Tuesday, June 15, 2010

I have been watching Penn and Teller

I love the guys :-)

But - I couldn't watch the 12 steps program. It's not fair to call it a cult, because no-one is forced in to the program, no-one is forced to stay and it doesn't cost anything. Sure, there are rules and certain amount of religiosity involved, and it doesn't work for everyone, but the world is full of people whose lives have been saved by 12 steps. I haven't heard of anyone whose life was harmed or lost to 12 steps movement. Perhaps they presented these people in the show, but I doubt that. I won't watch it.

Gun control... to me it's obvious the 2nd amendment is helplessly outdated. But, sure, let the USonians play with their guns and shoot each other.
What I don't understand is that most of the gun-toters are also Christian - and the kind of Christian who think they are the only RIGHT kind of Christians, who take the Bible as literary truth, demand "intelligent design" is taught in schools and other such crap, but if you quote them some Bible, they will tell you you're evil. :-> "Thou shall not kill", "But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil" and I'm pretty sure it says something about it being better for you to loose your hand than soul and something about rich men getting to heaven, but - I'm not Christian. I've just read the book. Unlike many Christians. ;-) Nevertheless, my point is, that according to how I understand the Greek Scriptures, it would be better for me to get mugged, raped and killed, than loose my soul by trying to kill another human being, how ever bad I judge that human being to be. I will survive any bodily harm and any loss of property, and if I die, I will meet my maker a bit earlier than I expected, but as not a bird falls from sky without God knowing it, why would I die without God's knowledge and acceptance of that? Isn't God the Lord of Life and Death? Isn't life God's gift? There are thousands of miraculous survival stories, people have survived shootings, beatings and stabbings that SHOULD have killed them... So, no, I find the gun-toting Christians to be weak in faith, and trusting more in gun than God, how ever they justify that. Gun might save your life and property, but it won't save your soul. (The fact that I am not Christian doesn't matter at all. You know I'm right. :-D)
I have lived my whole life in countries with very strict gun control laws, and I don't have any need to carry a gun with me. I have been wishing to have a gun so that I could shoot some of these antisemitic idiots around here though. I think it's a good thing I don't have a gun, because even though I don't think the world would loose anything if there was fewer idiots, but because I don't want to go to jail because of idiots. Also, I cannot know if one of these idiots is going to be the forefather of next Mozart :-D I love Mozart :-) (On the other hand, I'm also 100% sure of that even if the supposed forefather dies before he manages to breed, God will find someone else to forefather the next Mozart. I am not fatalist. God has a backup plan for every possible occasion.)

Then comes the endangered species act... We are presented to poor Lindy Mongiove, handicapped woman, who wanted to build herself a home, near her mother, church and community, but - alas - there was a bird living on her property and she isn't allowed to build her a house! O ve! She is currently living with a friend, showers in the backyard, poor woman. All because of a bird and ESA. Now, I have compassion to her, it cannot be easy to live in other's corners, when the only obstacle to own living is a bird, but - even though I think human rights trump the animal rights at any time, that it is more important to save the human species before any other species, that I would save a human in need before an animal in need, I don't think one human's discomfort due to her obstinacy is more important that trying to save endangered species. I also don't think 7 billion people have right to push all the other species off this planet, or say "I am a human so I have the right to live where you are living, because you are just an animal". People really don't need to turn any more wilderness into human habitat.
Why cannot she live with her mother? In the program she was saying she wanted to live near her mother, not her family, so I assume her mother lives alone in a house. Lindy is probably never going to marry and get children, she would be living alone - or with her personal assistant - all her life. She would end with two houses when her mother dies.
I'm sorry, Lindy, but I cannot see how your life was destroyed by ESA. Looks to me it was destroyed by your irrational wish to live in your own house, your stubbornness not to change the plan after it has turned out to be difficult or impossible to follow, and stupidity of not finding out if you may build on the property before purchasing it. I'm sure ESA isn't doing much good, I trust Penn and Teller (in spite of it all), but Lindy isn't a good example of a person whose life was destroyed by ESA.

Laughing at witches, new-age people, tarot readers, feng shui and alternative therapy methods like homeopathy or reflexology is all fine by me, even though I am one of the people they would be laughing at. I believe there is more in the life than what can be observed, measured and tested, but I have no problems with other people believing differently. I start getting "problems", when people find my beliefs "offensive", try to limit my right to believe any BS I want to believe in, try to force me to believe their beliefs, and punish me if I refuse, by getting verbally abusive and so on.

2 comments:

Jeff S. said...

"I have no problems with other people believing differently. I start getting "problems", when people find my beliefs "offensive", try to limit my right to believe any BS I want to believe in, try to force me to believe their beliefs, and punish me if I refuse, by getting verbally abusive and so on."

Just a thought, but saying you want to kill people who have beliefs that are different than yours, or making fun of people or portraying their views as offensive may not be the best way to get your point across here. I'm sympathetic with many of your sentiments, but you can't really say that you'd like to kill them because their beliefs are stupid. As stupid as certain beliefs are, you are basically being verbally abusive because they have a different opinion than you.

It may not be such, but it does come across as hypocritical and sounding like you really do have a problem with people believing differently than you.

Jeff Gedgaud said...

I disagree with your points and opinion. Penn & Teller are right for the most part, the government is ruling from on high with no exceptions except for money. If you have money good things will be yours but if you don't you can be in trouble.

Take the endangered species act and Lindy, she buys land and wants to build a house but can't because of an endangered species supposedly living there. Walmart, who has lots of money, got permission to build in the area but she cannot. What sense does this make to me, none.