Hang in there! Spring Break ISSA only a few days away!

Greetings, hebetudinous heathens!

It's midterm week, and we know your brains are nearing that special kind of fried that only a week's vacation can remedy... Well, drink a cup of coffee and hang in there one more day. We've got a great meeting in store for you this week!

THIS WEEK (READ ME!)--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This week's meeting will be at the usual time in the usual place: Thursday, March 17th at 7pm in Mechanical Engineering Building, room 253. Click here for a map.

On the agenda...

Michael Scoville will be speaking to us about animal ethics and how religious and secular perspectives play into the way we treat other creatures! Scoville is a doctoral candidate at the here at U of I and has taught classes like 'World Religions', 'Intro to Ethics', and 'Religion, Ethics, and the Environment.'

ISSA at Murphy's

After the meeting, we'll adjourn to Murphy's, as is our tradition. We welcome anyone and everyone who can make it, regardless of whether or not you plan to drink. It's a great chance to get to know us -- your officers -- better!

UPCOMING EVENTS (NEW THINGS ADDED!)-------------------------------------------------------

ISSA Barcrawl -- March 29th
Another one? So soon? Heck yes! Join us Tuesday, March 29th at 9pm for the usual hedonistic revelry! Make sure to RSVP via the Facebook event page... Be there or be square!

Food for Freethought @ Location TBA -- April 3rd
Food for Freethought is off this week, but we'll be back Sunday, April 3rd (the weekend after break) at some location to be announced. For more info (rides, location), just reply to this email or request to join our Food for Freethought email list.

Michael Shermer -- April 12th

We could not be more pleased to announce Michael Shermer as one of this semester's speakers! Mr. Shermer is a very active member of the skeptic community, author of Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time, and even gave a rousing TED talk a few years back!

National Ask-An-Atheist Day 2011 - April 13th
Following the success of our first whack at Ask An Atheist last month, we're working with the national Secular Student Alliance to launch a national event! Read about National Ask-An-Atheist Day (Wednesday, April 13th) here, and RSVP via the Facebook event page.

American Atheists Conference -- April 22nd through 24th

This April, we will be driving to Des Moines Iowa for the annual American Atheists conference! It's a solid five-and-a-half hour drive... You know what that means -- ROADTRIP! With many awesome speakers on the roster (most notably Christopher Hitchens), this get-together promises to be worthwhile! Generally speaking, conferences are oodles of fun, and a great way to get to know your fellow members better! More details about the event here. If you're interested put your name and info on our sign-up sheet. 

Want to help make ISSA awesome?

As strange as it sounds, it's already time to start thinking about elections for next year! If you think you may want to be involved and have questions/comments/concerns, simply respond to this email or talk to Franklin (or another officer) sometime, and we can discuss what positions might be right for you.

Open call for blog entries -- ONGOING
Got something secular(ish) on your mind? BLOG ABOUT IT! Posts from members are always welcome and wanted -- email illiniSSA@illinois.edu if you're interested.

Love,
ISSA

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Can't get enough of us? ISSA online!

ISSA Blog: http://uiucatheists.blogspot.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2252245006

Flickr Photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/uiucatheists

Email: IlliniSSA@illinois.edu