Christchurch Skeptics in the Pub

Clive Hackett - 1 February 2016

The Christchurch Skeptics in the Pub, (or Skeptics Lite, as I like to call it) has had a very good year being skeptical, currently having 285 members, and around 50 active ones.

The main feature of the Skeptics in the Pub, obviously, is the pub meetings themselves. These meetings served as a fun way for skeptically minded people to meet, have intelligent discussions and occasionally argue in a safe environment. Many fantastic Christchurch pubs were sampled including the Pegasus Arms by the Avon river and Smash Palace in the heart of the city.

Another way we got together was through regular viewings of the television show Cosmos presented by Neil deGrasse Tyson. These were more intimate meetings at my house with a maximum of around 12 people allowed, so space was eagerly sort after. They were able to include people who did not want to meet in the pub, or who wanted to do something other than sitting around talking. The Cosmos viewings were great for those already interested in science, and also for introducing to science those who would not normally find a show like Cosmos on their own. For reasons unknown the Cosmos showings helped to increase the female population of the Skeptics in the Pub, diversifying our group.

We also expanded our minds during the year by going to the Canterbury University What if Wednesday events and the Royal Society lectures. It is fair to say some were mind expanding, some confronting and others quite dull, but at least the after-match functions were always good to discuss what had been said and to try the local brews.

One very satisfying thing that has developed within the Christchurch group lately is that the meetings are about 50 / 50 women and men which is a huge improvement over a few years ago when the group was primarily male. We are a much more representational group now.

Meetings over the last few months have been a bit Conference focused, as many of the group were also Conference committee members. Now that we have successfully negotiated through this marvellous event, we will be back to fixing the world’s ills over an ale.

Skeptacular!

Review: PODCAST

WAKING UP WITH SAM HARRIS

If you think you’d enjoy listening to brainy conversations delivered in soothing (even slightly soporific) tones, then I recommend this podcast for you. Sam Harris isn’t one to shy away from any topic, however controversial or inflammatory, but he does so almost entirely as if he’s leading you through a guided meditation. There is no shouting from the rafters here.

No fan of God, gods, or the religious, Harris is renowned for his damning critiques of faith, and specifically the wrong-headiness of Christianity and Islam. And yet his interests are much broader - cosmology, vegetarianism, artificial intelligence - and this podcast is a perfect platform for live explorations of them. It is a treasure chest of free-ranging conversations, exploring shared interests and probing difficult and fascinating areas.

Don’t expect a normal interview structure for the most part though. Harris does quite a lot of the talking too, which is great if you’re a fan. If you’re not and are used to more traditional interview formats then there’s the chance it might grate a bit. But if you are a fan of his other work, then prepare to have some other assumptions challenged too. There are no sacred cows on this show.

Harris should have a higher reputation in the skeptical community, I think. Whilst he might not even deem himself a ‘skeptic’, he has the philosopher’s knack for presenting familiar topics in a new light, and the poet’s knack of condensing controversial or difficult views into a sentence or two. He is also completely open to being wrong; not something you see often from public intellectuals. Also, recently, he’s taken it upon himself to try to build bridges with those with whom he has disagreed but thinks there might be a path to mutual understanding. His recent published dialogue with Maajid Nawaz, Islam And The Future Of Tolerance, started out from a place of hostility but via conversation became about friendship and mutual enlightenment. His other live attempts to do the same have ranged from very successful (Jonathan Haidt), to didn’t happen at all (Noam Chomsky), with a few painful to listen to episodes in between (Omar Aziz). I think Harris should be commended for walking this path and attempting to forge common ground through conversation. In our world of ‘comments section’ antagonism and trolling, we need more adults engaged in difficult conversations that aren’t just debates.

Excellent audio quality, a snappy intro, no ads, thoughtful engaging conversations on wide-ranging topics…yep, this might be my favourite podcast.