Inspired by a video of a lone dancer at a music festival. He's a weirdo, a lunatic, someone with a broken view of the world. But then a leader appears, someone who recognizes the possibility of joy, and joins with the first person. Suddenly, the rest of the crowd sees that this isn't some kind […]
In school we learn about Martin Luther King, Jr., and that might be it for Black history. You probably know of Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, and Rosa Parks. There are many other Black women activists who have shaped politics, protest, and public thought who are lesser-known. I'll share with you highlights of the lives and […]
This week is our next installment of Atheist YouTube! We'll be watching the video "Dangerous memes | Dan Dennett" from the channel TED. Here's the description they gave for this video: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Starting with the simple tale of an ant, philosopher Dan Dennett unleashes a devastating salvo of ideas, making a powerful case for the […]
I will read the children's story from Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling. This story is a coming-of-age tale, a Hero's Journey of the old tradition, and an account of triumph over an abusive family system. It's also a funny story about a baby elephant, with lots of big rolling poetic phrases. This week's speaker […]
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion measures have been put in place to ensure access to education, government programs, jobs, etc. for disadvantaged groups such as women, people of color, queer people, and disabled people. But these measures aren't merely kind or fair, they also result in better outcomes for governments and stronger workforces. This talk will […]
"Everyone wants a revolution. No one wants to do the dishes." --Dorothy Day We have little control over how our nation allocates labor and resources (but use what you have! Vote and bug your representatives!), but we have a lot more in our own houses. How can we best divvy up the costs and the […]
We all sustain emotional wounds. Failure, guilt, rejection, and loss are as much a part of life as the occasional scraped elbow. But while we typically bandage a cut or ice a sprained ankle, our first aid kit for emotional injuries is not just understocked—it’s nonexistent. Fortunately, there is such a thing as mental first […]
I will read the children's story from Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling, about how the first animals came to be domesticated. I hope you will forgive the improbable prehistory and the gender essentialism for the sake of some lovely poetic language, a good story, and the truth about cats. This week's speaker will be […]
Distress Tolerance is one of the four pillars of Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and a valuable skill for anyone to have. This is not about staying in miserable situations or suffering for the sake of suffering, but about being able to sit with uncomfortable thoughts or feelings without immediately jumping to fix them, blame someone, escape, […]
The best leadership is not imposed from outside or above, it arises organically from within. Even preschoolers can organize spontaneously to achieve a goal. The group may end up deferring to the person with the best ideas or the clearest ways of communicating them. A group member may take the lead, follow a leader's direct […]