Community News – Secular Hub Blog

Secular Hub Information Technology Committee 2025

The Secular Hub Information Technology Committee is just one part of the Secular Hub volunteer army. We meet weekly (with a few exceptions and sometimes more) and as needed to keep the technology working (with a few exceptions).

In 2024-2025 the S.H.I.T committee worked on and accomplished the following:

Developing and maintaining documentation and a team to allow the team to deal with issues.
Keep the Hub’s email infrastructure maintained by adding email accounts and maintaining the email forwarding lists.
Keep the Hub’s email domain (secularhub.org) from being labeled as SPAM to make sure our messages are getting delivered.
Configure our email infrastructure is maintained to accomplish #2 by using SPF, DKIM, and DMARC standards. Google has been enforcing this standards and bouncing or deleting email that does not conform.
Maintaining the Hub’s web site as needed to keep up with technology and the Secular Hub’s Board directives.
Maintain several servers (2 cloud, 2 physical) that are used for administrative functions of the Secular Hub.
Maintain a membership application that is used to track membership dues payments, voting eligibility, donation emails, and family connections. Providing various reports to better understand membership constitution.
Maintain a online walled garden for members only (Hub Online) to allow members to interact virtually when not at the Secular Hub. This is also a forum for information about the Secular Hub activity that is not subject to random trolls and adversaries. We maintain access to this resource for all current members.
Respond to issues related to our Meetup account that has been a moving target and Meetup morphs depending on their current owner. This includes efforts by Meetup to monetize the platform.
Maintain a calendar feed from our Meetup calendar to our web site. This recently changed to require us to develop an application that uses OAuth2 and GraphQL protocol standards that Meetup has moved to, but supports poorly.
Maintain a mailing list application to disseminate information, such as newsletters, news, and meeting notices. Maintaining this using our domain to prevent these messages from being labeled as SPAM.
Maintain a statistical survey application to develop and publish online surveys, collect responses, review statistics, and export the resulting data to other applications. This has been used several times in the past to survey Hub membership.
Maintain a repository of Hub documents that can be managed by this committee. This includes Board meeting minutes, forms, bylaws, policies, etc. This is not Google Docs which is virtually unmanageable.
Maintain an electronic mailing list which allows a sender to send one email to a list, which then transparently sends it on to the addresses of the subscribers to the list. This allows people in a group (for example Book Club) to interact without knowing or seeing the other group members email addresses.
Keep this Hub’s information and electronic infrastructure secure for hacking and data breaches.
Use open-source free software to reduce IT costs and to prevent vendor lock-in.
Handle various and numerous technical issues that are brought to us by Board members and Hub members.
Help Hub members access our technologies.
Learning and exploring new technologies and applications that will help the Secular Hub community.

As for the future, I am announcing a competition to redesign the Secular Hub Home Page. This is open to anyone, not just Hub members, but must meet the following requirements:

Must be viewable in recent versions of Firefox or Chrome web browsers.
Must be mobile friendly. This means the page must adapt to the screen size of the view device.
Must provide navigation elements to move to other areas of the web site including, but not limited to: About, Contact, Calendar, Hub Online, etc.
Should provide a template for other pages on the web site.

This competition will be open until July 31, 2025 and will be judged by the Secular Hub members. For more information, watch this blog post or contact the committee via our Contact Page.

National Day of Reason

Expressing support for the designation of May 4, 2022, as a “National Day of Reason” and recognizing the central importance of reason in the betterment of humanity.

Another resolution was introduced to the United States House of Representatives by Jamie Raskin and others on April 29, 2022 to designate May 4, 2022 as the National Day of Reason.

The resolution states:

Expressing support for the designation of May 4, 2022, as a “National Day of Reason” and recognizing the central importance of reason in the betterment of humanity.

Whereas the application of reason has been the essential precondition for humanity’s extraordinary scientific, medical, technological, and social progress since before the founding of our country;

Whereas reason provides vital hope today for confronting the environmental crises of our day, including the civilizational emergency of climate change, and for cultivating the rule of law, democratic institutions, justice, and peace among nations;

Whereas irrationality, magical and conspiratorial thinking, and disbelief in science have undermined the national effort to combat the COVID–19 pandemic, contributing to the deaths of nearly 1,000,000 people in the United States;

Whereas America’s Founders insisted upon the primacy of reason and knowledge in public life, and drafted the Constitution to prevent official establishment of religion and to protect freedom of thought, speech, and inquiry in civil society;

Whereas James Madison, author of the First Amendment and fourth President of the United States, stated that “The advancement and diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty”, and “Knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own governors, must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives”; and

Whereas May 4, 2022, would be an appropriate date to designate as a “National Day of Reason”: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

(1) supports the designation of a “National Day of Reason”; and

(2) encourages all citizens, residents, and visitors to join in observing this day and focusing on the central importance of reason, critical thought, the scientific method, and free inquiry to resolving social problems and promoting the welfare of humankind.

This resolution was immediately referred to United States House Committee on Oversight and Reform and will probably die there.

Meanwhile, last year the Governor of Utah is praying for rain. Gov. Spencer J. Cox stated “I’ve already asked all Utahns to conserve water by avoiding long showers, fixing leaky faucets, and planting water-wise landscapes. But I fear those efforts alone won’t be enough to protect us,” Gov. Cox said. “We need more rain and we need it now. We need some divine intervention. That’s why I’m asking Utahns of all faiths to join me in a weekend of prayer June 4 through the 6th.” They did not get rain until June 25, 2021.

We need less prayer and more reason to resolve the mountain of issues facing the world today.

Vaccines Required!

Help us protect our community members and comply with this Public Health Order by bringing your proof of vaccination.

The Secular Hub has decided to become a Fully Vaccinated Facility to allow our community to attend events without face masks.

To comply with the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) Public Health Order (PHO), we are required to confirm the vaccination status of every person entering the Secular Hub.

Help us protect our community members and comply with this PHO by bringing your proof of vaccination including one of the following:

your original vaccination card,
a digital pass via smartphone application like the MyColorado App,
or digital photos or photocopies of your original vaccination cards,
or an official copy (digital or paper) of your COVID-19 vaccination record from the Colorado Immunization Information System (CIIS).

Any changes to this policy will be published on our COVID-19 Policy page.

Besides the legal requirement of PHO compliance, the science is very clear, vaccination decreases the rate of infection, serious effects of COVID-19 illness, and death.

CDC graph COVID cases — CDC data posted 11/22/2021

If you are not vaccinated, you are putting everyone around you at risk of getting sick and dying, so do not be selfish and get vaccinated. Vaccines are free and readily available, and no documentation or insurance is needed. To learn more and find out where to get a free vaccine:

Visit https://www.denvergov.org/Government/COVID-19-Information/Vaccination/Get-a-Vaccine
In Denver, call 311

If you have some reason you cannot be vaccinated, you can attend some Secular Hub events remotely via Zoom. Check our calendar for events that are virtual or hybrid events and RSVP on Meetup.com to get the Zoom link.

Happy Juneteenth!

On June 19, 1865 — nearly nine decades after our Nation’s founding, and more than 2 years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation — enslaved Americans in Galveston, Texas, finally received word that they were free from bondage.

June 19th was declared a federal holiday, the newest federal holiday since 1983, by President Joseph R. Biden Jr. on June 18, 2021. Juneteenth National Independence Day is

to acknowledge and celebrate the end of the Civil War and the emancipation of Black Americans, and commit together to eradicate systemic racism that still undermines our founding ideals and collective prosperity.

Juneteenth has been observed by various communities since 1866 as Jubilee Day, Black Independence Day, and Emancipation Day. Celebrations include picnics, rodeos, street fairs, cookouts, family reunions, park parties, historical reenactments and blues festivals.

In 1997, activist Ben Haith, founder of the National Juneteenth Celebration Foundation (NJCF), created the Juneteenth flag, which was further refined by illustrator Lisa Jeanne Graf. In 2000, the flag was first hoisted at the Roxbury Heritage State Park in Boston by Haith. The star at the center represents Texas being the last state where its local African American slaves were freed, and the extension of freedom for all African Americans throughout the whole nation. The burst around the star represents a nova and the curve represents a horizon, standing for a new era for African Americans. The red, white, and blue colors represent the American flag, which shows that African Americans and their enslaved ancestors are Americans, and the national belief in liberty and justice for all citizens.

As President Biden remarked when he signed Senate Bill 475:

It’s a reminder that our work to root out hate never ends — because hate only hides, it never fully goes away. It hides. And when you breathe oxygen under that rock, it comes out.

And that’s why we must understand that Juneteenth represents not only the commemoration of the end of slavery in America more than 150 years ago, but the ongoing work to have to bring true equity and racial justice into American society, which we can do.

In short, this day doesn’t just celebrate the past; it calls for action today.

As many of us first learn of the Tulsa race massacre and the Red Summer, it is obvious there is much work to be done. Celebrating Juneteenth is a step in the right direction.

Food Bank of the Rockies Fundraiser Results

You donated $2,395 to the Food Bank of the Rockies!

Our fundraiser for Food Bank of the Rockies raised $2,395 for feeding people in-need along the Front Range and Colorado! Thank you to everyone that donated. The money was sent to Food Bank of the Rockies and should provide more than 9500 meals for people in need this holiday season!

R.I.P.-R.B.G.

On September 18, 2020, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, died from complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer at her home in Washington, D.C., at the age of 87. The Supreme Court may not be the same for decades to come! Anyone that says nothing has changed in the last fifty years, only has to look at Ginsburg’s history as an academic, creating and working for ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project, as a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals, and finally on the Supreme Court to see that progress was made by this extraordinary person.

More recently, Ginsburg gained status as a “pop culture icon”. Ginsburg’s profile began to rise after O’Connor’s retirement in 2006 left Ginsburg as the only serving female justice. Her increasingly fiery dissents, led to the creation of “The Notorious R.B.G.”, an internet meme on Tumblr comparing her to rapper The Notorious B.I.G., created by law student Shana Knizhnik. Knizhnik later turned the blog into a book titled Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ginsburg told Nina Totenberg in a 2014 interview, she had a “large supply” of Notorious R.B.G. t-shirts, which she gives as gifts.

If you need a role model, you can find few better that Ruth Bader Ginsburg! It is up to us to carry on her legacy.

National Day of Reason

Expressing support for the designation of May 7, 2020, as a “National Day of Reason” and recognizing the central importance of reason in the betterment of humanity.

The National Day of Reason is a response to the Federal Government’s National Day of Prayer which is enshrined in law. Donald Trump, being the law-abiding President dutifully proclaimed today for prayer. What about the approximately 23 percent of people in the United States who aren’t religious and don’t pray. That is why we need the National Day of Reason!

With about 80% of the nation presumably praying for an end to the COVID-19 pandemic, why does it continue? Basically because there is no evidence that prayer ever work for anything, aside from the benefit of meditation.

Only science and reason will defeat the pandemic. It is science that is used to create a vaccine. It is science that creates the tests for the disease to help manage the pandemic and help our economy to recover. So where is our commitment to science and reason by our representative government? Buried in the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. In the spirit of the day, I give you H.Res.947 that states:

Expressing support for the designation of May 7, 2020, as a “National Day of Reason” and recognizing the central importance of reason in the betterment of humanity.

Whereas the application of reason has been the essential precondition for humanity’s extraordinary scientific, medical, technological, and social progress since the modern Enlightenment;

Whereas reason provides vital hope today for confronting the environmental crises of our day, including the civilizational emergency of climate change, and for cultivating the rule of law, democratic institutions, justice, and peace among nations;

Whereas irrationality, magical thinking, and superstition have undermined the national effort to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, and reason is fundamental to creating an effective coordinated response to beat the virus involving the Federal Government, the States, and the scientific and medical communities;

Whereas America’s Founders insisted upon the primacy of reason and knowledge in public life, and drafted the Constitution to prevent official establishment of religion and to protect freedom of thought, speech, and inquiry in civil society;

Whereas James Madison, author of the First Amendment and fourth President of the United States, stated that “The advancement and diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty”, and “Knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own governors, must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives”; and

Whereas, May 7, 2020, would be an appropriate date to designate as a “National Day of Reason”: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

(1) supports the designation of a “National Day of Reason”; and

(2) encourages all citizens, residents, and visitors to join in observing this day and focusing on the central importance of reason, critical thought, the scientific method, and free inquiry to resolving social problems and promoting the welfare of humankind.

Well said!

Thank you for supporting Food Bank of the Rockies

Thank you for supporting Food Bank of the Rockies in our recent fundraiser! You donated $1,000 which was matched by the Secular Hub and fellow Hub Members for a total of $2,000 going to help provide food to your fellow Coloradans.

If you would still like to give, click the button below or scan the QR code to donate and we will see that it gets to the Food Bank of the Rockies.

QR Code image

Episode 70: CFI Conference Interview featuring Becky and Ruth from the Hub

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In this episode of the Secular Hubcast we interview two Secular Hub members to get their perspective on the recent Center for Inquiry’s conference held in Las Vegas. Becky and Ruth describe their experiences, tell us about the different speakers they saw and encourage us to attend such conferences ourselves.

HOST, EDITOR: Paul Schilling

Logo Design: Terry Kirkham

The views and opinions expressed are those of their respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Secular Hub.

***

The Secular HubCast: The Voice of Denver’s Secular Hub.

Become a member of the Secular Hub today!

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
Follow the Secular Hub on Facebook
Follow the Secular Hub on Twitter: @SecularHub

Email the show at: podcast@secularhub.org
Music: A Himitsu – Adventures (unedited, used under Creative Commons License)

Welcome to the Stage – Episode 66

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Life is a constant process of things getting used up and then being renewed. It’s true whether you’re talking about an individual, an organization, or an ecosystem.

The Secular Hub goes through many changes and renews itself with infusions of fresh energy and ideas in the form of new members and volunteers. It’s a hallmark of a healthy organization that times of change are actually times of growth that spur us to be even better than we were before.

On this episode we speak with the Secular Hub’s newest board members, Monica and Dana. It’s incredible to think that the Board membership is composed of six (6!) women and only one man. Dirk, you better watch out!

We’re very happy to welcome our newest Board members and wish them great success as they fulfill their terms of service to the greater community.

GUESTS:

Secular Hub Board Members Monica and Dana

HOST, EDITOR: Jesse Gilbertson

Logo Design: Terry Kirkham

The views and opinions expressed are those of their respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Secular Hub.

***

The Secular HubCast: The Voice of Denver’s Secular Hub.

Become a member of the Secular Hub today!

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
Follow the Secular Hub on Facebook
Follow the Secular Hub on Twitter: @SecularHub
Music: A Himitsu – Adventures (unedited, used under Creative Commons License)