This is sheer bigotry

[cleanhippie]

One of the world's noted atheists says a Rochester Hills country club canceled his speaking engagement after learning about his views.

Richard Dawkins, a scientist from England who is known for his outspoken defense of atheism, planned to speak tonight at the Wyndgate Country Club at a fund-raising dinner for the Michigan branch of the Center for Inquiry -- a group that defends secularism.

But on Thursday, an official with the country club contacted the Center for Inquiry and canceled his appearance after finding out Dawkins is an atheist after watching him on "The O'Reilly Factor" on the Fox News channel, said Dawkins and center officials.

"This is sheer bigotry," Dawkins said. "If the country club had said, 'I'm not having Dawkins speak because he's a Jew, or because he's black, or because he's gay,' they would never get away with it."

http://www.freep.com/article/20111012/NEWS05/110120357/Author-speaks-out-about-country-club-s-speech-cancellation

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And cue the false equivalencies, strawmen, and red herrings in 3...2..1..

[Lint Head]

1. Bigots seem to have special free speech rights.

:sarcasm:

[rug]

2. "Atheist Richard Dawkins snubbed by Detroit area country club"

That's the headline.

One man's snub is another's sheer bigotry.

[cleanhippie]

3. Only took until the second post!

Way to go, rug. Way to go!

[RaleighNCDUer]

4. You can always count on rug. nt

edit for typo

[LeftishBrit]

5. So it is - but what do you expect of somewhere called the Wyndgate Country Club?

[EC]

6. It's a fund raiser for a group that

defends secularism - how did they not know he was an atheist before they asked him to speak? Wouldn't just about everyone there be atheists?

[cleanhippie]

7. It stands to reason...

But then again, reason has never been the strong suit of many believers...

[frebrd]

8. Maybe they didn't know.......

what "secularism" meant.

:)