Convention attendees LIVE updates - Page 5

Logic · #41 13th March 2010, 11:25 AM

Taslima made me cry too! There was one lonely guy with a jesus banner out the front this morning. Disappointing!

Justin · #42 13th March 2010, 02:37 PM

AC Grayling, the Dr Who of Atheism: "science and religion have a common ancestor, ignorance"

Fearless · #43 13th March 2010, 02:49 PM

Thanks for the updates guys and gals

I am about to get ready for the dinner... where did I put that tux?

Justin · #44 13th March 2010, 03:01 PM

Cheers...AC Grayling again: (no exact quoting here...just the essence)
"Humanism: Religion has hijacked refreshment of the spirit in a secular sense that can be acheived by a quiet walk in the country as well as the rituals surrounding the transitions in life; birth, death & marraige. Time to wrest these back."

Sancho · #45 13th March 2010, 04:08 PM

Hey, wow! That secular humanist guy in the audience believes the exact same things about psychiatry that Scientologists do.

If rational, non-brainwashed people agree, Scientology must have some merit.

Dan Gleibitz · #46 13th March 2010, 04:56 PM

Excellent opening day. Congrats to all involved. I loved PZ - still grinning. Some of my thoughts:
Tamas Pataki - defined atheism in a way that I wouldn't have - especially for today's crowd. I get cranky when people tell me what I believe. Otherwise, I quite enjoyed his thoughtful presentation. I disagree that Dawkins Grayling & Hitchins are "unaware" of the moderate progressive or liberal Xtian theologies though. They all a knowledges such, but adressed the traditional. Easy targets? Sure, but rhey're also standard...

Leslie Cannold - yeah but... I don't want to WIN? I'm a secularist because I'm an atheist. You'll get my support for the secular cause, but you won't get my attendence for the 2011 Global Secularist Convention!

Jane Caro - I absolutely agree. I would have liked to have heard more from
the women.

A Grayling commenting on claims that science and other intellectual pursuit grew out of religion: They have a common ancestor just as do the monkey and the man. *The common ancestor of religion and science is ignorance.

Brilliant.

Looking forward to a big day tomorrow. Must remember to grab one of those big blue tubs of hgh from the conference next door too...

kdc · #47 13th March 2010, 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sancho

Hey, wow! That secular humanist guy in the audience believes the exact same things about psychiatry that Scientologists do.

If rational, non-brainwashed people agree, Scientology must have some merit.

Thought that was strange also.

My partner asked a question to PZ on the teaching of creationism in biology classes - and actually got some pretty clear disagreement from at least a few in the audience. I was pretty suprised - the manipulation/abuse of teaching curriculum in this regard has been fairly well recognised... At least I thought. Do some people doubt this occurs?

Dan Gleibitz · #48 13th March 2010, 05:10 PM

The Science teachers behind me were offended. Public school maybe? There is no doubt that ID is taught in religious schools, and no doubt that biblical creation is still taught in RE in many public primary schools.

Sancho · #49 13th March 2010, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan Gleibitz

Leslie Cannold - yeah but... I don't want to WIN? I'm a secularist because I'm an atheist. You'll get my support for the secular cause, but you won't get my attendence for the 2011 Global Secularist Convention!

I'm in two minds about that. Compelling, but potentially Darth Vadering. Deserves its own thread.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kdc

Do some people doubt this occurs?

Yes. I don't believe the widespread teaching of Intelligent Design could escape attention, even in QLD.