“There is also a loud speaking, staunch atheist”: I have landed in Warsaw

September 12, 2013 • 7:24 am

I have arrived in Poland’s capital, a big metropolis completely rebuilt after the war.  And I’ve had my first all-Polish meal at one of the famous “milk bars“: both cheese and blueberry pierogi, kompott (a drink made from boiled fruit), and borscht.  I have photos but no time to post them now.

Some grins: my talk tonight is advertised on the Polish Rationalist Society page, and Bing gives this great translation:

“Imagine my pleasure when Jacek (President of PSR) gave us a message that will be shown in our country despite various difficulties, Jerry Coyne. Professor of biology at the University of Chicago, which he Dawkins calls him “the guru of evolutionary genetics.” Apart from being an eminent scientist, there is also a loud speaking, staunch atheist. Is ruthless when it comes to all these so-called “enlightened theologians” and cowardly, rogue scientists who are on the head and any other intellectual acrobatics to push us to the darkness that religion and science can co-exist together happily. Below one of these such lectures (again, unfortunately, did not find any translation, sorry to those who do not know English). I love this its lightly ironic smile of pity from time to time when lists all primitive tricks aimed at demonstrating “. magisteriów”, and even sometimes support science and religion, as if we could have anything useful to learn from superstition dating back thousands of years as to the nature of this world.”

I love the “lightly ironic smile of pity”!

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30 thoughts on ““There is also a loud speaking, staunch atheist”: I have landed in Warsaw”

  1. Love the “despite various difficulties, Jerry Coyne.” Perhaps you should adopt DVD as your title, Jerry;-) Dr. DVD Jerry Coyne…

  3. Meanwhile, the Discovery Institute (who are still saving-up to buy a microscope) will shortly announce that they have used ‘intuition’ to discover the baby Jebus hidden behind a chromosome, and it will be revealed in a new book by W L Craig, called “Sintists Refuse to Believe Us, Again!!!”

    Alvin Plantinga says, “It’s so obvious, why didn’t we look there before? But thereagain, just thinking about it makes it true!”

    Oral Roberts bible-college have made a plastic creche display of the chromosome and put it in their lobby. There are donkeys, wise men,and stars, and it’s ever so cute.

    1. the Discovery Institute (who are still saving-up to find an excuse to not buy a microscope)

      FTFY
      These people are, despite their name, deathly afraid of discovery of anything new.

      1. Any discoveries they make would further bury ID. That’s why they’re not enthusiastic about purchasing a microscope.

    1. I have long thought it is better to just wade bravely into a foreign language, rather than waiting for perfect mastery, and this translation proves it.

      3. Like the Mafia figures of old (I know, the Mafia was just a myth), I propose the professor be now known as Jerry “the staunch” Coyne (staunch now becoming a noun).
        If Mr. Coyne can’t make it a noun, who can?
        He is, after all, THE STAUNCH.

        Strident is so overused. Staunch can be the new strident! Praise the STAUNCH!

  6. I like cowardly, rogue scientists who are on the head and any other intellectual acrobatics. It actually conjures up acrobatics!

    Also, yum borscht!! I have it fresh because of all the beets in the garden!

  7. Good luck and thanks for all the Hilis!

    cowardly, rogue scientists who are on the head and any other intellectual acrobatics to push us to the darkness that religion and science can co-exist together happily.

    Quite an enlightened take on how anti-enlightenment forces are running slipshod all over modern society.

    I would say “tortured” acrobatics. Nay, “back broken”!

  9. [blush] It’s the pot calling the kettle black:

    The Polish version original should have been proofread. There are enough grammatical flaws there to confuse a machine translator.

    1. Trying to remember the Polish term for run-on sentence – as demonstrated in the opening sentence of the post. Google translated “głośno mówiącym” as speakerphone.

      It is 1am in Poland so I think the meeting may finally be winding down.

  10. There is a picture up of Jerry speaking:
    https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=683951531632678&set=a.683738538320644.1073741838.100000535110840&type=1&relevant_count=1

    There is another picture of Jerry holding a PSR banner with other members. Unfortunately, prominent in the background is Stalin’s gift to the people of Warsaw – Palac Kultury i Nauki. You get the best view of Warsaw from PKiN since you do not see PKiN.
    https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=683738628320635&set=a.683738538320644.1073741838.100000535110840&type=1&theater

    1. Shoot, no cowboy boots to go with that belt buckle. 😀

      Looks like everyone’s having a great time!

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