MONDAY JUNE 8,6:30-8 PM

BANNED & WOKE BOOK CLUB
HOBBY BUILDING EVENTS ROOM

 

 

On Monday evening, June 8, our Banned & Woke Book Club will be discussing American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins. This controversial novel follows Lydia, a Mexican book store owner and her eight-year-old son as they flee for the U.S. border after a cartel murders their family. The author sparked intense controversy over accusations of stereotyping and cultural appropriation. Can a mostly Caucasian woman tell this story? Read the book and let’s talk about it. Even if you haven’t read the book, you are welcome to join in on the discussion of the experience of Mexican immigrants at the southern border.

 

SUNDAY JUNE 14, 1–3 PM
DONUT DAY!
HOBBY BUILDING EVENTS ROOM

 

SPECIAL EVENT! It’s Donut Day! On Sunday, June 14, as we approach Freethinkers' third anniversary in July, all members will have a chance to let their choices for favorite topics and activities be known in a small group setting. Give us an hour. We’ll have listings of topics and activities for you to discuss with other members and register your favorites and not so favorites.  We will use this information to decide on activities and topics for the upcoming year. If you like what the club presents and our other activities, you can let us know. If you want more or less of something, again, this is your chance to say that. The format we will be using allows for discussion and voting for what you like. If there is one meeting you should attend, this is it, since it will help determine what programs and activities we plan for the coming year. And for the second hour, socialize with your freethinking friends. Freethinkers Florida will be providing donuts for your enjoyment as well as gourmet coffee courtesy of Webmaster John Dziembrowski's magic coffee machine. That alone is a good enough reason to be there!

 

THURSDAY June 18, 6:30–8 PM
SOCRATES CAFÉ: GOOD WILL
HOBBY BUILDING EVENTS ROOM

Join your fellow freethinkers for an in-depth discussion in a small group format. At this Socrates Café, we’ll explore the idea of goodwill—not as charity or simple niceness, but as a deeper attitude toward other people and toward life itself. The discussion draws inspiration from the line, “The true gentleman’s conduct proceeds from goodwill,” asking what that really means in modern life. Is goodwill a moral obligation, a social skill, a sign of inner strength, or simply a practical way of living together? Can genuine goodwill exist in a world of competition, anger, and division, and what happens to a society when goodwill disappears? Join us for an open conversation on how we treat one another, and what kind of character that treatment reveal

 

SUNDAY JUNE 28, 1–3 PM

WIKIPEDIA COMES TO FREETHINKERS FLORIDA!

HOBBY BUILDING EVENTS ROOM

 

 

We are delighted to welcome Pacita Rudder, Executive Director of the Wikimedia Foundation—the organization behind one of the most visited websites on earth. With 130–200 million visits every day, Wikipedia is the largest and most-read reference work in human history: a free, multilingual encyclopedia featuring over 67 million articles in more than 300 languages, available to everyone at no cost.

 

Pacita will take us behind the scenes of this remarkable resource. How does a volunteer-driven, not-for-profit model produce content reliable enough to appear at the top of nearly every Google search—and to be cited in academic work worldwide? Come hear how accuracy and credibility are maintained in a community where anyone can write and edit.

DOING GOOD FOR GOOD’S SAKE

 

Freethinkers Florida has been supporting two of our members, Debby Levy and Roland Campbell, in their work with Ocala’s homeless population, especially those living rough on the streets or in the forest. They, along with some other dedicated folks, provide a hot meal to anyone who needs it on Monday nights, rain or shine, outdoors in a space downtown which a business allows them to use. Donations of camping equipment, clothes and shoes, and unopened hygiene products and toiletries are most welcome for distribution, as well as towels and bedding which we are focusing on for the month of May. Please bring donations to any Sunday meeting or text/call Debby at 561-346-7401 or email DL72588@gmail.com if you have a significant amount of clothing or camping gear to arrange a pickup or meetup.

 

And thanks to Freethinker Karen Henkel-Reeves and Karen’s Mat Makers who continue to produce water resistant sleeping mats for the homeless which are crocheted from recycled grocery bags. While Karen has a large stock of bags, she could use help in cutting the bags into strips or crocheting the mats. Call her at 352-854-9954 (no text).

 

 

 

The Freethinkers Florida Club at On Top of the World meets twice a month in the Hobby Building Event Room for presentations, discussions, and social time. If you are coming from outside On Top of the World, please email  FreethinkersFlorida@gmail.com for information on entry through the gate.

 

 

 

LOOKING BACK AT MAY

 

 

We learned that there's good news and there's bad news when it comes to our bodies at this stage of life. Freethinker Glenn Cohen, who in real life is Professor Emeritus at Troy University, Department of Biology and Environmental Sciences, in his presentation The Biology of Aging, relied upon his expertise and research in the field to share that a full 50% of our aging process is subject to our heredity, and there is nothing that can be done about that.  But luckily, the other 50% is influenced by environmental factors such as nutrition, exercise, and socialization. Are we up for the challenge?

Rabbi Merril Shapiro informed us that it all comes down to voting if we want to keep church and state separate. Rabbi Shapiro, in his capacity as a former board chair and board member of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, filled us in on the direction the U.S. government has taken since 2024; recently a rally in Washington, DC supported by tax-payer funds called Rededication 250, sponsored by our government, attempted to engage the country in a full day of Christian prayer.  The courts are clogged with cases against states, counties and cities that want to display the ten commandments in classrooms. As freethinkers we are not necessarily adverse to religion; we just want to keep it out of the public square and have the government not favor one religion over another or none.  If you have a question for Merrill, he would be delighted to hear from you.  Email rabbi32164@gmail.com.

 

 

In the Suggestion Box for May:  1). Bring Merrill Shapiro back for an examination of religion in the U.S. Yes!  Merrill has agreed to visit with us again, and we will be working on a date and the topic.  2). Play a video and discuss the work of Dr. Herb Silverman, mathematician and secular activist, who is the author of Candidate Without A Prayer. Yes! We are working on this program. We learned that Dr. Silverman was a determined atheist: In 1990, a colleague pointed out that atheists were ineligible to hold public office in South Carolina. After an eight-year battle, Herb won a unanimous decision in the South Carolina Supreme Court, which struck down this religious test requirement.

 

 

 

LOOKING AHEAD TO JULY

OPEN FORUM IS BACK!

Sunday July 12—Six tables, six topics, choose the one you'd like to discuss. Topics will be provided in the July Newsletter. These are moderated discussions on interesting and sometimes controversial subjects where we can share our thoughts in a safe and comfortable freethinking environment and learn from one another.

AI APOCALYPSE!

Sunday, July 26—Freethinker Roger Mack and his band of freethinking techies will be presenting about situations in which Artificial Intelligence could go horribly wrong. Remember the computer named Hal who took over the spacecraft in 2001: A Space Odyssey? We are 25 years past our due date...

 

The Freethinkers Florida Club at On Top of the World meets twice a month in the Hobby Building Event Room for presentations, discussions, and social time. If you are coming from outside On Top of the World, please email  FreethinkersFlorida@gmail.com for information on entry through the gate.