Zinnia Jones is rightly resentful when a blogger who goes by the name “the atheist asshole” calls her “one of the good ones”. They’re missing the truth: while she’s all straightforward and civil and all that, she’s also one of our top bad-asses on Freethoughtblogs.
For that matter, we’ve got a fairly thorough review procedure in place right now, and we don’t add bloggers who aren’t fierce, intelligent, outspoken advocates for their ideas…and we also don’t let dumbasses in. You ought to take a look around — I’m pretty damn proud of the entirety of the network right now.
It’s been a busy morning on twitter for this Emperor of All the Universe. First I got some cheezwit telling me, Ophelia Benson, and Rebecca Watson to take people off the Block Bot. I replied by telling him that none of the people he was adressing have anything to do with the Block Bot. Then he tried to say, ‘but you’re all big shots in Atheism+…’ to which I tried to explain that I didn’t have any power over Atheism+, either, and I could have also explained that Atheism+ and the Block Bot are separate and independent entities, too, except that I was already tired of that fool. Anyway, I guess I’m master of Atheism+ and the Block Bot now. Go ahead, send me your complaints, I’ll deal with them appropriately.
Then, after I said I wasn’t in charge of Atheism+, this idiot comes along:
Did PZ just break his allegiance to A+?
Aaargh. I am neither master of nor slave to Atheism+. I think it’s a fine idea, I like that it’s a grassroots effort for people to place their priorities within atheism in social justice, but for the last time, I do not run it and while I’ve read it a few times and left a few comments, I’m not affiliated with it. It’s good people trying to do good.
And why are people so fixated on me as the Big Boss? Jen and Greta are more closely affiliated with Atheism+ than I am…is it just that the same pea-brained thugs who hate the whole idea of social justice are also incapable of wrapping their minds around the idea that a man isn’t in charge?
And finally, some guy announces that he’s not going to the American Atheist conference because I’m speaking there. He argues with Dave Silverman about it. He’s afraid of me, he claims.
@MrAtheistPants @pzmyers maybe you are not aware but a lot of people are scared of openly opposing ftb. We don’t want to be labelled rapists
Oooh, we’re scary. Why? Because we aren’t afraid to criticize the assumption of masculine authority, apparently. But they’re not so afraid to denounce us publicly and demand our withdrawal from participation in atheist conferences. I guess I’m just not scaring them enough.
But you “don’t want to be labelled rapists”? Give me a fucking break. Please. If I’m in an audience listening to some speaker, and I raise my hand to ask a relevant question, and then the speaker’s answer is to shout that I’m a rapist, who’s reputation is harmed: mine or the speaker’s? Because I love it when other participants in an argument try to shout me down with “ATHEIST!”, a charge that is actually true, and I’d be even more enthused and filled with bloodlust if the charge was blatantly false.
Right now, I’ve got dozens of blogs and forum comments and emails with elaborate stories about how I raped someone, illustrated with clumsy photoshop illustrations or ragged childish cartoons, and I am completely unperturbed. I have a clear conscience and the claims are so over-the-top that I know no one can take them seriously. It’s a whole web of hatred focuse on me right now, and I can take it in stride because I remain true to myself.
But there are apparently a lot of cowards out there who refuse to enter my presence because they believe I’ll call them a “rapist”. Why do I detect a swarm of guilty consciences?
This dumbass is already grandfathered in, so don’t even think about it.
Once, while I was debating a protesting christer during a gay pride parade, he called me a “godless heathen.” Well, I was never so insulted in my life!! I said, “I’ve spent over 55 years trying my best to become an asshole, and the best you can come up with is ‘godless heathen?'”
Learned that one the hard way!
…I lol’d. Right there near the top is Physioproffe’s next to latest headline:
Oh Proffe, don’t ever change.
Oh Cuttlefish, how I love thee!
It is amazing, simply amazing, how dumb, or at least willfully ignorant these people are. Somehow I really don’t mind if they feel compelled to stay away from atheist conventions.
Yea, I think this nails it on the head.
I’ve never had anything to do with the A+ forums or whatever else. I’m a little capsule of A+ myself, and I’m content with that. I don’t understand why people have to get so fucking upset and claim that it’s “tainting” atheism. If all they are is the dictionary type of atheist, why on earth would they care?
Anthony K:
Seconded!
Shoot, there are Atheism+ forums? I truly thought it just existed between the ears of those that cared about it’s values, and I’m just happy to be among the people inspired by Jen’s and Greta’s well-expressed ideas behind it. Guess I have some internets to look for.
Count me among the many who are happy that people genuinely afraid of being called rapists are avoiding conferences of any kind!
But, but… I’ve been assured that the moment a rape accusation is made, the accused loses his job, is deserted by his family and friends, and is then hanged by an Internet Lynch Mob(TM)!
Could someone please give me the guard schedule at the Prison of Internet Opinion? I feel like there might be a huge influx of inmates by the end of the holiday.
I am the same way. I have never checked out the A+ forum, though I did know it existed. In the end A+ is basically what I have thought for a long time, there is just a name that some people have now attached to it. I do not know why the dictionary atheists care so much, they often seem to be very concerned with making sure no one else allows their atheism to influence other aspects of their thinking. Is it a purity thing? Do they think these extensions of our lack of belief taint atheism.
Don’t rape people and you’ll be fine. Misogynist fuckwits.
This is easy
Don’t rape anyone, don’t make excuses for those that do, don’t make light of rape,
Bingo.
It’s kind of a weird world we live in where people take the accusation more seriously than the act.
Ahh, Authoritarians. Such peculiar sorts. And so many! That need to construct a conspiratorial hierarchy in your head for everything is kinda amazing sometimes. (wait for it…”That’s what the Feminist Patriarchy LIE is!!!11″
Interesting how between twitter and youtube comments there’s a sort of crowd sourced Atheist TMZ or National Enquirer going on where people just make shit up.
So members of the slymepit, and their associated hangers-on, won’t attend any event that PZ will be at, for fear of being accused of rape?
[thinks a while]
Nope… can’t see any downside. Carry on, slymey types!
Considering every other atheist/rationalist,/skeptic forum has multiple lengthy anti-FTB, anti-PZ threads, I’m having trouble fear of being labelled a rapist by anyone associated with FTB is actually a thing.
It’s the tentacle beard. They think you’re Cthulhu.
Your ability to take all this is stride is amazing. But I just realized these people don’t have a creative bone in their body. A FtB blogger or SkepChick does X? Then we don’t like X, or we’ll do X as well! Time and time again, they merely react in an easy-to-predict way.
They’ve become your reverse-psychology minions.
Whoops, missed this bit:
Entropy kinda sucks. Please deploy your vast powers and do something about it.
Ooh, I know this one! It’s because we live in a rape culture, where coercive behaviors around sex (and a whole lot of other things as well) have become normalized to the point where rape (or sexual assault or coercion that doesn’t meet the legal threshold for either but is still not okay) is depressingly common, and people who aren’t super-concerned with establishing explicit consent for any and all sexual activity (or actively avoid doing so) actually are more likely than the general population to have raped/assaulted someone. I think that’s a huge part of the push-back against the idea of rape culture – those things that are identified as coercive or non-consent look a lot like the kinds of behaviors in which some men (and some, fewer women) regularly engage, and they don’t want to think of themselves as (or be labeled) rapists. Especially if they actually are.
This 80 year woman runs into a police station. ” Officer officer I’veen raped,” she said.
“Calm down ma’am,” the officer said, “When did this happen?”
“Fifty years ago,” she replied. “But I still like to talk about it.”
Old bar joke. Sorry Rev.
23
No.
@23
Once upon a time there was a man who didn’t like things that changed, because they made him think about his life and his choices, and led to conclusions that made him unhappy.
So he fought that change the only way he knew how, which was to be the thing that people wanted to change.
But that only made them want it more.
Iä! Iä!
“Joke”? Then why isn’t it remotely funny?
Seriously, I’ve laughed at very bad jokes indeed; it’s extremely easy to make me laugh. This one? My face didn’t move at all. I guess rape apology simply isn’t funny. :-|
This was an old bar joke 20 years ago when I tended bar. The bar owner (my boss) used to tell it all the time. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it; I was very young and had been a victim. When Rev mentioned making light of rape, this joke came crashing back into my memory. Didn’twant to offend, but A LOT of people laughed about it then. I’m certain I laughed along with my clients, not realizing what I was doing. In my heart, it was an uncomfortable laugh. So young, I’ve learned to assert myself since then. Live and learn.