Dr. Daniel Dennett is a philosopher, professor at Tufts University, and author of several books including Breaking the Spell and Darwin’s Dangerous Idea. His research also led to the formation of The Clergy Project, an online forum for closeted religious leaders who no longer believe in God.

His latest book is called From Bacteria to Bach and Back, and it’s all about how our minds evolved.

I spoke with him about why our minds are like a loaded iPhone, what we would do if the internet broke, and his new art exhibit.

Notes:

Here’s more information on Dr. Dennett’s upcoming art exhibit.

(Image via Wikipedia)

Jack Moline is President of Interfaith Alliance. In his long career, he’s become a powerful voice fighting for religious freedom for all Americans, regardless of their faith or belief system. As a rabbi, he has worked to create common ground between people of diverse religious and secular backgrounds. He’s advocated for a number of issues, including services for this disabled, affordable housing, marriage equality, pay equity and civil rights. Rabbi Moline has authored two books and offered commentary on a number of news programs.

I spoke with him about whether Donald Trump‘s Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch could be a surprise on church/state issues, why Trump’s proposed repeal of the Johnson Amendment would be a disaster in more ways than you might think, and what role atheists play in the interfaith movement.

Notes:

Be sure to check out Interfaith Alliance’s podcast State of Belief and details about the recipients of the group’s annual Walter Cronkite Faith & Freedom Award.

We (Hemant and Jessica) discussed the first week of the Donald Trump presidency.

We spoke about the Women’s March (and whether they were right to push aside anti-abortion groups), whether religious pandering still matters in politics, and what Trump did in his first week in office.

Notes:

The New York Times‘ annotated inaugural address transcript.

POLITICO’s breakdown of Trump’s first week.

Adam Ruins Everything video.

Information about Texas’ maternal mortality rate.

Bonus link: Action points for the First 100 days.

(Image via Shutterstock)

Maggie Garrett is the Legislative Director for Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

She leads the National Coalition for Public Education (NCPE), which opposes school voucher legislation, and is the chair of the Coalition Against Religious Discrimination (CARD), the national coalition fighting to repeal the Bush Faith-Based Initiative.

On the day of Donald Trump‘s inauguration, we spoke about the church/state issues affecting his Cabinet nominees, what a future Supreme Court might look like, and whether a right-wing government is good for groups like Americans United.