Is America great?

gcthomas

New member
Let me explain then. Ultimately the law will require that we accept implicitly or explicitly the underlying "truth" or "dogma" that marriage between homosexuals and heterosexuals are equally good, right and proper.

Not remotely true. The only thing that anyone will have to accept is that homosexual marriages are lawful. I'm not sure that exaggerating the changes will help the argument. Lawful just means that everyone has to tolerate the practice. Not like it or respect it or promote it. Tolerate.

Tolerance is a strong part of Christian practice in Europe, and I'm sure much of the US as well. It is a virtue still to be developed in some.
 

Stripe

Teenage Adaptive Ninja Turtle
LIFETIME MEMBER
Hall of Fame
Not remotely true. The only thing that anyone will have to accept is that homosexual marriages are lawful.

Plenty of things have been called "lawful" that aren't.

Why should we adhere to what you demand?
 

republicanchick

New member
No

Homosexuals are mainly from privileged groups and they choose to be weird; they do not want to grow up, rather they want perceptual adolescence. They do not want to be fathers and support a family, or be mothers and have to care for children, they rather be the children, always wanting. Then when the greater society tells them they cannot have children, then that cry about it and insist they have a right to them. The same with marriage, no they could not settle for civil unions where they could have had all the same legal rights married persons do, they had to have the marriage institution also.

They are in all ways disgusting self-selected degenerates. They want to be different and have everyone's attention, as if to say, "Look at me, how different I am and there is nothing you can do to stop me!" I hope they all face the final Judgement and then find out at last they will not get away with pushing their ideas on anyone anymore!

i tend to agree... not sure this applies to every single gay, but .. probably does

what are "self selected degenerates"?

i really dont think they will be overly surprised @ the last Judgment..



___
 

Jose Fly

New member
Out of all the Christian people I talk to every day no one has yet expressed such a position. Generally they have misgivings. Perhaps we are not exaggerating. In fact I think we are making very accurate extrapolations about where this might go.

I don't expect anyone to actually say they're hoping for persecution, but all the "the persecution is coming" rhetoric from right-wing Christians makes it look like the sentiment is just under the surface. It's a sort of group martyr complex.

They did not have to ruin that couple. It was all done to make a political point.

Again, you can't even get the basic facts of the case right, so I really don't care what your thoughts on it are.

If I went to some Muslim cake shop and they denied me service on the basis that I was an infidel I would not sue them providing it was privately owned. I would go shop elsewhere. No, the case in question was selected targeted and acted upon with a strategy.

See? You have the facts wrong, but even after having been corrected on them, you wave them away and just re-state your original erroneous position. That's deliberate ignorance.

You can take that principle as far as you want or you can apply it temperately in moderation. If you take it too far you will cause unrest in society but fanatical ideologues are obsessed with silencing dissent.

And of course "too far" for you is "when it starts to affect me". How convenient.

The State must be very careful about telling a person what the scope of his religious exercise is. That is the kind of tyranny people came here to escape.

No one is telling right-wing Christians that their bigotry isn't a part of their faith. All they're saying is that just because you justify your bigotry with your religion, that doesn't give you a free pass to discriminate.

I don't buy the argument that because blacks were freed from slavery we now have to embrace the homosexual agenda. Those issues are not the same.

Well that's good, since no one has made that argument.

Let me explain then. Ultimately the law will require that we accept implicitly or explicitly the underlying "truth" or "dogma" that marriage between homosexuals and heterosexuals are equally good, right and proper.

This is exactly the sort of paranoia I was talking about. How ridiculous.

It is state truth because it originated from a bare majority of Supreme Court justices and will be enforced by the Executive branch. I and those Christians who hold to the traditional tenets of their faith do not accept it as truth and neither do many others for that matter. For this we risk being punished. Is that clear enough?

Oh it's clear all right. More martyr complex issues.

Everyone knows it exists. The media makes sure that people know it as does the internet. Children in Elementary school understand what "gay" means. I was not hidden from it when I was young. Two of my best friends when I was young have since died of AIDS.

So then what's your problem? If everyone knows gays exist, why is it such a problem that schools have materials that acknowledge this well known fact?

To be exact, they cannot speak publically about not wanting to bake cakes for same-sex weddings based on their Christian beliefs. In other words they cannot in any public statements to the effect that this was about their Christian beliefs even though it WAS.

Again, you don't even have the basic facts right. Go read the ruling.

The judge made them pay $135,000 in "emotional damages" to the couple they denied service to. Emotional damage! It was punitive damages designed to coerce others into compliance.

The same Oregon BOLI awarded $325,000 in emotional damages to a Christian who was discriminated against at work because of his religious beliefs. Were you as upset when that ruling came out?

Being told to get a cake at another shop does not violate their civil rights.

Yes it does.

The people they sue and drive to ruin

Amazing how you guys try and flip the narrative, to where the people doing the discrimination are the real victims here, rather than the people being discriminated against.

No wonder Christianity is coming out of this looking so bad.

You think the mood is one of excitement and anticipation? You are totally wrong.

Just at ToL, the number of threads just on this subject shows otherwise.

It is paranoid or is it seeing real possibilities? My State and the company I work for are implementing safeguards to ensure that people will not be penalized for their convictions. I suppose the whole state must be paranoid. In fact, everyone is paranoid except the Executive Branch whom always has our best interests at heart.

You are doing something highly uncertain - trying to tell me what I think about. Have I ever said I wanted to be a martyr?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martyr_complex
 

Shasta

Well-known member
Not remotely true. The only thing that anyone will have to accept is that homosexual marriages are lawful. I'm not sure that exaggerating the changes will help the argument. Lawful just means that everyone has to tolerate the practice. Not like it or respect it or promote it. Tolerate.

Tolerance is a strong part of Christian practice in Europe, and I'm sure much of the US as well. It is a virtue still to be developed in some.

I wish that this limitation were understood but so far this has not been the case nor do I think it will be. People of faith should not be required to participate in a Wedding ceremony or any rite even if only by supplying the cake if they believe to be offensive personally and an abomination to their God.

To a great extent the Christianity of Europe absorbed much of the moral relativism of the times and is therefore not representative of true Christianity. That is why I think Church membership has declined so much in Europe. If there are no absolutes, no eternal verities, if even the existence of God is in question why bother going to Church? I know I wouldn't. For those of us who believe that truth is not relative and that God is the Creator Who revealed Himself to us by becoming and speaking to us as a human being His word remains true for all ages. The teaching about the God's definition of marriage came straight from Jesus Himself who got it not from Rabbinical tradition but from the scriptures.

Under the Jewish Law homosexuality was wrong as it was in the NT The Church fathers of every generation afterward taught the same way. Therefore our views cannot be altered or "adjusted to the times" as Obama suggested. Doing that would be giving Obama and the Court the authority to veto Jesus. I am not prepared to do that. Caesar wasn't Lord and neither is Obama.
 

Shasta

Well-known member
=Jose Fly;4377471]I don't expect anyone to actually say they're hoping for persecution, but all the "the persecution is coming" rhetoric from right-wing Christians makes it look like the sentiment is just under the surface. It's a sort of group martyr complex.

When a top down ruling overturns laws produced by a democratic process and imposes a rule foreign to commonly accepted values you have to expect people to be nervous. The sense of helplessness and distrust for the government leads to anxiety. No one wants persecution

Again, you can't even get the basic facts of the case right, so I really don't care what your thoughts on it are.


See? You have the facts wrong, but even after having been corrected on them, you wave them away and just re-state your original erroneous position. That's deliberate ignorance.

I went back and read more. It makes no difference really whether the lady acted on her own or not. The ruling was unjust No one should be compelled by the state to contribute to celebration of practices they find abhorrent personally and offensive to their deity. The Kleins did not withhold vital services or any that could not be obtained elsewhere. The other party was offended primarily because of what was said.

And of course "too far" for you is "when it starts to affect me". How convenient.

When things affect us we are concerned. That is the way people think.

No one is telling right-wing Christians that their bigotry isn't a part of their faith. All they're saying is that just because you justify your bigotry with your religion, that doesn't give you a free pass to discriminate.

How do you define bigotry. When you think something is wrong are you being a bigot about it? Or are people only bigots when they do not accept something YOU believe? I associate bigotry with hate but if that is what you think you are wrong. My wife and I have had extensive contact with gay people and though they know our position none of them would ever accuse us of hating them. We have brought gay people into our home to help them with their severe emotional problems. On a personal level two of my best friends in Middle School were gay and both eventually died of AIDS. It is the behavior I think is wrong and the product of pathology. I do not hate the person.

Besides what you call bigotry Christianity calls morality. As soon as a person accepts the existence of transcendent values there must be things that are wrong. It follows of necessity. If I were a materialist then there would be no right or wrong only preferences. Now while I believe the practice of homosexuality is wrong. I also think indiscriminate heterosexuality is wrong too.

Well that's good, since no one has made that argument.

This is exactly the sort of paranoia I was talking about. How ridiculous.

Easy for you to say but I do not see in you much respect for a person's free exercise of religion.

Oh it's clear all right. More martyr complex issues.
To be clear a martyr is someone who dies for his faith. I am not saying that will happen but I believe people will suffer for their beliefs because of this ruling.

So then what's your problem? If everyone knows gays exist, why is it such a problem that schools have materials that acknowledge this well known fact?

Because they will not just acknowledge it they will advocate and teach it. To ensure children will accept their view uncritically they will teach it to them even before they are developmentally ready. Some of this has already begun "Heather has two Mommies" you know and then there is that winning book "My Princess Boy"





Again, you don't even have the basic facts right. Go read the ruling.

I do need to study it more, Ty for the suggestion

The same Oregon BOLI awarded $325,000 in emotional damages to a Christian who was discriminated against at work because of his religious beliefs. Were you as upset when that ruling came out?

These high dollar emotional damages are usually a crock, Really they are for the benefit of unscrupulous lawyers





Amazing how you guys try and flip the narrative, to where the people doing the discrimination are the real victims here, rather than the people being discriminated against.

There are two sides to any narrative...at least.


No wonder Christianity is coming out of this looking so bad.

I wonder how far YOUR kind of Christian would go to make the homosexual community feel accepted. Perhaps re-writing the moral law would be an acceptable sacrifice.

Just at ToL, the number of threads just on this subject shows otherwise.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martyr_complex[/QUOTE]
 

Jose Fly

New member
When a top down ruling overturns laws produced by a democratic process and imposes a rule foreign to commonly accepted values you have to expect people to be nervous. The sense of helplessness and distrust for the government leads to anxiety. No one wants persecution

I'm sure a lot of conservatives felt the same after "a top down ruling overturned laws produced by a democratic process and imposed a rule foreign to commonly accepted values" was issued in Loving v. Virginia too.

I went back and read more. It makes no difference really whether the lady acted on her own or not. The ruling was unjust

That's hilarious. "Ok, I didn't have my facts right....but it's still wrong!!"

No one should be compelled by the state to contribute to celebration of practices they find abhorrent personally and offensive to their deity.

By that logic, racists who justify their racism through religion should be able to post "whites only" signs in their businesses. Is that what you want?

The Kleins did not withhold vital services or any that could not be obtained elsewhere. The other party was offended primarily because of what was said.

"They can go elsewhere" was a failed argument during the Jim Crow south, and it remains a failed argument today.

When things affect us we are concerned. That is the way people think.

So how does this ruling directly affect you?

How do you define bigotry.

In this case, intolerance of gays to the point where it's used to attempt to deny them basic civil rights (e.g., equal access to public accommodation).

When you think something is wrong are you being a bigot about it? Or are people only bigots when they do not accept something YOU believe?

Nope. I think Islam is wrong, but I don't try and deny Muslims basic civil rights.

Besides what you call bigotry Christianity calls morality.

That's not a ringing endorsement of Christianity.

Easy for you to say but I do not see in you much respect for a person's free exercise of religion.

Your freedom to practice your religion is not a free pass to break the law.

To be clear a martyr is someone who dies for his faith. I am not saying that will happen but I believe people will suffer for their beliefs because of this ruling.

Thank you for illustrating my point.

Because they will not just acknowledge it they will advocate and teach it. To ensure children will accept their view uncritically they will teach it to them even before they are developmentally ready. Some of this has already begun "Heather has two Mommies" you know and then there is that winning book "My Princess Boy"

Again, teach them what? All you've done is describe schools teaching students that gays exist, which is reasonable since it is a fact of life.

There are two sides to any narrative...at least.

Of course, but that doesn't mean both sides are equally valid.

I wonder how far YOUR kind of Christian would go to make the homosexual community feel accepted. Perhaps re-writing the moral law would be an acceptable sacrifice.

I've no idea what you mean by "your kind of Christian". I'm just watching Christianity come away from this ruling looking pretty bad and kind of having a laugh.
 

gcthomas

New member
Greatest country in the world! If you don't like it here feel free to move.

Great in what way? Are you proud of the race riots, the inner city economic slums? The naïve militarism, or being the source of the banking crisis? The gun death rate? The bipartisan political system that prevents new parties from getting traction while allowing much of the current lot to be bought and paid for by wealthy special interests?

Certainly the US has a great financial and military impact on the world, which it uses to gain political influence over smaller nations. It can fund plenty of science research. The freedom of speech is great.

But is the American economic hegemony strong enough to prevent the rise of other nations with larger populations? Is it fundamentally that great or is it riding on the coat tails of historical industrial strength?

Tell me, leaving behind the simple nationalist rhetoric: in what way is the US the greatest nation in the world?
 

Bright Raven

Well-known member
LIFETIME MEMBER
Hall of Fame
Great in what way? Are you proud of the race riots, the inner city economic slums? The naïve militarism, or being the source of the banking crisis? The gun death rate? The bipartisan political system that prevents new parties from getting traction while allowing much of the current lot to be bought and paid for by wealthy special interests?

Certainly the US has a great financial and military impact on the world, which it uses to gain political influence over smaller nations. It can fund plenty of science research. The freedom of speech is great.

But is the American economic hegemony strong enough to prevent the rise of other nations with larger populations? Is it fundamentally that great or is it riding on the coat tails of historical industrial strength?

Tell me, leaving behind the simple nationalist rhetoric: in what way is the US the greatest nation in the world?

Does the military power of the U.S. help keep you safe today? I sleep safe tonight knowing that it does.
 

gcthomas

New member
Does the military power of the U.S. help keep you safe today? I sleep safe tonight knowing that it does.

That makes it useful. Although the lack of post war planning of the politicians makes it more of a liability sometimes.

Anything intrinsic to the American system?
 
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