There’s no merit, but for some rationalists it feels good to praise religious nuts every once in a while, just to show you’re not one of those uncouth anti-theists.
I will admit that there was definitely an element of what you describe in my motivations, though probably no more than about one third. (Another one third came from genuinely finding the argument interesting, and another one third from a deep-seated general annoyance towards the kind of tribalism in which everyone who thinks differently is dismissed as being stupid, evil, or otherwise unworthy.)
There’s no merit, but for some rationalists it feels good to praise religious nuts every once in a while, just to show you’re not one of those uncouth anti-theists.
I will admit that there was definitely an element of what you describe in my motivations, though probably no more than about one third. (Another one third came from genuinely finding the argument interesting, and another one third from a deep-seated general annoyance towards the kind of tribalism in which everyone who thinks differently is dismissed as being stupid, evil, or otherwise unworthy.)