Insinuating God's endorsement of your prejudices give those prejudices undeserved power, and make them seem acceptable to the simpletons who place faith over intelligence.
By invoking God you can also destroy entire civilizations, destroy the planet's environment, and brutalize children until they bow to your, and of course God's, will.
And it's influence in this country is especially troubling. Especially if you are to realize that without it there would have been NO President Reagan, President Bush, or VP candidate Sarah Palin.
Faith kept private can provide solace and comfort, but used as a bludgeon it can, and has, led to immense suffering and harm.
Amen brother. I am with you both. Took a bit to get there, but to quote an episode of the Brady Bunch:
ReplyDelete"Marcia, it doesn't matter how I got here..the point is, I've arrived"
Third paragraph down will be posted on the fridge with your name credited. Best quote of the year!!
ReplyDeleteI meant second paragraph.
DeleteBrilliant. This is EXACTLY what I was trying to get across to the person claiming that religion wasn't the only cause of these things when you posted the comment by Douglas Adams! Religion may not be the only cause of this crap, but it certainly is at the ROOT of most of Mankind's evil!
ReplyDeleteI will, however, make one concession here, as do you, Gryphen: PERSONAL faith is great for the person - as long as it STAYS personal!
Just keep your organized religion as far away from me as possible!
See my post about critical thinking. So no, it ISN't OK if kept personal. On the other hand spirituality may be.
DeleteI am using "personal faith" as meaning spirituality, as have many people here on IM.
DeleteCouple of things:
ReplyDeleteOn a prior post, you noted that Bush had called the Constitution "...just a goddamned piece of paper." Factcheck.org, which most folks agree is very left-leaning, has called that bogus: http://www.factcheck.org/2007/12/bush-the-constitution-a-goddamned-piece-of-paper/
So I think we can dispense with that, although I'm certainly no Bush fan.
Secondly, the article in the LA Times, disputing the analogy between a household's budget and that of the Nation, is, IMHO hopelessly wrong. The govt has been trying to use the Fed and other manipulations of the currency forever to "regulate" the economy, reduce the whipsaws of the natural business cycle, and in general impose a central planning on the economy. They have been wrong EVERY time, and by being out of phase with the natural economic cycle, have made things worse EVERY TIME. They just can't resist the urge to meddle, because they are SO SMART and this time it's Different. Well, it's not different.
From the time the Republic began, until Nixon took us off any connection with the Gold Standard in 1971, the currency was stable. Since that time we have suffered the same fate as all countries that went to fiat currency: Our money, the world standard for stability (Sound as a dollar!), has inflated about 95%. That means every dollar in 1971 is worth about 5cents. (My college tuition in 1971 was $96/year. College, books, room and board ran $1900 - per year.) So IMHO the LA Times is full of beans. I'm no Sarah Palin fan, either.
Now, on to the Bill Maher quote. Right on the money. I AM a Maher fan.
Hhhmmm. Sounds to me like someone hasn't heard of The Great Depression.
DeleteAnd as far as the currency ALWAYS being stable? Methinks someone went to that same school as SP!
I believe you need to look at the Glass-Steagall Act and the history of why it was put in place. THEN look closely at what happened exactly on schedule right after it was repealed by the Repubes in 1999!
Of course, that just SEEMS to verify what you said about them not knowing their asses from a hole in the ground, but even there, if you look closely, the Act was repealed to allow more freedom for the banks and other businesses to do as they damned good and well pleased. Had nothing to do with the "good of the country"!
$96 per year? What did you attend, Cracker Jack U? Even my parochial school - blue collar, non-prestigious was @ $200-400.
DeleteMssr. Leland. Perhaps you can educate us as to when the currency was NOT stable, between - oh, say, 1785 and 1971. Should be plenty of time for you.
DeleteWant to discuss the causes and effects of the Depression? I'm up for it if you are.
Want to discuss Glass-Steagall, do you? Did it have anything to do with the currency? Think carefully; I'm not very forgiving of blowhards who presume to lecture, when they don't know what they are talking about.
The ball is in your court.
Cordially,
Jim
North Carolina declaring Christianity as the official state religion makes my blood run cold. This video, "Smack Them Christians Down" should be required viewing for ALL Americans: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16R4aeYBXww
ReplyDeleteThat was an awesome video. I can't believe it's from 2007. Things have become even more frightening with more and more christian politicians trying to indoctrinate their dogma onto our SECULAR government.
DeleteJerry Prevo, Baptist, in Anchorage - comes to mind. He preaches from the pulpit, lives lavishly off his congregation and has gotten very involved w/political issues in Anchorage and the State of Alaska for years. He literally directs his parishioners politically.
ReplyDeleteIsn't that grounds for losing tax-exempt status??
DeleteDoesn't even have to be used as a bludgeon. As Freud said, one of the main problems of religion is that it is anti critical thinking. And if one gives up critical thinking in one area of life, this can spread to others, too. Which may also explain Reagan, Bush and Palin, right?
ReplyDeleteWell said.
ReplyDeleteThe longer I live, the more cautious I am about about allowing people that lead their conversations with pious references to their personal relationship with Jesus, into a personal relationship with me.
They usually turn out to be jerks, using the Bible to prop up their Bronze-Age attitudes towards women and children.
Religion has become a tool with which any believer can absolve themselves from taking responsibility for their life and their actions whether on behalf of a God/religion or because of their own prejudices.
ReplyDeleteDespite religion, I still have faith in people.
ReplyDeleteBill Maher puts my feelings on the matter into words and does it quite eloquently.