Karen De Coster calls attention to Bill Maher, his comments on religion in general, and those of the Pope and The Catholic Church in particular. The segment for which she posts a transcript begins at 3:15 into the video.
Well, what can I say? I could maybe pick at a thing or two, but he more or less makes a lot of valid points and draws some certain parallels. He's as right as the sunrise: the only reason the Catholics get a grudging pass on their institutionalized child rape and cover up, and that "kooky Mormon cult" doesn't, is that, for one, the Catholics have lots of voters; and two, they either cannot, or refuse to think honestly and in terms of consistent principles when grappling with mind-created fantasies like imaginary friends and sooper beings with sooper powerz.
We are dealing with people -- voters -- who are operating under delusions, Karen, and Sunday morning Mass and Friday fish are the least and non-essential manifestations of such delusion. Ideas have consequences, and the problem with delusions is that the public policy that ultimately trickles down is perfectly integrated with such delusions.
I think we ought to always fight the idea of State omnipotence and, the difference with me is that I just go one god farther, and just as hard.
...he should look to the state and its war on human freedom, and not focus on people who privately "believe" and therefore carry personal feelings between them and their religion/church, and cause no one any physical harm in doing so.
The modern western state derives its moral authority from mainstream religion, both explicitly and through political manipulation. Ultimately, unless you're going to get people to believe that their god is really loving and benevolent, rather than a murderous mutherfucker who smites women, children, and livestock, and tortures non-believers in eternal fire, then you're simply not dealing with the very most fundamental psycho-epistemological underpinning of the state.
Karen De Coster calls attention to Bill Maher, his comments on religion in general, and those of the Pope and The Catholic Church in particular. The segment for which she posts a transcript begins at 3:15 into the video.
Well, what can I say? I could maybe pick at a thing or two, but he more or less makes a lot of valid points and draws some certain parallels. He's as right as the sunrise: the only reason the Catholics get a grudging pass on their institutionalized child rape and cover up, and that "kooky Mormon cult" doesn't, is that, for one, the Catholics have lots of voters; and two, they either cannot, or refuse to think honestly and in terms of consistent principles when grappling with mind-created fantasies like imaginary friends and sooper beings with sooper powerz.
We are dealing with people -- voters -- who are operating under delusions, Karen, and Sunday morning Mass and Friday fish are the least and non-essential manifestations of such delusion. Ideas have consequences, and the problem with delusions is that the public policy that ultimately trickles down is perfectly integrated with such delusions.
I think we ought to always fight the idea of State omnipotence and, the difference with me is that I just go one god farther, and just as hard.
The modern western state derives its moral authority from mainstream religion, both explicitly and through political manipulation. Ultimately, unless you're going to get people to believe that their god is really loving and benevolent, rather than a murderous mutherfucker who smites women, children, and livestock, and tortures non-believers in eternal fire, then you're simply not dealing with the very most fundamental psycho-epistemological underpinning of the state.