PZ and John have commented on a Steve Weinberg review of The God Delusion. This prompts me to offer up a cheap reflection which I’ve been meaning to air since watching Beyond Belief 2006, Steve Weinberg was, to my eye, the most ignorant and complacent of all the speakers and panelists, while at the same time being likely the most incandescently brilliant of them all. Weinberg is a great physicist, but having him review The God Delusion is like giving Leon Kass The Party of Death. On a related note, over at The Secular Outpost, Taner Edis wonders if Sam Harris shouldn’t know something about the religions which he criticizes. Now, mind you, I do not tend to value theology very highly. Unlike other Nevilles I tend to fault Dawkins et. al. more for their lack of psychological sophistication than philosophical depth. But the point stands.
Addendum: Let me add that I can’t but feel some joy that a brilliant man such Steven Weinberg is an atheist, one of “my kind.” But I have to admit that that joy is diminished watching him engage someone like Scott Atran, who though lacking in the mental acuity and raw firepower of a Weinberg, knows the lay of the land (religion that is) well enough to make the mighty seem like fallen fools.
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