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8 votes
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Jacob’s Dream - MAGA meets the Age of Aquarius
3 votes -
A new archive of modern American political history
2 votes -
Israel’s ultra-Orthodox don’t serve in its armed forces. That’s getting harder than ever to justify and threatens Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition.
39 votes -
India moves to implement controversial citizenship bill that excludes Muslims
28 votes -
Would Roman elections pass a UN inspection?
8 votes -
What is India's "uniform civil code" and why does it anger Muslims?
17 votes -
California's push for mandatory ethnic studies classes runs into the Israel-Palestine conflict in designing a curriculum
22 votes -
Christian Super Bowl commercial outrages US conservatives
39 votes -
The parliament of Imperial Austria
6 votes -
100 years since death of Lenin marked by silence from China’s Communist Party
20 votes -
Book review - A Fabulous Failure: The Clinton Presidency and the Transformation of American Capitalism by Nelson Lichtenstein and Judith Stein
4 votes -
Ali Abdullah Saleh obituary [2017]
5 votes -
Queen Margrethe II is the first Danish monarch to abdicate in 900 years – but it is just a sign of the times
17 votes -
Frantz Fanon’s enduring legacy – The post-colonial thinker’s seminal book, “The Wretched of the Earth,” described political oppression in psychological terms
11 votes -
When the New York Times lost its way
23 votes -
Danish parliament has voted to ban the burning of religious scriptures after a series of Qur’an desecrations in the country and neighbouring Sweden
26 votes -
The rise and fall (and rise and fall) of Venezuela (2019)
7 votes -
The Republican Revolution and how the party switch actually happened
13 votes -
The bizarre story behind Shinzo Abe’s assassination
84 votes -
Right-wing skeptics and the new, new atheism
I find stream-of-consciousness-style writing helps me wrestle with ideas and concepts, organizing thoughts into ideas from the chaos. To be clear, I'm a leftist agnostic (some might say atheist)...
I find stream-of-consciousness-style writing helps me wrestle with ideas and concepts, organizing thoughts into ideas from the chaos. To be clear, I'm a leftist agnostic (some might say atheist) who's been thinking about new atheism and skepticism a lot recently. I spoke to a friend who is a liberal atheist, and they consider themselves a skeptic first, and an atheist second. This seemed strange to me, not because I'm unfamiliar with the skeptical movement, but because it doesn't fit into my current mental model of skepticism. I don't really like the term skeptic. Below, I will attempt to work out my ideas into words, and hopefully have a conclusion.
A quick note: my view of atheism, especially from this era, was largely mediated by YouTube and limited to trends in the US.
Late '00s and early '10s: The Rise of Reactionary Skepticism
For me, no one embodies this era of atheism better than Christopher Hitchens. His videos were one of the many factors that led to me "converting" to atheism. He was a brilliant debater, and mastered the art of crafting rhetoric. Being successful in debate doesn't equate to having more accurate beliefs, but it does mean you can convince people of your ideas more effectively. Upon re-watch of these old videos, they are somewhat intellectually unsatisfying. A case that was impactful to me recently was that upon being presented with a fairly standard formulation of the moral argument, Hitchens feigns shock, and implies that Craig (his opponent) had implied that atheists couldn't act morally (which he clearly didn't.) This is why Hitchens destroys his opponents; he is far more effective at debate than Craig, who looks weak when trying to maintain philosophical precision by choosing statements carefully and hedging/qualifying his statements.
Being skeptical is a valid, often important epistemic tool for increasing the accuracy of our beliefs. For the sake of this post, I will oversimplify skepticism to something like "deconstructing big ideas" and "poking holes in overarching narratives". It starts from a position of neutrality, and seeks to determine if there is rational warrant in believing ideology "X". There are various reasons why one could use skepticism to shape their worldview.
There's a certain kind of skepticism that gained popularity during this time. It was the "'x' DESTROYS 'y' in debate" where "x" was often a new atheist and "y" was often an apologist. There's something both persuasive and cathartic about seeing someone representing your worldview deconstruct someone else's. For many, the reason for watching the content was nothing more than the entertainment value of seeing people get "DESTROYED" in debate. For some, the satisfaction of humiliating the opponent intellectually was the entire point.
Early to mid '10s: Seeking Out Other Ideologies to Destroy
There are only so many religious debates one can have before getting bored. There's basically a set list of apologetic arguments one can have these sorts of debate about before they either get too philosophically dense, or are just so incredibly silly that it isn't satisfying to DESTROY them (in the case of young Earth creationist apologetics.) How many videos can one possibly make debating the Kalam before viewers get bored?
It shouldn't necessarily be surprising that many skeptics turned out to be reactionary. Skepticism is, at least dialectically and sometimes politically, a reactionary position. It turns out there are a lot of ideologies and overarching narratives the left believes in: feminism, progressivism, and various beliefs relating to sexual and gender identity. Gender identity at this time wasn't really on the map, but feminism was. Many prominent atheist YouTube channels pivoted to "'x' DESTROYS 'y' with FACT and LOGIC" but instead of deconstructing religion, it sought to deconstruct feminism. If Christopher Hitchens embodied the previous era, though not an atheist, Ben Shapiro embodies this era.
It seems correct to me that these folks were "skeptical" of feminism. They, from a position of neutrality, sought to "poke holes" in feminist ideology. Of course, the new atheists weren't neutral on religion; they were strongly atheistic. So too were these feminist skeptics. They were strongly misogynistic. Of course, like the new atheists before them, only so much content can be made
2016 to Present: Reactionary Skeptics Abandon Atheism
Peter Boghossian, author of A Manual for Creating Atheists is the person I pick to personify this era (he was also partly inspiration for these weird person-on-the-street interviews of Christians where they just begin so-called Socratic questioning ("but WHY do believe that, and WHY do you believe that?"), similar to right-wing person-on-the-street interviews of feminists). He's had multiple interviews where he states that criticizing religion is unhelpful; that Christians can be powerful allies against a much worse religion in needing of deconstruction: Wokeism. (yes, he really does use that word)
Skepticism is now a mainstream component of conservative thought. While Climate Change skepticism has been around for awhile, in the COVID-era, skepticism of vaccines and masks is probably one of the more powerful pieces of evidence that skepticism is a core component of modern American conservative ideology. It's also applied to right-wing ideologies: once united on subjects like foreign interventionism and free trade, now there's greater skepticism among conservatives about once unquestioned conservative beliefs. Despite whether you think they are "doing skepticism the right way" they are certainly "doing a skepticism".
Jordan Peterson, famous reactionary, identifies as a Christian. His actual metaphysical beliefs, though he tries to squirm out of elaborating on them, are closely aligned with what the majority of people would describe as atheism. But, like Boghossian has already recognized, Christianity is a tool to be wielded for reactionary political aims, even if you are a de-facto atheist. In 2023, "Christian" implies "conservative" more strongly than any period in my living memory.
New, New Atheism
The movement that has been abandoned by who I call the Reactionary Skeptics has been left primarily with progressives, LGBTQ folks, and many suffering from religious trauma. Christianity more strongly maps onto conservatism in the modern era, therefore its negation isn't a merely reactionary process; it is a progressive, revolutionary one. In keeping with my cringe habit of anointing a YouTube creator for each era, I'd point to Genetically Modified Skeptic (there's that word) as the embodiment of this era.
Obviously these folks were part of "the movement" (if it can even be called such) the entire time. But they are largely who is left. Why did reactionaries decide to leave? Because they realize that religion structures power in a way that they find beneficial, and that atheism can be used to restructure power in a progressive or revolutionary way.
This movement, due to the aforementioned abandonment is far more profoundly progressive than any previous era. Folks like The Satanic Temple come to mind. It's hard to find an atheist creator nowadays that isn't an outspoken proponent of LGBTQ rights and feminism. Atheism has been ceded to the left.
What's the point of this damn post?!
If you are talking in earnest about atheism now, you're probably a progressive. And I don't think it's helpful to use term skeptic. Yes, what a dumb quibble. And yes, you are a skeptic of one particular largely right-wing overarching narrative. But the term is unhelpful. Its confusing. What is meant by skepticism, whenever I press my progressive "skeptical" friends is something along the lines of "having rational beliefs" or "'good' epistemology", which... like come on, that's not what skepticism means. Besides, most people believe they "have true beliefs", which leads me to wonder, what's the point of telling people you're a skeptic?
I get the point. It's about saying something more than "God's not real." But there are simply better, more impressive political projects with less baggage than skepticism.
Thanks for reading :)
39 votes -
Why people believe their own lies - The George Santos syndrome
20 votes -
Podcast: a History of Modern Palestine
American Prestige did a series on the History of Modern Palestine. The first episode is always public, but they have unlocked the remaining episodes for this week in light of current events. I...
American Prestige did a series on the History of Modern Palestine. The first episode is always public, but they have unlocked the remaining episodes for this week in light of current events.
I listened to this back when it was posted and learned a lot about the role of colonial powers in the formation of Israel and Palestine and the way Palestinians are being treated today. The viewpoint is is not anti-Semitic but it is also not pro-Israel. For example, they discuss Israel's (then) current treatment of the Palestinians as apartheid.
I can't imagine what it would be like to live in those conditions. I don't mean to condone terrorist violence, but set against the background of the oppression in Palestine, it's hard to imagine what people might be driven to.
23 votes -
The Gettysburg Powerpoint Presentation
7 votes -
Added context to Benjamin Franklin's famous quote about trading liberty for safety
23 votes -
No rides, but lots of rows: ‘reactionary’ French theme park plots expansion
6 votes -
Fun fact: Taiwan claims exclusive sovereignty over mainland China and Mongolia as well as parts of Russia, India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Japan
Decided not to post a single link as there are tons of different articles about different aspects of it on Wikipedia. It's a whole thing! Exclusive mandate - Republic of China (Taiwan) and...
Decided not to post a single link as there are tons of different articles about different aspects of it on Wikipedia. It's a whole thing!
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Exclusive mandate - Republic of China (Taiwan) and People's Republic of China
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1992 consensus which established semi-official dialogue between ROC and PRC
It seems like this is a leftover from the Chinese civil war and/or Chiang Kai-shek's authoritarian and murderous rule because one of the above articles does mention that these territorial hopes haven't been worked towards for many years:
Originally placing high priority on reclaiming the Chinese mainland through Project National Glory, the KMT now favors a closer relation with the PRC and seeks to maintain Taiwan's status quo under the Constitution of the Republic of China. The party also accepts the 1992 Consensus, which defines both sides of the Taiwan Strait as "one China" but maintains its ambiguity to different interpretations.
It goes further back than that though, probably to 1966 when Project National Glory was abandoned:
[invasion of mainland China] as the initial stage of reunification was effectively abandoned after 1966, although the Guoguang planning organization was not abolished until 1972. The ROC did not abandon the policy of using force for reunification until 1990.
Thought this was all quite interesting, so I wanted to share! It is not exactly light reading though so I also wanted to ask for documentary recommendations about this, and of the Chinese civil war in general, if anybody knows of any good ones?
Don't mind me, just finding myself going into a lot of Wikipedia rabbit holes lately 😊
22 votes -
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Denmark's parliament to introduce interpreters – Aki-Matilda Hoegh-Dam spoke and answered questions in Greenlandic, causing protests from some lawmakers
12 votes -
Europe talks to itself in many languages. That’s why English is vital to its democracy
17 votes -
‘We put in air conditionin’, stayed year-round, and ruined America’
13 votes -
How disappearance became a global weapon of psychological control, fifty years on from Chile’s US-backed coup
21 votes -
Lies fuel racism ahead of Australia's Indigenous vote
13 votes -
Innocent Muslims being murdered in India due to Hindu radicalism
28 votes -
University of Eastern Finland has received more funding from the Ministry of Education and Culture of Finland to continue the Karelian language revitalization project
8 votes -
Planned Danish law will make improper treatment of the Quran or Bible a criminal offence punishable by a fine and jail sentence of up to two years
39 votes -
Huey P. Newton, the misunderstood visionary behind the Black Panther Party
9 votes -
Iran is about to make its hijab laws even stricter
13 votes -
Denmark is considering banning protests involving burning the Quran or other religious texts over security and diplomatic concerns – Sweden looking to follow suit
18 votes -
The history of the Comstock Act, the 150 year old law conservatives in the US are banking on to ban abortion
31 votes -
Non-revolutionary anarchism
Edit: I'm just gonna list the recommendations I found interesting for my future reference Proudhon - One of the first anarchists. Wrote a lot about mutualism and tried to come up with mechanisms...
Edit: I'm just gonna list the recommendations I found interesting for my future reference
Proudhon - One of the first anarchists. Wrote a lot about mutualism and tried to come up with mechanisms to share resources based on usufruct
The Dispossessed -Describes an alternate society. Supposedly written more like an anthropological study than a narrative
No God's, No Masters - Written by David Graber, who also wrote the 3 Problems with the Revolution
The Dawn of Everything - Talks about the organization structures of early societies
Participatory Economics - Talks about economic organization without compulsion
Walkaway - Recommended when I mentioned stealth anarchism
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I'm gonna be honest, I'm pretty sick of all the existing forms of politics. Conservatives, liberals, progressives, libertarians, I dont feel like I jive with any of them.
The closest thing I've found to a philosophy I can get behind is anarchism, but I'm not really a fan of revolutionary anarchism either. I'm interested in just discussion of the constructive aspects of it. Like how the alternative vision of the world they advocate for works in practice, and what different options there are for implementation.
I find it hard to really get into, because whenever I try to read up on any kind of political philosophy I run into the people who are trying to evangelize and it just really turns me off to the whole thing.
Does anyone have some good reading recommendations that skip past trying to recruit people, and just is a good discussion?
43 votes -
The history behind Orkney's vote to ‘join Norway’
9 votes -
The status quo coalition
7 votes -
Quran burning and requests to approve the destruction of more holy books have left Sweden torn between its commitment to free speech and its respect for religious minorities
18 votes -
How a megachurch wields power in a regional California city and influence in the music industry
7 votes -
The spy whose tapes rocked Spanish society
5 votes -
Sweden set up a eugenics plan, grounded in the science of racial biology, between 1934 and 1976 – between 20,000 and 33,000 Swedes were forced to be sterilised
12 votes -
Democracy is the solution to vetocracy
10 votes -
Greenlandic MP refused to speak Danish during a debate in the Danish parliament and instead spoke in her native Inuit language
6 votes -
Black conservatism isn’t what you think
7 votes -
What is fascism?
7 votes