Matthew LaClair was raised in the Ethical Society of Essex, New Jersey. He’s in the news right now for tape-recording his eleventh-grade history teacher proselytizing in his public school classroom, and for using those tapes to stop it. You can hear an interview with Matthew and his dad, Paul, on the Brian Lehrer [...]

Sunday’s New York Times had an article by Peter Singer titled “What Should a Billionaire Give–and What Should You?” It’s a fascinating analysis of private philanthropy and demolishes several common rationalizations people give for not being more generous. It also describes a remarkable altruist I had never heard of, and it breaks down how the [...]

I was reminded the other day of all the web sites I used to visit regularly where you could click on an ad to donate money to famine victims or breast cancer research or a dozen other things.  Such an easy way to help good causes—yet I stopped going and clicking long ago.  Has this [...]

A few years ago it was discovered that some retailers choose to hawk their wares with the phrase Happy Holidays, in acknowledgement that several holidays are celebrated at this time of year (including New Years, which I think we all agree on).  This was clearly an affront to the ongoing secularization and commercialization of Christmas, [...]

This short article by the Earth Policy Institute points out the health, environmental, and ethical problems with bottled water.  In short, bottled water is less regulated than tap water; plastic bottles take petroleum to create and most are not recycled; and money wasted on bottled water could be spent instead getting clean water to people [...]

For those in the area, if you have a blanket or two to spare around the house, bring it to the Society this Sunday, Dec. 10th;  Reggie and Randy T. have generously agreed to deliver them to a local shelter.  If you are in the area, I don’t need to tell you how badly blankets [...]

. . . appeared on Saturday Night Live several years back.  She’s since written and performed autobiographical solo shows; her latest is called “Giving Up God,” and it’s quite funny and interesting.  As is her website, juliasweeney.com, where you can read and/or listen to excerpts of “Giving Up God” and peruse her blog, which seems [...]

Greetings to everyone in the St. Louis area after a weekend of ice and power outages.  I hope everyone is warm and safe.
We had to cancel Sunday’s meeting, but one of the Signs of Hope I was going to mention is the growing acceptance of marriage equality.  Faster progress would be better, of course, but [...]