 |
 |
| << |
June 2010 |
>> |
| |
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
|
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
|
13 |
14 |
15 |
16 |
17 |
18 |
19 |
|
20 |
21 |
22 |
23 |
24 |
25 |
26 |
|
27 |
28 |
29 |
30 |
|
|
|
| Roundtable |
| Book Club |
| Third Sunday Roundtable |
| Reflections |
| Other |
Driving Directions
|
 |
 |
 |
|
Join our list to get occasional updates about meetings and important events. You can be removed from the list at any time without hassle.
|
|
|
|
About RET
Rationalists of East Tennessee is an organization created to benefit people by expanding understanding of the universe through the use of empirical and rational methods. Our purposes are as follows:
- To foster an environment suitable to free speech and exchange of ideas.
- To promote free inquiry into the nature of the universe and of human societies.
- To encourage critical thinking on all aspects of human life.
- To emphasize the importance of the scientific method.
- To explore ethical and intellectual alternatives to supernatural beliefs.
- To model humanistic ethics through service to the greater community.
- To provide a fellowship for people who share these purposes.
Visitors are Welcome
How Do I Join RET?
We welcome you to attend our meetings to find out more about us. Find out what we're doing next by browsing the calendar at left or by sending email to info@rationalists.org. Once you've decided we're a group you'd like to associate with, either download our brochure and fill out the blank or print the HTML application found here.
Roundtable Sept. 5
Sept. 5, 2010 10:30 to 12:30
Open roundtable. Members can present any items which they want to discuss. Possible topics may include Billy Graham question and answer articles, Is America Sliding into Fascism, jeremiads of Chris Hedges, or anything else that people would like to discuss in a free-wheeling, free-thought forum. A soap box will be provided.
Time/location: 10:30 - 12:30, Pellissippi State, Goins Bldg., Cafeteria Annex
READ MORE >>
Posted by schadwick
Sept. 01, 2010
|
FreeThought on local TV-August 31st
The following message from Larry Rhodes announces the first community tv broadcast by Rationalists, Freethinkers, & Atheists here in Knoxville.
"I just talked to the people at the Community TV station, and we're all set to go on Tuesday at 5:30 PM. i.e. August 31st. This will be a joint-venture of RET and ASK, so be sure to set your VCR or (more likely) your TiVo, to record it! It's going to be a live call in show, so it should be very interesting (funny and embarrassing, but interesting)!
"Basically, we will state the Atheist position about Church/State separation and that being without "faith" is not a bad thing, etc. And let the callers say the rest. Mostly we'll just react to callers, and hope to keep the attention of the "middle grounders" Also, it's not about just the
Christians or Jews, it's about Free thought, and the fact that believing in unsupported, supernatural claims isn't good for mankind in general. We really just hope to raise awareness in the Knoxville community that Atheism isn't what the church says we are. And that it's Ok to be good without god. (A monumental task in Knoxville, Tennessee). Wish us luck! Larry Rhodes Atheist Meetup Knoxville, TN "
We're hoping that all RET members and friends will be watching and wishing us success on this new outreach venture with ASK (the Atheist Society of Knoxville).
READ MORE >>
Posted by schadwick
Aug. 26, 2010
|
Reflections on August 22nd
REFLECTIONS August 22nd, 2010
TOPIC: The Decline, Fall, and Potential Resurrection of American Education [K-12]
In 2007 Philip Atkinson, a British researcher, author, and philosopher, wrote about the impact of communal decline upon education, stressing three basic failures of the American Educational system:
1. Failure To Impose Discipline: Clear thinking is the result of disciplined thoughts. If pupils are not forced to discipline their behavior, then they will not discipline their thoughts and so will be unable to think clearly; this is the very opposite of the purpose of education.
2. Failure To Demand Respect For Teachers: If a lesson is to be heeded, the teacher must have the respect of the pupils. In the year 2000 the awed respect that children of my generation (1950s) had for their teachers has been replaced by the opposite. School children no longer fear their teacher, for their erstwhile master is now their servant. The cane has been replaced by the panic button. Teachers no longer command and demand, but amuse and appease. This must undermine the whole purpose of education.
3. Failure To Teach Essential Subjects: The most important lesson for every child is that of learning to read and write, for the use of language is the ability to think. Nonetheless, the education system has abandoned the traditional teaching of reading and writing, with its fixed spelling and grammar, so no longer teaches citizens how to either communicate or think clearly.
Whether or not we agree with all of Mr. Atkinson's charges, I think most of us would agree that the educational system of this nation is not performing like it was when we were in it.
READ MORE >>
Posted by schadwick
Aug. 21, 2010
|
August 15 - Dr. Charles Maland
Pellissippi State; 10:30 - 12:30; "Charlie Chaplin and the Making of a Classic: CITY LIGHTS;" U.T. Professor Charles Maland
READ MORE >>
Posted by pking
Aug. 13, 2010
|
Skeptic Book Club - August 8
Skeptic Book Club will meet at 4:00 on Sunday, August 8, at Barnes and Noble Booksellers, 8029 Kingston Pike, Knoxville. Chuck Omarzu will lead our discussion of: "Nazi Nexus: America's Corporate Connection to Hitler's Holocaust," by Edwin Black.
READ MORE >>
Posted by pking
Aug. 04, 2010
|
First Sunday Roundtable August 1st
Roundtable discussant: David Driscoll, Atheist Alliance International Ambassador for the Southeast
Mr. Driscoll is co-host of the American Freethought Podcast, www.americanfreethought.com, and host of the Secular Nation Podcast www.atheistalliance.org/podcast He will speak about the work of Atheist Alliance International and about freethinking topics of current concern.
READ MORE >>
Posted by schadwick
July 30, 2010
|
|
Printer Friendly
|
