| Topic: |
Religions > Atheism |
| User: |
"The Last Liberal / ShyDavid / Desertphile" |
| Date: |
16 Jan 2005 05:32:21 PM |
| Object: |
One nation, under the thumb of god |
alt.atheism.holysmoke,alt.atheism,talk.origins
http://www.mlive.com/news/sanews/index.ssf?/base/news-13/1105874454279590.xml
One nation, under the thumb of god
Sunday, January 16, 2005
I spent 12 years in a Catholic school system believing God was
scrutinizing everything I did, patiently waiting to punish me for
all the wrongs I was racking up. A humorless principal with a
wooden paddle often reinforced the point, so I grew up looking
over my shoulder.
It's only now that I am beginning to truly understand how the
Creator fits into my life. That place is not confined to the pages
of any single book and is far removed from politics.
Unfortunately, "religious" conservatives don't see things that
way. As we head into a second term under President Bush, I chafe
at the overreaching piety of these people, who ache to impose on
the nation values based in part on a book of tall tales,
contradictions and, yes, good advice.
"Religious" conservatives and I share many of the same concerns,
but I keep an open mind and prefer to let common sense and
civility guide me.
For instance, I, too, am pro-life.
t When those two monsters raped, tortured and killed Karen King,
whose misfortune it was to simply cross their paths at a Saginaw
grocery store in 1997, I had the same knee-jerk response of any
outraged citizen: I wanted blood. But ordering the execution of
criminals brings us down to their level. Only a sadist could want
a caged human dead and still feel entitled to belly up to the bar
with St. Peter.
t Fetal stem cells hold the potential to cure diseases and help
sufferers in ways we can only imagine. The government ought to
encourage the study of these building blocks of life. If you
believed opponents' fears, you would think that one day we'd all
be square dancing at the annual stem-cell harvest.
I also am pro-choice. For instance:
t The worst offenders ought to decide for themselves whether to
while away their lives in a prison cell or take a slug of
potassium chloride. It's a fair, if crummy, offer.
t The terminally ill ought to have medical assistance if they
choose to become the dearly departed. And the state ought to give
them a nice send-off for the money they'll save the health-care
system.
What a women does with her body -- including any life within -- is
HER business. I would rather she not get an abortion, but the
government ought not to decide that the best interest of the
mother is less important than the best interest of her fetus.
I am pro-family. All couples, regardless of their God-given sexual
identity, ought to enjoy committed relationships without moralists
hounding and shaming them. Societies long have used beatings,
beheadings and other intimidations to cleanse themselves of
homosexuals; who are we to be offended when they demand respect?
Nor should we gasp when they want to become parents. Our
relatively short history of gay adoption suggests children in
these families grow up well-adjusted and appreciating diversity,
which considering our heritage is downright American.
I am pro-gun. I own seven, including a loaded .38 in the
nightstand next to my bed. I feel safer with it, even though
statistically I'm more likely to shoot off my big toe than shoot
an intruder.
I believe in creationism. Our vast universe comes from a power we
are trying to fathom and likely only will begin to understand in a
different life. What science cannot yet explain, faith helps the
sensibly curious make the leap.
I believe in evolution. That we emerged from a primordial stew
explains why some people are white, brown, red, have big noses,
crooked teeth and other differences that we use as excuses to
bludgeon each other. So what if our ancestors are monkeys?
Evolution is evidence of a higher power, a celestial Johnny
Appleseed sowing the ingredients of life to see which forms take
hold and how they flower. I hope the Creator has a dark sense of
humor.
"Religious" conservatives don't hold such broad views. And with
Bush in the White House, we can expect more of their tiresome
rattling about family values and faith-based government.
Pushing a regressive morality onto such a diverse culture as ours
ignores something I learned in school: You only push Him away when
you force people to look over their shoulders. v
Mike Herek is a copy editor at The Saginaw News. You may reach him
at 776-9781.
---
http://lastliberal.org
It's OK to be a christian as long as you don't practice christianity. -
jonny vee
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