Julie Wolfram Cox

Bill Cooke

Fundamentals of Action Research

This dictionary will serve as a guide for all those people striving to lead fulfilling, morally responsible lives without religious belief.

Dictionary of Atheism, Skepticism & Humanism

Gathering of Infidels In 1899, a small group of men under the leadership of Charles Albert Watts founded the Rationalist Press Association (RPA) in London. Its mission was, among other goals, to promote rationalism and secular education as well as to publish freethought books at affordable prices. For more than a century the RPA has served as a bastion of reason in an often-irrational world. Its Honorary Associates have included such luminaries of the 20th century as Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, J. B. S. Haldane, Julian Huxley, Somerset Maugham, Bertrand Russell, H. G. Wells, and others. Now experienced freethought historian Bill Cooke has written the first history of the RPA, delving deeply into its archives to tell a fascinating and illuminating story. Cooke discusses the association's achievements and ideas, and profiles the key people involved in its development. At the same time, he does not shy away from its difficulties and controversies, offering a critical perspective that rationalists will certainly appreciate. He covers the historical background of the RPA's formation, the crucial role played by Charles Albert Watts, its enormous publishing successes, the vicissitudes of war and peace, and the evolution of rationalist ideas. Full bibliographies and appendices are also included. This scholarly yet highly readable and witty history of the Rationalist Press Association will be welcomed by all who value reason as humanity's best hope for the future.

A Hundred Years of the Rationalist Press Association

The Gathering of Infidels

Sam Slade didn't believe in Gorgo until he saw the monster's hideous scaly face, its slimy green talons and the massive mouth that could swallow a killer whale. If this was not enough he was to have even bigger problems in his future. The story mixes familiarity with a couple of neat plot twists; the special effects are ambitious and oftentimes stunning; and the use of a man in a rubber dinosaur suit, a technique usually met with derision, is undoubtedly one of the best on record. But perhaps the reason that supersedes them all is that Gorgo is the rare city-stomping monster spectacle with heart. Released by MGM in 1961, Gorgo is that oft-told cinematic fable of the giant beast that threatens humanity This volume contains the shooting script and the original tie-in novel by Carson Bingham and a production background by Bill Cooke.

Gorgo

This is the first biography of Joseph McCabe (1867-1955), a former Catholic preist who became one of the best-known champions and a prolific popularizer of freethought and rationalism in the first half of the 20th century. McCabe's encyclopedic curiosity, rigorous scholarship, and above all his unswerving intellectual honesty led him through a tumultuous career of public lecturing and debating, and an incredible output of over 200 books. He tackled the most controversial issues of the modern era: evolution, biblical errancy, belief in God, immorality, spiritualism, capitalism vs. socialism, women's rights, and many other topics. Much of his writing was published in the form of the Little Blue Books by E. Haldeman-Julius, who declared McCabe to be the world's greatest scholar.Today in our postmodern period, where Enlightenment values are being questioned and irrationalism in many guises has become fashionable, McCabe's gift for rational inquiry, respect for scientific evidence, and lucid, no-nonsense prose are both relevant and welcome.Bill Cooke (Auckland, New Zealand) is a lecturer at the Manukau Institute of Technology in New Zealand and the author of Heathen in Godzone: Seventy Years of Rationalism in New Zealand.

Joseph Mccabe and Rationalism

A Rebel to His Last Breath

[B]elongs in every thinker's (or freethinker's) reference library. -Free Inquiry[F]ills a void in the reference literature of religion by focusing on atheism, skepticism, and humanism....the work should be purchased by libraries serving seminaries and other religious institutions and by academic libraries that support programs in religion or philosophy. -American Reference Books Annual[A]n indispensable research tool for all nonbelievers and scholars in the field of religion.... displays an impressive grasp of the field. -Michael Martin, Professor of Philosophy Emeritus, Boston UniversityIn the tradition of Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary, Ambrose Bierce's Devil's Dictionary, and Joseph McCabe's Rationalist Encyclopedia, this accessible dictionary addresses the contemporary need for a reference book that succinctly summarizes the key concepts, current terminology, and major contributions of influential thinkers broadly associated with atheism, skepticism, and humanism. In the preface, author Bill Cooke notes that his work is intended for freethinkers in the broadest sense of the word: people who like to think for themselves and not according to the preplanned routes set by others. This dictionary will serve as a guide for all those people striving to lead fulfilling, morally responsible lives without religious belief.Readers are offered a wide range of concepts, from ancient, well-known notions such as God, free will, and evil to new concepts such as eupraxsophy. Also included are current buzzwords that have some bearing on the freethought worldview such as metrosexual. The names of many people whose lives or work reflect freethought principles form a major portion of the entries. Finally, a humanist calendar is included, on which events of interest to freethinkers are noted.This unique, accessible, and highly informative work will be a welcome addition to the libraries of open-minded people of all philosophic persuasions.Bill Cooke (Amherst, NY) is International Director of the Center for Inquiry, Visiting Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo, formerly Senior Lecturer at the School of Visual Arts at the University of Auckland at Manukau in New Zealand, and the author of A Rebel to His Last Breath: Joseph McCabe and Rationalism and Heathen in Godzone: Seventy Years of Rationalism in New Zealand.

Bill Cooke

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