Brief thoughts on the Global Atheist Convention (#atheistcon)
The Global Atheist Convention took place in Melbourne during the weekend of 14 and 15 April, 2012. Here’s a brief summary of some highlights and lowlights.
“New atheists”, stridency and fundamentalism
The so-called “New atheists” now carry the apparently unshakeable tags of being militant or strident. In some cases, they certainly might be – but this has nothing to do with the truth or falsity of what they say.
A science of morality #2
Some moral issues are generated by entirely practical considerations, including considerations like the proper allocation of state resources, and government policy with regard to class and race. And we have practical solutions to many of these moral issues.
A science of morality #1
As soon as there is any evidence – any evidence at all – the possibility exists for us to make better and worse predictions about the consequences of our actions. And we do have some evidence related to the sorts of things that allow for increases or decreases in the welfare of sentient creatures.
Moral absolutism: deontology and religious morality
Defining morality as necessarily absolute and objective is an illegitimate way to privilege religious morality, even as it continues to become less and less useful to people living in a modern world. Not only less useful, but also potentially harmful.
