-theist continuum won t matter everyone has an opinion on this guy. Many hard-core atheists who believe this 1st century Palestinian Jew was simply a charismatic mystic surrounded by myth and superstition will vehemently challenge the assertion of mythicists. Mythicists claim that Jesus was not an historical person, but a fiction or mythological character invented by early Christians. Historicists, on the other hand, believe his existence can be established with the available evidence. The American cultural milieu that echoes Jesus-claims from every medium from What Would Jesus Do? bumper stickers to Jesus tattoos to Jesus action figures irrevocably distorts our intuitions. Of course Jesus was a real person he s mentioned far too often to simply be a fictional character. And let s not forget that he s mentioned in the Bible. He must be a real person, right? Right? Dr. Richard Carrier doesn t think so. The study of Jesus is rife with bias, misunderstanding and assumptions. A scholarly consensus on the 2,000-year-old historical figure seems unattainable. It s a mess, were the words I used to describe these studies to Carrier when I interviewed him for a recent podcast. He agreed. I think there are a lot of foundational issues that haven t been well resolved. For example, the dating of documents has been poorly done. You often hear the claim, The consensus is that a certain document dates to a certain period. But when you look at the actual evidence, that s more of a kind of random polling of opinion rather than something that s really evidence-based, he said. Carrier is a professional historian, published philosopher, and prominent defender of the American freethought movement. He holds a PhD from Columbia University in ancient history, specializing in the intellectual history of Greece and Rome, particularly ancient philosophy, religion, and science, with emphasis on the origins of Christianity and the use and progress of science under the Roman empire. He is best known as the author of Sense and Goodness without God, Not the Impossible Faith, and Why I Am Not a Christian. He is a major contributor to The Empty Tomb, The Christian Delusion, The End of Christianity, and Sources of the Jesus Tradition, as well as writer and editorin-chief, now emeritus, for the Secular Web. According to Carrier, it s an overstatement when scholars cite that the Gospel of Matthew, for example, was definitely written in the 80s CE. It could be anywhere from 70 CE to 120 CE, a range more consistent with the data available. I think there has been sort of an excessive optimism about the ability to apply certain concepts to the evidence we do have for Christianity, and an unwillingness to admit that we really don t have a lot of evidence regarding the origins of Christianity. The fact of the matter is we have very very little, the data is terrible, and highly biased, Carrier said. In his latest book, Proving History: Bayes s Theorem and the Quest for the Historical Jesus, Carrier critiques the method and criteria historians use to do their work. He focuses primarily on the practice as applied to the historical Jesus, but his criticism is also directed at historical practices in general. Bayes Theorem is a mathematical calculation formulated by the mathematician Thomas Bayes in the mid-18th century. While it has been used in probability theory, it has been recognized that the equation describes a logical argument. This is why Carrier is applying it to the practice of history, and more specifically, the historicity of Jesus. It s a theorem about how we reason about probabilities, or how to correctly reason about probabilities, and it just so happens that all empirical reasoning is all probabilistic. Everything that we claim to know about facts comes down to probabilities, not certainties. Once you start realizing that all empirical statements are probabilistic like that, then correct empirical reasoning has to be described by whatever theory correctly describes probabilistic reasoning, and that s Bayes Theorem, Carrier said. This is all well and good. But if you re like me, you fear math like you fear apocalyptic zombies. But you needn t worry, our podcast was non-technical, as is this post, and Carrier s book is easy to read. (Zombies aren t real, either. No, really.) During our talk Carrier fielded the common complaint that he is simply reducing history to math: First of all, we re already doing the math in our heads, whether we re aware of it or not or whether we re thinking in terms of math. We re weighing probabilities, we re already doing it. So the question is, are we going to do it soundly or not, Carrier said. The basic Baysean equation looks daunting, and you have to invest a little bit of brain fuel to get the basic idea. However, it s truly not as difficult as it appears. In chapter 4 of his book, Carrier examines historical methods through the lens of this theorem. He looks at the Argument to the Best Explanation and the Argument from Evidence, in particular. Carrier states that all hypothetico-deductive methods reduce to Baysean reasoning. Bayes Theorem describes them all. I think this is a very important discovery, and it s a very important thing to understand, especially because a lot of historians are very fond of those other methods. But there are serious flaws in them if you don t understand why they re valid, or in what conditions they are valid. And Bayes Theorem answers those questions, so they really do need to understand Bayes Theorem to understand why those methods work, he said. In chapter 5, Carrier focuses on a Baysean analysis of historical criteria in the field of Jesus studies. He studies specific arguments scholars use, such as the Argument from Dissimilarity, The Argument from Embarrassment and what s called Multiple Attestation. Carrier mentions 18 criteria, but there are many more. The Argument from Embarrassment, for instance, states that if an author writes something that would embarrass him, it must be true, because he wouldn t humiliate himself with a falsehood. Thus, any source embarrassing to Christianity is more likely true, since early Christians wouldn t have created material that portrays the religion negatively. Carrier illustrates common problems with these criteria: They are either applied incorrectly, or they are logically invalid, or they don t solve the threshold problem. The threshold problem asks this question: When do we have enough evidence to warrant belief in a conclusion? When is enough enough? Carrier examines the logical foundations for all these criteria. Carrier plans to publish part two of this book, On the Historicity of Jesus Christ, next year. It utilizes the method Carrier currently argues for. Until then, I m keeping a calculator, a caffeinated beverage, and a crossbow nearby. I fear the mathematician zombie the most. Alan Litchfeld is the coordinator for the Beaverton Atheists Meetup. You can listen to his podcast or read his blog: Follow him on

8 CFI September Events For more information about any of these events, late additions, or to RSVP, go to the CFI calendar at and click on that event Saturday, September 1, 2pm Skeptics in the Pub Evergreen Pieway 3020 Evergreen Way, Washougal, WA Socializing with like-minded folks is fun. Plus, who knows what future projects may spin off from such meetings. Sunday, Sept. 2 & 16, 12:30pm Rogue Valley Freethinkers (Grants Pass) Union Drop-In Center, 225 NW Hillcrest Dr, Grants Pass, OR For Sept. 2: Just back from TAM! (The Amazing Meeting! with the Amazing Randi) 2012, Ray Briggs will tell us all about the events, fascinating speakers, the great contacts he made and whether or not his winnings were enough to cover all his expenses, maybe. Sunday, Sept. 2 & 16, 3:00pm Rogue Valley Humanists (Ashland) Rogue Valley U U Center, 87 4th Street, Ashland, OR The Humanism Group studies current topics of interest to Humanists, often from a recent book or article. We meet every first and third Sunday under the balcony of the Rogue Valley Unitarian Universalist Center Ashland from 3:00 to 5:00 PM. Sunday, Sept. 2, 5pm Salem Discussion Group Private home: address upon RSVP We're coming together to talk about local issues like science, education, separation of church & state. We encourage and support each other to be more active in the local discourse so our secular voices are heard and part of the conversation. Monday, Sept. 3, 6:30pm Save Our Selves (SOS) Secular Support Group in Rogue Valley 1505 NW Washington Blvd, Grants Pass, OR Our SOS Group offers secular alternative support to individuals struggling to overcome a personal addiction, such as alcoholism. This approach differs from typical 12-step programs. Wednesday, Sept. 5, 12, 19, 26, 11am Skeptics of Eugene Coffee Klatch Theo's Coffee House 199 W. 8th Ave, Eugene, OR Casual conversation about whatever we feel like. Drop in or out as your schedule allows. Wednesday, Sept. 5, 7:00pm Book Group: Predictably Irrational TV F&R Station 67, SW Farmington Rd, Beaverton (Community Room) For this meeting, we will cover from p. 127 to the end of Dan Ariely's book, "Predictably Irrational". This is a fast read compared to our last book, so this can easily be covered in the three-week time frame (six pages per day!). It focuses on the ways our brains often fail to make the best decisions when faced with competing choices and imperfect information about those alternatives. Thursday, Sept. 6, 13, 20, 27, 10am Preschool Playdate Beaverton, OR For preschool children aged 3 & 4 (and other ages). Please RSVP at CFI- Secular Family Network website. Thursday, Sept. 6, 11am South Coast Skeptics Meetup Denny's, 98 E. 1st St, Coquille, OR Organizer: Greg Collver Pizza and skeptical discussion at Denny's! Thursday, Sept. 6, 13, 20, 27, 6pm Ask A Skeptic! The Ike Box, 299 Cottage St NE, Salem, OR Come join us for coffee and conversation! We're here to answer questions and offer support for those discovering their inner skeptic. Sunday, Sept. 9, 11am Eastside Sunday Brunch Old Wives Tales, 1300 E Burnside St, Portland, OR Organizer: Sylvia Benner Please RSVP so we can reserve the correct number of seats. A chance to meet and get to know others in the community over good food in a relaxed atmosphere! The restaurant has a children's menu and a separate play room for the little ones. Vegetarian dishes available. Monday, Sept. 10, 7pm Discussion: Evidence Java Vivace 2287 NW Pettygrove St Portland Never has humanity had greater access to facts, and simultaneously been so full of contention, especially about what is true or not. Join us for a discussion of evidence, including confirmation bias, trusted sources, false equivalence, authority fallacy, fake quotes, et al.

9 CFI September Events CONT'D More details and RSVP: Wednesday, Sept. 13, 6:30pm SHEP Potluck & Games Location TBA in East Portand Join the Secular Humanists of East Portland for food and fun! Saturday, Sept. 15, 9:30am Salem Humanists Monthly Brunch McGrath's Fish House, 350 Chemeketa St NE, Salem Please RSVP via the CFI Salem Humanists Meetup site. Rides available if requested. Dedicated to the pursuit of Reason, Peace, Justice, and Democracy. Sunday, Sept. 16, 1pm Skeptics of Eugene Picnic Richardson Park at Fern Ridge Reservoir, Richardson Pk Rd, Junction City, OR We had so much fun at our July picnic, we decided to do it again before the summer gives out! And we'll be a little more organized this time. Bring portable chairs, utensils, something to grill if you wish. Bring something you enjoy to do lakeside. Last time we played croquet, did crossword puzzles and played guitar. Many dogs played together (leash required). What fun! There is a charcoal grill on premises and we will provide charcoal. Watch for a sign-up sheet for potluck dishes. It will be online and easy to sign up. Hope you can join us for a great day out! Monday, Sept. 17, 6:30pm Nuts & Bolts & Beer Kells Brew Pub, 210 NW 21st Avenue, Portland This is a program series specifically for those who want to get some insight into the decision-making and organizing processes of our branch, give input, and maybe find an entry point to volunteering. We re doing this monthly so people can find their way into participating at their own pace. We ll have at least a couple of board members there who can answer questions and update members on new developments, projects, and things under consideration. Join us to get a better look at the workings of our branch and consider getting involved in organizing CFI Portland. Thursday, Sept. 20, 7pm Shelley Segal Live in Portland! Biddy McGraws, 6000 NE Glisan St, Portland, OR After performing this year at the Reason Rally to a crowd of 25,000 in Washington DC, Segal s music video for her single Saved has gone global. Now CFI-Portland is bringing the popular Shelley Segal to Portland! This is going to be one fun fun concert!! See the full description on page1 of this newsletter. Tuesday, Sept. 25., 6:30pm Rogue Valley Freethinkers' Social (Grants Pass) Wild River Brewing & Pizza Co, 595 Northeast E Street, Grants Pass, OR Open agenda socializing and fun with freethinking friends. Wednesday, Sept. 26, 7pm Beaverton Atheists Meetup Moonstruck Chocolate Cafe - Beaverton Town Sq., SW Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy, Beaverton Organizer: Alan Litchfield Engaging, relaxing and interesting conversation at our monthly meeting. Friday, Sept. 28, 3:00pm Parent and Baby/ Toddler Meetup Location and other details available upon RSVP at the CFI- Secular Family Network website. Friday, Sept. 28, 7pm Skeptics of Eugene Monthly Meetup Seavey Loop Rd, Eugene, OR Host: Lowell Thomas This is Open Topic so everyone is welcome to bring up a specific subject of interest, and if there are copies of news items or articles you can share, please do. LATE CALENDAR ENTRY! Sunday, Sept. 9 & 23, 10:30am Secular Sunday School For details and to RSVP, to to the Secular Family Network Meetup calendar.

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