• andros_rex@lemmy.world
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    4 days ago

    Pharyngula and Slacktivist are ancient and still running. I’ve been reading both since I graduated high school/had a Google Reader feed with 1k+ blogs. Both very different: Pharyngula is a ran by an atheist biology professor, while slacktivist is a Baptist laid off journalist who was/is working retail.

    The big thing with these blogs in the heyday of blogging - these comment sections were spectacular. Slacktivist drew me in because he did page-by-page analysis of the Left Behind series, and the commenters would write often high effort, good fan-fiction in response to whatever passage. On Pharyngula, you could see multiple actual scientists rip a stray creationist wandering in to shreds.

    There’s just something different about old school blog culture versus “link aggregators” - nothing like the feeling of a “free Friday thread.”

    • Okokimup@lemmy.world
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      3 days ago

      PZ Meyers was one of the few big name atheists who remained respectable.

      Eta: I say that, not having read from/about him in years, so I hope it’s still true.

      • andros_rex@lemmy.world
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        3 days ago

        Yes! I was reading him during ElevatorGate, and I remember the reaction to that stupid Dawkin’s “Dear Muslima” comment. (What a s surprise Dawkins turned out to be a complete chucklefuck.)

        Not a hint of sexual pest behavior, still very actively fighting back against conservative Republican shit heels.