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RE: Why so many "anti-feminists" in the atheist community?
February 24, 2015 at 7:09 am (This post was last modified: February 24, 2015 at 7:10 am by ManMachine.)
(January 1, 2015 at 11:47 pm)ketameankitty Wrote:
YouTube can, and has, done wonders for the atheist community. It gave free thinkers a place to post videos to help educate the world on the likes of science and dangers of religion. It was YouTubers like CultOfDusty, who I originally subscribed to for his political videos, that helped me come to my senses and denounce my former religion.
But over the past year or so, there's been a trend among popular atheist YouTubers: anti-feminism.
I will admit right now that there are many extreme feminists who I don't agree with. In fact, a lot of the things "anti-feminists" critique, I agree with. But not to the extent that I would ever title myself as an anti-feminist. No, I am not against the movement that fights the Republicans' attempts to limit my reproductive rights, or the movement that points out double standards that still exist (for women and men). I am not against the movement that is working to make gender identification and sexuality and orientation normal things. Why any forward-thinking, self-identifying atheist would be against this movement is beyond me.
I understand these anti-feminists usually support the efforts of feminists in the past, and even the present. After all, TheAmazingAtheist paints his fingernails...if it wasn't for modern feminism, that would be unacceptable. I know that these anti-feminists just get their panties in a knot when they watch videos by extremists like Anita Sarkeesian, you know, that woman that no one likes, save for her following of maybe...40,000 people? Maybe? If that?
Point being, all these extreme feminists are a joke. They don't have power in politics. They have a minimal influence over culture and the population. The only people they're reaching are misandrous cat ladies who would be just as misandrous and just as cat lady with or without a weekly subscription to FemFreq.
But regardless, we all have our opinions and things we're passionate about. I can understand why people, including atheist YouTubers, would want to respond to some of the ridiculous things the extreme feminists spew. But like...why respond to that meaningless bullshit every week? If these extreme feminists are gaining any momentum at all, it's because the anti-feminists are guiding them to their videos!
Tj, TheAmazingAtheist, arguably has the largest following of his peers. That said, he has some considerable power over people, and probably much more so than the big, mean, scary Anita Sarkeesian! Why is he, and so many other YouTubers, wasting that power on beating a dead horse again on a weekly basis?
I get it. It's the Internet and people can do what they want. If making videos mocking these feminists is fun for them, they can do it! But should they?
As an anti-religion atheist, I don't think so.
If atheists want to gain acceptance, see religious laws get removed, and someday live in a world where dogma doesn't exist, we need power. And power comes in number.
Feminists (not the extremists) are a heftily sized group of people that atheists should be working to attract, not piss off. A lot of feminists are areligious because they know that many gender roles and oppression stem from the Bible and Qu'ran and other pieces of religious paraphernalia. I formerly identified more as a feminist until I "went back to being" an atheist. I see religion as the root of several problems in the world, including the problems feminists fight. While I am still a feminist, I tend to talk and get more passionate about the atheists' cause because I think it more or less encompasses all of my beliefs, so to speak. What I'm trying to say is, there are a lot of women out there, who call themselves feminist, that we as atheists should try to "convert".
When even female atheist YouTubers like JaclynGlenn label themselves "anti-feminist", it deters a lot of queer people, trans people, and women in general. How are these people supposed to feel welcome in the atheist community when it's largely composed of men and some women--men and women who say they are against feminism?!
I unsubscribed from TheAmazingAtheist and seldom tune in to JaclynGlenn because I got tired of seeing their anti-feminist videos so often. And they're not the only ones.
Maybe I'm just being the kind of overly-sensitive bitch that Tj and Jaclyn rant and rave about, but I just honestly think their efforts could be put to better use making more videos criticizing the religious bigots in politics and media instead of a handful of ladies crying about cat calls.
I know this post will probably go unread or unanswered both because I'm new, and because I hold a very unpopular opinion. I just have been wanting to get this off my chest for a long time, and I didn't really have a place for it until now. But I'd love to further discus!
Are you basing this on YouTube atheists?
MM
"The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions" - Leonardo da Vinci
"I think I use the term “radical” rather loosely, just for emphasis. If you describe yourself as “atheist,” some people will say, “Don’t you mean ‘agnostic’?” I have to reply that I really do mean atheist, I really do not believe that there is a god; in fact, I am convinced that there is not a god (a subtle difference). I see not a shred of evidence to suggest that there is one ... etc., etc. It’s easier to say that I am a radical atheist, just to signal that I really mean it, have thought about it a great deal, and that it’s an opinion I hold seriously." - Douglas Adams (and I echo the sentiment)
RE: Why so many "anti-feminists" in the atheist community?
February 24, 2015 at 12:06 pm
(February 24, 2015 at 2:46 am)dyresand Wrote:
(February 24, 2015 at 1:56 am)psychoslice Wrote: Its just the bitching I can't handle.
I hate how its corrupted gaming journalism for the worse.
There really is not journalism or even media/news ethics.
Gaming journalism has always been a farce, which is what makes the whole GG thing laughable. It's just another variant of entertainment journalism, which is always vapid. And at its core, it's really just another form of marketing for the big studios, because actually diving into the tech used in games, or talking about the various social issues in games (in both their construction (why, hello EA abusing its employees) and delivery) shatters the fantasy, and is boring to most to boot. That's why the upcoming GDC will receive far less coverage than PAX East, and why the PAX East coverage will focus on game demos, previews, and the concert(s) rather than the presentations.
And, really, what do people expect? Even in the realm of entertainment journalism, gaming journalism just doesn't have much to report on. There are no marriages, divorces, affairs, fashion, sex tapes, etc. to waste time with. There usually isn't much in the way of shady financial things. Studio 38 was really the big one of the last decade or so. Usually, it's simple mismanagement that causes studios to shutter. It's certainly not as wide spread as sports teams essentially holding cities hostage for tax money in order to build yet another new stadium.
And, even more laughable, the few people who do try to critique games as the pieces of art gamers want them to be seen as are shot down and threatened and harassed for it. I don't think Roger Ebert ever got doxxed or threatened for 'getting it wrong'. So, when people try to elevate the discourse surrounding games, gamers lash out. Give me a fucking break. You can't hold journalistic ethics on a pedestal and attempt to silence the voices you disagree with at the same time.
I can get the anger about real journalism. Coverage of politics, health, and science is laughable at best, deliberately misleading at worst, and always embarrassingly shallow. The incessant need to make everything seem to have two equally reasonable yet divided opinions on things, when, in actuality, one is a fringe belief or opinion, is actively damaging. It's what elevates the anti-vaxxers, the creationists, and all the other quacks out there, and it needs to stop. As does the media fawning over idiots like the Robertsons and Duggars.
But gaming journalism? LMFAO.
"I was thirsty for everything, but blood wasn't my style" - Live, "Voodoo Lady"
RE: Why so many "anti-feminists" in the atheist community?
February 24, 2015 at 10:34 pm
(February 24, 2015 at 12:06 pm)KevinM1 Wrote:
(February 24, 2015 at 2:46 am)dyresand Wrote: I hate how its corrupted gaming journalism for the worse.
There really is not journalism or even media/news ethics.
Gaming journalism has always been a farce, which is what makes the whole GG thing laughable. It's just another variant of entertainment journalism, which is always vapid. And at its core, it's really just another form of marketing for the big studios, because actually diving into the tech used in games, or talking about the various social issues in games (in both their construction (why, hello EA abusing its employees) and delivery) shatters the fantasy, and is boring to most to boot. That's why the upcoming GDC will receive far less coverage than PAX East, and why the PAX East coverage will focus on game demos, previews, and the concert(s) rather than the presentations.
And, really, what do people expect? Even in the realm of entertainment journalism, gaming journalism just doesn't have much to report on. There are no marriages, divorces, affairs, fashion, sex tapes, etc. to waste time with. There usually isn't much in the way of shady financial things. Studio 38 was really the big one of the last decade or so. Usually, it's simple mismanagement that causes studios to shutter. It's certainly not as wide spread as sports teams essentially holding cities hostage for tax money in order to build yet another new stadium.
And, even more laughable, the few people who do try to critique games as the pieces of art gamers want them to be seen as are shot down and threatened and harassed for it. I don't think Roger Ebert ever got doxxed or threatened for 'getting it wrong'. So, when people try to elevate the discourse surrounding games, gamers lash out. Give me a fucking break. You can't hold journalistic ethics on a pedestal and attempt to silence the voices you disagree with at the same time.
I can get the anger about real journalism. Coverage of politics, health, and science is laughable at best, deliberately misleading at worst, and always embarrassingly shallow. The incessant need to make everything seem to have two equally reasonable yet divided opinions on things, when, in actuality, one is a fringe belief or opinion, is actively damaging. It's what elevates the anti-vaxxers, the creationists, and all the other quacks out there, and it needs to stop. As does the media fawning over idiots like the Robertsons and Duggars.
But gaming journalism? LMFAO.
More or less its people and the media coming out of the wood work saying people are violent because violent video games are causing the tissues on both sides they can say anything they wan;t and get picked apart. So a hyper violent game coming out called hatred watch something bad happens and people jump up in arms trying to get it banned.
RE: Why so many "anti-feminists" in the atheist community?
February 25, 2015 at 11:59 am (This post was last modified: February 25, 2015 at 12:00 pm by FlyingSpaghettiMonster.)
Feminism has gone the way of Islam, simple as that. You may claim "oh well not all Muslims are bad!" That still doesn't justify the amount of dumb/horrible shit the vocal acting majority does. If you want to fight for a label go ahead, but any guy with a brain on his shoulders knows that if a woman claims she's a feminist it's time to get out of there. In the end I am looking for the equal balance for men and women, active feminism doesn't do that, all it does is look for favoritism for women.
