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Center for Inquiry-L.A.
4773 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 666-9797
info[at]cfiwest.org



Featured Event

Sunday, February 12
Darwin Day Celebration
with Margaret Wertheim

Upcoming Events

Thursday, January 19
Orange County Skeptics Supper Club

Saturday, January 21
Independent Investigations Group

Saturday, January 21
Spanish-Speaking Atheists

Saturday, January 14
Freethinkers Toastmasters

Wednesday, January 25
Cafe Inquiry

Friday, January 27
West Los Angeles Fourth Friday

Saturday, January 28
Freethinkers Toastmasters

Wednesday, February 8
Skeptics' Book Club

Friday, February 10
Drinking Skeptically

Tuesday Evenings
Secular Organizations for Sobriety


More...




  
 


Past Lectures at CFI-West
June 2006 - May 2007

Nathan Bupp, Up From Atheism: Humanism and the War of Ideas
 Independent Investigations Group, $50,000 Paranormal Challenge
Amanda Roraback, The Theft of Islam
Jonathan Kirsch and R. Joseph Hoffmann, How Monotheism Imperils Western Civilization
James Underdown, An Unusual Look at the Ten Commandments
Andrew Ingersoll, Global Warming and Running Out of Oil in the 21st Century
Clash of the Titans II - Does God Exist? Tabash-Gastrich Debate
David Koepsell, They Satirized my Prophet, Those Bastards! Blasphemy in South Park
 Darwin Day Celebration 2007
Dr. Marty Klein, America's War on Sex
The Religious Roots of Anti-Semitism
R. Joseph Hoffmann, The Birth of the Messiah Legend
Ronald Hamburger, Conspiracy or Science: Why Did the Towers Fall?
Tom Flynn, Is There Really a War on Christmas?
Jonathan Kirsch, A History of the End of the World
 Monique El-Faizy, God and Country: How Evangelicals Have Become Mainstream
Paul Kurtz, Planetary Humanism: A New Paradigm
Craig Stanford, Upright: Great Apes and Human Origins
 Trey Stokes, Alien Autopsy: Case Closed!
 The Ethics of Dropping the Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
 Ben Alba, How Steve Allen Invented Late Night TV
 Tim Delaney, The Social Meanings of Seinfeld
 David Ulin, Literary Nonfiction: Ethics or Aesthetics?
 Paradise Lost: Revelations Film Screening and Discussion Panel

June 2005 - May 2006

Eddie Tabash: The True Meaning of Separation of Church and State
The God Who Wasn't There Easter Screening
Ray Bradbury in conversation with MG Lord: Future Perfect
Robert Price: Sabbatai Sevi: A Seventeenth-Century Jesus
Don Paulin: Chiropractic: A Century of Pseudoscience and Salesmanship
Paul Kurtz: Exuberance - A Turning Point for Secular Humanism
Darwin Day 2006: Onstage Reading of the Entire Origin of Species
 Robert Sheaffer: The Da Vinci Code Baloney
Alan Harris:  A Skeptical Look at How We Respond to Hazards
Jonathan Kirsch: The Pagan Roots of Religious Liberty in America
Marc Cooper: The Psychology of Luck
 M.G. Lord: Love and Rockets: The Dark Side of the Space Program
 Dr. Miriam Cotler: Schiavo, Stem Cells, and Medical Ethics
Margaret Wertheim: Space and Spirit
Brian Flemming: The God Who Wasn't There Screening and Discussion
Dr. Ronald H. Pine: The Clash in Kansas - Science vs. Religion
Reza Aslan: The Origins and Future of Islam
The Truth About Psychic Sleuths
Scientology Exposed!
Roy Zimmerman: Let There Be Music!
The Mad Gasser of Mattoon
Alan Fiske: Natural Moralities
 

 
CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

Nathan Bupp

Up from Atheism:
Humanism and the War of Ideas

Sunday, May 20, 2007
 11 a.m. in Hollywood, 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa*  

     Secular humanism is a long-enduring naturalistic philosophy that embraces science and ethics but has been criticized as being too negative toward religion. Nathan Bupp, director of communications for the Center for Inquiry-Transnational, will show how nonbelievers can promote their own positive values instead of merely refuting religion.

     One way to promote positive values is through "think tanks." In his talk, Bupp will examine how they evolved in America and influence pubic policy and opinion, primarily through conservative ideas. Bupp will explore how secular humanists can blaze a path "up from atheism" to build effective think tanks, and how the Center is leading the way.

     Bupp is also an associate editor of Free Inquiry magazine. He has studied intellectual history and naturalistic and humanist philosophy extensively.

*This lecture will be repeated at 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa at the Costa Mesa Community Center, 1845 Park Ave. map
Hosted by the CFI Community of Orange County.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

  

 
Independent
Investigations Group
$50,000 Paranormal Challenge

Sunday, May 6, 2007 11am

A demonstration of so-called paranormal ability scientifically tested onstage before your skeptical eyes, plus! a chance for audience members to win $100!
 

     CFI's own Independent Investigations Group recently announced it has increased its Paranormal Challenge reward to $50,000. Anyone who can demonstrate paranormal ability in a scientifically designed test is eligible to win the reward. Several have attempted to take our money and failed. Worldwide, paranormal claimants have never passed a well designed test of their abilities. While parlor tricks and cold reading techniques have served to foster the general public's belief in psychic (and other) abilities, they have thus far been insufficient to fool legitimate investigators.

     On Sunday, May 6, the IIG will conduct two tests of paranormal ability. In the first, a man will attempt to win $50,000 in what we hope will be a closely-watched examination. In the second, audience members will have the opportunity to win a $100 cash prize if they pass a simple psychic exercise. Winners will be paid on the spot.

     We invite any and all to attempt to win the $100 cash. Skeptical visitors may be more interested in catching a cheater in the first test.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 


 Amanda Roraback

The Theft of Islam
How Fundamentalists Turned a Revolutionary Remedy for Injustice Into a Tool for War, Intolerance and Sexism

Sunday, April 15, 2007
 11 a.m. in Hollywood, 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa*  

     Before the introduction of Islam in 7th century Arabia, war widows were poor, baby girls were buried alive, and order was maintained through brutish tribal law. With a new religion of "submission" ("Islam"), violence was moderated and women received unprecedented rights. Today, the religion that once brought peace to Arabia forces Afghan women to hide beneath burkas, sentences adulterers to death by stoning, and entices fanatical Muslims to blow themselves up, taking innocent victims with them in return for luxuries in heaven. Los Angeles author and historian Amanda Roraback will explore these changes in her talk.

     Roraback wrote the "World in a Nutshell" book series that includes Afghanistan in a Nutshell, Iraq in a Nutshell, (both L.A. Times Bestsellers) and others on Iran, Islam, Pakistan, and Israel/Palestine. She has received a bachelor's and master's degree in history and completed three years of work towards a Ph.D. degree in Soviet history at UCLA.

*This lecture will be repeated at 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa at the Costa Mesa Community Center,
1845 Park Ave. map

Hosted by the CFI Community of Orange County.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

One God:
How Monotheism Imperils Western Civilization
Sunday, March 25, 2007
3 p.m.

     For centuries, it has been common to think that the religious traditions that replaced classical paganism were morally superior to the religions of antiquity. Scholars now argue that the birth of the chauvinistic belief in one god may actually have retarded—and may continue to retard—the progress of civilization. Does monotheism encourage violence, political regression, racial and ethnic hatred, and misogyny?

     Biblical scholar Jonathan Kirsch, who wrote God Against the Gods: The History of the War Between Monotheism and Polytheism, and has lectured at CFI-West, will discuss the topic with R. Joseph Hoffmann, Academic V.P. of CFI and author of Just War and Jihad: Violence in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

     This discussion is another in a new series called Flashpoints: The CFI Forum in Religion, Ethics and Society, which is sponsored jointly by the Center for Inquiry and the Committee for the Scientific Examination of Religion.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

James Underdown

An Unusual Look at the
Ten Commandments

Sunday, March 18, 2007
 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa only

     Many Christians consider the 10 commandments to be the cornerstone of Western morality. Battles rage on in the U.S. over the placement of these rules on public property. But are they relevant to our 21st century society? What are the alternatives? CFI-West Executive Director James Underdown will take an unorthodox look at these ancient instructions, and shed a modern light on their value and relevance to our society.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 
 

Andrew P. Ingersoll

Global Warming

 and Running Out of Oil in
the 21st Century

Sunday, March 18, 2007
 11 a.m. in Hollywood only   

     Global warming is definitely happening, according to Prof. Andrew P. Ingersoll of the California Institute of Technology. How much damage it will cause is hard to determine.

     The predictions of the magnitude and rate of global warming haven't changed much over the past 40 years, according to Ingersoll, but now the models are much better and the signal is emerging from the noise of natural climate variability. Will we shift from oil to coal and go on adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, or can we conserve energy and slowly convert to renewable resources? Motivating nations to cooperate on this task is also part of the challenge.

     Prof. Ingersoll, who is the Earle C. Anthony Professor of Planetary Science at Caltech, earned his Ph.D. in atmospheric physics from Harvard University in 1966. He has been at Caltech since then, participating in space missions to explore the planets and learn about weather and climate in a larger context. He was awarded NASA's Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Geophysical Union, and the American Astronomical Society.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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The Center for Inquiry -West presents

CLASH OF THE TITANS II:

DOES "GOD" EXIST?
 

vs.



 

EDDIE

JASON


2.25.07 at 2pm

DOES GOD EXIST? We don't think so, and to support our position, CFI-West Honorary Chair  Eddie Tabash will square off with Christian evangelist Dr. Jason Gastrich in a rematch of their 2004 debate in San Diego. Tabash will present the latest and greatest arguments for scientific naturalism, the philosophy that holds that the universe is all there is, and that God and the supernatural are human constructs.

     Eddie Tabash has successfully debated some of the world's best-known Christian apologists, including Richard Swinburne, Peter Van Inwaagen, and William Lane Craig. He is the Chair of the First Amendment Task Force for the Council for Secular Humanism and has written amicus briefs for both the U.S. Supreme Court and the California State Supreme Court. Tabash was graduated magna cum laude from UCLA in 1973 and obtained a law degree from Loyola Law School of Los Angeles in 1976.

     Dr. Jason Gastrich is the director of Jesus Christ Saves Ministries and has published The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained and the SABCE Collegiate Workbook. He earned his master's degree and a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies from Louisiana Baptist University, the latter in 2006. Dr. Gastrich has debated the likes of Dan Barker, Reggie Finley, Doug Krueger, Stan Kohls, and Farrell Till.

General admission: $10
 Friends of the Center: $8
Students w/ school ID: $5

**Please note: the time of the debate
has been changed to 2 p.m.**

 February 25, 2007 at
 The Center for Inquiry-West
 4773 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90027
 2 blocks west of Vermont
at Berendo
 map

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

David Koepsell
 
They Satirized My Prophet, Those Bastards! Blasphemy in "South Park"


Sunday, February 18, 2007
 11 a.m. in Hollywood, 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa*   

     "South Park" is a show born in blasphemy. The first, un-aired episode from 1995 featured a fight scene between Jesus and Santa. "South Park's" creators since have spared no major religion in their taunts and mockery.

     David Koepsell, executive director of the Council for Secular Humanism, will talk about "South Park" and whether it goes too far with its satire. In this day of cartoon riots and terror bombings fueled by religious rage and sectarian hatred, can we justify what some consider fuel for the flames? Is there a role in society for mockery of the most cherished beliefs of billions of believers? Koepsell will answer those questions as he looks at the matter of self-censorship.

     Koepsell is also an attorney, and presently, a Visiting Fellow at Yale University's Center for Bioethics. He has written and edited several books and lectured worldwide on issues such as civil rights, philosophy, science, ontology, intellectual property theory, society, and religion.

*This lecture will be repeated at 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa at the Costa Mesa Community Center, 1845 Park Ave. map
Hosted by the CFI Community of Orange County.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 In observance of

DARWIN DAY 2007

...The Staged Reading of a New Play...

Darwin's Nightmare
Written by Frank Megna and Bob Ladendorf
Directed by Frank Megna

Sunday, February 11, 2007 at 2 p.m.

       To celebrate the 198th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, CFI-West will host a staged reading of the new one-act play, written especially for this  Darwin Day celebration. Darwin's nightmare imaginatively deals with both the 1925 Scopes "Monkey Trial" and the 2005 Dover trial concerning Intelligent Design taught in public schools. Among the play's characters are the historical figures Clarence Darrow, William Jennings Bryan and H.L. Mencken.
Featuring Academy
Award nominee
Robert Forster


**snacks, Darwin birthday cake and cash bar***

Suggested Donation: $5

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

Dr. Marty Klein

America's War on Sex:
 Why the Christian Right is
Obsessed With Your Sexuality
    
Sunday, January 2, 2007
 11 a.m. in Hollywood, 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa*    

     The Religious Right has successfully influenced the regulation of sexuality —sexual behavior, entertainment, information, and health care— to undermine America's secular democracy. It's killing us in the bedroom, too, according to sex therapist and author Dr. Marty Klein.

     Find out how thee modern puritans managed to demonize and create a cultural fear of sexuality, and why science and facts alone can't defeat this political movement. Klein will share his thoughts on this War on Sex and how it has affected journalism and academia; how "faith-based funding" has radically altered the American social services system; why sexual rights are as important as any other American freedom; and how today's War on Sex represents a fundamental challenge to secular society.

     Marty Klein has been a Certified Sex Therapist for 26 years; a passionate advocate of free expression; an expert witness, defendant, or consultant in many federal anti-censorship cases, and has written for six years a blog, "Sexual Intelligence." He is the author of the new book, America's War on Sex.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents

The Religious Roots of
Anti-Semitism

Sunday, January 7, 2007
11 a.m.
 

 

 

 

 
 

Kurtz

  

Hoffmann

  

Firestone
 

  
   

 

 
 

Tabash

  

Bartchy

  

Bakhos

  


     The roots of anti-Semitism run deep into the past, and find nourishment in the soils of both Christianity and Islam. Indeed, the Qur'an and the Bible have laid a foundation for centuries of persecution of Jews all over the world. From well before the Crusades to well after the Holocaust, these religions have themselves been instrumental in encouraging anti-Semitic attitudes and policies.

     How can these texts which are considered by so many millions be the cause of so much bloodshed and injustice? What messages do these books send today?

Presenters include:

  • Paul Kurtz, Ph.D., father of secular humanism, founder of the Centers for Inquiry and author of many books on religion and ethics

  • R. Joseph Hoffmann, Ph.D., academic V.P. of the Center for Inquiry-Transnational and author of of Jesus Outside the Gospels

  • Reuven Firestone, Ph.D., professor of Medieval Jewish History at Hebrew Union College, author of Jihad: The Origin of Holy War in Islam

  • Eddie Tabash, J.D., human rights advocate, attorney, and Honorary Chair of the Center for Inquiry-West

  • S. Scott Bartchy, Ph.D., Director of the Center for the Study of Religion at UCLA

  • Carol Bakhos, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Late Antique Judaism and Jewish Studies, author of Ishmael on the Border: Rabbinic Portrayals of the First Arab.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
a special event lecture on the 2nd Sunday of December
 

R. Joseph Hoffmann

The Birth of the Messiah Legend: Reflections for Christmas 2006

Sunday, December 10, 2006
11 a.m.
    
     This is the time of year when Christians worldwide celebrate the birth of their messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. Trouble is, the story is one of the latest additions to the gospel legends and contains material borrowed from pagan and Jewish folklore, as well as legendary elements that circulated freely in the early church. Almost nothing of historical value is contained in the nativity stories of Matthew and Luke.

     R. Joseph Hoffmann, Academic Vice President of CFI Transnational and Chair of the Committee for the Scientific Examination of Religion (CSER) in Amherst, New York since 2003, will examine the truth behind the gospel fictions at this special event.

     Hoffmann is an historian specializing in the social and intellectual development of early Christianity. He is best known for his early controversial thesis regarding the role of heretics in the history of the New Testament canon and reconstructions of the writings of the pagan opponents of Christianity - Celsus (1987), Porphyry (1994) and Julian the Apostate (2004).

     Trained at Harvard, Oxford, and Heidelberg, Hoffmann was Senior Scholar of St Cross College, Oxford, from 1980-1983 and taught at the University of Michigan, Oxford, The American University of Beirut and, most recently, Wells College, where he was the Campbell Professor.

     Hoffmann also is the director of the Center for Inquiry Institute, the educational arm of CFI Transnational.

     A selection of his books will be available for sale.

$8, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 


 Ronald Hamburger

Conspiracy or Science:
Why Did the Towers Fall?

Sunday, December 3, 2006
11 a.m.
     Debates have been raging for years about whether or not the twin towers of the World Trade Center collapsed due to the impact of the two commercial airliners that struck them on 9/11/2001. Questions about the collapse of building 7, which was not struck by a plane, also feed the conspiratorial fire. Could terrorists have planted explosives throughout the World Trade Center in advance of the crashes? Were the fires caused by the planes enough to bring down these engineering marvels? Wherein lies the truth?

     Ronald Hamburger, a structural engineer and Senior Principal at Simpson Gumpertz and Heger consulting engineers in San Francisco, will discuss why those buildings collapsed and illustrate his talk with graphics. He was a principal author of FEMA's initial report on the collapse of the twin towers and later a key participant in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) study.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.
 

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

Tom Flynn

Is There Really a War
on Christmas?

Sunday, November 19, 2006
11 a.m. in Hollywood
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa
     Conservative pundits accuse that there's a "War on Christmas," an alleged secularist campaign to expel Christmas from public life. Although some liberal secularists deny such a war exists, Free Inquiry editor Tom Flynn disagrees. In his talk he will argue that the traditional Christmas ill-serves our diverse society and richly merits the campaign of social justice activism now pushing it to one side of the public square.

     Flynn will relate Christmas conflicts to the way American majorities have responded to growing religious diversity since the 1840s. To him, today's right-wing defenders of Christmas have much in common with southern whites whose way of life disappeared during the Civil Rights years. Flynn is also the author of The Trouble with Christmas and editor of the forthcoming New Encyclopedia of Unbelief.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents


Jonathan Kirsch

A History of the
End of the World

Sunday, November 5, 2006
11 a.m.
     How would you live your life if you thought the end of the world was near? Would it affect your thinking? Your behavior? Your regard for future generations? The Book of Revelation, also known as the Apocalypse, has stirred dangerous men and women throughout history. This last book in the Bible written as a sermon by a mysterious author raises questions about the human fear of death and obsessions with the afterlife.

     Now, author Jonathan Kirsch looks at the repercussions of Revelation in his new book, A History of the End of the World: How the Most Controversial Book in the Bible Changed the Course of Western Civilization.

     Kirsch is the author of 10 books, a book columnist for the Los Angeles Times, an Adjunct professor on the faculty at New York University, and an attorney in Los Angeles. He spoke at the Center last year on his book titled God Against the Gods: The History of the War Between Monotheism and Polytheism.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents

Monique El-Faizy

God and Country:
How Evangelicals Have Become Mainstream

Sunday, Oct. 15, 2006
11 a.m. in Hollywood
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa

     In a sweeping investigation of the evolution and influence of evangelical Christianity in America, journalist and former Christian fundamentalist Monique El-Faizy will discuss this development from the intimate perspective of a former insider as recounted in her new book, God and Country: How Evangelicals Have Become America's New Mainstream.

     El-Faizy, who is on tour with her book, currently works at the New York Daily News. Her work has appeared in The Guardian, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and GQ.

     Her new book will be available for sale and signing by the author.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

 Paul Kurtz

Planetary Humanism:
A New Paradigm

Sunday, October 1, 2006
 11 a.m.

     The Planetary Community is facing religious wars that may engulf the world for decades. Some have even declared that the Third World War has begun. Compound this with the ecological disasters facing the planet and the crisis is urgent!

     Paul Kurtz, who is known as the father of secular humanism and founder of the modern skeptics' movement, proposes a new agenda for the future. We need to overcome the ancient religious, ethnic, and nationalistic dogmas of the past, he says, and to enunciate a bold new Planetary Humanism appropriate for the 21st century and beyond.

     Paul Kurtz is the founder and chairman of the Center for Inquiry, CSICOP, and the Council for Secular Humanism. Kurtz is the editor-in-chief of Free Inquiry and is on the editorial board of Skeptical Inquirer. He is professor emeritus of philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo and has taught and/or lectured at many of the leading universities and colleges of the world. He is the author of more than 800 articles and 45 books.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

 Craig Stanford
Upright: Great Apes and Human Origins

Sunday, Sept. 17, 2006
 11 a.m. in Hollywood
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa
     What is the current evidence for human evolution from great ape behavior and fossils? Prof. Craig Stanford will answer that question in his exploration of the roots of humanity's origins.

     Stanford is Chair of Anthropology and Co-Director of the Jane Goodall Research Center at the University of Southern California. Best known for his groundbreaking work on the meat-eating behavior of wild chimpanzees, he has conducted field studies of primates in India, Bangladesh, Peru, Tanzania and Uganda, in collaboration with Jane Goodall. Stanford is the author of over 100 scholarly publications, and eleven books, all based on his research in the areas of primary behavior and human evolution.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series
presents
 


Trey Stokes
 
 Alien Autopsy:
Case Closed!

 

Sunday, August 20, 2006
11 a.m. in Hollywood
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa

     A few years ago, Fox Television aired a show discussing the tantalizing possibility that an Alien Autopsy was performed in the late 1940s after an extraterrestrial spaceship crashed in the American Southwest. This alleged government autopsy film created quite a stir among UFO enthusiasts, many of whom still believe it to be genuine.

     New information is in! Hollywood special effects wizard and paranormal investigator Trey Stokes will drive the final nail in the alien coffin on August 20 when he reviews the history of this report and discusses the late-breaking information that should put this hoax to bed once and for all.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents
 

The Ethics of Dropping the Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Sunday, August 6
11 a.m.

Was the U.S. justified in its decision to use the atomic bomb in 1945?

On the 61st anniversary of the bombing of the Japanese city of Hiroshima, the Center will address the decision to drop the bomb and reflect on its impact on nuclear issues today.

Following a brief history of the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, photographer and documentary filmmaker Patricia Lanza will talk about the event and introduce a survivor of the Hiroshima bombing who is the subject of her documentary film, "Child of the Cloud: The Story of Tsukasa Mukai."

Lanza will show a clip of her work-in-progress. Mukai, the youngest of six children of a Japanese-American mother and eight years old at the time of the bombing, lives in Los Angeles and is currently President of the Hiroshima Society. He will appear at the talk assisted by a translator.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.
 

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series
presents
 

Ben Alba
    
How Steve Allen Invented Late Night Television


Sunday, July 16, 2006
11 a.m. in Hollywood
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa*
Q&A after Ben Alba's presentation will feature actress and singer Jayne Meadows, the wife of the late Steve Allen, who will help answer questions about Steve, and his pioneering role in the world of entertainment.    

     Many do not know that the great comedian, songwriter, pianist, writer and skeptic Steve Allen also invented late night TV, hosting the Tonight Show from 1954-57. Author and DePaul University law professor Ben Alba will celebrate the brilliance of Steve Allen with a talk in the very theater named after Allen.

     Alba, who wrote Inventing Late Night: Steve Allen and the Original Tonight Show, will discuss how Allen developed most of the show's elements in place today, including the opening monologue, celebrity chats, comedy sketches, exotic animals, and even the fake mind reader. Alba, who will sign copies of his book, interviewed 35 entertainment legends who worked with Allen, including Sid Caesar, Jonathan Winters, the Smothers Brothers, Louis Nye, Tom Poston, and Allen's wife, Jayne Meadows. Enjoy an afternoon filled with history, memories, comedy, and music.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.
 

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series
presents
 

 Tim Delaney
"Seinology":
The Social Meanings of Seinfeld

Sunday, July 2, 2006
11 a.m.
     Think about your favorite Seinfeld episode and yada, yada, yada, you many wonder if there's a deeper meaning to it. Sociologist and avid Seinfeld fan Tim Delaney explores that in his new book, Seinology, and in his talk.

     Delaney, an assistant professor of sociology at the State University of New York at Oswego, uses excerpts from many of the now-classic episodes to illustrate key facets of social interaction and to review what its characters teach us about ourselves and our complex society.

     The author of seven books, Delaney has traveled extensively and presented papers in Moscow, Buenos Aires, London, Dublin, and throughout North America.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series
presents
 

 David L. Ulin
 
Literary Nonfiction:
Ethics or Aesthetics?

Sunday, June 18, 2006
11 am in Hollywood only*
 

What is literary nonfiction? Is it literature? Journalism? Or some nebulous territory in between? The scandal over James Frey's memoir A Million Little Pieces brought the issue to public consciousness, but unfortunately framed it in ethical, rather than aesthetic, terms. Yet what if we are witnessing the birth of a new genre, in which ethics are mitigated by more creative questions?

David L. Ulin, editor of the Los Angeles Times Book Review and author of The Myth of Solid Ground: Earthquakes, Prediction, and the Fault Line Between Reason and Faith, will look at the curious case of contemporary nonfiction, considering the line between truth and creativity, actual and emotional truth.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

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FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents

PARADISE LOST
 Revelations

Film Screening
and Panel Discussion
 with members of
Free the West Memphis Three

________________
 Sunday, June 4, 2006
 11 am

    
       CFI-West will screen the documentary about three teenagers convicted of murder in what some claim was an atmosphere of "Satanic Panic."
 
      After the bodies of three eight-year-old boys were discovered in a shallow creek in deeply religious West Memphis, AR, police arrested three local teenagers and accused them of sacrificing the boys as part of a Satanic ritual. Despite a lack of physical evidence connecting the defendants to the crime, the teens' penchant for heavy metal music, black clothing, and interest in the Wicca religion appeared to be sufficient evidence of their guilt.
 
     This presentation uncovering religious persecution will be followed by a panel discussion with Free the West Memphis Three members Burk Sauls, Grove Pashley, Kathy Bakken, and Lisa Fancher.
 
The group's website is www.wm3.org.
 

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

WARNING: This film contains  some graphic images and is not intended for all audiences.

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents

Eddie Tabash:
The True Meaning of Separation of Church and State
 
Sunday, May 7, 2006
11 a.m.
     Has the U.S. government become more religious in the past several years? Do certain theological positions enjoy greater state support than other positions, or those of non-believers? How is Jefferson's "Wall of Separation" holding up to recent assaults on the First Amendment?

     Eddie Tabash, a constitutional lawyer, chair of the Center for Inquiry-West, and chair of the national legal committee of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, will address the convergence of religion and government in the United States, and discuss the future of our secular government.

     Eddie has publicly debated many of the top international theologians, and has been a tireless activist for both civil rights and secular causes.

$6, or free for Friends of the Center.

This is a Ten Amendments Day event!

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CFI-West's FEED YOUR BRAIN Lecture Series presents

The God Who Wasn’t There
on Easter Sunday

 Screening and Q&A with filmmaker Brian Flemming
 
Sunday, April 16, 2006
11 am in Hollywood
4:30 pm in Costa Mesa*
 

     Celebrate the resurrection of Jesus by viewing a documentary that makes the case that he never existed. In his controversial one-hour documentary, filmmaker Brian Flemming argues with the help of biblical scholars, philosophers and historians that an actual man named Jesus may be a composite of earlier stories and traditions.

     Among others, award-winning author Sam Harris (End of Faith), Jesus Seminarian Robert Price (Deconstructing Jesus),  and historian Richard Carrier contribute to the idea that Christianity may rest on a life that never was.

A Q&A with Flemming will follow the one-hour screening. DVDs will be available at the event. The public is invited. http://www.thegodmovie.com.

*Brian Flemming will be at the Hollywood screening only.

The Costa Mesa Community Center is located at
1845 Park Avenue, Costa Mesa, California.
map

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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Ray Bradbury in conversation with MG Lord:
Future Perfect


     The Center for Inquiry-West is pleased to present an exciting evening with legendary science fiction and fantasy author Ray Bradbury in conversation with M.G. Lord, who lectured at the center last October.

      Bradbury, author of such classic works as Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, and Something Wicked This Way Comes, will discuss the future and its impact on us and his writings. Lord is an L.A. writer, book reviewer, and author of Astro Turf: The Private Life of Rocket Science. Due to the anticipated high turnout of this lecture, it will be held across the street from the Center at Barnsdall Gallery Theater at Barnsdall Park.


Wednesday, April 5, 2006 at 8 pm
 Both authors will sign their books from 7 - 8 pm.
$15, or $10 for Friends of the Center and students
 
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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents

Robert Price

 Sabbatai Sevi:
A Seventeenth-Century Jesus

Sunday, March 19, 2006

11 a.m. in Hollywood
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa
 
Sabbatai Sevi was a very popular messiah in the 1600s who abandoned his religion at the last minute, converting to Islam himself instead of converting the Turkish sultan to Judaism as he had boasted.  Sevi’s life eerily parallels that of the crucified Jesus and the evolution of early Christianity. By examining the story of Sabbatai Sevi, much light can be shed on Jesus and the development of Western religion.

Bringing this story to light is author Robert M. Price, Professor of Biblical Criticism at the Center for Inquiry Institute and the editor of The Journal of Higher Criticism.  His books include The Empty Tomb, Deconstructing Jesus, The Incredible Shrinking Son of Man,  and The Da Vinci Fraud.   Price is also Professor of Theology and Scriptural Studies at the Johnnie Coleman Theological Seminary in Florida.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

The Costa Mesa Community Center is located at 1845 Park Ave.

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
  
Don Paulin

 Chiropractic:
A Century of Pseudoscience and Salesmanship

Sunday, March 5, 2006

11 a.m.
in Hollywood only


     Conventional chiropractic is a confused pseudoscience that attracts non-discerning customers and students just as surely do supermarket tabloids, astrologers, palm readers and psychics.  Don Paulin, who directs the Victims of Chiropractic outreach and is a member of the National Council Against Health Fraud, will examine the status of chiropractic and illustrate his talk with videos. 

     Paulin received the 2002 William T. Jarvis, Ph.D. Distinguished Service Award for his work with the Orange County Nutrition Alert Coalition.  His Victims of Chiropractic information can be found at www.chirobase.org.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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Paul Kurtz

Exuberance, Sex, Moral Empathy, Reason, Creative Joy and Planetary Ethics - A Turning Point for Secular Humanism

Celebrating CFI-West's 10th Year!

Feb. 19, 2006
$6 (includes lunch)
11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

     Paul Kurtz is the founder and chairman of the Center for Inquiry and is considered the "father of secular humanism." A professor emeritus at the State University of New York at Buffalo, Kurtz is the editor in chief of Free Inquiry magazine, an editorial board member of Skeptical Inquirer, and the author or editor of 45 books.

-Sorry, this event is overbooked.-
 We will be taking names for a waiting list at the door starting at 10:30 a.m. If you have already made reservations and find that you cannot attend, please let us know. (323) 666-9797, ext. 102.

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Celebrate Darwin Day 2006!

Sunday, February 12

-12:01 am through 5 pm; reception to follow-

     On the 197th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, CFI-West will sponsor a party celebrating the father of the Theory of Evolution. As a symbolic gesture of science's solidarity with Darwin, CFI-West will host a staged reading of the entire text of The Origin of Species, Darwin's revolutionary work which explains that life evolved on Earth over millions of years.

     Beginning at midnight on Saturday, Feb. 11, pro-science volunteers of all kinds will begin reading the several hundred pages of text onstage at the Center. Readers and audience are invited to float in and out all through the night and day of Darwin's birthday. The book is expected to take about 16 hours to read aloud.

     The reading will culminate with celebrities and science notables finishing the book sometime between 3:30 and 5pm on Sunday, February 12.

Stay for the reception to see a couple of  live exotic animals, and to have a piece of birthday cake!

Seeking red-eye readers

     We are looking for readers, particularly for readings in the wee hours Sunday morning.  If you'd like to participate in this unique event, please contact Bob Ladendorf, Chief Operating Officer, at (323) 666-9797, ext. 104, or email bob@cfiwest.org.

Center for Inquiry-West
4773 Hollywood Blvd.
2 blocks west of Vermont Ave. at Berendo
Ample free parking

 Poster design by David Barlia
 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 
Robert Sheaffer:

The Da Vinci Code Baloney
 
Sunday, January 15, 2006

11 a.m. in Hollywood

4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa

     The Da Vinci Code is a runaway bestseller and a forthcoming movie. This "factual novel" purports to reveal "the greatest conspiracy of the past 2000 years." It says that a secret society of leading intellectuals has allegedly been dedicated to preserving the astonishing secrets and traditions that organized religion has conspired to suppress.
     CSICOP fellow Robert Sheaffer  will share with us a skeptic's guide to what he calls "the Da Vinci Code Baloney." Sheaffer is one of the leading skeptical investigators of UFOs and a founding member of the UFO Subcommittee of CSICOP; a founding director and past Chairman pf the Bay Area Skeptics, and the author of UFO Sightings (Prometheus Books, 1998). He has appeared on many radio and TV programs. His writings and reviews have appeared in such diverse publications as OMNI, Scientific American, Spaceflight, Astronomy, The Humanist, Free Inquiry, Reason, and others. He is a regular columnist for Skeptical Inquirer.

The Costa Mesa Community Center is located at 1845 Park Avenue, Costa Mesa, California.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents

Alan Harris


 Disaster! From 9-11 to Katrina to Killer Asteroids
A skeptical look at how we respond to hazards, natural and unnatural

Sunday, December 4, 2005

11 a.m.

     Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, billions of dollars have been spent, and our freedoms limited in sometimes major ways, presumably to provide us with a more secure homeland environment.  But are we more secure?  The events following the hurricane Katrina destruction of New Orleans suggests that in a broad perspective, we are not.  Risks come in many flavors.  With only limited resources available, we must not over-attend to one risk while ignoring others.  After examining rational and irrational responses to terrorism, tsunamis, hurricanes and other hazards, Alan Harris will examine the ultimate natural hazard, the risk of global disaster from an asteroid impact, and ask what should, and should not, be done in response to that risk.

     Alan W. Harris received a Ph.D. from UCLA in 1975, and spent 28 years at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.  He now continues research in planetary science from his home, in affiliation with the Space Science Institute of Boulder, CO.  For more than a decade he has concentrated on evaluating the hazard of impacts from an asteroid or comet, and appropriate societal responses.  In 2002 he co-authored, along with Clark Chapman, "A Skeptical look at 9-11", which appeared as the cover feature in the September-October issue of the Skeptical Inquirer.
 
$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 
 
The Center for Inquiry-West
4773 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90027

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 

Jonathan Kirsch

God Against the Gods:
The Pagan Roots of Religious Liberty in America

Sunday, Nov. 20, 2005

11 a.m.
in Hollywood only
 


     Author Jonathan Kirsch will illuminate how the religious tolerance of paganism influenced religious liberty in America as he explores the final struggle between polytheism and monotheism during the 4th century in the Roman Empire.

     Based on his brilliant and controversial book, God Against the Gods: The History of the War Between Monotheism and Polytheism, Kirsch will discuss the dark side of monotheism and the bright side of polytheism and show how terrorism today is rooted in monotheistic traditions. Focusing on the fascinating battles between two Roman emperors – Constantine, who started the Christian revolution, and Julian, who attempted to restore paganism – Kirsch will show how we need to understand that struggle to appreciate how religious intolerance arose in the ancient world.

     Kirsch, who lives in Los Angeles, is the author of 10 books, including the critically acclaimed Harlot by the Side of the Road: Forbidden Tales of the Bible; Moses: A Life, and The Woman Who Laughed at God: The Untold History of the Jewish People.  Kirsch is also a book columnist for the Los Angeles Times; a guest host and commentator for NPR affiliates KCRW-FM and KPCC-FM in Southern California; a member of the National Book Critics Circle; three-time past president of PEN Center USA West, and an attorney specializing in intellectual property and publishing law in Los Angeles. His Web site is www.jonathankirsch.com.

     Copies of his books will be available for sale and signing after the talk.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 
Marc Cooper

The Psychology of Luck

Sunday, Nov. 6, 2005
11 a.m. in Hollywood
 

     A frequent contributor to The Nation magazine and L.A. Weekly, Marc Cooper turns his critical eye to discussing the psychology of luck at the Sunday lecture. Author of the recent book, The Last Honest Place in America: Paradise and Perdition in the New Las Vegas, Cooper has had published articles, essays, and interviews in numerous publications over the past 30 years. He hosts "Radio Nation" on public radio and teaches journalism at USC's Annenberg School of Communication "in between blackjack tournaments," as his website [marccooper.com] proclaims.

     Copies of his book will be available at the lecture.


The Center for Inquiry-West
4773 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90027

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 
M.G. Lord

Love and Rockets:
The Dark Side of
The Space Program
 
Sunday, Oct. 16, 2005

11 a.m. in Hollywood
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa
     At first glance, M.G. Lord, author of the critically acclaimed Forever Barbie: The Unauthorized Biography of a Real Doll,  would seem an unlikely choice to write a cultural history of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.  But her recent memoir, Astro Turf: The Private Life of Rocket Science, does just that--exploring the darker side of glory rides to the moon and Mars through the lens of her father, an aerospace engineer at JPL.  Where Barbie looked at an icon of "feminine" culture, Astro Turf looks at a totem of masculinity, the lid-century Rocket Scientist, and his descendents, some of whom are women.
 
     Lord will talk about politics and gender in the heyday of the space race--the rise of Nazi scientists, the fall of JPL's leftwing pioneers, and the battle of women engineers for a place in the control room.  Lord, who lives in Los Angeles, is a regular contributor to the New York Times Book Review and "Arts & Leisure" section.
     Copies of her books will be available at the lectures.

The Costa Mesa Community Center is located at 1845 Park Avenue, Costa Mesa, California.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 
Dr. Miriam Cotler

Schiavo, Stem Cells, and Medical Ethics
 
Sunday, October 2

11 a.m. in Hollywood
 
     To the chagrin of scientists, physicians, and many members of the community, politicians have taken strong positions on the Terry Schiavo case and on stem cell research. Personal religious and moral considerations have entered into the discussion about how to handle medical and research issues. How do we make these kinds of decisions? How should we make these decisions?
 
      Medical Ethicist Dr. Miriam Cotler received her M.S.and Ph.D. in public health from UCLA, and is currently a visiting porfessor of public health there. She also directs the Center for Health Ethics and Policy at California State University at Northridge, and consults for several hospitals and the California Medical Association Medical Ethics Advisory Council. Please join us for this eye-opening look at deciding right from wrong in the medical world.

The Center for Inquiry-West
4773 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90027

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 
 
Margaret Wertheim

Space and Spirit

Sunday,September 18

11 a.m.
 
     Author and columnist Margaret Wertheim will discuss how our scientific conceptions of space have shaped the way we see ourselves as human beings, both physically and spiritually, during the rise of modern science. The talk will be based on her book The Pearly Gates of Cyberspace.
 
     Wertheim is a science writer whose articles have appeared in many newspapers and magazines, including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Science Digest.  She also currently is a science columnist for the L.A. Weekly, author of the book Pythagoras' Trousers: God, Physics, and the Gender Wars, a TV documentary writer, and a lecturer about science and society. Originally from Australia, Wertheim has two science degrees: a B.S. in pure and applied physics, and a B.A. in pure mathematics and computing.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents

The God Who Wasn’t There
Film Showing and Discussion
 
Sunday, August 21, 2005
11 a.m. at CFI-West
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa

     Brian Flemming will show his hour-long documentary film, The God Who Wasn’t There, and discuss its no-holds-barred criticism of Christianity and religious believers. A former Christian fundamentalist, Flemming interviews such luminaries as author Sam Harris (The End of Faith) and scholar Robert M. Price (The Incredible Shrinking Son of Man). The movie examines the questionable historicity of Jesus, the inhumanity of Christian doctrine and the existence of God.

     "Provocative -- to put it mildly," said the Los Angeles Times about The God Who Wasn't There when it played at the Grassroots Cinema Festival. Flemming will have DVDs of the film available at the showing. The movie’s Web site is http://www.thegodmovie.com.

The Center for Inquiry-West
4773 Hollywood Blvd.,
Hollywood, California, 90027

The Costa Mesa Community Center is located at
1845 Park Avenue, Costa Mesa, California.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 

Dr. Ronald H. Pine

The Clash In Kansas:
Science vs. Religion
A Report from the Front

 Sunday, August 7, 2005 11 a.m.

    The Kansas State Board of Education is again in turmoil over whether to teach Intelligent Design in the state's public schools.  This political battle pits the majority of those who approve the science curriculum against a scientific community that sees no reason to compromise the teaching of evolution.  Since 55% of the state has doubts about evolution, why shouldn't both ideas be taught?  Indeed, how does evolution really work, and why do scientists subscribe to it?

     Dr. Ronald H. Pine will travel to Los Angeles from Lawrence, Kansas, to report on not only what's happening in Kansas but also why evolution itself is such a strong theory.  He will talk about the overwhelming evidence for evolution and will discuss the history and philosophy of creationist pseudoscience, including its most recent manifestation, "Intelligent Design."

    Dr. Pine has a B.A. in zoology from the University of Kansas, an M.S. in zoology from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. in wildlife science from Texas A&M University. He has served as a curator at the Smithsonian, a college professor, Instructor and Resident Scientist at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. Dr. Pine has led or otherwise participated in numerous scientific expeditions to five continents and various islands, and has over sixty scientific publications, including one co-authored book, primarily on the classification, biogeography, and ecology of mammals. For years, he has had an intense interest in pseudoscience, especially in young earth creationism and intelligent design creationism, and has published on and given many talks on the subject. Dr. Pine has now returned to live in his home state of Kansas, the current hotbed in the creationists’ political push to dilute and pervert science education.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 


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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents
 
Reza Aslan
The Origins and Future of Islam
 
Sunday, July 17, 2005
 
11 a.m. at CFI-West
 4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa

Reza Aslan, author of No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, will discuss misunderstandings of Islam and the status of the "Islamic Reformation" as part of the Sunday lecture series. Aslan, born in Iran and now living in Santa Barbara and New Orleans, is currently a Doctoral Candidate in History of Religions at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He received a B.A. in Religion from Santa Clara University, a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard University, and an M.F.A. from the University of Iowa.

Aslan has taught at the University of Iowa, received a fellowship in fiction at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and served as president of Harvard’s Chapter of the World Conference on Religion and Peace – a U.N. organization committed to solving religious conflicts. He has written numerous articles in periodicals, including The Nation and Los Angeles Times and has appeared on NPR, “The Dennis Miller Show,” and “The Daily Show,” and spoken to organizations overseas and in the U.S., including the World Bank, Royal Commonwealth Society of London, and, most recently, the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. The Los Angeles Times featured him in its July 1st issue.

     Copies of his Random House book will be available for signing at both sites.

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center. 

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CFI-West's 1st and 3rd Sunday Lecture Series presents

 
The Truth About Psychic Sleuths
 
Sunday, June 5, 2005
11 a.m.
 
     Court TV and various other media have featured psychic detectives allegedly helping police investigations. Psychic detectives have claimed to help solve murders, missing persons and a host of other investigations. While they may not charge law enforcement agencies for their services, they do use their experiences to make money by conducting seminars or individual readings.
 
     Are these psychic sleuths really solving cases? Do the police go to them for help? Find out as Independent Investigations Group members Owen Hammer, Sherri Andrews and Jim Underdown uncover the results of a lengthy investigation into two nationally-known psychic detectives, Carla Baron (Court TV) and Allison DuBois (Medium).

$6.00, or free for Friends of the Center.

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Scientology Exposed!

Tory Christman

Sunday, March 6, 2005 11:00 a.m.

     From the lips of Church of Scientology defector Tory Christman, you will hear some of the much-criticized religion's most closely guarded secrets.

Tory was a 30-year veteran and a member of their shadowy Office of Special Affairs where she headed what was known as the Parishioners League, where she pressured television, radio, and newspapers to drop negative content about the church. Tory finally awoke about 4 years ago and realized the true nature of the organization. She now spends much of her time trying to educate people about the dangers of becoming involved in cults.

$6.00 or free for Friends of the Center. 

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Let There Be Music!

Singer/Songwriter Roy Zimmerman

Sunday, May 15, 2005
11:00 a.m.
 
     The Los Angeles Times says, "Zimmerman displays a lacerating wit and keen awareness of society's foibles that bring to mind a latter-day Tom Lehrer."
 
     Please join us in the Steve Allen Theater for a morning of music where Roy Zimmerman will share some of his 23 original songs including "Love Your Neighborhood Priest," "One World, One Bank," a "Multinational Anthem," and the breezy pop tune, "Kill a Doctor for Christ."
 
     This enjoyable, yet thought-provoking, political, religious and social commentary-set-to-music will start your Sunday with a bang.

$6.00 or free for Friends of the Center. 

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Bob Ladendorf
  
  The Mad Gasser of Mattoon:
Myth or Reality?

Sunday, May 15, 2005
4:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa

     Bob Ladendorf, the new chief operating officer of CFI-West, will discuss one of the most famous and bizarre historical episodes in U.S. history.  During World War II. a series of alleged gas attacks terrorized Mattoon, Illinois, residents for two weeks.  Was it real or mass hysteria?  Collaborating with sociologist and author Robert Bartholomew, Ladendorf demonstrates their conclusions based on archival research.

$6.00 or free for Friends of the Center. 

The Costa Mesa Community Center is located at 1845 Park Avenue, Costa Mesa, California.

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Alan Fiske

Natural Moralities

April 17, 2005 11:00 a.m.

     Is divine will the only source of morality--or even the ultimate source? If not, what makes humans moral animals? Cultural anthropology shows that moralities differ in innumerable details, but under this cultural diversity, we can see that all morality is based on four innate intuitions. All human morality is grounded on communality, authority, equality, and proportionality. The basic intuitions are (1) that people should care about each other and act compassionately; (2) that people should respect authority while authorities protect the people they are responsible for; (3) that people should be treated equally and respond reciprocally; and (4) that justice should be based on proportionality, both in rewards and punishment.

     Alan Page Fiske is Professor, Department of Anthropology at UCLA, and Director of the Center for Culture, Brain, and Development. Please join us for this fascinating look at the nature of morality.

$6.00 or free for Friends of the Center.  This talk will be repeated in Costa Mesa at 4:30 p.m.

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