Comments on Negreanu's recent blog?

[CaryDarling]

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I guess I'm supposed to assume that this is some kind of sarcastic comment, if not I apologize in advance. But yeah, while there are a majority of Christians worldwide, it is cool in this country to bash Christians, it is fine and dandy to constantly go after every symbol of their belief. You can put a cartoon strip up anywhere in the world making fun of Jesus, but Allah forbid you do it of Mohammed because that's just not P.C.

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people don't make fun of Jesus, they make fun of Christians.

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Well when I state make fun of, I'm saying they'll use Christ in a comedy sketch, in a cartoon strip etc. Things that offend Christians. Ever heard Sam Kinison's comedy routines...I honestly find them to be very funny, but can understand why Christians would find them offensive.

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But yeah, while there are a majority of Christians worldwide, it is cool in this country to bash Christians, it is fine and dandy to constantly go after every symbol of their belief. You can put a cartoon strip up anywhere in the world making fun of Jesus, but Allah forbid you do it of Mohammed because that's just not P.C.

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Cary,

I agree that it is not cool to bash Christians.

In any healthy society, the group with the most power needs to be the most thick-skinned. It's just the way things are. It is not ok to bash Muslims because if you allow it, things could spiral out of control really really quick. I would venture to say that there is no imminent danger of angry mobs or teenagers running around burning churches anytime soon.

[J.A.K.]

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It is, I think, definitively insane to base one's entire existence and code of conduct upon an entity which is not even remotely empirically evident.

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Yeah that Mother Teresa was a loon! And C.S. Lewis a babbling simpleton. Oh, and William F. Buckley's "Nearer My God" was not rational at all. But I know for every one of my examples you can offer me 10 equally impressive (intellectually speaking) of your own denying the existence of God. So that leaves us with where we choose to put our faith.

I welcome the absolutes that the Bible brings. It doesn't leave me groping through life having to "lean" on whatever philosophies I end up scraping together along the way. It allows for principles that are not "up for debate" because they are tied to an omniscient Creator rather than a humanistic, agenda diven indoctrination. I choose to put my faith here, others don't. Coerced (expected) belief is what I had for a long time with an upbringing similar to what Nath described. As I matured, I understood alot of what was "preached" was personal "spin" and not absolute. But I don't blame God for man's fallibilty. I am all for reason and logic, but I also accept its limitations.

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Hey there, if you are using quick reply on an issue this sensitive, don't add in a quote! It makes it look like you are quoting me. [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

[Weir]

OMG RELIGION THREAD

[Rushmore]

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It is, I think, definitively insane to base one's entire existence and code of conduct upon an entity which is not even remotely empirically evident.

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Yeah that Mother Teresa was a loon! And C.S. Lewis a babbling simpleton. Oh, and William F. Buckley's "Nearer My God" was not rational at all. But I know for every one of my examples you can offer me 10 equally impressive (intellectually speaking) of your own denying the existence of God. So that leaves us with where we choose to put our faith.

I welcome the absolutes that the Bible brings. It doesn't leave me groping through life having to "lean" on whatever philosophies I end up scraping together along the way. It allows for principles that are not "up for debate" because they are tied to an omniscient Creator rather than a humanistic, agenda diven indoctrination. I choose to put my faith here, others don't. Coerced (expected) belief is what I had for a long time with an upbringing similar to what Nath described. As I matured, I understood alot of what was "preached" was personal "spin" and not absolute. But I don't blame God for man's fallibilty. I am all for reason and logic, but I also accept its limitations.

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Your post is reasonably presented for the most part, and I have no incentive to slander your belief in any way.

I hope you feel the same of my beliefs.

P.S. I think it is at least a little disingenuous for you to imply that I intended to call people of faith "loons" or "simpletons." My point in using the word "definitive" was to pedantically make the point that perspectives are only perceivable subjectively. I was indicating more the fact that we as a species are ready at any time to suspend what we tout as our most valuable trait as humans--the ability to reason.

P.P.S. Substitute "love" for "God" in a lot of these arguments, and you'll find a similar logic applies.

[CardSharpCook]

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Finding God doesn't change who you are

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If finding God does not change who you are then you didn't find the right God. Look again.

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If you need to lean on some "force" that doesn't exist to most logical human beings, and this changes your life, then you're living life poorly.

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Most logical human beings believe in some form of God or higher power. A small, single digit percentage, don't. I don't think that anyone who has "found God" would disagree with "if finding God changes your life, then you're living life poorly." Finding God should change your life and living life poorly will probably help you get there.

Freud expected to find that deeply religious people lacked a strong father figure in their lives and that other psycological problems would ensue. Instead he found that deeply religious people were more stable, less prone to psychological problems that the random non-deeply religious person. Not that this is entirely germane to the discussion, but some of the responses in this thread intimate at there being something wrong with the deeply religious.

[MusashiStyle]

LOL i always thought there was something screwy/religious about Negreanu. He should calm down.

[otnemem]

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Finding God doesn't change who you are

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If finding God does not change who you are then you didn't find the right God. Look again.

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If you need to lean on some "force" that doesn't exist to most logical human beings, and this changes your life, then you're living life poorly.

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Most logical human beings believe in some form of God or higher power. A small, single digit percentage, don't. I don't think that anyone who has "found God" would disagree with "if finding God changes your life, then you're living life poorly." Finding God should change your life and living life poorly will probably help you get there.

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I'm not referring to religious people as a whole. But people who "find God" and suddenly become intensely relgious, and then preach that their lives have value because of that... There's something very empty about that. Believing in spirituality or a "higher power" doesn't have to mean living life to appease it.

[.Alex.]

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Religion - You cannot make fun of Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus etc, but Christianity is the exception. You poke fun at Christians, and their God / Savior you are exempt from lawsuits, anti-defamation leagues etc.


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Yeah, Christianity is definitely the religion that is oppressed and discriminated against in this country.

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I guess I'm supposed to assume that this is some kind of sarcastic comment, if not I apologize in advance. But yeah, while there are a majority of Christians worldwide, it is cool in this country to bash Christians, it is fine and dandy to constantly go after every symbol of their belief. You can put a cartoon strip up anywhere in the world making fun of Jesus, but Allah forbid you do it of Mohammed because that's just not P.C.

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I obviously was being sarcastic. I think it's completely riduculous to claim that Christianity is being victimized in America when it has virtually all the power. Tell me who's behind the current trends in this country such as the online poker ban, gay marriage ban, stem-cell research ban, and abstinence-only education.

Or better yet, tell me the chances an atheist, for instance, would have of winning the presidency if one was to run in the next election.

And by the way, jews and muslims are attacked much more than christians are in our society. Maybe not in mainstream media, but I'm sure you know a bunch of people who mutter "terrorist" under their breath when they see someone wearing a long beard and a turban.