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Monday, January 5, 2009

Goodbye, Ray

To Mr Ray Comfort
From the entire Raytractors community

Originally started as a means to mobilise and bring together those who oppose the misinformation, dishonesty and wilful ignorance promoted by your good self, this group very quickly grew into a large and diverse community. Composed of individuals with no common thread other than their response to you, they grew exponentially, attracting like-minded and not-so-like-minded people from across the net.

But all things must come to an end...

Their time had come. As the blog died, remaining only as a fossil testament to what once was, the individuals who made up this community walked away from the one who inspired them, who caused their community to exist in the first place. As time went on, they found that they could not confine their criticism to one man: the sheer irrationality that he embodied was not his alone. Their very name, the banner they went under, was limiting them.

And so, they changed. Their identity could no longer support who and what they were, so they adapted, evolving into something different at a glance but the same at heart. They built a new environment more conductive to discussion and communication than the blog they had for so long run in tandem to your own, and they named themselves anew, that all who saw them would see and understand that they were not the mere detractors of one purveyor of lies, but the opponents of all those who would use misinformation, pseudoscience and intellectual dishonesty to promote bigotry and hate amongst those who are unable to establish truth for themselves.

They drafted a letter, in third person and in past tense because it sounded impressive and important, and they sent it to the one who had brought them together in the first place. In this document, they announced their newfound independence, and wished Mr Comfort the best in the future. Although they would continue to read and comment on the words uttered by this one, they no longer defined themselves by him, and they would exist as an entity separate from him. They again extended the same invitation to him and his followers that they had previously: if any of you wish for an honest and free exchange of ideas and opinions, without the censorship, format and rules designed to stifle inquiry and prevent individuals from providing evidence and support for their opinions, then you are welcome to join us at the new venue, which you can access from the old BlogSpot. You will be welcomed with open arms by those who used to be the Raytractors.

And so, in a final act of dramatic timing, they signed off with the name they had chosen for themselves, their new identity, which identified them not as your detractors... but as something more.

Goodbye Ray. And thank you for bringing us together.

SMRT.
Skeptical Minds and Rational Thinkers.
http://www.wearesmrt.com/bb/index.php

5 comments:

  1. If atheists had absolute proof of no God, then they wouldn't even have to make the argument, they could just remain silent and let theists have their beliefs and not even talk about it, because the atheists would know that it would just waste their time to argue because it would be so evident that there is no God. Theists however want to persuade atheists and other pagans into Christianity because it is the right thing to do.

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  2. Aww what a shame... I just discovered this blog! lol

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  3. Christopher Geiser wrote:
    "If atheists had absolute proof of no God, then they wouldn't even have to make the argument, they could just remain silent and let theists have their beliefs and not even talk about it,..."

    And you would go on imposing restrictions on scientific research like Bush's limits on stem cell research, imposing non-biblical biblical laws like bans on abortion, or flying planes into skyscrapers.

    "Theists however want to persuade atheists and other pagans into Christianity because it is the right thing to do."

    You're not very persuasive.

    Perhaps you could learn a few tricks from Derren Brown?

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  4. normdoering,
    Yes, evil religious people like Martin Luther King Jr. just go around flying planes into buildings while good atheists like Stalin kill millions of people. I see your point :)

    By the way, I think you're a little confused on the difference between Christians and Muslims. You might want to do a little reseach before posting a comment.

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  5. @oddball

    Fine, then. If you object to the comparison to the twin towers because only they were Muslims, how about the Spanish inquisition? That was the murder of all heretics (read: all non-Muslims and non-"true Christians") by Christians, along with the reconquista a few years afterwords.

    [On a side note: Stalin didn't kill all the clergy because of his atheism, he killed because the church was fucking up his power over the Russians. Stalin teamed up with the merchants and nobleman to crush the church, because it drew away from the power of the government and the upper class.]

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Unlike Ray we don't censor our comments, so as long as it's on topic and not spam, fire away.

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