Category: Speaker

Category to indicate a forum is a single speaker.

Bertrand Russell, My Hero

Ben Wade

11 a.m., August 25, 2024

Join our old friend Ben Wade this Sunday, either in person or online, as we convene a joint meeting with the Ethical Culture Society of Silicon Valley, ECSSV. Ben will share his longtime fascination with mathematician and philosopher Bertrand Russell.

Ben Wade has been a student and practitioner of critical thinking for many years. He holds a Masters Degree in Critical Thinking from the University of Massachusetts at Boston.

This gathering is part of ECSSV’s monthly ‘Spotlight’ series, featuring speakers who encourage us to broaden our ethical outlook on the world. We invite discussion, and we mix in a little live music, light refreshment, and community sharing. The program runs from 11 am to 12:30 pm, and all are welcome to linger afterward, share thoughts, and socialize. Better yet, stay for lunch! — which we’ll enjoy together in the nearby picnic area adjacent to the Los Altos History Museum from 12:45 to 2:00.

For more information about the Ethical Culture Society of Silicon Valley, visit their website at http://ecssv.org/ and find their events on their Meetup page, https://www.meetup.com/Ethical-Culture-Society-of-Silicon-Valley/

8/25/2024 Ben Wade from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

Attend in Person:
This Sunday, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists in the Orchard Room at the Los Altos Library, 13 S. San Antonio Road, Los Altos, CA 94022. (On the first and third Sunday of the month, you can continue to attend our forum at the Mountain View Senior Center.)

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. COVID protocols will be followed. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
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Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
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Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-08-25/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/302932394/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1825739984789196860

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

How the Supreme Court Works

Prof. Leland Chan

11 a.m., August 4, 2024

Join the Humanist Community this Sunday, either in person or online, as we hear from Prof. Leland Chan.

In light of such Supreme Court decisions as Dobbs (overturning Roe v. Wade) and Trump v. United States (creation of absolute presidential immunity for official acts), one would think that Supreme Court justices are like super-legislators – unelected officials who have the power to write what are essentially new laws that are the supreme law of the land that neither Congress nor any state may touch. But doesn’t the Constitution give federal legislative power exclusively to Congress? Aren’t judges more like baseball umpires just calling balls and strikes rather than making the rules? If judges are supposed to be impartial, why is it that in many cases even the casual observer could predict how each judge will decide depending on whether they are liberal or conservative? This lecture breaks it all down: what is the role of the judge and has today’s Supreme Court sawed off its Constitutional tether by setting policy according to each judge’s own vision for America?

Leland Chan is Adjunct Professor of Law at Golden Gate University. He graduated from U.C. Berkeley School of Law, and served as the long-time general counsel of the California Bankers Association during his legal career.

8/4/2024 Prof. Leland Chan from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

Attend in Person:
On the first and third Sunday of the month, such as this Sunday, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation for lunch.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. COVID protocols will be followed. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-08-04/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/302588626/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1819236346323726605

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

How to Win the Presidential Election

Michael Abramson

11 a.m., July 14, 2024

As the presidential election is getting close, we increasingly worry about its outcomes. The first Presidential debates could add more fuel to this anxiety. What can we expect now? How likely is it that Trump will lose the election? Do Democrats still have a path to victory?

Maybe: but this could require a different kind of campaign (if not a different candidate).

At the July 14th Sunday Forum we will explore this very issue: How to Win the Presidential Election.

Bio
Michael’s area of expertise is system modeling and simulation. Most of his work was related to technical and engineering applications, ranging from electromagnetics and radiation transfer to air traffic control systems. He also published a few works on modeling social and political dynamics, more closely related to the current topic.

Michael currently works as a contractor for NASA and lives in Mountain View with his wife and close to their children’s families.

7/14/2024 Michael Abramson from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

This Sunday, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists in the Orchard Room at the Los Altos Library, 13 S. San Antonio Road, Los Altos, CA 94022. (On the first and third Sunday of the month, you can continue to attend our forum at the Mountain View Senior Center.)

Since we can’t bring food into the library, let’s plan on meeting at the small park with picnic tables just adjacent to the library. We did this last time, and it worked out fine.

We could either bring our sandwiches or other lunch edibles or take orders and have folks order their own sandwiches or other edibles and send someone out to pick them up. This would allow us to meet right after the meeting, stay for a bit and connect.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. COVID protocols will be followed. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-07-14/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/302013496/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1811622621135667700

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

How to Get Along in an Election Year

Michael Abramson

11 a.m., July 7, 2024

Join Michael Abramson this Sunday, either in person or online.

If you think about it, it’s not obvious at all that so many people with so different personalities, interests, and ideas can get along and act together. Yet, somehow we can do this … most of the time. There are times, however, when the logic of peace breaks down, leading to social upheavals and wars. Could this election year, when the tensions are so high that many people worry about violence or even another civil war, become one of those times? And if this is a real possibility, what can we do, individually and collectively, to avert this danger?

Michael’s presentation will include a few suggestions about How to Get Along in Election Year, and it will be followed by brainstorming for more ideas.

This could be easily one of the most important discussions in our lives: if we fail to prevent a civil war, nothing else will really matter. Please come with your ideas.

Bio
Michael’s area of expertise is system modeling and simulation. Most of his work was related to technical and engineering applications, ranging from electromagnetics and radiation transfer to air traffic control systems. He also published a few works on modeling social and political dynamics, more closely related to the current topic.

Michael currently works as a contractor for NASA and lives in Mountain View with his wife and close to their children’s families.

This Sunday, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation for lunch.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. COVID protocols will be followed. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

7/7/2024 Michael Abramson from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-07-07/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/302013496/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1801852545754927564

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Next Gen Nonreligion: Exploring Changing American Nonreligious Generations

Elizabeth Drescher

11 a.m., June 2, 2024

Join Santa Clara University professor Elizabeth Drescher in person OR online. Prof. Drescher will share insights from research on the religiously unaffiliated in the U.S., and her experience teaching Nonreligion in America with SCU undergraduates for nearly a decade. She will document the changing proportion of U.S. adults who identify with no religion, and show us how the percent of “Nones” differs by generation.

Professor Drescher teaches religious studies at Santa Clara University, where she also directs the Living Religion Collaborative, a place-based center for student and faculty engagement with local religious and nonreligious communities. A scholar of non/religion as it is experienced by ordinary people in everyday life, she is the author of Choosing Our Religion: The Spiritual Lives of American Nones (Oxford 2016) and numerous other books and articles on lived religious and nonreligious experience.

The Atheist Community of San Jose joins with the Humanist Community to co-host this event.

6/2/2024 Elizabeth Drescher from Humanist Community-SiliconValley on Vimeo.

———-

On the first and third Sunday of the month, such as this Sunday, you can attend our forum in person with fellow humanists at the Mountain View Senior Center, 266 Escuela Ave., Mountain View, CA 94040. Lunch will be served after the forum. We request a $10 donation for lunch.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. COVID protocols will be followed. If you have symptoms that may be COVID, kindly attend on Zoom.

———-

Also, we will continue to present our forums on Zoom. To join and be able to ask questions and make comments, click here.
No password is needed — our host will admit you from the waiting room. Joining the meeting via the link will download and install the Zoom app on your desktop computer (if it’s not already installed), and then take you to the meeting. You can also install the Zoom app on your computer or smartphone, and then enter:
Meeting ID: 816 5389 0712
Passcode: 250634

You can also call any of the following phone numbers and then enter the above Meeting ID and the Passcode in order to join the meeting by phone.
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

Subscribe to our events in your Apple Calendar:
webcal://p162-caldav.icloud.com/published/2/Mjk3Nzk1MTgyMjk3Nzk1MRBa7aU6zKSIJMfDjhqBP8r3muvKK3GLLCRnZoCneHpXv08CyGJAJRVI5yyh-SVWxGJE9xHfdUs72pmiBNlOBpY

Add this event to your Google calendar:

Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/humanistcommsv/

Visit the Humanist Community web site:
https://www.humanists.org/blog/2024-06-02/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/301031766/

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1790638351319732325

 

Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508