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Archive: Herb Silverman
We're all stereotypes
Not only must we be careful about stereotyping, we must also be careful about marginalizing or ignoring large segments of our population. Responding to this latest tragedy, leaders are calling for us to come together as a nation, which I support. But they need to be cautious when they claim to speak on behalf of Americans.
By Herb Silverman | November 6, 2009; 11:38 AM ET | Comments (12)
Quality of life panels
Today's 'end-of-life care' controversy didn't exist 1000 years ago, when most believed that the terminally ill were in "God's hands." With scientific breakthroughs, the terminally ill are often in technology's hands, and it's up to humans to decide the extent to which that technology should be used.
By Herb Silverman | November 3, 2009; 12:18 PM ET | Comments (16)
God, an addiction
I think it's meaningless to ask whether people can be good without God. As an atheist, I believe we are all without any gods. The question is really about whether people can be good without a belief in God. And by just about any measure, the answer has to be yes.
By Herb Silverman | October 27, 2009; 03:15 PM ET | Comments (15)
Freedom to hate
I don't want to hold the accused guilty of having an opinion, in addition to the crime committed, because even a reprehensible criminal deserves a free speech right to express an opinion. We have the right to hate, but not to commit crimes.
By Herb Silverman | October 19, 2009; 06:31 PM ET | Comments (46)
Spare Rods, Not Vaccines
There are religious reasons to decline a vaccine, there are valid reasons to decline a vaccine, but there are no valid religious reasons to decline a vaccine.
By Herb Silverman | October 13, 2009; 08:29 AM ET | Comments (11)
A Case For Nothing
It seems that Karen Armstrong and I would agree that nothing is sacred, but from opposite sides of this pun. Ms. Armstrong believes in a god about which or whom you can say nothing, and I see no thing worthy of worship
By Herb Silverman | October 8, 2009; 01:00 PM ET | Comments (21)
Theocracy: Always a Problem, Never a Solution
I'm pessimistic about a positive outcome in Afghanistan without a fundamental separation of religion from government. There has never been a theocracy that resulted in a decent standard of living for its citizens, or where minorities were treated with both tolerance and respect.
By Herb Silverman | October 5, 2009; 07:45 PM ET | Comments (31)
Health Funding for Science, Not Faith
The First Amendment protects religious freedom, but no American taxpayer should be forced to subsidize a fellow citizen's religious beliefs and practices.
By Herb Silverman | September 29, 2009; 02:17 PM ET | Comments (31)
Avoiding Armageddon
I don't think it matters whether we pray for nuclear disarmament or for nuclear war. There is no there there. Our actions, not our empty words or prayers, are what matter.
By Herb Silverman | September 28, 2009; 07:11 PM ET | Comments (17)
Taxation For Religious Discrimination
I'm not particularly comfortable with tax breaks the government gives individuals for donating to a religion, or with the huge property tax advantages granted to often-wealthy churches, but I'm appalled that the government would allocate my tax dollars to inadvertently support religious discrimination.
By Herb Silverman | September 21, 2009; 07:03 PM ET | Comments (10)
Talking to "The Other"
Despite what Psalm 37 and Jesus say, I see little evidence of the meek inheriting the earth. However, I see much evidence for the belligerent and loud-mouthed inheriting talk shows, and the aggressive and cantankerous inheriting political careers.
By Herb Silverman | September 15, 2009; 08:29 AM ET | Comments (15)
Plowshares Into Swords
I thought it crass that members of my childhood congregation had to pay for better seats on the high holidays. I hope they are not now paying for better guns. I never expected an atheist like me would say, "Give me that old time religion."
By Herb Silverman | September 8, 2009; 08:47 PM ET | Comments (17)
One Nation, Undereducated
Why should evolution or the Bible be taught so differently in Texas than in Vermont? Our system cries out for national education standards, which exist in most developed countries.
By Herb Silverman | September 1, 2009; 02:45 AM ET | Comments (16)
When Vengeance and Compassion Collide
The fact is that neither execution nor the amount of time the Lockerbie bomber spends in prison will make the least difference to any of the dead.
By Herb Silverman | August 25, 2009; 04:47 AM ET | Comments (13)
Health Care a Priority, not a Product
We generally accept that people with more money can afford more things, and I don't have a problem with this, except when we treat a necessity like quality health care as if it were just a consumer product. I wish all Americans would recognize the need to make health care both a moral and financial priority.
By Herb Silverman | August 18, 2009; 08:12 AM ET | Comments (8)
Hands that Help or Lips that Pray
The issue for me isn't the form of prayer, but prayer itself.
By Herb Silverman | August 10, 2009; 06:14 PM ET | Comments (14)
Even Churches Need to Grow Up
If your scripture indicates that you should treat gays and lesbians as inferior, it's time for those thousands-year old beliefs to grow up.
By Herb Silverman | August 3, 2009; 08:56 PM ET | Comments (14)
My Wife and Her Husbands
My wife is married to another man in the eyes of the Catholic Church, even though she received a civil divorce over 25 years ago.
By Herb Silverman | July 27, 2009; 07:00 PM ET | Comments (10)
Male Problem or Millennial Problem?
is it any surprise that holy books, written some 2000 to 3000 years ago, contain many vile portions that reflect the misogynistic and patriarchal culture of the time?
By Herb Silverman | July 21, 2009; 09:36 AM ET | Comments (13)
The Constitution is Neither Black Nor White
I would not trust or believe any judge who claims that his or her judicial rulings are always independent of life experiences.
By Herb Silverman | July 14, 2009; 06:21 PM ET | Comments (12)
Three Wrongs Don't Make a Right
Should our secular public schools favor Christianity or Judaism over Islam? Absolutely not. Should our public schools favor religion over non-religion? Absolutely not.
By Herb Silverman | July 6, 2009; 05:23 PM ET | Comments (10)
My Sin When I Ran for Governor of South Carolina
One of Governor Sanford's press conference apologies was "to people of faith across South Carolina, or for that matter, across the nation,..." Implicit in his apology, and insulting to nontheists, is that people of faith are expected to be more moral than people without faith.
By Herb Silverman | June 29, 2009; 07:14 PM ET | Comments (11)
Fashion, Freedom and Coercion
To me the essential issue regarding Muslim attire for women is one of coercion, not religious practice. But I'm reluctant to impose religious restrictions on people whose definition of freedom might be different from mine.
By Herb Silverman | June 24, 2009; 05:50 PM ET | Comments (6)
Institutional Apologies Fall Short
Call me a cynic, but I think institutional apologies to those who have been dead for centuries are calculated to restore the reputation of the institution rather than the reputation of the long departed abused.
By Herb Silverman | June 23, 2009; 12:27 PM ET | Comments (1)
Laughter, the Best Islamic Medicine
A good rule of thumb for me is whether a country allows its citizens to poke fun at its leaders and its "sacred cows," including sacred religions.
By Herb Silverman | June 16, 2009; 05:37 PM ET | Comments (4)
Onward Secular Peacemakers
I expect in at least part of President Obama's June 4 speech he will say nice things about Muslims and emphasize that we are not in a Christian Holy War with Islam. Many Muslims think otherwise, perhaps with some justification.
By Herb Silverman | June 2, 2009; 11:27 AM ET | Comments (2)
Neglect in the Name of Love
Since our secular government must be neutral regarding religion, what we deem parental abuse should be independent of whether that abuse is for religious or secular reasons.
By Herb Silverman | May 23, 2009; 12:40 PM ET | Comments (5)
The Elephant in the Notre Dame Auditorium
We all agree that an abortion signifies a mistake, though we may disagree on what the mistake was. So I applaud President Obama's advice to seek common ground in a culture with diversity of belief.
By Herb Silverman | May 18, 2009; 04:55 PM ET | Comments (8)
Changing an Unchanging Church
As a humanist, I worry not only about a Church whose leadership requirements are more likely to lead to abuses of the innocent faithful. I also worry about a politically engaged Church trying to impose its religious prohibitions (contraception, gay marriage, stem cell research, etc.) on the rest of the world.
By Herb Silverman | May 12, 2009; 11:28 AM ET | Comments (2)
National Day of Non-Prayer?
Imagine this hypothetical companion headline: "President Obama will also sign a proclamation Friday recognizing National Day of Non-Prayer."
By Herb Silverman | May 5, 2009; 02:20 PM ET | Comments (11)
