Religion

edhopper

(37,366 posts)

17. This is an absolutely stupid thing to say.

Wed Jul 30, 2014, 09:22 AM

Jul 2014

But what was the context? I read the article and did not see why he wrote this. What was he referring to? Was he answering another tweet?
It seems an odd (and as I said, completely inappropriate) thing to say out of the blue.

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Richard Dawkins, what on earth happened to you? [View all] cbayer Jul 2014 OP

And this after he tried to mend fences intaglio Jul 2014 #1

Good grief... MADem Jul 2014 #2

Agreed..our legal systems rank all sorts of crimes skepticscott Jul 2014 #6

Well, my point was that Dawkins was not considering the victim. At all. MADem Jul 2014 #8

Well, no.. considering the audience out there skepticscott Jul 2014 #9

Ah yes! The audience, of course, it must be the audience's fault. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #10

His point may be Aikins level tone-deaf to an American audience. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #27

I think he has crossed the pond enough times to know his "audience" Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #34

The comment was certainly lacking in tact and awareness of a very real AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #38

Yes, if anyone still clings to the idea of creationism skepticscott Jul 2014 #69

You seem to be the only one still clinging to creationism, like it's some kind of obsession. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #73

You must have nothing else but blather skepticscott Jul 2014 #80

Yes, well the OP wasn't about creationism, was it? Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #85

Rule One of Public Speaking: "Don't blame the audience". riqster Jul 2014 #77

Rule One of Science and Logic: Don't follow mass opinion. Follow the facts Brettongarcia Jul 2014 #86

The article referenced in the OP acknowledged that point. riqster Jul 2014 #89

The joint statement with Ophellia Benson is good and I hope a lot of people get to read it. cbayer Jul 2014 #3

I have given my opinion of Dawkins before intaglio Jul 2014 #4

Thanks for supplying the clarification about public school. cbayer Jul 2014 #5

Public school is private school, but private school on steroids. MADem Jul 2014 #7

He is indeed, though I don't see a problem with his education. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #11

Problems with his education intaglio Jul 2014 #12

Well I disagree. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #21

Well my father and mother would utterly disagree with you intaglio Jul 2014 #37

I think much of it is regional. We thought anyone from south of Birmingham was a snob. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #44

As my Grand Uncle observed intaglio Jul 2014 #52

Generation and culture. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #30

I'm not sure what you are saying here. cbayer Jul 2014 #33

I would assume the opposite. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #36

Right, his comment is not offensive in progressive countries like Britain. cbayer Jul 2014 #39

As I said upthread, it was certainly an insensitive thing to say. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #40

If anything, I suspect his comment will be more controversial in countries cbayer Jul 2014 #42

I think it's that context that you are assuming, that is the problem. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #45

Please, I've read all his lame explanations and don't need them repeated to me. cbayer Jul 2014 #49

Oh yeah, try and spin it on me. Very nice. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #53

More responses to Richard (are you sure your last name isn't Head?) Dawkins intaglio Jul 2014 #13

Thanks for those responses. okasha Jul 2014 #81

he's beginning to sound like a troll, honestly eShirl Jul 2014 #14

He has always thrived on controversy, but I think he is going too far. cbayer Jul 2014 #16

unlike, for example, the pope enthusiasts, who cannot lose their enthusiasm Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #18

Look, over there, a butterfly! rug Jul 2014 #23

I saw that flutter by. Hilarious. Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #28

Well, thanks for the flamebait, cbayer. trotsky Jul 2014 #15

Well at least she didn't preface the discussion with an admonition for all atheists to shut up. Warren Stupidity Jul 2014 #19

Hey, I guess we'll take what we can get. n/t trotsky Jul 2014 #20

Of course! Most of his follwers on twitter are evolutionary biologists. rug Jul 2014 #24

He is a well known Atheist so I think it is fine here. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #29

Everyone is *something*. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #41

So if the pope or religious leaders make comments on an issue not having to do with religion it shou hrmjustin Jul 2014 #43

Dawkins isn't a religious leader. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #46

Well correct me if I am wrong but he has been linked to by atheists here. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #47

But any given statement we link to, that he makes, is either true or false on its face. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #48

Point is he made an asinine statement and it is going to be posted here. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #50

Ok. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #51

Yes, just like when a religious leaders does something stupid it does not reflect on me. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #56

Is the pope your leader? I thought not so much. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #57

I am not aiming it at you but there are those here who give me a hard time if I say the nicest thing hrmjustin Jul 2014 #59

That's ok. I just had someone with the temerity to ask me if I think date rape is rape, right after AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #60

Of course it is rape. I think Dawkins needs to just talk about other things. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #62

I agree. In this case, he tried to explain one third rail he stepped on, by going and standing on AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #68

This is an absolutely stupid thing to say. edhopper Jul 2014 #17

Do tweets have context? I think not. cbayer Jul 2014 #22

Of course they do. Goblinmonger Jul 2014 #25

Well said, GM. trotsky Jul 2014 #32

Yes edhopper Jul 2014 #54

You may be right. cbayer Jul 2014 #58

I found this edhopper Jul 2014 #61

So he was trying to make some logical point and chose this as an example, I guess. cbayer Jul 2014 #64

I can think of dozens of better examples. edhopper Jul 2014 #66

All of us can think of dozens of better examples. cbayer Jul 2014 #74

This is certainly true. AtheistCrusader Jul 2014 #67

That's a horrible thing to say. Goblinmonger Jul 2014 #26

Good for you GM for addressing the OP Starboard Tack Jul 2014 #31

A creepy and horrible thing to say. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #35

Is he the one who recently commented on roody Jul 2014 #55

Are you referring to this? rug Jul 2014 #63

He is an elderly white public-school-educated British male, with a lot of the prejudices that such LeftishBrit Jul 2014 #65

Too bad this will do damage to the Atheist Movement edhopper Jul 2014 #70

I doubt it will and it shouldn't. He is a jerk. hrmjustin Jul 2014 #71

It was a joke edhopper Jul 2014 #72

As with most ideological leaders, it will not be up to him to step down, cbayer Jul 2014 #75

Step down from what??? edhopper Jul 2014 #79

There is no official position, but he is widely considered a leader cbayer Jul 2014 #83

"Widely considered"? By who? skepticscott Jul 2014 #88

With no recourse of an eternal afterlife he is in the process of going up his own ass CBGLuthier Jul 2014 #76

I was going to post okasha Jul 2014 #82

this is one reason that I will never have a Twitter account.... mike_c Jul 2014 #78

I am with you I will never have one. cbayer Jul 2014 #84

Even then, Twitter has been too short to allow necessary qualifiers and nuances Brettongarcia Jul 2014 #87