Posted: Apr 14, 2012 6:28 pm
Er, folks. The numbers don't matter here. Strictly speaking, the numbers and demographics stuff being discussed here is "off-topic".
His quote, when you take time to read it, refers to the nature of the atheist/anti-theist 'debate', not anything to do with the growth of any group or even the relative size of any group. He is clearly referring to the tone of the discussion, which - in point of fact - does seem to be softening (after a fashion).
Richard Dawkins is much, much less prominent than he was some years ago, as obviously is Christopher Hitchens (God rest his soul), and softly-softly types like Alain de Botton and Julian Baggini get more media coverage now instead.
The massively hyped "Religion for Atheists" book by Alain de Bloody-Botton, and Baggini's "Heathen Manifesto", two of the bigger atheist 'things' in the media in 2012, would have been unthinkable in 2008-2011.
His quote, when you take time to read it, refers to the nature of the atheist/anti-theist 'debate', not anything to do with the growth of any group or even the relative size of any group. He is clearly referring to the tone of the discussion, which - in point of fact - does seem to be softening (after a fashion).
Richard Dawkins is much, much less prominent than he was some years ago, as obviously is Christopher Hitchens (God rest his soul), and softly-softly types like Alain de Botton and Julian Baggini get more media coverage now instead.
The massively hyped "Religion for Atheists" book by Alain de Bloody-Botton, and Baggini's "Heathen Manifesto", two of the bigger atheist 'things' in the media in 2012, would have been unthinkable in 2008-2011.