Wednesday 27 January 2010

Rude? Insulting? Intolerant?


Lots of Xians who post here often complain about me, saying that I'm rude and insulting, and even intolerant. Apparently, making an argument about or pointing out that their religion is inconsistent, illogical, and/or irrational is rude, insulting, and intolerant. Confused? Well, it can be difficult to determine what Xians (and other theists) find rude, insulting, and/or intolerant.

So, now you're probably wondering to yourself, "So, how can I tell when I'm being rude, insulting, or intolerant?" Well, you're in luck, as I've put together this handy guide to help you figure out what is and is not rude, insulting, and/or intolerant.

When the Xian says:
1. Gays are abhorrent, sexual deviants, etc. - Not rude, not insulting, not intolerant. You may be tempted to think that denigrating people simply because they were born with certain sexual preferences would be rude, insulting, and/or intolerant, but you'd be wrong. The only time it becomes somewhat rude, insulting, and intolerant is if you picket military funerals.

2. Women are inferior and shouldn't hold positions of power - agian, not rude, not insulting, not intolerant. You see, this is a loving position from the Xian god who decided women are simply not as good as men and should be treated as property.

3. All people are deserving of eternal torture - not rude, not insulting, not intolerant. You see, this is OK, because all people are being called bad, wicked, and worthy of the most heinous and horrible fate that could possible await them.

4. All atheists/non-theists are fools, idiots, morons, stupid, etc. - not insulting, etc. That's because this is simply true, as the Bible says. I mean, what do/did a bunch of simpletons like Einstein, Sagan, Paine, Freud, Feynmann, Russell, et al know?

5. All scientists are either lazy incompetents or devious liars advancing the atheist agenda - not insulting. Again, this is apparently true, because all of these scientists are either too stupid to realize evolution is false, or intentionally misleading the public because they are using the copious funds they receive to build super-villain, island lairs with which to enact their schemes of world domination.

More...

When the atheist says:
1. Anything - this is extremely rude, extremely insulting, extremely intolerant. Whenever an atheist says anything, the inevitable result is rude, insulting, and intolerant, simply because the atheist is speaking. In fact, the simple fact of the existence of the atheist is rude, insulting, and intolerant.

I hope this helps clear up any confusion.


------------------------------------------------------------------
Update:
The picture in the above is a nastygram written by a Xian (in crayon) because of a sticker that was on the back of the car of a dinosaur eating a Jesus fish. See here and here.

15 comments:

Robert Madewell said...

Hey GCT,
What's the story behind that nastygram? I'm interested.

GCT said...

My gf found it online. I think there's a story behind it, but I don't remember. I'll ask her and get back to you.

I used it because it made me laugh and I thought it went with the theme of the post.

Tyler said...

I couldn't find anything googling any of the note's text. I'm gonna throw a guess into the wind and say that it was a Raptor Jesus sticker of some sort.

There's a site called passiveaggressivenotes.com it looks like it could have come from, but I've flipped through dozens of pages there over the last few months or so and haven't seen it.

Here's another funny one...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/passiveaggressive/4175440942/

GCT said...

I've expanded on the nastygram on the end of the OP.

Tyler said...

"Are your convictions so fragile they cannot stand in opposition to mine? Is your god so flimsy, so weak? For shame!"

tinkbell13 said...

That sticker is the total shit!!!! I would be proud to have one of those on my front door....

I like how the letter gives the person the option to personally remove it, or they will do it for them. Classy.

Robert Madewell said...

I found the sticker online.

Yeah tinkbell, "you have no right to offend me, but I have the right to damage your property if I get mad enough!"

I think it is freaking halarious that it was written in crayon! Makes me think that it was a christian soccer mom that wrote the nastygram. Had nothing else to write with, so she grabed juniors crayon. Halarious!

GCT, I think I'll hat tip you on this one. Too funny!

Unknown said...

I have the same decal on my car! I've gotten quite a few comments on it.. but none as appalling as this one.

Tristan Vick said...

Great list! Made me laugh, cringe, then laugh again. A tear came to my eye in the emotional confusion.

GCT said...

Yay, someone commented on the list and not just the picture! Thanks Tristan.

Anonymous said...

I would disagree with points 2, 3, 4, 5.
2-Christianity does not hold a position that women are inferior. That is entirely incorrect. Some people may hold that position but it is illogical to associate with an entire religion.
3-All people are not deserving of eternal torture in Christianity. Only those who choose not to love God and who break the relationship between themselves and God are punished. Their choice rejects this offer of love.
4-All atheists are definitely not fools. I think both sides are guilty of this one. You would call Christians fools and they would call you a fool. You are definitely not a fool, but you are obviously an intelligent person. It is also illogical to assume that an entire group of people "assume" something. You cannot criticize a religion based on how some of its followers act, because humans are faulty, and they will not perfectly represent the true nature of their religion.
5-Scientists are not liars. Some Christians may accuse scientists of lying, but this is not a basis to attack a religion once again. Science can seemingly challenge faith, but it is actually entirely compatible. The Church acknowledges the truth of Science.

GCT said...

Anon,
First of all, remember that this post was somewhat tongue in cheek. That said...

"2-Christianity does not hold a position that women are inferior. That is entirely incorrect."

I suggest you re-read the Bible. Women are property in the Bible.

"3-All people are not deserving of eternal torture in Christianity."

Um, yeah that's what (a vast majority of) Xians believe. We all deserve torture unless we are saved by grace, meaning that we don't receive the torture we deserve.

"4-All atheists are definitely not fools. I think both sides are guilty of this one. You would call Christians fools and they would call you a fool."

It definitely comes more from one side in my experience. I'm not out here calling anyone a fool simply for being a Xian, whereas the Bible clearly indicates that all those who don't believe as the reader does are fools.

"5-Scientists are not liars. Some Christians may accuse scientists of lying, but this is not a basis to attack a religion once again."

When your religion teaches that the Bible is correct and the real world must conform to it, regardless of the empirical reality, then it is a basis for attacking religion.

"The Church acknowledges the truth of Science."

Which church do you mean, and which truth? Many churches outright reject evolution, for instance, as well as a whole host of other scientific disciplines to varying degrees. I don't know of a single church, however, that doesn't utilize non-scientific ideas and thinking. The ways of thinking, I would argue, are opposed to each other.

Anonymous said...

Jesus bless you all :) He loves you no matter what :) Let me know if you need any prayer requests. I know I need some :( I need to get through this term at school.

GCT said...

Loves us enough to torture us in hell for eternity? If that's love, I'd hate to see what Jesus hating us looks like.

Anonymous said...

It's on Reddit:
http://www.reddit.com/r/atheism/comments/zi9wn/clever_bumper_sticker_followed_by_this_intolerant/