Comments

  1. PatrickG says

    Kind of feel bad for the guy… severe illness and testing don’t go together very well. I can relate.

    I’m a bit surprised, though, if he has a legitimate medical condition, the school is required to accommodate him (this might be lengthier tests, retakes if he’s symptomatic at the scheduled time, etc.). Not really sure why I’m posting this here, but, well, there it is.

  2. says

    Not really sure why I’m posting this here

    Because you didn’t stop to think, “Is it really necessary to say what I’m about to say?”

    Because you didn’t stop to think, “Rhys probably knows about testing accommodation already, but if he’s talking about having a breakdown, he probably didn’t have such accommodations set up beforehand, and it’s hard to negotiate bureaucracy when you’re in the middle of a breakdown”?

    Because you didn’t stop to think how douchey and hyperskeptical it sounds to use the phrase, “if he has a legitimate medical condition,” which has the unfortunate implication that perhaps his medical condition is “illegitimate” for some reason? That perhaps Rhys is lying about it?

    Next time you find yourself typing that phrase I’d advise you to just erase the whole comment, wait a few minutes, and then start fresh.

  3. 'Tis Himself says

    It’s unbelievably vicious.

    Vicious is exactly the right word to describe those people.

  4. says

    Am I comprehending this correctly … thats a link to a site where some completely anonymous gobshite is sticking the verbal knife into a 17 year old kid.

  5. Beatrice says

    What a bunch of mean hate addicts.

    I’ve been to the slymepit today (*shudder*) to see what happened with publishing Amy’s address and all they do there is discuss how awful Rebecca, Amy, PZ and the whole FTB hivemind are. I’d call it sad, but I’m over feeling any kind of pity for that bunch.

    My sympathy goes to Rhys Morgan, for both his health problems and becoming another target of those haters.

  6. says

    Dave, yes, you understand correctly – an anonymous crap sticking the knife into a 17-year-old who has Crohn’s disease and had just gotten bad exam results.

  7. Pteryxx says

    Ah, that’s why they’re attacking Rhys. A week or so ago, Rhys called out Thunderfoot on Twitter over TF’s treatment. Rhys is listed in egate’s “mangina” category for saying rape culture exists. So no… it isn’t even random, it’s part of the same old campaign.

    (See the search cache for the egate blog, I ain’t linking that.)

  8. EllenBeth Wachs says

    I’ve been to the slymepit today (*shudder*) to see what happened with publishing Amy’s address

    I have as well, ughh, it is absolutely appalling to read the comments there. I cannot begin to understand the obsessive and vindictive mindset that those people possess.

  9. says

    Like I said in my blog post on Thuderf00t…

    I may not be an expert in bullying, but having experienced it first-hand for a good 18 years of my life, I can safely say that I know what it looks like. And yes, I see a shit-ton of bullying.

    But I don’t see any of it coming from anyone at Freethought Blogs (or SkepChick, for that matter).

  10. says

    The scariest thing about that site, is how long it’s gone on for. The author has spent an entire year posting hate filled rants against Rebecca Watson and anyone who dares support her.

  11. says

    Pteryxx, oh, absolutely not random. Rhys has been a target for months. He protested when Jessica got those stupid Facebook comments about her smiley-face photo, as did Rebecca and I. That was probably enough to make him a target right there. He’s a feminist. He’s a fan of FTB.

  12. says

    …not to mention the name of the associated Twitter account. He calls himself “Watson Rodriguez”, where Rodriguez is the name of Watson’s ex-husband. Why? Seriously, why? It’s not base humour or an insult; it’s just creepy and weird.

  13. says

    I guess the theists are right. The atheist community apparently exists in large part for people who want to hurt others without any rules standing in their way.

  14. Nathair says

    Because you didn’t stop to think how douchey and hyperskeptical it sounds to use the phrase, “if he has a legitimate medical condition,” which has the unfortunate implication that perhaps his medical condition is “illegitimate” for some reason? That perhaps Rhys is lying about it?

    You’ve misunderstood. When someone says “I have x” and you respond “If you have x you are entitled to y” that is not calling them a liar, that is just pointing out that y is contingent upon x. It’s a perfectly common turn of phrase.

    Remember that we are tied down to a language which makes up in obscurity what it lacks in style

  15. Marta says

    The single comment posted there?

    “He’d better learn some street-circus skills from Saint Beccy, or how to make bloody-awful ceramic shit from a retarded gibbon.” Michael Kingsford Gray

    Jesus wept.

  16. says

    Wow, what a putrid toad of a man. Seriously, if you are the kind of fuckhead who gets their jollies picking on Rhys Morgan of all people… sheesh.

  17. kantalope says

    My life was better before I found out that such sites existed.

    And I had not heard about the organized harassment of Amy at TAM.

    I know not to click on things like that again.

  18. says

    I’ve actually read some of the stuff posted there, out of that same sort of sick curiosity that leads to traffic jams when there’s a car accident.

    The obsession this person has with Rebecca is very nearly terrifying. I honestly hope Rebecca is watching out for herself… the person behind that blog seems obsessed, and not in a healthy way.

  19. smhll says

    I’ve been to the slymepit today (*shudder*) to see what happened with publishing Amy’s address and all they do there is discuss how awful Rebecca, Amy, PZ and the whole FTB hivemind are. I’d call it sad, but I’m over feeling any kind of pity for that bunch.

    I have indulged my curiousity before, also.

    Let me say how much I respect the FtB bloggers and how much I enjoy the commentariat here. (And when the temperature of the rhetoric in the comments gets dialed up all the way to caliente, I don’t think it’s fair to try to play pin-the-responsibility on one composite blogger.)

  20. says

    Elevatoridiot’s craziness and obsession is becoming ever more crazy and obsessive. It’s clear that he thrives on attention (while calling other people attention whores) but it’s also clear that there are other people (and/or sock puppets) agreeing with him. Do we feed him or not?

    Needless to say, he doesn’t limit himself to dishonesty in his posts, he also deletes and edits comments he doesn’t like. While claiming censorship and bullying by FtB, naturally. He also habitually edits the text of his own posts after the fact, presumably to make the few comments he allows to persist look stupid.

    He also moderates comments and then later comes back and deletes or edits ones he’s previously approved! This suggests an….. uncalm….. state of mind.

    His problem with Rebecca is – obviously – elevatorgate. The usual hyperbole resulting from “guys don’t do that”. In his mind, those four words render every single thing she’s said since (and even before) idiotic and wrong.

    His problem with Amy is that she got upset. He has never explained why getting upset is a legitimate subject for sustained derision. I don’t know about you, but my first instinct when I see an upset person is to try to stop them being upset. Not to put all my energy into making them feel worse, without even making a coherent point.

    His problem with Rhys seems to be that Rhys agrees with some things Rebecca and others say, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the root were jealousy: people like Rebecca, Ophelia, Tracy King, James Randi, PZ and lots of others (correctly) take Rhys seriously. They don’t take elevatorpopinjay seriously. I’m not one to thoughtlessly claim that all bullies are just jealous, but I wouldn’t be surprised in this case.

    Elevatorarsehole also has a serious problem with Rhys raising money for a rape crisis charity. I genuinely don’t know how anyone could have a problem with that.

    Anyway, Rhys can take care of himself. He’s been dealing with attacks like this for years. But he deserves our support. I’m certain his A-level results won’t hold him back: if you don’t know him, google him to see what he’s achieved so far, regardless of chronic illness.

    Ignoring @elevatorgate doesn’t seem to work. I can’t say for sure that sending him our disapproval will work either, but there are two important issues at stake here:

    1. The atheist/skeptic community that’s developing on this side of the supposed controversy cares about what happens to people and how they are treated. And, more importantly,

    2. SOMEONE IS WRONG ON THE INTERNET.

    I say feed him. Feed him until he can take no more.

  21. Svlad Cjelli says

    Wait, what, really?

    @ Marta:

    “Michael Kingsford Gray”

    But I thought MKG was a levelheaded, stuffy sort of guy.

  22. 'Tis Himself says

    It’s quite amazing how someone saying “guys, don’t do that” has unleashed such a strong, vicious, obsessive attack on people who think women are human.

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