HNN#25: The Golden Compass & The Geography of Nowhere

In this month’s audio podcast Humanist Network News interviews author Philip Pullman about the religious protest of The Golden Compass, a new film based on his fantasy novel. Also, suburban sprawl critic James Howard Kunstler speaks to HNN about how and why Americans need to re-think the spaces they inhabit.

Segment 1: Author Philip Pullman on The Golden Compass as an atheist film

Interview: Matt Cherry speaks by phone with British author Philip Pullman, whose book The Golden Compass recently premiered as a film starring Nicole Kidman. Christian organizations are boycotting the film because they claim it teaches children anti-religious values. Cherry speaks with Pullman about the author’s non-religious worldview, the controversy surrounding the film and the humanist values that may be contained within Pullman’s fantasy books for children.

End: 24:19

Listener Comment:

An HNN listener shares his families concerns about coming out as an atheist in a small town.

End: 25:28

Segment 2: Author James Howard Kunstler on the human habitat

Interview: Duncan Crary interviews James Howard Kunstler, author of The Geography of Nowhere and The Long Emergency, about “the human habitat.” Kunstler is one of the loudest critics of suburban sprawl and the damage that poorly designed communities are doing to the human spirit, the American economy and the planet. Kunstler predicts the end of the cheap oil fiasco is near and that humans — especially Americans — will need to re-think how and where they live. This interview was recorded in Kunstler’s home near Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

End: 59:42