Another Motivational Poster
PG was looking at facebook, and saw a motivational poster. Instead of a sunset, or a kitten, the background was a person in a hospital bed, breathing oxygen through a little plastic tube. The foreground text said: “When you are in the final days of your life, what will you want? Will you hug that college degree in the walnut frame? Will you ask to be carried to the garage so you can sit in your car? Will you find comfort in rereading your financial statement? Of course not. What will matter then will be people. If relationships will matter most then, shouldn’t they matter most now? – Max Lucado.” PG made a comment. “I would want to not hear other people’s ideas about religion.”
We live in a Jesus happy culture. The version of Jesus that is forced upon us is a scheme for life after death. Those who believe in this scheme have no respect for those who do not agree with it. (There are exceptions to this generalization. Unfortunately, the jerks are louder and more persistent.)
When you are about to die is one of the weakest times of life. Your defenses are down. You do not have the strength to argue. To force your beliefs on a person in this state is the act of an emotional bully.
PG has heard about the Jesus plan for life after death literally all his life. He has decided, after much thought and, yes, prayer, that he simply does not agree with it. To PG, the answer is to trust G-d to take care of you when you die, and not to worry about it when you live. It is not an easy choice, but it is the one he came to. To confront a dying person about this sensitive issue is repulsive.
The text that prompted this post was embedded in a picture. PG had two choices… to manually type the text, or to find a source that could be copied. The phrase “when you are in the final days of your life max lucado” was submitted to Mr. Google. In .31 seconds, the answer was on the screen.
The top result… possibly paid for … was 22 Great Max Lucado Quotes. The site was What Christians Want To Know, owned by Telling Ministries LLC. The page advertises Liberty University, life insurance quotes, language lessons, and the chance to study the bible online.
Apparently Max Lucado is a professional Jesus worshiper. His site is advertising an Alaska cruise with the preacher. His Youtube channel is MaxLucado316. Does Mr. Lucado harass dying people because of their opinions about Jesus?
The comments to 22 Great Max Lucado Quotes have an amusing story.
Cindy December 30, 2011 at 1:03 pm Hey Josh. Do you have permission to use these?? We called Max’s church and they would not give us permission to add some of his quotes in the bulletin. We are a small small church and I found this odd.
Josh December 30, 2011 at 1:11 pm Thanks for the comment Cindy. I found these quotes all over the web so I think they are okay to use. That is strange that you were not able to use them on a Church bulletin.
Christof February 7, 2012 at 5:13 pm Cindy, I’m sure no-one is going to take you to court for using this – its like giving the beggar a bread and expecting money in return.
Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library” .
Collateral Damage
This post was originally published four years ago. In the intervening forty eight months, many women and children have been killed in crossfire. The United States will send a roboplane to bomb a village, and then send another roboplane to kill the rescuers, and a third roboplane to attack the funeral. Isreal killed hundreds of children in Gaza, most of whom were too young to fire missiles. Closer to home, people who choose not to denounce a drag queen are labelled racists. It is a funny world. Pictures are from ” The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”.
Back a war or two ago, a phrase entered the vocabulary. The expression was collateral damage. This referred to civilians killed in a combat action. It sounds a lot nicer than dead women and children. To hear the war supporters tell it, the enemy was causing this. The terrorists would move women and children into areas they knew were going to be attacked, so they could be killed. To the war supporters, it was a cost of doing business.
The past few days, there has been discussion at this facility about speaking out when you hear something you don’t like. People say it is bigotry and hate, which sounds a lot worse than something you don’t like. Just like collateral damage sounds nicer than dead children.
When people put on their warpaint about to fight bigotry, there is frequently collateral damage. There was an incident that illustrates my point. This was when I was at Redo Blue, working with the Bully for Jesus. I will use the initials BFJ. One day BFJ heard someone make a comment using the phrase “your daddy said”. This comment was made by a white person, referring to another white person. BFJ is a black person, and the comment offended him.
BFJ decided to vent his feelings about this comment. This happened all the time, BFJ had a nasty mouth, which would run off at the slightest provocation. Since he was working on a rush job across the room from the white person, he made his comments in a loud voice. This way the white person across the room could hear what he said, and BFJ could work on his rush job.
Towards the end of his speech, BFJ made the comment “when your mother and your father forsake you, you still have your father in heaven” This is supposed to be in the Bible. BFJ was staring at me and shouting when he said this. Later, he said he had not been talking to me. This was very common at redo blue. People would stand in front of you screaming offensive things. If you looked at them, they would go off, screaming “I’m not talking to you”.
There is a bit of backstory here. Three weeks after my mother died, I went to the bathroom. I started to realize how much I missed her, and felt very sad. When I came out of the bathroom, a woman was praying for entertainment on the BFJ’s radio. I was offended. When I asked the BFJ to turn down his radio, he declared war. This poisoned our working relationship the entire time I was at redo blue.
This comment pushed me past my limits. BFJ conducted a ministry on company time, and had a nasty temper. I had to say something. Sometimes, you need to stand up to a bully. And you best be prepared for a fight, which is exactly what the bully wants. You should never wrestle with a pig. You will only get dirty, and the pig will enjoy it.
I left a note on his desk saying that ”My mother and father have not forsaken me.” We had a closed door meeting. He argued with everything I said, admitted no wrongdoing, and chewed me out repeatedly for what the other white person had said. When I was at the point where I thought he was the lowest scum on the planet, BFJ said “Jesus made me what I am today”.
We continued to work closely together for another three years or so. I witnessed a few hundred more hours of his ministry. One day the manager called me into the office, and told me not to come back.
The point of this story is, when you “Stand Up” against “bigoted comments”, you might need to be prepared to mud wrestle with someone who thinks he is building his faith. You should learn the difference between bigotry and being too sensitive. It is best to keep things between you and the person who offended you, and not cause collateral damage.
Desktop Cleanup
There are a few documents cluttering the desktop at chamblee54. One way to deal with this is to combine a few into one post. Most of these, one way or another, are connected to religion, or the processed G-dproduct we have in our culture. Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”
Three years ago, PG recycled a chain mail message about G-d. If you must read it, go here. The essence is this quote:”Isn’t it funny how you can send a thousand jokes through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord,people think twice about sharing?~Isn’t it funny how when you go to forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you’re not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it to them ~Isn’t it funny how I can be more worried about what other people think of me than what G-d thinks of me”
Last week, this was on facebook: “When someone like Madonna or the Scissor sisters come out with a new Album or goes on tour everyone rushes to buy tickets and buy the album. When a healer learns some new way of helping someone heal…well, the healer doesn’t get a rush of clients in. We put more emphasis on entertainment and frivolity than we do for actual health. I guess we have all been brainwashed into thinking that external garbage is more important than our health.”
chamblee54 I got a religious chain mail message once. There was a comment…”Isn’t it funny how you can send a thousand jokes through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord,people think twice about sharing?”. This sounds a lot like the message here…that people will pay big bucks to enjoy Madonna and the Scissor Sisters (who?), but will not pay the same money for healing. I am sympathetic to what Michael is doing. I think healing outside of industrial medicine can be of great value. However, when you toss out a nonsense argument, in support of marketing this healing, then I lose a bit of that sympathy. The message is great. It is the medium that angers me.
Peach Pundit had a feature about Georgia Republicans honoring Karen Handel for, um, making noise about abortion. This is a great topic for people with more spare time than common sense. The comment section was fun.
chamblee54 May 29, 2012 at 2:04 pm How many “pro life” people support wars?
Lawton Sack May 29, 2012 at 2:09 pm How many “pro-choice” people don’t support wars because people die?
TheEiger May 29, 2012 at 2:45 pm Charlie – isn’t chamblee54 posts SPAM? If I had a junk box for PP all of chamblee54 postings would go there right next to the folks that have a million dollars in a British bank account and all they need is you account number to transfer it to you.
Rick Day May 29, 2012 at 6:13 pm This is actually going to be pretty cool. When the Atlanta City Council wrote legislation to tighten illegal alcohol consumption on unlicensed premises, it technically made all tail gating illegal. Be careful what you wish for, Oh Godly Engineers of Morality.
The Last Democrat in Georgia May 29, 2012 at 7:18 pm Pro-life social conservatives want to ban abortion. Republicans do NOT want to ban abortion. Republicans want to keep abortion legal so that they keep it around as an ongoing campaign issue, a deep political well that they can always turn to in times of political need, especially in election years, not-to-mention create some work opportunities for their cronies in the legal field. Hence the reason why the Georgia Legislature passed an anti-abortion bill that seems an open invitation for legal challenges.
The Last Democrat in Georgia May 29, 2012 at 7:27 pm The Georgia Legislature’s official response to concerns about ethics (or their noticeable lack of): LOOK! Over there! ABORTION!!!! ….Now can you possibly imagine how hard that would have been to pull off if abortion had already been banned? I can’t even imagine as the actual thought is completely horrifying.
chamblee54 May 29, 2012 at 10:23 pm My posts AREN’T spam. I don’t like to eat it either. I do enjoy this vision of spam. The “life issues” have many shades of gray. Probably more than fifty, but without the controversy. Here is one of the times I have written about it. As for Karen Handel, isn’t it time for her fifteen minutes to be over? Anybody who can get Sarah Palin to make an appearance for her, and lost to a notoriously corrupt congressman, does not need to be in politics.
seenbetrdayz May 30, 2012 at 10:22 am Truth to your comments. If the abortion debate was ever settled once-and-for all, the GOP would lose a giant issue it keeps using as a carrot to dangle over the heads of its Christian base to gain votes every election. It’s like a form job security for the GOP, so it’s in the GOP’s best interest to make sure that they don’t pursue the issue too vigorously. I’m surprised that the christian right hasn’t realized it’s being used yet.
Jesus worship blogger Phil Johnson announced his retirement from blogging today. His doctor ordered him to remove stress from his life. Telling people how to get into heaven might be troubling his soul.
PG and Mr. Johnson have butted heads a few times. PG seemed to enjoy it, while Mr. Johnson got dirty. Wrestling with a hog will do that. After a while, PG was banned from commenting, and might be better off for it.
One curious exchange involved gambling. Discomfort with gaming for money is one part of Baptistry that PG carries with him. Mr. Johnson wrote a post about gambling. (The post is no longer available. The comments are here..) PG wrote to express support, and still got in trouble.
chamblee54 I was going to post this to the original site, but that site requires a registration. This is regarding the series on gambling. Thank you for your commentary. An aversion to gambling is one part of my baptist upbringing that I have held onto. I look forward to reading the particulars of your moral objection to gaming. While I sense that gambling is wrong, I know few arguments that this is the case. Also, gambling is becoming more and more fashionable and acceptable. The gaming industry has a powerful p.r. machine, and they are good at confusing people.I also look forward to the guest commentary by Bill Bennett. One sentence in your initial post caught my attention…”In other words, one person’s gain always comes at the price of hurt caused to others.” This reminded me of a situation at a job I used to have. I was working closely with an abusive jesus worshiper, who simply would not shut up. While his “faith” may have grown, I became bitterly alienated from jesus. My pain paid the price for his jesus party.
chamblee54 I enjoyed the second post of the gambling series. It is interesting to see the 10th commandment cited. The admonition against coveting is one of the less popular commandments, especially by the proponents of “prosperity doctrine”. And why would anyone want to post the 10th commandment at a courthouse where they collect taxes and hear lawsuits? I also appreciate your use of non-bible based arguments. Not everyone agrees that the bible is the word of god. Those who disagree with you on this point still need some direction, especially on an issue like gambling, with the well financed p.r. machines of the casinos making so much noise.
Phil Johnson Thanks, Chamblee54. For the record, though, logical arguments showing how biblical principles apply to ethical and moral questions are not “non-bible based arguments.” The subject ultimately matters to me only because I believe that the Bible is the Word of God, and I’m accountable to its Author. If I didn’t believe that, I’d be in the same boat as the hordes of self-destructive teenagers who simply want to have as much fun as possible while they can enjoy it, and beyond that, their goal is to end this life ASAP. Without any belief that God is sovereign and his Word is true, I wonder what you’d tell one of your own kids if he or she had that perspective? I can’t see how you could possibly come up with any rational argument against such a suicidal worldview.
chamblee54 “The subject ultimately matters to me only because I believe that the Bible is the Word of God, and I’m accountable to its Author. If I didn’t believe that, I’d be in the same boat as the hordes of self-destructive teenagers who simply want to have as much fun as possible while they can enjoy it, and beyond that, their goal is to end this life ASAP. Without any belief that God is sovereign and his Word is true, I wonder what you’d tell one of your own kids if he or she had that perspective? I can’t see how you could possibly come up with any rational argument against such a suicidal worldview.” How do we get from gambling to self-destructive teenagers? And are these the only two choices? To believe in “god in a book” (in violation of the first commandment) or a life of total depravity? I would hope there is another path, because neither of those work for me.
Two current local stories are the retirement of Neal Boortz, and the parental issues of Creflo Dollar. Many talkers and typers will discuss this, and they are welcome to it. Both subjects are toxic. Slightly more uplifting is Death In The Time Of Facebook.
That is a story at Thought Catalog. TC is another good use of spare time. The current offerings on the home page include 6 Things 20-Somethings Want, What Game Of Thrones Characters Would Tweet, If They Had Twitter, 4 Grooming Habits That Men Are Not Exempt From (by Chelsea Fagan), Pretending You’re Oppressed: The New Internet Fad, and An Open Letter Of Apology From The State Of Florida. (The Sunshine state is the leading content contributor to Hot and Busted.)
Getting back to the matter at hand, the sort of boss at Thought Catalog is Ryan O’Connell. He is a 25 yo gay man, who wrote Death In The Time Of Facebook. “I believe that, in many ways, Facebook has changed the way we grieve. I’ve never had anyone close to me pass away before but I’m not sure how I would feel about posting memories of the two of us on their Facebook wall.”
Chamblee54 ” I’ve never had anyone close to me pass away before” This is a 25yo gay man speaking. If this had been written twenty years ago, he would have known dozens. The bug drugs are a miracle.
alisonwisneski Woah. Out of line.
scsh I don’t know if this is a social justice issue. Twenty years ago, yeah, that was a thing, and it was huge. It totally really happened, and I don’t think this comment was offered as a slur but a history. An ugly one.
Anonymous why are u bringing up aids tho
scsh I’m mostly blown that a 25 year old anyone hasn’t. It’s a game changer. You are never the same.
Cita And if it had been forty years ago, I doubt any 25 year old would be able to say the same. Wars happen, technology advances, life expectancy increases. It’s not that complicated, and it certainly has nothing to do with being gay.
Kill Them All
The BHO war machine combines modern murder technology with low tech sophistry. Anyone within splatter range of a hellfire missile is assumed to be a terrorist. The problem of civilian casualties has been solved … they are all militants.
Unqualified Offerings has a feature on this subject. The source is Glenn Greenwald, tossing out ten thousand words as casually as Sarah Palin says lamestream media. There is a comment quoted. (It might be noted that the comment below was an “Update” to the original post. No one is his right mind has read all 481 comments to the post.)
“Isn’t the presumption that everyone in the so-called strike zone is a “militant” particularly egregious given past accusations that our enemies intentionally embed themselves in civilian populations? Haven’t we condemned our enemies in the past precisely because they’ve surrounded themselves with civilians? And now we’re justifying our crowd-killing strikes on the grounds that anyone close to a militant must himself be a militant?”
The old argument went that the other side used “human shields”. The armies were embedded in civilian populations, so that any attack would cause what was once called collateral damage. What was never mentioned was the fact that it was our forces that did the killing. If it were white Americans, much more care would be taken. This line of reasoning is now obsolete.
There was a fun comment at Unqualified Offerings. The text is courtesy of Gene Dannen. It is from a speech made by Harry Truman, on July 9, 1945. When this speech was given, Nagasaki had been destroyed.
“The world will note that the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, a military base. That was because we wished in this first attack to avoid, insofar as possible, the killing of civilians. But that attack is only a warning of things to come. If Japan does not surrender, bombs will have to be dropped on her war industries and, unfortunately, thousands of civilian lives will be lost. I urge Japanese civilians to leave industrial cities immediately, and save themselves from destruction.”.
Group punishment is not restricted to war. In Mustang OK, a business owner led his employees in prayer, and then announced that 25 production people would be fired. The reason for the bloodbath: someone sent an email that the boss did not like. HT the fishwrapper. The speech is embedded above. Do not listen if you are in a good mood. This speech will ruin your day. Here is the email.
Ryan Tate , In 2009, Tate Publishing LLC was named one of the best places to work in the state of Oklahoma. In a post published on your blog in April 2, 2009, you say ”most publishers outsource and farm out their work because it is cheaper” and went on to say “we handle every element of production in house” and also “if you want to lead an industry and succeed you need to make the extra investment in the staff”. Three short years later, you have opened an office in the Philippines to do just that – outsource and farm out the work that has been done by loyal, hard-working Oklahoma employees. What has changed in that time that has caused you to come to the conclusion that “a staff that never quits” as you referred to them, are no longer worth the investment?”
Pictures, from the War Between the States, are from The Library of Congress.
Jesus And Responsibility
It was a cloudy tuesday morning, and there was nothing good to say. Rather than not saying anything at all, PG decided to go into his archives. This post is from May of 2007. It is about responsible behavior, and a religion that does not encourage it. This might be hypocritical, but no one forced you to read it. The pictures need text between them.
It all started when a girl went to a back room with a former boyfriend. Her current bf stormed out of the party, and flipped his car when it went off the road. Being a star quarterback did not prevent the fatal consequences. The local radio whiner had a few things to say. Since alcohol was a suspected factor, the question became, “how do we teach teenagers to drink responsibly?”
PG is a retired drunk, and has a few dozen opinions on this issue. His wandering mind settled on a related subject…Jesus. G-d’s love baby is similar to alcohol. Both are legal, both have potential for good and ill, and neither works for PG. The thought occurred “How do we teach Teenagers to Worship Jesus Responsibly?” Now, this may be the first time those two concepts have been paired like that…Jesus and Responsibility…but it should not be the last.
A central concept in the world of Jesus Worship is the avoidance of responsibility…”Jesus paid the price for my sins on the cross”. While you may feel better to think you are forgiven, that does not help the person who was hurt by your actions. If star the quarterback had run into someone, G-d might forgive him, but this does not help with the medical bills.
No, today’s seminar is about the Worshiping Responsibly. It is about having respect for your neighbors who do not agree with you, and do not want to hear about your “salvation”. It is about not creating ill will for Jesus with obnoxious behavior in his name. It is about not dragging Jesus into your personal quarrels, using his name in anger to hurt your neighbor. It is about Responsibility. Your actions have consequences, and just because you are doing it for Jesus does not eliminate that reality.
There are two big reasons why PG is not a Jesus Worshiper. The first one is, he simply doesn’t agree with the teachings. The Bible is not the word of G-d, Jesus was killed because he was a troublemaker. The death, and reputed resurrection, of Jesus has nothing to do with what happens to people when they die. If you don’t agree with the dogma regarding life after death, the Jesus worship church has little to offer you.
The Second reason is the sorry behavior of Jesus Worshipers. This prevents PG from having a cosmetic, social oriented membership in a church. He does not want to pretend to worship a spirit which causes him misery.
Responsibility is not valued in the Jesus Worship community. Respect for non believers is seen as a sign of weakness. And, while not all Jesus Worshipers are fanatics, many admire and support the loudmouths who give their faith a bad name.
When it comes to belief, moderation is not valued. Fanaticism is admired. There is little responsibility taken. It is just the Jesus talking.
Christopher Isherwood once said, in a magazine interview, that the doctrine of a religion is not as important as the person who tells you that doctrine. (If anyone can find this quote on the internet, please leave a comment with a link.) It is a common belief that religions are about beliefs, but many find that it is the person who draws you into the community. A corollary of this is when you have a bad experience with a person who represents a religion. This person can drive you far away from wanting to have any participation in a religion. The idea that G-d would send a person to hell because he knew an offensive Jesus worshiper is tough to believe.
National Day Of Prayer
Today is the National Day of Prayer This is a repost double feature. Pictures are from the ” Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”
So much for world affairs. It is time to tell a story, with no moral and no redeeming social value.
In 1980, I was staying at a place called the Sea Haven Hostel, affectionately known as Sleaze Haven. This was in Seattle WA, as far as you can get from Atlanta, and still be in the lower 48. I was working through Manpower, and staying in a semi private room for $68 a month.
There was a Christian group that met in the basement on Sunday Night. Now, as some of you may know, I am a recovering baptist, who hasn’t been to church since 1971. However, the lure of a free meal was hard to resist, so I went to a few meetings.
One night, after doing quality control work on the local beer supply, I cheerfully joined in the discussion. This was the night when I realized that the Bible is not the Word of G-d. This concept that has been handy in dealing with our Jesus-mad culture, as it seeks to convert me.
They seemed to like me, and welcomed me back. Maybe it was the southern accent.
One Sunday, after the dinner was finished , it was time to have a prayer to begin the meeting. I raised my hand. Now, Jesus Worshipers enjoy prayer as entertainment. When they bow their heads, you see them stretching and deep breathing, in anticipation of a good, lengthy, message to G-d.
My message was a bit of a disappointment. Instead of a long winded lecture about Jesus and the magic book, I said what was on my mind. Lord, thank you for letting us be here today.
Good Morning G-d. Please give me the slack I need to make it through this busy life. I have a birthday soon, and am getting older. Please give me less pain, both above and below the neck. Thank you for letting me get this far. Thank you for the gift of sobriety, and the memory of inebrience. The gift of moderation would have been appreciated. Help me to overcome body chemistry telling me to be unhappy. If this doesn’t work, help me hide it better.
Please tell the Jesus Worshipers to shut up. They make too much noise. Help me to forgive them. Give Jesus Worshipers a bit more humility. Help Jesus Worshipers to get over their confusion, and quit hating Gay People. Let people know that G-d does not write books. Let men know that A REAL MAN KEEPS CONTROL OF HIS TEMPER. Please tell the proud people praying today that it is better to listen than to talk.
Please find a happy medium for Atlanta water. Let us have neither drought nor flood. It would help if the developers would move to North Carolina, and the politicians would grow a conscience.
G-d, Please try to get along better with Allah. This is important. Maybe if you and her got along better, then all those religious crazies would hate each other less. Help white people and black people get along better. Please be good to the people who have already lived, and are now deceased. Please understand that I am not in a hurry to join them.
Help Mr. Obama with the mess this country is in. Help Israel get along with her neighbors, and live within her borders. Help the world solve the carbon dioxide problem.
Thank you for the birds that sing. Thank you for dogs, and dog owners who clean up. Thank you for earth, air, fire, and water. Thank you for the people who enjoy this prayer. Help those who are offended to get over it. Namaste, amen, all my relations, Good Bye.
Tit For Tat Savagery
If you have a life, you may have missed the Dan Savage splatterfest. It seems like the sex advice columnist gone awry got more of the attention that he craves. Facebook comment threads broke out in righteous digitosity. The fun continues this morning, and it seems like a good excuse to facilitate text. The pictures, on both sides of this text, are from “The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library” .
Here are a few comments from the thread that got the Georgia part of the ball rolling. Names and smily faces have been deleted.When PG feels the need to weigh in, it will be in green letters.
Dan has made a career of writing and saying “shocking” and outrageous things. He seems to thrive on provoking others and bringing their rejection on himself. A lot of us have been hurt by people using the Bible as a weapon against us, but you don’t see us bashing the beliefs of others or bullying those who disagree with us.
That sounds really accurate …I have done the same thing in my life…attracting victimhood and projecting it onto others. Finally, I want to say, Mr Savage has allowed the feelings of fear of rejection in his life to distort the interpretation of the bible too.
The interpretation of the bible is distorted by definition. If you declare this text to be the inerrant word of G-d, then you are distorting the meaning. Perhaps a better solution for this conundrum is to say that the bible was written, translated, and compiled by fallible men. (And perhaps a woman or two, but considering the patriarchy implicit in having one G-d, who is the male father, then this is unlikely. This more macho than thou meme causes great havoc in this episode. When Mr. Savage said pansy assed, that was not a compliment, nor was it supportive of the masculinity of those involved.)
The first commandment says to have no other G-d before you. (A G-ddess is out of luck.) When you take a book, and call it the word of G-d, you are violating this commandment. This is going to cause problems. When you use this text to validate your prejudice and privilege, you bring shame to the book.
It’s funny… the status update just below this one in my feed has the same link and another friend says: “Dan Savage always has the balls to tell it like it is.”
That’s not funny, it’s sad. You can “tell it like it is” without being profane and disrespectful of other peoples’ beliefs, and without resorting to name-calling and bullying. I have NO tolerance for bullies, even when the bully is a fellow queer like Dan Savage, and I have no tolerance for those who tolerate bullies.
Here we go again. The celebration of masculinity as the standard of perfection for Homo sapiens. Oh Boy, Mr. Savage has the balls to call people pansy ass.
Weird video. Those kids obviously weren’t just offended in the moment. They seemed to be smirking as if their march out was some sort of pre-planned event.
This thought occurred to PG. The walkout began before the comment about BS. A lot of the people in the audience cheered Mr. Savage. BTW, maybe Mr. Savage did not specifically call the kids, who walked out, pansy assed. Maybe he was talking about those who use the bible to condemn, and then get offended when people disagree with them. If you use the bible as a weapon against your neighbor, you should not be surprised when someone uses it as a weapon against you.
I saw this video earlier on a separate website. Having seen and heard blatant homophobia — well, it wasn’t homophobia, there was no fear, it was hate, absolute hate, vile vicious and without restraint —- I understand the frustration and marginalization that many in the gay community feel, but I take the bible very seriously, including the shellfish abstention, and was quite shocked to hear this. My initial reaction was anger at his comments, and then I realized that this is the external toughness that is exhibited by a man undergoing extreme pain, or who has endured extreme viciousness, by his bellicose statement he drowns his previous suffering, much like an alcoholic. I am guilty of this, although for different reasons, and we are all susceptible to it, it seems to be a general tendency in society today, tit for tat savagery, rather than moderate discussion. So I have room to forgive him, as long as he recognizes his wrong, which I pray he will. Although I have great reverence for the Bible, the Torah to be precise, I am a Jew in progress, I hold no animosity towards homosexuals, and I don’t believe G-d is the business of holding grudges either. His ways are mysterious, why did He prohibit homosexuality back then?The Greeks didn’t mind it, it hardly mattered to the Romans? We have no clue, but I am assured that if his ways are mysterious, his forgiveness and understanding is vast and uncompromising. He will judge people on their positive acts of goodness and kindness, not on failings, whether they be in regards to 3000 year old dictum’s, or modern displays of rage and anger, He loves those who try, and sanctifies those who love.
Thank you for the title to this post. Are you a JIP? Many people feel that the prohibitions in Leviticus were specifically about a specific act between two men. This does not concern lesbians, or men dressing like Lady Gaga. When you take carefully selected passages out of the magic book to denounce your neighbor, you give people one more reason to make fun of you.
It is also dangerous for anyone to apply levitical customs into today’s culture. Those laws were written in that appointed time because of the gross situations of idol worship, which included fertility worship. I firmly believe if we are required to follow all 613 laws, none of us will ever be reconciled to God. I have yet to see one human being who follows Leviticus to the T.
The Guardian had a really good article on how atheists can open a dialogue with believers, and avoid being provocative. We don’t need any more polarisation on this planet, we have far better things to devote our attention to. I think if atheists followed this, they might find it’s a better path. “Strength of belief is not the same as rigidity of dogma.”
Bridges trump walls, any day.
Thinking trumps cliches. Bad hair trumps Donald.
There’s a serious risk of becoming as bad as some of the most rigid “religious” people, if your “religion/dogma” becomes a NON-belief in God.
There are fundamentalists in all religions, including evangelical atheism (i.e., atheism that tries to convert others). You’re absolutely right, bridges trump walls. I have quite a few friends who are atheists and we respect each others’ beliefs (or lack thereof) so they have never been an issue in our friendships.
This has been a wonderful dialogue to follow. Thank you all for your insight and grace. It reminds me to keep being tolerant, forgiving and compassionate at all cost.
In some ways, atheism is a branch of Christianity. The concept that you have the right to evangelize to others is not universally accepted. Even if you entitled to proselytize, many people wind up saying things that impress themselves, without any thought as to the impact it will have on their neighbor. If what you say creates ill will for G-d (and his pesky son), then you are speaking in vain. The third commandment has something to say about this.
This is a lovely spring sunday afternoon. Hopefully you will spend it doing something more productive that worrying about a high school journalism conference. Before you go, here is a story. When PG was a kid, his family went to First Baptist Church. It was a grand building on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, about a mile north of downtown. It has been replaced by an office building. In 1959, the pastor was a man named Roy McClain. He greased his hair and shouted at the audience. PG was afraid of Roy McClain. One day, Mr. McClain waved the bible over his head, shouted “this is the word of G-d”, and slammed the book down onto the pulpit. PG thought to himself, if that is the word of G-d, shouldn’t he treat it a bit nicer?”
The Dan Savage Show
Dan Savage is no stranger to controversy. A lot of people don’t like him. A few more wonder when his fifteen minutes will be up. Sometimes a controversy flares up, and PG feels the urge to defend an unpopular person. This is a dangerous activity.
There was a conference of high school journalists in Seattle recently. Mr.Savage spoke, as the embedded video shows. It was a weird image, where what we see is a giant, flat image towering over the audience. There was a comment made about the Bible, and people in the audience started to leave. Many of those who walked were in the front of the auditorium, where the cameras could see them. A substantial part of the audience stayed, and cheered Mr. Savage in his remarks.
There was some unfortunate language used. Mr. Savage said something about “bullshit ” in the Bible. When he was through talking about the bible, Mr. Savage said, regarding the misuse of the Bible, that is funny how “pansy assed” folks were when you pushed back.
Pansies are rugged flowers, which thrive in winter weather. Use of this flower to question the masculinity of queers is highly ironic. For Mr. Savage to use this slur to criticize people, who use the Bible improperly, was in poor taste.
PG ordinarily would not be interested in this matter. It was brought to his attention on facebook. The initial comment was “Sorry, Dan Savage. I know you’ve been hurt by people in churches using the Bible as a weapon against you (just as I and most other gay people have). But when you call high school students “pansy-assed” for getting up and leaving your profanity-filled lecture, you have crossed the line and become a bully yourself.”
PG looked at the video, and began to wonder what the fuss was about. He made a comment… Thank you for showing a link, so I can *judge* for myself. I didn’t think that what Mr. Savage said was all that bad. It might have been better if he didn’t say bullshit or pansy assed. To use an anti gay slur like pansy assed was inappropriate. If people are going to use the Bible as a weapon, they should not be surprised when people fight back. The remaining students seemed to agree with Mr. Savage.
This comment was recreated from memory. The original was deleted. “Just deleted two comments and I have a feeling I’ll be deleting more, and possibly defriending some folks. It’s amazing how so many people are willing to “cut some slack” to bullies. Not here, not on MY Facebook Wall.”
The person making this deletion is someone that PG has respect for, and enjoys a”virtual” friendship with. Dan Savage is not worth losing friends over. But at the same time, when people are denouncing other people, sometimes it is necessary to look at the source material, and make up your own mind. The spectacle of George Zimmerman being tried in the court of high octane public opinion comes to mind.
PG is reluctant to use Jesus stories to make a point. The Bible, as Mr. Savage notes in his remarks, is not inerrant. The legends we have about Jesus should be taken with a bit of skepticism. Even if they are not literally true, these stories sometimes have a valuable lesson. With that caveat, here is a story from the book of John.
1 Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
2 And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him;
and he sat down, and taught them.
3 And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery;
and when they had set her in the midst,
4 They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.
5 Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?
6 This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down,
and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.
7 So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them,
He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
8 And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.
9 And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one,
beginning at the eldest, even unto the last:
and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
10 When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her,
Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?
11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.
Defending unpopular people can be a risky business. Jesus was left standing by himself this day. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. UPDATE Here is part two.
Racism Is Obsolete
01– The title of this feature is strictly about language. It is the R word that is obsolete. The modest proposal here is to replace it with a series of acronyms. ABR is anti black racism. AWR is anti white racism. AHR is anti hispanic racism. And so on and so forth. This will not affect the overall concept of racism, but might add a touch of clarity to discussions.
02– Talk about ABR is the national pastime. People LOVE to talk about ABR, usually in a very loud voice. The only problem is, very few are listening.
03– If you don’t like me, then I don’t like you. I don’t care what your reasons are. I don’t how many protected categories are involved, be they race, religion, language spoken, sexual life history, intelligence, food preferences, musical taste, hair color, national origin, political opinions, favorite sports team, criminal background, degree of recovery, clothing choice, halitosis, or anything else.
04– Am I a AB/AW racist? It depends of who is doing the judging.
05– This feature partially a reaction to A Complete Guide to ‘Hipster Racism’. Here is a sample: “Modern racism lives in entrenched de facto inequalities, in coded language about “work ethic” and “states’ rights,” in silent negative spaces like absence and invisibility, and in Newt Gingrich’s hair.” So “work ethic” is a coded ABR insult. How interesting.
06– Many people don’t think AWR exists. This might be a function of ABR/AWR manifesting in different ways.
07– Chamblee54 has posted on The N Word before.
08– I am not a policeman. I do not drive a taxi. I do not carry a purse, and therefore cannot hold it tighter. Look somewhere else to get your revenge.
09– I never thought that having a half white man elected POTUS would end ABR/AWR. There is going to be resistance. There are going to be people looking for revenge. I thought that ABR/AWR was going to get worse.
10– There is a difference between not liking “black music” and ABR.
11– The race card = black privilege.
12– The most obnoxious form of privilege in America is christian privilege.
13- We will have ABR/AWR in America as long as people find it to their advantage to promote it.
14- A lot of the old cliches apply to ABR/AWR. What goes around comes around. To every action, there is an equal but opposite reaction. Two wrongs don’t make a right. If you can’t say anything nice about a person, don’t say anything at all. When you point a finger, three fingers point back at you. He who excuses himself accuses himself. We are all G-d’s children.
15- There is a difference between having respect for a person and not using forbidden words.
16- A visit to Google city was made for the phrase “racism is obsolete”. The first usuable result was on yahoo, Will racism ever be obsolete? This was at the bottom of the page: Discover Questions in Other – Cultures & Groups Why do black men LOVE drinking gatorade before going to the beach? is it to be cool for us ladies? Why do people waste time worrying what black people do? Why do people take me so serious sometime,don’t you know im a blockhead?
17- A well meaning Christian website presents The Pollution of Racism: What White People Can Do About Racism. There were other people talking, in the Google results, about what white people can do about racism. You seldom hear anyone talking about what black people can do about racism.
18- There was a comment about Joseph Kony that should be repeated here. “(It) is not about justice. It is about having a big emotional experience that validates privilege.” This applies to much of the overheated rhetoric about ABR/AWR.
19- When talking about ABR/AWR, it is very common to be a hypocrite. This feature is included.
20- Someone started Racismobsoleteweaponofwar’s Blog. This person only wrote three posts. Someone in England has a blog, Obsolete. Dyspeptic, incredulous leftist fashion blogging from someone somewhere. || “Technological progress has merely provided us with more efficient means of going backwards.” — Aldous Huxley || “I take a particularly strong pride in the fact that we have never pushed our commercial interests in our newspapers.” — Rupert Murdoch
21- If you want to see a society without ABR/AWR, worry about yourself. Don’t point fingers at what other people are doing. Worry about what you are doing. It all starts with you.
22- Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”.
Eye Of A Needle
There is a quote attributed to Jesus that many have heard. The key words are rich man and camel. It is interpreted in many ways. One way to begin this discussion is to look at the King James Bible. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress.
16 And, behold, one came and said unto him,
Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good?
[there is] none good but one, [that is], G-d: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder,
Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,
19 Honor thy father and [thy] mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go [and] sell that thou hast,
and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come [and] follow me.
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you,
That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle,
than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
As with all quotes from the bible, a bit of thought is helpful. Was this said only one time, or was this a standard part of his teaching? Was the meaning changed in the transition from Aramaic to Greek to English? Had Jesus been taste testing the water and wine?
With the current vogue for “prosperity gospel”, many Jesusmongers have some splainin’ to do. Once, PG heard the redo blue preacher talking about this quote. His version was that there were caves in the desert where travelers would take a break on their journey. They would go in the cave, use the restroom, eat lunch, and then go on with their journey. The entrance to these caves was sometimes rather small, and it was tough to fit a camel inside.
Another version is about the local geography of Jerusalem. There was a gate in Jerusalem called the eye of the needle. It was a tight fit, and camels had a tough time getting through. Had Jesus been to Jerusalem at this point in his ministry?
According to Biblos.com, the Koran tells the same story. “The impious, who in his arrogance shall accuse our doctrine of falsity, shall find the gates of heaven shut: nor shall he enter there till a camel shall pass through the eye of a needle. It is thus that we shall recompense the wicked.” Al Koran. Surat vii. ver. 37.” (The home page of Biblos has an ad… “What investment is up 18% a year for the last 11 years? Click to see now”)
Whether this quote is fact or fiction, literal or symbolic, it can make for some funny stories. Once PG walked through a living room, while a religious tv show was on. The telepastor was in his church’s private studio, which was not cheap to build and equip. The man was wearing a beautiful preaching costume, which no doubt cost a pretty penny. By the standards of the world, the dude was filthy rich. During the few seconds that PG paid attention, the man on the tv said something about a camel.
Those who go For The Win should take heed of the last verse of Matthew 19.
“But many [that are] first shall be last; and the last [shall be] first.”
The Student And The Professor
Professor : You are a Christian, aren’t you, son ? Student : Yes, sir. Professor: So, you believe in G-d ? Student : Absolutely, sir. Professor : Is G-d good ? Student : Sure. Professor: Is G-d all powerful ? Student : Yes. Professor: My brother died of cancer even though he prayed to G-d to heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But G-d didn’t. How is this G-d good then? Hmm? (Student was silent.) Professor: You can’t answer, can you ? Let’s start again, young fella. Is G-d good? Student : Yes. Professor: Is satan good ? Student : No. Professor: Where does satan come from ? Student : From … G-d … Professor: That’s right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world? Student : Yes. Professor: Evil is everywhere, isn’t it ? And G-d did make everything. Correct? Student : Yes. Professor: So who created evil ? (Student did not answer.) Professor: Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don’t they? Student : Yes, sir. Professor: So, who created them ? (Student had no answer.) Professor: Science says you have 5 Senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son, have you ever seen G-d? Student : No, sir. Professor: Tell us if you have ever heard your G-d? Student : No , sir. Professor: Have you ever felt your G-d, tasted your G-d, smelt your G-d? Have you ever had any sensory perception of G-d for that matter? Student : No, sir. I’m afraid I haven’t. Professor: Yet you still believe in Him? Student : Yes. Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your G-d doesn’t exist. What do you say to that, son? Student : Nothing. I only have my faith. Professor: Yes, faith. And that is the problem Science has. Student : Professor, is there such a thing as heat? Professor: Yes. Student : And is there such a thing as cold? Professor: Yes. Student : No, sir. There isn’t. (The lecture theater became very quiet with this turn of events.) Student : Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don’t have anything called cold. We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we can’t go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it. (There was pin-drop silence in the lecture theater.) Student : What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness? Professor: Yes. What is night if there isn’t darkness? Student : You’re wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light. But if you have no light constantly, you have nothing and its called darkness, isn’t it? In reality, darkness isn’t. If it is, well you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn’t you? Professor: So what is the point you are making, young man ? Student : Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed. Professor: Flawed ? Can you explain how? Student : Sir, you are working on the premise of duality. You argue there is life and then there is death, a good G-d and a bad G-d. You are viewing the concept of G-d as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can’t even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life: just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey? Professor: If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, yes, of course, I do. Student : Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir? (The Professor shook his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the argument was going.) Student : Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor. Are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a scientist but a preacher? (The class was in uproar.) Student : Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor’s brain? (The class broke out into laughter.) Student : Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor’s brain, felt it, touched or smelt it? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures, sir? (The room was silent. The Professor stared at the student, his face unfathomable.) Professor: I guess you’ll have to take them on faith, son. Student : That is it sir … Exactly ! The link between man & G-d is FAITH. That is all that keeps things alive and moving. P.S. I believe you have enjoyed the conversation. And if so, you’ll probably want your friends / colleagues to enjoy the same, won’t you? Forward this to increase their knowledge … or FAITH. By the way, that student was EINSTEIN. // This incident was posted on Facebook. If the student was Albert Einstein, then this discussion took place in German. The comments below were posted about this story. // I hope the class got a refund on their tuition for that day. // This is mindless propaganda, pure and simple. First of all, there’s no way that Einstein was the student in question. Secondly, not only has evolution been observed in the past, but it’s actually still happening right now. Third, the professor seems to switch from being a philosopher to a science midway. This is a clear signal that this is a compilation of two different stories. Fourth, most of the student’s arguments are just plane stupid. Cold does exist. Science defines cold as the absence of movement. To say that absence doesn’t exist is silly and makes it sound like you think that everything is constantly moving or that the “student” doesn’t understand the difference between the word “cold” and the physical process that we call cold, that slows down the movement of things. I could keep going but almost every sentence of this thing is just dead wrong. // That doesn’t sound like Einstein at all, lol. // Lol @ evolution hasn’t been observed. Try some penicillin next time you get a staph infection. // “It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one.” wtf rofl . this is such a dumb copy pasta. also I don’t even like to let theists get into philosophical arguments about deities. I don’t have philosophical arguments about leprechauns or unicorns. The only arguments for actual proof of a deity just come from arguments of ignorance “i don’t know how something works, therefore G-d did it.” // Hmmm… I feel like the “heat/cold” argument is subjective in a way, hence the presentation by this “student”. I presume that the basis of the “evolution” argument was solely focused on events such as macro species (e.g. fish to frog, frog to lizard, etc.). I have seen some quotes accredited to Einstein which deal with G-d and support Einstein’s belief in some form of “G-d”. Whether this quote or these words (possibly paraphrased) are of Einstein is another matter (some citation might be nice). I’ve heard the argument “gravity is a theory” and I do feel that there is some degree of “faith” that we place into our scientific observations and conclusions on the world we perceive around us. I do see the idea of believing in a supreme being or even an interdimensional, omnipotent/-vox/-present/-scient being as believing in a theoretical conclusion, just the way I see holding to the conclusion of gravity as a theoretical conclusion. Does that justify some of the backwards ish that goes on in the name of religion (or “G-d”)? HECK NO. I do see the existence of a “G-d” and the idea of that G-d kickstarting a big bang or some other process as a possibility. As an observer and enthusiast of science, I encourage you to challenge or argue against that perspective if you feel inclined to do so. // having faith in gravity is different from having faith in a magical being. you have faith in gravity based on measurable evidence. having faith in a deity that “created” the big bang (whatever that means) is based solely on ignorance (not trying to be offensive but that’s the best word). We are all ignorant of a lot of things, but just because humanity can’t explain every single mystery in the observable universe doesn’t give any validation to the G-d argument. // the agnostic approach of “well i can’t prove it DOESNT exist” is a waste of time. there are an infinite amount of things that you can’t PROVE don’t exist, but the severe lack of evidence (none whatsoever) leads you to believe that they are false. // Christians who claim that macroevolution has never been observed are either completely ignorant or are intentionally trying to mislead others. No scientist has ever said that fish give birth to frogs or that a monkey ever gave birth to a human. Period. End of story. Macroevolution and microevolution are the exact same cthing and are composed of the exact same processes. Microevolution and speciation have both been observed in the modern era, thus evolution has been observed. That’s it. It’s over. As for the idea that “gravity is a theory”, this is just more ignorance of science. I challenge anyone that really believes that “gravity is a theory” to jump off the Empire State Building. If it’s just a “theory” it could be wrong…right? // I understand that there is measurable evidence for gravity; what I am saying is that it is possible that another explanation may be more valid for why that reaction occurs. Also, I am hecking out the dialogue on Gabrielle’s post. If this is indeed a misquote, then I find that to be a shame. :) Okay, let’s look at the Epicurus quote. I’ll cut to the chase; the last line is the one I agree with most, because it allows room for the existence of some “G-dlike” being or force, even if they (the being or force) lack the *agency* or means to expel all evil, which, at the very least, is a *possibility*. It does lack measurable evidence, yes. I hold that is is a possibility, which I feel deserves some consideration (science fantasy, ho!). // I’m taking this conversation in a different direction. Everyone is encouraged to address the previous subject or this one as they choose. I kind of have this idea of “G-d” as having a greater knowledge/power/ability than that of a human, only being held back by certain stipulations and “principles” (those self-defined and those imposed by other parties). As far as possibilities go, might this be an explanation to the questions presented by Epicurus? Maybe “G-d” as a title was convenient for some purposes (i.e., leading a (created) race of beings). Maybe a third party placed the title upon them. Maybe it was self-imposed even with the knowledge that it was, from another perspective(s), untrue. // Another explanation is always possible for everything. Why even bring that up. I mean, you think G-d created the universe but how do you know it wasn’t aliens? I mean, I’m not sayin’ it’s aliens,but…it’s aliens! I just want you to imagine having that conversation with someone. You’re talking about evidence and facts and their reply is, “yeah, but…aliens”. And as for the Epicurus thing, you’ve walked right into it, mayne. If G-d has limitations, then G-d isn’t all-powerful. And if G-d isn’t all-powerful and has claimed to be all-powerful (as the G-d in the Bible so obviously has) that means that G-d is a liar on top of not being omnipotent. So how exactly does that solve the Problem of Evil? And you begin this new conversation by saying that you don’t have any proof but you still think it’s a possibility? I mean, I’m not gonna say that aliens made you say that., but…it’s aliens. // Heehee. Hmmm. I sense there’s some sensitivity about this issue and I can understand the source of it in certain respects. I do like the idea of possibility, because I’m a science fantasy enthusiast. At the same time, I like the evidence basis of science, therefore, I welcome being challenged on my perspectives. I welcome you all to give me your feedback in the days to come on my ideas. ^^// This is propoganda, pure and simple. Notice the confrontational authority figure who attacks his student’s beliefs but is usurped by him. Also notice the completely fake attribution of the story to Einstein. And blatantly incorrect assertions like evolution being unobservable, a human brain being unobservable, that science doesn’t “understand” electricity and magnetism. I am not an atheist and my boyfriend is Catholic. Both of us detest this ignorant, manipulative articles that make science and faith look like they’re mortal enemies, or that rely entirely on the “G-d of the gaps”. // Pictures are from The Library of Congress.
Organized, Boisterous, Overbearing
PG got the gang bang email. There were three pictures, which are included in this post. The text is below, with a reaction to follow. The black and white pictures are from The Library of Congress .
When 2nd Lt. James Cathey’s body arrived at the Reno Airport , Marines climbed into the cargo hold of the plane and draped the flag over his casket as passengers watched the family gather on the tarmac. During the arrival of another Marine’s casket last year at Denver International Airport , Major Steve Beck described the scene as so powerful: ‘See the people in the windows? They sat right there in the plane, watching those Marines. You gotta wonder what’s going through their minds, knowing that they’re on the plane that brought him home,’ he said. ‘They will remember being on that plane for the rest of their lives. They’re going to remember bringing that Marine home. And they should.’
The night before the burial of her husband’s body, Katherine Cathey refused to leave the casket, asking to sleep next to his body for the last time. The Marines made a bed for her, tucking in the sheets below the flag. Before she fell asleep, she opened her laptop computer and played songs that reminded her of ‘Cat,’ and one of the Marines asked if she wanted them to continue standing watch as she slept. ‘I think it would be kind of nice if you kept doing it,’ she said. ‘I think that’s what he would have wanted’.
Very soon, you will see a great many people wearing blue every Friday. The reason? Americans who support our troops used to be called the ‘silent majority.’ We are no longer silent, and are voicing our love for G-d, country and home in record breaking numbers. We are not organized, boisterous or overbearing. Many Americans, like you, me and all our friends, simply want to recognize that the vast majority of America supports our troops.
Our idea of showing solidarity and support for our troops with dignity and respect starts this Friday — and continues each and every Friday until the troops all come home, sending a deafening message that every red-blooded American who supports our men and women afar, will wear something blue. By word of mouth, press, TV — let’s make the United States on every Friday a sea of blue much like a homecoming football game in the bleachers. If every one of us who loves this country will share this with acquaintances, coworkers, friends, and family, it will not be long before the USA is covered in BLUE and it will let our troops know the once ‘silent’ majority is on their side more than ever. The first thing a soldier says when asked ‘What can we do to make things better for you?’ is: ‘We need your support and your prayers.’ Let’s get the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example, and wear something blue every Friday.
IF YOU AGREE — THEN SEND THIS ON.
IF YOU COULDN’T CARE LESS — THEN HIT THE DELETE BUTTON.
Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you:
1. Jesus Christ 2. The American G. I.
One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.
YOU MIGHT WANT TO PASS THIS ON, AS MANY SEEM TO FORGET BOTH OF THEM.
PG would like to forget about Jesus, who had been the source of untold misery. The trouble is Jesus worshipers. They are organized, boisterous and overbearing. They have so much fun with their Jesus party, they don’t notice the pain of their neighbor. Even if they did notice, they would not care.
Jesus may, or may not, be the Christ. He was killed because the authorities were angry with him. The death of Jesus has nothing to do with what happens to PG when he dies. If Jesus wants to do something “For your soul”, he would tell his organized, boisterous and overbearing believers to make less noise.
It is tough to see how the death of a single soldier in Afghanistan helps ensure our freedom. The war is a disaster. We have gotten our revenge for 911. It is time to bring the troops home now. This is the best way to support the troops.
Every person in these three photographs is caucasian. (We do not know who is in either coffin.) There are no pictures of an Afghani boy, who father was killed by a drone when he went to a funeral. There is no picture of a Pashtun wife, whose husband was arrested in a night raid, after being ratted out by a neighbor. Pictures only tell part of the story.
The phrase “silent majority” was coined during the Vietnam war. This war was fought by an army of conscripted soldiers, who had no choice but to go and die. America lost 59,000 soldiers, while the two Vietnams lost untold millions. Eventually, the people turned against this war. Maybe it was not a majority that opposed the Vietnam war, but it was a large enough minority to force the government to accept a worthless peace treaty.
IF YOU AGREE — THEN SEND THIS ON.
IF YOU COULDN’T CARE LESS — THEN HIT THE DELETE BUTTON.
There is a third option. If your heart is sick from the wasted lives, both American soldiers and Afghani men, women, and children, speak up. If your soul cries out from the pain of having Jesus shoved down your throat, write something. You might not be a majority, but you do have a voice. Being organized, boisterous, and overbearing is optional. Please don’t write in all caps.
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