Some time ago, I made a deal with one of my colleagues at work that if he'd read a book on evolution, I would debate Bob Dutko on 103.5 FM on the subject. Bob Dutko is a Christian radio talk show host who believes in a literal interpretation of the Bible.
I emailed Bob, telling him I was a biology major in college (before I switched), that I am a board member for Michigan Atheists, and that I would like to debate with him regarding evolution. He responded promptly, and that's how it began.
Since then, we've had conversations (they are not formal debates in any sense) about separation of state and church, the plausibility of dinosaurs and humans coexisting, and the existence of gods. We're having another round regarding the last subject.
There have been mixed reviews. Some people will say I did well; others will say I missed this or that point; others will say that I failed to "go for the jugular". All I will say is this: I am not going on Bob Dutko's show to win or lose. I will answer his points as well as I can and as time allows, as always, but my real goal is to demonstrate that an Atheist can stand his ground and be civil about it. My goal is to show Bob's audience that Atheists aren't bitter, angry, hateful people; we're rational, sane, and reasonably intelligent.
So far, it's worked fairly well. Bob's audience members have called and written him to say that the Atheist he had on seemed like a nice guy. They like that I don't try to shout him down--which means that ultimately, they'll be likely to listen to the whole conversation. I know that several of my colleagues at work do, and their feedback has been positive. I've given them things to think about. They may not give up religion, but at least they know someone who is an Atheist, so their prejudices toward and caricatures of Atheists have to come into conflict with what they know about me.
In any case, the show will be airing live at 1:00 PM on Wednesday, January 28, for anyone who wants to listen.
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3 comments:
Hey is that Weds the 21st or Thrus the 22nd???
That, my friend, was a glaring typographical error that must be corrected (and will be shortly). I will be on the show on the 28th.
Greg, kudos for engaging the other site in a civil dialog. It's a very important conversation to have and hopefully we'll see more of this around the state and country.
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