I’m watching a mob of Sudanese on CNN marching to demand the execution of a teacher who “allowed” her 7 year old students to name a teddy bear Mohammed.
Last year, a huge brouhaha broke our in Kabul after an Afghani
converted to Christianity and was sentenced to death as a result.
My earlier post included the letter from the RV park host warning that “Muslim mosques are “Hate America Centers””.
I don’t remember the last time an agnostic killed an atheist over his or her religious views.
I can’t count the number of catholic/protestant/muslim/hindu/mormons killed because they weren’t catholic/protestant/muslim/hindu/mormons.
What the hell is wrong with you people?
Is it possible that God hates religion as much as I do? It’s really not hard to imagine. In fact, I take it as an article of faith.
6 comments:
I heard about that on the news today of Sudan.
Tolerance.
It's all about tolerance.
Which is not exactly instinct...it has to be learned and taught and practiced and appreciated.
Brutality in the name of man-made loosely interpreted religion is especially frustrating since most of these religions at their truest foundation, do not preach that people should kill each other...mob mentality. fervor.
but. point being. Leave it to humans to muck everything up by claiming truth and assumptions. Whether they be Aethiest or Hindu's.
Instinct allows humans to harden their hearts for their beliefs.
There is an interesting battle within the Hasidic jewish community where I live, in which there has already been a related murder: http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071015/NEWS/710150365
I appreciate now that I was raised within a Jewish, Muslim, Communist, Catholic, Hindu, Black, White, Latin etc. community. There was general tolerance for others traditions, regardless of how different we were from each other. We were not right, only different (although it was not even near perfect either). I am assuming it was the general tolerance of the city we were raised in...or maybe because we were all children of immigrants who had other things to worry about...or something like that.
carla's hit the nail on the head, and i've been trying to drive this particular nail into the heads of everyone i know for a very long time. tolerance...
the guys in the funny wigs who ginned this whole democratic republic idea up 200 years ago apparently knew something that nearly every single american has forgotten, and which most people on the planet never learned - if you want to create a society in which the rule of law, intellectual and spiritual freedom and REASON can not only flourish, but EXPLODE, you have to make tolerance the bedrock foundation of the whole enterprise. and, i'm talking about radical tolerance here, not some wimpy, liberal, elitist idea of tolerance, but tolerance for the worst things that the human mind can conceive - but, BUT, only insofar as they are conceived by the human mind and/or expressed by the human being(s) holding those ideas/thoughts/bizarre beliefs, etc.. which is what the constitution of this great country is designed to address, or was, until tight-ass, moralistic fascists started monkeying with it.
we've all heard the old trope, used to describe just what limits the constitution places on those of us who are supposed to submit to its authority? "your right to swing your arm ends where it meets my face." as long as the thoughts/ideas/bizarre beliefs we choose to embrace bring no physical harm to our fellow human beings, i say let the airwaves be filled with the craziest shit you can imagine.
notice i said "physical harm?" i, for one, don't believe we can on the one hand say we are for freedom of speech and, on the other hand, limit what that freedom means. in the case of the classic, "does the first amendment protect your right to yell 'fire' in a crowded movie house?" i think it makes sense to come down on the side of safety and avoid the panic that might ensue. i, however, would defend to the death anyone's right to yell "raghead," "nigger," "faggot" "kike," "corndog-lover," whatever, anywhere the poor fool wanted to yell it.
that's tolerance. it ain't pretty, and it's often hurtful to the corndog-lovers of the world, but what are you going to do? expend a lot of time and effort rounding up the corndog-haters and throwing them in prison? no, you teach your children, and everyone else you come in contact with, that you think the corndog-haters are wrong, and give them thoughtful reasons for thinking so, and you hope rational thought wins out.
or, you declare war on the corndog-haters and beat them into submission...
those are the only alternatives we have, my friends, as i see it, if what we're trying to do is create a world where we can all live together in something like harmony - we can be living examples of tolerance, or we can continue to react to the intolerance of others. the intolerant may "win" ultimately, but what kind of victory is it where what you're left with, at the end of the day (or the world), is a burning slab occupied by people just lke you (whom you will begin to hate in a few minutes)?
Scratch the surface of intolerance and you'll find insecurity. Basic human insecurity is the root of all evil. Mixed with fear of loss of control, fear of no food, no job, no human connection, no home, we've got crazed mobs outraged to the point of murder over a teddy bear named Mohammed, laws protecting gay rights, women seeking abortions, a Muslim converting to Christianity...etc....
Let's all just get secure, O.K.?
The biggest loudest most outspoken brutal people are the most insecure.I remember Steve taking me skiing when I was like six, and we saw all these bad ass looking bikers at a rest stop, in rural PA. I remember he told me they weren't tough. He said, the tougher they look, the more insecure they are. He told me to watch out for the quiet calm person. They got power.
It's one of those memories that has stayed close with me and I think influenced a lot of my life. I am sure Steve will not remember it, it was said in passing.
Anecdote to reinforce the point.
Scratch the surface of intolerance, and there you'll find insecurity.(Or scratch the surface of a poser-bikers leather jacket...)
I think you had a post on here before, about fear in this country.
Fear is the killer.
We must face fear and swallow it.
I feel like that gives us a piece of our humanity. We face our worst fears, and swallow them. It takes a lot of courage and trust. Trusting in what?? Answer that and you get that special piece of yourself that will make you whole.(Whether it be family, friends, love, breathing, the absorbing strength of a mountain, the mystery of wind, history, tides, the moon, the Hubble telescope, old light, knot theory, computer programming, or filipino prisoners dancing to Michael Jackson's Thriller in perfect unison!,
{http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMnk7lh9M3o}
Intolerance is to forget that they too are human and have family, friends, children, nephews, nieces, hopes and Michael Jackson.(Or Aaron Neville singing Cry Me a River, DAMN!)
Tolerance is spiritual.
Like Carla said, it is to be learned and practiced. It is not our 98% selves(That's right Rick) that is tolerant. It is the 2% self that has to choose to be so. Face that fear, insecurity, and swallow it. Absorb like a quiet mountain.(Is that way too Hemingwayesque?)
But I mean, these are just ramblings of a guy who is related to two world class ramblers.
Oh,
and Rick has a great point of tolerance not being pretty, like it's all ok, and we're all going to get along great. Corn-dog lovers. It isn't sweet, but frankly, I can't eat to many sweets. Makes my mouth hurt, and I feel crappy afterwards. I like bitter greens, and roasted vegetables.
Also Rick's last paragraph reminds me of a Tolstoy short story I love.
"Ivan the Fool" Check it out.
i don't think i ever reminded anyone of tolstoy before. must be the beard...
i'm thinking i'd vote for most of the folks posting their ideas here, before i'd vote for most of the morons we're going to be given the chance to elect next year.
unless one of y'all actually decides to run, then i'll have to vote for ross perot, again.
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