It looks like the Irish are finally fed up with me and I’m about to be flung from the top of a medieval castle, but that’s actually me cautiously easing backwards and down to kiss the Blarney Stone.

The above kiss was made after Atheist Ireland aimed a camera at me to promote their organization. It might have helped if I’d switched the order.

(via Gavin Golden)

I am off to a fun start here in Ireland, with a busy day yesterday. I was on the Tom McGurk radio show, which is summarized by a listener. Basically, it was the cracker incident compressed into less than 10 minutes, with McGurk barking at me and an amazingly clueless and pompous senator, Ronan Mullen, brought in to wax indignant at my affront to Catholicism. It was not a good format to actually address the issues — Mullen actually dared me to blaspheme against Muslims, for instance, and all I had time to do was laugh at the hilarity of yet another instance of fatwah envy before they both went gallumphing over me with outrage — but that was OK, the point was to stir up some argument and maybe get a few more people to show up at my talks where I can actually make a reasonable case.

Last night I also shared a table with Michael Nugent of Atheist Ireland to discuss the blasphemy laws with an overfull room. Michael was the real star there — he’s very knowledgeable about Irish politics, much more so than me, obviously. One of the great points he made was that Mullen’s indignation about an atheist committing blasphemy was profoundly hypocritical. Apparently, Mullen voted against the blasphemy law at first, for an interesting reason: it didn’t provide for allowing religious people to blaspheme against other religions than their own.

It’s a busy few days coming up. This afternoon I’m going to record an interview for a show called Culture Shock on Newstalk Radio, which is broadcast on Thursdays at 10pm on 106-108fm. I’ll be at UCD tonight at 6:30, in Theatre B in the Science Hub.

Tomorrow I hop on a train for Cork, 7pm in Council Chambers Room, 1st floor, North Wing of Main Quadrangle, UCC. I’ll be sharing the stage with a representative from Educate Together, and the subject will be on the importance of a secular education.

On Thursday, I’ll be in Galway, speaking in the O’Flaherty Theatre, NUI Galway, at 6:30 pm. I see they’ve listed a couple of potential topics…maybe I’ll just poll the audience to see which they want to hear.

On Friday, I’ll be talking about Creationism and Complexity in Belfast, 6pm in the Peter Froggatt centre, room G06, at Queens University. We’d also talked about doing a second lecture in Belfast, on evo-devo for general audiences, probably on Saturday, but I haven’t heard any details on that just yet.

Sunday I fly home to collapse in the arms of the Trophy Wife™.

And now you all know where to find me. If I could just get over the jet lag, which hit me something fierce this morning, it should be a fun week.

On top of previous summaries, Zeno now recounts the tale of my visit to Sierra College. One amusing feature of the Q&A at Sierra was that a notorious creationist showed up, and I caused him considerable distress by turning his complaints against him by asking him to give his best evidence for god, and also by viciously inviting him to our post-talk libations. I am such a poopyhead.

I also got one horrified reaction to my Davis talk published by a faitheist. It’s hilarious. The author professes to be an atheist, but then defends Christianity. Sort of.

Christians may refer to themselves as a “flock,” but they aren’t sheep. It takes courage to say you believe in something that can’t be proven. When scientists formulate hypotheses, they are vulnerable to critique, and they must conduct research to remove all doubt. Religious believers must deal with the same vulnerability, but with the knowledge that they can never prove the existence of a God. Religion takes bravery.

Well, gosh. Then I guess the bravest people of them all are the ones who pick the most absurd, most ridiculous, most insane religious beliefs. If courage trumps reason as a virtue, the greatest thing you can do is flail madly for lunacy.

I had a nice break for about 14 hours — I arrived in Minneapolis, and my wife showed up with her massage table (there’s a reason she is the Trophy Wife™), but now I have to get on a series of planes to arrive after a series of stops in exotic Dublin, where I shall somehow find my way to someplace to stay for a day or so before giving a talk to the University College Dublin humanists. It should be fine, even if I am stumbling about a bit with uncertainty about where I’m going — the Irish are a hospitable people, and if nothing else, I can always find a pub.

Everyone uses that picture Larry Moran shot of me on the bridge across the Thames…I may have to start sending him royalties.

It is Thursday, right?My brain is melting a bit, so I’m not really sure any more. I know I’m getting on the train again this afternoon and heading up to Sacramento, at least. I’m giving one more talk in California, at 7pm in Weaver 110 at Sierra. They are charging $5 admission; I was surprised to discover at the last place that charged that it seemed to have no affect on the group’s ability to fill a room. Next tour: Ticketmaster.

I’ve been talking every day for 8 days straight. I’ve got a break in that routine for a couple of days, at least, even those days are all going to be consumed with travel.

The interview in which I answered the top 10 questions submitted by Reddit readers is now online, and it’s right here.

I haven’t watched it. I can never bear to see myself in these things. You’ll have to tell me if I said something stupid.

Oy, that Myers guy is babbling in California again. Tonight at 7pm, I’ll be in Main Quad Building 420 (Jordan Hall), room 041, at Stanford. Two more days. I’ll make it.

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Many people have asked where I’ll be tomorrow. Again at 7pm, look for me in Weaver 110 on the Sierra College campus.

Don’t look for me on the day after, though. I’ll be slumped in a plane, on my way back to spending a delightful 12 hours or so in Minneapolis.

I seem to be leaving a trail of noisy wreckage behind me as I cruise through California. You can read one account of my talk at Davis in their local paper — I sound very ferocious in the description — and my evening in Chico was recorded. That one was a little different; we just gathered for beer and pizza, and then we sat around and people asked questions, so it was more of a casual Q&A.

I’ll be heading out shortly to talk some more. I think my voice is getting a little huskier after all this…it must hold out for another week and a half!