Category: Video+discussion

David Frum on Trump’s “Predatory” Foreign Policy

David Frum

11 a.m., January 12, 2025

Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we discuss an interview with David Frum from Amanapour and Company, America’s Lonely Future: David Frum on Trump’s “Predatory” Foreign Policy. With Trump’s inauguration on the horizon, conversations continue about the impact of the President-elect’s policies both at home and abroad.

David Jeffrey Frum is a Canadian-American political commentator and former speechwriter for President George W. Bush. He is considered a voice in the neoconservative movement. In his latest piece for The Atlantic, “America’s Lonely Future,” Frum warns that the U.S. could become a global bully.

Walter Seff Isaacson is an American journalist and an interviewer for the PBS and CNN news show Amanpour & Company.

Amanapour and Company is a late-night global-affairs interview television program hosted by Christiane Amanapour.

You can watch this 18-minute video on:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIeUigGZktk

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.)

We may choose, as a group, to visit a restaurant for lunch afterwards in downtown Los Altos near the library.

If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. 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)
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+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
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+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
You can find international phone numbers to call here.

———-

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Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
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“A Love Letter to Realism” and a lightning Annual Meeting

Mark Pollock + Simone George speak at TED2018 – The Age of Amazement, April 10 – 14, 2018, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Photo: Ryan Lash / TED

11 a.m., January 5, 2025

Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we watch “A Love Letter to Realism”, followed by a no-frills, lightning-fast Annual Membership meeting, closing with a discussion of the video.

When faced with life’s toughest circumstances, how should we respond: as an optimist, a realist or something else? In an unforgettable talk, explorer Mark Pollock and human rights lawyer Simone George explore the tension between acceptance and hope in times of grief — and share the groundbreaking work they’re undertaking to cure paralysis.

About the speakers:
Mark Pollock was the first blind person to race to the South Pole. Now he’s exploring the intersection where humans and technology collide on a new expedition to cure paralysis in our lifetime.
Driven by a belief in fairness. Simone George is a human rights lawyer and activist.

You can preview this 19-minute, April 2018 video at:
https://www.ted.com/talks/mark_pollock_and_simone_george_a_love_letter_to_realism_in_a_time_of_grief?subtitle=en

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. 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.

———-

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Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
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Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
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Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Thorium is Back!

Simon Whistler https://www.instagram.com/p/BuOcFxHA49u/

11 a.m., December 22, 2024

Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we watch and discuss a video from Megaprojects, Thorium Reactors: Why is this Technology Quite So Exciting, in which Simon Whistler covers the awakening interest in thorium nuclear reactors, its history and problems, and its promise of safe and nearly unlimited power for the coming decades until fusion reactors prove viable.

Megaprojects, which is about “humanity’s greatest achievements”, is one of 16 YouTube channels in the Whistler-Verse that Mr. Whistler either presents or directs. His videos have two billion views.
You can preview this 21-minute video from earlier this month at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSFo_92cJ-U

For an added attraction, consider the animated sketch, Why Thorium rocks — Science Sundays from Sam O’Nella Academy (four minutes):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjM9E6d42-M

Attend in Person:
Join fellow Humanists to consider the propositions in Milpitas Library Group Study Room B, 160 N Main St, Milpitas, CA 95035.
Often after our meeting, we find a nearby inexpensive eatery for a luncheon.
If you can join us in person, please email vp@humanists.org to help us make sure we have room for you. 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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Like us on Facebook:
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Visit the Humanist Community web site:
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RSVP on Meetup:
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Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1869202067069567151

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

Share our event on Patch: https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20241222/f9ed2c63-069f-4919-8c59-e9f6212b9db0/thorium-is-back

I got rid of 99% of my stuff | How could you tell if you’re brainwashed?

Eagranie Yuh

11 a.m., December 15, 2024

Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we watch and discuss
“What I learned from getting rid of 99% of my stuff”, and then
“How could you tell if you’re brainwashed?”,
two markedly different short videos.

Video 1:
Many of us have challenges with keeping material “clutter” in our lives. Old books, souvenirs, even newspapers and magazines we are saving for emotional or “till we get around to reading them”, or for reference. We also have clutter on our desks and throughout our home.
The is presented in “What I learned from getting rid of 99% of my stuff” by Eagranie Yuh on TEDxHobart. She describes what it took to accomplish this goal, and how long it took, and the lessons she learned from it.
You can preview it at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNB0-s6JTug.

Video 2:
Many of us are concerned about why people listen to, and vote, in what seem to us as irrational ways.
This video talks about someone that was “hooked into” a cult when he was young, and what it took to get out of this state of being. He relates this to current “political cults”, and how they work to ensnare and trap rational people into very strong and irrational beliefs. He then discusses how one might “break the spell” from this point of view.
It is entitled “How to tell if you’re brainwashed?” by Steve Hassan on TEDxBoston.
You can preview it at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzSwZpHDAaU

Come join us in what will be lively discussions on two topics.

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. 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:
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RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/305027448/

Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20241215/227f0a30-0482-4ac6-9af5-1e94fa1a6a44/i-got-rid-of-99-of-my-stuff-how-could-you-tell-if-youre-brainwashed

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
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Watch videos of our past Forums: https://vimeo.com/user2798508

Robert Sapolsky: Gender Brain

Prof. Robert Sapolsky

11 a.m., December 1, 2024

We have heard a great deal about gender being a spectrum. Join us this Sunday, either in person or online, as we watch Robert Sapolsky address University of Iowa students in March of 2021. He talks about how genes create our sexuality and how this neat male/female duality can be blurred. What do we find when we study genes and behavior? He argues that since the brain is on that same gender spectrum, our own identity, not our chromosomes, should be the final arbiter of our gender.

Robert Morris Sapolsky is an American academic, neuroscientist, and primatologist. He is a professor of biology, neurology, and neurosurgery. His research has focused on neuroendocrinology, particularly relating to stress.

You can view this 49-minute video at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nsQDX_OHNE

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. 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/2024-12-01/

RSVP on Meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/humanistcommunity/events/304594289/

Click the Interested button or share on Patch:
https://patch.com/california/paloalto/calendar/event/20241201/d10a4082-6a72-4b78-8889-8b19d9e022fd/robert-sapolsky-gender-brain

Retweet our announcement on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter:
https://x.com/HumanistCommSV/status/1862582373717877128

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