1. Richard Dawkins' US Tour begins this week

Comment #138242 by ArmchairDissident on March 4, 2008 at 5:10 am

Some of you people sound like a bunch of groupies, get a hold of yourself. It is embarrassing just to watch you.

I am sure you all know Dawkins' arguments so well that you can probably regurgitate them better than he himself. So I am not really sure what you will learn from his talk that you haven't known already.It seems that the fan boys and girls just want to admire their idol up close so that they can chatter for days on how handsome and well spoken he is.

I don't think this kind of mini personality cult is healthy for supposedly rational people.

I am probably going to be blasted for blasphemy.

Huh? Which would you prefer to do; watch a rugby match on television, or watch a rugby match at Twickenham? Even watching a rugby match at a pub is better than watching at home! (this is, of course, assuming you like rugby. If not, substitute another sport).

Or if you don't like sport, perhaps there's a band you like? I like the Scissor Sisters, and watching them play at Trafalgar Square last year (year before?) was immeasurably nicer than watching them perform at the O2 dome on television.

There is nothing "irrational" about wanting to see someone speak, and wanting to be there in person during, say, a questions and answers session. It's just a pity he's not touring the UK.