Bibles in Hotel Rooms

[Rev. Rye]

It really bugs me when I check into a hotel room and there's religious propaganda (a bible) in the night stand drawer. This also seems discriminatory. If you're going to stick a Bible in the drawer, why not also a Koran? Or the Talmud? Or the Rigveda? Why do Christians get to stick their holy book in hotel rooms but not other religions?

Well, I don't think Muslims have gotten around to creating their own Gideon-like organisation, and really, the Talmud and Rigveda in Hotel rooms? Jews and Hindus are too ethnocentric and fatalistic to bother with evangelising. Those books, especially the Talmud, are too damn big to bring home with you. Hell, I bet the complete talmud would probably be bigger than most hotel rooms; and besides, do you really think that Jewish people would just give away something as expensive as a Talmud?

When I find a bible in the drawer I always write something on the cover (and inside pages) like "WARNING! THIS BOOK CONTAINS INCEST, WAR, UNJUST LAWS AND DEATH! KEEP AWAY FROM CHILDREN!", "WARNING! THIS BOOK SAYS SLAVERY IS OKAY!", "WARNING! THIS BOOK REPRESSES WOMEN!", "WARNING! THIS BOOK CONTAINS 99.6% PURE BULLSHIT!" etc.....

I went to a hotel last weekend and found a Gideon's bible on my dresser. Not in the drawer, out in the open. I considered writing on it, but I chose not to for several reasons. A) I have too much respect for the printed word to deface a book (even one I hate, even Left Behind or Pride and Prejudice), B) My handwriting is barely legible, C) I'd feel obligated to elaborate on it with extensive notes that would take up too much time to write, and D) I doubt, even if anybody could read my writing, they would bother to open it up anyway.

I must add that I considered simply tossing the thing in the trash. But I thought it would be more effective to mark it up and leave it there. I like to imagine someone going to read it and finding what I've written. "Good heavens, Charles! Look what someone did to the Bible!" Just wish I could be there to see it!

Well, I'm pretty sure that only the cleaning staff would see it in the trash. Of course, a lot of them are Hispanic, and many Hispanics are Catholic, so, yeah.