quote:

ORIGINAL: BenevolentM
That is a ridiculous conclusion. Women's rights are expensive and when you are poor you cannot afford such luxuries. When you are poor you are forced in some respects to live closer God and live life as God intended it to be lived.

quote:

ORIGINAL: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2013/12/13/ethiopia-utopia-a-village-finds-wealth-without-religion-can-you-guess-how-its-devout-neighbors-reacted/
With all of these businesses, Awra Amba has managed to pull itself out of poverty. Compared with the rest of the region, the average income here is more than twice as high. Literacy rates are higher than in neighboring villages. Mortality rates are lower.....What’s the key difference between this town and others, according to Public Radio International reporter Don Duncan?

One reason the people of Awra Amba are able to work so hard is that they do not follow organized religion.......

.....It also embraces gender equality. You will see women here doing what is traditionally considered “men’s work,” like plowing, which effectively doubles the workforce.

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ORIGINAL: BecomingV

These are people - not religions.

When I wrote that religions inspire conflict and violence, I was referring to historical facts. Why do facts get pushed under the rug when theists and atheists debate? Because theists are in the habit of disregarding facts.

What you seem to be reacting to, which also doesn't exist, is the imaginary position that I hold as a person who wrote that "all religious people inspire conflict and violence."



However, despite their religious background, or mine, for that matter, what I've heard religion is all about is described in their loving, respectful and accepting behavior towards others.
They are living examples of what I hear theists calling, "God's love."

Intelligent minds can differ. And, really intelligent minds can handle paradox and contradiction and complexity. Unlike, dogmatic minds.

^^^ Those two paragraphs mean that although my friends and I include: a devout, old world, Catholic; an old Jew; a bisexual, Goddess-worshipper; a Methodist Elder and me, an agnostic/atheist, none of us lets dogma get in the way of knowing our conscience and treating others with care.

Different religions, or lack, thereof, need NOT be inspiration for conflict and violence - as I've experienced, but religions have to deal with the reality of the harm they cause humanity, the planet and life.

So, no, you didn't read it correctly.

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ORIGINAL: Kirata

Let's see if I'm following this correctly.

First you opened your mouth...

quote:

ORIGINAL: BecomingV

Religions just inspire conflict and violence and terror...

Then you put your foot in it four times...

1:

quote:

ORIGINAL: BecomingV
a Sicilian, 53 yr. old virgin - never married, Catholic and devout. Crucifix-wearing, rosary bead carrying and Missal carrying Catholic! She volunteers reading to the blind. She takes care of her elderly, sick, impaired, mother. She gives out Communion at Mass, which she attends almost daily. Her brother is gay. She supports his life, loves and respects him and enjoys all of the musicals. :) She teaches children while they are hooked up to dialysis machines. This also means that she attends children's funerals - a lot, and these are kids she taught one -on -one, for years and grew to love. So, yeah, some Catholics rock!

2:

quote:

ORIGINAL: BecomingV
Another friend is an "old Jew" as he puts it. He got between me and a physical assault. It was his boss whom attacked me and it cost him. His life partner for years was a black actress with a daughter. He got involved in their culture, religion and lifestyle. He stood by me, vouched for me at work, when I was the only female and it cost him to speak up about that (that's a REAL man), and later, he married my childhood friend.

3:

quote:

ORIGINAL: BecomingV
a Goddess- worshipping, bisexual, feminist, recovering Catholic. She pioneered and worked to provide abortions for the community (as well as birth control education and access). She's a highly educated woman whom used her birth into economic advantage for the betterment of others, including the elderly, the infirm and the outcast.

4:

quote:

ORIGINAL: BecomingV
my eldest friend. We met as one year olds. He became an elder in the Methodist Church. He fought for human rights as a minister, for decades. For women and for gay people in the Church. He created a protocol for Church-goers to support child-molesters whom wished to live differently and within the religious community. (the protocol was based on protection of children first and then on protection of him) My friend, he's very, "how would Jesus love this person?"

Did I miss anything?

K.

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ORIGINAL: BenevolentM

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ORIGINAL: freedomdwarf1

Secondly, women's right don't cost anything, not a bean!
All it takes is for the men to allow those equal rights so that women can enjoy the same things as men do.

Do the math.

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ORIGINAL: freedomdwarf1

Nice one GS!!

Just goes to prove that when religious nuts see the light, more is accomplished.
The same for women's equality.
And I bet the village didn't spend a single dime in allowing the women those rights.

And it proves that BM is spewing hate with a big wooden stirring spoon.
We aren't allowed to belittle other people's kinks but he is allowed to ridicule and desecrate other faiths with impunity.

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ORIGINAL: chatterbox24

Wait I am not done. Ok it's done! The village has water and food to feed everyone. The basic needs are being met, and now maybe some of those or all of those down trodden have an opportunity to have a bit of joy, peace and rest instead of suffering. Many people together accomplished that and those people might/ could have been the religious due to those teachings the religious teach. Try being one person and accomplish that.
And in the process those women and children get more rights because they don't have to bow anymore, because they learn the resources to open up their lives.

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ORIGINAL: chatterbox24

Ok name the groups?
And measure them. Percentage. Show me the math.

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ORIGINAL: chatterbox24

Ahhh well, if the men's motivation is to keep women enslaved and use not educating them as a weapon then their is a cost to make education happen.
Clearly if the motivation is about power and greed and that is the motivation of a person in any circumstances, it's an attitude problem. It's not money it's keeping power, and there isn't a lot one can do with attitudes like that. Unless the person decides to change that attitude theirselves.
You are telling me it didn't cost the US one red penny for women's equal rights?

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ORIGINAL: freedomdwarf1

We aren't allowed to belittle other people's kinks but he is allowed to ridicule and desecrate other faiths with impunity.

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ORIGINAL: BecomingV

kirata - I'll elaborate...

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ORIGINAL: thishereboi

quote:

ORIGINAL: freedomdwarf1

We aren't allowed to belittle other people's kinks but he is allowed to ridicule and desecrate other faiths with impunity.

I thought ridiculing people of faith was sop on these forums. I am sure you are not implying that BM is the only one that does that.

quote:

ORIGINAL: freedomdwarf1

quote:

ORIGINAL: thishereboi

quote:

ORIGINAL: freedomdwarf1

We aren't allowed to belittle other people's kinks but he is allowed to ridicule and desecrate other faiths with impunity.

I thought ridiculing people of faith was sop on these forums. I am sure you are not implying that BM is the only one that does that.

No, I'm not.
And there's a difference between 'people of faith' and just simply 'other faiths'.
BM is consistently spewing vitriol and/or slanderous comments against other faiths (and people who follow other faiths) that don't follow his own very narrow conformity.

What annoys me more than anything is that when others have done similar things, the post is pulled, cleaned up, and sometimes the poster is moderated. BM has regularly besmirched and maligned all other faiths (atheism being his latest target) and I don't see much moderation of his posts or the threads that he starts under some misleading title only to turn it into his own religious (and often insulting) diatribe using extremely tenuous links.