Comments on A Heathen's Day: Bauer Talks out His Ass

Uncensored, I joke about that as well...When I sta...

2008-07-07T21:21:00.000-04:00

Uncensored, I joke about that as well...When I started studying Icelandic it was for a reason, to learn the language of my ancestors. I've also joked about Canada. But in neither case am I entirely joking. In Canada, these people can actually get in legal trouble for their hate speech...as I said, I'm not all that keen on restricting free speech but you gotta figure from the evidence the crazies have less of a toehold there.

Brainwise, yes it is! It's terrifying when you thi...

2008-07-07T21:15:00.000-04:00

Brainwise, yes it is! It's terrifying when you think the Supreme Court is 1 justice away from becoming an organ of God's Own Party. They already have their own propaganda network, FOX...all we need is for them to own the Supreme Court too. At least the Representative Branch has been pulled back from the brink of being dominated by theocrats.

I agree, Granamyr, and the playing field should be...

2008-07-07T21:14:00.000-04:00

I agree, Granamyr, and the playing field should be level. Non-Christians can get vanity plates but those won't have their holy symbols on them whereas the Christians have a special plate all their own.

"Our country is in trouble." is an understatement....

2008-07-07T18:29:00.000-04:00

"Our country is in trouble." is an understatement. The whole reason why our country was founded is being violated. Religious freedom, they said...religious freedom, so long as you agree with THEIR religion.

I was watching a show on the Discovery Channel about hauntings and it's amazing how many people will go against what they have been taught/told and go to a witch for a house cleansing because a priest or minister can't or won't help them...
They go to witches for help with money or their love life...but when it comes to supporting them, they turn their backs because, *gasp*, what would my bible thumping friends think?!

Our country IS in trouble and I'm really afraid to sit around and find out what comes next. I joke around all the time about moving to another country...and even though I'm joking, I find myself getting ready to learn Italian...

Thanks for bringing this to our attention, Hrafnke...

2008-07-07T17:12:00.000-04:00

Thanks for bringing this to our attention, Hrafnkell. I agree with you -- this whole situation is both ridiculous and frightening. And I am talking both generally and with specific application to the upcoming election.

Christians have no problem making themselves heard...

2008-07-07T15:48:00.000-04:00

Christians have no problem making themselves heard when someone is genuinely wronging them (though they whine a whole lot about perceived rather than actual wrongs too) but yet, these same people will do exactly what is done to them and call it justice in the name of truth. If you call them out on it they'll go, and I've had this happen, "Well, that's what we believe so you can't fault me for acting on it." Oh, so when I do what I believe in and you perceive it as persecution does that same excuse fly? Oh, heck no it don't. Pisses me off. None of their reasons for why they're right apply to anyone else. Drives me crazy.

If someone wants to pay for their own custom plate to be done fine but the gov has no business supporting it. I wish there was more I could do but as it is I'm still very new to the Pagan community.

Shannon, thanks for commenting. I share your fears...

2008-07-07T12:07:00.000-04:00

Shannon, thanks for commenting. I share your fears. I agree with you that no candidate truly stands for religious minorities. I also worry about radical Islam. But when both my enemies want to take away my freedom of religion, the old adage "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" no longer applies. I am given a choice of living under a Christian theocracy or an Islamic theocracy and I choose neither.

I don't think any of us alone can change anything. But together we can do more. There are liberal organizations standing up for our rights, including MoveOn.org and Americans United, as well as others, such as MediaMatters, who stand up against right wing disinformation. But agree that the media as a whole seems to be in thrall to the unilateral epistemology fostered by the conservative right. McCain is guilty of all the things he accuses Obama of but he never gets called out on it. Swift-boating works only one direction, apparently, and the media laps it up rather than denouncing this new McCarthyism.

Our country is in trouble. I've read about the book America Alone though I haven't read it. But I think the Bush Administration is largely responsible for putting America in this position. McCain will not make anything better. I don't think Obama is a messiah of any kind but he is at least a step back towards what was before the Bush coup. McCain will strengthen the imperial presidency and even if I think Obama plays too much to the so-called Christian Right I think he is still far more liberal than McCain. An easy choice there for me even if neither is exactly what this country needs.

Religious minorities have been forgotten. We have to speak up, all of us, and be heard. People surrendered to Hitler because they refused to stand up for what they believed in and denounce Nazism, denounce what was happening to their country. We cannot make that same mistake here. The politics of fear make it difficult for Americans to speak up and this is the same tool used by Hitler to silence his critics. But as Mark Twain said, "A discriminating irreverence is the creator and protector of human liberty."

We simply have to be heard. I get told constantly that I need to be nice, that I shouldn't criticize Christianity and that defending ourselves is not the Pagan way. Bullshit. Pagans long ago recognized the threat Christianity was to religious liberty and they spoke up. We have to keep speaking up or surrender our right to complain later, when they're tossing our books on the fire.

I earnestly believe that the only way anything will be accomplished is by shouting, not whispering, not cowering in shadows and trying to be the "good Indian" so the shit will fall on somebody else. The silent majority is out there, and they still command 75% of the vote compared to 25% held by the Evangelicals. Right now, the 25% are ruling the roost because the 75% won't wake up. It's our job to wake them up. And we don't have to turn them into Pagans to accomplish that; we simply have to wake them up to the truth.

As for Islam...yes, a threat as well. But the immediate threat to my liberty is not Islam, but the so-called Christian Right. And Islam would be less of a threat if these people hadn't created the situation that exists now. Bush has not protected America; he has created a whole new wave of enemies. In truth, all monotheism is the enemy. All of it. Because monotheism doesn't understand plurality. It doesn't play well with others. And because of its very nature it can't even play well with itself. In their grand design there isn't room for plurality or religious freedoms, or diversity, or tolerance of any kind.

The only thing I can think to do in response is stand up on a box and shout at the top of my lungs, which is what I'm doing here. I don't intend to regret later that I didn't speak up when I had the chance.

Hi Hrafnkell,I stand with you...but I'm also very ...

2008-07-07T11:28:00.000-04:00

Hi Hrafnkell,

I stand with you...but I'm also very concerned about the growing strength of Islam...almost more than the Christians these days. Have you read the post by Ole Hansen on Heathen News (yahoo) regarding the book "America Alone"? I believe it was posted today. Scary predictions about the world and our country. I will definitely be reading the book this summer.

I'm terrified what will come out of the upcoming elections. No candidate seems to be serious about truly changing the course of our country, protecting our liberties and values (by our, I mean Americans, not necessarily Heathens). As a woman, I fear for abortion choices being taken away...as a mother, I fear for the future of my children. I see most other Americans as lazy, non-thinking, and brainwashed by TV. I'm not saying I'm perfect by any means but no one seems to take an interest any longer, and I for one, am terrified. I feel stuck. I am one person, one vote...how can *I* change the country???

In frith,
Shannon