Ideas Are Just Things
May 5, 2015 at 10:46 am
(This post was last modified: May 5, 2015 at 10:46 am by DeistPaladin.)
[Reprint from my rant on Facebook]
Ideas are things that can and should be subject to inspection, criticism and ridicule. If an ideology is reflective of the truth, it will stand on its own merit no matter how much it is "mocked". Criticism should be welcomed by adherents as an opportunity to prove how resilient the ideas are. If an ideology is faulty, it should be discarded without either sentiment or hesitation.
Censorship is the last resort of people who know they are lying. Violence is the last resort of people who know they have no case.
Don't tell me to "respect" anyone's ideas. People who ask for "respect" for their beliefs will never be satisfied. Such people will be offended even if they only discover you don't share them. The more respectful you are for bad ideas, the more respectful you will have to be.
Don't tell me I only need to fear the "radicals". Show me the radicals of any ideology and I'll show you what that ideology teaches. "Moderates" by definition, are people who water down their respective ideology, who accept alternative perspectives or who allow that they might be wrong. By definition, radicals are people who believe wholeheartedly and with certainty, with no concessions to anything else. Radicals aren't perversions of their ideology. Radicals are expressions of their ideology.
Ideology isn't a race. People aren't born with an ideology. People are taught to believe an ideology. I can be against an ideology without being hateful to those who hold the ideology to be true. Show me that I am wrong about what I believe and I will not be offended. I've been wrong many times and about many things. It's called "being human". It's called "learning". It's called "being modest enough to admit you don't know everything." People can be taught to abandon a faulty ideology. And unlike with homosexuality, the ex of an ideology usually remains an ex.
Ideas are things that can and should be subject to inspection, criticism and ridicule. If an ideology is reflective of the truth, it will stand on its own merit no matter how much it is "mocked". Criticism should be welcomed by adherents as an opportunity to prove how resilient the ideas are. If an ideology is faulty, it should be discarded without either sentiment or hesitation.
Censorship is the last resort of people who know they are lying. Violence is the last resort of people who know they have no case.
Don't tell me to "respect" anyone's ideas. People who ask for "respect" for their beliefs will never be satisfied. Such people will be offended even if they only discover you don't share them. The more respectful you are for bad ideas, the more respectful you will have to be.
Don't tell me I only need to fear the "radicals". Show me the radicals of any ideology and I'll show you what that ideology teaches. "Moderates" by definition, are people who water down their respective ideology, who accept alternative perspectives or who allow that they might be wrong. By definition, radicals are people who believe wholeheartedly and with certainty, with no concessions to anything else. Radicals aren't perversions of their ideology. Radicals are expressions of their ideology.
Ideology isn't a race. People aren't born with an ideology. People are taught to believe an ideology. I can be against an ideology without being hateful to those who hold the ideology to be true. Show me that I am wrong about what I believe and I will not be offended. I've been wrong many times and about many things. It's called "being human". It's called "learning". It's called "being modest enough to admit you don't know everything." People can be taught to abandon a faulty ideology. And unlike with homosexuality, the ex of an ideology usually remains an ex.
Atheist Forums Hall of Shame:
"The trinity can be equated to having your cake and eating it too."
... -Lucent, trying to defend the Trinity concept
"(Yahweh's) actions are good because (Yahweh) is the ultimate standard of goodness. That’s not begging the question"
... -Statler Waldorf, Christian apologist
"The trinity can be equated to having your cake and eating it too."
... -Lucent, trying to defend the Trinity concept
"(Yahweh's) actions are good because (Yahweh) is the ultimate standard of goodness. That’s not begging the question"
... -Statler Waldorf, Christian apologist
