I’m tempted. American Atheists national convention is being held in Minneapolis on April 17-20 in 2025. Hey, that’s just down the road! It would be easy for me to attend!
I used to enjoy these events, and liked being part of the community. Unfortunately, I am actively hated by a subset — I still get hate mail from atheists — and I don’t know who the speakers at this event will be yet, so I feel some hesitation. Maybe I can just show up, sit quietly in the back, and see how it goes. Maybe if some of the sensible atheists from the upper Midwest show up I’ll be comfortable with the event.
Dear PZ, I read your articles, but can’t recall any explaining why some of these atheists actively hate you. You are sensible and logical. What has set them off? If other commenters also want it, I would like you to enlighten us as to why they hate you.
Being pro-feminist and favoring equal rights for trans people is enough.
American Atheists is NOT one of the elevatorgate-style organizations, I must add. Nothing wrong with AA. It’s the organization membership that includes some haters.
PZ, Thanks for the explanation. Wow, it seems as if bigotry is infiltrating everywhere. I am amazed that Equality (in all societal aspects) is such a problem for some tiny minds.
To be fair, I’m also a guy who has no responsibilities or obligations in the organization who feels free to criticize. I wouldn’t like me at their party, either.
Thanks PZ I thought that it was that and now Hemant Mehta makes the point vis-a-vis Coyne’s article for FFRF.
Elevatorgate had a profound effect on how I view religion. I still think it’s dangerous, but it’s not always the cause of our problems. It’s a tool that bad people use. It turns out you can be just as misogynistic, homophobic, racist, and transphobic as a Southern Baptist without Yahweh telling you to do so. I’d much rather be around progressive Christians, Muslims, Jews, etc any day than any of the atheists who took their masks off back then.
Yeah, the whole “deep rifts” things has me saying “I’ll try to clean my house, and you try to clean yours,” when I meet a decent religious person. Hard to claim the moral high ground when you’ve got so many other people using the atheist label to justify exactly the same bigotry.
I wonder if Mehta would be at the event. Maybe he and PZ could put aside any differences in the past or at least agree Coyne is a reactionary antiwoke jackass. The current Coyne vs FFRF thing may become a bit of Rifts Redux before it’s over.
I was fortunate enough to have been able to attend the “Gods and Politics” Conference in Copenhagen back in 2010. Got to meet and hang out with PZ, Rebecca Watson, and quite a few OG Pharyngulites. Had a wonderful time. Came away feeling really good about the future of the atheist/skeptical movement at the time.
Then, Elevatorgate hit. Then Atheist+. Then “Intellectual Dark Web”. Deep Rifts. etc.
I gave up on the whole atheist conference thing. I would be hesitant to attend any such conference, anymore, unless there were people there that I would actually want to hang out with and I would most likely avoid anyone I didn’t already know. Which kind of makes me sad a little bit.
I agree. I’m going to wait until I learn who the speakers are going to be before committing to attend.
You should go! I wish I could. And I don’t mind saying, I probably would have had more odious views on some subjects if I hadn’t been a regular reader of Pharyngula.
I would be willing to consider going and hang out with you, PZ! It will have been 13 years since we last met…and I was terrible at making small talk with strangers back then (still not great now), especially with stars like yourself (I have definitely matured to realize the stars are just people at this point in my life).
A few caveats for me is (1) soccer season should have started by then and I am a referee and (2) I am trying to get a full-time job and might not be able to get away for the full weekend if I do find one. So I definitely cannot commit at this time.
No heroes
No movement
Start thinking in terms of bigotry safeguards when it comes to groups. Especially groups organizing in opposition to something.
I reckon if you shaved and got a haircut, you would not be recognised.