<div><div><b>From bestselling author and provocateur Christopher Hitchens, the classic guide to the art of principled dissent and disagreement</b></div><div><br /></div><div>In<i> Letters to a Young Contrarian</i>, bestselling author and world-class provocateur Christopher Hitchens inspires the radicals, gadflies, mavericks, rebels, and angry young (wo)men of tomorrow. Exploring the entire range of "contrary positions"--from noble dissident to gratuitous nag--Hitchens introduces the next generation to the minds and the misfits who influenced him, invoking such mentors as Emile Zola, Rosa Parks, and George Orwell. As is his trademark, Hitchens pointedly pitches himself in contrast to stagnant attitudes across the ideological spectrum. No other writer has matched Hitchens's understanding of the importance of disagreement--to personal integrity, to informed discussion, to true progress, to democracy itself.</div></div><div><br /></div>

Ingersoll Lockwood (08/02/1841 – 09/30/1918) was an American lawyer and writer. As a writer, he is particularly known today for his Baron Trump children's novels. However, he wrote other children's novels, a collection of poetry (In Varying Mood: Jetsam, Flotsam and Ligan), a dystopian novella (1900: The Last President), and several other fiction and non-fiction works. <br /><br />Laconics of Cult is Lockwood's critique of organized religions, with their "shadowy gods on their shadowy thrones," and his attempt to create a "New Cult" of the "Immortal Human."

<p>From the new afterword by the author:<br /><br />Humanity has had a long fascination with blood sacrifice. In fact, it has been by no means uncommon for a child to be born into this world only to be patiently and lovingly reared by religious maniacs, who believe that the best way to keep the sun on its course or to ensure a rich harvest is to lead him by tender hand into a field or to a mountaintop and bury, butcher, or burn him alive as offering to an invisible God. The notion that Jesus Christ died for our sins and that his death constitutes a successful propitiation of a “loving” God is a direct and undisguised inheritance of the superstitious bloodletting that has plagued bewildered people throughout history. . .</p>

The Psychedelic Experience: A Manual Based on The Tibetan Book of the Dead (commonly referred to as The Psychedelic Experience) is an instruction manual intended for use during sessions involving psychedelic drugs. Started as early as 1962 in Zihuatanejo, the book was finally published in August 1964.[1] This version of Tibetan Book of the Dead was authored by Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzner and Richard Alpert, all of whom took part in experiments investigating the therapeutic and religious possibilities of drugs such as mescaline, psilocybin and LSD. The book now in kindle edition is dedicated to Aldous Huxley and includes a short introductory citation from Huxley's book The Doors of Perception. Part of this text was used by the Beatles in the song Tomorrow Never Knows.

<b><i>NEW YORK TIMES</i> BESTSELLER • The bestselling author of <i>Zealot</i> and host of <i>Believer </i>explores humanity’s quest to make sense of the divine in this concise and fascinating history of our understanding of God.</b><br /><b> </b><br /> In <i>Zealot,</i> Reza Aslan replaced the staid, well-worn portrayal of Jesus of Nazareth with a startling new image of the man in all his contradictions. In his new book, Aslan takes on a subject even more immense: God, writ large.<br />  <br />In layered prose and with thoughtful, accessible scholarship, Aslan narrates the history of religion as a remarkably cohesive attempt to understand the divine by giving it human traits and emotions. According to Aslan, this innate desire to humanize God is hardwired in our brains, making it a central feature of nearly every religious tradition. As Aslan writes, “Whether we are aware of it or not, and regardless of whether we’re believers or not, what the vast majority of us think about when we think about God is a divine version of ourselves.”<br />  <br /> But this projection is not without consequences. We bestow upon God not just all that is good in human nature—our compassion, our thirst for justice—but all that is bad in it: our greed, our bigotry, our penchant for violence. All these qualities inform our religions, cultures, and governments.<br />  <br /> More than just a history of our understanding of God, this book is an attempt to get to the root of this humanizing impulse in order to develop a more universal spirituality. Whether you believe in one God, many gods, or no god at all, <i>God: A Human History</i> will challenge the way you think about the divine and its role in our everyday lives.<br /><br /><b>Praise for God</b><br /><br />“Timely, riveting, enlightening and necessary.”<b>—</b><i><b><i>HuffPost</i></b><br /><br /> </i>“Tantalizing . . . Driven by [Reza] Aslan’s grace and curiosity, God . . . helps us pan out from our troubled times, while asking us to consider a more expansive view of the divine in contemporary life.”<b><i><b><i>—The Seattle Times</i></b><br /><br /> </i></b>“A fascinating exploration of the interaction of our humanity and God.”<b><i><b>—<i>Pittsburgh Post-Gazette</i></b><br /><br /> </i></b>“[Aslan’s] slim, yet ambitious book [is] the story of how humans have created God with a capital G, and it’s thoroughly mind-blowing.”<b><i><b><i>—Los Angeles Review of Books</i></b><br /><br /> </i></b>“Aslan is a born storyteller, and there is much to enjoy in this intelligent survey.”<b><i><b>—<i>San Francisco Chronicle</i></b></i></b>

<b>Second Edition</b> <br /><br /><i>Goodbye Jesus</i> is the step-by-step account of a former minister’s journey into and out of faith—the story of a long pendulum swing from the deep commitment of a devout believer to the firm conviction that no personal God exists and that all religions are man-made. <br /><br />Tim Sledge was a Southern Baptist preacher and writer for 35 years. His pioneering work in faith-based recovery ministries in the 80s and 90s ultimately guided participants in 20,000 Christian support groups across the U.S. <br /><br />The driving force behind Sledge’s ultimate rejection of Christianity was his long-term, up-close observations of church life. “After living and leading in the church for decades, I saw no consistent evidence of an ongoing supernatural presence—and I wanted to see that evidence with all that was in me.” <br /><br />Part memoir, part exposé, part polemic, <i>Goodbye Jesus</i> is an honest, highly personal, and frequently provocative spiritual autobiography that concludes with an insider’s takedown of religious faith. <br /><br />This is a relatable and thoughtful read for those seeking to better understand the evangelical mindset, for Christians who are questioning their faith, for ministers trying to decide whether to stay or go, and for those who have left their faith and are dealing with its loss.<br />

<div>The central contention of the “New Atheism” of Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens is that there has for several centuries been a war between science and religion, that religion has been steadily losing that war, and that at this point in human history a completely secular scientific account of the world has been worked out in such thorough and convincing detail that there is no longer any reason why a rational and educated person should find the claims of any religion the least bit worthy of attention.<br /><br />     But as Edward Feser argues in <i>The Last Superstition</i>, in fact there is not, and never has been, any war between science and religion at all. There has instead been a conflict between two entirely <i>philosophical conceptions</i> of the natural order: on the one hand, the classical “teleological” vision of Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, and Aquinas, on which purpose or goal-directedness is as inherent a feature of the physical world as mass or electric charge; and the modern “mechanical” vision of Descartes, Hobbes, Locke, and Hume, according to which the physical world is comprised of nothing more than purposeless, meaningless particles in motion. As it happens, on the classical teleological picture, the existence of God, the immortality of the soul, and the natural-law conception of morality are rationally unavoidable. Modern atheism and secularism have thus always crucially depended for their rational credentials on the insinuation that the modern, mechanical picture of the world has somehow been established by science.<br /><br />     Yet this modern “mechanical” picture has never been established by science, and cannot be, for it is not a scientific theory in the first place but merely a philosophical interpretation of science. Moreover, as Feser shows, the philosophical arguments in its favor given by the early modern philosophers were notable only for being surprisingly weak.<br /><br />      However, not only is this modern philosophical picture rationally unfounded, it is demonstrably false. For the “mechanical” conception of the natural world, when worked<br /><br />out consistently, absurdly entails that rationality, and indeed the human mind itself, is illusory. The so-called “scientific worldview” championed by the New Atheists thus inevitably undermines its own rational foundations; and into the bargain (and contrary to the moralistic posturing of the New Atheists) it undermines the foundations of any possible morality as well. By contrast, and as The Last Superstition demonstrates, the classical teleological picture of nature can be seen to find powerful confirmation in developments from contemporary philosophy, biology, and physics; moreover, morality and reason itself cannot possibly be made sense of apart from it.  The teleological vision of the ancients and medievals is thereby rationally vindicated – and with it the religious worldview they based upon it.<br /><br />     Winner of the 2008 Book of the Year in Religion from <i>ForeWord</i> Magazine and the only 2008 Editors’ Choice for Religion from the American Library Association’s <i>Booklist</i>, <i>The Last Superstition</i> remains the most cogent and powerful refutation of the New Atheism extent.</div>

Do you want to get sober without adopting the belief in God that is often pushed in AA, NA, and other 12-step meetings? Do you want a practical, no-nonsense, psychology-based approach to sobriety that is rooted in down-to-earth principles and actions? Staying Sober Without God is a guide that will help you do just that.<br /><br />Staying Sober Without God provides an overview of alcoholism, drug addiction, and behavioral addictions along with a new version of the 12 steps referred to as The Practical 12 Steps. These steps, written by a recovering addict and licensed psychotherapist, are adapted from the original 12 steps. They contain the original wisdom of the 12 steps without any reference to God or the supernatural.<br /><br />Staying Sober Without God also provides guidance in areas that the original 12 steps don't fully address such as physical health, seeking outside help, and effective communication. The end result is a robust, well-rounded guide to a balanced recovery lifestyle that can help you stay forever free from your compulsive behaviors if you choose to be.<br /><br />Finally, there is a path to recovery for the rest of us.

<b>Christopher Hitchens's personally curated <i>New York Times</i> bestselling anthology of the most influential and important writings on atheism, including original pieces by Salman Rushdie and Ian McEwan</b><div><br /></div><div>From the #1 <i>New York Times</i> best-selling author of <i>God Is Not Great</i>, a provocative and entertaining guided tour of atheist and agnostic thought through the ages--with never-before-published pieces by Salman Rushdie, Ian McEwan, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali.Christopher Hitchens continues to make the case for a splendidly godless universe in this first-ever gathering of the influential voices--past and present--that have shaped his side of the current (and raging) God/no-god debate. With Hitchens as your erudite and witty guide, you'll be led through a wealth of philosophy, literature, and scientific inquiry, including generous portions of the words of Lucretius, Benedict de Spinoza, Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Mark Twain, George Eliot, Bertrand Russell, Emma Goldman, H. L. Mencken, Albert Einstein, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, and many others well-known and lesser known. And they're all set in context and commented upon as only Christopher Hitchens--"political and literary journalist extraordinaire" (<i>Los Angeles Times</i>)--can. Atheist? Believer? Uncertain? No matter: <i>The Portable Atheist</i> will speak to you and engage you every step of the way.</div>

<b>ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A NEW WAY OF LIFE? </b><br /><br /> • Do you want to reduce worry and anxiety while making decisions and awaiting outcomes?<br />• Would you like to stop being afraid of imaginary events?<br />• Are you exhausted of the jealousy and suffering arising from desiring too much?<br />• Can you incorporate spiritual practices to improve mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing?<br />• Do you grapple with belief and faith?<br />• Is transforming mindless work into paid, enjoyable playtime an attractive proposition for you?<br />• Would you like to dive into a joyful, eternally affirmative existence?<br /><br />One: A Way of Life enables the reader to access, learn, and discuss in simple language, the principles of schools of thought such as Vedanta, Buddhism, Zen, and Christianity; those doctrines we hear of while growing up, but somehow never get around to studying. After all, why should the benefits of these ideas be limited to those who spend seven years isolated in deep study? Their creators never intended it to be so.<br /><br />The majority of the ideas are discussed in dialogue format between two characters, Young Blood and Old Soul. Young Blood is seeking, questioning, and finding answers; Old Soul is wise, has seen life, and is a patient teacher. The background is the desert, with its scorching days and freezing nights serving as the analogy to life with its peaks and valleys.<br /><br />One: A Way of Life​ in its essence is a no-bullshit introduction, discussion, and completion of embodied philosophy. Live life on your own terms, with the wisdom of the ancients as your guide.