Frivology

There’s a bit of a kerfuffle going on at Pharyngula, and I specifically use such a silly word because it’s a pretty silly discussion.  Luckily, PZ is taking it just as silly as it really is.  Short version - he linked to a site that had a poll going on, which ended up getting that poll around 4,000 new votes skewed toward his reader’s views.  The owner of the site threw a hissy fit about it and some guy - not even the site’s owner - is now threatening to tell PZ’s college and ISP what a naughty man he is by allowing people to make fun of others and use naughty words in comments.  Yeah, not kidding.  Kerfuffle.  I got involved in the tangle when the kerfuffle-starter, Jon, showed up at the Richard Dawkins forums and started to talk down to everyone around.

First… we aren’t good enough Atheists:

In my own life, I’ve spent nearly 24 years out of 40 contending with religious bigotry in my own family (and being ostracised for it), campaigning against religiously motivated politics, actively supporting pro-choice groups in Ireland, giving money and time to UK secular organisations and more recently co-ordinating with atheists locally on an arts-based music project. I’m not some silly, zeitgeist-jumping little twerp (who would probably sign-up to Christianity if it could promise to cure acne) that recently bought a t-shirt and read a book! I care passionately about atheism and humanism and I’ve had to take a real stand for both. Watching them get wrecked will not be a welcome end result.

Then, later, we see his supposedly final post in the Pharyngula comments where he insults World of Warcraft players (of which I am one) and anyone who would dare to shed insults at him (though he seems impervious to the claims that he’s giving because he doesn’t use naughty words when he insults people), all wrapped in a neat bow of implied violence. Oh yes, and lest I forget… there’s another jab at anyone who’s not as strongly atheist as he is.

Final point – a colleague at work used to play World of Warcraft and I asked him about it once. He said it was full of little dweebs (mostly kids) playing at being tough demonic-style warriors, whereas for him he had a bit of a laugh playing as a nature loving elf. Basically the characters people chose generally reflected something they didn’t get a chance to be in their lives—which kind of makes sense.

Now, that guy and myself both work as psych nurses. We’ve both earned extra money as doormen and we’ve both – a few years back—been known as people you really shouldn’t cross until we started to get a clue, calm down and grow up a bit. Consequently I think the Warcraft rule applies here. I know you daring, offensive, shocking little tykes would love to sound really brave and come over as ‘edgy’ (lol), but I also know you probably wouldn’t dare to say boo to me if you met me. Such is the unreality of the net.

If you want a real shock take your little play atheism onto the street and see what happens I’ll bring the band aids and a video-camera.

It’s all a bunch of stupidity, but the reason that I call attention to it is that wrapped up within the moronic sentiments, there is a very real and worthwhile conversation … it’s a much more strident conversation on a subject than I think I’ve ever seen - much less had the chance to participate in.  That conversation is… should atheists be loud and proud, or should we be quiet and “respectful”.

I’ll sum my position up by paraphrasing something Matt Dillahunty said on Non-Prophets Radio last week.  There are a group of people that seem to think the only way to have intelligent discourse is to shut of your distate for any position that you find stupid in the name of “respect”.  However, truly retarded positions don’t call for any respect - don’t need respect - and shouldn’t HAVE respect granted to them… period.  What kind of world would we be in today if no one ever openly scorned and ridiculed things that were stupid?

I wish I got weird-assed emails like these.  Surely, it would make my days more entertaining: 

Also if you have kids. when you lay your baby on the side, you crush the ears.The head is the heaviest part of the body at that stage. So you need to put a hole in the pillow or something, so the ears do not get crushed. You will have a much happier baby.

All comes from the ALMIGHTY FATHER,OUR LORD JESUS Christ and THE HOLY SPIRIT. i am just a worker.

Please look at the physic’s in all of this. To have a strong foundation,your structure has to be rectified.

If this could get out to the world. It will solve so many problem’s we face on this planet.

A program needs to be set up.

The problems are inside us. And here is the solution.

PS: Once you complete the seven week’s,look to the light, any light. Because evil will come after you. Safe journey.

via Pharyngula: I get email.

It sounds like someone had a lucid dream and decided it was real.

I don’t get much of a chance to blog at work, but I do get opportunities to catch up on my RSS feeds.  Which means, I got to watch the world react to Obama’s Inauguration even though I wasn’t able to really participate init.  Planet Atheism was a pretty big aid to doing that, as I got to read all of the reactions to the part that made me ‘woohoo’ out loud - Obama recognizing non-believers.  I also just kind of got to see how people would react. 

Unfortunately, one of my favorite bloggers - PZ Myers - disappointed me the most with, really, the least to say: 

I’m not wildly enthusiastic about our new president, but he is so much better than the amoral sleazebuckets he is replacing in office that I have to see it all as a largely positive change. I also just read the speech … not bad. I’ll give him a few years to prove himself.

I also caught the brief acknowledgment of the existence of non-believers. It’s a small thing, but appreciated. Everyone seems to be a bit unsatisfied with his specific choice of word, and I agree a bit. The better choice, the word that would have been more inclusive and positive, is “freethinkers”. Someone let his speechwriters know.

via: Catching up with the event of the day

Well, first, as I understand it Obama wrote his own speech for this one, but that’s me being nit-picky.  Secondly, I really don’t like the term ‘freethinkers’, it doesn’t really hit with the right punch what it really means.  Non-believers works very well, thank-you-very-much.  I feel like PZ, and then later when I read him, Hemant, are really … I don’t want to say cynical as that sends the wrong impression, so does bitter, but maybe … jaded?  

(continue reading…)

Why do these conversations always come up when I’m sleeping? 

I want my commenters to be uncivil. There is no virtue in politeness when confronted with ignorance, dishonesty, and delusion. I want them to charge in to the heart of the issue and shred the frauds, without hesitation and without faltering over manners. These demands for a false front of civility are one of the strategies used by charlatans who want to mask their lack of substance — oh, yes, it would be so goddamned rude to point out that a huckster is lying to you. I am quite happy that we have a culture of being rude to frauds here.

I wanted to be uncivil, too, but there are just too many comments, now!  

PS: Another PZ gem that hits close to home.  Is there some sort of mental deformity that makes certain people actually think certain horribad web design is actually, in fact, good?  Gotta be the reptile theory…