Name 'em for the hypocrites they are, reject their phony moralizing and condescension, excoriate the cult of leader worship that's festered in our national mythology... and don't give the bastards an inch of ground.
It's about time (hell, PAST time!) that someone spoke up about how those who espouse Christian Nationalism are far less about the supposed goodness of Jesus than they are about their desire for power and exclusivity over that power. Personally, I'd like to hear a LOT more commentary like that of Senator Hunt.
George Washington? How about they try quoting Thomas Paine, who never owned a single slave and who found slavery cruel, as Christians rather belatedly decided after the fact and decided they'd led the fight for abolition after having participated of profited from that institution.
Oh wait. Paine was a staunch Deist who despised the Christian book and religion. Guess we won't be seeing faux patriot Christians quoting him.
For Christian politicians defending Christian prayer/invocations and bible studies...
Did you not swear an oath to support and "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States?" Did you not read that document? Did you lie and have your fingers crossed when you took that oath? And what about disobeying your Jesus by praying in public, which he told his alleged followers NOT to do? Why call him Lord, yet don't do what he tells you?
You bring up George Washington? He was a Deist and didn't much like or trust Christians and said so. Oops! He owned slaves and passed them on. He freed one slave, which is one more than Jesus freed. Jesus. Your savior who gave instructions on how to beat slaves, even if they weren't doing anything wrong. Slavery, the institution you waved your bibles as "justification" for.
I prefer to admire the president whose prosecution of the Civil War evolved into ending slavery. Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is the finest piece of political rhetoric in the English language.
At his untimely death, he owned no slaves crying for freedom.
With amazing facility, the Republican party convinces Americans to vote against their interests, making them slaves to ideology, using a toxic brew of lies and religion. The most contemptible Americans express their love of God, while they ignore the needs of the people
Please, please, please tell me we get to keep her. There's a desperate shortage of good sense in political office, I would hate to lose any more of it.
I'm glad someone finally shot back (and saying that you don't like Washington is bold, holy shit), but this still veers into No True Scotsman territory.
When George Washington was alive he had more than a few political enemies, many of whom ridiculed him quite mercilessly. For instance, a number of them mentioned in their private correspondence that he had a grotesquely large backside. When they wanted to piss him off in public, they'd refer to his posterior as "Greater Virginia." But, hey, we have to speak about him with nothing but hushed reverence today. Got it.
Hemant, I like your comment on Washington far better than either Murman's OR Hunt's. History and literature (and current events!) is filled with people who are neither villains nor heros, but have both good and bad in them. Opinions you will think are right on the money, and opinions you will find to be stupdi, wrong, or offensive. There is a tendency on both the left and right these days to try and shoehorn people into one or the other, villain or hero. This is not only bad history (for dead people) and bad sociology/politics (for live people), but when we do that we fail to teach our kids how to grapple with the real world and real people. But our kids need to be able to deal with people who are a mix of both, and people who have some opinions they agree with and some they don't. They need it so that they don't fall prey to "good people" who do bad things, or refuse to consider ideas and actions merely because they are initiated by "bad people." They need to learn about Washington as a good general, and a good President, and a racist slave-owner, both because he really was all those things at once, and because there are lots of people your kids will deal with who will also be a mix of the great and awful, the genius and idiot, the spectacular success and disappointing failure.
Thank you, Sen. Hunt. Would that more politicians would speak out against Christianity or any other religion encroaching on our secular government.
Yes. This.
More of this.
Everywhere, please.
Name 'em for the hypocrites they are, reject their phony moralizing and condescension, excoriate the cult of leader worship that's festered in our national mythology... and don't give the bastards an inch of ground.
It's about time (hell, PAST time!) that someone spoke up about how those who espouse Christian Nationalism are far less about the supposed goodness of Jesus than they are about their desire for power and exclusivity over that power. Personally, I'd like to hear a LOT more commentary like that of Senator Hunt.
Sadly, I don't expect it.
George Washington? How about they try quoting Thomas Paine, who never owned a single slave and who found slavery cruel, as Christians rather belatedly decided after the fact and decided they'd led the fight for abolition after having participated of profited from that institution.
Oh wait. Paine was a staunch Deist who despised the Christian book and religion. Guess we won't be seeing faux patriot Christians quoting him.
Brava, Sen. Hunt! Please consider moving to Pennsylvania and giving some hell to the Republican goons who control our senate.
Oh, I was hoping for a body slam. Maybe a suplex.
We need more lawmakers like Sen Hunt? Personally I think we need fewer like Sen Murman, but I guess that might be a little difficult to arrange.
For Christian politicians defending Christian prayer/invocations and bible studies...
Did you not swear an oath to support and "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States?" Did you not read that document? Did you lie and have your fingers crossed when you took that oath? And what about disobeying your Jesus by praying in public, which he told his alleged followers NOT to do? Why call him Lord, yet don't do what he tells you?
You bring up George Washington? He was a Deist and didn't much like or trust Christians and said so. Oops! He owned slaves and passed them on. He freed one slave, which is one more than Jesus freed. Jesus. Your savior who gave instructions on how to beat slaves, even if they weren't doing anything wrong. Slavery, the institution you waved your bibles as "justification" for.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGgZG6O6aT0
OT but I caught this last night and it seemed interesting.
I prefer to admire the president whose prosecution of the Civil War evolved into ending slavery. Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address is the finest piece of political rhetoric in the English language.
At his untimely death, he owned no slaves crying for freedom.
With amazing facility, the Republican party convinces Americans to vote against their interests, making them slaves to ideology, using a toxic brew of lies and religion. The most contemptible Americans express their love of God, while they ignore the needs of the people
Please, please, please tell me we get to keep her. There's a desperate shortage of good sense in political office, I would hate to lose any more of it.
I'm glad someone finally shot back (and saying that you don't like Washington is bold, holy shit), but this still veers into No True Scotsman territory.
We get a trifecta today https://friendlyatheist.substack.com/p/miami-beach-officials-are-considering
When George Washington was alive he had more than a few political enemies, many of whom ridiculed him quite mercilessly. For instance, a number of them mentioned in their private correspondence that he had a grotesquely large backside. When they wanted to piss him off in public, they'd refer to his posterior as "Greater Virginia." But, hey, we have to speak about him with nothing but hushed reverence today. Got it.
Outstanding! We need so much more of that. Thank you, Senator Hunt.
Hemant, I like your comment on Washington far better than either Murman's OR Hunt's. History and literature (and current events!) is filled with people who are neither villains nor heros, but have both good and bad in them. Opinions you will think are right on the money, and opinions you will find to be stupdi, wrong, or offensive. There is a tendency on both the left and right these days to try and shoehorn people into one or the other, villain or hero. This is not only bad history (for dead people) and bad sociology/politics (for live people), but when we do that we fail to teach our kids how to grapple with the real world and real people. But our kids need to be able to deal with people who are a mix of both, and people who have some opinions they agree with and some they don't. They need it so that they don't fall prey to "good people" who do bad things, or refuse to consider ideas and actions merely because they are initiated by "bad people." They need to learn about Washington as a good general, and a good President, and a racist slave-owner, both because he really was all those things at once, and because there are lots of people your kids will deal with who will also be a mix of the great and awful, the genius and idiot, the spectacular success and disappointing failure.