tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866152070323033822011-10-05T12:31:21.959-04:00Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.comBlogger551100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-16986462917253069312010-10-27T21:25:00.001-04:002010-10-27T21:26:51.972-04:00

I have got to meet this guy. People have been trying to make the biblical God appear for millennia. There is no credible evidence he has done so. This, apparently, has not caused people of faith to lose confidence in his existence. God's will is truly inscrutable. But what about Satan's? Frankly, the biblical description of what Satan wants from the average mortal is quite straightforward: he

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-64752619670176496052010-10-07T13:50:00.000-04:002010-10-07T14:23:13.901-04:00

Sam Harris, the author of the New York Times bestsellers, The End of Faith, and Letter to a Christian Nation just released his third book, The Moral Landscape. In it, Harris attempts to tackle the idea that science must, in principle, be neutral on questions of meaning, morality and human values. According to Harris, what really underlies our moral concerns, is the consideration for the

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-49352916217668080812010-09-07T18:44:00.003-04:002010-09-07T18:53:15.396-04:00

Tim Crane recently wrote a piece in the New York Times on the difference between science and religion which I feel deserves a response. His points are basically these: 1. If we are to take the claims of religions as beliefs supported by evidence (something akin to a scientific hypothesis), then they almost always fall short. 2. We should not interpret religious claims this way. While religious

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-19925472903834058962010-09-02T20:10:00.011-04:002010-09-02T20:22:48.733-04:00

This week I started a French immersion course at Fiaf. So far I am enjoying it tremendously. The small class size gives the course a really intimate feel. The professor has chosen a pace that asks just enough from me without being overwhelming. It has just been a terrific fit. Today the professor asked us write an imaginary blog post on a French website. The topic could be anything we wanted. We

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-86810409492496560412010-08-20T12:58:00.002-04:002010-08-20T13:20:08.189-04:00

When my good friend Scott returned from his trip to San Francisco he handed me a book titled Logicomix. Having no idea what it was, I read the inside flap to discover, and then exclaim "This is a graphic novel about Bertrand Russell!" Not just a graphic novel about Bertrand Russell, but a damn good one at that. In the sense that these are presented in the book, I was a mathematical and logical

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-59066251356394818002010-08-19T23:24:00.002-04:002010-08-20T01:46:24.607-04:00

We find ourselves afloat in a sea of opinions on the ground zero mosque. So, it is with reluctance but earnest that I cast mine. The main point I wish to make is not about the mosque, but about Islam. (Indeed, it seems "mosque" is not the most accurate description of what's being planned.) So first the mosque. Whether or not the mosque is constructed seems largely irrelevant. (Not to the

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-5461960289854095432010-08-13T04:10:00.003-04:002010-08-17T18:44:21.147-04:00

I've been watching a lot of Starcraft 2 replays on youtube recently. If you are into the game, I recommend HD Starcraft's channel. He is a talented player and caster. Two games in particular have been edge-of-your-seat nerdgasms entertainment. The first is Jinro vs. Dimaga. The second is Whitera vs. Madfrog. Their matches are linked below. Seriously, grab some popcorn and enjoy! Jinro vs. Dimaga

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-83081642642189019942010-08-09T14:00:00.010-04:002010-08-13T10:55:29.348-04:00

At first I wanted to write a review of Cynic's performance at the Bowery Ballroom last Friday, but because I love their music so much, this seems like a useless, biased exercise. Instead, I'm just going to give a subjective account of my experience. Without a word before or between songs, Cynic played their first album, Focus, in its entirety. I had seen them twice before but only in supporting

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-86034936771967706552010-08-08T12:52:00.001-04:002010-08-13T02:41:49.048-04:00

Uncle T, Your response to my letter expressed some confusion that I hope to clear up. First and foremost, my breakdown and subsequent criticism of faith is based on the observation that it lacks rational support, and that it causes harm. You seem to suggest that by breaking down a concept, and seeking a scientific understanding of how it functions, I necessarily diminish whatever value it offers

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-80691373522109723992010-08-06T15:13:00.002-04:002010-08-13T02:49:25.426-04:00

My uncle left a comment on my facebook that I thought deserved a more thorough response than I could give there. So let's call this an informal, open letter to my uncle. I too believe in many things greater than myself. Rationality, science, and open conversation are all indispensable to me. But I do not have faith in the power of these ideas - I don't need to. These tools have proven their

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-73807791074225024882010-08-05T16:51:00.001-04:002010-08-13T02:52:55.805-04:00

The most formidable weapon against errors of any kind is reason. Thomas Paine I opened Susan Jacoby's Freethinkers today, found this quote and felt inspired. This is for believers. My Arms my arms reason and science can lift any rock under which truth may be hidden your faith has kept you circling the rock a stupor weighed in years i can lift that too our love for each other beautiful and

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-11155460781926708312010-07-26T19:52:00.011-04:002010-08-17T18:56:33.502-04:00

I just returned from my week as a counselor for Camp Inquiry, a summer camp... where kids can be themselves. We work toward helping youth confront the challenges of living a non-theistic/secular lifestyle in a world dominated by religious belief and pseudoscience. Grounded on the conviction that kids can begin establishing habits of the good and ethical life early on, Camp Inquiry 2010 adopts a

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-46464469219566078202010-07-13T02:28:00.005-04:002010-08-17T19:18:41.645-04:00

I have received additional comments directed at the original post on jealousy. The comments focus on the origins and utility of jealousy. I'd like to take some time to address them here. It is true that an adaptation may be selected for because it solves one or several recurrent problems an individual or group is experiencing. The selection for the lengthening of the giraffe's neck may have

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-21797498320925596632010-07-05T14:52:00.008-04:002010-08-17T19:19:02.486-04:00

Most of the comments to my original post on jealousy have been concerned with the sense of trust that is violated when a partner gets involved with another. This trust, it has been argued, is invaluable to the relationship and once it's gone the relationship cannot survive. The message I have taken from the comments is that while jealousy can be a powerful force to separate two people, trust is

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-81235525105105256422010-07-01T19:03:00.006-04:002010-08-13T03:07:19.706-04:00

Last night was the second of the Impossible Music Sessions, featuring the music of the Baloberos Crew played and reimagined by Hasan Salaam. If you're unfamiliar, the Impossible Music Sessions is a nonprofit organization that features artists who are not able to appear to play the music they are not free to make. Instead, musicians are found who learn their music and cover it at Littlefield. The

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-27865981451128019142010-06-30T14:21:00.002-04:002011-04-29T20:36:18.501-04:00

As I alluded to in the previous post, recently I've been thinking a lot about how relationships work, and how they could possibly work. The result is a critique of monogamy, of sorts. Really what I'm criticizing is what I consider our outdated interpretation of the jealousy we feel when our partner engages in infidelity. Monogamy just sometimes wanders into the crossfire. Let's get started: an

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-16785683120624028412010-06-28T20:49:00.003-04:002010-08-13T02:38:53.096-04:00

So it's been four months since I last blogged anything. How could this happen? I'll tell you how: World of Warcraft. I've been playing WoW on and off for a few years and I picked it up again recently (about four months ago). It is a very well made game, very fun and good interaction between the developers and players, but it's just not for me. I wanted to compete in the player versus player

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-58836934549116473652010-02-16T01:35:00.002-05:002010-08-13T02:35:43.165-04:00

So, I started off my birthday with a New York Times magazine article that is positively terrifying. There is some debate as to how influential the Texas Board of Education is throughout the country, but the determination of the conservative Christians intent on emphasizing their biblical worldview in the public education system is made alarmingly clear. It's a fairly long read but definitely

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-57530698933283759612010-02-10T16:16:00.001-05:002010-08-13T02:36:10.792-04:00

I just finished watching the new video on the Starcraft 2 website about their plans for a revamped Battle.Net. The features all sound like good ideas but it's strange to watch Blizzard talk about what Battle.Net was like when the original Starcraft came out and why you should be excited about the new and improved version. It's a bit like hitting on a girl you dated in middle school like 15 years

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-36063675827997543952010-02-07T11:22:00.001-05:002010-08-13T02:36:28.309-04:00

Some readers have left comments to the effect of "What would it take to convince you of God's existence? What evidence would you be persuaded by? Have you ever looked for evidence of God's existence?" I would like to take some time to dialogue with readers on this thread. If you have any questions or comments on this subject, please direct them here and I will do my best to answer them all.

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-53770633473208951352010-02-06T21:36:00.002-05:002010-08-13T12:18:50.424-04:00

Much has been said in this blog about "science" without being more precise about what it means. This can be a loaded word and in many instances invite misunderstanding. It is time to carefully define this word for two reasons: clarity for readers, and to explain my insistence on its use. Additionally, I would like to address some of the more common misconceptions about science. Along the way,

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-92141827597200716572010-02-06T16:45:00.001-05:002010-08-13T02:37:12.361-04:00

Apparently Opeth is re-releasing Blackwater Park, along with a short documentary about the making of the album. They're also playing the album, in its entirety, on their next tour. The tour is very short, but they stop in NYC. I haven't missed an opportunity to see them in six years but I've yet to see them play such great tracks as Leper Affinity, Dirge for November, Funeral Portrait or

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-10639290533702046472010-02-05T15:26:00.000-05:002010-02-05T15:26:25.388-05:00

It's finally here! A new banner, graciously crafted by the talented Miss Infidel, is up. What do you think of it?

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-90481332375805688082010-02-04T14:05:00.003-05:002010-08-13T02:37:45.381-04:00

I received a reply from the recipient of my last post, which unfortunately did not seem to dispel any misconceptions about atheism. Before I continue, through this series of posts I am not intending to merely air my personal business. These are for anyone who also maintains some misconceptions about atheism, or who simply has not given the matter enough thought. Dear R, You are correct, the

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-88743982486658100362010-01-29T16:25:00.001-05:002010-08-13T02:35:19.447-04:00

While back home a few weeks ago, I told a Christian friend that I babysit part time. She responded by saying that she would not let me babysit her (hypothetical) kids because I might "brainwash them with my atheist nonsense." It didn't seem right to get into it with her at the time, so instead I've decided to post a reply here. Dear R, To begin, "atheism" is a word that we fundamentally do not

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-63609781335601094192010-01-25T04:23:00.003-05:002010-08-13T02:34:35.047-04:00

To anyone who enjoys reading this blog, I sincerely apologize for the recent content halt. I have had a ceaseless stream of out of town visitors among other concerns keeping me from the inter-blags. Anyways, I am doing my best to keep plugging away until I get the hang of this. So, as you may know, the election of Scott Brown in Massachusetts allows republicans to stonewall anything the

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-15064213676110921322010-01-03T08:42:00.005-05:002010-01-10T23:50:53.571-05:00

I had a dream Of a peaceful place And the peaceful place was here No gods to love No people to hate For the hate would disappear But its not like that Gods people rule And Gods people rule with fear But I'm not afraid They can't have my mind For my mind will persevere I am just one voice But with others just like me We'll fight the fight of reason together Everyone's a player in the game No one

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-75076940257685673202009-12-14T11:50:00.001-05:002010-08-13T02:32:13.472-04:00

This Saturday I am throwing a house(apartment) warming party. Preparations have prevented any blogging recently and I don't expect to seriously resume until the holiday season is over. Many apologies to anyone enjoying the blog. A few other related blogs may be going up in the near future with consolidation possibly on the horizon. I will keep everyone here up to date as we figure out what's

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-71921130500264617132009-12-07T09:26:00.004-05:002009-12-07T16:04:48.307-05:00

Seriously, I have had it with Robert Wright. He gets so many things wrong about the new atheists it's infuriating. His remarks at the Ciudad de las Ideas Re-Evolution festival in Mexico last month were more or less irrelevant. I recommend watching/listening to the debate in its entirety when you have the time (though there are some non sequitur comments made towards the end). Anyways, Wright

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-63069141637606925742009-12-02T10:37:00.002-05:002010-08-13T02:33:22.258-04:00

Ok, a few administrative things: first, I apologize for the lack of content recently. My computer got a virus a couple weeks ago and it brought my writing to a standstill. After a clean install of Windows 7, the problem appears to have been fixed. On with the blogging! Also, RSM is getting a new banner! Miss Infidel has graciously agreed to design a new banner for the blog and it's coming along

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-76944700636608469532009-11-22T23:30:00.001-05:002010-08-13T02:25:42.690-04:00

Ethics and morality are fields of great importance to the philosophy of science. Just how can we apply philosophy to questions of morality; how can we apply science to them? How do these tools interact with ethics? I think Sam Harris has some insightful things to say on this subject. I agree that moral realism is the way to go. With respect to ethics, it seems that science is the tool

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-83326641419707885242009-11-20T01:45:00.004-05:002010-08-13T02:26:10.880-04:00

I made a status update on facebook last night, intending for people to have fun with it, but it unfortunately generated debate. This post is a response to the comments made by my uncle Raul. I appreciate that most of the people responding to my uncle's comments were seeking to point out the inconsistencies in his statements. Nonbelievers find themselves existing in a world where most people

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-12280538534701371242009-11-15T19:55:00.002-05:002010-08-13T02:26:36.872-04:00

Bill Maher has been criticizing religion for a long time. We are sort of kindred spirits on this subject. For instance, he reads Rick Warren's The Purpose Driven Life exactly I would: adding very little to the text. To a reasonable person, Warren's prose is more hilarious than any satire. When you read the book, and realize its author is serious, what more needs to be said? Religulous, Maher's

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-81304715918805055902009-11-14T15:50:00.003-05:002010-08-13T02:27:02.128-04:00

Last night I dreamt I was at a party with the CFI crew and we were talking about how strange it is that groups of friends come and go throughout one's life. I offered a personal anecdote: that for the past two years I had been living with the same three individuals, and this had made them a huge part of my life. But since I moved to the city I've rarely seen or spoken to them. They were once

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-78951919178910908442009-11-11T14:42:00.003-05:002010-08-13T02:28:05.820-04:00

Going on about Sam Harris in the last post reminded me of something I would like to briefly touch on. In a conversation with Roger Bingham for The Science Network, Harris is asked a question about Chrisitan apologetics and summarizes the exercise and finishes with a point worth remarking. The problem is just, are you going to hold certain claims off the table when you start playing the reason

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-43590991062996092642009-11-10T21:19:00.002-05:002010-08-13T02:28:57.639-04:00

Jeff Schweitzer visited NYC earlier this year promoting the new book he cowrote, "Beyond Cosmic Dice: Moral Life in a Random World." I recommend checking it out, it is a very good read. One of the ideas the book explores is the definition of life. According to Schweitzer, no definition previously put forth is conclusive enough. There seem to be organisms that violate every definition. Instead, he

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-53953349953113831092009-11-09T14:59:00.004-05:002010-08-13T02:29:21.625-04:00

For most of my life, science was a textbook. It was just one book in the stack, above History, below Math. Science was third period. I suspect this is how most see science, as a group of subjects, astronomy, biology, chemistry. It's not hard to appreciate why. Science is not intuitive. Humans are not adapted to investigate atoms, cells or galaxies. Neither are we particularly good at rational

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-4575081241616626942009-11-08T17:30:00.002-05:002010-08-13T02:30:19.263-04:00

This is in response to a friend of mine who recently wrote some discouraging thoughts on my facebook. First of all, thank you. I mean it when I say I appreciate any and all criticism. My goal is to be an effective communicator of ideas, ultimately, to be as persuasive as possible in service of science and reason. If someone believes there is a better way to go about this, I'm all ears. What I

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-12856830365736693342009-11-07T11:42:00.001-05:002010-08-13T10:50:33.272-04:00

It is often said that the most firebrand atheists are simply hacking away at beliefs, offering only criticism, never construction. I would argue that not only is this not the case, it cannot be the case. It is philosophically impossible to merely make a negative statement in this context. It is impossible to reject someone's conception of God because there must be some criterion by which it is

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-5362131448387939052009-11-05T23:17:00.001-05:002010-08-13T02:31:34.486-04:00

I wrote this one night in college. Enjoy. Party in the Dorm A moment I ask, to read my story: The harrowing tale of a noisy dorm And the quiet roommate Corey. For he desired rest From the worries of the day, And thought it best To climb into bed without delay. And yet, no peace could he get From his roommates nourished by Music, alcohol and cigarette. So, dressed in blankets He scuttled to

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-83800201396660477092009-11-02T13:32:00.001-05:002010-08-13T10:50:22.392-04:00

I went to the premiere of Collision, the film documenting the debates between pastor Douglas Wilson and journalist/writer Christopher Hitchens in the fall of 2008. There were some very funny and quieting moments, but overall I thought the film was boring, Wilson had one bad argument and I had already heard all of Hitchens' arguments. It was an impressive collision, but I'm convinced it was the

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-67771692397293274592009-10-31T02:27:00.001-04:002010-08-13T02:24:58.012-04:00

This is a poem about a man who, while getting dressed for the first cold day of the year, searches through his closet and finds a scarf an ex-girlfriend made for him, with a note on it. The Scarf "to warm my love" a scarf from you a year ago in the summer you left for the east to learn to depend on no one now winter has come again and I I can't I can't put it on

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-68065505157972298272009-10-26T15:04:00.002-04:002010-08-13T10:50:09.119-04:00

Lisa Miller first popped on my radar as a possible target for some kind of hall of shame when she published her her favorable opinion of Karen Armstrong. She is a columnist for Newsweek who recently published an article on the New Atheists, "Collision," the film coming out next week and about this debate in general (disparaging the whole thing). Let me begin by saying that I intend to see

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-82005903023186395182009-10-22T19:30:00.006-04:002010-08-13T10:49:58.445-04:00

I was working on a blog post about my personal journey from theism to atheism (coming soon), but this cannot wait. Karen Armstrong's article in the online magazine Foreign Policy interrupted me by vomiting nonsense all over my face. I have read a little of Armstrong's work in the past and disagreed but I was reluctant to criticize because I was impressed by the volume of material she's published

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-10395262811940400942009-10-17T16:52:00.001-04:002010-08-13T02:22:48.864-04:00

Bruce Sheiman commented on my recent piece. This is my response. Bruce, I understand you're not attacking atheism, but it's recent wave of vitriolic proponents. The New Atheists have said religion is irrational, causes harm, inevitably conflicts with science etc and for these reasons we should relentlessly criticize it. You seem to disagree with the last bit. I fail to recognize any dividends

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-21054790417094798582009-10-16T19:29:00.003-04:002010-08-13T02:21:40.805-04:00

Bruce Sheiman recently wrote a book called "An Atheist Defends Religion: Why Humanity is Better Off with Religion than without It." I have not read his book yet, just the article on the book written by Daniel Burke. If there is any accuracy at all in Burke's article, I won't be wasting my time on Sheiman's book either. First of all, even if someone demonstrated that a religion were useful, so

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-45830340557569681732009-10-13T21:16:00.002-04:002010-08-13T10:49:34.875-04:00

The advancement of philosophy and science over the last few thousand years have brought our conversational expectations to wonderfully useful heights. It is perfectly reasonable for you to expect the ideas of others' to be internally consistent (not self-contradictory) and externally consistent (cohering with reality). People simply cannot claim anything they want. Or can they? Imagine you are

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-29045220045710456122009-10-08T03:27:00.002-04:002010-08-13T10:49:25.658-04:00

I recently saw Michael Moore's new film "Capitalism: A Love Story." I recommend seeing this film regardless of your politics. It makes some good points. The (main) problem I have with the film is that the points Moore makes are mired in the film's emotional appeals. He has basically put together a film that attempts to convince you that capitalism is bad by making you cry at the misfortune of

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-41383082417578723472009-09-26T18:05:00.001-04:002010-08-13T02:13:48.612-04:00

As much as I'd like to believe otherwise, it seems that the disposition of the person who wakes up in my bed each morning is contingent on the weather that wakes him. I was awoken this morning by the breeze coming in through my windows. After a quick investigation, the weather proved positively perfect. When this is the case, the romanticist wakes, puts on rose-tinted contacts and genuflects at

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-23890761715443270922009-09-15T22:23:00.005-04:002010-08-13T10:49:07.038-04:00

How about a more light-hearted look at this question? Sometimes ridicule really is the best way to illustrate how ridiculous something is. So what if I'm wrong? What if the Christian conception of things is correct? Well, it looks like I'll be needing some sunscreen because... That took me an hour. I listened to black metal the whole time. Only the best for Reason. Science. Metal. readers. I'm

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-35152334059590993492009-09-15T12:31:00.006-04:002010-08-13T02:12:25.383-04:00

Let's take a moment to examine one of the greatest strengths of the scientific worldview: the willingness to imagine if you're wrong. Let's imagine what life would be like if I were wrong about God, specifically wrong about the Christian doctrine. The Christian religion is the one I am most familiar with and most of my religious readers are likely to be Christian so I'll roll with that. If I'm

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-70723555680621516562009-09-10T16:19:00.002-04:002010-08-13T10:48:49.668-04:00

Blaise Pascal was a French mathematician and philosopher of the 17th century. He is most famous for his thought experiment known today as Pascal's Wager. His wager is cited to justify belief in God. It goes like this: Should I believe that God exists (presumably this is his wish), and he does exist, I will have pleased him and won a seat in paradise. Should I believe he exists, and he does not,

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-25658932752633226852009-09-10T00:49:00.001-04:002010-08-13T10:47:55.243-04:00

This post is in part a response to a comment made on my facebook, but mostly a response to the ubiquitous notion that atheists of late have been too hostile in their criticism of religion. Very quickly, we should take a moment to ponder how ridiculous the word "atheist" is. Those accusing atheists of representing an equally fundamentalist interpretation of scripture as the fundamentalists have

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-81965401983683416152009-09-08T20:08:00.001-04:002010-08-13T02:06:05.949-04:00

Moving to New York City has been both a harrowing and empowering experience. At first, the number of possibilities the city seemed to offer was exhilarating. Some of which I simply could not do back home in south Florida. My interest in music felt like it was going to implode without a community to help develop it. Though death metal was invented in Florida, at least in my area, technical rigor

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-886615207032303382.post-79442690665483299572009-09-08T18:46:00.003-04:002010-08-13T02:04:42.588-04:00

Though the word still sounds like something a troll does when you haven't paid it's toll, I've decided to start a blog. If anyone ever reads/enjoys this, you can thank Miss Infidel for her encouragement. A short story prefacing this blog's mission statement: I recently graduated from college with a B.A. in psychology from Florida Atlantic University. Special thanks are in order to Professors

Corey Farachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17008331235373612692noreply@blogger.com1