Udo Schuklenk has written an enthusiastic post in anticipation of his upcoming attendance at Eschaton 2012 in Ottawa, which he calls an “Ottawa Atheist/Humanist/Secular Event.” In his post, Udo says,
I am part of the panel on ‘Godless Ethics and Godless Communities’.
and gives us a sneak preview of his talk: “Myths about Atheist Values”:
In our forthcoming book ’50 Great Myths About Atheism’ (Wiley-Blackwell 2013) Russell Blackford and I analyze a variety of commonplace myths about atheism. I will discuss four such myths that are relevant to the panel topic . . .
In addition, Udo is
looking forward to hopefully meeting in person Ophelia Benson, one of the contributors to our 50 Voices of Disbelief.
So, you ask, what are other speakers looking forward to, and which person or people are they looking forward to meeting at Eschaton?
Ania Bula says,
I am looking forward to finally getting to go to a big atheist conference and I am really excited that I have been asked to speak. I can’t wait to meet PZ Myers, Ophelia Benson, Ian Cromwell, Natalie Reed, and Vyckie Garrison, in particular. They have all been a huge inspiration for me and I am an avid reader of freethought blogs in particular. PZ Myers especially was instrumental in helping me identify as an atheist.
looking forward to the conversations and interactions.
I look forward to meeting Eric MacDonald, who used to be a regular and very stimulating commenter on my blog. I’ve considered him a friend for years. Also Ian Cromwell, who is a fellow Freethought blogger, and Udo Schuklenk, who co-edited 50 Voices of Disbelief, in which I was one of the voices. Also everyone else!
Ian Cromwell says
This will be my first full-length presentation at a secular conference, so I am both excited and nervous about the prospect of getting to speak in front of an informed and engaged audience. I also love the city of Ottawa, having spent a lot of time there over the years, and I am looking forward to being there. Finally, the conference is just so jam-packed with excellent speakers – Christoper DiCarlo, Heina Dadabhoy, Vickie Garrison, Eric MacDonald, as well as a number that I’m just learning about – I’m looking forward to this conference for the same reason I would imagine most people are: because it’s going to be excellent!
This will be the first chance I’ve had to meet a number of my fellow FreeThought Bloggers, including Hank Fox and Ophelia Benson, with whom I’ve often spoken but have never had a chance to meet. I’ll also get a chance to once again hoist beers with PZ Myers, which is always a treat.
quite excited about Eschaton 2012, I’ve never been to a skeptics convention before. While there are a number of great speakers that will touch on humanism and the humanities, I think I’m most interested in meeting Steven Tomlins, who, like me is in Religious Studies. I think it would be great to share notes with someone on the intersection of atheism and religion in Canada. I’m also hoping to meet PZ Myers, and Larry Moran. I really think religious Studies profs need to team up more with Scientists in addressing creationists and so forth.
I’m sure Udo, Ania, Ophelia, Ian and Jim would like to meet you as well, so CFI Ottawa/ Canada has put together a very attractive offer:
Special “bring-a-friend” pricing – buy one ticket at the CFI member rate and get another at the same rate (even if the 2nd attendee is not a member of CFI)
Go to http://cfiottawa.myshopify.com/products/discount-eschaton2012-3-day-pass, and select “bring-a-friend”
Special group discounts: get 5% off for buying 5 or more tickets, and 10% off for 10 or more (contact eschaton@eschaton2012.ca)
Looking for ride-sharing or room sharing? Post to https://www.facebook.com/events/490271070992670/
Do come to Escahton 2012; it will be the best of times.