What was it that James Randi said about Michael Shermer? Oh yes…
Shermer’s reputation really does precede him, and it predates the recent wave of attention given to sex crimes and sexual harassment. I reached the movement’s grand old man, 86-year-old James Randi, by telephone, at his house in Florida. Randi is no longer involved in his foundation’s daily operations, but he remains its chair, and he is a legend of the movement, famously not fooled by anybody. He seems not to be naïve about Shermer — although he’s not so troubled by him, either.
“Shermer has been a bad boy on occasion — I do know that,” Randi told me. “I have told him that if I get many more complaints from people I have reason to believe, that I am going to have to limit his attendance at the conference.
“His reply,” Randi continued, “is he had a bit too much to drink and he doesn’t remember. I don’t know — I’ve never been drunk in my life. It’s an unfortunate thing … I haven’t seen him doing that. But I get the word from people in the organization that he has to be under better control. If he had gotten violent, I’d have him out of there immediately. I’ve just heard that he misbehaved himself with the women, which I guess is what men do when they are drunk.”
Shermer has just been added to the lineup at this year’s TAM.
I have friends who bought non-refundable plane tickets and booked hotel rooms on the understanding that Shermer was not on the roster at this year’s TAM. They are not happy.
But hey, no biggy. He never got violent.
I have never been to a TAM, but the impression I receive from reading about it is that it is chock full of people who think Shermer’s “bad boyness” is not that big a deal, so I kind of feel your friends sort of set themselves up for this disappointment.
No bruises? No rape. Therefore, Shermer didn’t rape anyone. Besides, they were drunk, and if you get drunk, you’re just asking for trouble. Unless you’re male, then you can get drunk because you can handle your booze, but if you do get drunk and do terrible things to women, which “I guess is what men do when they get drunk”. (My head is spinning)
I have known men who were drunk. They acted many different ways, but it isn’t necessary for men to “misbehave” themselves with women because they are drunk. Besides, was he drunk? Or was he just getting other people drunk?
The entire message, boiled down: It was just women. What do they matter in the face of a big-name personality? These women aren’t the ones bringing in the attendees (money).
Now now, we’ve no time to talk about the sexual predators in our midst; we’re too busy pointing fingers at the Duggars…
Funny you should mention it – I just linked the two.
I also find it appalling that drunkenness excuses bad behavior with women.
I haven’t seen him doing that
To be fair, I’m sure Randi assumes every spoon-bender and faith healer is not a scammer until he sees it for himself.
There are some otherwise great people talking at TAM. People we *know* get it. So why are they fucking talking at TAM? I don’t know. They won’t tell me. I keep asking and they won’t tell me.
e.g. Simon Singh and Zach Wienersmith.
We *know* these guys get it, don’t we? What the fuck are they *doing*?
I don’t know. They won’t tell me.
Yes, I flinched at seeing Simon Singh in the list.
Cash is one hell of a drug.
I’ve got a friend who once got so drunk he actually lit himself on fire and it took him several minutes to notice.
And yet, in none of his drunken moments did he ever assault, or do anything that the women he interacted with while drunk considered to be harassment. To the best of my knowledge, the worst he ever did was open a bathroom door and immediately shut it again while stammering an apology to the woman he’d almost walked in on. And he was completely sober for that incident.
It’s almost like ‘oh, he was drunk’ is just an enabling excuse.
Well, maybe if more people at TAM ostracized Shermer, someone would get a hint?
Mariusz Butrykowski (#11) –
Something tells me that anyone who dares ask him questons about the accusations will be forcefully (violently?) removed from the premises under false premises.
And that any organized protest will be treated as harassment and those involved asked/forced to leave the event and barred from future events (re: the mohammed/pineapple t-shirts).
Maybe MS was a late addition precisely because some of the others may not have agreed to come if they had known he would be invited. Of the other speakers that DO *get it,* maybe they will withdraw.
He was a bad boy? You mean like when the dog pees on the rug? When your 3 year old spits out his food?
Bullshit. He IS a grown man.
Trouble is: Shermer’s behavior is disturbingly close to ‘normal’ dating.
Shermer’s drinking can’t excuse his actions. Ted Bundy’s survivors ALL commented that he reeked of alcohol. John Wayne Gacey committed his murders in a cloud of fumes.
Alcohol is all over this, both in Shermer’s unhinged aggression and assaultive behavior, AND in his grooming and choosing victims.
The announcement implies that Shermer was added after the others had signed on. This would be a good moment for some withdrawals.
I suspect that’s an understatement.
That was written by Jeff Wagg two weeks ago. Never heard of him? He’s this guy:
Wagg was a key witness to Smith’s alleged sexual assault, and probably wrote that blog post thinking Shermer hadn’t been invited back. Now, he finds himself in the same room as the man, surrounded by a skeptic community that’s even more polarized.
“Not happy,” indeed.
James Randi:
That’s one of Shermer’s versions of the story. Another:
(Emphasis added.)
Assuming Randi was alluding to what happened to Allison Smith–and he probably was–Shermer has told three different stories about what happened that night, and not one of them is compatible with any other one.
You know it’s funny because I was JUST chatting with the commenters on friendly atheist about how we are happy to point at the Duggars while ignoring abuse and harassment in our own house. I pointed out Schermer as an example. And I was told that he doesn’t have any position of authority in the community any more. I was also told we don’t have any leaders and that there is no community..that these aren’t the leaders we don’t have of the community that doesn’t exist…that without conviction there is no problem…and well all the same shit I’ve been hearing for years now.what the fuck is wrong with these people?
Last year, the president of the James Randi Educational foundation tried to blackmail Dr. Pamela Gay into lying to protect Michael Shermer, who attempted to sexually assault her. The JREF immediately permanently blacklisted Dr. Gay when she vaguely referenced the attempted assault in a talk. In contrast, Shermer remains an honored speaker after raping a woman at TAM 2008.
I have as much respect and gratitude for James Randi as I do for Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. Interesting that Jeff Wagg has decided to side with the pro-harassment, rape-enabling JREF.
I’ve just heard that he misbehaved himself with the women, which I guess is what men do when they are drunk.
I’ve found it curious how the Hyper Skeptics treat Randi’s statement differently than Allison’s. For Allison they ask – What was her BAC level? Was she really too drunk too consent? How do you know?
But I don’t see Randi’s statement being subject to the same level of scrutiny.
mike @ 18 – oh really? Oh really? They said he doesn’t have any position of authority in the community any more? They should take a look at the website of the “Secular Policy Institute” then – Shermer’s face is all over it.