Why not more of us in Congress?

[Annik]

Are you implying that we hate your imaginary friend?

[Deicide73]

Your kidding me, right?

Ad hominem; disagreeing does not mean I'm simply wrong.Muppet.

Do you watch the news or even look around?

The meaning of 'religiosity' can be broad. However,I use it the narrow sense; I refer to the humbuggery,ignorance and stupidity of the ([minority) lunar religious right which dominates much of American politics, social mores and law.

Religiosity, in its broadest sense, is a comprehensive sociological term used to refer to the numerous aspects of religious activity, dedication, and belief (religious doctrine). Another term that would work equally well, though is less often used, is religiousness. In its narrowest sense, religiosity deals more with how religious a person is, and less with how a person is religious (in practicing certain rituals, retelling certain stories, revering certain symbols, or accepting certain doctrines about deities and afterlife)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religiosity







PS it's 'you're'

How are they a minority when 80% of the country say they are Christian or Catholic?

[Darth]

Heres a shocking thought:

No christians can be evil right? Every christian at least tries to love everyone and follow the teachings of Jesus right? No christian would be a rights eroding, hope devouring, soul selling, money leeching, ass kissing, flattering, sycophantic toady right? And yet this describes almost every politician (it describes all politicians who manage to get themselves elected). Therefore, no politician is a true christian?

Oh noes, the atheists have control of your nation!

[gomtuu77]

Heres a shocking thought:

No christians can be evil right? Every christian at least tries to love everyone and follow the teachings of Jesus right? No christian would be a rights eroding, hope devouring, soul selling, money leeching, ass kissing, flattering, sycophantic toady right? And yet this describes almost every politician (it describes all politicians who manage to get themselves elected). Therefore, no politician is a true christian?

Oh noes, the atheists have control of your nation!

You are more correct than your jocular tone suggests. This is why things are so quickly falling apart.

[Annik]

What, exactly, are you implying?

[gomtuu77]

Are you implying that we hate your imaginary friend?

Since I don't have an imaginary friend, I couldn't be implying such a thing.

[Angrboda]

It's known that there are pastors and priests who are atheists, but because the pulpit is their whole life, and they're not trained for anything else, they remain in the closet. The honesty and integrity sword cuts both ways, and when you demand it of the non-religious but not the religious, you sound rather hypocritical. If leaders in your own religious community are afraid to come clean for fear of reprisal from their own, its rather simplistic of you to demand the courage from mere politicians that leaders in Christ aren't able to muster.

Politics is a job, not a mission or a religious calling. The politician has one job: making his or her constituency happy. And its to the constituency that they are accountable. If they don't care enough to demand he share that detail with them, or not vote for him if he or she doesn't, that's their business. That's for them to decide, not anyone else, certainly not some narrow-minded religious zealot (no matter how many of them there are). This country was founded on principles intended to foster plurality, plurality of voices, plurality of religions, plurality of lifestyle; encouraging the passage of laws that would have a chilling effect on diversity and liberty is not only unwise, on utilitarian grounds, it's downright unAmerican.

Yes, this country is screwed up in many ways. I'm still very proud of her. America was the source of many good things and good ideas. Unfortunately, a large segment of the population are persuaded of the opinion that America has cornered the market on good ideas and good things, and that the rest of the world has simply to wait upon her to benefit them with her largesse. I would call that a religion of sorts, call it Americanism or something else, it's one of the bad things about America. It certainly has historical causes and precedents, from the early doctrine of Manifest destiny to our success in two world wars to a feeling of resentment and fear upon seeing America becoming just another peer among equals. However, I think this religion, whatever you want to call it, is a bad thing, for both the world and America herself.

(I might start by using the term "U.S." instead of America, perhaps. But I'm a hopeless romantic, in love with my country, as well as willing to acknowledge her faults.)

[Oldandeasilyconfused]

Since I don't have an imaginary friend, I couldn't be implying such a thing.

You don't? Oh good. Perhaps you can post a few photos of Jesus and his dad.

[Minimalist]

Obviously, that hasn't stopped the states in question.

The Supreme Court struck those laws down in the 60's.

[Cato]

It's known that there are pastors and priests who are atheists, but because the pulpit is their whole life, and they're not trained for anything else, they remain in the closet. The honesty and integrity sword cuts both ways, and when you demand it of the non-religious but not the religious, you sound rather hypocritical. If leaders in your own religious community are afraid to come clean for fear of reprisal from their own, its rather simplistic of you to demand the courage from mere politicians that leaders in Christ aren't able to muster.

Politics is a job, not a mission or a religious calling. The politician has one job: making his or her constituency happy. And its to the constituency that they are accountable. If they don't care enough to demand he share that detail with them, or not vote for him if he or she doesn't, that's their business. That's for them to decide, not anyone else, certainly not some narrow-minded religious zealot (no matter how many of them there are). This country was founded on principles intended to foster plurality, plurality of voices, plurality of religions, plurality of lifestyle; encouraging the passage of laws that would have a chilling effect on diversity and liberty is not only unwise, on utilitarian grounds, it's downright unAmerican.

Yes, this country is screwed up in many ways. I'm still very proud of her. America was the source of many good things and good ideas. Unfortunately, a large segment of the population are persuaded of the opinion that America has cornered the market on good ideas and good things, and that the rest of the world has simply to wait upon her to benefit them with her largesse. I would call that a religion of sorts, call it Americanism or something else, it's one of the bad things about America. It certainly has historical causes and precedents, from the early doctrine of Manifest destiny to our success in two world wars to a feeling of resentment and fear upon seeing America becoming just another peer among equals. However, I think this religion, whatever you want to call it, is a bad thing, for both the world and America herself.

(I might start by using the term "U.S." instead of America, perhaps. But I'm a hopeless romantic, in love with my country, as well as willing to acknowledge her faults.)

I have heard the term 'American Exceptionalism' thrown around frequently in the last few years. In my experience this is invoked by the political far right which is dominated by religionists. American Exceptionalism has an etymology where the expression was initially used to summarize the ideas behind the founding of the U.S. and did not in any way include any inclination to superiority. Even if I grant the original meaning I chuckle knowing that the ideas that were used to establish the U.S. were born in the Scottish Enlightenment.

The modern use and its idea of superiority are dangerous. Some use the concept to call for our resignation from the UN, NATO and various geographically based economic unions. This superiority complex results in what I can only describe as xenophobia in the people that accept it. Couple this with the generally deserved 'ignorant American' tag and you have a bad recipe for getting along with everybody else.

Much of this comes from the religious right's notion that the U.S. is God's chosen country (God Bless America, the U.S. was founded as a Christian Nation, God before country, et al.). The Aussie comic Jim Jeffries puts it best by noticing the Earth is 4.5 billion years old, but it wasn't until sometime in the last 236 years that God decided to pick a team.

Like you I am very proud of historic and current American contributions globally, but I am equally ashmed of the idea of American Exceptionalism as it is currently invoked. An example of our retreat into irrelevancy was our defunding of Desertron in 1993. Had it been completed, it would have surpassed the LHC.