Action » Morgantown Atheists

Our Rail Trail Cleanup 2: September 3

This entry is part 10 of 10 in the series Good Without God

We met Friday, September 3 at 5:30 pm at Hazel Ruby Park to clean our Rail Trail. This was our second cleaning. Everyone brought gloves.

~Update: Thank you to everyone who showed up to clean our Rail Trail! We had 10 people and with all those busy hands we finished in no time. It had been raining and thunderstorming not long before we met but we took a chance. We were “blessed” with no rain while we cleaned.

Thanks again!

Let’s meet at the roundabout where our trail starts (Decker’s Creek Trail), at Hazel Ruby Park behind Wings Ole’. There’s a small parking lot to the left where the trail starts.

Any questions, just email me.

We’d love your support and help!

A Map

If the weather is poor, we’ll reschedule. Stay tuned to this post for any change of plans, email me, or call me (Neece) Read the rest of this entry »

Our Adopt a Trail

This entry is part 8 of 18 in the series Monthly Meetings

Here is the Rail Trail we’re going to adopt. If you have any suggestions or ideas feel free to call, email me, or leave a comment below. I’d love it if you’d let me know that we can count on you to help us when we go out to clean the trail.

Once our application is approved (it’s been sent in), we’ll schedule our first cleanup for right after a meeting. I’ll keep you posted as to when that will be.

Here’s a Map:

View Larger Map

This is Hazel Ruby Park, basically behind Wings Ole’ and under the Westover Bridge. This is close to where the trail head is.

Decker’s Creek Trail head. This is where we’ll start. We are adopting 1/2 mile Read the rest of this entry »

Adopt a Spot or Adopt a Trail

This entry is part 7 of 10 in the series Good Without God

Hey everyone!

~UPDATE: See full post for an update on the trail that is available in the city, on Decker Creek trail.
~Update 2: Let’s go check out the trail on Sunday. If you want to bike the trail with Butch and I, that would be great. It will be a leisurely bike ride (or maybe a walk if everyone wants to do that instead), around 11 am. Here is a Facebook Event for it. We need a meeting place (someone in Motown needs to decide the best place to meet). Email me for details or join the FB event.

Yesterday we went to Gerald’s 4 spots on Rte 7 (Earl Core Rd) and verified that the stretch of road the spots are in are already adopted. So Butch and I went a bit further (past Greer) and found 2 other spots, one which we prefer (because it’s a bit bigger and looks nicer, ie: better view and safer looking with more room for us to be on the side).

Here are 4 pictures of the one we liked, along with a map and Google Map street view. As you can see in one of the pictures, there’s trash there, so it needs a bit of attention. The image of the grass just shows, from the spot, the creek within easy walking distance:

Here’s the Google Map: Read the rest of this entry »

Help Pick Our Adopt-A-Spot

This entry is part 6 of 10 in the series Good Without God

Gerald has found four “spots” along Earl Core Rd. that look promising for us to choose from. While it would be nice to adopt a road, we have been unsuccessful in finding a two mile stretch that isn’t dangerous and therefore unsuitable. Our next best option is to Adopt a Spot which is a right-of-way on a state road, 1/4 mile long or less.

Here are Gerald’s directions: Pioneer Rocks is along Earl Core Rd. Earl Core Rd. is the road that goes through Sabraton, but this is going along it in the other direction. Instead of going through Sabraton, go towards where the Comcast office is (along Earl Core Rd and Summer School Rd, which is the one going up the hill next to the Comcast office). Continue along Earl Core Rd., through Dellslow, for about a mile. After about a mile, you will cross a two lane bridge that goes over Decker’s Creek. The first left after you cross the bride is Tyrone Rd, where the Botanical Gardens are located. Stay on Earl Core Rd. and continue going up the hill to the first spot. They are all on your right.

Gerald tried to pick wide places, since people speed on that road. All these spots along Decker’s Creek are between the entrance to Tyrone Rd. and Greer Limestone.

SPOT 1: The first spot is the fourth pull over spot. I like it because there is a path down to the creek:

SPOT 2: The second spot is at the top of the hill. It is hard to tell from the pictures, but there is a large rock on the hillside that you can see when coming up the hill. You can’t really see much of it in the picture or when you are standing at the spot, but it does have a nice view looking down the hill at the creek: Read the rest of this entry »

Good Without God, Take Two

This entry is part 5 of 10 in the series Good Without God

After careful thought, we decided to look into two programs to give to in the name of Morgantown Atheists for our Good Without God campaign.

For the main program, we are going to Adopt a Road!

Your job, especially if you’re in Morgantown, is to scout out 2 miles of road that meet the following criteria:

Any public road is acceptable except highways and unsafe roads. So find something we can maintain safely.
It has to be a minimum of 2 miles.
- It has to be one continuous 2 mile stretch, not an L or T shaped section.
It has to be able to be cleaned safely.

Alternative if we can’t find a 2 mile stretch:

We can also Adopt a Spot:
- A state roadside right-of-way
- No longer than 1/4 mile in length

Please let me know of any and all possibilities as soon as possible so we can get started before it gets too hot. Email pictures and other information to Neece.

We are going to do these programs in the name of Morgantown Atheists, after careful thought and discussion.

Our second program is easier. We are going to collect pop (soda) tops for Ronald McDonald House in Morgantown:

Starting now, collect as many aluminum can tabs as you can and bring them to the meetings. Then we’ll get a few of us together and take them to RMH when we have a decent amount, hopefully on a regular basis.

If you can, get your co-workers to contribute to this good cause as well. You can put up a can or something where you work where people can drop them, just as an idea. If you want a little sign to print, let me know and I’ll design something and email it to you.

Not all of us drink soda, but beer tabs will work too. The Ronald McDonald House uses them to contribute towards their rent. It’s nearly effortless and for a good cause.

Any questions, call or email Neece.

May 6: National Day of Reason

This entry is part 6 of 8 in the series MorgantownCoR Event

The first Thursday in May, which is May 6 this year, is the National Day of Prayer. To counter that egregious violation of the separation of church and state, freethinkers of all sorts celebrate the National Day of Reason.

~Update: We had a great time! We had so many people come that we had to go find more chairs. The talk was quite interesting and the discussion was lively.

Morgantown Day of Reason 2010
Madeleines Restaurant, back room
Social 6-7
Dinner and Reason Lecture 7-8:30
Meals with drinks $15 (4 choices)
Beer,wine on your own

Lecture by Philosophy Professor Andy Pintus on Reason, Reasoning and the History of Reason. Discussion will follow.

A short presentation on Unreason will be given by a surprise speaker before the lecture.

There’s also an official site where you can endorse reason by adding your name to the list, post an event, read about why we want a National Day of Reason, and more.

Two hands working can do more than a thousand clasped in prayer.

FFRF celebrates National Day of Prayer Victory: Read the rest of this entry »

Our Secular Service Endeavor

This entry is part 3 of 10 in the series Good Without God

Our Secular Service Endeavor is now called “Good Without God” and has it’s own page: Good Without God.

Update: We chose our worthy charity at our Spring Equinox Celebration (see the pictures of our Nature Walk on the farm)! The overwhelming vote was for the West Virginia Botanic Garden.

Here is their Mission Statement: The West Virginia Botanic Garden (WVBG), in harmony with nature, seeks to enhance the quality of life through public enjoyment and education involving inspirational landscapes and displays of a rich variety of ornamental plants appropriate to the region.

Morgantown Atheists is hosting this endeavor, but we will donate our Service in the name of Morgantown Coalition of Reason. So if you are a Morgantown Bright, a UU member, or a member of any of the other Morgantown CoR groups, please consider joining us for this worthwhile ongoing project.

Update: Sunday April 11 from 2-4 pm at the WVBG is Volunteer Orientation. If possible, please come and learn about how the Morgantown CoR can best help the Botanic Garden. (map and directions)

We designed a shirt for all of us to wear. I ordered one for everyone that told me their size. If you didn’t write your name down you can order a shirt here.

I talked to Erin the Volunteer Coordinator and she seems excited to meet us and have our help. Here is the newsletter I received from her:

Read the rest of this entry »

Boobquake: Dress Immodestly For Science April 26

This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series News

Update! Boobquake results are in: Our immodest hair and cleavage did not cause any earthquakes. In fact, the mean magnitude of quakes actually went down during the experiment. Read the full results over at Blag Hag.

Jennifer over at Blag Hag decided to start something by asking women to dress immodestly to show that it doesn’t cause earthquakes. It was spurred on by some little Iranian man who said:

“Many women who do not dress modestly … lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes,” Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi was quoted as saying by Iranian media. Sedighi is Tehran’s acting Friday prayer leader.

Women in the Islamic Republic are required by law to cover from head to toe, but many, especially the young, ignore some of the more strict codes and wear tight coats and scarves pulled back that show much of the hair.

“What can we do to avoid being buried under the rubble?” Sedighi asked during a prayer sermon Friday. “There is no other solution but to take refuge in religion and to adapt our lives to Islam’s moral codes.”

“A divine authority told me to tell the people to make a general repentance. Why? Because calamities threaten us,” Sedighi said.

Minister of Welfare and Social Security Sadeq Mahsooli said prayers and pleas for forgiveness were the best “formulas to repel earthquakes.”

“We cannot invent a system that prevents earthquakes, but God has created this system and that is to avoid sins, to pray, to seek forgiveness, pay alms and self-sacrifice,” Mahsooli said.

So on April 26, I will show my cleavage for science. I dress for comfort, not looks, so I’m a perfect person to “tip the scales” towards total devastating earthquake on Monday April 26. This is a scientific experiment.

You can read the whole thing over at Blag Hag. She also clarifies that she’s not trying to offend anyone in a follow up.

There is a Facebook Event and you can twitter about it: #boobquake.

Here is what Jennifer says:

Sedighi claims that not dressing modestly causes earthquakes. If so, we should be able to test this claim scientifically. You all remember the homeopathy overdose?

Time for a Boobqauke.

On Monday, April 26th, I will wear the most cleavage-showing shirt I own. Yes, the one usually reserved for a night on the town. I encourage other female skeptics to join me and embrace the supposed supernatural power of their breasts. Or short shorts, if that’s your preferred form of immodesty. With the power of our scandalous bodies combined, we should surely produce an earthquake. If not, I’m sure Sedighi can come up with a rational explanation for why the ground didn’t rumble. And if we really get through to him, maybe it’ll be one involving plate tectonics. Read the rest of this entry »

Our Friends In Charleston Are Going To Dance For Diversity

This entry is part 12 of 12 in the series Other Events

See the video! It’s awesome!

As you have probably heard, Phelps and his crazy hatemongers are descending on Charleston April 8-10 to spread their hatefilled nonsense. Covenant House wants to take the opportunity to “celebrate the inclusiveness of our community,” said Amy Weintraub, the executive director. “There are a lot of people who really do celebrate the diversity of Charleston and are willing to do so publicly.” They are going to have a choreographed flash mob dance with signs to counter the Westboro Baptists’ hate.
The dance is meant to show the city’s acceptance of all races and religions in contradiction to Westboro’s message.
And the WV Atheists have offered to join them. Covenant House has accepted. Here is their Facebook Event.

UPDATE: See below for Charleston and Wheeling protest schedule.

UPDATE 2: They will picket the mine disaster! See below.

The controversial church, led by pastor Fred Phelps, is known for rallying against gays, Jews, Catholics and Mennonites. It plans to also protest outside the Temple Israel, the B’nai Jacob Synagogue and the Sacred Heart Co-Cathedral in Charleston, the capital of West Virginia.

The group is also scheduled to picket outside Charleston Catholic High School, but Principal Debora Sullivan said it would be pointless because the students will be on their Easter break.

Westboro, which travels across North America holding these protests, is not affiliated with any other Baptist church.

To counter Westboro’s picket signs that read “God Hates Obama” or “God Hates the USA,” 22-year-old student Mona Mayes is planning a secondary protest with such satirical signs as “God Hates Twitter.” More than 100 people have joined her Facebook group.

The West Virginia Chamber of Commerce is also making signs and distributing them freely to people who object to Westboro’s presence in Charleston. They are encouraged to display the signs in their front yard or window to show support for the local community.

So let’s support our Charleston compatriots! Have fun and be safe.

The Westboro Baptists’ schedule for Charleston and Wheeling: Read the rest of this entry »

A Quick Quote Contest

This entry is part 7 of 8 in the series MorgantownCoR Event

On April 11 the Morgantown CoR (all of us from the Morgantown Atheists, Morgantown Brights, the UUs, and the WV Skeptics) is going to the West Virginia Botanic Gardens for a Volunteer Orientation. See the complete post for all the details.

We were thinking for that and future volunteering events, it would be great if we had t-shirts we could all wear.

~Update:

At our RMC Meeting we brainstormed and came up with a neat idea for our shirt. You can see it on the right.

We settled on Good Without God as our shirt slogan and our slogan for our campaign to help a worthy organization.

You can order a shirt here. If you like the design and want it on other stuff like coffee mugs, etc, let me know. I can do that easily.

Here are some other quotes that we didn’t choose:

Read the rest of this entry »

Our Rail Trail Cleanup 2: September 3

Our Adopt a Trail

Adopt a Spot or Adopt a Trail

Help Pick Our Adopt-A-Spot

Good Without God, Take Two

May 6: National Day of Reason

Our Secular Service Endeavor

Boobquake: Dress Immodestly For Science April 26

Our Friends In Charleston Are Going To Dance For Diversity

A Quick Quote Contest

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Pages

Meta

Categories

Series

Subscribe to and Contact Us

Get Email Updates

Tag Happy

Links

Where To Find Us

Atheist Associations