Atheism

So you do understand quotation marks?

Here’s a for instance:

This was a couple of weeks ago when husband was finally stable enough to be released from the trauma section in the ER, and taken up to a regular room.

The nurse was going through her usual admittance questions for the records, which I was answering, and came to “Religion?”

I replied “None”

She said, clicking something off, “Ok, non-denominational”

To which I replied “No. I said None”

I one of those almost imperceptible “looks”, plus a slight pursing of the lips, but she did change the selection.

There was also a young man in the room, who had been busy for the last 15 minutes attaching all these wires to husbands head, to monitor seizure activity. He had been delightful, and we had been chatting about all manner of things, from Proust to astronomy to Netflix to the fact Matthew McConaughy atttends the same church as he does to his girlfriends love of architecture. After that exchange with the nurse, he just didn’t have much to say.

A shame, I really liked him.

Not that you'd care, but I find that hard to believe.

Sounds like you are living in a world where alien body snatchers have taken over and you and hubby are the last ones.

I get that. I feel the same way sometimes. Minus the hubby.

That's right, I don't care what religious nutters think.

As an adult, the only church services I have attended were held during my six weeks of boot training, in 1962, excluding weddings and such. It was not a total waste. I used some of those Sundays to visit the Jewish camp, to get a taste of their god delusion. The rabbi was surprisingly adult about it. He held discussions, rather than preaching at us. It did not seem religious at all. I have often wondered: If I had been religious, would I have preferred the Jewish treatment, if it did not seem like a church? Or a hell-fire and brimstone Baptist wild man? Or the endless Catholic ceremony? The Buddhism I studied seemed deceptively simple at times. Ultimately, not for me. I have no familiarity with the other isms. Hard to say where I might have gone, for, I would be a different person, to be thinking that way at all.

Animalism (nagualism or theriocentrism), the originalist religion, would be my choice. All civilizations were build on the back of a turtle! Easy to understand and doesn't fill the pockets of a _____ Supremacist with money.

If I were a Hindu, would I murder people who disrespect cows? Tough call.

Some do.



https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jul/20/mobs-killing-muslims-india-narendra-modi-bjp

Like Christians shooting up abortion clinics

I was of course not endorsing the stupidity, but calling attention to it. As I mentioned earlier, I would have to be a totally different person to accept any of the religious nonsense.

Well said.

It's not all nurture. There is also nature. And never discount choice.

Ricky Gervais is a transphobic bigot, and you do atheism no favours at all by linking it to that rancid pile of ****.

You do yourself no favours suggesting I speak for all atheists. Or that for assuming endorsement of one thought of a person means endorsement for all that person says or does.

Really Iz - get a grip. You're smarter than that.

Ricky Gervais remains a disgusting human being. I never suggested that you speak for all atheists, but when you quote a repulsive bigot like that it gives the impression you share his bigoted views.

Are you also transphobic?

Are we talking about the joke Gervais made at the Golden Globes about Jenner, and then his segway into further material on Humanity, his latest Netflix special?

FWIW, here's 1 of my 2 cents, in absolutely no particular order.

Ricky, towards the end of that special, or another one, did a heartbreaking, and to me stomach churning few minutes on the abuse of animals. Ya see, animals cannot speak for themselves. They get tortured in private, and in public, and all they can do is cower, try to avoid the hands and knives, and suffer immensely. The people that do this are confident their acts will remain secret. Now, those are disgusting human beings.

Trans, and other members of the LGBTQ community, have a loud clear voice, and will use it not only when needed, but also at times unnecessarily at the least provocation. I get it in that this is a new freedom for them, and are still testing the waters for when someone is truly being abused, or if it's just something they didn't personally like. All it takes in the world is for one person to get in a snit and say "I don't like that" and way too many people jump on the bandwagon acting like it's the end of the world.

For animals, it is the end of their world. For people, who hear something that is really minor, well, sometimes you need to just suck it up.

Was I, as a woman, supposed to get all insulted by the punchline of the GG joke about women drivers? I'd guess I'd have more to complain about than Jenner, or another trans. I've listened to that stuff for decades. Should I go organize a parade and wave a flag?

Oh, and commiting the deadly sin of calling a trans person by the wrong pronoun, even when it's part of a joke?

I grew up with a surname that sounded like a combination of one of the walking dead, and a country in Africa. Ya think I didn't hear comments about that? My last name now is to me the simpliest of names. It's a bird, or one of those big machines that hoists things around. Don't know how, but it's spelling is constantly massacred. My first name, 5 letters sounds and looks similar to another name, 3 letters. I am constantly called the shorter name, and I hate it It personally insults me if they continue to do that after being corrected. My name is important to me. But, I realize the individual doing it isn't being malicious. Was Gervais being malicious? Perhaps a little. But, it was being addressed to those who have a loud clear voice, but choose to use it some chicken **** back door complaints on social media.

There isn't one commedian, actor, artist, sales clerk, person in any profession that does everything 100% to everyones satisfaction.

I don't think Gervais joke, or the subsequent follow up re sexual reassignment surgery, was going to prompt anyone to go out and beat up a trans person. And if it did, the trans community, nay everyone, would speak out.

Who though is speaking out for the slime that at this moment are torturing animals, and getting away with it?

Gervais did.

So is Gervais, or anyone in this world always perfectly politically correct?
Of course not.
But if the animal rights part of his routine made even one person decide to report someone abusing an animal, to me that way more that makes up for saying the word "he" instead of "she" or talking about hairy testicles (which BTW Izzy, you post enough cartoons with pictures like that, and it insults me), or dangly bits.

Trans people suffer discrimination, abuse, and even murder all the time. The life expectancy of trans people is significantly lower than Cis people.

Gervais is a bigot who attacks vulnerable people. He doesn't attack the rich and powerful. He is scum.

When Brunei has just announced it will stone LGBT people now is not the time to start cheering for more discrimination.

Btw, most trans people loathe Jenner.

Sure he does make jokes about the rich and powerful. All the time. For one, he makes fun of social media, which is today apparantly the ultimate in power.
He makes fun of government, politians, the church, Hollywood,

Don't know what the bee in your bonnet is about Gervais, but he is just like the rest of us. Imperfect.

What, like you've never laughed at a joke someone else would see as improper?

I think people are a little bit stronger than that. I have belief no one is going to crumble over jokes that were designed to shock, and subsequently, get people thinking.

Reminds me of this bumper sticker I see around that says "If you're not completely appalled, you're not paying attention".....yeah well, like is just too short to be completely appalled at all times, over everything.

What's it being called now? Outrage culture? Gotta just be outraged about every little thing, taking up all the good time I could have had looking at some flowers on the side of the road while at a stop light. Just constantly have to be looking at some way to be butt hurt, even when it doesn't mean the end of the world.

We are, as a culture, so obsessed with being obsessed over the wrong thing, we miss the obvious answer. Overall, be decent. I can't call a person scum because of one set of jokes, over one subject, when overall he makes excellent comedic observations about so many other things.

We get so easily sidetracked over what really matters. Off topic, but a burr is my side are people who are constantly coming up with ways to guilt trip others over "saving the planet" First off, too little, too late, but mainly, don't tell people what planet rapers they are over a plastic cup not being put in the recycle bin, when the obvious answer is stop having so many ******* kids.

Oh no, Gervais made a joke that offended someone. He also outed the (in the animals eyes) the power people that torture them. It's all perspective.
Personally, I would save an animal any day over getting crazy the a trans woman was called "he".






Also, what do I care what trans people (in general, obviously not as individuals) think of Jenner?
Well, except that Jenner is rich....and I suppose in some way powerful as far as social media....and he made a joke about this rich and powerful woman.

Do you like racist jokes Chai? Do you like jokes about mentally disabled people? What about jokes about Holocaust victims, do you think they're funny?

We had a thing called alternative comedy back in the 80s where comics showed you can be funny without attacking minorities, that bigotry and comedy aren't the same thing.

Gervais is a throw back to that era. He's smug, unfunny and picks on those least able to defend themselves.

He's a truly repulsive individual.