Recent Events (2008)

Our current calendar of events is on our home page and in our newsletter.
When What
Thursday, December 25th Annual brunch at Pacific Buffet & Grill, 20 Ives Road, Wallingford. Link to map of Pacific Buffet-Grill restaurant location.
Monday, December 15th
Annual Meeting, Elections, and Solstice Party

We started with a pot-luck dinner at 7:30 PM, followed by our annual meeting and elections a little after 8:00 PM. After that, our Winter Solstice Party included music from Wild Notes, a silent auction, and a special guest appearance by Ed Buckner, president of American Atheists.
Sunday, December 14th
cover of 'The Jungle' by Upton Sinclair Book discussion on The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair. It's available at many public libraries as well as at bookstores and online.
Saturday, December 13th

Humanist Conversations: Congo.

In this month's topical discussion we watched several videos exploring the motivations for the current conflict in the Congo.
Monday, December 8th New Haven area social dinner at Turkish Kebab House, 1157 Campbell Ave., West Haven Link to map of Turkish Kebab House restaurant location.
Sunday, November 23rd
Monthly Meeting: Change: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

In a return visit to HAC, Eugene B. Kogan present a post-election analysis of political, security and economic developments — and interconnections among the three — primarily as they relate to the United States, but also as they impact our relationships with countries like Russia.

A Senior Political Analyst with Americans for Informed Democracy, Kogan is also Eskind Fellow in Democracy and Public Policy and a Ph.D. student in International Relations at Brandeis University, and holds a 2006 M.Sc. in International Relations from the London School of Economics.
Sunday, November 16th November board and standing committee meetings.
Saturday, November 15th
Sixth meeting of the HAC Bible Reading Group. The assigned reading from our series reference How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now, by James L. Kugel was:
  • Chapter 19. P and D 297-316
  • Chapter 20. On the Way to Canaan 317-334
  • Chapter 21. Moses’ Last Words 335-363

Attendees were also asked to review the following:

And to read the following:

This session was a little later than normal as we started with a pot-luck dinner before the discussionat.

 cover of 'How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now' by James L. Kugel
Thursday, November 13th Waterbury/Danbury area social dinner at Lisboa, 19 Lafayette Street, Waterbury. Link to map of Lisboa restaurant location
Sunday, November 9th New Haven-area brunch at Coromandel, 185 Boston Post Road, Orange, Link to map of Coromandel restaurant location.
Monday, November 3rd New Haven area social dinner at Turkish Kebab House, 1157 Campbell Ave., West Haven Link to map of Turkish Kebab House restaurant location.
Saturday, November 1st

Humanist Conversations: 60 Minutes: “The Bet That Blew Up Wall Street.”

In this topical discussion we examined credit default swaps as explained in the October 26, 2008, 60-Minutes segment, “The Bet That Blew Up Wall Street.”
Sunday, October 26th October board and standing committee meetings.
Saturday, October 25th
cover of 'Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln' by Doris Kearns Goodwin Book discussion on Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, by Doris Kearns Goodwin.
Thursday, October 23rd Hartford-area dinner at Taste of India, 139 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location. (860) 561-2221.
Monday, October 20th
Monthly Meeting: An Overview of New Sources of Energy

Manny Ratafia reviewed the many new sources of energy that are being developed.
Sunday, October 19th Five HAC members walked in the Cook & Care Walkathon, at Edgerton Park, New Haven.
Saturday, October 18th Matinée showing of Bill Maher's movie "Religulous" at the Holiday Cinemas 10, 61 Pomeroy Ave., Meriden Link to map of Holiday Cinemas 10 location in Meriden.
Monday, October 13th New Haven area social dinner at Turkish Kebab House, 1157 Campbell Ave., West Haven Link to map of Turkish Kebab House restaurant location.
Saturday, October 11th

Humanist Conversations: Election Issues

The theme of the meeting was: "What isses concern you in the upcoming election? Are they being reported in the mainstream media? Bring one or two issues to share with the other attendees."
Saturday, October 4th
Fifth meeting of the HAC Bible Reading Group. We read the following from our series reference How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now, by James L. Kugel.
  • Chapter 16. The Ten Commandments 250-259
  • Chapter 17. A Religion of Laws 260-279
  • Chapter 18. Worship on the Road 280-295

And from Wikipedia:

  • Ten Commandments. Read, in particular Section 4, "Religious Interpretations" which covers Judaism, Samaritan, Christianity, Islam, and Other Traditions and Section 5, "Controversies." Note the different versions within religions and among different religions.
  • Seven Laws of Noah
  • Five Pillars of Islam

In addition to discussing the reading materials, we watched a 15-minute video segment.

 cover of 'How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now' by James L. Kugel
Wednesday, September 24th Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location.
Sunday, September 21st September board and standing committee meetings.
Thursday, September 18th Waterbury/Danbury area social dinner at Lisboa, 19 Lafayette Street, Waterbury. Link to map of Lisboa restaurant location
Monday, September 15th
Monthly Meeting: Ernestine L. Rose

HAC member Bonnie Cohen presented a profile of the19th century Polish-born freethinker, feminist, abolitionist and entrepreneur Ernestine L. Rose. After arriving in the USA in 1836, Rose launched a campaign that ultimately resulted in the Married Women's Property Rights Acts.
Saturday, September 13th

Humanist Conversations: China’s Global Relationships

We watched and discussed the August 6 broadcast of ABC’s Primetime entitled, “Why Every American Should Care About China: The Emerging Superpower Is Forging Relationships Where the U.S. Isn’t.”
Monday, September 8th New Haven area social dinner at Bear & Grill, 385 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Bear and Grill restaurant location.
Saturday, September 6th
1:15 PM (video)
2:30 to 4:30 PM (discussion)
cover of 'Creating a World Without Poverty' by Muhammad Yunus Book discussion on Creating a World Without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism, by Muhammad Yunus. It's available at many public libraries as well as at bookstores and online.

We'll show the MIT video of Muhammad Yunus at 1:15 PM. The discussion starts at 2:30 PM.
Sunday, August 24th August board and standing committee meetings.
Thursday, August 21st Waterbury/Danbury area social dinner at Lisboa, 19 Lafayette Street, Waterbury. Link to map of Lisboa restaurant location
Monday, August 18th
Monthly Meeting: Margaret Kennedy Knight, Humanist Hero

For the latest installment in his series of short biographies of notable humanists, HAC vice-president Doug Peary turned to British humanist and educator Margaret Kennedy Knight. (Mickey Koth profiled Ms. Knight back in November 2000.)
Monday, August 11th Our New Haven area social dinner was to be held at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location. However, the restaurant was closed for minor repairs, so we went down the street to the Bear & Grill.
Saturday, August 9th

Humanist Conversations: Bring a Book

Members brought one good book that they had read recently and recommended to the other book lovers at our "Bring a Book" session.
Tuesday, July 29th Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location.
Sunday, July 27th July board and standing committee meetings.
Saturday, July 26th
Fourth meeting of the HAC Bible Reading Group. The assigned reading was the following from our series reference How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now, by James L. Kugel.
  • Chapter 12. Joseph and His Brothers 176-197
  • Chapter 13. Moses in Egypt 198-216
  • Chapter 14. The Exodus 217-232
  • Chapter 15. A Covenant with God 233-249

Click here the readings for the earlier sessions that you may have missed.

 cover of 'How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now' by James L. Kugel
Monday, July 21st
Monthly Meeting: The State of Humanism

Members of the Humanist Association of Connecticut reported on several recent conferences, including the American Humanist Association (AHA)/International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) joint conference in Washington, DC; and the HUUmanist's participation in the Unitarian-Universalist Association's General Assembly.
Saturday, July 19th
cover of 'The Devil’s Disciple' by George Bernard Shaw Book discussion on The Devil's Disciple, by George Bernard Shaw. It's included in many compilations of Shaw’s plays, which are available at public libraries as well as at bookstores and online.
Friday, July 18th
Movie Night: The Devil's Disciple

We watched the eighty-two minute 1959 film based on George Bernard Shaw's play The Devil's Disciple. It stars Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Sir Laurence Olivier and Janette Scott. (To get the most out of this experience, please read the play before seeing the film as they're very different.)

 cover of 'The Devil’s Disciple' by George Bernard Shaw
Thursday, July 17th Waterbury/Danbury area social dinner at Lisboa, 19 Lafayette Street, Waterbury. Link to map of Lisboa restaurant location
Saturday, July 12th

Humanist Conversations: The Omnivore’s Next Dilemma

We watched and discussed a 17½ minute TED talk entitled “The omnivore’s next dilemma.” In this provocative talk, author Michael Pollan posed the question, “What if human consciousness isn’t the end-all and be-all of Darwinism?”
Monday, July 7th New Haven area social dinner at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location.
Saturday, July 5th

Annual Picnic at Bob and Joan Raffords' home in Middlebury
Tuesday, June 24th Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location.
Sunday, June 22nd June board and standing committee meetings.
Monday, June 16th
Monthly Meeting: Humanist Proselytizing in the Information Age

Our special guest was New York-based videographer Dror Kahn, who talked about using blogging, podcasting, YouTube, and social networking to spread the word about humanism.
Saturday, June 14th

Humanist Conversations: Lester Brown at Berkeley

We watched and discussed a video of the Berkeley Institute of the Environment's first annual Distinguished Lecture, featuring Lester R. Brown, founder of the Worldwatch Institute and the Earth Policy Institute: "Plan B: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble"
Monday, June 2nd New Haven area social dinner at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location.
Saturday, May 31st
Third meeting of the HAC Bible Reading Group. The assigned reading for this session was:
  1. Look at: “Jewish and Christian Bibles: A Comparative Chart”
  2. From our series reference How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now, by James L. Kugel.
    • Chapter 7. Two Models of God and the “God of Old” 107-118
    • Chapter 8. The Trials of Abraham 119-132
    • Chapter 9. Jacob and Esau 133-151
    • Chapter 10. Jacob and the Angel 152-162
    • Chapter 11. Dinah 163-175
  3. Read the Wikipedia entries on:
    • “Binding of Isaac” — note the differences in treatment of this story by different religions
    • “Abraham” — note the differences in treatment by different religions.
  4. Think about the differences in these stories and their interpretation among different religions and about how your religious background has affected the way you relate to these stores.
cover of 'How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now' by James L. Kugel
Tuesday, May 27th Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location.
Sunday, May 25th May board and standing committee meetings.
Monday, May 19th
19th Anniversary Meeting: Humanism for Young People

Amanda Metskas (Executive Director, Camp Quest, Inc.) and August Brunsman (Executive Director, Secular Student Alliance) presented their work with two organizations focused on bringing humanism to young people.

Camp Quest (www.camp-quest.org), a sleepaway summer camp with six locations around North America, is aimed at kids from humanist and other nontheistic families. The Secular Student Alliance (www.secularstudents.org) is an umbrella organization that supports atheist, agnostic, and humanist groups on college and high school campuses, with over 130 affiliates worldwide.

A poster for this talk is available for download.
Saturday, May 10th
2:30 to 4:30 PM
cover of 'Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body' by Neil Shubin Book discussion on Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body, by Neil Shubin. It's a relatively new book, but copies are available at public libraries as well as at bookstores and online.
Monday, May 5th New Haven area social dinner at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location.
Saturday, May 3rd

Humanist Conversations: Water

We watched and discussed a Democracy Now! interview with Maude Barlow, author of "Blue Covenant: The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water."
Wednesday, April 30th Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location. (860) 233-4405 for directions.
Sunday, April 27th April board and standing committee meetings.
Saturday, April 26th
Second meeting of the HAC Bible Reading Group. The following material was covered:
  1. From our series reference How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now, by James L. Kugel.
    • Chapter 2. The Creation of the World, and of Adam and Eve 47-57
    • Chapter 3. Cain and Abel 58-68
    • Chapter 4. The Great Flood 69-80
    • Chapter 5. The Tower of Babel 81-88
    • Chapter 6. The Call of Abraham 89-106
  2. The Wikipedia entries on:

Attendees were asked to catch up on any of the readings for the first session that had been missed.

 cover of 'How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now' by James L. Kugel
Monday, April 21st
Monthly Meeting: Abraham Lincoln, as Seen in His Own Lifetime, by Robert G. Ingersoll.

Our vice president, Doug Peary presented an unusual variation on his Humanist Heroes series: Robert Ingersoll's evidence that Lincoln was a deist and freethinker in the tradition of of Voltaire, Jefferson, Paine and Franklin.

A poster for this talk is available for download.

The talk replaced one previously scheduled for April 14th, so we moved the monthly meeting back to the third Monday of April.

At the business meeting, the board asked the membership to approve donating the collection at the May meeting to Camp Quest and disbursing the amount necessary to make the total donation equal to the cost of one campership.
Monday, April 7th New Haven area social dinner at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location.
Saturday, April 5th

Humanist Conversations: Election Rhetoric: How Do We Decide Where to Get Our Information and What Does It Mean - Really?

The last two weeks brought crises for the Democratic candidates; Rev. Wright for Obama and Clinton's over-heated description of her arrival in Bosnia. How did this happen? What did they say? How did we find out about any of it? We have video of Obama's speech, Bosnia, and an interview with McCain as well as some print articles.
Saturday, March 29th
First meeting of the new HAC Bible Reading Group. The following preparatory reading was required to get the most out of the meeting:
  1. The New York Times review article "Reading Is Believing, or Not" By David Plotz
  2. From our series reference How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now, by James L. Kugel.
    • Preliminaries, pages xi-xiv
    • The Rise of Modern Biblical Scholarship, pages 1-46
  3. The article "The Editorial Team Behind the Bible--Interview with Richard Elliott Friedman"
  4. The Wikipedia entry on the "Documentary Hypothesis"
cover of 'How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now' by James L. Kugel
Wednesday, March 26th Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location.
Sunday, March 23rd March board and standing committee meetings.
Saturday, March 22nd
cover of '1984' by George Orwell Book discussion on 1984, by George Orwell.
Monday, March 17th
Monthly Meeting

Ken Feder returned with another educational, skeptical talk: The Loch Ness Monster: Anatomy of a Plesiosaur or Anatomy of a Myth? Ken is a professor of anthropology at Central Connecticut State University and the author of Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries: Science and Pseudoscience in Archaeology.

A poster for this talk is available for download.
Monday, March 3rd New Haven area social dinner at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location.
Saturday, March 1st

Humanist Conversations: Nader for President?

We watched and discussed the seventeen minutes of Ralph Nader's announcement on Meet the Press on Sunday, February 24.
Thursday, February 28th Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location.
Sunday, February 24th February board and standing committee meetings.
Monday, February 18th
Monthly Meeting

Our speaker was Egyptian-born political activist and ACLU member Khalil Iskarous, who presented a talk “Iraq and Palestine: Historical Discourse as a Factor in Maintenance of Occupation”
Monday, February 11th New Haven area social dinner at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location.
Saturday, February 2nd

Humanist Conversations: Enjoying podcasts without an iPod

While battling with technical problems, Carol Stone gave a gentle introduction to podcasts, MP3 players, and other technology you might need to know about to take advantage of some of the humanist material now available on the internet.
Thursday, January 31st Hartford-area dinner at Lemongrass, 7 South Main Street, West Hartford, Link to map of Lemongrass restaurant location. (860) 233-4405 for directions.
Sunday, January 27th January board and standing committee meetings.
Monday, January 21st
Monthly Meeting

HAC vice-president Doug Peary, presented the latest in his series of inspirational talks, Stephen Jay Gould, Humanist Hero.

A poster for this meeting is available for download.
Monday, January 14th New Haven area social dinner at Pasta Fair 262 Boston Post Rd, Orange Link to map of Pasta Fair restaurant location.
Saturday, January 12th
cover of 'Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think' by George Lakoff Book discussion on Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think, by George Lakoff. Copies of this classic book are available at public libraries as well as at bookstores and online. (The earlier edition of this book, Moral Politics: What Conservatives Know that Liberals Don't is essentially the same.)
Saturday, January 5th

Humanist Conversations: Freedom to Vote: Protecting the Ballot

We watched and discussed a short movie by Robert Greenwald from the second season of the ACLU's Freedom Files on the problems with attempts to require valid ID to vote.

Click here to see some other events we've enjoyed over the years.