Another Irksome Seasonal Experience

[AZMike]

Those who are upset about celebrating Christmas in the schools could file a complaint with the ACLU, but their offices are closed on Christmas.

 

 

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

State ACLU affiliates handle requests for legal assistance, not the national ACLU, so it depends on which state you're in.

 

I realize you were trying to be funny... trying...

[Brewmeister]

I'd be willing to bet that if a group of atheists set up a display in the public square to celebrate one of their own special holidays, whenever those days might be, or perhaps looked to highlight the public works and philanthropy of some renowned athiests or atheistic societies, whatever those efforts might be, that there wouldn't be any sort of counter display from undie-bundled Judeo Christian devotees.

 

I've also noticed over time that, as a rule, anti-theists tend not to mock religions where there is a chance that their head would be unceremoniously removed from their body by militant members of said religion for mocking it.

[RememberSchiff]

I dunno Merlyn, I responded with a "hahaha" to AZMike's effort at humor.

 

Using the internet laugh meter as measuring device

http://www.desipad.com/image-video-gallery/41998-laugh-meter.html

 

AZMike is "genuinely funny".

 

Merry Christmas Merlyn. Peace on Earth and Goodwill Towards All.

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

I'd be willing to bet that if a group of atheists set up a display in the public square to celebrate one of their own special holidays, whenever those days might be, or perhaps looked to highlight the public works and philanthropy of some renowned athiests or atheistic societies, whatever those efforts might be, that there wouldn't be any sort of counter display from undie-bundled Judeo Christian devotees.

 

You'd lose. There are already quite a large number of cases where billboards that say "Don't believe in god? Join the club" or similar have been vandalized.

http://current.com/groups/atheism/92161728_sacramento-atheist-billboard-vandalized.htm

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2010/03/02/more-atheist-billboard-vandalization/

http://www.khq.com/Global/story.asp?S=11355159

http://www.khq.com/global/story.asp?s=11443349

http://www.examiner.com/article/california-atheist-billboard-vandalized-3-days-after-going-up

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2010/08/31/another-atheist-billboard-vandalized/

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2012/12/21/atheist-billboard-vandalized-near-roanoke-virginia/

http://preliatorcausa.blogspot.com/2009/10/another-atheist-billboard-defaced.html

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2012/11/atheist_billboard_sponsored_by.html

http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/6193539-atheists-billboard-vandalized

 

That's only a partial list, I assume you can use google.

 

I've also noticed over time that, as a rule, anti-theists tend not to mock religions where there is a chance that their head would be unceremoniously removed from their body by militant members of said religion for mocking it.

 

Oh wait, atheists have:

http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/03/01/atheist-group-targets-muslims-jews-with-myth-billboards-in-arabic-and-hebrew/

 

Now, of course, it's more dangerous when religious lunatics control the local government:

http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2012/12/14/the-freedom-of-thought-2012-report-the-non-religious-are-still-being-persecuted/

http://www.secularism.org.uk/news/2012/12/new-report-shows-widespread-discrimination-against-people-without-religious-belief

 

I've noticed, as a rule, anti-atheists try to mock atheists for not mocking Islam, but fail to mock Islam themselves, because they are just cowards.

[Brewmeister]

Unlike you, I don't need to mock any religion. So you'd be wrong, again. Now just sit their your wrongness and be wrong.

[qwazse]

I prefer not to mock people's religions (or lack thereof) out of fear of wrath of the God who called them into existence.

 

But I've had friends with no such fear feel quite justified in abuses along the lines that Meryl described.

 

That doesn't stop me from pointing out the difference between a guy in a silly hat reading a fairy tale and an Orthodox veneration of a bishop of the Church.

 

I really hope nobody sees that as mocking.

[Merlyn_LeRoy]

Unlike you, I don't need to mock any religion.

 

No, you only mock atheists, and atheism isn't a religion.

 

clap.

 

clap.

 

clap.

 

So you'd be wrong, again.

 

About what? I never referred to anything YOU'D do... unless you want to admit you're an anti-atheist.

 

Now just sit their your wrongness and be wrong.

 

No, I'll continue to mock your cowardly "challenges" for atheists to mock Muslims, even though we've already done that.

 

[Eamonn]

Kinda hope that I'd never go out of my way to knowingly disrespect anyone.

 

I get it, that people have different ideas and different beliefs than I have.

This doesn't make them right or wrong. Or make me right or wrong.

It would be nice if rather than stressing or what might be right or wrong or what divides us. That we as people who live on the same planet look for and find things that bring us together and we work to fix the things that are clearly wrong.

 

I have never been really hungry.

But I think if I was I wouldn't care who fed me, just as long as I was getting something to eat.

 

Maybe a public school isn't the right place for religious displays that not everyone feels happy participating in?

Maybe it's a little too easy for people like me to shake their heads and ask what's the harm?

 

Still with no disrespect to anyone, I can't wait for the day when the most important thing we have to fight about or disagree about is some guy who wants to wear a silly hat and read a poem to a bunch of kids.

Sadly I don't ever think that day will come.

Ea.

[skeptic]

Well, we took cubs and scouts to an assisted living place on Friday evening, and I wore my other Santa hat, the one with pins on it with seasonal quotes, including "Jesus is the Reason for the Season", and we sang both secular and religious songs, and I read the poem. No complaints, just lots of smiles and some following along.

 

"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!"

[packsaddle]

There are a couple of things I'm not clear on. What IS this hat people are talking about? And why is it silly? And as long as we're mixing these things up across threads (or, at least, I am), what kind of gun would Jesus choose to guard the classes he's reading to?

I mean like OMG, this is all kind of confusing.

[skeptic]

Pack; read the first entry, and it will all clear up, hopefully.

[packsaddle]

OK, we're still talking about Santa Claus. I guess I just don't think the Santa hat is silly. At least not as silly as these PC arguments...so I mostly ignore them and if someone objects, they're free to dock the pay of this volunteer.

[Eamonn]

" I guess I just don't think the Santa hat is silly."

What is and what isn't silly is very much to the individual.

Had a little walk around Wally-World a week or so back, seen lots of Santa Hats on sale.

Red hats, blue hats one that was able to sing Grand-Ma got ran over by a reindeer.

That to my mind does seem silly.

Of course that's just my opinion.

 

Every year I buy another Santa for HWMBO to add to her collection of Santa's.

This time of the year they take over the top of the fireplace and the bookcase.

On top of my desk there are snowmen, some who play the piano and sing Christmas songs.

 

I'm a Roman Catholic. Lord knows that the Lives of The Saints was required reading material for me when I was a little shorter than I am now.

Sure enough Saint Nicholas (Nikolaos of Myra) was on the list.

He is listed as being the Patron Saint of: of sailors, merchants, archers, thieves, children, pawnbrokers and students.

Kinda like the idea that thieves have their own Patron Saint!

 

I wonder what Nikolaos might think if he came back and was able to see that he is now not just a Saint but also closely associated with selling coke a cola?

 

Of course as a kid growing up in England the jolly old Saint was known as Father Christmas.

As a kid I remember being taken to the big department stores down town not far from where I lived. One year to get to see him I remember having to take a ride on a space ship.

 

For me, especially as a child Saints were important.

They stood as examples of how to live a good life and maybe work my way into Heaven.

Today?

While I still love the example of what they stood and stand for. I'm not sure how much of what is out there is really true or not?

 

I'm OK with my idea of what my God is.

I try not to push my ideas on others.

If my saying that the hat is silly has offend anyone?

I'm sorry.

But if wearing a hat in a public place becomes more important than kids dieing in Africa or people starving here in the USA.

I can't help but feel that I must have missed that memo.

Ea.

[packsaddle]

Patron Saint of thieves, now THAT is interesting!

No, you don't offend me. I guess 'silly' IS in the mind of the beholder, like many offenses these days.

 

Since Santa lives and mostly operates using tools and animals from the extreme north, Lapland comes to mind here, I like to think of him in terms of the Finnish or Scandinavian tradition, an evil being who does really bad things to people, especially children but brings gifts once a year to attone. "He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake..."

Kind of creepy, actually.