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'''Clinton Richard Dawkins''', [[Royal Society|FRS]], FRSL, (born March 26, 1941, age {{age|1941|3|26}}), is a British author, [[biologist]], [[evolution]]ist, [[agnosticism|agnostic]] and [[leftist]]/[[liberal]] (See also: [[Richard Dawkins and agnosticism]]).<ref>

*[http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/timstanley/100139859/id-go-to-church-just-to-reduce-the-probability-of-spending-eternity-in-hell-with-richard-dawkins/ ''I'd go to church just to reduce the probability of spending eternity in Hell with Richard Dawkins'' by Dr. Tim Stanley, ''The Daily Telegraph'', February 27, 2012]

Most of Richard Dawkins' popular books have [[Richard Dawkins and pseudoscience|promoted evolutionary pseudoscience.]] Dawkins is also the former holder of the Charles Simonyi Chair of the Public Understanding of Science at [[Oxford University]].

He is an ardent opponent of religion, which he dismisses as mere [[superstition]].<ref>Richard Dawkins is a man with a mission – the eradication of religion and superstition, and their total replacement with science and reason. [http://www.sheldrake.org/D&C/controversies/Dawkins.html "Richard Dawkins comes to call"]</ref> However, Dawkins has offered no effective rebuttal to studies which show that the irreligious [[Irreligion and superstition|are more likely]] to be superstitious than [[evangelicalism|evangelical]] [[Christianity|Christians]].<ref name="online.wsj.com">http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122178219865054585.html</ref>

In terms of the [[theism]] vs. agnosticism and [[atheism]] issue, Dawkins has shown himself to be rather ignorant in matters of [[philosophy]] and [[theology]]. For example, philosopher Dr. [[Michael Ruse]] declared concerning Dawkins' book ''[[The God Delusion]]'': "''The God Delusion'' makes me embarrassed to be an atheist."<ref>http://www.alternet.org/media/47052?page=entire</ref>

Dawkins is a [[Richard Dawkins and Islamophobia accusations|vocal opponent of Islam]]. Dawkins has said, "[[Islam]] is the greatest force for evil in the world today".<ref>[https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-40710165 Richard Dawkins' Berkeley event cancelled for 'Islamophobia'], BBC,

== Biography of Richard Dawkins ==

Richard Dawkins was born in Nairobi, Kenya.<ref>http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2004/jul/25/research.science</ref> He was a child of a family of colonial forest officers.<ref>https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3657215/Preaching-to-the-converted.html</ref>

Dawkins was raised to have religious values, and confesses that when he was young, he acknowledged the complexity of life and believed that it indicated a designer. However, during his teens, he chose to abandon this faith and embrace Darwinism instead, despite admitting that he hadn’t actually read [[Charles Darwin]]’s works.<ref>http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/feb/10/religion.scienceandnature</ref><ref name="bbc.co.uk">https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/atheism/people/dawkins.shtml</ref> See also: [[British atheism]] and [[UK and secularism]]

In 1984, Dawkins divorced his wife of 17 years, Marian Stamp; later that same year, he married [[Eve Barham]]. Dawkins also divorced Barham, though the precise circumstances of this divorce are unclear.<ref>http://www.richarddawkins.com/</ref> He married science fiction actress Lalla Ward in 1992 and they separated after 24 years of marriage.<ref>[https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/dawkins-evolves-into-single-man-after-amicable-split-with-time-lady-sp9llk2nt Dawkins evolves into single man after ‘amicable’ split with Time Lady], ''The Sunday Times''</ref>

{{Cquote|Richard Dawkins is perhaps one of the last men on Earth who should be discussing what is the right and proper way to raise children, given that the number of his wives outnumber his offspring.

=== Majority of web visitors to Dawkins' website are men ===

Survey data and website tracking data of prominent atheist websites indicate that in the Western World, atheism [[Atheism and women|is significantly less appealing to women]].

=== Elevatorgate controversy ===

</ref>

For more information, please see:

==== Dawkins retracts his Elevatorgate apology, says Elevatorgate incident was rather trivial ====

On August 6, 2014, Dawkins apologized for his remarks related to his Elevatorgate scandal.<ref name="Who is belittling what"/><ref>[https://twitter.com/rebeccawatson/status/497087309805027328 Rebecca Watson's Twitter tweet about Richard Dawkins apologizing for his Elevate scandal]</ref>

Specifically, the ''Washington Post'' reported on November 18, 2014:

Recent criticism of Dawkins has come from women, many of them within the [[atheist movement]], which has long drawn more men to its ranks. His online remarks, some women say, contribute to a climate they see as unwelcoming to female atheists...

==== Reason Rally related incident involving David Silverman and Richard Dawkins ====

[[File:David Silverman.JPG|thumbnail|right|150px|[[David Silverman]] ]]

An article by Sarah posted at [[Skepchick]] about a conversation between Richard Dawkins and [[David Silverman]] (a former president of the [[American Atheists]] organization), which took place during the planning phase of the [[Reason Rally]]:

{{See also|Internet atheism}}

=== Dawkins' disinvitation to speak at a skeptics conference due to a feminism/Islam controversy ===

*[https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/15-of-richard-dawkins-most-controversial-tweets_us_56004360e4b00310edf7eaf6 15 Of Richard Dawkins' Most Controversial Tweets], ''Huffington Post''

</ref>

Dawkins has accumulated over 30,000 Twitter tweets.<ref>[https://twitter.com/RichardDawkins?ref_src=twsrc^google|twcamp^serp|twgr^author Richard Dawkins Twitter]</ref> ''The Independent'' reported, "Dawkins also admitted he wasn't very good at managing Twitter and the strong reactions his posts tend to provoke. 'Twitter is very difficult medium to handle,' he said. 'I’m not much of a diplomat.'"<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/richard-dawkins-defends-ahmed-mohamed-comments-and-dismisses-islamophobia-as-a-non-word-10515389.html Richard Dawkins defends Ahmed Mohamed comments and dismisses Islamophobia as a 'non-word']</ref> However, after his stroke, in May 2016, Dawkins gave up posting on Twitter for awhile and the tweets that appeared in his name were done by his staff.<ref>[http://freethoughtblogs.com/affinity/2016/05/26/dawkins-ive-given-up-twitter/ Dawkins: I’ve Given Up Twitter.]</ref> See also: [[Richard Dawkins and Twitter]]

In December 2016, Dawkins appears to have started to Tweet again despite his doctors warnings to avoid controversy (For example, he tweeted that Britain had become a "nasty little backwater" after the [[Brexit]] vote and his Tweet drew fierce criticism).<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/books/authors/richard-dawkins-england-becoming-nasty-little-backwater-brexit/ Richard Dawkins: England becoming a 'nasty little backwater' after Brexit vote], ''The Telegraph'', March 2017</ref><ref>[https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/748479/Richard-Dawkins-pretending-war-on-christmas-christians SHOCK RANT: Richard Dawkins mocks Christians for 'pretending' there's WAR on Christianity], ''Express'', December of 2016</ref><ref>[https://swarajyamag.com/insta/what-british-scientist-dawkins-thinks-of-islam What British Scientist Dawkins Thinks Of Islam], ''Swaraya'', June 7, 2017</ref>

=== Atheist PZ Myers comment about Dawkins' attitude towards women ===

''See also:'' [[Atheism and women]] and [[Richard Dawkins and women]]

Myers also said in 2014 concerning Dawkins:

{{cquote|Richard Dawkins: you’re wrong. Deeply, profoundly, fundamentally wrong. Your understanding of [[feminism]] is flawed and misinformed, and further, you keep returning to the same poisonous wells of misinformation.

=== Other reasons why many women hold unfavorable views of Richard Dawkins ===

(See also: [[Richard Dawkins' commentary on Adolf Hitler]])

*[[Feminist quotes about Richard Dawkins]]

== Richard Dawkins and Islamophobia accusations ==

''See also:'' [[Richard Dawkins' cult of personality]], [[Atheist cults]], [[Atheism is a religion]] and [[Atheism and leadership]]

On August 16, 2014, Andrew Brown wrote an article for The Spectator entitled ''The bizarre – and costly – cult of Richard Dawkins'' which declared:

{{cquote|...the [[Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science website|Richard Dawkins website]] offers followers the chance to join the ‘Reason Circle’, which, like [[Dante]]’s [[Hell]], is arranged in concentric circles. For $85 a month, you get discounts on his merchandise, and the chance to meet ‘[[Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science]] personalities’. Obviously that’s not enough to meet the man himself. For that you pay $210 a month — or $5,000 a year — for the chance to attend an event where he will speak...

At this point it is obvious to everyone except the participants that what we have here [[Atheist cults|is a religion]] without the good bits.<ref>[http://www.spectator.co.uk/features/9286682/the-bizarre-and-costly-cult-of-richard-dawkins/ The bizarre – and costly – cult of Richard Dawkins], The Spectator, Andrew Brown 16 August 2014</ref>}}

Dawkins was one of the founders of the New Atheism movement. The [[New Atheism]] movement, which has waned in recent years, was called a cult by the [[agnosticism|agnostic]], journalist Bryan Appleyard in a 2012 article in the ''New Statesman'' in which he describes the abusive behavior of New Atheists.<ref>[http://www.newstatesman.com/religion/2012/02/neo-atheism-atheists-dawkins ''The God wars'' by Bryan Appleyard], ''New Statesman''</ref> Although the New Atheism movement does not perfectly fit the various characteristics of a cult, it does fit some of the characteristics.<ref>[http://shadowtolight.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/how-cultish-is-new-atheism/ How cultish is the New Atheism?]</ref>

''See also:'' [[Abrasiveness of Richard Dawkins]], [[Richard Dawkins and anger]] and [[Atheism and leadership]]

Furthermore, Dawkins has developed a reputation for being angry (see: [[Richard Dawkins and anger]]).

''See also:'' [[Atheism and humor]]

The movie ''[[The Atheist Delusion]]'' features Richard Dawkins being the object of audience laughter due to something unreasonable he said.<ref name="M The Atheist Delusion Movie 2016">[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChWiZ3iXWwM The Atheist Delusion Movie (2016) HD]</ref> Dawkins indignantly asked the audience, "Why is that funny?".<ref name="M The Atheist Delusion Movie 2016"/>

''See:'' [[Atheism is a religion]], [[Atheism and arrogance]] and [[Atheism and intolerance]]

Using special text analysis software, the social psychologist Jonathan Haidt found that [[New Atheism|New Atheists]], such as Richard Dawkins, very often wrote in dogmatic terms in their major works using words such as “always,” “never,” “certainly,” “every,” and “undeniable.”<ref>[http://www.thisviewoflife.com/index.php/magazine/articles/why-sam-harris-is-unlikely-to-change-his-mind10 Why Sam Harris is Unlikely to Change his Mind] by JONATHAN HAIDT, February 3, 2014 8:36 pm</ref>

=== Atheist philosopher John Gray on the dogmatic arrogance of Richard Dawkins ===

In a 2014 New Republic article entitled ''The Closed Mind of Richard Dawkins: His atheism is its own kind of narrow religion'', the atheist philosopher [[John Gray (philosopher)|John Gray]] wrote:

{{cquote|One might wager a decent sum of money that it has never occurred to Dawkins that to many people he appears as a comic figure. His default mode is one of rational indignation—a stance of withering patrician disdain for the untutored mind of a kind one might expect in a schoolmaster in a minor public school sometime in the 1930s. He seems to have no suspicion that any of those he despises could find his stilted pose of indignant rationality merely laughable. “I am not a good observer,” he writes modestly. He is referring to his observations of animals and plants, but his weakness applies more obviously in the case of humans. Transfixed in wonderment at the workings of his own mind, Dawkins misses much that is of importance in human beings—himself and others.<ref name="newrepublic.com">[http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119596/appetite-wonder-review-closed-mind-richard-dawkins ''The Closed Mind of Richard Dawkins''], New Republic by John Gray</ref>}}

== Richard Dawkins' comment about aborting Down syndrome babies ==

In August 2014, Richard Dawkins caused a firestorm by claiming an unborn baby with [[Down's Syndrome|Down’s syndrome]] should be aborted and that it would be “immoral to bring it into the world.”<ref>[https://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/08/20/Atheist-Richard-Dawkins-Abort-Down-s-Syndrome-Baby-Immoral-To-Bring-It-Into-The-World Atheist Richard Dawkins: 'Abort' Down's Syndrome Baby, 'Immoral To Bring It Into The World'] by by Dr. Susan Berry, Breitbart News 20 Aug 2014</ref> Dr. Michael Brown wrote in the ''Christian Post'' about this matter: "It is becoming increasingly clear that Dawkins is something of an embarrassment, even to other atheists (although he is still revered by many). The only question that remains is this: Are his irrational and immoral positions unique to him, or are they the logical outcome of his Darwinian evolutionism?"<ref>[http://www.christianpost.com/news/richard-dawkins-exposes-the-immorality-of-his-atheism-125159/ Richard Dawkins Exposes the Immorality of His Atheism By Michael Brown, ''Christian Post'', August 21, 2014|10:15 am]</ref> See also: [[Social effects of the theory of evolution]]

Recently, Richard Dawkins has been reduced to Tweeting provocative Twitter posts in order to gain attention. After the predictable ensuing uproar, Dawkins half-heartedly apologizes for the provocative Tweets.<ref>[http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/08/21/the-12-stages-of-a-richard-dawkins-twitter-scandal_n_5698443.html The 12-Stage 'Evolution' Of A Richard Dawkins Twitter Scandal], By Paul Vale, The Huffington Post UK, Posted: 22/08/2014 02:06 BST</ref>

== Survey of scientists: Richard Dawkins misrepresents science and scientists ==

[[File:Richard Dawkins Stockholm.JPG|thumbnail|right|250px|Richard Dawkins]]

''See also:'' [[Richard Dawkins and agnosticism]], [[Atheism, agnosticism and flip-flopping]] and [[Atheists doubting the validity of atheism]]

=== Criticism of fairies at the bottom of the garden analogy ===

''See also:'' [[Richard Dawkins' commentary on Adolf Hitler]], [[Richard Dawkins and morality]] and [[Atheists and historical illiteracy]]

For additional information, please see:

{{cquote|Dr. Fraser skewered the atheist campaigner Richard Dawkins so fabulously, so stylishly, and so thoroughly that anti-religion’s high priest was reduced to incoherent mumbling and spluttering.<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/9082059/For-once-Richard-Dawkins-is-lost-for-words.html For once, Richard Dawkins is lost for words - Atheists’ arrogance is their Achilles’ heel, as a cringemaking radio performance has proved By Stephen Pollard, Feb 14, 2012]</ref>}}

{{cquote|As I have said repeatedly, Richard Dawkins is a huge intellectual fraud, and perhaps those who previously expressed incredulity at the idea that I would quite easily trounce the old charlatan in a debate will find it just a bit more credible now. This behavior isn't an outlier or a momentary lapse of memory, it is entirely characteristic. The man quite frequently pretends to knowledge that he patently does not possess and assumes he knows things that he obviously does not, which is why he avoids debate with those who are aware of his intellectual pretensions and are capable of exposing them.

Richard Dawkins has accused the [[God]] of the [[Old Testament]] of being [[homophobic]].<ref>[http://www.truefreethinker.com/articles/richard-dawkins-praises-bible%E2%80%A6-he-ignorant-barbarian Richard Dawkins praises the Bible…is he an ignorant barbarian?]</ref> Yet, Dawkins has not explained why God, who is described as an all powerful spiritual being in the Old Testament, would be afraid of homosexuals.

==Implication in the death of Jesse Kilgore==

Dr. [[Jonathan Sarfati]] offered several criticisms of the book ''The Blind Watchmaker'' by Richard Dawkins and states in his summary that the "...Apostle of [[Atheism]] has a long way to go to make a convincing case for his faith."<ref name="cotw">http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/1855</ref>

''See also:'' [[Atheism and veganism]] and [[New Atheism and veganism]] and [[Richard Dawkins on veganism]]

Richard Dawkins stated about vegetarianism/veganism:

{{Cquote|[It] leaves me in a very difficult moral position… I think you have a very strong point when you say that anybody who eats meat has a very strong obligation to think seriously about it and I don’t find any good defense. I find myself in exactly the same position as you or I would have been, well probably you wouldn’t have been but I might have been, two hundred years ago […] talking about slavery… I think what I’d really like to see is people like you having a far greater effect on, I would call it, consciousness raising and trying to swing it around so it becomes the societal norm not to eat meat.<ref name="salonvegan"/>}}

Steven Stankevicus, the author of the aforementioned ''Salon'' article ''New atheists must become new vegans: Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins and the extra burden on moral leaders'', wrote in response: "'People like you'? How about people like Richard Dawkins?".<ref name="salonvegan"/>

See also: [[Richard Dawkins' family fortune and the slave trade]] and [[Atheism and slavery]] and [[Atheism and forced labor]]

== Awards ==

* ''[[The Selfish Gene]]'' (1976)

* ''The Extended Phenotype'' (1982)

* ''River Out of Eden'' (1995)

* ''Climbing Mount Improbable'' (1996)

* ''A Devil's Chaplain'' (2003)

* ''The Ancestor's Tale'' (2004)

* ''[[The Greatest Show on Earth]]: The Evidence for Evolution''. Free Press (United States), Transworld (United Kingdom and Commonwealth). 2009.

* ''The Magic of Reality: How We Know What's Really True'' (2011) - a science book for children.

*[[Richard Dawkins statistics]]

*[[Evangelical atheism]]

*[http://www.conservapedia.com/Category:Richard_Dawkins Directory of Richard Dawkins articles]

*[[Richard Dawkins on Jews and Nobel Prizes]]

[[Category:Liberals]]

[[Category:New Atheism]]