Funny thing: if some nutjob believer decided they were going to burn Christopher Hitchens' g̲o̲d̲ ̲I̲s̲ ̲N̲o̲t̲ ̲G̲r̲e̲a̲t̲ or Dawkins' T̲h̲e̲ ̲G̲o̲d̲ ̲D̲e̲l̲u̲s̲i̲o̲n̲, I'd just write him off and be done with it. I admire the hell out of Hitchens and Dawkins and what they had to say about atheism and theism, but the ideas remain, even after the book is burned.
This is the concept that neither Muslims nor Christians can get, never mind the fact that they can't deal with people who are sufficiently opposed to their religions and/or holy books that they feel the need to express their dislike in this fashion. Their reaction amounts to: "MOMMY!!! Jimmy burned my Quran!!!" SERIOUSLY??? My advice to those who want to get bent about such incidents is simplicity itself:
Jul 5, 2023·edited Jul 5, 2023Liked by Hemant Mehta
As always, nail on the head Hemant. People need to understand that one person's religion is another person's stupid superstition. Those people that want to give quarter to the religious and obey the rules of every religion will find themselves in a contradictory situation very quickly. It won't just take The Satanic Temple stepping in. As those of us who have studied the history of religions know, religions evolve over time in response to internal and external pressures.
The issue I have with his protest is not that he went to a non-violent extreme and burned a holy book, or even to provoke Muslims, but the intent was to ban the book entirely in that country.
The response so far has been non-violent, so that’s good. And fair.
We cannot only defend speech we like and not speech we don’t like. Burning flags, books, symbols by individuals should be protected forms of protest, as long as it stops there. (Burning crosses on folks’ lawns or on public property never ended with the fire, nor was it a protest it was a threat) When the government starts burning books and banning them and such, that’s where we need to work ourselves up. Greg Locke burned books, and a protester threw a Bible in their bonfire. It was the right response. No one stopped Locke from burning books. And other right wing loonies who try this crap, except when they destroy the public library‘s books. Same as when the right burns up their Nikes, or Yetis or bud light for going “woke”. Point and laugh. If the message doesn’t get through, then it’s just a failed attempt at protest.
The defense of this should be focused on, just as the Muslims have a right to worship, this man has the right to protest. Muslims have a right to get angry, if the Muslim countries want to make a political statement against Sweden entering the UN (NATO, my bad) then so be it. This too shall pass and NATO will move forward when it’s ready. The body will just have to decide which side will benefit them best. It’s not like the NATO is not without controversy anyway.
Sorry if I started rambling. I don’t like book burning, but I don’t want to ban it either.
What should they do? Pretty much just what they have done. Say "hey, kind of a dick move but still legal."
If local Muslims want to protest, have at it. If local Arab Christians want to counterprotest, cool. Just have law enforcement on standby so nobody gets violent.
Just because a thing is legal doesn't automatically make it a good idea. While I have no use for religious zealots and magic books, I also have no use for senseless provocation that accomplishes nothing. I'm not seeing any positive outcome here.
"Any book that is considered sacred to its authors must be respected out of respect for its believers and freedom of expression must never be used as an excuse to undermine others."
-- Pope Francis
Do you know who even wrote your bible, Jorge? Do you have any idea who they were? The bible's an omnibus by an unknown amount of anonymous authors. You want us to automatically respect people when we have no knowledge of them?
And that whole thing about "undermining others." That's what believers have used the bible to do.
I can't for the life of me see what burning a Koran or a Bible or a Torah adds to the debate about religion or lack of it. It's a stunt, not a debate. There were places in the ancient world that set aside public spaces for religious arseholes to debate each other. Let them do it, it's futile. I'm happy to sit on the sidelines and watch them make arses of themselves.
1.9 billion Muslims on the planet x 5 prayers per day x 365 days per year = 3.47 trillion prayers this year alone to Allah. Net result: nothing. Alluh Deafbar: God ain't listenin!
Funny thing: if some nutjob believer decided they were going to burn Christopher Hitchens' g̲o̲d̲ ̲I̲s̲ ̲N̲o̲t̲ ̲G̲r̲e̲a̲t̲ or Dawkins' T̲h̲e̲ ̲G̲o̲d̲ ̲D̲e̲l̲u̲s̲i̲o̲n̲, I'd just write him off and be done with it. I admire the hell out of Hitchens and Dawkins and what they had to say about atheism and theism, but the ideas remain, even after the book is burned.
This is the concept that neither Muslims nor Christians can get, never mind the fact that they can't deal with people who are sufficiently opposed to their religions and/or holy books that they feel the need to express their dislike in this fashion. Their reaction amounts to: "MOMMY!!! Jimmy burned my Quran!!!" SERIOUSLY??? My advice to those who want to get bent about such incidents is simplicity itself:
𝗚𝗥𝗢𝗪 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗨𝗖𝗞 𝗨𝗣.
As always, nail on the head Hemant. People need to understand that one person's religion is another person's stupid superstition. Those people that want to give quarter to the religious and obey the rules of every religion will find themselves in a contradictory situation very quickly. It won't just take The Satanic Temple stepping in. As those of us who have studied the history of religions know, religions evolve over time in response to internal and external pressures.
OT
Hypocritical MAGAt says what?
"U.S. Congressman Threatens Joe Biden With Treason, Punishable By "Death"
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/u-s-congressman-threatens-joe-biden-with-treason-punishable-by-death/ar-AA1dqoqV
It's not Biden who's committed treason, Steube. It was YOUR boy. Where was all this talk of treason then, you reichwing conspiracy fantasy loony?
The issue I have with his protest is not that he went to a non-violent extreme and burned a holy book, or even to provoke Muslims, but the intent was to ban the book entirely in that country.
The response so far has been non-violent, so that’s good. And fair.
We cannot only defend speech we like and not speech we don’t like. Burning flags, books, symbols by individuals should be protected forms of protest, as long as it stops there. (Burning crosses on folks’ lawns or on public property never ended with the fire, nor was it a protest it was a threat) When the government starts burning books and banning them and such, that’s where we need to work ourselves up. Greg Locke burned books, and a protester threw a Bible in their bonfire. It was the right response. No one stopped Locke from burning books. And other right wing loonies who try this crap, except when they destroy the public library‘s books. Same as when the right burns up their Nikes, or Yetis or bud light for going “woke”. Point and laugh. If the message doesn’t get through, then it’s just a failed attempt at protest.
The defense of this should be focused on, just as the Muslims have a right to worship, this man has the right to protest. Muslims have a right to get angry, if the Muslim countries want to make a political statement against Sweden entering the UN (NATO, my bad) then so be it. This too shall pass and NATO will move forward when it’s ready. The body will just have to decide which side will benefit them best. It’s not like the NATO is not without controversy anyway.
Sorry if I started rambling. I don’t like book burning, but I don’t want to ban it either.
EDIT to correct the UN to NATO.
What a waste of a perfectly good piece of bacon.
> "...said his protest was intended to get the book banned in the country."
I don't see a connection between his action and his expressed intent. Why would burning a book cause the Swedish government to ban it?
OTOH, he did prove something... that the Muslim world will erupt in anger and even violence at the most minor affront.
What should they do? Pretty much just what they have done. Say "hey, kind of a dick move but still legal."
If local Muslims want to protest, have at it. If local Arab Christians want to counterprotest, cool. Just have law enforcement on standby so nobody gets violent.
Pretty weak god that needs human intervention to stop its book from being burned.
Personally, (Just my humble opinion), I think there are better ways to win a war of ideas than simply being a dick.
Just because a thing is legal doesn't automatically make it a good idea. While I have no use for religious zealots and magic books, I also have no use for senseless provocation that accomplishes nothing. I'm not seeing any positive outcome here.
"Any book that is considered sacred to its authors must be respected out of respect for its believers and freedom of expression must never be used as an excuse to undermine others."
-- Pope Francis
Do you know who even wrote your bible, Jorge? Do you have any idea who they were? The bible's an omnibus by an unknown amount of anonymous authors. You want us to automatically respect people when we have no knowledge of them?
And that whole thing about "undermining others." That's what believers have used the bible to do.
OT: Hotdog eating contests should not be covered on the sports page.
OT
And this is what religion does to the mind...
"The Passion of the Christ 2" is 'Like an Acid Trip,' Says Mel Gibson"
https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/1302836-the-passion-of-the-christ-2-is-like-an-acid-trip-mel-gibson
Had a few too many bad tabs, Mel? It shows.
I can't for the life of me see what burning a Koran or a Bible or a Torah adds to the debate about religion or lack of it. It's a stunt, not a debate. There were places in the ancient world that set aside public spaces for religious arseholes to debate each other. Let them do it, it's futile. I'm happy to sit on the sidelines and watch them make arses of themselves.
1.9 billion Muslims on the planet x 5 prayers per day x 365 days per year = 3.47 trillion prayers this year alone to Allah. Net result: nothing. Alluh Deafbar: God ain't listenin!
Burning books is wrong.
They should be pulped and recycled into paper for re-use as something useful, even if it is only (only?) toilet paper.