Important TV show on atheism this weekend...

Here's one of those very few instances that I wish I had a television.I got this in one of my CSICOP bulletins, I'm just going to reprint it here (although I would hardly call what's going on 'non-religious fervor'... if we could only be so lucky)...

The PBS program Religion and Ethics Newsweekly will be airing a special segment on atheism and unbelief in America on the weekend of January 5th through the 7th.

In addition, the show's cameras were on hand to capture the November 14 Grand Opening press conference of the Center for Inquiry's new Office of Public Policy in Washington, D.C. In a wide-ranging interview, Paul Kurtz took the opportunity to discuss the dangerous intermingling of religion with science and the ethics of leading a good moral life, without the need for religion.

Watch for the segment this weekend on your local PBS stations (broadcast times will vary in different cities).

From the Web site (www.pbs.org/religion):

According to national polls, 90 percent of Americans say they believe in God, and more than 50 percent hold a negative view of those who don’t share their belief in a "Supreme Being." But non-religious fervor is slowly gaining a foothold in the U.S. as some atheists find a way to successfully reach out to mainstream America about their views on the existence of God.

Betty Rollin explores how a small group of America’s non-believers, such as biologist Richard Dawkins, author of "The God Delusion," neuroscientist Sam Harris, author of "Letter to a Christian Nation," and actress/comedian Julia Sweeney, are challenging religious fundamentalism through best-selling works and sold-out performances. According to Harris, "The usefulness of religion -- the fact that it gives meaning, that it makes people feel good -- is not an argument for the truth of any religious doctrine."