It’s Because They’re Cowards
April 2nd, 2008I was reading Mary Katharine Ham’s blog on Townhall, and I followed her link to Jonah Goldberg’s latest column.
I find Darwin fish offensive. First, there’s the smugness. The undeniable message: Those Jesus fish people are less evolved, less sophisticated than we Darwin fishers.
The hypocrisy is even more glaring. Darwin fish are often stuck next to bumper stickers promoting tolerance or admonishing random motorists that “hate is not a family value.” But the whole point of the Darwin fish is intolerance; similar mockery of a cherished symbol would rightly be condemned as bigoted if aimed at blacks or women or, yes, Muslims.
As Christopher Caldwell once observed in the Weekly Standard, Darwin fish flout the agreed-on etiquette of identity politics. “Namely: It’s acceptable to assert identity and abhorrent to attack it. A plaque with ‘Shalom’ written inside a Star of David would hardly attract notice; a plaque with ‘Usury’ written inside the same symbol would be an outrage.”
But the most annoying aspect of the Darwin fish is the false bravado it represents. It’s a courageous pose without consequence. Like so much other Christian-baiting in American popular culture, sporting your Darwin fish is a way to speak truth to power on the cheap.
Whatever the faults of “Fitna,” it ain’t no Darwin fish.
The entire column is excellent and it brings up a great point about the cowardice of leftists who will attack Judaism or Christianity at the drop of a hat, but refuse to utter a peep about the worst aspects of Islam. There are probably precious few on the right who grit their teeth any harder than I do when a prominent conservative delivers some half-informed tirade about the “lie of evolution.” I consider the condescending tone with which so many of my fellow conservatives use ridiculous arguments to suggest that all the world’s scientists are engaged in some sort of anti-God conspiracy to be hubris in the extreme.
That said, Darwin fish piss me off for pretty much the exact reason that Goldberg outlines. It’s a cheap shot at somebody’s legitimately-held religious beliefs. You don’t have to subscribe to someone’s religious doctrine to show respect for them. I know that a lot of atheists and agnostics carry resentment because Christianity was forced on them when they were kids, but couldn’t we just grow the fuck up and not be a prick about it? Please?
April 2nd, 2008 at 8:32 am
Amen and well said!
April 2nd, 2008 at 1:50 pm
I always thought the Darwin fish was stupid because the Jesus fish has nothing to do with the point the Darwin fish is supposed to make (creation v. evolution). Isn’t the Jesus fish just a symbol of how Jesus fed a bunch of people with only one fish?
It always cracks me up, atheists who rant about how dogmatic and intolerant Christians are. Kinda goes with my own post today. I’m not even a Christian, and I have severe issues with Christianity and don’t believe in “God”, but I still like Christians a hell of a lot more than atheists.
Would this be a good time to use the word ‘cocksucker’?
P.S. Sweet! You installed comment editing!
April 2nd, 2008 at 1:59 pm
Yes, as someone who makes constant typos, I felt it only fair to offer others who are similarly afflicted the opportunity to not have their mistakes preserved for posterity.
April 2nd, 2008 at 2:32 pm
I would respectfully make the distinction between atheists and what I term “anti-theists”. Described here:
http://striderweb.com/blog/2007/10/anti-anti-theism/
Yes, I’m an atheist.
I remember the first time I saw a Darwin Fish — it was at a game convention. I have a pretty sarcastic sense of humor, and I laughed at the joke. I went to buy a sticker… and then didn’t.
After thinking about it for a minute, the humor just didn’t appeal to me. It was _clever_, but the in-your-face-ness of it just didn’t appeal to me as something I wanted to display as representative of what I believe.
[Added:
On the other hand, If I truly believed that any person belonging to the wrong faith was doomed to eternal hellfire, I would be the first in line to go knocking on doors to save souls. It would be a crime not to!]
April 2nd, 2008 at 2:36 pm
I think that’s a fair distinction to make. I would just like to see the overlap between atheists and anti-theists get much, much smaller.
April 2nd, 2008 at 3:42 pm
Yep - I’m right there with you on this one… and I’m an atheist. I just wish we could get to the point where we could agree to disagree and move on with our lives.
April 2nd, 2008 at 4:47 pm
I’ve found that it’s usually the supercilious pricks who stick them on their cars.
I was raised in the Catholic faith (school & the whole nine yards) and have since become a pretty lousy practitioner. I still consider myself a low key Christian, but I do find many aspects of organized religion, as well as those of extremely simplistic (sprung from ribs) faithful, to be as offensive as the muscular atheists who happily mock all Christians as Sky God worshipping idiots.
I know plenty of practicing Christians who believe in science and plenty of Athiests who are incredibly moral, decent people. The extremes on either side leave a bad taste in my mouth.
Did I mention that I hate those stupid stickers?