Category: 2016

July 2016

Posted on | by Wayne Wilson

Tribe
~Book Review~

We evolved in groups. We survived and became successful in groups. Tribe, written by Sebastian Junger, describes the groups that we came from and why a close connection with other humans is essential for our well-being in today’s world. Junger uses stone-age civilizations as examples of people with better mental health than we have due to their close connections with each other.

He paraphrases Benjamin Franklin lamenting that English settlers were constantly fleeing over to the Indians—but Indians almost never did the same.

Junger quotes Thomas Paine in “Agrarian Justice” saying “whether… civilization has most promoted or most injured the general happiness of man is a question that may be strongly contested. Both the most affluent and the most miserable of the human race are to be found in countries that are called the most civilized”.

Paine acknowledged from Philadelphia that Indian tribes living only hundreds of miles away, lacked the advantages of the arts and sciences and manufacturing, but they lived in a society where personal poverty was unknown and the natural rights of man were actively promoted. In that sense, Paine claimed, the American Indian should serve as a model for how to eradicate poverty and bring natural rights back into civilized life.

Junger says, “Subsistence level hunters aren’t necessarily more moral than other people; they just can’t get away with selfish behavior because they live in small groups where almost everything is open to scrutiny.”

Junger quotes Crevecoeur who “seemed to have understood that the intensely communal nature of an Indian tribe held an appeal that the material benefits of Western civilization couldn’t necessarily compete with.”

In effect, modern society does not create a surplus of leisure time for networking and strengthening relationships. Junger says, “It creates exactly the opposite: a desperate cycle of work, financial obligation, and more work. Self-determination theory holds that human beings need three things in order to be content: they need to feel competent at what they do; they need to feel authentic in their lives; and they need to feel connected to others. These values are considered “intrinsic” to human happiness and far outweigh “extrinsic” values such as beauty, money, and status.”

And later, “Adversity often leads people to depend more on one another, and that closeness can produce a kind of nostalgia for the hard times that even civilians are susceptible to.

What people miss presumably isn’t danger or loss but the unity that these things often engender. There are obvious stresses on a person in a group, but there may be even greater stresses on a person in isolation, so during disasters there is a net gain in well-being. Most primates, including humans, are intensely social, and there are very few instances of lone primates surviving in the wild.”

As Thomas Paine labored to articulate his goals for a free society, he could have easily taken his inspiration from earthquake survivors or soldiers on the battlefield instead of from the American Indians. Communities that have been devastated by natural or man-made disasters almost never lapse into chaos and disorder; if anything, they become more just, more egalitarian, and more deliberately fair to individuals. The kinds of community-oriented behaviors that typically occur after a natural disaster are exactly the virtues that Paine was hoping to promote in his revolutionary tract.

Junger notes, “What catastrophes seem to do—sometimes in the span of a few minutes—is turn back the clock on 10,000 years of social evolution. Self-interest gets subsumed into group interest because there is no survival outside of group survival, and that creates a bond that people sorely miss.”

We need solidarity in our community, a sense of belonging to society because it is at the core of what it means to be human. That solidarity is what delivered us to this extraordinary moment in our history.

“It may also be the only thing that allows us to survive it,” Sebastian Junger finalizes in Tribe.

—Lauren Florence, MD

Field Trip

Hi Ho Dinosaur lovers. Our Cleveland-Lloyd excursion on Saturday, September 17, is fast approaching. We have 32 seats remaining! Please remember to let Bob Mayhew (801-582-3160)-home (801-419-1439)-cell know if you want us to provide lunch @ $42.00/seat or bring your own at $30.00/seat. HoU will provide water and soda and coolers for food. We will meet at the First Unitarian Church at 7:30 AM; the bus will leave at 8:00 am. You may pay at that time.

I expect the bus trip to take approximately three hours to the Quarry where we will take a tour, eat lunch and mill about the grounds or hike the area. I am not sure what the weather will be but expect it to be sunny and hot so be sure to wear appropriate clothing, sun-screen, umbrella, good walking shoes/boots, binoculars and anything else you require for personal comfort. Depending on time remaining we may elect to visit/tour the Museum in Price

There are plenty of seats remaining on the bus so if you know someone who may interested in joining us please encourage them to give me a call. The more the merrier!

State Paleontologist, Dr. James Kinkade will be with us on the bus so the trip down and back will be loaded with opportunities to get some graduate level information on the fossils of Utah and surrounding areas from a very enthusiastic and knowledgeable source.

We would really like to have at least 17 more participants (34 total) to hit our breakeven point, however a total of 49 would be awesome! So please canvas the people you know who may be interested in this sort of outing and have them get in touch with me or any HoU Board Member.

Join us for a fun day in a day of the local life during the Jurrasic period where Allosaurus fragilis hunted Camarasaur, Diplodocus and Stegosaurs.

—Bob Mayhew

President’s Report

At our June meeting we watched a documentary about the magician and bullshit debunker James Randy, aka The Amazing Randy. As I mentioned last month, I have met him a couple of times at various “annual conferences” held by the AHA and the CFI. He was quite engaging and loved talking about the faith healers he had “outed” and he would talk about how he could fool a class room full of people by giving them all a written horoscope then asking them if they thought he picked the right one for them. Then, after a majority of them raised their hands he informed them that they all had the same horoscope. He is amazing that way. Exceedingly friendly, you always know you’re in the presence of a well-practiced showman.

But the documentary also showed a part of his personal life he was willing to let us see. He was, late in his life coming out as a gay man, but also dealing with the possible imprisonment and or deportation of his companion and life partner whom he had been with for many years. Happily, it all ended well.

Recently, while I was watching the tube for a while, an ad came on for Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton Chia pets. It was a nice moment of comic relief as I giggled a bit about the absurd nature of this campaign season. But, in this rather strange election cycle I thought, “why not.” So I think I’ll go looking for a couple “pets” and get them growing. Then wait and see what they look like on Election Day.

I suppose every election season has its “strangeness,” with mud-slinging and character assassinations. But I think this one is going to be rather unique in the amount of trash talk. The likely candidates have plenty of “baggage” that will be gone through with zeal by their opponents. While at the same time important issues concerning this country and the world will get canned responses or little discussion at all. That’s why I have expressed a dislike for, or at least some weariness for, the political process. But I’ll still be a part of it and I never miss voting. Regardless of who you vote for, please vote, a big turnout is always a good thing. Staying involved in a state so “one sided” can be discouraging, but involvement is a must for me.

As a non-profit organization we are restricted from endorsing candidates or getting directly involved in politics. And I have no desire to use the chapter that way. But it would be nice if some of the religious non-profits would do the same. It’s obvious if you follow the news around the country that many “churches” of various denominations more or less ignore these restrictions or find ways to get around them. Plus there is little done by authorities to punish violations of the statutes.

This month our guest speaker will speak to about what has been going on with the Salt Lake Tribune. Having been recently purchased by a huntsman family, it will be interesting to hear about what’s happening and what changes may be in the works. So I hope you will join us for an informative evening. I’ll bring the refreshments.

—Robert Lane
President, HoU

 

June 2016

Posted on | by Wayne Wilson

LGBTQ Panel Discussion

At our General Meeting on May 12, we were pleased to welcome panelists Leah Farrell, Brian Rogers, Richard Starley, and Emily VanDyke, representing the ACLU of Utah, the Utah AIDS Foundation, SAGE Utah, and the Mama Dragons, respectively. Our LGBTQ and Allies Panel addressed current issues facing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Questioning Utahans. They enlightened us on current events, lawsuits, and programs offering support for LGBTQ elders; people living with AIDS and vulnerable populations in need of comprehensive testing and treatment; protecting LGBTQ Utahans from discrimination in housing and employment; and fierce (mostly Mormon and ex-Mormon) mamas protecting and speaking up for their LGBTQ youth in Utah and across the country. Thanks to our wonderful panelists for their time and expertise!

–Elaine Stehel

President’s Report

I hesitate to start my message with bad news, but I must report that my efforts to have our Humanist of Utah kiosk at the pride festival failed. Too many problems with the registration process and my unwillingness to spend enough time working them out ended with us not having a booth at the festival. I apologize for that; I could have gotten help but didn’t.

Moving on, I think we should do as board member Elaine Stehel suggested and look into participating in the 9th and 9th Street Fair and other opportunities to get our message out into the general public more. The Street Fair was one of the first times we had a booth. It was a learning experience. We had a rather poor canopy and a large umbrella. It rained a fair amount and that made it clear that if you are going to be serious about having a booth, you need a good canopy and other items. With the AHA chapter grant we received a couple of years ago we did just that and purchased a canopy and other equipment. So we have the booth with tables and chairs and coolers and literature and merchandise to sell and we should put it all to use when we can. As a small group we have limited resources for promoting humanism, having a booth at community events are opportunities to do that promoting.

Again moving on, our general meeting this month will be a movie night. We’ll be showing An Honest Liar about “the Amazing Randy.” I met him a couple of times at humanist conferences. He is quite interesting to talk to with his tales of exposing faith healers. But this film is more about his personal life and struggles. I hope you will come and join us. We’ll have lots of junky movie treats and my salty buttery popcorn.

I don’t have a lot else to say this month and I’m sick of the mention of Donald Trump and that I get several emails a day from Hillary. Politics are bought and paid for and the blowhards are so tiresome and hard to take.

One thing that I have been thinking about lately is that the notion that being retired means being less busy is bogus. I guess for some it may be, but for the present I seem to be as busy as ever. I’m going to have to take more breaks…for days at a time.

Hope to see you soon.

—Robert Lane
President, HoU

 

May 2016

Posted on | by Wayne Wilson

Charles Lynn Frost

Charles Lynn Frost led our April monthly lecture, made it interactive with us, and focused on the many cultural transformations in which we are currently involved. He said that polarization is growing, creating large discrepancies between “them” and “us.”

Dr. Frost is a realist and asks himself what is possible and what is hopeless. His first case in point is, “Will the governor always be a Republican? If you remember, ‘twas not always thus. Growing up we had Cal Rampton. We can get there again.”

But currently, money is voice as defined by Citizen’s United ruling. We are surrendering political control to the large corporations. Republicans are saying their party is in shambles and has to be transformed. Trump has exploited the backward turning of the Republican Party.

Our democracy has morphed into a corporatocracy. In our medical community, St. Mark’s Hospital was run as a non-profit by the episcopal fathers and now is run by the largest hospital chain in the country and thus the world. Big Pharma has taken over the medicines and their distribution. There are basically four big companies from which we get our meds.

But alternatively, in health care, we are focusing more on wellness instead of illness, more people are growing food and/or finding out where their food is grown, slowing their purchase of packaged foods, and are exercising more.

There is also, currently, a transformational shift in religion. Millennials are leaving organized religion. This transformation is putting people into a position where they aren’t clear about how they decide what they should do and believe. There are questions such as “Who has what kind of rights? Are civil rights and human rights the same thing?”

Next Dr. Frost asked us “What do you fear?” Some answered, “Growing too old to have the ability to care for myself.” Boomers are of a quantity to overwhelm the system. Where are we going to put all the people? How will we feed them and educate them? What about their water needs? Although we are building many new senior living units, we are not building enough to house everyone.

At 60, Dr. Frost was surprised that he was still here. Most of his family are gone, and yet, here he is. Life expectancy brings up an inter- generational tension. Our children think the boomers act unbelievably entitled. And yet we look at them and think they are more entitled than any generation we have ever seen.

When Dr. Frost brought up racism, the thought was, “Isn’t that kind of over?” But really, racism seems to be more present than it used to be. By 2050, white people will be in a minority. Yet another thing to fear.

All around us there is a transformational change in negotiation and compromise. People are so polarized that no one can give an inch in any conflict. Each side is exclusionist in terms of being influenced by any other group’s ideas. We are seeing a rise of fear, shame, guilt, judgement and ignorance.

Considering sexism. Patriarchal organizations are on their way out and are terrified.

Finally, Dr. Frost asked us to ask ourselves, “How will I get involved? What can I do every day to make some change which will improve the world? What can I do that is good and yet do it with no expectations?”

He was adamant that this is essential. We need to see more of Charles Lynn Frost. Thank you, sir.

—Lauren Florence, MD

 

Call Me Reasonable

Test this for yourself. Ask a friend or foe, ask those standing next to you in line if they think of themselves as reasonable.

What a strange question. Of course I do, you do. And how often do we question our reasons, or even compare them from one day to the next? Our explanations on the day we have received bad news from that first flush of love or getting a check in the mail? Wouldn’t life be too miserable if we weren’t convinced of our own reasonableness?

This is happy hunting ground for research. Those who study what we say like to remind us that our ideas are transient, unstable, malleable and change from time to time, with situation. Philosophers have organized descriptions of that is logical and rhetoricians have done the same for what is a reasonable statement or defense of a statement—what is a reasonable.

One whole area of study asks us to explain what we are seeing and why. They give us one of their carefully faked photos or biographies and then ask us to make a judgement before we explain ourselves. We have no trouble coming up with a fair sounding explanation. And in general, it varies depending on who we think we are talking about.

Columbia University professor Charles Tilly’s book, Why, examines what we consider appropriate reasons for statements purporting to be factual, or truthful. Tilly, like others, knows that we don’t always explain ourselves in the same way. We have probably given a child one reason not to interrupt us. And that’s not the same reason we would give a best friend calling for sympathy, or a boss calling for rewrite, or a judge who sees us as one in a lineup of holders of traffic citations.

Tilly’s first category is one he calls conventions, a sort of standard response that we expect to be accepted without troublesome doubts or questions. This is the Donald Trump level of response, and handily functions as an assertion of what is true or likely, at the same time that it is such an attractive idea that listeners don’t need any proof, elaboration, evidence. Trump has followers who not only like what he says, they have their own conventional explanation for why they like it. “He tells it like it is.” Look at the faces of those who say this: so pleased to say no more!

Conventions are the penny farthing of discourse, the Benjamin Franklin of explanations, familiar to native English speakers. There’s a little jolt of happiness in knowing what a presidential candidate is getting at when he says he will always ’put America first. We’ve heard that before, and doesn’t it sound good?

As I write this, Trump explains Hillary Clinton’s success as ‘playing the woman card.’ Working women know what deck this is from, but do angry, frustrated mobs ask? And his classic promise is to ‘Make America Great Again,’ without specifying when we were great or why. Before we had too many regulations, I guess. The phrase rolls off the tongue, though. You can probably think of others. Early bird gets the worm, right? The problem with government is too many chiefs, not enough Indians. Also too many lower level employees doing nada. Language meant to merely feel good is part of liberal religious music. An example, for children: “Each of us is a flower, growing in the garden. Each of us is a flower, we need the sun and rain. Wind, bring the gentle rain; earth, dig my roots down deep.”

I’m sure you can see some problems, here. Some flowers don’t get a garden, or deep roots, or the rain at the right time. Some of us might be picked off by a nibbling sheep. Plus, children don’t stick where you plant them. But the point is to make the singer/audience feel good. Conventional expressions are an invaluable tool for those with authority, those who do not wish to be challenged. One child comes to tell Mama how his brother took his truck and Mama stops him. “Don’t be a tattle tale.” That is a cheap solution that does not hold up, or resolve any underlying problem (some of you had younger siblings) but it can work in the short run.

#1 Conventions aren’t always a mistake. Between parties with parity (workmates, partners, siblings, those with history and common understandings) favorite conventional responses can relieve stress, remind us of our bonds. “Like gas, bad moments will pass,” for instance.

#2 Stronger reasons for our choices are stories. What happened, here, a parent asks two quarreling teens, or a student explains why homework has not been completed. These are a mainstay of politicians speak to large audiences or we provide an explanation to a relative stranger. Stories can be manipulated. They include some details, edit others, even as they appeal to our narrative loving brains. Stories have great flexibility, can be meekly told to win sympathy, or insistent, emphatic, demanding. They work when an agreed upon moderator presides. This is a core of counseling and ‘restorative justice,’ which does not depend upon simply deciding who is right and who is wrong.

#3 Right versus wrong are part of the next category, that of codes, rules. Who would send the IRS a sad story of why taxes cannot be paid on deadline? Better to fill out the form first. Codes are impersonal ways of settling outcomes. All right, each little person who finds her shoes and puts on her coat will get a balloon. Some codes and purely social, used as class markers or the willingness to respect others: Say please. Say thank you. Excuse me, Pardon me. There’s also a whiff of social position, here. The boss probably leaves your cubicle when done talking, without a ‘bye your leave.’ And spouses of 30 years may not say, “Pass the butter, please.” Some codes are more fair than others.

#4 Logical, even technical descriptions, summaries of all available facts are expected in professional reports. They take skill in gathering all relevant data, weighing it by comparative importance. Then modifying language to suit the listener. This is often the only explanation considered ‘reasonable’ or most reasonable. But as many know, sounding carefully logical may not satisfy.

—Secular Idaho Newsletter, May 2016
Jeanette Ross
In honor of the Day of Reason, May 5 2016

President’s Report

It is getting to be a busy time of year and as usual I’ve been putting things off a bit, so now I have to get with it. The Utah Pride Festival is coming up on June 3rd-5th and we will have our Humanist of Utah kiosk there for our third year. I need to round up our gear, which use to be a challenge to get all of it in a Subaru. But now that I have a full sized van, that is not a problem anymore. While it is a fair amount of work, it is always an enriching experience and a good way to help make our organization known to a lot of good people. It will be fun. I hope some of you will join the crowd and stop by our booth.

Last year we were celebrating the SCOTUS decision about Gay marriage. Happy as we were, we knew the battle wasn’t over as we now witness the ugly laws being written in some states. Nothing but mean, nasty and ugly laws

Our May general meeting will feature a forum of speakers speaking on subjects that are at the heart of what the Pride Festival is all about. You know like universal human rights.

I like forums where we can engage one another about current issues and even long standing issues. Come and join us, I’ll bring the refreshments. I repeat myself quite often when I say that I enjoy discussions with like-minded friends.

Keep an eye on our schedule, we will be having a movie night this summer and our discussion group will continue. We will have our BBQ in August. Also do not forget to RSVP to go to the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur quarry this fall. This day trip to the quarry will be fun and informative.

I do not have much else to say and I know you’re tired of me writing about gardening so I won’t say much about having peas and radishes and lettuce and spinach and…well never mind. See you soon I hope.

—Robert Lane
President, HoU

 

April 2016

Posted on | by Wayne Wilson

How Librarians Are Like Humanists

Lindsay Roylance Anderson, who spoke to us in March, is a librarian in the Murray Library system. She believes that Humanists and Librarians are natural allies. Librarians are interested in the same moral principles that the Humanists are and a Librarian’s job is liberal by nature.

The library provides a variety of community information, including access to multiple scientific journals, especially the peer reviewed ones which use the scientific method as platform for opinion. Relying on science-based evidence maintains our intellectual honesty.

Libraries also present challenging books to maintain intellectual freedom. For instance, And Tango Makes Three is a true story about two male penguins who put a rock in their nest in the zoo. The zookeepers saw this and placed an extra extra egg in that nest. They had an extra egg because penguins usually lay two eggs but raise one chick. The penguins hatched the egg and raised the chick. As heartwarming as the story is, it was controversial that the library had it on the shelves. And yet, the library kept it there.

Ms. Anderson, who runs the teen reading group, wants to make reading fun the way Bill Nye, the science guy, makes science fun. She wants to get children excited about reading early. Getting attached to reading when young is easier and stays with one longer.

A library, with it’s story time events, can help with early literacy skills which are:

  1. Print Motivation: Achieving a positive association with books and the written word.
  2. Print Awareness: Understanding that words on a page represent spoken language.
  3. Phonological Awareness: Ability to identify and manipulate units of oral language (like rhymes and that parts of words can be used in other words).
  4. Letter Knowledge: Recognize and know sounds.
  5. Vocabulary: Children who are read to have access to a larger number of words.
  6. Narrative Skills: Ability to tell your own story.

A Library also gives juveniles a place to go in the afternoon and evening where they can talk to an adult who likes them. Most delinquent behavior occurs between 3:00 and 7:00 PM.

At the turn of the 19th century, Anne Carroll Moore provided a place for the street children of NY to come to the library and read. Prior to this anyone under 14 years old could not come into the library.

Summer reading programs help kids maintain the1.5 levels of reading skills they can lose if they do not read over the summer break.

The Murray Library is now partnering with the Utah Food Bank to feed children at the library. Jennifer Fay started this program at the Kearns Library.

Ms. Anderson noted that there is a connection between jail and reading. 85% of all juveniles who interface with the juvenile court system are functionally illiterate. More than 60% of inmates in US prisons are functionally illiterate. Penal institution records show that only16% of inmates reoffend if they get literacy help but 70% reoffend if they don’t get help when they are functionally illiterate.

We All Need Friends. Your local library is no exception. You can help your library by:

  1. Getting a library card and using it. Ms. Anderson decides what books to buy by what is being checked out.
  2. Telling the library staff how you think the library can improve.
  3. Voting yes on library funding questions. The funding problem is ever present. If a library asks for money, that means it is desperate. The Murray Library system is particularly vulnerable as it is independent of both Salt Lake City and County funding streams.
  4. Donating books to the library.

—Lauren Florence, MD

Chapter Happenings

A small but energetic group of five Humanists of Utah gathered at Kafeneio Coffeehouse on Easter Sunday, March 27th for a lively discussion about humanist philosophy. We covered the progression of humanism as an ethical worldview from before Greek and Roman times through the current century in the West, and even dabbled in some Eastern ideas of secularism from predominantly Hindu cultures.

April Discussion Group Announcement

Please join us on Sunday, April 24th at Kafeneio Coffeehouse (258 W 3300 S) at 1:30 p.m. for our next monthly discussion group – this month’s topic will be Humanist Politics. Bring your thoughts and questions about what causes humanists care about politically and join us for a rational, reason-based dialogue about political ideologies the world over, and how humanism influences political movements.

May 12th Panel Discussion

For our Second Thursday monthly meeting in May, we’ve invited various local organizations to share perspectives on their work with and on behalf of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals and communities in Utah. Join us for a panel discussion and question and answer session the month before our local Salt Lake City Pride Festival, to learn how you can become more involved in the just cause of equality for all! Panel discussion will begin at 7:00 sharp in Eliot Hall at the First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake City (569 S 1300 E). Come early for the best seats, and stay afterward for refreshments and conversation!

—Elaine Stehl
elaine@humanistsofutah.org.

President’s Report

More Feds, Not Less

Of course there are areas where I think the federal government is too large or intrusive. But when it comes to federal lands, be they parks, monuments, wilderness areas, waterways, beaches, national forests or BLM lands, I say more government oversight and control not less. Plus, I think more federal money should be allocated to maintain them properly, rather than the usual inadequate funding that comes from the U.S. Congress. And while our Government hating politicians and angry citizens want to disarm BLM and other federal employees, I say the opposite. In the light of “Bundy Clan” type of armed stand-offs and armed takeovers of federal lands and facilities, I feel the U.S. government should make sure that our agencies can protect themselves and the lands in a fashion that can deter those who would take up arms and force federal employees off federal property, and threaten violence if they don’t get what they want. Plus, I hope that the penalties for these actions are heavy, which I think they are from what I have read.

As we discuss these issues of federal lands, our reaction or at least my reaction to their claims of ownership or right to use these lands free is that “THESE LANDS BELONG TO ALL AMERICANS!” To say this is becoming somewhat hackneyed, but it is the biggest truth, if you will, that they won’t face.

In the end I personally consider them traitors not patriots as they claim to be. And, I would ask them, “patriots of what?”

I am a citizen of the United States of America, not Utah or any other state. I am a resident of Utah, but without the approval of any Utah official I can change residence to any other state I choose. I am a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, not the Utah Air Force. When I served, I wasn’t just serving Utah, I was serving the entire nation. Well…enough of that.

I want to suggest we have a discussion or two or even a forum about a subject that has come up a number of times in the years I have been a member of Humanists of Utah. The subject is more or less civility. That and the words we use when, for instance, we are discussing issues with individuals with differing views, assertions, and demands. When do we compromise, confront, or even agree? I think it is always a subject worth discussing now and then.

Civil dialogue is always preferable, but we shouldn’t be afraid to say that the battle for say universal human rights is a battle, a fight against those who would deny them to certain “groups” of people. Plus, I feel that the denier of universal rights deserve the denigration they receive.

I’ve always enjoyed discussion groups and now that our HoU discussion group is back I hope you will join us.

 

—Robert Lane

President, HoU

DIS-respecting Religious Nonsense

By Susan Jacoby

(Excerpted from The Age of American Unreason)

Misguided objectivity, particularly with regard to religion, ignores the willed ignorance that is one of the defining characteristics of fundamentalism. One of the most powerful taboos in American life concerns speaking ill of anyone else’s faith – an injunction rooted in confusion over the difference between freedom of religion and granting religion immunity from the critical scrutiny applied to other social institutions. Both the Constitution and the pragmatic realities of living in a pluralistic society enjoin us to respect our fellow citizens’ right to believe whatever they want– as long as their belief, in Thomas Jefferson’s phrase, “neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg”. But many Americans have misinterpreted this sensible laissez faire principle to mean that respect must be accorded the beliefs themselves. This mindless tolerance, which places observable scientific facts, subject to proof, on the same level as unprovable supernatural fantasy, has played a major role in the resurgence of both anti-intellectualism and antirationalism. Millions of Americans are perfectly free, under the Constitution, to believe that the Lord of Hosts is coming one day to murder millions of others who do not consider him the Messiah, but the rest of the public ought to exercise its freedom to identify such beliefs as dangerous fallacies that really do pick pockets and break legs.

Reprinted from PIQUE

Newsletter of the Secular Humanist Society
of New York, April 2016

 

March 2016

Posted on | by Wayne Wilson

Darwin Day

Our 9th annual Darwin Day speaker was Dr. Alan R. Rogers, professor of Biology and Anthropology at the University of Utah. He addressed us on “The Genetic Admixture between Archaic and Modern Humans”

With our increasing ease of examining gene structure, we are starting to realize how very closely we are related to other hominids. For about six years we have known without question that archaic hominids and Neanderthals share genes with us.

Dr. Rogers described the nature of the evidence that supports this view. To start the investigation, comparing DNA from bones and teeth of ancient hominids with DNA from modern humans allows us to estimate the genetic mixing (admixture) using shared alleles (any of several forms of a gene which are found at the same place on a chromosome).

DNA of modern Eurasians and Neanderthals appears to be 1.5-2.1% identical. This same percentage holds true for modern people of East Asia and Papua New Guinea, but not Africa. Thus, gene mixing must have occurred after modern hominids left Africa but before they expanded throughout the world.

The technique of examining nucleotide site patterns allows us to differentiate between derived and ancestral alleles. The derived alleles are new and shared with Europeans and Africans. There are about 100,000 of these. The ancestral alleles are shared with ancients (notably Neanderthals and chimps). There are about 300,000 of these.

Matching derived and ancestral alleles to a population tree allows us to trace genes back in time to see where common ancestors diverged and where the mutations occurred that caused those separations and thus, the diverging populations.

In a cave in the Altai Mountains of Siberia which has been occupied on and off for 125,000 years, varying types of hominid DNA has been found. The cave is named Denisovan after the last occupant, Denis, a hermit in the 1700’s. A finger bone from this cave of a Denisovan woman called “X-woman” shows derived alleles most common in Australia, New Guinea and Oceania.

A derived allele (mutation) associated with lung physiology that allows Tibetans to live successfully at high altitude (and thus carry Sir Edmund Hillary to the top of Everest without using oxygen) is clearly from the Denisovan genome.

We have inherited our innate immune system from the Denisovans. It is old and used to defend against things we have had to fight for hundreds of thousands of years. (T-killer cell systems).

Further work delineating how much DNA modern humans share with Neanderthals is done with exclusively modern DNA. The longer a gene locus exists; the more time it has had for recombination mutations to occur. As generations pass, Neanderthal DNA gets broken up and recombined with non-Neanderthal DNA. The farther back in time a Neanderthal gene was present in our DNA, the shorter the Neanderthal nucleotide segment will be when examined. The research with modern genes focuses on long segments of chromosomes assessing the nucleotide recombinations.

But some Neanderthal DNA didn’t help them to survive and so was lost. Then, selection of beneficial genes became less effective because the population size was small. There weren’t enough Neanderthals to be able to shed the deleterious gene mutations and keep the benign or positive mutations. The health of a population depends upon getting rid of deleterious mutations. Neanderthals were on their way out when Homo sapiens arrived 20,000 years ago. We didn’t eradicate them.

However, many of the deleterious genes we inherited from them are still present in our population today. A predisposition for depression may be from Neanderthals, as is the propensity for obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, some skin textures, and certain kinds of heart disease.

This is not to say that new mutations are not occurring today. Solar rays, gamma rays, chemicals and other environmental effects break DNA. New non-infectious diseases are occurring, which shows that new mutations are currently arising. Cystic fibrosis is caused by a change somewhere in an enormous gene leading to thicker pulmonary secretions.

In the ensuing discussion all sorts of questions were entertained such as: How does one explain left handedness, which seems to have no evolutionary advantage? Dr. Rogers suggested that left handedness persists because the rare left handed person has the advantage of novelty in not being like all the other combatants. The “gene” for left-handedness creates a successful defense and thus persists.

Dr. Rogers fielded all questions sympathetically and with expertise; well-spoken and brilliant is our judgement. We thank him for his time and hope to hear from him again.

Dr. Rogers’ new book, The Evidence for Evolution (University of Chicago Press, 2011), demolishes the ideas of Creationists by using evidence and logic, rather than emotionalism and rhetoric. It is a perfect way to celebrate Charles Darwin.

—Lauren Florence, MD

Ideology and Theology

One of the biggest changes in politics in my lifetime is that the delusional is no longer marginal; it has come in from the fringe, to sit in the seat of power in the Oval Office and in Congress. For the first time in our history, ideology and theology hold a monopoly of power in Washington. Theology asserts propositions that cannot be proven true; ideologues hold stoutly to a world view despite being contradicted by what is generally accepted as reality. When ideology and theology couple, their offspring are not always bad but they are always blind. And there is the danger: voters and politicians alike, oblivious of the facts.

—Bill Moyers

 

Field Trip!

In conjunction with our 10th Annual Darwin Day Celebration in February 2017, Humanists of Utah will be staging a field trip to the Cleveland Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry on Saturday September 17, 2016. This is intended to foster interest in our February Celebration. Utah State Paleontologist Dr. James Kirkland will escort us on our approximately 8-9 hour bus trip 30 miles south of Price, Utah and back. If there is enough interest will may stop at the CEU Museum in Price, as well. Along the way Dr. Kirkland will tell us about the fantastic array of world class fossil beds that exist in Utah. He will also share some notes on the annual meeting of the Society of Paleontologists being held in the Grand Hotel in Salt Lake City this year. We have tentatively set the cost at $30.00 per person although there will be scholarships available. Lunch/snack options are still being discussed, we will also have suggestions on what to wear. This is a full size bus, not a van and will carry 50 persons.

Questions or RSVP contact Bob Mayhew at (801) 582-3160 or bj@humanistsofutah.org.

Discussion Group

On Sunday, February 28th from 1:30 – 3:00 in the afternoon, eight happy humanists gathered at Mestizo Coffeehouse in downtown Salt Lake City to discuss Humanist Ethics. It was a lively and engaging discussion, and we hope these monthly Sunday afternoon gatherings will continue to draw a diverse crowd from around the valley to discuss topics related to humanism and humanist philosophy for years to come!

To offer a recap for those unable to attend, Minister Elaine Stehel wrote down the many great answers participants gave to the following question: “What sources give you inspiration as you strive to make ethical decisions and lead an ethical life as a humanist?”

Science; computers; intelligence; love; respect; microscope set; curiosity; geomorphology; awe; wonder; earth; the universe; mystery; a goal to minimize harm; awareness of the consequences of our actions; guilt; a desire to do good to others and to see good in the world; the golden rule; honesty; and integrity.

Thank you to all those who were able to attend and we hope to see many more of you on the fourth Sunday of March, the 27th! If you would be more likely to attend if we held the discussions at a different coffee shop each month, please let Elaine know which locations would be most convenient to you and your family.

—Elaine Stehl
elaine@humanistsofutah.org.

President’s Report

Happy March everyone! It is a little early to get too excited about spring, but it’s hard not to when it is so pleasant outside. However, even though it is pleasant out, it is not really “good weather,” because what we really need is much more moisture. But whether winter returns or not, I will be planting peas and other hardy crops soon. Also in that light I will continue to advocate for growing local and buying local where possible and for us meat eaters, we should buy local that is grass fed and treated humanely. I am finding this easier to do at the various weekend markets around the valley.

Anyway, in this month’s report, I have just a little rambling to do, as there are several items I want to touch on.

First I want to thank everyone who came to our Darwin Day celebration, I had a good time and I hope you did also. I also want to thank all those who helped make it happen, Art King for arranging for our speaker, Bob Mayhew for set up and take down, my nephew Chris Lane for set up and take down and Elaine Stehel for handling the merchandise and literature and helping promote the event.

As Elaine and I have been mentioning we are starting to plan the Tenth Annual Darwin Day with Humanists of Utah already. Our Darwin Day events have been smaller in size the last few years and we mean to change that by starting early and planning big. We are planning to have it at the University of Utah again as we did for the first several events. We plan to spread it out a little, with an afternoon and evening of things to do (as we did the first few years). This will all be possible if we get enough volunteers.

While I am mentioning volunteers I need to emphasize that having enough volunteers will determine how many other projects we can sponsor. We will have a kiosk at the Pride festival again this year and I will be there for that, but I will need help. There are also some street fairs in the summer that would be a good way to make ourselves Humanists of Utah) better known to the public. But in the last few years we had no volunteers, so no street fairs. I hope we can change that.

As I ramble I almost forgot that we had our first discussion group in quite a while. It was enjoyable to sit and talk again. Our old discussion group use to be one of my favorite things to do and I am glad it is back. This has been a project that Elaine has undertaken and I thank her for reviving it.

One more thing, you will see an announcement in the newsletter about our planned bus trip to the Cleveland-Lloyd Quarry in September. Amy and I have already RSVP’d and the chapter has reserved the bus so I hope you will RSVP and come along.

Finally, I will not be able to attend March’s meeting, as I will be heading to St. George for a memorial service on that day. But Elaine will pick up some of my cookies, so enjoy and I will see you soon.

—Robert Lane
President, HoU