Truth Wanted

Show notes will be posted when available.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today’s episode of the Truth Wanted, Objectively Dan and Coleman Watts work through a classic conspiracy theory caller before taking long-time caller Jon for a refreshing conclusion. Greg in CA is not comfortable calling things conspiracy theories when they are true such as the conspiracy theory of who might be behind the events of September 11, 2001 because of words mentioned in a classroom. It has not been demonstrated that a former POTUS was behind these events, however, these events could have been used to benefit him politically. What happens when you have two or more conspiracy theories? Why would any reasonable or sane person allow an attack to happen? When the world’s problems are blamed on a particular race, bad things tend to unfold. If you take the time to get to know people of the race that you think is responsible for all evil things, it makes it harder to believe your conspiracy about that race. How do you explain the bad things that have happened in the world that have nothing to do with Jewish people? When you are more interested in perpetuating your delusional ideas than having an actual conversation, there is no point in continuing the discussion. Just to be clear, we do NOT endorse any views of this caller. Jon in Canada, is convinced that Area 51 conspiracies are bogus because the aliens would not just come all the way here and then fly away. Why would we not be interesting to aliens when there is no apparent life around us? If such a technology existed to allow defiance of time and space, it would be a shame if they crashed in a desert that might have looked like the planet they just abandoned. Thank you for joining us this week! Remember, always keep seeking the truth, even when loved ones are wearing tin foil hats. Believe in God? Ghosts? Astrology? Conspiracy theories? Call Truth Wanted!  7:00-8 :30PM CT at 1-512-991-9242 or call with your computer 💻 http://tiny.cc/calltw► Don't like ads? Consider becoming a patron for commercial-free episodes:  https://tiny.cc/patreontw► Podcasts may be found @: https://tiny.cc/podcasttw► Shop Truth Wanted merchandise @:  https://tiny.cc/merchaca► We welcome your comments on the thread for this show.  Contact us with questions or news stories at: tv@atheist-community.org The Atheist Community of Austin is organized as a nonprofit educational corporation to develop and support the atheist community, to provide opportunities for socializing and friendship, to promote secular viewpoints, to encourage positive atheist culture, to defend the first amendment principle of state-church separation, to oppose discrimination against atheists and to work with other organizations in pursuit of common goals.We define atheism as the lack of belief in gods. This definition also encompasses what most people call agnosticism.We request pronouns as part of the call screening process on our shows, and we display the pronouns our callers provide.  If you see a caller with no pronouns indicated, this is because they chose not to provide us with any, and we respect that decision.► http://www.atheist-community.org (The Atheist Community of Austin)NOTESTruthWanted is the official channel of Truth Wanted. "Truth Wanted" is a trademark of the ACA.Thumbnail artwork by:   / princepsed   Copyright © 2018-2026 Atheist Community of Austin. All rights reserved.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today's episode of Truth Wanted, Kelley Laughlin is joined by Stephen Harder, the "Naked Mennonite," to explore the origins of Friday the 13th superstitions, the math of coincidences, and why our brains are so prone to seeing patterns in the chaos! They delve into the deconstruction of biblical myths and the importance of finding secular community after leaving the flock.Henry argues for psychophysical harmony and God as a necessary being, citing the fine-tuning of the universe for life and consciousness. The hosts challenge the fine-tuning claim, noting the universe is mostly hostile to life. They push back on his deistic model, questioning how a disembodied mind interacts with physical reality without evidence. Can a perfect mind exist without a physical brain to ground it?Thank you for joining us today! We will see you next week and don't forget to add your answer to this week's We Want The Truth question: The best way to get kicked out of heaven is.Believe in God? Ghosts? Astrology? Conspiracy theories? Call Truth Wanted!  7:00-8 :30PM CT at 1-512-991-9242 or call with your computer 💻 http://tiny.cc/calltw► Don't like ads? Consider becoming a patron for commercial-free episodes:  https://tiny.cc/patreontw► Podcasts may be found @: https://tiny.cc/podcasttw► Shop Truth Wanted merchandise @: https://tiny.cc/merchaca► Contact us with questions or news stories at: truth@atheist-community.orgThe Atheist Community of Austin is organized as a nonprofit educational corporation to develop and support the atheist community, to provide opportunities for socializing and friendship, to promote secular viewpoints, to encourage positive atheist culture, to defend the first amendment principle of state-church separation, to oppose discrimination against atheists and to work with other organizations in pursuit of common goals.We define atheism as the lack of belief in gods. This definition also encompasses what most people call agnosticism.We request pronouns as part of the call screening process on our shows, and we display the pronouns our callers provide.  If you see a caller with no pronouns indicated, this is because they chose not to provide us with any, and we respect that decision.► http://www.atheist-community.org (The Atheist Community of Austin)NOTES:TruthWanted is the official channel of Truth Wanted. "Truth Wanted" is a trademark of the ACA.Thumbnail artwork by:   / princepsed   Copyright © 2018-2026 Atheist Community of Austin. All rights reserved.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Show notes will be posted when available.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today's episode of Truth Wanted, Kelley Laughlin and Aaron Jensen explore the limits of free will, the necessity of universal logic, and the origins of our universe! From the "hellscapes" of Oregon to the mysteries of the Big Bang, the hosts challenge listeners to move beyond religious labels and ground their worldview in evidence.Jamie in TX questions the free will defense. If heaven has free will without evil, why is the earthly trial needed? Hosts distinguish between choice and will, citing biology. Does the concept of heavenly robots invalidate the trial?Goatus in OH asks if universal truths like logic exist without God. Hosts explore logical axioms and scientific pragmatism. They argue these are tools for navigating reality rather than divine mandates. Does a lack of grounding make logic arbitrary?Stephen in NY redefines God as "determinism." Hosts identify this as a relabeling exercise with no explanatory power. They challenge the link between divine intent and material physics. Why use the God label for natural laws we already understand?John in Canada asks about the Big Bang and universe origins. They discuss singularities, time travel, and dark matter. The hosts stress the value of saying "I don't know" when evidence is absent. Will we ever observe the beginning of time?Thank you for joining us today! We will see you next week and don't forget to add your answer to this week's We Want The Truth question: what's the most ridiculous religious claim that you've believed?Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Show notes will be posted when available.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Show notes will be posted when available.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Show notes upon receipt. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today’s episode of Truth Wanted, Objectively Dan and Deconstruction Deacon wrestle with the concept of free will before uncovering their own limitations of free will when it comes to deciding what species to consume over another. Salvatore in LA calls to continue a conversation had with the co-host, and defines free will as the ability for a moral agent to choose. What are your thoughts around the ability not to choose? The caller explains that free will is a mechanism used to explain the problem of evil. Deacon uses his Street Epistemology skills to ask the caller a series of thought provoking questions. What does the process of choice look like in the brain? What factors in life make a person more likely to choose one option over another? In what sense is "will" free? Our choices can’t be truly free if we don’t understand all the conscious and unconscious processes. How is it free will when we are coerced?Chase, calling from the USA, wants to talk about speciesism, discrimination against other beings for not being human. If this is a form of harm reduction, what happens when one species is starving and another is abundantly available for food? If this is maximizing well being, how does this play out when one species consumes another due to dietary and nutritional needs? What happens when it is in the best interest of a spider to continue to live in a house that is occupied by someone who is terrified by spiders? Why do we put some animals in the food category such as pigs, and not other animals like dogs? Thank you for joining us this week! Our back up host, Scott Dickie joins us to close out the show and remind us of the question of the week: What is the worst example of god’s unconditional love?Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today’s episode of Truth Wanted, host Eli Slack and guest Tracy Wilbert kick off the ninth season by exploring the dangers of gaslighting and the potential for secular progress. They delve into the bicameral mind hypothesis and the bizarre reality of escaped monkeys in Missouri. The hosts challenge listeners to prioritize truth over convenient narratives as they set the stage for a season of critical thinking and skeptical inquiry.Michelle in NY asks if secular society can surpass religious ones. Eli argues religion causes novel harm, while Tracy compares dogma to a car boot preventing progress. The conversation shifts to the origins of animism and Michelle's personal pseudo-belief in a minimally powerful creator. The hosts challenge her 50/50 stance as a logical contradiction. How does one justify a deity while admitting there is no evidence? What happens when intuition clashes with reality?Thank you for joining us today! We will see you next week, and don't forget to add your answer to this week's We Want The Truth question: What is the worst lie you were caught in?Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

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In today’s episode of Truth Wanted, Kelley Laughlin and Planet Peterson sit in grass circles left by saucers and use inductive reasoning to observe the double slit experiment as they quantify infinity. Dan in Canada is curious about the Landenberg incident where a farmer had seen five saucer shaped objects in his field that left circles on the grass after they flew into the sky. This just seems too silly to be true. Is it possible this farmer wanted people to remember his name and made it up? It looks like he succeeded because there was a cool glowing coin made after the incident. How do people become experts in crop circles? Is it possible BigFoot had anything to do with this? Afterall, it was Saskatchewan!Ransom in WY wants to talk about the Double-slit experiment and how that can prove there is life outside of this universe as a conscious observer. Measurements collapse the wave function, not conscious observations. What people say about this and other pop science is not what you think it is. What happens when the majority of physicists have a different explanation and opinion than the one physicist that you want to believe? Understanding the data and how wave patterns are shown on a screen is key to drawing the correct interpretations on this. The Delayed Choice Quantum Eraser, Debunked is a good place to start to know more about this. James in NY asks the hosts if infinity could ever be quantified. Even with every fundamental thing in the universe included as a counting device, we would not be able to do this. We know about infinite sets and how they are used in math, but they are not quantified. Zeno's Paradox shows the infinite regression of an arrow never reaching a target because it must first reach an infinite number of half way points. This illustrates how a finite set can represent an infinite series. Lee in Canada has some thoughts about how the scientific method uses inductive reasoning to show the hypothesis is false. Science does not deal in absolutes, but it can prove that things are false. When you solve the mathematical proof, there is nothing else left. In the court of law, you are not proven innocent, you are proven not guilty. Religion does not explain anything or contribute to epistemology in any rational way and is almost the opposite of the scientific method to gain knowledge. Thank you for joining us for this fascinating show! Scott Dickie, our back-up host joins us to close us out as musician Collin Yours gives us a live beautiful sounding folk show!  Prompt of the week is: Name a religious counterpart for a scientific claim. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Show notes upon receipt.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today’s episode of Truth Wanted, Objectively Dan and Jess dissect humanistic tribalism to reveal some interesting conclusions and how to work with family that are grieving during the holidays.Lewis from NY asks how humanists justify moral priority without it becoming species level tribalism, if moral value were to be based on sentience rather than group membership. Dan explains how this is related to him being a vegan and that we are just as evolved as any other being on this earth. Jess asks the caller to expand on sentience and wants to learn more of how group tribalism works in relation to this dynamic. Lewis explains how non-human animals are the excluded group when in-group bias exists within humanism. Dan reminds us that animals can’t advocate for themselves and it will only be up to humans to make that change in justice. What is the best approach to practicing sentience while preventing species level tribalism?Benjamin in IL is coming up on the first holiday season without his dad and asks how to deal with his family in relation to processing this loss during this holiday season. What were meaningful activities you would do with your loved ones who are no longer with you each holiday season? What are some ways of talking about time spent with this person that are most appropriate? Are they concerned about talking with you about this and what levels of anxiety do they have about this? Keep holidays fun and remember the eggnog!Thank you for joining us! Kelley Laughlin, our back-up host joins to close out the show and remind us of the question of the week: What is an innocent text during the day, but not at night? Always keep wanting the truth and we will see you next week!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today’s episode of Truth Wanted, Objectively Dan and Coach Renz explore Schrodinger’s callers. Can the callers exist and not exist at the same time? Michelle in NY, proposes a version of Schrodinger's cat that replaces the   with god’s existence where god exists in life and death at the same time. The cat can be verified to be in the box, dead or alive, yet we can’t even verify if god exists or not. If our morality has grown from the time of man’s creation of god to now, how does that change the monstrous nature of god described in the Bible? If we can’t answer the question of whether god exists or not, there is no point in answering god’s troll bridge riddles to determine our eternal fate, and therefore remaining agnostic is the default. Michelle has some fun points that are well suited for theatrical creative writing!Jon in Canada asks for Kelley Laughlin to join for Jon’s last call. Jon feels he has said what he needed to say in past shows and this will be his final call because he still does not believe in woke stuff, but wishes the hosts well. Kelley wishes Jon to have a good life, wants him to continue questioning everything, and tells Jon he is a smart guy capable of making better decisions. Dan reminds Jon of how he has reflected a genuine change of mind on things that are more that can be said than most of the people who call in. Kelley and Jon agree they have had some good conversations over the years. Walking away from Christianity is a massive change in your life and can sometimes turn things upside down. We hope you call again when you have had time to process. Dr. Girlfriend in TX proposes that just one hour of research on the most famous of the paranormal stories, will cause them all to fall apart. Be careful of being too skeptical because you will become part of the conspiracy! The topic of the Bermuda Triangle came up and Coach Renz mentions how he feared it as an adult to illustrate real world consequences of paranormal beliefs. Don’t let fiction and imagination morph into conspiracy theories!Kelly in the Pacific Northwest is a theist that is currently deconstructing. She has recently been concerned about what happens the next time something happens that is devastating if there is no god that is interactive with us, and is overwhelmed by what comes next. Dan mentions that when realizing you have to put your life together, it can be an isolating thing and how important help from other people can be. Renz adds that every time you are knocked down, you have made the decision to get back up. Remember to always fight for yourself and learn from your hardships. Kelly, thank you for the call; this is the best conversation many of us have had all week. Thank you for joining us this week! Kelley Laughlin, our back up host, closes out the show and reminds us to think of what kind of ornament to hang if we want to start an argument. See you next week!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Welcome to our Thankful For Our Haters 2025 Thanksgiving Special. While we give the hosts and the crew some much deserved time off to spend with friends and family, we wanted you to have something to enjoy your holiday meal with. This year, because we were so outstanding, there weren't many hateful comments about us individually, so we decided to branch out and find out some of the hatful comments that were out there in general. Some of these you are undoubtedly familiar with, but we're hoping some of these will catch you by surprise. So enjoy!Attributions and references 1) George H.W. Bush https://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/George_H.WBushand_the_Atheists 2) John Locke https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/historic-document-library/detail/john-locke-a-letter-concerning-toleration-1689-and-two-treatises-on-government-1690 3) Steve Harveyhttps://youtu.be/-dwwkWSyxUE?si=WgFCHBjU7CjH1MiM&t=813 4) Phil Robertsonhttps://time.com/3759113/duck-dynasty-star-atheists-controversy/ 5) Newt Gingrich2011 speech at the First Baptist Church of Dallas while promoting his book A Nation Like No Other: Why American Exceptionalism Matters (2011), Regnery Publishing. 6) Alice WalkerThe Globe and Mail (October 1, 2011) 7) Dinesh D'Souzahttps://www.csmonitor.com/2006/1121/p09s01-coop.html 8) Theodore RooseveltLadies' Home Journal (1917) 9) Oprah Winfreyhttps://youtu.be/iNhN9KHIi4o?si=66y_b14w6764HO1F&t=1661 10) Kevin Sorbohttps://www.podbean.com/site/EpisodeDownload/DIREE934C5CRJ49 11) Kirk CameronThe Way of the Master DVD Series, Living Waters 12) Rick Reillyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-Ji77dolmA 13) Tyson Furyhttps://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/oct/04/tyson-fury-cocaine-live-anymore-boxing 14) Mark Driscollhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCmx2L-49Oc 15) Dolly PartonClose Up with Arthlene Rippy (January 2011) 16) Paul Walkerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kf0qJanOnAM 17) John Hageehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYA5Ypak7Ko 18) Ben Steinhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ExpelledNoIntelligence_Allowed 19) Kenneth Copelandhttps://www.govictory.com/show/believers-voice-of-victory-daily/ 20) Chuck Norrishttps://www.wnd.com/2006/11/38960/ 21) Dennis Pragerhttps://www.goodreads.com/quotes/9904955-while-an-ever-increasing-number-of-people-consider-themselves-agnostic-the#:~:text=While%20an%20ever%2Dincreasing%20number%20of%20people%20consider%20themselves%20agnostic,atheist%2C%20belief%2Din%2Dgod 22) Frank Turekhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fd7bvruM8U 23) Ray Comforthttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXLqDGL1FSgBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

In today’s episode of the Truth Wanted, Objectively Dan and Trust But Verify, use street epistemology to dig deep into a caller’s concept of a finely tuned universe and yield some fascinating responses!John Paul in WA believes that design of the fine tuned universe is more likely than everything being here by accident and asserts that god used evolution as the process. The hosts respond with some finely tuned questions by compelling the caller to think through why he believes this. Why did god use evolution as this process? Who is in charge, god or nature? How would nature look if it were not designed, or how do you distinguish between something that is designed by god and something that isn’t? If this universe is fine tuned, what is it fine tuned for? We can draw a correlation between radiation from the sun and cancer. If this universe is fine tuned, why are there so many things trying to kill us? What other universe do we have to compare this to? How do we know the universe was not finely tuned and designed so that diamonds could be made? Why did not just not create electrons with minds and how do we know god’s intention? If the constants are necessary for the universe, how is it that a designer was free to choose them? Why did god design us to die of thirst after not having water for more than three days, and yet we can’t even drink 99% of the water on the earth? Dan closes the call by stating that John Paul has given the most intelligent defense to the fine tuning argument heard in years, and encourages future calls from John Paul. Thank you for observing the interesting call today; we would love to have more calls like this!  Kelley Laughlin joins us to remind us of the question of the week: What is the best reason to break the god damned second commandment? See you all next week!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/truth-wanted--3195473/support.