Breakout Session Sampler
This is merely a sampling of what was available. Unfortunately, your
webmistress—better known as SpiderWoman—and
fellow attendees, August Berkshire and James Dew, haven't figured out how to be in more than
one place at one time. Darn those laws of physics!
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The Etiquette of Religion Bashing
Marie Castle, President of Atheist Alliance International—reelected unanimously this
year—and Ed Buckner of the Council for Secular Humanism, did a standing room only
discussion on this fun topic. The audience was integral to the
session, and along with much humor, many good suggestions on how to deal with religionists
were presented.
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The polite side was represented with the suggestion that religious
salespeople who come to your door be greeted with a nice smile and a proudly stated,
"No thanks. I'm an atheist." That, or engage them in a friendly debate that demolishes
their bible beliefs.
Then again, there are those who, like Jon Nelson, don't feel
obliged to be courteous. Jon's ploy is a bumper sticker on his car that says, "Bark if
you love Jesus." When people lean out their car windows saying, "Woof woof," Jon
responds, "Gee, I didn't know sheep could bark."
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Making Friends and Allies across Organizational Boundaries
Marie Castle, representing the Atheist Alliance International, was also on the panel discussing
"Making Friends and Allies across Organizational Boundaries", along with Sue Garland of
the Georgia Humanist Association, Ed Buckner of the Council for Secular Humanism,
Walter Bell of Americans United for Separation of Church and State and also the American
Civil Liberties Union, and Herb Silverman of the Coalition for the Community of Reason.
The discussion covered different organizational structures, objectives, and how they
complement each other. For example, each of the organizations focuses on a different area:
- Atheist Alliance International and Georgia Humanist Association—Grassroots
organization and coalition building
- Council for Secular Humanism—Coalition building
- Americans United for Separation of Church and State—Lobbying
- American Civil Liberties Union—Legal actions
- Coalition for the Community of Reason—Coalition building
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Click here to see:
- The International Panel.
- Douglas Rankin, author of The Queen Jane's Version of the Bible. (You've
gotta see it!)
- Herb Silverman on "Passing Over to the Other Side".
- And more!
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