[MD] Dawkins' anti-theism campaign

[ian glendinning]

Ham,

As I'm sure you will know, I'm absolutely NOT a fan of Dawkins.

I often refer to my essay on that very subject called "Hyper-Rationalism"
http://www.psybertron.org/Dawkins%20Hyper-Rationalism.html
If you think I'm a fan, you haven't read it.

(I've been aware of his recent Channel 4 documentaries, but haven't
watched them. His memetic view of how religious ideas catch on is well
written about, not just by him, but also Dennett, Deutsch, Pinker and
Blackmore, to name a few.)

Don't get me wrong, Dawkins is scientifically, objectively,
logical-positively, right - probably as close to 100% as any scientist
can be. But he speaks only one kind of truth, and worse, he doesn't
recognize this shortcoming.

Dennett on the other hand adds rhetorical wit, metaphor and humour,
when arguing with "sky-hook-believers" and Blackmore add's an
open-minded "faith" in hidden depths to human consciousness, without
losing her essential scientific objectivity. Deutsch adds his own
quest for better bases of scientific knowledge than GOF
scientific-method and faux-logical-induction.

That's why I'm here (on MD).
If I was a Dawkins "fan" I wouldn't be.
(Dawkins is doing "his" job, but it's the wrong job IMHO, and negative
reactions are the only outcome expected. Sam's book covers a lot of
this ground.)
Ian