Jim Underdown
James Underdown has been Executive Director of the Center for Inquiry-Los Angeles since 1999. He is also the Founder and Chair of the Independent Investigations Group, a team of inquirers who look into paranormal, pseudo-scientific, and extraordinary claims. He is also the creator of the Steve Allen Theater at CFI-L.A. Jim has appeared on numerous radio and TV shows including Hannity and Colmes, Penn and Teller's Bullshit, History's Mysteries, Proof Positive, and the Oprah Winfrey Show. He is a regular Skeptical Sunday guest on the SETI Institute's Are We Alone? radio show/podcast. His many pre-CFI endeavors include writing and directing short films (A Day in the Life of Frank Sinatra, The Test, Dear Father), and directing his stage play, Party of 13, a secular re-telling of the Last Supper. Jim also toured midwest comedy clubs as the Poet Laureate of Calumet City, IL.
Power Balance Bracelets a Bust in Tests
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 36.1, January/February 2012
Special Report
Members of the Independent Investigations Group and sixteen volunteers, including former Olympic gymnast Dominique Dawes, conducted a test of Power Balance bracelets. The results will not be surprising to skeptics.
And another thing, Tebow…
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
January 12, 2012
Let's get something straight football fans.
A recent poll revealed that 43% of those asked thought that God helps Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow win.
He (God) does not.
God, almost certainly, does not exist.
Hold on, believers, there's another point here!
No Justice Scalia
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
October 5, 2011
A death-row inmate is denied an appeal because his attorneys had switched law firms. A letter the court sent to the inmate's lawyers' old firm is returned, and the deadline to file an appeal expires before they can respond.An Atheist in Church
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
August 10, 2011
When I got a call from a woman named Lindsey inviting me to appear at the Moment Church during their Sunday evening service, some warning bells went off in my head. She sounded like a nice enough person, but why would they want me, a career atheist, to even be at their church, much less have a voice there?
This ain’t no UU Church, by the way. Moment’s “what we believe” statement of faith on their website represents what I would call pretty hardcore Christianity – God is the ubiquitous, all-knowing creator of the universe; the bible is inerrant; you get to heaven through Jesus; marriage is between one man and one woman. You get the picture.
Top Ten Rapture Excuses
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
May 18, 2011
What’s next, Moses’ Red Sea Water Park?
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
December 1, 2010
The creationist theme park will feature a 500 foot-long replica of Noah's Ark containing live animals...Power Balance Bracelets a Bust in IIG Test
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
November 11, 2010
Do Power Balance bracelets perform under testing conditions? The Independent Investigations Group at CFI-L.A. finds out.IIG Visits the Wonderful World of Woo at Para-Con
November 3, 2010
Any good skeptic should touch down in an alien world like Para-Con every now and then, so there were good reasons for us to attend the convention...
An Immodest Proposal for Ground Zero
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
August 26, 2010
Our record in the Muslim-Christian feud is clean. We are neither Montague nor Capulet.Matthew 7:1
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
January 26, 2010
A recent article in the L.A. Times reconfirms that millions of dollars from churches helped pass Proposition 8.Pat Robertson Is a Nut
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
January 15, 2010
The Relocation of Awe
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
January 12, 2010
To Beanie, Or Not To Beanie?
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
December 14, 2009
State-Sponsored Quackery: Feng Shui and Snake Oil for California Nurses
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 33.6, November / December 2009
Feature
The Independent Investigations Group investigates pseudoscience particularly therapeutic touch in professional nursing.
The (Even) Newer Atheist Approach: A Letter to Kirk Cameron from an Atheist and a Skeptic
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
October 29, 2009
Death from Faith
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
October 15, 2009
A Secular Memorial
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
September 23, 2009
Dirty Scientology Tricks in Hollywood…?
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
June 18, 2009
Dear Steve Harvey…
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
June 13, 2009
By the way… I’m Crazy.
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
June 11, 2009
We know that sane people sometimes have odd experiences... but some people are just nuts.CFI/Los Angeles Celebrates Darwin’s 200th Birthday with Readings, Plays, Lecture
Skeptical Inquirer Volume 33.3, May / June 2009
News & Comment
More than 300 Southern Californians celebrated the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin at CFI Los Angeles...
Feng Shui for California Nurses?
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
May 28, 2009
The Board of Nursing here green-lighted a class to teach anthropomancy -- the divination of the future by reading human entrailsCalifornia Marriage Remains Respectable
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
May 26, 2009
The 9 Circles of Atheist Hell
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
May 8, 2009
“When a Priest Preys on Another Priest” Victim Weighs in…
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
May 4, 2009
Molested victim speaks out on CFI blog...Supreme Court Ruling a Crock of Shit
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
April 29, 2009
Is a barefoot man any happier to step in a warm pile of excrement?When a Priest Preys on Another Priest
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
April 21, 2009
Bounce God (and Fred Flintstone) from the Ballpark
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
April 17, 2009
When the Church Breaks 80…
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
April 8, 2009
A Bell Tolls for Walter Sartory
Free Thinking (centerforinquiry.net)
March 31, 2009
