Baltimore Bridge Collapse Spawns Conspiracies
March 28, 2024


The Francis Scott Key Bridge, a major bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, collapsed after being hit by a freighter about 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday. Traffic across the bridge had been halted just moments before due to a distress call, though there was a construction crew working on it at the time. At least eight workers fell …

“The Universe Does Not Keep Score” – CSI’s Open Letter, Policing Speech, and Standing Makes a Comeback   
March 27, 2024


Welcome to the Morning Heresy, CFI’s regular roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. A recent report from the American Academy of Pediatrics published in the journal Pediatrics implied—despite a lack of evidence to support the idea—that genetically engineered foods (or “GMOs”) were “contaminated” and thus should be avoided. A new open letter …

“Adding Kerosene to the Bonfires” – The Latest Free Inquiry, #NSAD, and Social Media Misinfo    
March 25, 2024


Welcome to the Morning Heresy, CFI’s regular roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. It may not arrive on newsstands for a few more days, but the April/May issue of Free Inquiry is now available to read online. The cover story by Sam Harris, which is adapted from his podcast, addresses the moral …

“That Is Not True” – The Psychology of Misinformation, Virtual Indoctrination, and the Ten Commandments      
March 22, 2024


Welcome to the Morning Heresy, CFI’s roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. Hot on the heels of last night’s Skeptical Inquirer Presents “season premiere,” registration is now open for two more free livestream events. Next Thursday, March 28, Hope College social psychologist David Myers will discuss “The Psychology of Misinformation and Its …

“Kate Conspiracies” – A Backdoor for Intelligent Design, New Quackwatch, and the Least Religious Cities      
March 20, 2024


Welcome to your midweek Morning Heresy, CFI’s thrice-weekly roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. Science has a feature on West Virginia’s “intelligent design” bill that includes quotes from CSI Fellows Kenneth Miller and Glenn Branch. Branch says West Virginia teachers already can discuss scientific theories of how life evolved and that the …

“Losing Our Kids to a Satanic Cult” – Kenny Biddle’s Latest, Science Clash Semifinals, and Religion in Schools      
March 18, 2024


Ahoy-hoy and welcome to the Morning Heresy, CFI’s thrice-weekly roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. Head over to Skeptical Inquirer and check out Kenny Biddle’s latest “Ghost in the Machine” video. In it, Biddle goes back to 1988 “to take a closer look at alleged ‘demonic activity’ courtesy of Ed Warren, the …

“Veto All Three Bills” – A Call to Action in West Virginia, Polio Paul, and the Immigration Boogeyman
March 15, 2024


Happy Friday to one and all! It’s time again for the Morning Heresy, CFI’s roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. CFI’s Office of Public Policy (OPP) has issued a new Action Alert asking West Virginia residents to contact Governor Jim Justice urging vetoes of three separate bills: SB 280 (an “intelligent design” …

Immigrants: The Perpetual Boogeymen
March 14, 2024


Last week, in response to Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, Katie Britt, a junior Republican senator from Alabama, offered a wide-ranging broadside. In the performance, widely panned as by turns robotic, disingenuous, and histrionic, Britt related an anecdote about a Mexican woman who as a teenager was trafficked for sex by cartels before …

“Increasingly Radicalised” – Urban Design Conspiracies, the Chicago Way, and a $62M GOT(F)V Drive     
March 13, 2024


Welcome to the Morning Heresy, CFI’s thrice-weekly roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. Wendy Grossman’s latest “Letter to America” for Skeptical Inquirer describes a British MP’s recent effort to stoke conspiratorial fears around the concept of the “fifteen-minute city.” The idea of the fifteen-minute city ought to be uncontroversial. Essentially, it means …

“Money and Power” – Skeptical Inquirer Presents, a Blasphemy Death Sentence, and Tartar(ian) Sauce    
March 11, 2024


Welcome to the Morning Heresy, CFI’s thrice-weekly roundup of news and headlines for the reality-based community. Skeptical Inquirer Presents returns with a new series of free online events on Thursday, March 21 with special guest Brian Dunning. He’ll talk with guest host Kenny Biddle about his latest documentary, The UFO Movie THEY Don’t Want You …