The creation of The Orbit blog network got mentioned on Religion News today. They got quotes from me and Ed, too.
Many Orbit bloggers migrated from other atheist platforms, including Skepchick and Patheos, but the bulk came from Freethought Blogs. Rumors of discord at these platforms spread throughout 2015, but writers say they are focused on the future.
“This group decided it wanted to go off and do its own thing and more power to them,” said P.Z. Myers, whose Pharyngula blog is among the most popular at Freethought Blogs, which he now manages. He has already replaced The Orbit’s bloggers with new ones.
Ed Brayton, founder of Freethought Blogs who now writes at Patheos, said, “The Orbit is being launched by people I think very highly of and consider friends . . . I see no point in building up some sort of rivalry between blog networks. There’s room for everyone.”
I have to make some additions and corrections. Note that link about “rumors of discord” up there? That was from me. The “discord” came not so much from internal problems, but as I say there, from trolling assholes who harass just about everyone here. So if you’re looking for confirmation of Hemant Mehta’s bloviating, it ain’t there.
The other thing is that our new bloggers are not “replacements”. I’ve been nagging everyone in the back channel for years that we have to bring in fresh blood regularly*, and that our old method of delegating recruitment to a committee — when people are here to write, not serve on committees — was not working. We’ve got this nice flush of new voices here because we’d put together an alternative mechanism that is actually working.
*My secret is out, that I’ve been straining to draw in new people simply to sate my vampiric hunger.
I think it’s amazing how people who constantly accuse you of “creating drama” are insisting that there must be “drama” at the source of the creation of the Orbit
Just like cold fusion, wealth trickling down, Trump’s campaign imploding, pastors being frogmarched from the pulpits, and evolution being thoroughly refuted, the collapse of FTB is just around the corner. Yep, any day now. Just you wait.
PZ:
Oh great. Now you tell me, and I’m right next door.
With a legion of forty-foot high killer rats, a sharp stiletto, and some large snark. Against which poopyhead can only muster some zebrafish, a few kraken, and a mindless horde with sniny teeth. Looks to me like a stalemate, at least until the trolls are set against each other.
Blf:
Okay, I feel better now.
I’m sure that now been proven wrong, Hemant will issue an apology.
Any time now…
Also “Christian Conservative Daily” talked about it, I wonder what they said…
The ideas of humility (James 4:10) and discord (James 4:10) (as opposed to “accord” as such) are the two major fetishes Christian cult obsess about almost constantly — publicly anyway. One can only wonder how it is, given the perfection of their connection to the divine powers over us all (through Christ, yadda yadda), that Christians seem always to be engaged in the most assumptive and divisive shenanigans and mischief (Proverbs 6:18)!
So PZ, was the quote accurate when it stated that you now manage FtB? That’s a role you have long denied filling. Or was “manage” an inaccurate choice of words?
Fuck Hemant. His blog has been going downhill for a while, and he lets slymepitters dump all over his comment section. I just deleted my Friendly Atheist bookmark. I find more interesting reading elsewhere anyway.
re: Artor @10
I quit reading Mehta a long time ago. He is too much of an apologist for my tastes. You are right that there are LOTS more interesting stuff to read elsewhere. It is sometimes hard to keep up with much more than my “core” reading of blogs now. But that is a good thing!
The individuals in question were (all?) complicit in last spring’s crucifixion so I find it hard to believe their leaving isn’t related to some internal discord, though I’m willing to grant that it may be a coincidence.
Blood Knight in Sour Armor:
Do you really think this sort of rhetoric is necessary? People insisting on this sort of nonsense may be the actual reason it’s difficult to have nice things.
Filed under: FFS with an eyeroll.
Well that’s how I see it, and as the victim of lifelong bullying it angrys up my blood to see it (and that’s my interpretation like it or not). Though others see it differently, I don’t have to like it either.
I’d prefer to actually give a shit about trans issues, but after that debacle it’s been a huge struggle for me and it’s been exceedingly hard to visit the front page of FtB. So happy trails to the bullies, it makes my life easier and presumably makes them happier too. Everybody wins.
I’d prefer to give a shit about non-white folks, but this black dude was rude to me once in the tram so now I just say fuck it, if they wanted to be accepted then every single non-white person would suck up to white people 100% of the time.
I mean, what do they expect? This dude was really rude and now I’m supposed to accept some kind of equality plights? Riiight.
Sweet that might be your preference, but you have such good excuses to be an ass instead. Yay you. I’m with PZ – people suck, and I’m looking at you.
Like by chastising trans people for standing up for themselves and not saying “thank you” for being allowed to somehow exist even though who they are must always be critically analysed by people who are not?
If you give a shit about trans issues you have a strange way of showing it
I’d prefer to actually give a shit about alot of minority rights issues.
But only if ThosePeopleStayInTheirPlace™.
Quietly and inconspicuously.
“My secret is out, that I’ve been straining to draw in new people simply to sate my vampiric hunger.”
Highly doubtful. I’ve seen your pictures, Ed. That is not the physique of a man on a liquid diet.
Geez, forgot which blog I was commenting on. Although I guess that could apply to P.Z. as well.
from the article about The Orbit:
indeed it is.
and I like to think most are happy to see that progression.
lol. how little you know the wonderful beverage known as “beer”.
@12 If said “crucifixion” is referring to who I think it is, good riddance. I poked my head into their new blogging place and it proved pretty much every criticism about them true.
The Orbit looks cool though, unlike that other split-off.
if they focus on the headline for the article at Religion News… I have a good guess what it would say.
I mean… “‘The Orbit’ rounds up atheist bloggers”
is just ripe for conservative fuckwit spin.