ARTHUR CHAPPELL'S HUMANISM CONTENTS PAGE

ARTHUR CHAPPELL’S CONTENTS PAGE

Launched 16th July 2002 LAST UPDATED 1st February 2007. Estimated number of pages – 770

You could scroll through the whole list of hundreds of pages or take a short cut to the categories you wish for. SEE ALSO AN A TO Z CONTENTS GUIDE AUTOBIOGRAPHY PAGES FUNNY PAGES PHOTOGRAPHS OF ME HUMANISM/ ATHEISM ESSAYS GENERAL ARTICLES CULTS AND BRAINWASHING ARTICLES MY POETRY MY FICTION MY SCIENCE FICTION, FANTASY & HORROR PAGES RE-ENACTMENT (CIVIL WAR) EROTICA (ADULTS ONLY .FILM REVIEW PAGES MY LOCAL (MANCHESTER ENGLAND) PAGES LISTS (MY TOP TENS OF EVERYTHING) GENERAL PICTURES MY SCRIPTS TV REVIEWS HOME PAGE UPDATES NEWS BOOK REVIEWS WEBSITE REVIEWS arthur@chappell7300.freeserve.co.uk BOOK REVIEW SUB-CATEGORIES - CHILDREN’S BOOKS CLASSIC LITERATURE COMICS/GRAPHIC NOVELS CULTS ENGLISH CIVIL WAR EROTICA (ADULTS ONLY) FANTASY HISTORY HORROR HUMOUR MANCHESTER, ENGLAND NEWSPAPERS/MAGAZINES NON-FICTION PHILOSOPHY POETRY RELIGION AND SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE FICTION SHORT STORIES A TO Z OF BOOK REVIEWS BY AUTHOR A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W Y Z

LINKS PAGES I FIND USEFUL AND/OR ENTERTAINING

NEWS - Details of changes and events in my life which are topical and of interest, ie, writing competitions I am currently entering, etc.

AN A TO Z CONTENTS GUIDE TO THE CONTENTS OF THIS WEB SITE BY KEY WORD TAGS AND LINKS. If you are looking for specific subjects, themes, and key words, check through this alphabetical list for quick reference. A B C D E F G H I J K L M N P Q R S T U V W X

UPDATES Any recent changes on this website at a glance.

MY BLOGS http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/myblogs.htm

My Space. http://www.myspace.com/56954240

MY WIKIPEDIA LINKS – References by me on the online dictionary.

LIVE JOURNAL - http://arthurjchappell.livejournal.com/
I have discovered that you can make your Live Journal Blogs pay. A site called BLOGITIVE www.blogitive.com is willing to pay for reviews and links to their sponsors if you write them into blog messages. If you consider registering with them, do please mention that you were referred to them by me and give them my e-mail address arthur@chappell7300.freeserve.co.uk accordingly. Thanks. AC

FUNNY PAGES Contents sub-category for the humourous pages on this website

I have a short horror story online at the following link - if you vote it high enough I could win a contract to sell it to Amazon - cheers - AC Voting ends on December 31st 2006.

http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474976864896

NOTE - The Manchester Humanists are now run by my namesake Simon Chappell (no relation) and some confusion arises as his website http://www.greater-manchester-humanists.org.uk/ is often mistaken for my own. For current updates on the activities of this fine group, visit Simon's pages. The Humanism articles below are from the group newsletter from the days when I was involved. My other articles, stories and poetry are on non-Humanism themes anyway.

MY WORK IN PRINT – Near complete list of my work in print.

ABSTRACTS – Reviews on SHVOONG http://www.shvoong.com/portfolio/sign-in/ of books on just about every subject under the sun that I have read. Rate my reviews and I could get paid.

MY MOST VISITED PAGES - The web pages that prove particularly popular with my visitors.

CULTS AND BRAINWASHING ARTICLES

BRAINWASHED! A CULT SURVIVOR'S TALE Detailed biography of my life in the Divine Light Mission cult.

THE MYTHS OF MEDITATION Savage criticism of meditation, from an unusually negative point of view.

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE CULT KIND A look at the Aetherius society and similar UFO cult organisations.

TEN YEARS AFTER - Looking back at how Divine Light Mission changed me, a decade after escaping.

RADIO INTERVIEW ON CULTS www.arthurchappell.clara.net/radio.manchester.interview.cults.february1st2007.htm Summary of the Interview chaired by Terry Christian, with myself and Dr. Eileen Barker (cult apologist) at Radio Manchester on my cult experiences www.arthurchappell.clara.net/brainwashing.htm

THE FUTURE OF RELIGIOUS CULTS What will become of cults and their critics in the not too distant future?

HUMANISM AND ATHEISM ESSAYS

Selected Articles by Arthur Chappell from the GM Humanist

NEW!!!! NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCES - What happens to you when you come close to death. Some people describe visits to Heaven. I strongly disagree with their claims.

NEW !!! ASSAP - Real life paranormal investigation by a member of The Association For The Study Of Scientific & Anomalous Phenomena (ASSAP).

NEW !!! QUOTATIONS - List of quotations on atheism, agnosticism & Humanism collected over many years. Growing all the time.

NEW !!! SKEPTICISM INC Review of Bo Fowler's hilarious book on Metaphysical betting shops, narrated by an atheistic shopping trolley.

NEW!!!! - EVIL - What is evil? Why doesn't God do anything about it? A no-holds barred look at the terrible things humans do to one another and possible solutions to the problem.

DR. WHO - Index to my many Doctor Who stories, articles and reviews.

SCIENCE FICTION - Ambitious study of the history of the SF/Fantasy genres from a Humanistic perspective. In Six parts and with a Bibliography too. PART 1 PART 2 PART 3 PART 4 PART 5 PART 6 BIBLIOGRAPHY

NEW!!!! MUSICALS - My views on the best and worst kind of musical theatre/film.

NEW!!!! HUMAN NATURE - Just what makes us Human? With reference to Artificial Intelligence, Alan Turing and the Turing Test procedure.

SCIENCE FICTION - An epic history of the science fiction genre in six parts, based on a talk given to various Humanist organisations. Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 and the bibliography

PACIFISM - While supporting principles of non-violence I believe there are such things as justifiable acts of war and violence. This is probably not what most Humanists would say.

- PRECURSERS - Stoics, Sceptics, Cynics and Epicurian philosophers in ancient Greece - Were they the ancestors of Humanism?

BELLWETHER Book review of Connie Willis's novel about fads, and chaos theory and sheep.

SOPHIE'S WORLD - Review of the best philosophy text book for years. Or is a novel?

HISTORY - A list of the Events and meetings of the Greater Manchester Humanist Group since it's creation in 1993.

- DARWIN, BRADLAUGH & KROPOTKIN - The lives of three of the most important Victorian atheists and Humanists reviewed.

ART - What is art? What are Humanists to think of Christian paintings and sculpture? Is there such a thing as Humanist art (beyond portraits of known Humanists, that is). A history and assessment of aesthetics and the meaning of art itself.

ANGEL MEADOW - My family history shows some Humanistic influences from French Huguenots onwards.

NEW !!! THE GAY & LESBIAN HUMANIST ASSOCIATION (GALHA) - Important talk on gay rights from the files of the GM Humanist.

ROCK & ROLL HUMANISM - Atheistic values in popular music.

NAIL THE BIG LIE - Attacking hateful claims that Humanists are Nazis at heart.

THE DARK AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL - A humorous argument in favour of pessimism.

THOMAS PAINE - The life and times of one of the true heroes of Humanism

LOCAL HERO - SAMUAL (MAGGOTY) JOHNSON - The bizarre but true life of an eccentric Cheshire court jester and dramatist.

MORALITY AND RELIGION Why you don't need God to be good. With reference to Plato's' Euthyphro.

'ARK! 'ARK! WHAT A LARK! Creationists under fire. Debunking the Noah's Ark legend.

THE OTHER HUMANISTS - The Siloist Cult who call themselves The Humanist Movement. Why they are not like the Manchester Humanists at all.

BALD - Why I am proud of being a slapheaded baldy bonce.

LIFE ON THE SQUARE. - Humanist views on The Freemasons JOHN PHILIMORE OF THE FREEMASONS - Leading freemason's response to my article on Freemasons.

WHY WE ARE HUMANISTS - Questionnaire feedback report on being agnostics, & Humanists means to us.

SPIRITUALITY - Can Humanists use words like 'soul, spirit, or spirituality?"

EGYPTOLOGY- Talk by the Manchester based Ancient Egypt Studies Society.

HUMANISM & POLITICS - Is Humanism political?

CHILDREN AND RELIGION - What to do when your child asks whether there is a God or not?

THE COSMIC FAIRY - Review of Arthur Atkinson's book on Darwinian ideas.

HUMANISM, WHAT'S IN THE WORD Review of a history of the usage and abusage of the word Humanism through the centuries and in the present day.

HUMOUR AND FUN - What exactly is funny?

ONLINE DISCUSSION GROUPS/FORUMS Discussion groups and forums I belong to online.

PRINCESS DIANA - Controversial reaction to the death of The Princess Of Wales.

HUMANIST CEREMONIES -Non-religious weddings, baby namings and funerals.

TOP RANKIN' ROBERT RANKIN.- Review of the life of this highly irreverent humorist.

WHAT PIKEMEN DO - The role Pikemen had in the Civil War, and what they still do today as re-enactors. This is useful for anyone wishing to join a re-enactment division.

FREE WILL - Do we have free will, or is everything we do somehow determined by either divine forces, or by environmental and social pressures?

SAINTS PRESERVE US? What is a saint or a martyr? Do their claims to fame really stand up?

SPORT AND HUMANISM - Why I hate sport of all kinds.

FRIENDS OF THE EARTH Talk on conservation and environment management.

PORNOGRAPHY A CLOSER LOOK - Discussion meeting on the nature of porn and censorship of such material as qualifies for such definition.

THE LAST TABOO TWO Reaction to THE LAST TABOO article about middle aged male virginity.

GENERAL ARTICLES

GOD FOR A DAY What would the ideal Universe be like if I had created it?

TATTOOS - How I came to like body art but why I still won't have it done to me.

HOW TO MAKE A WEBSITE - Simple step by step account of the way this site was created, in case you want one of your own.

QUICKSAND - My phobia for deep mud and quicksand is a fetishistic turn on for some people. Here's how.

SOAPS - Why I hate TV Soap Operas with a vengeance.

EXPLOITATION OF EXTRAS - A job interview at which I was expected to pay the boss to be allowed to start working for him.

ID CARD DEFENSES Replying to the reasons people give for actually wanting to carry ID Cards.

NEW !!!! CRITICISM - What is wrong in Humanism today and why we should not be afraid to criticise ourselves.

VIOLENCE - Is there too much violence and gratuitous horror on TV and in films? Does TV influence encourage violence in real life? I argue against the grain and reason that this is not the case.

THE NEW ATHEISM - Debunking what Evangelical Christian Robert A. Morley says about Humanism in a book he wrote about us.

THE MANCHESTER MARTYRS - How a jailbreak in 1867 by Fenian Rebels led to an Irish IRA monument being erected in Moston, Manchester, where I live.

DRINKS AFTER THE MEETING - Short dramatic play in which Two Humanists argue about whether Humanists should spend all their time fighting religion, or tackle other social issues instead.

TIME'S UP - IT'S LATER THAN YOU THINK. Time management, humorous essay on how much time we waste when we only get one life to live.

THE BATH OF PEAS - How I ended up soaked in peas for Children In Need.

THE LAST TABOO - VIRGINITY & CELIBACY. How I came to retain my virginity to the present day when I am a male heterosexual 36 year old. The value of platonic love.

WHY SHOULD I LIVE WHEN OTHERS DIE? -Philosophy Now article on the value of an individual Human life played out in a plane crash scenario where some passengers must die to save the rest of the people on board.

JESUS WAS NOT A VEGAN - Argument against Christians who claim Jesus was a non-meat eater.

XMAS Should Humanists celebrate Yuletide? I argue against the grain by suggesting we should.

NEW !!!! - UNLUCKY MAN - If you were superstitious (and I hope you are not) how many superstitions would you fall foul of just getting up to go to work? The poor wretch in this lampoon gets the lot.

NEW !!!! WHO IN HELL - Review of a clever dictionary of who got sent to Hell and why. Lots of Humanists in there, and much humour among the darker aspects too.

National & international Humanism - FORTHCOMING EVENTS

British Humanist Association DISTINGUISHED SUPPORTERS

ID CARDS - Why I oppose the UK plans to introduce compulsory ID Cards for all

WHEN DO WE GROW UP - Does out childhood end when we come of age or when we face tragedy or sudden responsibility?

MY CV - For potential employers and the merely curious.

ELIZABETH SLADEN IN MANCHESTER - November 2006 talk by a well loved Doctor Who actress.

TRIVIA PAGES - WHO WOULD I BE? (Speculation on which characters I would be in various shows and books and films, and in history - a fun game you'll want to play too). WOULD I DO IT? What I would dare to try or not, given the opportunity. (Again, you'll want to play this yourself.)

MY POETRY SAMPLER. (Click on the titles that appeal to you)

A MARRIAGE OF OTHER PEOPLE'S CONVENIENCE

AQUARIANS ONLY NEED APPLY

BEN BRIERLEY

CLANGER

DON QUIXOTE IN CANDLEWICK GREEN

DRESS CODE – A poem about a pub where they insist on a strict dress code, inspired by Wetherspoons, in Manchester.

EROTIC TANKA POETRY - ADULTS ONLY - Short poems for grown ups.

EVEREST THE HARD WAY

FINDING THE FIRST SENTANCE

FIRST TASTE OF LOVE

MY ENGLISH CIVIL WAR POEMS VOLUME ONE

ON BEHALF OF OUR CLIENT

THE SCALES OF JUSTICE

SLEEPING AROUND

THIS TIME THE COWBOYS LOSE.

TO IRWIN ALLEN

AN URBAN LEGEND IN HIS OWN LUNCHTIME

THE USUAL BIG THANK U

VAMPIRE LULLABY,

YOU HAVE TO QUAGMIRE SOME PEOPLE.

HAIKU - My collection of three line fifteen syllable poems in the famous Japanese format, (in English verse).

POETRY SLAMS - Article on what goes on at Poetry Slam events.

MY SCRIPTS My short film and theatre scripts.

AQUABARD (SHORT FILM) www.arthurchappell.clara.net/scriptaquabard.htm

CTHULHU(SHORT FILM) www.arthurchappell.clara.net/scriptcthulhu.htm

DRINKS AFTER THE MEETING (SHORT PLAY) www.arthurchappell.clara.net/drinksafterthemeeting.htm Performed twice to date.

ID CARD (Short film) www.arthurchappell.clara.net/scriptidcard.htm

THE LITTLE WOODEN BOY (SHORT FILM) http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/scriptpinocchio.htm

WHO’S SOUL IS IT ANYWAY? (SHORT FILM) http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/scriptwhossoul.htm

FICTION.

Each title is linked directly to the story/novel/novella. The plot is summarised after the title. Expect surprises.

BABEL - When a computer virus called mad chip disease starts eating human minds a mild mannered teacher tries to find his way home in a world where no one knows where they are or what they are doing any more. He can't find it, even though he's been there so many times before, and when he does get there, his troubles really start. A disturbing study of the disintegration of our perception of reality.

NEW !!!!! BABYLON FIRE - Xena: Warrior Princess story in which she witnesses the senseless destruction of The Hanging Gardens Of Babylon, at the hands of a madman.

THE BIRTHDAY PRESENT - A boy gets a Universe for his birthday.

UNBAPTISM - A witty call on the Catholic Church to make my baptism null and void.

ID CARD SHORT STORIES CONTENTS - Twenty Six stories about life under extreme surveillance, where everyone in Manchester, England has to carry personal biometric Identity cards.

LORD TIME Divided into thirteen chapters, each with it's own link. CLICK LORD TIME for an introduction. (A Dr. Who Fanzine Novel) Epic story of a Time Lord shape shifter who has literally become a living TARDIS and has to be stopped before he turns himself literally into the second big bang and wipes out the universe altogether. The plot is complicated by the development of a deadly manipulative cult dedicated to the new god. The 7th Doctor, Ace, Maxil and an army of Raston warrior Robots try to save us all. Experimental novel trying to cover major questions of life, death, sanity, insanity, good & evil, etc, without forgetting to be a fast moving adventure story. Too many of these kind of stories stop the action for a lecture on some issue. This one doesn't. Lot's of humour too. Cameo appearences from Daleks, Cybermen, Neil Armstrong, (eh? Surely some mistake?) abound.

LORD TIME (LT) CHAPTER BY CHAPTER - LT1 LT2 LT3 LT4 LT5 LT6 LT7 LT8 LT9 LT10 LT11 LT12 LT13

MY ID CARD - A dark speculation on how an Identity Card might be introduced to the British people very soon. Pray that this stays fiction.

QUAGMASS - Fictional stories by myself about my insane role playing game character, Quagmass, the insane Malkavian vampire with a toy whale called Fish.

SHEER NAKED TERROR (Doctor Who Fanzine Short Story) Published in Chronos Books Fanzine volume One, the story of an interstellar nudist colony.

SEALED KNOT WEB PAGES

Audio File – Radio Interview I did on my Re-enactment and Science Fiction Interests. 24^th August 2006. http://www.musingrandoms.com/blog/eamonn_and_dianne_24Aug06_arthur.mp3

As a member of the Sealed Knot English Civil War Re-enactment Society, www.sealedknot.org I have been writing up my own personalised battle reports and various reviews and history articles for a while now, which have proved of some modest interest among the regimente I am in (Manus O Cahan's Regimente Of Foote) and across the Sealed Knot in General. This is a page of links to the various reviews and reports that you may wish to read and/or re-read accordingly.

BATTLE REPORTS (IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER from 2003 onwards)

BOOK REVIEWS Work I have read about the English Civil War.

FILM REVIEWS (And Video, TV/ DVD etc)

TV REVIEW MOONDIAL - Classic BBC ghost story serial for children from 1990.

MY CIVIL WAR SHORT STORIES - Short works of fiction inspired by the Civil War and/or re-enactment

MY CIVIL WAR POEMS - Like it says on the tin

MY SEALED KNOT PAGES - quick link to contents of my RE-Enactment adventures and related articles pages.

DIARY DECEMBER 4th 2006 - Six years on, I have revived my diary pages.

http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/anime-manga.reviews.htm The best and worst Japanese cartoon films and comic books I have read.

http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/batman.comics-bookreviews.htm The best and worst Batman graphic novels and comics

MY CIVIL WAR POEMS - As it says on the label. Poems inspired by The English Civil Wars 1642-51

MOSTON HALL - Archaeological renovation project on my own Manchester doorstep

DIVINE LIGHT MISSION/ELAN VITAL History of the cult that I was in from 1981 to 1985. This is their story. Mine is at BRAINWASHING

DREAMS TAKE FLIGHT - My poetry & Short story collection available directly from me - details here.

SEALED KNOT - My visit to the Civil War Re-enactment at Nantwich 0n Jan 25th 2003

PSYCHIC READINGS - My sceptical debunking of astrology, Tarot readings, etc.

BEER A to Z guide to the beers I like and the beers I dislike.

MY BEER HISTORY An autobiographical history of how much of a role beer has played in my life.

Updates to the PHOTOS page PHOTOGRAPHS OF ME which now has over 100 pictures.

GOTH HOLIDAY 2002- My stay in the Lake District with a group of Manchester based Goths -

I have added some of my short film scripts at SCRIPTS too, some of which may soon be filmed, especially Aquabard

http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/walk1.htm Prep page for a walk I ran in 2000. I may be reviving the walks soon, so do watch for more information.

Some independent websites review and carry my work http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/otherwebsites.htm If you wish to plug me on your pages, do let me know.

FLASH FICTION ESSAY - How to write really short Stories.

http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/flashfiction.htm

NO WAR IN IRAQ - http://www.arthurchappell.clara.net/nowariniraq2003.htm A Pacifist call for the war to be stopped, issued before it started, which shows how myuch they listen to me.