Washington Area Secular Humanists

10/29/2026

"Making fun of the decor at Cheesecake Factory was elitist. Bragging that the crowd wouldn't be able to afford the food at his private club is, what exactly?"

10/28/2026

The Guardian reports on how “RFK’s sweeping changes place new vaccines in limbo,” writing “access to vaccines is suffering, and some of the uncertainty may continue for years.” It’s tied into RFK Jr.’s effort to replace the members of the government’s ACIP vaccine recommendations panel.

A judge’s order halted these changes because they were not done correctly, but Kennedy has not nominated any new ACIP members – which means there are no new vaccination recommendations coming from the committee, even as new vaccines are approved.
“This White House and DoJ are making no serious attempt to actually revive the vaccine committee,” Aaron Siri, who has served as Kennedy’s lawyer and has litigated cases against vaccine makers, wrote on Monday. Siri added: “It appears the DOJ and the White House are doing everything they can to make sure that there is no functioning vaccine committee.”

Health secretary’s effort to alter makeup of ACIP panel means no new recommendations coming – even as new vaccines are approved

10/28/2026

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is decrying the growing influence of Christian nationalism at the Pentagon following disturbing revelations about a senior adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

10/28/2026

A group of secular organizations sent a letter to the leadership of the Senate Armed Services Committee urging them to carefully review Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's recently created Office of Religious Affairs (ORA).

"In general, the Defense Department’s role should be to provide reasonable religious accommodations and support for its personnel of every religion and no religion. I encourage you and the Armed Services Committee to provide the necessary oversight so that ORA is not promoting one particular version of one religion."

10/27/2026

An atheist requested a "religious accommodation" to refuse AI at work—and his university agreed.

David Durman says generative AI conflicts with his Humanist beliefs.

Kudos to American Humanist Association for making it happen!

David Durman used a religious accommodation law to protect his conscience and his ability to do his job without generative AI

10/27/2026

In case anyone thought the announcement of a disillusioned Calley Means’s resignation was the prelude to something more exciting, Axios is here to pour cold water on that idea. They report that, contrary to earlier speculation, there is “zero” sign that RFK Jr. is planning on leaving after the midterms.

Strap in, folks. Our fight continues...

Back to the grind, gang. Signs are that, as of now, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will be sticking around after the midterms.

10/26/2026

Check out Skeptical Inquirer columnist Autumn Sword’s latest web-exclusive, “Jonesing for the Devil: Alex Jones’s Latest Satanic Conspiracy Theory.”

"Trying to understand Jones is an exercise in intellectual masochism. It’s difficult to critically analyze anything he says because, for one, he rarely provides sources and, when he does, they’re usually taken out of context. Another difficulty in trying to understand Jones’s train of thought lies in that it follows tracks that only make sense to him. That said, when I saw an episode of The Alex Jones Show Live with the title “Exclusive: Learn Who Is Behind Satanists Taking Over City Council Meetings Nationwide!” I decided I had to watch. I’m a glutton for punishment after all."

It’s Halloween season, and surely there’s nothing scarier than trying to watch Alex Jones talk about anything. Trying to understand Jones is an exercise in ...

10/26/2026

Paul Offit revisits a speech RFK Jr. gave in 2021 in which he called the Amish “the control group” for his antivaccine movement. Turns out he was kinda right ... just not in the way he meant it.

Four years after that visit to Lancaster County, RFK Jr. was sworn in as Secretary of Health and Human Services. And, as he had predicted, the Amish had become “the control group that the CDC didn’t want you to know about.” Or at least the control group that RFK Jr. didn’t want us to know about. With RFK Jr. in charge, the CDC failed to accurately record the number of Amish and Mennonite people on its website who had died from measles. RFK Jr. didn’t want us to know how effective his 20-year campaign against vaccines had been.

In July 2021, while speaking to a large Mennonite crowd in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, RFK Jr. made two accurate predictions.

10/26/2026

An essay in Christianity Today says concerns about Christian Nationalism are exaggerated.

But even that defense points to support for teacher-led prayers, Ten Commandments displays in schools, and Christian “moral values.”

Those are real threats!

Jesse Smith’s “three myths” argument ignores the real-world policies already giving Christianity special status

10/26/2026

The FFRF Action Fund is highlighting new polling underscoring the growing political importance of secular voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.