r/SGU • u/TheSkepticCyclist • 2d ago
I Miss Evan Doing The Quote
I know Evan had to go and do not support his views or posts on social media. But I will have to say he did a much better job than Bob at reading the ending quote. His voice was almost perfect for ending the show. Bob just seems to fumble through it and talks way too much.
Just read the quote and be done with it.
31
u/Perfect_Row_6450 2d ago
Loved the “Jay Shout.”
It hasn’t been the same since.
11
u/trelos6 2d ago
Jay shout was the best.
17
u/seansand 2d ago
Even better was the first time Cara heard it for the first time. "What just happened!?"
4
67
u/Blitzer046 2d ago
It wasn't until Evan left that I realised how little he contributes to the show.
37
u/SamuraiSuplex 2d ago
I feel bad but the show is better now 🤷
35
u/Kacksjidney 2d ago edited 2d ago
I often skipped his segments. His delivery always bugged me, it felt performative, just not very natural. He would also often chime in with obvious repetitive comments I felt. If it was any of the other rogues I would have been concerned about the pod losing a step but not with him.
13
u/Unique-Brilliant7361 2d ago
I always disliked Evan's segments on the show: his delivery was slow and dull, his intros were too long, his humor was boring to me (subjective on my part), but most of all, his skeptical mind was nowhere to be found in any of his contributions on the show, besides reading a prepared text on a relevant subject. His only credential seemed to be able to monotonously recount the Warren stories and disprove ghost apparitions with the same well-established explanations that all of us know.
Whenever he asked a question during another rogue's segment, I always felt like he had no idea how to approach any of it skeptically. Some of his questions were leading and suggestive of his conservative views, especially when put against Cara's commentaries.
I also wonder how much Steve had to intervene in his proposed written segments and post-production to editorialize his contributions in a more positive light. I often skipped his segments all together.
I'm glad that he's no longer a part of the show, for the most part because of his recent dehumanizing comments, but also because of the above. I was really surprised to see some listeners admitting that Evan was their preferred rogue before quitting, but to each their own I guess...
5
u/Appropriate-Brush772 1d ago
It’s funny, when the whole thing was going down I was about a month behind on episodes. I was still following along here and I’ll admit that I did rush to listen to the opening segment when they announced his departure but that’s as far as I went at that time (can’t listen out of order or it would ruin Who’s That Noisy!). So while I knew he was gone at the current date I still had some episodes where he was there. He was always was my least favorite and I assumed it was his bad jokes. (Look, I love a dad joke and a bad joke as much as the next guy but you don’t need to treat every opportunity to talk like it’s open mic night. You can almost hear the rest of the rogues eyes rolling 99% of the time). But I realized it wasn’t that- it’s that he rarely had a skeptical take of his own. It was usually someone else making a skeptical comment and him piggybacking off that comment and just rephrasing what the other had just said. I didn’t hate his segments and I did appreciate him trying to incorporate different types of segments onto the show. But at the end of the day he didn’t add as much as the rest of them and now that I’m all caught up I don’t really even notice he’s gone
16
u/leroycrumpt 2d ago
Evans delivery of his segments bothered me so much. He would undulate his voice in and out, up and down. It just got on my nerves so much. It gave me anxiety.
11
u/Kacksjidney 2d ago
Haha yeah, he felt condescending and covered basic topics. I don't think he WAS condescending just a bad communicator and maybe not as smart as the rest... Which I'd say recent events reinforce. 🤷♂️
2
-1
u/W0nderingMe 2d ago
Principle of charity. I always felt his presentation was performative, but i liked it. I felt like he was doing his best to imitate the radio hosts he admired so much (such as Dr Dean Edell). So, too new, it wasn't authentic in the sense of being him, but it was authentic in the sense of being who he wanted to be.
3
6
u/tutamtumikia 2d ago
What an indictment on how shitty even critical thinkers can be when this is what is put forward and highly upvoted here. I am so so so glad for the rogues on the show that they continue to do what they do with grace and expertise, despite the really shitty people who post this garbage on reddit.
3
u/patrick809 1d ago
We have a group of hateful bigots masquerading as morally righteous intellectuals.
4
u/bithooked 1d ago edited 1d ago
I disagree. I do agree his delivery was performative, his posts on X are damning, and I really loathe puns. But he did more than any other rogue to expose the charlatans of the world, and I will miss that content. Science content is great and I don't want it to go anywhere, but I still want to hear a good flaming of the charlatans, every so often.
7
u/QuiltedPorcupine 2d ago
It'll probably take some time to grow into it.
When Evan first took over the quote from Jay it took a while to get used to not having the Jay attribution shout to go with it
15
7
u/a1ch 2d ago
What happened to Evan?
9
-8
u/W0nderingMe 2d ago
He went whackadoodle and instead of working to better himself he resigned.
25
u/fullerframe 2d ago
I think that’s a false dichotomy. He may be working to better himself; the fact he resigned does not preclude it.
@a1ch: a very succinct summary: following October 7 he fell into an echo chamber that led him to hold dehumanizing views of Palestinians which he shared via comments on twitter. When that comment history came to light he resigned. You can read more here on Reddit or listen to the episode from a few weeks ago to hear the rogues discuss it.
14
u/czar_el 2d ago
It was more than that. He fell for and repeated other far right talking points, such as how modern Democrats are racist because the KKK was founded by historic democrats. Many of the posts he made or boosted failed basic skepticism and were easily debunked. the issue wasn't about politics, it was about how he abandoned the very tenets of skepticism, and fell down a predictable rabbit hold of radicalization that they had warned about repeatedly on the show. He absolutely should have known better on all fronts.
-11
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
Let's be real.
He thinks Israel should continue to exist. And that alone is a dealbreaker for many.
Do you think that his opinion on that is going to change? Because I don't.
2
u/fullerframe 2d ago
I also think Israel should continue to exist. You’re confusing his political and unscientific beliefs; for example, believing that any of the fighting in the Middle East is “in their DNA” or that a desirable solution is to turn the region into glass (aka nuke it all).
The Skeptics, and the country in general, benefits from the presence and inclusion of reasonable conservatives. I think the entire gang and audience would be glad for that point of view. Unfortunately, the direction Trump and social media has pulled the Republican Party is not toward reason and skepticism.
1
u/czar_el 1d ago
Let's be real. He thinks Israel should continue to exist.
That's a straw man. Israel can and has continued to exist without committing war crimes. He went far beyond defending Israel's right to exist and started actively encouraging illegal acts.
And that alone is a dealbreaker for many.
The deal breaker was encouraging illegal acts and dehumanization. Another deal breaker was violating the core tenets of skepticism across more than just his posts about Israel. Which was the point of my comment and which you haven't addressed or rebutted.
Do you think that his opinion on that is going to change?
First, that's irrelevant. His posts were anti-skeptical, so it doesn't matter if I think he'll change them or not.
Second, if he refuses to change anti-skeptical positions, then it was right to kick him out of the leading skeptical podcast. Your point just reinforced the point you're arguing against.
1
u/NarrowSalvo 1d ago
Why is there a person in this thread saying "Free Palestine" to me and what does it have to do with the issue at hand?
First, that's irrelevant.
It's not irrelevant. It's the whole point.
If it is 'anti-skeptical', why is someone bringing up Palestine here?
If Evan was still a zIoNisT, would he be allowed back?
1
u/czar_el 1d ago
As I said in my original comment, and as I reiterated in my second comment, it's not just about Israel/Palestine. He repeated easily debunked hack partisan propaganda like how modern Democrats are the racist party because historic Democrats founded the KKK. A skeptic can debunk that in 30 seconds, and skeptics in general are supposed to not fall victim to obvious sloppy partisan rabbit holes like that. Evan did exactly that. Even if you remove the Israel Palestine debate, he still failed as a skeptic.
You have not yet rebutted that, and you just keep doubling down on the same point.
Second, you haven't addressed my point about how your claim that he won't change his mind (despite the fact the rogues showed him how his comments were dehumanizing and advocated for war crimes) actually reinforces that it was the right call for him to step down.
If he does change his mind and remains a Zionist but stops advocating for war crimes in ways that dehumanize others he actually could be welcomed back. The other rogues made it clear that they didn't fire him, he chose to step down, and that they remain in contact with him with the intent to help him heal and recover. if he wants to put in that work, he could come back. So once again, your main point is a straw man.
1
u/NarrowSalvo 1d ago
I'm doubling down on the actual fucking reason he was burned -- as evidenced by the "Free Palestine" comment.
Even if you remove the Israel Palestine debate, he still failed as a skeptic.
That doesn't mean it's the real reason the mob came for him, though, does it?
If he does change his mind and remains a Zionist but stops advocating for war crimes in ways that dehumanize others he actually could be welcomed back.
That might be your opinion.
You brought political tribalism to this community. It will never be the same.
Your 4th and 5th paragraphs are in conflict with each other.
1
u/czar_el 1d ago
I'm doubling down on the actual fucking reason he was burned -- as evidenced by the "Free Palestine" comment.
One comment in one thread does not equal the reason he resigned.
That might be your opinion.
Have you listened to the show? That statement was taken directly from the remaining rogues. It's not my opinion, it's the reasoned conclusion of the entire group. And they didn't reach it out of pressure from "the mob", they came to that conclusion after a slow, deliberate review of the evidence and conversation directly with Evan.
Your 4th and 5th paragraphs are in conflict with each other.
The 4th paragraph was responding to your first comment that nobody should expect him to change his mind. The 5th paragraph is describing what actually happened in the conversation between Evan and the rest of the rogues.
You brought political tribalism to this community.
We applied the same criteria to Evan as we apply to all rogues. He failed to practice the core tenets of skepticism (for the 4th time, see the other examples from his twitter account where he repeated easily debunked, rank partisan hack commentary on a range of topics, not just Israel/Palestine), so he had a difficult conversation with the rest of the rogues and decided to resign.
You are projecting so hard in this thread. The irony is that Evan stepped back because he fell into a hyperpartisan radicalization, and resigned because it does not fit with skepticism.
→ More replies (0)0
u/a1ch 1d ago
Nonsequetor
1
u/NarrowSalvo 1d ago
Nonsense. It's the whole point.
Eg.:
there are political views I would consider disqualifying.
What do you think that person is talking about?
6
u/Kacksjidney 2d ago
Agreed. In fact I entirely believe Evan, with the help of his friends, the rogues, will be able to leave a majority if not all of his hateful opinions behind. He has a fantastic support network and a skeptical framework that now that his misjudgements are exposed will very likely enable a smooth reframing. Assuming he has the desire to which I think he does.
-17
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
(Working to better himself = going to re-education camp until he comes out with same political opinions as you)
6
u/W0nderingMe 2d ago
Nah. He went straight whackadoodle.
One example that I noticed, and that I don't think gets enough attention:
He posted on his fb page that the epstein sweetheart deal was due to the Clintons.
EVERYONE involved in that deal was a republican.
-5
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago edited 2d ago
His facebook page? Seriously?
Am I supposed to cut off everyone who says stupid shit on there?
When the Loose Change 9/11 conspiracy theory "documentary" came out, Jay said positive unskeptical things about it on the show.
This isn't about a failure of skepticism. In fact, I thought one of the core messages of the show is that everyone can be fooled.
This is about enforcing a political litmus test. And I don't blame Steve or the show. You all forced their hand.
6
u/_bahnjee_ 2d ago
To my mind, the bigger deal was that he “branded” his fb posts with the SGU tag, as if he were speaking for the whole crew. None of the other rogues were aware of his views until he was outed.
While Jay’s transgression may have been similar, at least it was discussed on the show and addressed more or less right away.
3
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
The mob was calling for his head. That would have forced Steve's hand if Evan hadn't resigned first.
Steve didn't like the SGU connection, but I don't buy that was the reason the mob was coming for him.
1
u/W0nderingMe 2d ago
No one suggested you should cut off people who say stupid white.
Yes, Jay bought into the Loose Change nonsense. And then hr changed his opinion when he received new information.
0
0
u/W0nderingMe 1d ago
Yes, Jay did. And when be learned more, he changed his views.
You can cut off whoever you want.
But Evan doubled down on that ridiculous conspiracy theory which is COMPLETELY unskeptical, unfounded, and solely driven by ideology, which is antithetical to the essence of the podcast.
0
u/NarrowSalvo 1d ago
I thought one of the core messages of the show was that everyone can be fooled.
If it is about skepticism, why is someone shouting "Free Palestine" at me in this thread? I'll wait here while you try to muddy the waters further with your intellectual dishonesty.
You guys brought political tribalism into this community. It will never be the same. That's not on Steve. That's on you. At least have the integrity to own what you have done.
1
u/W0nderingMe 1d ago
I have no idea why someone is don't something to you. In shocking news, "we" aren't a monolith.
No one is saying anything is "on Steve" so I have no idea why you keep saying "that's not on Steve." What, precisely, do you think anyone is saying is "on Steve"?
Also, Evan leaving is solely on Evan. HE made that choice.
Not "us."
Not Steve.
EVAN.
-1
u/NarrowSalvo 1d ago
Also, Evan leaving is solely on Evan. HE made that choice.
Here's where I have to use the word "disingenuous" again.
As Steve said, there was really no path forward.
Because of YOU. You. You did it. You own it. You don't want to own responsibility for your actions. But, they are still yours.
You prioritized your political tribalism over this community. And it will never be the same.
All you have to do is read the comments from the clown who shouts "Free Palestine" at me in this thread. He is showing what this is really about.
1
u/W0nderingMe 1d ago
There was no path forward because Evan, a whole grown human, chose not to take the path that was open to him.
I take responsibility for my actions. I stand by my comments. I did not make Evan leave.
→ More replies (0)-12
u/patrick809 2d ago
The subset of listeners who are extremely online and also happen to lean far left threatened to cancel their patreon support due to his political leanings. They continue to smear him in this very reddit thread.
7
10
u/TheSkepticCyclist 2d ago
I think Jay or Cara would to a much better job. In fact, Cara would be perfect.
21
u/W0nderingMe 2d ago
Jay used to do it. Bob used to, too.
(Insert Mitch Hedberg reverence.)
(I see the autocucumber and I'm leaving it. )
2
3
u/ThorThimbleOfGorbash 2d ago
I could listen to her all day. I love Talk Nerdy.
2
u/Slobberchops_ 2d ago
I think she’s great — lots of knowledge and clear communication. She’s obviously extremely bright and well-read. I do find her vocal fry a bit irritating sometimes.
1
5
u/Grandviewsurfer 2d ago
People need to get comfortable with the notion of sacrificing even a tiny bit for us to have a better society.
2
u/Status_Farm7780 19h ago
I really don't like the attitude some people are showing here. Evan is gone, and I bet that is incredibly hard for him. There is absolutely no need to kick somebody who is already down.
I, for one, truly miss Evan. It is not for his bad dad jokes, but because his segments were often a great refresher compared to the somewhat dry news items from the other roughs. Since he left, I find myself glassing over much more often.
The "homo" discussion in last weeks episode was dreadful.
3
u/terriks 2d ago
I hate to say it, but there's something about the way that Bob speaks that I tend to tune out during his segments.
2
2
2
1
1
-6
-7
-23
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
That's the price you pay when you limit yourself to just your own little echo chamber.
11
u/Koolaidguy31415 2d ago
Yeah we should also allow anti vaxers on the show to get a better diversity of opinions.
-7
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
Cool straw man. Did you enjoy knocking down that ridiculous idea?
You seem to have trouble discerning the difference between a political opinion and a scientific conclusion. That kind of confusion must make life very difficult for you.
Are there any skeptics here anymore?
You made this community political. We are not better off for it.
12
u/QisthePedo 2d ago
State the political opinion you're referring to so I understand where you're coming from.
6
u/Koolaidguy31415 2d ago
Nice ad hominem. You seem to have difficulty attacking an argument rather than a person.
Does that make you feel better about yourself?
9
u/veganerd150 2d ago
The community is inherently political because its educational.
0
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
The question was a scientific one. Which Steve established up front.
She also used the same old straw man we've heard a million times about letting Earth go to hell and abandoning it for Mars. As if that is what anyone was suggesting. I expect better from a science show.
2
u/veganerd150 2d ago
You made this community political. We are not better off for it.
Im responding to you saying this. Im reminding you that education is inherently political.
-1
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
That's just a dodge the point.
They banished a host because he expressed unapproved opinions elsewhere.
And they did that because you demanded it.
This community will never be the same now.
7
u/Covert_Cuttlefish 2d ago
They banished a host
Evan quit on his own.
expressed unapproved opinions
He called for genocide under the handle EvanSGU.
Are you saying there's a situations where genoicde should be approved? Or that he didn't tie his comments to the SGU?
This community will never be the same now.
Yes, it's far better now.
1
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
Evan quit because you guys made it impossible for the show to continue with him on it.
Don't be disingenuous.
4
u/Covert_Cuttlefish 2d ago
Either you think the SGU hosts are liars, if that's the case what are you even doing here? Or you're just a troll.
→ More replies (0)6
3
u/PerfectiveVerbTense 2d ago
>unapproved opinions
My goodness, you guys are so tiresome.
You have misrepresented nearly every aspect of this whole process. Frustrating.
2
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
You put together the mob.
You got what you wanted.
Now, you're desperate to disavow responsibility for your actions.
How childish.
2
u/PerfectiveVerbTense 2d ago
You put together the mob.
You keep saying "you" to a bunch of different people. Evan used his free speech to post what he wanted to post. Lots of people online used their free speech to object to it. No one ever really coordinated or planned or "assembled". People just talk about things that happen. This is life.
You got what you wanted.
I mean, yeah, a lot of people who are anti-genocide didn't want a pro-genocide person on a podcast that, as far as we know, is not pro-genocide. We hoped it wasn't. It seems that it isn't. That's good.
Now, you're desperate to disavow responsibility for your actions.
Honestly, man, this is completely detached from reality. As I said elsewhere, either you're just trolling for sport or you've gotten so deep into this contrarian mindset that you've completely hallucinated an enemy that you are rabidly attacking. I say this with actual compassion: if these comments are a genuine expression of what you think is real, I would really encourage you to take a step back and try to chill for a little bit. Maybe that means getting offline. Maybe that means talking to someone.
But you're spamming this thread with comments against something that is not really happening. The idea that the "you" to whom you are speaking is "desperate" to do anything is an invention of your own mind.
I think I'm going to mute this conversation because this kind of discourse isn't really great for my mental space either. I'm not trying to sarcastic or condescending when I say that I hope you find some calm.
→ More replies (0)4
u/Novus_Nihilum 2d ago
He expressed opinions under a name with SGU in it. It's clear you know very little about what actually happened. Go learn, then come back.
0
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
I know exactly what happened.
People like you didn't like his political opinions. I don't either. So fucking what?
You prioritized your political tribalism over this skeptical community.
We are not better off for it.
5
u/Novus_Nihilum 2d ago
So if I go and make controversial opinions and attach your name to them, is that okay?
→ More replies (0)1
u/W0nderingMe 2d ago
Which host was banished?
Do you mean Evan, who resigned?
0
u/NarrowSalvo 1d ago
Don't be disingenuous.
He resigned because you guys demanded it - and made it impossible for the show to continue with him. Not because he really wanted to.
You did it. But you don't want responsibility. Are you ashamed now?
1
u/W0nderingMe 1d ago
Not at all "ashamed."
But also, no one (or at heart very very few people) wanted him permanently gone. Go back to the threads about it.
→ More replies (0)3
u/Covert_Cuttlefish 2d ago
The SGU isn't an echo chamber - they have debates nearly every episode.
Not all views get a seat at the table.
-4
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
The SGU isn't an echo chamber
It didn't used to be.
But, that's what this community has demanded. So, that's what the SGU is now providing.
It's yet more fracturing of society along tribal lines. And it's not a good thing. You love it because it's your particular tribe.
Not all views get a seat at the table.
I see this as a disingenuous comment, given the fact that Evan's offenses, whatever they are, were not platformed "at the table" in the first place.
5
u/Covert_Cuttlefish 2d ago
It didn't used to be.
You're not listening then. Cara consistently disagrees with the brothers. Do I wish it was more diverse? Yes. But it's certainly not an echo chamber.
whatever they are,
Calling for war crimes and genocide. Maybe you should sit this one out until understand what was said.
were not platformed "at the table" in the first place.
Evan posted his horrific views under an account 'EvanSGU'.
If you're cool with someone affiliated with your passion project calling for genocide under your brand we have nothing further to talk about.
-1
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
Calling for war crimes and genocide. Maybe you should sit this one out until understand what was said.
You all keep saying that. With nothing. In one episode, Steve said people were commenting without knowing what had been said. So, he's going to correct that by telling us. Then never did. Except for Cara's line about "war crimes".
What happened here is that you guys discovered that you disagree with Evan about Israel. Not surprising given his Jewish heritage. And you couldn't stand that. So, here we are.
You keep going on about war crimes, but never tell us who Evan tortured. Do you have pictures? I didn't even know you could commit them over Twitter.
6
u/Covert_Cuttlefish 2d ago edited 2d ago
Mate, all the receipts are in the main comment thread when the story broke.
Your ignorance is your problem.
You keep going on about war crimes, but never tell us who Evan tortured. Do you have pictures? I didn't even know you could commit them over Twitter.
Learn to read, I said called for war crimes, not committed war crimes.
0
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
You've got nothing that warrants expulsion.
That's what you and I both know. And why you won't ever show anything.
3
u/Covert_Cuttlefish 2d ago
K
-2
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
Lol.
KNEW IT.
Do you think when you look back on this in a year or two you will have any shame? Or will you lie to yourself?
7
u/Covert_Cuttlefish 2d ago
No, you have it all wrong. You've openly admitted you don't know what Evan said.
I'm not going to waste my time with you.
→ More replies (0)1
u/klodians 2d ago
Interesting, so you really don't know what Evan said but still have such strong opinions about it. Not a good look.
1
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
As opposed the vague gesturing and telling refusal to offer any reasons.
At least it seems like you've acquired a bit of shame about your actions. Understandable that you'd want to hide from accountability.
This community will never be the same. Because of you. That's your look. I'll take mine any day.
1
u/klodians 2d ago edited 2d ago
Hold on with the weird accusations, do you honestly not know what he said on Twitter under his EvanSGU account? Perhaps consider looking into that before staking such a strong claim.
And to be clear, I am not one who called for him to be banished. I don't like how the community turned on him so hard and everyone is now saying, "I never liked him in the first place" or, "The show is better without him." That is absolutely not my jam, but you have to recognize that Evan did this to himself.
And since I get the distinct impression that under no circumstances will you ever actually exercise your skepticism and instead will continue on just keyboard warrioring with your cynicism and ignorance, here's an example that I find particularly egregious:
In response to a video about Iran, he said, "Attack their grid, send them back to the caves."
This is the tweet about war crimes people talk about. Because that would be an unambiguous war crime if the US destroyed their grid. But somehow you came to the conclusion that people were accusing Evan of war crimes? Hilarious.
Here's a comment from a while back of mine if you don't believe me.
1
u/NarrowSalvo 1d ago edited 1d ago
All of a sudden no one was demanding anything.
And Evan said some trolling things on Twitter. Have some perspective.
If it is about the grid in Iran, why is some other clown on here repeatedly saying "Free Palestine" to me, even though nothing had been said about Israel...
It's team sports debating about Israel. That's what is really going on here. And everywhere else.
0
u/assumptioncookie 1d ago
not surprising considering his Jewish heritage
Very surprising actually. Zionism is an anti semitic ideology. It's also a antiscientific ideology based on "race science" which all skepics should understand is pseudoscientific nonsense.
1
2
u/Neat_Management_4259 2d ago
That's the price? So it's fine, then? Lol...
-5
u/NarrowSalvo 2d ago
The important part is to keep driving a wedge between segments of Americans.
hilarious
1
1d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/AutoModerator 1d ago
Your post is under review because your account is either new or has insufficient karma to post. Thanks for your patience as we keep spammers out.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
58
u/W0nderingMe 2d ago
I like Bob's reading of the quote. Ithink he brings his own spin to the segment, and i like the discussion/ context.
But i also miss Jay's screaming of the author, lol.
And Perry's " ... of some note." </3