As this is a forum populated by very liberal viewpoints -- meaning most of you will disagree with me -- I'll keep it brief.
I like you,
Disch, but I think you are deceived by the current social trend of believing that every citizen is a qualified armchair philosopher.
The US prides itself as being accepting of all different forms of religion. And while I would agree it's better than many other countries in the world, I still think it doesn't quite live up to its hype. |
No nation will ever live up to some ideal hype -- since there will always be bigotry of some kind. What you miss is this:
(1) The US really is the de-facto standard of multiculturalism. No other nation covers such a diverse collection of people living and working together as we do.
(2) Bigotry comes, for the most part, from economic and class issues. Any sociologist can tell you this. Some, such as racism and the like, is a generational issue, but the root cause remains the same, both then and now.
There is a very strong push towards Christianity (and other similarly related religions) which may not be apparent to most people here... since most people here tend to follow those doctrines. But really... the push is so strong it has infiltrated the government in numerous ways and continues to dictate and/or influence many of our laws. |
The vast majority of the people in the US are Christian. And Christians typically consider it part of their faith to try to help others to see the light, as it were. So, yes, there is a bit of a pro-Christian way of thinking in our society.
That is a far cry from the claim that some ambiguous "push" towards Christianity has
infiltrated the government.
Sadly, you're just spouting propaganda. Sorry.
Yes, the vast majority of people believe in God. We here in the US believe in government that is most pragmatic for the most good for most people. So you poor atheists will have to learn to live with everyone else's delusion. Fortunately for you, you are equal under the law, and always have been. (Which is different from the treatment you may regularly receive from ignorant people!)
A particularly outrageous example... |
And misplaced, since the idea is something that will never happen. "Allah" is a foreign word. Why would we put a loaded, foreign word for "God" on our national currency? This has nothing to do with religion. Just pure common sense. It's a red herring designed to puff up your argument and indignation.
An even larger imposition is the requirement to swear an oath on the bible before giving testimony in court. |
Where, today, does anyone do that? Can you name a place that isn't in some small, backwoods town where
everyone is Christian? Can you name two?
How about this: Can you name a place where a non-Christian has been
forced (and this is your argument -- that somehow people are forced to do this) to swear on the Bible? Or that he or she has been abused in some way for refusing to do so?
It is patently obvious that "swearing on the Bible" is an old tradition designed to get people to make an oath over something they hold dear. We think that that used to mean something (supposedly), but again, in modern society oaths are meaningless. Our society is one in which lying is acceptable in almost any circumstance, except, ostensively, in cases where purjury is an issue -- as in court. Whether there lies a bible before you or not means nothing to the liar.
Christianity in particular is not very flexible when it comes to worshiping false idols. In fact, a significant portion of the Old Testament is full of stories of God smiting nonbelievers. Yet by requiring a Muslim to swear on the Bible you're asking (or rather, legally requiring) them to do exactly that. |
I don't know where you've been, but Christians are shockingly flexible when it comes to worshiping your favorite idol -- both in and out of church. The Bible may forbid it, but you can't argue both points.
Asking a Muslim to swear on the bible may be offensive to him (or her), but it is not tantamount to asking him to worship false idols. Besides which, we've already hashed this point as 'not the case'.
Though what really startles me about the current situation is not the above mentioned platitudes toward God, but rather the intermingling of arbitrary Christian dogma into federal and state law. |
Woah, you're startled now? Something new and different has happened?
This is just a vague prelude for...
The most prominent example of this is marriage equality. There is literally no reason same-sex marriage should be illegal anywhere |
Ah ha! We get to the point of your rant.
You are angry that some (large number of) people think it inappropriate and offensive to have same-sex marriages.
(apart from personal religious beliefs or bigotry |
Apart from your own, you mean?
There is far more to the issue than the moral underpinnings of a young, self-righteous, 'eat drink and be merry'/liberal-minded person.
I'm not, frankly, interested in debating anyone here on the pros and cons of same-sex marriages.
I am, however, going to point out that there is much more to the issue than you present. Or than you seek to use to dismiss the other side as close-minded, bigoted, brainwashed religionists.
Now, I know that most of you will disagree with me and my opinion (which, BTW, you can't infer much from this posting, though that won't stop you). Since we are all on the internet, the one true arbiter of truth, apparently, everyone gets to say what they want and tally their population bias into reason and sensibility. Which usually results in the personal abuse of those who disagree...
@
Cheraphy
Shall I report you now or later for your rabid, anti-mormon preliminaries?
I know Mormons better than you do. Mormons swear (take oaths) all the time. What they don't do is cuss or wander around OMGing everything, as they consider it offensive language.
You would be more likely to be correct if he were Jehovah's Witness or Quaker, whose people have run into legal troubles because they won't take oaths of any kind before worldly powers.
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Disch, all
This is the reason we don't like religious threads on this forum. The example stands before us.
I also don't think that hot questions like same-sex equality vs religion will prove to leave anyone here feeling like it has been an uplifting, informative topic.
The real fact is, discussions like this tend only to polarize the fora, entrench people further into their own version of truth (right or wrong, or even both), and leave everyone with a bad feeling, and ultimately cause a breakdown in civility with each other.
Find a more appropriate place for this kind of discussion, please.
Not here. I like it here. We are known for being one of the nicest places on the net. History of religious/hot-button issues on the net is not too old to teach us a thing or two.