http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2008/12/02/expect_a_call_goldy Comments On: Expect a Call, Goldy by Dan Savage en-us Copyright 2009 The Stranger. All rights reserved. This RSS file is offered to individuals, The Stranger readers, and non-commercial organizations only. Any commercial websites wishing to use this RSS file, please contact The Stranger. webmaster@thestranger.com (The Stranger Webmaster) Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:00:01 -0800 Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0800 Foundation http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss
Several years ago I saw Medved with his (beard) family, sitting inside Broadway Market and I swear cruising me & other guys.

I've always thought about that whenever Medved brings up "the gays" and their "agenda."
Posted by blackhook]]> Fri, 05 Dec 2008 17:53:11 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Colbert Fan]]> Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:38:02 -0800 The Stranger as a whole. So yes, Santa Claus is pretty implausible. Magic underpants, also pretty implausible. But shooting fish in a barrel does not a sharpshooter make.

Take the issue of what happens at the point of death. Most religions have some kind of narrative for what happens when you die. Even if you don't believe any of these, you can't deny that at some point you will die and something will happen. Ergo, you can no longer simply state your belief in negative terms, unless you're going to claim that death is a myth and doesn't really happen. Now from where I stand, saying "I don't know" with regards to what a person experiences at the point of death is a perfectly rational response and not a cop-out. In fact, pat answers like "everything fades to black" (a popular atheist response) seem like a cop-out to me. Really? Fade to black? How do you know it doesn't fade to pink? "Fade to black" is a non-answer disguised as an answer.

I believe there are answers to certain non-trivial questions that are unknowable.
Posted by flamingbanjo]]> Wed, 03 Dec 2008 20:03:39 -0800 The Stranger
Enjoy your work.

Roy
Posted by Nice Hips, Roy.]]> Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:30:31 -0800 The Stranger
I think it probably is possible to truly not have an opinion, but it would require Zen-like concentration. You can't casually be a true agnostic. Most agnostics are actually deists or atheists. Agnosticism is more of an attitude then anything.
Posted by Ian]]> Wed, 03 Dec 2008 11:02:31 -0800 The Stranger
"Which is a belief, therefore it can be called a religion, albeit a disorganized one." No! A belief does not equal a religion! I believe that my alarm clock will go off every morning. I have faith, even! That is not a religion.

And I think the point that many people are trying to make is that very few atheists think that we know for sure that there is no god. But until evidence of one comes along, we think it's unlikely. In other words, most atheists and agnostics actually agree (most, not all).

@74

I honestly wonder if there is something different about our brains.
Posted by violet_dagrinder]]> Wed, 03 Dec 2008 03:04:38 -0800 The Stranger Posted by sacramento and diversey]]> Wed, 03 Dec 2008 02:25:01 -0800 The Stranger
I am an agnostic. I don't know if God exists and I don't know that God doesn't exist. I don't pretend to know.

You are an smug asshole, but I respect your right not too believe. Which is a belief, therefore it can be called a religion, albeit a disorganized one.


Posted by elswinger]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:47:02 -0800 The Stranger
I was raised by an atheist (and I come from a long line of agnostics of the reality-is-unknown-and-unknowable variety) and was dragged by a well-meaning baby sitter to church and had a similar epiphany at the same age. I thought it was crazy that very small children knew Santa/Tooth Fairy/Easter Bunny weren't real and yet adults believed in Jesus.
Posted by La Lezebel From Jezebel]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:38:51 -0800 The Stranger Posted by violet_dagrinder]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:08:24 -0800 The Stranger
"that might actually be effective, if you solve problems, you no longer have a forum to point fingers and insult people"

We really do need to keep this guy out of mainstream media. It's bad enough when he rationalizes his hostility, but anyone who thinks that the type of stuff he says is just an opinion and not divisive is really dangerous. Of course, as we saw, when the table is turned, he's all about that horrible other guy, like the O'Reilly complaint he has. just a matter of time before he's an embarrassment and a burden to everyone.

Oops, now I probably sound insulting myself, but this is a big concern, look how ridiculous the Likes of Rush Limbaugh are; same behavior, different angle. Do we want one of "those" speaking for us?
Oddly, I've written a number of very rational letters to him, but until I got a bit more aggressive and public with the above, I had never heard back from him. He further proved the poor impression I have of him--public sensationalism sells I guess. too bad that's the world he lives in, I can only really visit once in a while.
Posted by randy]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:04:04 -0800 The Stranger
Ok, ok, calling them wimpy atheists is flippant and possibly unfair.

I don't actually give a fuck if people want to call themselves agnostic, but here's why I don't:

Santa Claus and unicorns and such. They might exist. It's possible. But it strikes me as very unlikely, and I certainly don't feel compelled to take a public position of, "well, I don't know for SURE, because knowing for sure isn't possible, so I'm going to call myself an agnostic about Santa." No. I'm going to take the reasonable position about Santa, based on all available evidence: he doesn't exist. Humans made him up. We do that a lot. We're an imaginative bunch.

If Santa turns up one day, I'll change my mind. But for now, I'm comfortable with the reasonable stance.

I think that this argument applies to gods exactly as it applies to Santa. And the reasonable stance, as far as gods go, is that they don't exist.
Posted by violet_dagrinder]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:00:56 -0800 The Stranger
The reason I'm not completely comfortable with "I believe there is no god" as a statement of an agnostic atheist is that, when people say "I believe" something, it can sometime be virtually impossible to shake them from those beliefs, regardless of the evidence presented. I'm willing to say (along with most other agnostic atheists) that if anyone ever presented to me compelling evidence that some kind of god existed, I would reconsider my atheism. I'm not sure the same could be said of gnostic atheists. I don't know, I just think there is a difference (albeit a subtle one) between an absence of belief in something and a belief in the absence of something.

But I do see how saying "I don't believe in god" could indicate that "god" exists and I just stubbornly refuse to believe in him/her/it/them, which is definitely not what I'm trying to say!
Posted by Beth in NJ]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:46:41 -0800 The Stranger
Just ignore ecce homo. His posts don't mean anything.
Posted by elenchos]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:08:39 -0800 The Stranger
What the fuck is up with that? What's your issue here?
Posted by jade]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 15:33:50 -0800 The Stranger "I believe there is no god" (agnostic athiest)
vs.
"There is no god" (gnostic atheist)
Saying, "I don't believe in god" is almost more, erm, anti-religious? It's like saying, "there's a god out there but I don't believe in it/him/her".
Or maybe not, but whatever, the rest of your post is spot on, imo.
Posted by Urgutha Forka]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 15:11:59 -0800 The Stranger Posted by alion]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 15:07:55 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Vince]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:47:27 -0800 The Stranger
If we want to win the issue here, queers will need the votes of a whole lotta "thems" as well as "us's."

If so, he'll sit down and do damage control, or at least have a dialog on how to build and maintain a coaltion. But if he's only interested in national MSM coverage...

If he'd rather not to be a community organizer/leader, and remain a pundit and muckracker/editor, that's fine, I respect that. Just choose.
Posted by Andy Niable]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:39:36 -0800 The Stranger
There would be neither glitz nor the same validation that he so desperately needs as TV. Besides, that might actually be effective, if you solve problems, you no longer have a forum to point fingers and insult people.
Posted by pozpoof]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:35:32 -0800 The Stranger Posted by jrrrl]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:34:18 -0800 The Stranger
1. Gnostic Theists are people who believe there is some kind of deity in the universe and claim to know the nature of that deity. For the most part, these are the people practicing some kind of organized religion.

2. Agnostic Theists are people who believe there is some kind of deity in the universe but claim no knowledge of the nature of that deity. A lot of people I know who say things like "I'm more spiritual than religious" or consider themselves "pagan" probably fall into this category.

3. Agnostic Atheists are people who do not believe in any deity but do not go so far as to claim to know for a fact that they are right. This accounts for most of the atheist I know.

4. Gnostic Atheists are people who do not believe in any deity and claims to know for a fact that they are right about that. While there are some atheists out there like that, most of the atheists I know or have heard about are not. The reason for this is simple: most atheist I know or am aware of don't believe in a deity because of a lack of evidence -- I don't believe in God because believing would require a leap of faith that is not supported by the available evidence. But, since it is nearly impossible to prove the non-existence of anything, claiming knowledge that there is no deity in the universe also requires a leap of faith. Which is why most atheists are more likely to be Agnostic Atheists. It comes down to the difference between saying "I don't believe in God" (agnostic atheist) versus saying "I believe there is no God" (gnostic atheist).
Posted by Beth in NJ]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:24:15 -0800 The Stranger
His drag career ended decades ago. Queer involvement now involves showering $500 down upon the best float in the parade.
Posted by Non]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:19:07 -0800 The Stranger
Ya know, in the spirit of Good Will Toward Men (and Women).
Posted by Andy Niable]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 13:54:19 -0800 The Stranger I'm [sic] don't see a "middle" to come down in with this issue.

It means they throw a die, and if it comes up even the adoption is allowed.
Posted by David Wright]]> Tue, 02 Dec 2008 13:45:27 -0800 The Stranger