It wouldn't bother me so much if a) it weren't just about the only thing some people seem concerned about, and b) there was more charity in considering other points of view. But in regards to point b, it seems to be taken for granted in here that an outraged atheism is obviously the more reasonable response, and that any more moderate view of the situation is dangerous for underestimating the threat posed by religion. In in regards to point a, there are so many other topics that ought to concern us that it seems to me dangerous to put so much effort into scrutinizing every episode with a religious connection that we don't talk about other topics as well. If you need an illustration of my point, take a look at this sub-forum. I and others have raised any number of topics related to politics, current events and history, but almost the only threads that take off are the ones that render religion in the simplest of terms. If there were more posts about subject that don't dwell at length on the dangers of religion, I'd probably roll my eyes less at the ones that do.Mr. Pessimistic wrote:The main thing here Mad is that you KNOW that this place is (or was until recently) a place more geared towards atheists. So you should expect this to be a legit issue for most of us here. For you to continually show disdain or grist towards topics like this...I just dont get it.
Right. And if it came in the context of a broader discussion of what the candidates stand for, then I'd have made my comment and moved on to something more interesting. But as it stands, we're not discussing the presidential candidates, save for this one guy, who is practically a non-contender, and his religious beliefs.Like it or not, this is political, if ONLY because he is running for President.
For the record, I've never tried to belittle your concerns. Having another person wield their beliefs as a hegemony over your own (or even your lack of beliefs) is a serious thing. But I think there's a bad tendency in this forum to 1) make a big deal out of episodes that really don't amount to much, 2) ignore other serious issues by concentrating solely on religion, 3) ignore certain issues that have serious implications for atheism, and 4) disparage any attempts made by theists to contribute to a level discussion of atheism. If, for example, I attempt to raise the point that atheism faces problems, with regard to substantiating and systemizing ethics, that don't particularly plague religious ethical systems, that's automatically interpreted as an attack on atheism, rather than as an invitation to discuss how naturalistic philosophy can address those problems. With the responses I've gotten in the past, you'd think I'd been trying to stage prayer vigils and re-orientation seminars on the site.Enough with the attempts to belittle our concerns already.
But I relent. You guys are welcome to talk about Huckabee's religion all you like. Use this thread as a staging ground for protests and petitions, if you want -- I've said my piece about it, and I don't intend to push the point further.