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'''Paul Zachary Myers''', better known as '''PZ Myers''', is a [[liberal]], [[atheism|atheist]] and [[evolution|evolutionist]] ist activist in the [[creation-evolution controversy]], contributing to [[The Panda's Thumb (blog)|The Panda's Thumb]] and [[Pharyngula (blog)|Pharyngula]] blogs. Myers is also an associate professor of [[biology]] at the [[University of Minnesota]] Morris (UMM)<ref name="citypages">[http://citypages.com/databank/26/1303/article13908.asp?page=1 ''The Mad Scientist''] City Pages, Volume 26 - Issue 1303, November 23, 2005 Cover story</ref>

The Irish atheist [[Michael Nugent]] wrote to PZ Myers in September of 2014:

Due to its notability requirements, the website [[WikipediaWikipedia®]] (which was founded by an atheist and agnostic), does not make mention of any specific accomplishments PZ Myers may have achieved in the area of social justice. Wikipedia does mention the social justice accomplishments of Christians such as [[William Wilberforce]], [[Harriet Beecher Stowe]] and others.

In August of 2014, very shortly after the [[suicide]] of the popular, American comedian/actor [[Robin Williams]], PZ Myers made a callous and socially/emotionally tone-deaf blog post on the matter compounded by him subsequently indicating in the blog post comment section that he should have been "more rude".<ref>[http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2014/08/12/robin-williams-brings-joy-to-the-hearts-of-journalists-and-politicians-once-again/ Robin Williams brings joy to the hearts of journalists and politicians once again]</ref>

Myers was angry because he felt that the news of Robins Williams death was crowding out the news story of the African-American Michael Brown who was shot by a police officer (a race riot subsequently ensued).<refname="patheos.com">[http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/08/13/p-z-myers-is-surprise-unmoved-by-suicide-of-wealthy-white-robin-williams/ P.Z. Myers is (Surprise!) Unmoved By Suicide of “Wealthy White” Robin Williams]</ref> Myers was criticized by one of the bloggers at [[Hemant Mehta]]'s blog ''The Friendly Atheist'' due to his "his heartless, classless body blow to the still-warm corpse of Robin Williams."<ref>[http://www.name="patheos.com"/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/08/13/p-z-myers-is-surprise-unmoved-by-suicide-of-wealthy-white-robin-williams/ P.Z. Myers is (Surprise!) Unmoved By Suicide of “Wealthy White” Robin Williams]</ref> In addition, Myers' hypocrisy was pointed out as he had made no blog posts previously about the Michael Brown matter and additionally Myers a day earlier, made "a substance-free 15-word post whose main attraction was a photo of a cute bulldog puppy."<ref>[http://www.name="patheos.com"/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/08/13/p-z-myers-is-surprise-unmoved-by-suicide-of-wealthy-white-robin-williams/ P.Z. Myers is (Surprise!) Unmoved By Suicide of “Wealthy White” Robin Williams]</ref>

I don’t know that we can.<ref>[http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2014/09/27/the-atheist-disillusionment/ ''The Atheist Disillusionment''] - PZ Myers]], September 27, 2014</ref>}} In 2017, an article entitled ''Apparently, the atheist PZ Myers recognizes that the New Atheism movement failed and that the 21st century is going to be a century of [[desecularization]]'' indicated:{{Cquote|PZ Myers [http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2017/01/21/stop-tolerating-the-intolerable/#more-33373 just admitted]: "History is not going to remember me...". Although he was mocked for it, PZ Myer [http://thehumanist.com/magazine/november-december-2009/features/comes-a-horseman dubbed himself] the 5th horseman of the New Atheism movement... Remember, history is written by the victors. And PZ Myers just admitted that history will not remember him. Surely, if atheism was going to triumphant the history books would note the 5th horsemen of the New Atheism movement! Myers would deserve at least a footnote. But PZ Myers recognizes that he will not receive even a footnote.<ref>[Apparently, the atheist PZ Myers recognizes that the New Atheism movement failed and that the 21st century is going to be a century of desecularization], [[Examinning Atheism]]</ref>}}

{{cquote|If we're going to expand our base and we're going to draw in more people to recognize the virtues of living in a secular world, we need to appeal to more than just that geek and [[nerd]] subset of the population. We need to have a wider base. ...I seriously believe that we're on the cusp of a crisis. We're not there yet but it's looming in front of us. Will we adapt and thrive and change the world? Or will we remain an avocation for a prosperous and largely irrelevant subset of the population? Will we become something more than a scattered society of internet nerds? That's what we have to do.<refname="evolutionnews.org">[http://www.evolutionnews.org/2013/04/in_seattle_pz_m070861.html in Seattle, PZ Myers Reflects Candidly on His Constituency]</ref>}}

{{cquote|A crisis looms, in Myers's view, because he looks around himself and sees a not very promising basis for a mass movement. He's right. There is indeed a quality of geeky isolation from reality, common sense, and the fullness of life that I see as a motif in atheist and Darwin activism alike.<refname="evolutionnews.org">[http://www.evolutionnews.org/2013/04/in_seattle_pz_m070861.html in Seattle, PZ Myers Reflects Candidly on His Constituency]</ref>}} PZ Myers wrote about himself:{{Cquote|I’m a nerd. A colossal, boring, asocial nerd, and a homely one at that, and I always have been. You might also be surprised to learn that I totally lack all confidence in myself and my appearance, and it only takes a little bit to impress me.<ref>[http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2016/08/21/1-800-flowers-for-when-you-absolutely-dont-care-about-getting-a-terrific-experience/#more-31776 1-800-FLOWERS, for when you absolutely don’t care about getting a terrific experience] by PZ Myers</ref>}}

PZ Myers dubbed himself the fifth horseman of the New Atheism movement, but the term never caught on and he was mocked by some fellow atheists such as Michael Nugent.<ref>[http://www.michaelnugent.com/2014/11/04/chronology-of-misrepresentations-and-smears-in-the-atheist-movement-by-pz-myers-and-others/ Chronology of misrepresentations and smears in the atheist movement by PZ Myers and others] by Michael Nugent on November 4, 2014</ref><refname="Comes a Horseman">[http://thehumanist.com/magazine/november-december-2009/features/comes-a-horseman Comes a Horseman] by PZ Myers • 13 October 2009</ref><ref>[http://skeptischism.com/atheismneat/ PZ Myers, Animal Lover], Atheism Neat by Matt Cavanaugh</ref>

So I’m going to very prematurely declare myself a fifth horseman. I picture myself, though, as a little guy on a very small pony trotting after the other four. However, I’m waving a great big banner that has the words, “The Internet” on it. That’s me.<refname="Comes a Horseman">[http://thehumanist.com/magazine/november-december-2009/features/comes-a-horseman Comes a Horseman] by PZ Myers • 13 October 2009</ref>}}

A somewhat similar report was made concerning the audience of [[Richard Dawkins]]'s web community. In February of 2010, the news organization ''The Telegraph'' reported that the [[atheism|atheist]] and [[evolution|evolutionist]] ist Richard Dawkins was embroiled "in a bitter online battle over plans to rid his popular internet forum for atheists of foul language, insults and 'frivolous gossip'."<ref>http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/7322177/Richard-Dawkins-in-bitter-web-censorship-row-with-fellow-atheists.html</ref> In addition, Richard Dawkins [[Abrasiveness of Richard Dawkins|has a reputation for being abrasive]].

Myers is one of the more prominent bloggers at [[FreethoughtblogsFreethought Blogs]] and the blogging website has been losing a significant amount of web traffic since 2012 according to [[Quantcast]] which directly measures its web traffic.<ref>[https://www.quantcast.com/freethoughtblogs.com?qcLocale=en_US#/trafficCard Freethoughtblogs - Quantcast]</ref> See also: [[New Atheism#Decline of New Atheism|Decline of New Atheism]]

[[Image:Stephen Meyer.jpg|thumb|150px|right|Dr. [[Stephen Meyer]] published an article favoring [[intelligent design]] in a peer reviewed science journal which had traditionally only published material advocating the [[evolution|evolutionary]] ary position.<ref>http://www.discovery.org/scripts/viewDB/filesDB-download.php?command=download&id=1489</ref>]]

In 2010, the worldwide atheist community was challenged to a debate by [[Creation Ministries International]] as prominent atheists were speaking at a 2010 global atheist convention in [[Australia]].<ref name="clown">http://www.truefreethinker.com/articles/richard-dawkins-cowardly-clown</ref> Richard Dawkins, PZ Myers and other prominent atheists refused to debate Creation Ministries International.<ref name="clown" /> Generally speaking, [[Creation scientists tend to win the creation vs. evolution debates|creation scientists tend to win the creation vs. evolution debates]].

Enter Jonathan Sarfati (PhD in chemistry),senior scientist at Creation Ministries International, who recently published the book “The Greatest Hoax on Earth? Refuting Dawkins on Evolution.” Interestingly, Jonathan Sarfati sought to publish the book by the time that the 2010 Global Atheist Convention—billed as “The Rise of Atheism”—of March 12-14 12–14 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Center in Australia.

[[Image:115523-004-FA619CA3.jpg|thumb|right|250px| The perverse and cruel atheist [[Marquis de Sade]] was an early advocate of [[abortion]] in the [[Western World]].<refname="jme.bmj.com">http://jme.bmj.com/content/6/1/7.abstract</ref>]]

{{cquote|In 1795 the Marquis de Sade published his La Philosophic dans le boudoir, in which he proposed the use of induced abortion for social reasons and as a means of [[population control]]. It is from this time that medical and social acceptance of abortion can be dated, although previously the subject had not been discussed in public in modern times. It is suggested that it was largely due to de Sade's writing that induced abortion received the impetus which resulted in its subsequent spread in western society.<refname="jme.bmj.com">http://jme.bmj.com/content/6/1/7.abstract</ref>}}

On July 8, 2008, PZ Myers posted an entry attacking Roman Catholic beliefs regards Communion. He was reacting to a news story, in which a student at the University of Central Florida described a physical confrontation over his failure to consume a communion wafer.<ref>'Body Of Christ' Snatched From Church, Held Hostage By UCF Student, July 5, 2008[http://www.wftv.com/news/16798008/detail.html]</ref><ref>'Body Of Christ" Returned To Church After Student Receives Email Threats, July 7, 2008[http://www.wftv.com/news/16806050/detail.html]</ref> After ridiculing some people as "petty, hateful, and stupid," and asserting that "nothing makes them stupider than religion," Myers requested that his readers steal consecrated Communion wafers for him, so that he could desecrate them on camera. This rant predictably resulted in a strongly negative response from Catholics and those who support freedom of religious expression ;<ref>[http://www.catholicleague.org/pz-myers-hatemail/ PZ MYERS HATEMAIL]</ref>; Myers has since complained about the "hate mail" and "death threats" he has received, comparing the defense of Communion to a "witch hunt." To date, the University of Minnesota has not taken official action against Myers for his inflammatory remarks, other than to remove the link to his blog from his faculty page. PZ Myers followed through with his threat, desecrating a eucharist and tearing out pages of a copy of the [[Koran]] and a copy of Richard Dawkins' ''The God Delusion''.<ref>http://discoverthefaith.com/2008/07/26/update-on-professor-myers-desecration-of-eucharist/</ref>

[[File:Keldaby goats.jpg|thumbnail|200px|right|PZ Myers said, "I don’t object to [[Atheism and bestiality|bestiality]] in a very limited set of specific conditions...".<ref name="achilles">[http://templestream.blogspot.com/2012/08/atheist-achilles-heels-objective.html Atheist Achilles Heels: Objective Morality and Sacred Life]</ref> When asked what conditions were acceptable for bestially to be morally acceptable, Myers was silent. <ref name="achilles">[http://templestream.blogspot.com/2012/08/atheist-achilles-heels-objective.html Atheist Achilles Heels: Objective Morality and Sacred Life]</ref>]]

The ironic truth is that Miss Myers is absolutely correct; once the basic concept of [[Natural Law]] is abandoned, there is no rational basis for banning anything from necrophilia to cannibalism other than a vague sense of "ickiness" inherited from preceding generations possessed of a more conventional morality.<refname="Atheist Dad of the Year">[http://voxday.blogspot.com/2008/01/atheist-dad-of-year.html Atheist Dad of the Year]</ref>}}

That said, I remind you that my position isn’t based on my own personal wants. I just don’t see any reason to ban it other than the same reason things like [[homosexuality]] and sodomy were banned: it’s icky. I think it’s bad practice to put social taboos into legislature when no actual logical argument can be made against it.<ref>[http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/01/02/just-when-you-think-slimy-sal/ Just when you think Slimy Sal couldn’t sink any lower - Skatje Myers, Daughter of atheist PZ Myers - in blog comments section of PZ Myers' blog post]</ref><ref>Skatje Myers' Website is currently under construction, RSS feed - Lacrimae Rerum,blog of Skatje Myers, blog article - Zoophilia Oct 2, 2007]</ref>}}

''See also:'' [[FreethoughtblogsFreethought Blogs]] and [[Internet atheism]]

[[FreethoughtblogsFreethought Blogs]] is a spinoff of ScienceBlogs launched by PZ Myers and [[Ed Brayton]].

=== Web traffic of Freethoughtblogs Freethought Blogs ===

In 2011, PZ Myers said that he had greater blog traffic than the [[Answers in Genesis]] website and that the Answers in Genesis (AIG) website had "pathetic" web traffic.<ref>[http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2011/03/22/ken-ham-brags-about-his-websit/ Ken Ham brags about his websites]</ref> As of June 8, 2016, the Answers in Genesis website receives more web traffic than [[FreethoughtblogsFreethought Blogs]].<ref>[http://combatingatheism.blogspot.com/2016/07/creationist-ken-ham-vs-atheist-pz-myers.html Creationist Ken Ham vs. atheist and evolutionist PZ Myers]</ref>

=== Banning of Thunderf00t from Freethoughtblogs Freethought Blogs ===

On July 13, 2012 produced a video criticizing PZ Myers involvement in his banning from [[FreethoughtblogsFreethought Blogs]]. The video accuses PZ Myers of a lack of integrity and engaging in censorship.<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96FtpDLi_Vw FreeThoughtBlogs and PZ Myers]</ref>

Vox Day wrote that [[Thunderf00t]]'s removal from Freethoughtblogs Freethought Blogs exemplified PZ Myers's unwillingness to intellectually engage his opponents and his lack of integrity.<ref>[http://voxday.blogspot.com/2012/07/free-fascistthoughtblogs.html Vox Day on FreethoughtblogsFreethought Blogs]</ref>

=== Thunderf00t on the impact of Freethoughtblogs Freethought Blogs on social justice ===

In October of 2014, the popular YouTube atheist [[Thunderf00t]] indicated that the bloggers at Freethoughtblogs Freethought Blogs accidentally put him on their email list and that they spend a considerable amount of time emailing each other engaging in petty matters. In fact, he indicated that they spent more time emailing each other than engaged in actual blogging. He also questioned the impact of the bloggers of Freethoughtblogs Freethought Blogs on social justice.<refname="youtube.com">[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inqcLXNlEes Atheism+ Stream: How SJWs pushed their way into Atheism]</ref> Furthermore, he indicated that their attempt to make him a pariah within the atheist community had virtually no impact.<ref>[http://www.name="youtube.com"/watch?v=inqcLXNlEes Atheism+ Stream: How SJWs pushed their way into Atheism]</ref>

In addition, Thunderf00t commented on how [[Jen McCreight]], the founder of the atheist feminist movement [[Atheism plus]] abandoned her movement within two weeks. And how [[Richard Carrier]] "the intellectual artillery" of the movement, quit promoting the movement within a month.<ref>[http://www.name="youtube.com"/watch?v=inqcLXNlEes Atheism+ Stream: How SJWs pushed their way into Atheism]</ref>

Although PZ Myers has indicated that his daughter Skatje Myers is an atheist, Myers is silent on whether or not his wife believes in the existence of God.<refname="Atheist Dad of the Year">[http://voxday.blogspot.com/2008/01/atheist-dad-of-year.html Atheist Dad of the Year]</ref> Women are less likely to be atheists (see: [[Atheism and women]]).

==External Linkslinks==