Jan 2: No Peace on Earth Among Religions
Major religions are waging fierce wars around the globe -- with means more foul than fair -- to gain adherents from each other. The Pope has joined the fray by urging his missionaries to greater effort to convert the "infidel," even if they happen to be Christians of other denominations. Is this freedom of religion in action? Economist Ely Brandes speaks.
Jan 9: The Common Good
Mark Lutz' Economics for the Common Good: Two Centuries of Social Economic Thought in the Humanist Tradition does a splendid job of tracing an undercurrent of economic thought from Sismondi to the latest turmoils of the World Trade Organization. Bill Jacobsen speaks.
Jan 16: Ronald Radosh as Historian
Bill Jacobsen on the first of two articles from Lingua Franca: The Review of Academic Life, Oct, 1999. Scott Sherman's article puzzles about the orientation of a character who now patterns himself after humanist Sidney Hook, the anti-Communist philosopher, as he explodes the great myths of the Left.
Jan 23: Campus Crusade for Secular Humanism
In Lingua Franca, Emily Nussbaum examines Paul Kurtz' Campus Freethought Alliance. She will not be accused of pushing the movement, but her acerbic and distancing comments will give us much to think about.
Jan 30: Globalized Trade, WTO and All That Jazz
The World Trade Organization's recent meeting provoked a remarkable reaction. Why? Economist Ely Brandes will try to separate the substance from the noise of recent events in Seattle.
Feb 6: Meaning and Purpose of Life
According to Bill Jacobsen, Richard Allen is one of the finest speakers in the Unitarian denomination. With a ministerial degree from Harvard and a doctorate from Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, he bears his learning lightly, but delivers the goods in a personal and warm manner. Dick Allen comments on three stories. In all three, meaning and purpose are a substance that can be held in one's hands. The stories are the epic of Gilgamesh, the Holy Grail legend and a Zen story of a Buddhist supplicant, Encho. Barnes and Noble has shelves of books on this topic that are probably wiser and clearer, but they are also more expensive and not as much fun. Our speaker says that this is all he has to say to the world and intends to do it in about half an hour, so there will be time for your commentary too. Because of the time constraints, he also will speak slowly and loud because every word will be propitious. Our speaker is a "self-effacing humanist."
He was an engineer in the deep past and has been stdying the interaction of technology and the human state ever since.
Feb 13: A Friend in Need
Kristen Milner is the Rape Crisis Center's coordinator who deals with education, speaking to teens and adults about child abuse, domestic violence, and sexual assault. In the olden days the family was so sacrosanct that people hesitated to interfere if they suspected something was wrong. Nowadays there's more acceptance of society's legitimate concern to make sure the family members aren't hurt.
Feb 20: Living Right
In the developed world, we must become much more energy and materials efficient in just a few decades, if we are to prevent the continued destruction of the earth's ecosystems. We must also help our global underdeveloped neighbors to do the same, especially to modernize agriculture and to reduce population growth. Martin Squibbs follows up his Dec Forum on the global environment with some ideas, and invites suggestions as to how we can act to achieve this.
Feb 27: The Many-Sided Evil of Money in Politics
The media talks about campaign finances by telling us about the way funds are raised, who gives it, and who gets it. But perhaps the worst part of it may be how this money is spent. Ely Brandes speaks.
Mar 5: Toward a Virtual Community: Nation1
Ignoring superficial matters such as age, race, gender, nationality, religion, young people are pulling together the ingredients of a more humane society. A Menlo School junior, Hilary McQuaide attended a junior summit at MIT's Media Lab, assuming a leading role among her peers in creating a "virtual community." Nation1 is an internet forum for young people across the planet.
Our speaker is editor of this cyber-nation's monthly on-line newspaper (http://journal.jrsummit.net) and participated in an international peace conference in The Hague. She sings, drums (snare and bass), and dances (tap, Irish, jazz). She hopes to attend Stanford.
Mar 12: Foibles of Humanity
A visitor from outer space comments on human civilization: "The human species isn't as dumb as it looks. It's dumber." A former president of the Humanist Community, Joe Peel draws upon Battling the Inner Dummy by David Weiner.
Mar 19: Cuba as a Cuban Sees It
Not all Cuban émigrés think alike. Ely Brandes will talk about one Cuban émigré -- and a former colleague -- whose views about Cuba are unlike any you've heard in Miami. This has an interesting resonance to a period in our history.
Mar 26: What First Attracted You to Humanism?
In one month we invite the larger community to an open house -- to join us as we celebrate moving our Community Forum into a permanent home at the YWCA. At this drop-in event Bill Jacobsen will offer four eight-minute talks (a sampler of what we're about). Conversation circles will be available for those interested in exploring the topics or getting acquainted with us. Today Bill gives us a preview and asks us to recall the questions we had when we first encountered the possibility and promise of humanism. This will help us do a better job.
Apr 2: Moving Toward Sustainability
Sustainability means breaking our stereotypes, revisiting our assumptions, redefining success, offering love and forgiveness, building bridges, having fun, encouraging and accepting change and diversity, and being patient. Not so bad, really. Martin Squibbs speaks from the heart as he completes his series on the environment and introduces this month's Wednesday evening series. See page three for the Wednesday topics.
Apr 9: The Remarkable Mr. Putin
Unlike his blustering predecessor, Russia's acting president speaks softly but acts decisively against the wishes of the Western allies. Perhaps he has been reading a biography of our own President Teddy Roosevelt. Economist Ely Brandes speaks.
Apr 16: The Peninsula Needs the YWCA
Silicon Valley has lots of bragging rights, but it's a blemish on us if we can't support all the outstanding programs the YWCA has created. Lorraine Phillips, Executive Director, speaks.
Apr 23: Nikos Kazantzakis
As a novelist, he wondered what would have happened if the tragic Jewish figure of 2000 years ago had lived into old age, instead of being executed by the Romans as a rebel. As an essayist, he raises questions about the meaning of life. Bill Jacobsen speaks.
Apr 30: Drop In Open House
Join conversations on four exciting themes, enjoy refreshments and socializing as we welcome visitors. From 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Must event of the year. Face painting and games for children.
May 7: Co-Housing: The Movement Back to Community
The desire to live in community is as old as civilization. In a co-housing village the residents live in community, but maintain control over their lives and keep their privacy. Paul Abramson and Sonja Eriksson, who recently joined a co-housing group, will explain how they are designing their own neighborhood.
May 14: Are Bad Consequences Unintended or Unforeseen?
Reducing classroom sizes in California's primary schools -- a program applauded by virtually everyone -- has now greatly aggravated an already serious teacher shortage. This can be characterized as an unintended consequence; but in fact it was a consequence easily foreseen. There are many other examples where the rush to find a quick solution for whatever ails us often created new problems that may be worse than the original ones. Economist Ely Brandes tells how we can think hard before we leap.
May 21: Straights & Gay Rights
Some folks seem ready to write non-heterosexuals out of the human race, putting them beyond the circle of compassionate understanding. Remember, Hitler attacked homosexuals before he started on the Jews. Bill Jacobsen will attend a meeting on this issue at Trinity Episcopal in San Francisco today at 2 p.m. More information about this event at www.scoutingforall.org.
May 28: Mass CommunicationVersus Reality
Robert Terrell is a professor in the Department of Mass Communication at Cal State Hayward. His prior positions include working in China as an editor and teaching at the University of Nairobi. If democratic society is to flourish, he believes that responsible journalism is necessary.
Jun 4: Jef Raskin on his Book The Humane Interface
Jef Raskin, who created the Macintosh computer project when he was at Apple, has recently completed a book that describes what may be the next revolution in making computers, information appliances, and the Internet far easier and faster to use. Jef will explain why current systems frustrate us so badly, and what can be done about it.
Jun 11: We're in the People Business
In contrast to institutions that create goods, services, knowledge, we are in an enterprise that enriches people's experiences and ennobles their lives. Starting where individuals happen to be, we help them widen their horizons, deepen their commitments, release their inner beauty, and become the best they can be. Bill Jacobsen speaks.
Jun 18: Feeding the Hungry of the World
After World War II, when hunger stalked a large part of the world, our nation mounted a mighty effort to help feed the world, making no distinction between friends and former foes. Alas, the humanitarian spirit of our past has shrunk considerably and now we will ship our grain to even the poorest nations for dollars only. (There are a few and very small exceptions.) Can't we do better? Ely Brandes, economist, speaks.
Jun 25: Ethics & Science: Heart & Mind of Humanism
Tom Ferrick, humanist chaplain at Harvard, says we need to add "rules of conscience" to secular knowledge. He will refer to S. J. Gould's Rocks of Ages, search for a connection between values and facts, and ask how tolerant we can be of error. Tom will show how confident conclusions are possible, postmodernism notwithstanding.
Jul 2: Venture
Member Chuck Juliano talks about his favorite self-help group, Venture.
Jul 9: The Peter Singer Syndrome
Michael Specter's article (in The New Yorker, Sep 6, 1999) offers a larger perspective on one of the most influential philosophers in the realm of ethics. Animal Rights. Infanticide. Egalitarianism. Bill Jacobsen speaks.
Jul 16: The Hard Road to Economic Growth
The last 50 years have seen some countries achieve sustained economic growth, but many have failed. We now know that there is no magic formula which guarantees success to all who try. But we also know now that certain ingredients must be must be present in undeveloped countries to make growth even a possibility. Without such ingredients these nations will surely fail. Ely Brandes speaks.
Jul 23: Rethinking the Humanist Community
One human capacity Humanists appreciate is our self-reflexiveness. Let's spend an hour reviewing the purposes, goals, objectives and methods of our own organization.
Jul 30: The People Resource
In the Bay Area we are living through the second "gold rush" with all the attendant problems -- transportation, housing, and inflation. Paula Anderson, Dean, Special Projects, San Mateo County, explains that American workers will have multiple careers, work for multiple employers, work on a project basis, develop "on-demand" skill sets, pursue lifelong learning and job training, and need to self-manage their finances, health care, and retirement funds.
Aug 6: The Joy of Release
No, it's not about The Joy of Sex. We are celebrating the feelings we'd like to have at the end -- gratitude, a sense of accomplishment, a readiness to leave the party. Bill Jacobsen speaks.
Aug 13: Nuclear Missile Defense Without Rocket Science
Our military - industrial complex is again campaigning for a new missile defense system that will cost hundreds of billions and may not work at all. Economist Ely Brandes asks: Why are we ignoring the fact that we already have a defense system, deterrence, that has proven its effectiveness at least twice in recent history?
Aug 20: Living with Disabilities
Birgit Schweingruber has been a disability rights advocate and activist for 14 years. She cofounded an assistive technology center called Itech, served two years on the Santa Clara County Advisory Board on disabilities, and leads a Cerebral Palsy support group. At first she had an incredibly steep learning curve, learning about the medical system, insurance, education law, wheelchair design, physical therapy, and alternative therapy, all while taking care of three infants, two of them severely ill. From personal and professional experience she knows how complex and difficult disability issues are for families.
Aug 27: Experiences with Cults
Marsha Farmer was an initiated Brahmana for twelve years in the branch of Gaudiya Vaishnavism known as "the Hare Krishnas". She and Roger Siegel and others will present a talk on their experiences and on cults in general.
Sep 3: Let's Hear it for Intolerance!
Is there a time and place for political incorrectness? Is it ever right to be wrong? Burt Liebert will suggest some new ways of thinking about some old assumptions.
Sep 10: Rethinking, Part 2: Set Goals
At our Forum on Jul 23, there was great enthusiasm for growth of the Humanist Community. Today we take the next step: translating enthusiasm into progress. The Board has reviewed the suggestions collected at the brainstorming session and developed a tentative set of achievable goals that honor the intent of the Community. These recommendations will be presented for discussion and suggestions from the floor. We need to move toward consensus on goals. Richard Kreis returns to facilitate the discussion.
Sep 17: Social Security Is Not a Pension Plan!
Governor Bush has proposed that individuals be allowed to "invest" a portion of their Social Security taxes into a private investment fund for their enjoyment after retirement. But economist Ely Brandes points out: This proposal totally ignores the fact that the Social Security system is an insurance system and has operated from the very beginning on a pay-as-you-go basis, and payments to beneficiaries have first call on the collected Social Security taxes.
Sep 24: Younger Humanists
Some members of our Humanist Community have formed a Younger Humanists group. They're coming to share their perspectives with us.
Oct 1: Positive Humanism for All
Rather than fall into the trap of explaining our negatives -- what we don't believe -- Bill Jacobsen takes an affirmative stance. He lays out an uplifting vision of our commitment to the future of the human species. He may even throw in a few chants and songs, just for fun.
Oct 8: Why Some Scientists Sound So Religious
Editors say, "Don't alienate the religionists." Publishers say, "Put 'God' in the title and you sell an extra 50,000 copies." Templeton says "Say something positive about God and religion; you may get my annual prize of $1,000,000." What's a poor scientist to do? Bill Jacobsen shows what they do.
Oct 15: California's Electric Power Fiasco
We, the people of California, were told that deregulation and competition in the electric power business will bring lower prices for electricity because competition can have a wide spectrum of consequences, depending on the nature of the industry involved. What is needed here is real economic understanding and not just information bytes gained from the internet. Economist Ely Brandes will discuss all.
Oct 22: Educating Senator Lieberman
Bill Jacobsen reviews Supreme Court decisions which reduced the coercive import of sectarian religion on public life. At the time of those decisions, religious conservatives were appalled, and insinuated that removing prayer from public schools automatically introduced drugs, violence, and sex into those institutions. During the last decade a move has been afoot to reintroduce faith into the public square. Is Lieberman part of this movement?
Oct 29: Get the Facts
You've heard the politicking; now get the facts from the League of Women Voters. This organization has long been famous for its unbiased presentations of political subjects. Two panelists will present the pros and cons of California's ballot propositions. For more info, contact host Burt Liebert, 650-493-3747.
Nov 5: Death and Rebirth?
Marsha Farmer and David Gillett lead a not-entirely-reverent exploration of one of The Big Questions. Bring a picture of someone who is dead -- an intimate or a famous person you'd like to speak to or about. It's O. K. to cry or brag or whatever. You are among friends.
Nov 12: What Price Prescription Drugs?
The ever-rising cost of prescription drugs has become a major political issue, with government subsidies being offered by both major parties. A more effective way of dealing with this problem would be to cite a discriminatory pricing policy of drug manufacturers who charge a wide spectrum of wholesale prices for a specific drug, with the highest price reserved for the drug stores which sell to us. Economist Ely Brandes will speak on this topic.
Nov 19: Michael Shermer and the Goblet of Common Sense
Former Humanist Community President Joe Peel returns to the area to hold forth on Michael Shermer's skeptical approach to the varied claims that assault us every day.
Nov 26: The Meaning of Life
We are born; we do stuff; then we die. What's the point? Well, let's explore the human imagination, and how it helps us create meaning for ourselves. Conservationist Martin Squibbs speaks.
Dec 3: Join a 200 Year-Old Chat Room
In 1791 James Madison wrote 45 words which have since spawned billions of words of commentary. The 45 words comprise the 1st Amendment to our Constitution, guaranteeing our freedom of speech and religion. The debate about the exact meaning of these words continues with unabated force because our Founding Fathers customarily compacted controversial ideas into few words. Let's join this chat room. Economist Ely Brandes will help us get started.
Dec 10: Our Search for Immortality: Evidence for Optimism
Recent discoveries about hibernation, cellular immortality, tissue engineering, cloning, and stem cells give hope to people with damaged organs and to those who want healthy bodies for hundreds of years. Biologist David Harris will describe these new medical possibilities and the political fight over using embryonic cells in them.
Dec 17: Conversations on the Peace Boat
The educational ship that has made 43 trips around the world with up to 500 young people aboard never docks in America. Phyllis Fisher and her physicist husband, Leon, were in Los Alamos for the A-bomb project. Drawing on that experience, they gave lectures and participated in cordial discussions with a survivor of the Hiroshima bomb. We'll listen in on the conversations.
Dec 24: A Story of Transformation
The many movie and TV adaptations of A Christmas Carol are a tribute to the genius of Charles Dickens. A Unitarian, he did not believe in ghosts; but he did believe in human transformation. Humanists agree: we aren't locked into what we've written with our lives so far.Bill Jacobsen holds forth on stories for the last two Sundays in 2000.
Dec 31: From Groundhog Day to Lucky Numbers
Bill Jacobsen: I loved Groundhog Day and Lucky Numbers, despite movie reviewers' thumbs-down on the latter. The first shows a self-centered man who must keep reliving the same day until he gets it right. The second shows a decent man who gradually goes bad under the influence of amoral companions. Lessons galore as we begin a new year!