Welcome to the Penn and Teller bulletin board, a great place to keep in touch with
fellow Penn & Teller fans or ask questions about the guys. We welcome your thoughts!
Don't let us Canadians have all the fun! Here's a press release about the blood donor clinic that my group is hosting next week.
LOCAL ATHEIST GROUP TO DONATE BLOOD
The Society of Edmonton Atheists are participating in the Day of Reason Blood Drive, a non-religious alternative to the US National Day of Prayer
EDMONTON, Alberta This year, the Society of Edmonton Atheists is adding their support to the Day of Reason, an event created to counter a perceived disregard for separation of church and state in the United States. In the US, the first Thursday of every May is National Day of Prayer, an event created and promoted by the US Government. In 2003, the American Humanist Association started the National Day of Reason as a secular alternative. Since it's inception, a popular way for groups to show their support has been through blood drives.
According to Society President Paul Welke, It is likely that we're the first Canadian group to hold a blood drive to show our support, and I couldn't be more proud to help make this an international event. When asked why blood drives seem to be so popular with secular groups, Welke responded, Many non-religious people are also kind of cheerleaders for science. This is a great way for us to show that people can be good without a god, and that it can make a real difference. They say that a single unit of blood can save up to three lives, but I am not aware of any reputable studies that show that prayer can heal.
The Society of Edmonton Atheists already has nearly 20 donors confirmed, and are rallying support from other secular groups in the city, such as the University of Alberta Atheists and Agnostics, who were instrumental in changing the U of A's Convocation Ceremony earlier this year to make it more inclusive to the non-religious. The newly formed local branch of the Centre for Inquiry has lent some support to the drive as well. CFI has made recent headlines by running atheist bus ads in Calgary.
The event will take place at Canadian Blood Services, 8249 114 Street, between 5:30 pm and 7:00pm on Thursday, May 7th, 2009.
That's a great article and a great activity for Day of Reason. I just read an article about a wonderful scientist, who espouses the ideas of equality, rationalism and free-thinking. She's the hero I've been looking for. So I think I'll be spending the Day of Reason reading more about Rita Levi-Montalcini.
Re: What are YOU Doing for Day of Reason? (May 7th)
May 9 2009, 4:42 PM
That is such a great idea! If I didn't have my head up my ass, I'd have donated her in T.O. in moral support.
Unfortunately, I just got a tattoo, so no blood donation for a bit.
