Jerry Coyne, Steven Pinker, and Richard Dawkins are big mad that FFRF removed an anti-trans article from their website

    • @flying_sheep@lemmy.ml
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      6 days ago

      The same reason every other minority advocacy group exists: to coordinate pooling resources to protect that minority’s members from persecution.

      Of course in the case of atheists, that persecution isn’t as bad as for other minority groups in the US, but it does exist: there is propaganda saying that atheists can’t be moral and other shit like this that can seriously affect your life.

      So optimally that’s what the organization would fight. I know nothing about them, so I don’t know where the “church-likeness” comes from that you mentioned. Care to substantiate that?

      • @finitebanjo@lemmy.world
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        86 days ago

        Well, FFRF runs programs actively protects Clergymen and women attempting to leave their faiths, and I can guarantee you those particular people are heavily persecuted. Especially former Mormons.

    • @finitebanjo@lemmy.world
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      6 days ago

      In as few words as possible, it’s a nonprofit org that runs some social programs like helping clergymen escape the church, a magazine, some radio shows, and they actively engages in lawsuits where religion enters matters of the state. They sued the Bush Administration for using public funds for religious communities.

      Technically, they are exempt from taxes as an 501(c)(3) Organization, but they could lose that exempt status if the managers and their immediate community benefit too much from the organization in a single year, unlike religions who are tax exempt even at massive profits.

  • The Bard in Green
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    7 days ago

    Three prominent atheists old farts who’s glory days are behind them and who refused to change and grow with the culture resigned from FFRF’s Honorary Board. fortified their comfort zone and made themselves even more irrelevant than they already were. Good riddance.

    Old men yell at cloud.

  • The Snark Urge
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    387 days ago

    Thanks to FFRF for making me aware that Pinker is a shithead, I had no idea

  • Noxy
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    267 days ago

    Atheists can be just as shitty as anyone else. Good riddance to these three asswipes.

  • nocturne
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    7 days ago

    Years ago I followed dawkins, then I realized what a decroded piece of crap he is. So this does not surprise me in the least.

  • FuglyDuck
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    247 days ago

    FFRF responded by taking down Coyne’s piece and publishing a hastily written letter restating their support for LGBTQ rights. The letter didn’t explain how the article got approved in the first place. The words “sorry” or “apology” or “yeah, we really fucked this one up” didn’t appear anywhere in it. Dr. Aaron Rabinowitz, ethics director at the Creator Accountability Network, told me he was hoping to see a more direct challenge to what Coyne got wrong in order to justify their removal of the piece:

    This is so fucking stupid.

    Like.

    Objections to anything trans is almost certainly rooted in religious fruit cakery. (half baked fruit cakes at that,)

    It should be self evident that they need to apologize and condemn the bigotry; and there needs to be accountability, starting with an actual and sincere apology and transparency in how this fuck up was allowed to happen in the first place, and a discussion of steps being taken to prevent it from happening again.

  • bringleborper
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    247 days ago

    The “cultural Christian” Richard Dawkins pfft. Good riddance. What a sellout.

  • Flying Squid
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    197 days ago

    Nice to see people on Lemmy realizing what a bigoted shithead Dawkins is. I couldn’t convince very many people of that on r/atheism.

    • NegativeNull
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      127 days ago

      I’ve known Dawkins was a shithead for a while, but somehow I’ve missed Pinker being one as well. The fact they are trying to get help from JK Rowling shows they are much bigger pieces of shit than I originally thought.

      I’ve donated to the FFRF for a while. I’ll have to wait and see how this shakes out.

  • Deconceptualist
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    87 days ago

    Damn, I used to follow Dr. Coyne’s blog and really looked up to him. That was probably more than 15 years ago though. Sad to see him go this direction. I learned a lot about biology from him, and the arguments made in bad faith about it.

    He of all people should know better.