Comments | johncwright: The Truth About Radical Christians

johncwright

The Truth About Radical Christians

Dec 30, 2009 17:10

Some of the comments on YouTube concerning this spoof were from people who did not know it was a spoof, or who nodded and agreed that "USA does have a real problem with christian identity groups and superpatriot groups committing terrorism ( Read more... )

Leave a comment

Back to all threads

gryphmon January 3 2010, 06:09:07 UTC

"The First Amendment in the US Constitution was meant to combat the threat of the establishment of religion; it was a way to end the horrors unleashed by the Reformation and the Counterreformation, and the wars of that era ( ... )

Free Exercise Is the Trump Card wmtingley January 3 2010, 15:49:10 UTC

I think the Amendment wasn't just to prevent the establishment of an official religion, if you read John Adams and others, its seems they viewed it as a means to protect religion from being corrupted by politics itself.This is getting off-topic, but I think an important point needs to be addressed ( ... )

Re: Free Exercise Is the Trump Card mindstalk January 3 2010, 16:39:43 UTC

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof

Nothing there about purpose or trump cards. Just a flat statement, literal and original, barring the establishment of religion.

when the secularists decry the exercise of religion in public schools as an establishment of religion, they do not demand that the government yield by getting out of the business of education but rather that the free exercise of religion be suppressed.

No. Secularists do not decry the exercise of religion in public schools; students are free to pray. We decry the exercise of religion by the authorities in those schools, which can be seen as establishment and *unfree* exercise.

Re: Free Exercise Is the Trump Card wmtingley January 4 2010, 17:56:18 UTC

No, it's not "just a flat statement". It is a clause within an amendment protecting freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom of association ( ... )

Re: Free Exercise Is the Trump Card mindstalk January 4 2010, 19:13:22 UTC

You don't think a teacher influences their students by example? You'd be sanguine with a Muslim or Wiccan teacher leading your children in prayer or ritual?

Re: Free Exercise Is the Trump Card wmtingley January 4 2010, 20:05:28 UTC

You don't think a teacher influences their students by example?

If he is any good as a teacher, he will.

You'd be sanguine with a Muslim or Wiccan teacher leading your children in prayer or ritual?Witnessing a teacher pray is not the same as being required to pray with the teacher. Apples and oranges. As a practical matter I would object to the school authorities that this is inappropriate to the circumstances. If they refused to act, I would have to decide whether or not to keep my kid in that school ( ... )

Re: Free Exercise Is the Trump Card gryphmon January 3 2010, 20:27:13 UTC

"The purpose of the First Amendment is to protect the free exercise of religion. Prohibiting establishment serves that end and that end alone. Free exercise is the trump card. Therefore, any invocation of that prohibition to constrain free exercise is perversion of the First Amendment."

A typically fundamentalist and over-simplistic answer. By your view, then its perfectly permissible for followers of the God Moloch to sacrifice babies on the schoolyard football field.

These issues were debated and interpreted before during and after the Amendment was created, and ever since then. To pretend that this has all been decided into some sort of absolute conclusion is completely disingenuous.

Re: Free Exercise Is the Trump Card wmtingley January 4 2010, 17:59:40 UTC

A typically fundamentalist and over-simplistic answer. By your view, then its perfectly permissible for followers of the God Moloch to sacrifice babies on the schoolyard football field.

How do you draw that conclusion from my statement that the prohibition of establishment is subordinate to free exercise?

Re: Free Exercise Is the Trump Card botticelli_s January 4 2010, 20:06:33 UTC

By your view, then its perfectly permissible for followers of the God Moloch to sacrifice babies on the schoolyard football field.

Seems to me that it would be "perfectly permissible" only to those who think religious belief is like a menu at a restaurant -- choose according to your taste -- and that religions, being empty of factual content, are really all just like each other. In other words, only to Leftists and Secularlists.

johncwright January 4 2010, 18:15:27 UTC

"I think the Amendment wasn't just to prevent the establishment of an official religion, if you read John Adams and others, its seems they viewed it as a means to protect religion from being corrupted by politics itself. "

I would not disagree with this conclusion. Nonetheless, it does not influence the other conclusions reached here, including the idea that radical Islam employs a military strategy that exploits the First Amendment for cover and concealment. Anyone more afraid of the corruption that follows from the establishment of religion than he is of the enemy will not dare to undo that cover and concealment, but must fight the enemy handicapped.

mindstalk January 4 2010, 19:15:34 UTC

I wonder if you're as worried about evangelical Christians taking over the Air Force academy. Evangelicals who probably don't regard Catholics as Christian...

Wow. johncwright January 5 2010, 14:20:55 UTC

"I wonder if you're as worried about evangelical Christians taking over the Air Force academy. Evangelicals who probably don't regard Catholics as Christian..."

I am simply astonished that anyone could read the original post and write these words here as anything but a joke.

Can you tell the difference between Evangelical Christians and Saracen terrorists?

Is threat to life and civilization from Billy Graham and Osama bin Laden the same?

Re: Wow. mindstalk January 5 2010, 18:05:20 UTC

They're different threats. Al Qaeda and hanger-ons are trying to kill people right now, though outside of a few Islamic countries they mostly fail at that; they're not a big threat to life. Evangelicals taking over a branch of the military aren't trying to kill anyone now, but may be a rather larger threat to our civilization qua values and freedom.

(Of course, Al Qaeda's biggest practical threat seems to be the ability to provoke us to strip away our own freedoms in response to their ineffectual attacks. Please sit quietly for the last hour of the flight with your hands in your lap.)

Re: Wow. wmtingley January 5 2010, 21:15:10 UTC

Evangelicals taking over a branch of the military aren't trying to kill anyone now, but may be a rather larger threat to our civilization qua values and freedom.

If by "values and freedom" you mean drinkin' and whorin', I can assure you that the Air Force is proudly carrying on those traditions.

Why do you think they call it a cock pit? johncwright January 6 2010, 16:32:25 UTC

"If by "values and freedom" you mean drinkin' and whorin', I can assure you that the Air Force is proudly carrying on those traditions."

GO AIR FORCE!

Er, I mean, please no whoring on Sundays, airman.

Re: Why do you think they call it a cock pit? wmtingley January 6 2010, 21:35:12 UTC

Be assured, John, that in my squadron we respected Sunday as a day of rest -- i.e., we sent the tarts home and sobered up for the Monday mission against the Red Menace.

Back to all threads