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Randy
SFN Regular
USA
1990 Posts |
 Posted - 12/12/2003 : 15:37:05
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Austin, Texas
Brother gets 14-year sentences for his role in severe beating of Bible studies student
http://www.statesman.com/metrostate/content/metro/thompson/1212verdict.html
[Edited for copyright concerns by @tomic]
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http://www.religionnewsblog.com/news.php?p=5386&c=1
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"We are all connected; to each other biologically, to the earth chemically, to the rest of the universe atomically."
"So you're made of detritus [from exploded stars]. Get over it. Or better yet, celebrate it. After all, what nobler thought can one cherish than that the universe lives within us all?"
-Neil DeGrasse Tyson |
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Jarrid
Skeptic Friend
101 Posts |
 Posted - 02/02/2004 : 16:15:35 [Permalink]
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| you can't pass judgement on a belief because of a few nutballs.;) just as I can't say that I think atheism is stupid because someone who doesn't believe there is a God decides to murder another person. just to clarify, i am not in any way saying that that is what you are doing, because you did not post any of your thoughts to the article, but rather am just making a point. and someone will probably say that it is more acceptable for an atheist to commit a crime than a pastor because the atheist has no eternal consequence of their actions, while the pastor does, but that really means diddly squat considering that no one is perfect, including pastors--everyone makes mistakes. i am in no way condoning this retard's actions, but rather that you can't judge an entire group by a few individuals. |
I don't have to go swimming through an outhouse to know I wouldn't like it." |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2004 : 17:23:03 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Jarrid
you can't pass judgement on a belief because of a few nutballs.;) just as I can't say that I think atheism is stupid because someone who doesn't believe there is a God decides to murder another person. just to clarify, i am not in any way saying that that is what you are doing, because you did not post any of your thoughts to the article, but rather am just making a point. and someone will probably say that it is more acceptable for an atheist to commit a crime than a pastor because the atheist has no eternal consequence of their actions, while the pastor does, but that really means diddly squat considering that no one is perfect, including pastors--everyone makes mistakes. i am in no way condoning this retard's actions, but rather that you can't judge an entire group by a few individuals.
I agree entirely. One cannot judge any group by the actions of a few. If one could, the entire Catholic Church might have been tried at Nuremburg (Hitler was a Catholic).
But oddly, statistics have shown that atheists are under-represented in the nation's prisons. Being that we're no less human than anyone else, I wonder why.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist! 
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Jarrid
Skeptic Friend
101 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2004 : 17:38:25 [Permalink]
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| yeah that is weird about the prison representation...but then again maybe not so weird. maybe the reason is that since it is more difficult to follow restrictions on your life and live a more disciplined life, which i would hope you would agree that the christian life has more expectations on it than the atheists life in regards to moral behavior...but yeah maybe the stress is too much for some and so they snap after a while? |
I don't have to go swimming through an outhouse to know I wouldn't like it." |
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jmcginn
Skeptic Friend
343 Posts |
Posted - 02/03/2004 : 09:50:49 [Permalink]
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Jarrid,
quote:
but then again maybe not so weird. maybe the reason is that since it is more difficult to follow restrictions on your life and live a more disciplined life, which i would hope you would agree that the christian life has more expectations on it than the atheists life in regards to moral behavior
This shows how little you know about my life. How do you know what restrictions I place on my life? How do you know how difficult it is for me to live my life?
No, I do not agree with your assessment. Instead of having a moral system based on a 2,000+ year old rule book and "knowing" things for certainity I have a system of morality based on principles. Each and everyone has carefully been molded and continues to be so. Instead of running to a pastor or jumping to page X when event Y happens, I have to think about it. I have to weigh consequences and judge those against my own principles. I don't get easy answers.
The idea that for some reason the Christian life has more expactations is without merit and is typical of the Christian ego I have witnessed. |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 02/03/2004 : 14:18:42 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Jarrid
i am in no way condoning this retard's actions, but rather that you can't judge an entire group by a few individuals.
And yet, a pastor is supposed to be an example for his flock.
Here in Sweden, there is a Pastor of a Pentecostal church charged for conspiracy to commit murder. He managed to convince his nanny (with whom he apparently had a sexual affair) to murder his wife, and managed to convince another woman to kill off her husband so they could be together.
By the way...
This Pastor was thanked by the Israeli Ambassador in Sweden a year ago for the contributions he had made to a pro-Israeli paper in Sweden. This is the same Israeli ambassador that thrashed a piece of art at an exhibition in a museum in Stockholm less than a month ago,
because he thought it glorified Palestinian Suicide Bombers.
What escaped his big ego was that the artist was a former Israeli military paratrooper, and that the text that was a part of the installation clearly pointed out that the suicide bomber was a murderer. The piece was meant to provoke a discussion about how the lack of will for reconciliation and forgiveness results in the escalation of violence, blood, and murder.
Israeli Ambassador just thrashed at it and then tell the media...:
1) in Sweden that it was an act of passion in the heat of the moment.
2) in Israel and foreign press that he had heard about the installation, and planned the vandalization days in advance.
...and continue to accuse the Swedish nation as anti-semitic.
It is pretty ironic that an Israeli Ambassador would do such a thing.
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Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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Tim
SFN Regular
USA
775 Posts |
Posted - 02/03/2004 : 14:35:59 [Permalink]
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quote:
i would hope you would agree that the christian life has more expectations on it than the atheists life in regards to moral behavior...
Jarrid, the morality you speak of is about putting a theology above the well being of those people you have to live with on a daily basis. This silly idea has led to the death and torture of many millions of people over the ages.
In these days, people torture and kill young men and women because that moral code tells us that people that love someone despite gender roles is evil. People fly airliners into buildings because of a similar moral code. As I said in another post, in your moral code, you can hurt another, then later claim that you're sorry, or that you were doing God's will, and that's okay.
For the majority of the people here, your moral code is the source of much immorality. Most of the folks here really do live by the Golden Rule. We must think about how our actions will affect others, and how those actions can better our society.
Non-theists are heavily under represented in the prison system due to one or two possible reasons. The first being that non-theists simply don't commit the crimes, or two, they are so much smarter and more powerful than the rest of society that they get away with it. I would think the first is more logical.
Let's face it. A Christian has no more added pressure to steal or harm others than atheists. If accepting Jesus as your personal savior makes you want to go knock off a gas station, well...that's one personal savior I can do without. |
"We got an issue in America. Too many good docs are gettin' out of business. Too many OB/GYNs aren't able to practice their -- their love with women all across this country." Dubya in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, 9/6/2004
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