Truth Wanted

Welcome Truth Seekers! Tonight, ObjectivelyDan is joined by Lauren (aka SkepticShe)! Lauren makes videos on everything from Atheism to Scientology! Cast your vote on The Golden Pico Awards!!!: tiny.cc/thegoldenpicos Our first caller Mark from PA is shocked at how much money Scientology manages to take in despite its comparatively young age compared to the more established religions. Should Atheist groups try to take them on in a legal battle?Brian from OR asks our hosts if they have investigated the other side’s evidence of the 9/11 conversation. It’s important to form a reasonable conclusion based on the current set of evidence, rather than extrapolate down rabbit holes that go beyond the data.Next is Tymm from WA who shares his deconversion story from ex-gay minister to coming out gay. If a god exists, they are definitely not a kind one who loves you for who you are. Thank you for calling Tymm, you are amazing!Jo from IN is concerned about the speed that the Covid vaccine was developed and asks our hosts for their thoughts. We should believe experts because they are the ones who are most informed on the subject and qualified to draw conclusions from the available data.Our final caller of the year is Lawson from MN! He expresses concern over trusting anything from the establishment. Technology allows us to create and access information faster than ever before, so it is more important than ever to do your due diligence and actually read any article of interest fully before sharing. With this in mind, there is no such thing as a completely unbiased source or article so it is important to look at a variety of sources to get a clearer picture.That’s all for this episode! Thank you all so much for watching and hunting the truth with us during this crazy year! From all of us at Truth Wanted, we wish you a very safe and happy New Year! You can find Lauren at https://www.youtube.com/skepticshe

Good evening, Truth Seekers! Tonight, ObjectivelyDan is joined by our special guest, Jmike. Jmike is a co-host on The Atheist Roundtable and has a new channel, Axioms On Trial! First caller tonight, John in the USA asks what our objections are to libertarian free will. If you affect our physical brain it will change how we act. Free will, even if we had it, wouldn’t be good evidence for god, or even a soul. Is the soul not something we can observe?Sven in WA asks if skepticism would lead to conformity the way religion doctrine does? We do see a culture that develops when one is around a group of like minded people, it’s true for any social group. Skeptics seem to be more open to addressing failures in how we think as a social species. Ceafe in the USA argues that claiming a soul is supernatural is an evasion, since we can’t demonstrate the supernatural. You can’t say the soul exists and does something in the natural world by claiming it's supernatural, supernatural has no explanatory power. Edward in Canada asks how we know god isn’t deceiving us to make us not believe. One couldn’t know, we are stuck in the confines of our reality. Give us the evidence a god is deceiving us, Neo didn’t know he was in the matrix until he was provided evidence. Doug in ID asks why people are more concerned about freedoms than protecting people during this pandemic. It’s sad how “pro-life” people don’t seem to care about the life of living people. People do change their minds, it’s not the end...yet. Kevin in CA asks if it’s probable that highly technological life is out there? It’s possible... Jmike takes a more agnostic view of alien life. Alien stories starting with drugs are hard to take on face value, sorry. Lastly, Denis in AZ wasted our time with a prank about UFOs and a tool he brought back from an abduction. Ugh, we were interested in this call...too bad it was a prank caller. That's all the Truth for this week! Stay safe and make sure to check out more from Jmike at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxRu_TVAR6nWE9pRSJJR-sw/

Good evening, Truth Seekers! Tonight’s episode of Truth Wanted, ObjectivelyDan is joined by our special guest, Bryce Cornell. Bryce is a former believer turned atheist and co-hosts on The Empathetic Atheist. He left his faith after realizing believing first is not a good pathway to truth. First caller tonight, Geo in AZ experienced a burned in hand print on the floor that moved around his old house. This only happened 3 times in ~20 years. How would you explain this? This is just an odd story and no way to substantiate or even investigate it any longer. We can’t jump to the supernatural on this, I don’t know is the perfect answer. Carpe Diem in CO asks our opinions on the morality of bringing kids into this world. Dan is an antinatalist, there are kids in the foster system that need help if one chooses to bring up kids. It sounds like Carpe’s wife is leaning toward wanting to have a baby and you aren’t, you need to have these discussions together and see if there is a middle ground.Yo in TX asks how can a vegan diet give you enough energy to make it through the day. Most of what we get our energy from is carbohydrates/sugars, not meat. You can get all your protein from a vegan diet, make sure you get all your nutritional requirements. Take small steps for yourself if you want to move toward veganism.Glenn in PA says that vegans aren’t saving animal lives, arguing it's better to live a short time than not exist. We don’t agree. In your hypothetical, we would rather not live than die in childhood, one couldn’t care if they didn’t exist. This argument doesn’t make sense, would a farmed animal agree with you? Our last caller tonight, Scott in PA asks how our views changed on LGBT issues from when you were a christian. Dan thought it wasn’t the equivalent of a straight relationship so there was something wrong. It took a little empathy to challenge that belief. Luckily, it's more acceptable now to be LGBT. That's all the Truth for this week! Stay safe and make sure to check out more from Bryce at www.youtube.com/c/TheEmpatheticAtheist/

Good evening, Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined tonight by our intrepid co-host Puck. Tonight is a pre-recorded show due to Thanksgiving week in the US. First caller tonight, Malty in WA asks how we can address friends/family on their unsubstantiated beliefs. It can be a task to be patient but if someone is saying something insulting, that is a time you can push back. Keep in mind, you don’t owe anyone a conversation. Stitics in CO asks what is the one topic we would want someone to call in about. Puck looks for claims he has not heard, like out there paranormal claims. Any kind of extraterrestrial claims, hollow earth, etc claims interest Dan. Richard in England asks if veganism is a moral obligation. You could make the argument that is an obligation if you want to stick to your practices to lessen harm and suffering. Typically, people have more food options but not everyone has access to stick to a strictly vegan diet. Richard finds the position morally superior but not an obligation. Dustin in WV asks for advice on how to shift online arguments from a debate to a conversation. The longer form you can get your ideas across the better, twitter is not a good option if you want to change peoples mind. Try to understand why they are convinced by their reasoning and point out why it doesn't convince you. Katie in OH what advice do you have for new atheist activists? Don’t wait until you have the best equipment, put yourself out there, people will find you! Listen to people and see what they have to say. Be willing to adjust the nature of your content. Martin in FL asks Dan about his experience with the Boy Scouts. Dan is an eagle scout and learned lots about the outdoors but is upset at the report of allegations of abuse. We would like to see a more secular Boy Scouts.Patricia in NY asks if there are any conspiracy theories we somewhat believe or wish were true. Some conspiracies do happen, most of them are just too outlandish. We don’t just believe the claims, we need GOOD evidence. Our last caller tonight, Tanjil in Australia asks how much time per week we research. Dan listens to podcasts/books 5 days a week. Puck gets in about 30-40 learning hours a week with podcasts, books, news, and research for Non Prophets. That's all the Truth for this week! We hope you enjoyed our “Friendsgiving” episode, stay safe out there and we’ll see you live next week.

Good evening, Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined tonight by Ian Jaydid! Tonight’s episode is about all things paranormal. Ian is an artist first and foremost but he is also an author. Check out his latest book “Migration”. Ian starts us off today talking about his experiences with lucid dreaming and the astral realm.First caller tonight, Pierre in Canada argues that the bible is not talking about gods, but extraterrestrials that created the world. How could you know that? Pierre tells the testimony of a prominent Raelian. Neither testimony or books on the subject will convince us. Mark in PA believes that lucid dreaming isn’t magic, it’s just dreaming, you can’t see things that aren’t there. Ian doesn’t believe in a soul and would agree if he hasn’t had his personal experiences. We definitely aren’t talking about an immortal soul saved by Jesus. Jordan in CA asks how we define truth. It is not as straightforward as we think. We work more with a pragmatic idea of truth, assuming a shared reality. Even that starts with a bunch of assumptions, like terms we use to describe reality. Ian goes super deep, talking about empty space and the physics behind empty space. Our last caller tonight, Vern in MI asks how often we interact with presuppositionalists? They do call in from time to time. Ian hasn’t had the pleasure yet. We quickly break down the argument and all the traps and pitfalls that come. There is no reason to insert a god in any argument. The logical absolutes don’t point to a god either. That's all the Truth for this week! Find more from Ian at https://ianjaydid.com/ Stay safe out there, wear your masks!

Good evening Truth Seekers. ObjectivelyDan is back in the host chair with our special guest, Abdullah Sameer. Abdullah is an ex-muslim activist and and hosts a website of all his appearances on podcasts, shows, or his blogs. Check it out at https://abdullahsameer.com/First caller tonight, Autumn in CA is a new atheist activist and asks how to differentiate Islamaphobia or valid criticisms of Islam. Keep in mind that Islam is not a race and when you criticize Islam, you are addressing an ideaology. Feel free to step outside the focus of your YouTube channel and criticize Islam. Maya from the Caribbean asks how Abdullah has experienced how islamic families treat their deaf children. She works with deaf people and has seen that hindu and islam families tend to hide away their deaf children and won’t communicate with them. Abdullah has not experienced that, sadly humans do stuff like that. Adrian in TX argues for the existence of a deistic god. Dan starts off accepting the 1st premise but can’t accept the fine tuning argument for god. Nature may have the APPEARANCE of fine tuning, we don’t agree that things ARE finely tuned. Doesn’t a deistic god not interfere with nature?Scott in PA was prompted to call after listening to Adrian’s call. Scott thinks the fine tuning argument is bunk and goes on to talk about how we evolved along with our ecosystem. There are many examples of places just on this planet that are uninhabitable by humans, let alone the entire universe. Our last caller tonight, Catholic Traditionalist in LA asks if the hosts are hard or soft atheists. Adbullah identifies as a weak atheist, we are open to evidence to change our minds. CT fails to trap Dan in a weird semantics definition of logic, trying to poke holes in logic. That's all the Truth for this week! Remember to keep wanting the truth. Stay safe out there, wear your masks!

Good evening Truth Seekers. Sit back and relax tonight, Puck is hosting Truth Wanted this week and joining him is Your Friendly Neighborhood Atheist, Ethan Michael! Ethan is a new to YouTube atheist but now has several YouTube shows now! Puck starts us out tonight talking with Ethan about everything Atheist YouTube.First caller tonight, James in Australia asks about the religiosity in America versus Australia. This call dropped, please call back James.Robyn in AZ tells a story of where she was laying in bed and felt something jump up on her waterbed but nothing was there. She later learned that her cat died and thinks that was a last visit. Even if this was true, what can we do with this information now?Yo in TX conducted a seance and asked for any supernatural experience and claims the lights turned off, darkness enveloped a candle, the candle came back on and they saw a shadowy figure. Candles can relight and cast ominous shadows, again this is just a story. James in Australia is back to talk about how religiosity has permeated in all American society. Ethan thinks we aren’t aware how much religion affects our daily lives and talks more on history and religion. America is not a christian founded country. Puck talks how much more religious America appears on the world stage.David in CA argues that “in the beginning, let there be light” is confirmed by the consistent nature of cosmic microwave background radiation. The bible is vague and open to interpretation, how do we know that's what the bible meant? Why not talk with a physicist about this?Last caller tonight! Anthony in CA argues there is more evidence for bigfoot than the tooth fairy, etc There might be MORE evidence, but we don’t find it credible. Anthony feels bigfoot is a claim to be researched, not ridiculed. Anthony is going to share some evidence he has, we ran out of time.That's all the Truth for this week! Thanks for voting! Find all of Ethan’s links here: linktr.ee/YFNAtheist

Good evening Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined this week by Dave Farina, aka Professor Dave on YouTube. Dave is a science communicator on YouTube with over 1 million subscribers! First caller tonight, Lars in Norway wants to address obtaining absolute certainty. Let's start with some definitions. Absolute certainty is only obtainable through maths, but it’s used a bit more colloquially in other sciences. We have to operate under some assumptions. Larry in PA asks if our hosts believed a soul leaves your body and lives forever. There isn’t a consensus in Christianity on an afterlife, but Dan did believe in a soul and afterlife. Dan agrees with the caller that there doesn’t seem to be evidence of any afterlife. We wish more people viewed this as the one and only life and lived it to the fullest.Derek in MI theorizes Donald Trump may be the antichrist. He gives us a few examples, possibly prophesying 2020 being a terrible year. The antichrist in the bible is not what people think. As fun as this call was, we don’t put much stock in Christian mythology. Tymm in WA is fearful of the conservative nature of SCOTUS given the 6-3 majority, specifically losing marriage rights and blurring the lines between religion and government. It is a really big problem and it’s going to be an uphill fight. Tymm talks abortion rights with our hosts for the remainder of the call.Last caller tonight! Julie in ID continues the conversation on the recent SCOTUS nomination and how it could affect women’s reproductive rights. We get that people need to talk about politics right now, it's horrible how much it affects our rights. It would be a grave social ill if women’s reproductive rights are taken away. That's all the Truth for this week! You can find more from Dave at https://www.youtube.com/c/professordaveexplains

Good evening Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined this week by Puck! Puck has been a volunteer with the ACA for several months and streams on twitch! Puck is a newer skeptic and is chomping at the bit to talk to some callers.First caller tonight, Johnny in CA asks our hosts of any favorite paranormal claims they have, or any that make you go, “Hmmm.” The deep sea freaks out Puck, aliens for Dan. Interesting. Johnny wants there to be aliens but still remains skeptical.Mark in PA asks if evangelicals would believe in creationism if the creator was Hindu, not Abrahamic. Some people will remain skeptical of whatever claim you tell them, hell some even believe the earth is flat. If Brahma were real, we would need some corroboration and ask if this was the best they could do.Jay in IN asks if we know about Falun Dafa, or Falun Gong, a practice similar to Tai Chi. We know if it, but don’t attribute the health benefits to the supernatural. Be wary of newer organizations that claim to be ancient, especially if that group has a dubious at best news site. Will in SC asks our advice about an upcoming speech project on using epistemology to examine their beliefs. Thank you for learning how to give a speech. Talk about the Socratic method and examples of Socrates’ use of questions, street epistemology, and introspective questioning. Last caller tonight! Bridget in NJ was a ghost hunter that realized it was not real. She realized the people believed first and filled in the unknown gaps with ghosts and noticed the reactions when asking the “wrong” questions. Bridget agreed to post some ghost hunting reports to our TW Facebook fan group!That's all the Truth for this week! Thanks for watching and make sure to check out Puck on Truth Wanted’s November 6th episode.

Good evening Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined this week by our special guest, Dallas Wade! Dallas is an atheist YouTuber focusing right now on paranormal myths. They start us off talking about paranormal beliefs and ghost stories.First caller tonight, Richard from Toronto tells us a ghost story, a friend’s friend found a ready to eat meal while fleeing a conflict in Africa. Maybe it's manna from heaven! What’s to say it wasn't a meal of another person that was fleeing that conflict? Sorry we can’t just jump to the miraculous.Harper in Belgium asks for advice on how to deal with this girlfriend that seems to have dissociative identity disorder. We are not doctors, this would best be addressed with professional help. Katie in PA asks if repeat-style behavior in ghosts is just a stain on time, causing said repeat actions. Dallas thinks the stories and tales told affect what people say they experience. Katie then tells a story of an attempted exorcism someone tried to perform on her. Dani in LA died clinically 6 times after an attempted murder, no pearly gates, but she isn’t sure she was 1000% dead. We aren’t medical experts but there are different types of clinical death. We are glad you are with us today!Zoey in NY claims to have seen a ghost wearing a velour tracksuit walking around outside an abandoned mental institution. How do you know there wasn’t someone living there that knew the ins and outs? We believe you saw something but we would want to investigate this claim before believing it. Last Caller tonight! Sarah in The UK tells us about an impromptu séance she had 40 years ago. There was a makeshift question/answer board, everyone touched a glove and it started moving, sounds ouija-esque. Look into the ideomotor phenomenon. There is a lot of fakery in these types of things. That's all the Truth for this week! Check out more from Dallas Wade at https://www.youtube.com/c/dallaswade Thanks for watching! Continue to wear a mask and make sure to vote!

Good evening Truth Seekers! After all this time Jesus Christ makes an appearance tonight on our show, apparently ObjectivelyDan needs a good ol’ talking-to. Jesus has over 1 million followers on YouTube.First caller tonight, Alexiel from Canada claims to be able to channel the goddess Isis, even saying she may channel Isis talking with us today. If anyone can do this, how do we know this isn’t a feeling we have? She claims to be able to channel Isis over the air, Dan wants her to call back when ready.Oriax in PA asks if blasphemy laws are too strict in a monotheistic religion. Dan thinks cultures use blasphemy differently. You should be wary of who you can’t criticize in any culture, for example authoritarian regimes. Jesus sees blasphemy as a control mechanism.Aegir in Iceland asks how people justify seizing land using religious texts. Ooh, tough question. It is not a justified reason to take land on religious grounds. Jesus talks about the ludicrous amounts of land the LDS church owns, it can be seen as modern colonization. Corey in SC said the claim of Jesus is more absurd than the claim of bigfoot, despite Jesus on the show tonight. The Jesus claim is less than anecdotal and there is more biology in a bigfoot blame, but Jesus admits bigfoot is more likely than Jesus. Chris in MO wonders why his political views shifted with losing his beliefs and asks if he has good reasons. Sure social media algorithms do play a role but it’s just mainly exposure to other viewpoints, just be wary not to fall into an echo chamber. Last Caller tonight! Bob in OR thinks it’s not in our ability to own things, claiming we can’t have relationships to objects. Ownership does seem kind of arbitrary but we have evidence of humans and other animals demonstrating connection to objects, a type of relationship.That's all the Truth for this week! Check out more from Jesus Christ at www.youtube.com/c/thejesuschrist Thanks for watching! Continue to wear a mask and make sure to vote!

Good evening Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined tonight by ACA’s own Christy Powell, host of Secular Sexuality. Christy is a licensed therapist and talks with us tonight about mental health and the stigmas that come with it.First caller tonight, Brutus in MN has wanted to started a male positive feminist movement to help keep men from sliding to right wing groups. There are some sites to help educate men. You want to include some female voices in your movement. Sven in WA asks our opinion of gender specific dress codes in the work environment. Dan wonders if equal protection laws actually protect or how to enforce those laws. You are likely more protected at a larger company but there are systemic issues affecting the world. Being a part of the world changing takes some pioneering. Harry in WA asks Christy’s advice about exploring their gender when their partner has come out as transgender. Just because you experience someone else transitioning doesn’t devalue your own thoughts or exploration, there is nothing wrong with that. Find some people that will support you and be happy!David in NE talks with us about his past sexual abuse experience that affects how he thinks about his bisexuality, specifically that it caused his same sex attraction. We can’t speak to your experience but research is inconclusive and may have limited your sexuality. We recommend talking to a sex positive therapist.Mira in Germany grew up with a mother into alternative medicine and asks our advice for remaining skeptical about those faux cures. Finding a shared community to talk to others and keep yourself informed, be your own advocate. Last Caller tonight! Noel in CO wants to create LGBT inclusive spaces and asks for advice about educating their grandparents. There are affirming grandparents and being old is not an excuse to not change your mind. Conversations with family can be very tricky, give them a chance to hear what you really think.That's all the Truth for this week! Check out more from Christy at www.vcatx.com or Thursday’s at 7 on Secular Sexuality. Thanks for watching and keep wearing those masks out there!

Good evening Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined tonight by Seth Andrews. Seth is no stranger to the ACA, he is an author, podcaster and YouTuber! Check out his new book, Confessions of a Former Fox News Christian. Sorry for the technical difficulties on today’s stream. First caller tonight, Trina from IL claims to be able to feel physical pain without touching the person by hovering her hands over their body. Wish we could test this remotely. It makes a great story but we can’t just take someone's word for this kind of ability.Jacob in TX asks what humanism means to the hosts. Only humans can solve the problems of humanity. Humanism is rooting ourselves in the best parts of humanity to better the world. No deity is going to help. Terri in SD asks how do you explain ghosts to a child that has never grown up knowing about ghosts. We are creatures of imagination and kids don’t have the tools to figure out what scared them. It would be a good time to explore critical thinking.Pat in AL struggles with believers hearing her telling them their wrong when she is talking about her non belief. There isn’t a lot you can do about their insecurities, try to use “I” statements and be true to yourself. Andrew in MI feels jaded with religion but still feels there is something out there, like a conscious source. While it seems the brain and mind are separate things, the mind is a product of the brain. We don’t fully understand consciousness. Last Caller tonight! Andrew in CO asks how to talk to conspiracy theorists or is it best not to talk to them. Seth has faced this as well and finds it’s best to counter the claims but not try to change their minds, more often than not you won’t be heard. That's all the Truth for this week! Check out more from Seth Andrews at www.sethandrews.com Thanks for watching and keep wearing those masks out there!

Good evening Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined tonight by Oz, from The Atheist Round Table! TART is a YouTube show giving believers a one on one conversation with a round table of non believers. They create a welcoming atmosphere over at TART, check them out at https://www.youtube.com/c/TheAtheistRoundTable/First caller tonight, G in NC asks for tips on how to avoid magical thinking in day to day life. How to figure out if your beliefs are true or not. Check sources of what others are researching into about that belief and challenge your own beliefs.Julie in ID talks about a weird experience she had in a cabin in Alaska where she thinks she astral projected back to her home. This sounds more like a crazy dream. The hosts relate stories of weird things happening when asleep. Dreams are fascinating but completely natural.Sven in WA thinks the concept of morality keeps him believing in souls. Defining souls as a 3rd party between our brains and body. How can one find their soul? How do we know our good intentions aren’t natural? Measuring people by their humanitarian actions doesn’t indicate a soul.Last Caller tonight! Jaime in Australia thinks the brain has a lot to answer for and relays a story of driving and watching trees turn into buildings and wildlife coming at him. The brain does all kinds of wacky things and it’s a fascinating field of study. There is no evidence of the supernatural regarding the brain. That's all the Truth for this week! Check out more from OZ or TART at tart.live Thanks for watching and keep those CO monitors out when camping...

Good evening Truth Seekers! ObjectivelyDan is joined tonight by Hematnt Mehta, The Friendly Atheist. He is an online activist with YouTube shows, podcasts, blogs, and more! He is mainly working on a YouTube series breaking down the book of genesis! You can check that out on Hemant’s YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/c/FriendlyAtheist1First caller tonight, Tymm in WA, views the bible as a book of fables and asks about the mythicality of Moses and the patriarch. Hemant points out that knowing they were real wouldn’t affect their day to day life. Katherine in AR noticed the connection of flat earthers and fundamental Christianity and finds it disturbing. Hemant finds the flat earth to be unbelievable but acknowledges the appeal of people finding a community of like minded believers. Be wary of people that “feel” something is true, stick to facts!Last Caller tonight! Jacob in TX talks asks how you can install some doubt into hardcore believers. Street Epistemology is a method that reflects others beliefs. If you want to install doubt, figure out what they believe and why. Dan and Hemant talk about Street Epistemology and veganism, since that was Jacob’s example.That's all the Truth for this week! Check out more from Hemant Mehta at friendlyatheist.com Thanks for watching, stay safe out there, and keep wearing your masks!