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Reason.tv at Sundance: Shouting Fire!

Thu, 29 Jan 2009 09:30:00 EST

Martin Garbus' client list spans from Nelson Mandela to Don Imus. He defended comedian Lenny Bruce against obscenity charges and argued for neo-Nazis' right to march in the predominantly Jewish town of Skokie, Illiniois.

Garbus is featured in the new documentary Shouting Fire: Stories from the Edge of Free Speech. The film is directed by his daughter Liz Garbus, and screened at the Sundance Film Festival.

Reason.tv's Ted Balaker caught up with Martin Garbus at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

The Age of American Unreason: Nick Gillespie Q&A with Susan Jacoby

dan.hayes@reason.org (Dan Hayes) — Thu, 01 May 2008 00:00:00 EDT

On C-SPAN's Book TV, reason's Nick Gillespie recently sat down with Susan Jacoby, author of the new book The Age of American Unreason, to talk about anti-intellectualism on the right and left, trends in popular culture, and what Jacoby sees as a dangerous decline in the level of academic and political discourse.

From C-SPAN's description of the book:

In "The Age of American Unreason," Susan Jacoby offers a critique on American society and says that the combination of anti-intellectualism and anti-rationalism in American culture is becoming a serious problem. In the book she focuses on issues including society's addiction to mass media, ineffective educational systems, and religious fundamentalism.

It's a spirited and intense conversation between a cultural pessimist and a cultural optimist that lasts for about an hour.

EXPELLED

ted.balaker@reason.tv (Ted Balaker) — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 12:04:00 EST

Ben Stein's entry into the world of feature-length documentaries:

Ben realizes that he has been “Expelled,” and that educators and scientists are being ridiculed, denied tenure and even fired – for the “crime” of merely believing that there might be evidence of “design” in nature, and that perhaps life is not just the result of accidental, random chance.

Go here for some trailers, and an O'Reilly Factor appearance by Stein, in which Bill declares that the "secular pinheads haven't figured it out."

RELATED: Reason.tv interviews Michael Shermer .

Gun/Hug-Free Zones

ted.balaker@reason.tv (Ted Balaker) — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 15:59:00 EST

Some University of Colorado students are protesting the school's gun ban by strapping on empty holsters. Turns out other schools, like Colorado State, allow students to pack heat.

(Thanks to protester Jim Manley for the tip; and to "Bear Arms" Orendy for the pic and the spooky way he anticipated this post)

Elsewhere in the Rocky Mountain state ...

If you're a student at Evergreen Middle School who's in a huggy mood--have at it. Just make it quick. "Prolonged" hugs are forbidden.

(Find this clip to the right of ABC 7's video screen)