Back a couple of years ago State Treasurer Kay Ivey and I had a small skirmish about the Separation of Church and State. My son was attending an event with other high school kids from across the state and Mrs. Ivey was one of the speakers. She touted her faith as important to her and gave it credit in her success in life.
I had no problem with that. Everyone in this country is free to express their religion. Unfortunately, Mrs. Ivey decided to go further than simple expression of her faith and ridicule non-believers referring to them as 'ooze that needed to crawl back under the rock it came from'.
And as you can probably guess that really pissed me off.
I wrote her office and demanded an apology. And I got a half-assed non-apology apology from Mrs. Ivey.
Now, every so often someone will post a comment on the original post and say things like the following...
Stop making such a big deal and being a baby. Those are here beliefs and she was just stating them. She doesn't owe your son anything. If you don't like her don't vote for her next election.. but stop bitching it's not a big deal.
And those comments leave me wondering what planet the person posting it might hail from. It's like they can't understand the difference between someone expressing their beliefs and someone attacking others for their beliefs or lack there of. There is a big difference. As I stated in the opening of this post, if Kay Ivey had stopped at expressing her faith that would have been fine. But when she ridiculed every kid in the audience who didn't share her faith, going so far as to call them 'ooze' she crossed a very serious line. And she admitted guilt because she "apologized".
These same people who post comments like that would go absolutely ape shit if an Atheist in a position of power and presiding over a captive audience of public school students had dared even express their lack of faith much less ridicule others for having a faith. Can you imagine the uproar? Alabamians would have the poor Atheist stoned to death in the public square.
Yet, they will defend with their last breath their right to ridicule others for not sharing their faith. They think they can run over everyone else because there are more of them. I'd like to remind them that might does not equal right and that my freedom to not believe in their imaginary sky wizard is the same freedom they exercise to believe in the sky wizard. Tinkering with or encouraging suppression of my freedom is doing the same thing to their own freedom.
What about that concept do these kinds of "Christians" not get? I mean it's a simple concept right? It's not rocket science.
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2 comments:
Too true Loretta. While we disagree on the existance of a creator, I'd never put you down for it. I don't hate Christians/Jews/Muslims either. I just hate/disagree with thier religions.
I am amazed at how much theological law makes it into our law books. They feel that they are the ones who are "right" and thier religious laws trump secular law. If I don't believe in ther books, why should I be forced to follow thier religious laws?
I agree that if she just left it at saying how her religion affected her, that would be OK. It lets you know where's she's coming from. Attacking people's belief like a rabid bible-thumper was really not cool. The Christians I get along with know I don't believe, but they don't bash me like this "lady" did to her audience. It's the fanatics I really don't get along with.
Her attitude is the type of thinking that leads to religious percuition.
Yeah I find some religious folks who can be EXTREMELY authoritarian and just hate the fact that other religions exist and see themselves as superior. Feeling that your path is the best path and yet respecting the freedom of others to follow their path is one thing. Trudging others through the mud for their beliefs that aren't impinging on your right to belief what you want is a whole other thing.
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