tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post1006722867306764151..comments2023-05-10T08:55:47.701-07:00Comments on Richard Carrier Blogs: Craig the AnnoyedRichard Carrierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-18083297320590744402014-06-09T13:22:36.258-07:002014-06-09T13:22:36.258-07:00Due to a coding error this reader's comment ha...<b>Due to a coding error this reader's comment had to be deleted and is being reproduced here. It was originally posted July 2, 2008, by Quixie (no profile):</b><br /><br />I share tatarize's assesment of Craig (the wall punching analogue was very appropriate). Something I find interesting is that Craig tries to portray Carrier as an unqualified nobody who has no influence in the academicRichard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-37923761088568426642010-10-28T02:36:10.772-07:002010-10-28T02:36:10.772-07:00Flew did die recently in a home , his memory total...Flew did die recently in a home , his memory totally gone, ravaged by senility.<br /><br />Had he had it for long?<br /><br />His family said in the obituary that it had been 'a long illness'Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-34614791517108066352010-10-27T11:11:53.223-07:002010-10-27T11:11:53.223-07:00I recently was presented with a Jehovah's Witn...I recently was presented with a Jehovah's Witness pamphlet gloating over Flew's "conversion". This led me to ask about Flew and his supposed conversion at the SecWeb's latest forum incarnation "FreeRatio DebateBoard". Which led me here, via a viariety of writings.<br /><br />Many thanks to Richard for clearly laying out the controversies and the evidence to be Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01041767081127654093noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-30309133884881649902008-10-01T15:04:00.000-07:002008-10-01T15:04:00.000-07:00Eric: You obviously loved the fact that Oppenheime...<B>Eric:</B> <I>You obviously loved the fact that Oppenheimer called you brilliant</I><BR/><BR/>Actually I found it uncomfortable. That kind of sweeping generalization is a lot to live up to, more perhaps than I can, and I would rather not hear things like that. I prefer hearing more direct praises of specific skills or achievements, since then I know whether to agree (since I can check, applyingRichard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-46369808998520820892008-09-30T17:44:00.000-07:002008-09-30T17:44:00.000-07:00Wow Richard, you really exposed just how fragile y...Wow Richard, you really exposed just how fragile your ego is with this one! You obviously loved the fact that Oppenheimer called you brilliant (though you did your best, unsuccessfully, to downplay how much you relished it), and simply can't abide the possibility that someone might disagree with this characterization! How do I know this? Well, you so obviously overreacted to Craig's remarks that Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-55339964716431863472008-05-29T19:20:00.000-07:002008-05-29T19:20:00.000-07:00Shawn Brace said... How does one know that this is...<B>Shawn Brace said...</B> <I>How does one know that this isn't simply the way Flew interacts with people?</I><BR/><BR/>Though I can't assess his personality even now, much less before, everyone I know who interacted with him personally in the years before all this (members of the philosophy and freethought community here in the states) confirm things were once notably different, and even my Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-82555310112159239632008-05-21T06:03:00.000-07:002008-05-21T06:03:00.000-07:00Richard,Thank you for your response. I think it cl...Richard,<BR/><BR/>Thank you for your response. I think it clarifies a few things.<BR/><BR/>However, how does one know that this isn't simply the way Flew interacts with people? You, yourself, seemed to admit that you hadn't even heard of Flew before 2001 (?) and I'm sure Oppenheimer had never interacted with him before his visit. Could you be confusing his personality for senility?<BR/><BR/>AfterShawn Bracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10603380405719498288noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-82479195815149815822008-05-20T14:07:00.000-07:002008-05-20T14:07:00.000-07:00Shawn Brace said... Oppenheimer spent two days wit...<B>Shawn Brace said...</B> <I>Oppenheimer spent two days with Flew, yet all he can come up with for the article is a couple quotes from him???</I><BR/><BR/>Indeed, that's Oppenheimer's point: He got nothing of any use from Flew despite two days of interviewing. Hence Oppenheimer could only summarize <I>why</I> he got nothing of use: Flew couldn't remember anything about the book (the only reason Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-16816800807724361962008-05-20T13:23:00.000-07:002008-05-20T13:23:00.000-07:00I find it odd that in Oppenheimer's long article a...I find it odd that in Oppenheimer's long article about Flew, he only spends a few paragraphs talking about his actual visit with Flew - a visit that he claims allegedly opened his eyes to Flew's ncompetence.<BR/><BR/>Oppenheimer spent two days with Flew, yet all he can come up with for the article is a couple quotes from him???Shawn Bracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10603380405719498288noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-30840237949143947172008-04-03T16:06:00.000-07:002008-04-03T16:06:00.000-07:00Chris: Now you're just lying.I have published peer...<B>Chris:</B> Now you're just lying.<BR/><BR/>I have published peer reviewed articles, and chapters in a book by a major publisher. That's not "completely unpublished" (nor is being published relevant). The awards listed on my CV include college scholarships and fellowships and teaching recognitions, not just high school and military decorations (though I see you have no respect for national Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-50503440629989951332008-03-12T18:20:00.000-07:002008-03-12T18:20:00.000-07:00Oh, please. Richard, you're a completely unpublish...Oh, please. Richard, you're a completely unpublished academic (except for the book you self-published). Your CV lists awards you got in high school, along with awards in -- er -- marksmanship? You're trying to make a career out of discrediting Christianity, which is totally boring. Your Flew accounts are mostly name-calling and are packed with errors of fact. I'm bored.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02559521307604545367noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-46117219858055394282008-01-29T10:36:00.000-08:002008-01-29T10:36:00.000-08:00RantingAndRavingAngryPharmacist said... I think it...<B>RantingAndRavingAngryPharmacist said...</B> <I>I think it unlikely that his conversion is based on some new logic that he overlooked all these years, and much more likely that his conversion is based on an emotional reaction.</I><BR/><BR/>I don't think so. There is no identifiable emotional motive involved as a cause (e.g. he still adamantly denies any possibility of an afterlife). I think <B>Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-43902376859864747182008-01-28T03:39:00.000-08:002008-01-28T03:39:00.000-08:00I think that his "conversion" was from an honest g...I think that his "conversion" was from an honest god-of-the-gaps argument as a result of being fed misinformation by the likes of Gerald Schroeder. In any case, his deism is far from the beliefs of his Xian-apologist handlers.Lorenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13984896453534621864noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-38964307489834970832008-01-27T16:33:00.000-08:002008-01-27T16:33:00.000-08:00[quote]I don't think Flew is "crazy." But I do thi...[quote]I don't think Flew is "crazy." But I do think he is mentally incompetent.[/quote]<BR/><BR/>Working with the public, it seems to me that mentally declining in one's later years is more common than not. It doesn't mean that one can't live independently and do most of the tasks of daily living. Flew's conversion to theism is probably genuine (in the sense that it is real to him.) Even as a RantingAndRavingAngryPharmacisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03389543243099956110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-62362342624411623092008-01-16T16:42:00.000-08:002008-01-16T16:42:00.000-08:00David Appell: I deleted your post for containing g...<B>David Appell:</B> I deleted your post for containing gratuitous profanity and for making wild accusations without identifying any specific examples of any of your claims (see my <A HREF="http://richardcarrier.blogspot.com/2006/11/science-and-medieval-christianity.html#c592177148870505148" REL="nofollow">deletion policy</A>).<BR/><BR/><B>Sneb</B> and <B>B. Dewhirst</B> and <B>Agnostics_R_Us:</BRichard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-78377147366107670322008-01-16T16:40:00.000-08:002008-01-16T16:40:00.000-08:00Pikemann Urge said... Richard, Craig said that if...<B>Pikemann Urge said...</B> <I>Richard, Craig said that if Flew were really pressured by Christians then he would have converted to their faith. Instead, he remains an unattached theist. What do you say about this?</I><BR/><BR/>That's Oppenheimer's theory, not mine. I have never said Flew's position is the result of pressure. I believe he is being manipulated by men who are exploiting his Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-56644509826768562232008-01-16T16:31:00.000-08:002008-01-16T16:31:00.000-08:00Exchange Mobility said... Who are you and why doe...<B>Exchange Mobility said...</B> <I>Who are you and why does this matter?</I><BR/><BR/>Who are you talking to and what do you mean by "this"?Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-23806330233222755642008-01-16T16:30:00.000-08:002008-01-16T16:30:00.000-08:00Jon: Surely you mean to be quoting Conan the Barba...<B>Jon:</B> Surely you mean to be quoting <A HREF="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082198/" REL="nofollow">Conan the Barbarian</A>: Question: "What is the best thing in life?" Answer [now remember, spoken forcefully in that famous Arnold S accent]: "To crush your enemies. See them driven before you. And to hear the lamentation of their women." Ah, the governor of my state. At least his movies were Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-61840472451255872362008-01-16T16:20:00.000-08:002008-01-16T16:20:00.000-08:00Blue Devil Knight: Thanks for the info! I had neve...<B>Blue Devil Knight:</B> Thanks for the info! I had never seen that letter-writing practice before. If you have, then I'll go back to thinking it's just weird. Not that I ever thought it portended the next Ted Bundy.Richard Carrierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17577206926510030146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-53067307673904178192008-01-14T12:20:00.000-08:002008-01-14T12:20:00.000-08:00This is just sad, the way Flew is being exploited....This is just sad, the way Flew is being exploited. It is sickening.<BR/><BR/>You said:<BR/><I>All the bizarre corrections he made to each of his letters with scissors and glue should have been an early clue. At the time I just dismissed it as weird.</I><BR/><BR/>This is just a fairly standard practice of the old guard academics. He's not going serial killer on us or anything.Blue Devil Knighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12045468316613818510noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-15166815081962414142008-01-06T12:03:00.000-08:002008-01-06T12:03:00.000-08:00"You're probably aware, but it looks like Denyse O..."You're probably aware, but it looks like Denyse O'Leary is weighing in on this topic." <BR/><BR/>Ah yes: though it's always hard to follow which one of her cornucopia of blogs the main argument is on, since she links to herself right and left. <BR/><BR/>In any case, anytime Carrier blogs on this topic, I <A HREF="http://badidea.wordpress.com/2008/01/06/Badhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07225890125470949454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-33682603228392120222008-01-02T09:42:00.000-08:002008-01-02T09:42:00.000-08:00I asked around and even Brits who have lived in Am...I asked around and even Brits who have lived in America for quite a while didn't know what Babe Ruth's real name was, and what clubs (franchises?) he was traded from and to.<BR/><BR/>Perhaps Antony Flew really did approve manuscripts talking about Babe Ruth.<BR/><BR/>Or perhaps Varghese is trying to bowl us all a googly.Steven Carrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11983601793874190779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-71519350638007464252008-01-02T09:18:00.000-08:002008-01-02T09:18:00.000-08:00Richard,You're probably aware, but it looks like D...Richard,<BR/><BR/>You're probably aware, but it looks like Denyse O'Leary is weighing in on this topic. See here: http://post-darwinist.blogspot.com/<BR/><BR/>Here's a sample of what she wrote: " As I was already aware of the controversy, I read the book carefully as an editor might, and I think that there is no question that Flew wrote the material that appears under his name. And if he didn'tTrevorDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06650660580820963962noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-75539074427353490742008-01-01T10:32:00.000-08:002008-01-01T10:32:00.000-08:00"most talented wall-puncher" LOL! Couldn't had put..."most talented wall-puncher" LOL! Couldn't had put it better.lillanassehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17552707445218150490noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36959219.post-36929797714308488752008-01-01T06:10:00.000-08:002008-01-01T06:10:00.000-08:00That was great! "To crush your enemies, hold their...That was great! "To crush your enemies, hold their crying women and children in their arms after you have slaughtered them all!" Reading that post was like the intellectual version of that quote.Jonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02877962468047811190noreply@blogger.com