Religious Freedom for Me but not for Thee



Religious freedom is mostly a zero sum game. The Trump administration wants more religious freedom for one group, the group where their votes are, and wants less for its enemies.

There have been many attempts at outlawing marriage between same sex people. If these couples have a religious belief they are to marry each other how can prohibiting their marriage be "religious freedom" for them. The same for preachers who have a "calling" to perform the ceremonies.

I would guess the majority of Christians do not believe a fertilized human egg is a human being. They do not share the religious view that at the moment of conception a new human being exists. More ridiculous restrictions on abortions is not religious freedom, it is the opposite.

In fact is "religious freedom" as promoted by the Trump administration is not religious freedom at all. Instead, it is imposing one set of religious views on those who have a different set. It is the opposite of true religious freedom.

There is a group of Unitarians who have the religious belief they are to save lives of migrants trying to cross the border between Mexico and the U.S. These religious volunteers carry food and water into the desert where people are attempting illegal border crossings. They do not have any role the the border crossing itself. But, the Trump administration's border patrol is chasing down and prosecuting these Christians humanitarians.

Comments

  1. Matt NoahOctober 3, 2018 at 2:48 PM

    A zero-sum way of looking at the world is very pessimistic and dangerous. Eliminating communism a zero-sum game? Who does communism benefit other than the atheists and anti-theists who abhor religion? The atheists lose while the rest of society wins, is that how you view the world.

    On another note, the USMCA, assuming it passes Congress and the legislative bodies of Canada and Mexico is noted as having a big net positive impact in North Dakota - http://www.inforum.com/business/agriculture/4508340-fairer-exchange-new-trump-trade-agreement-has-impact-north-dakota

    I know that doesn't agree with your hate-Trump agenda but the truth often has that effect on your arguments.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. mark anthonyOctober 5, 2018 at 2:57 PM

      This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    2. Jon LindgrenOctober 5, 2018 at 3:42 PM

      mark anthony 2:57 "...this boils down to a fight between those who hold an acorn is an oak tree with potential and those who hold an acorn is a potential oak tree."

      You are welcome to word smith all you want. The facts are: an acorn is not an oak tree. One fertilized egg is not a human being.

      Delete
  2. mark anthonyOctober 5, 2018 at 4:57 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jon LindgrenOctober 5, 2018 at 8:47 PM

    mark anthony 4:57 "Thus, one of my pet peeves."

    One of my pet peeves are people who say an acorn is an oak tree because their religious beliefs tell them such a thing.

    ReplyDelete
  4. mark anthonyOctober 6, 2018 at 7:13 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jon LindgrenOctober 6, 2018 at 8:11 AM

      "come now. Aristotle tells me that. and he makes a good case for his take on the matter."

      That an acorn is an oak tree and therefore one cell is a human being is one that I'll add to list of reasons for white males in government to take control of women's bodies. It can be added to "when there is a heartbeat", "when it recognized its mother's voice", "when if feels pain", "when the quickening happens", "when it has a soul", "when one can count the figures on an xray", "at the moment of conception", "when it has its own DNA", etc etc. All of these have one simple objective, to control women.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Maybe the "Original Sin" Should be Reassigned

Image
We can all agree most Catholic priests are fine people and not guilty of sexual abuse. What Catholics must face, however, it that their church harbors executives who are dishonest . There is an incredible story about the Argentine Bishop Zanchetta. The Pope worked with him in Argentina and they are considered friends. Around 2015 Zanchetta sent nude pictures of himself and they began circulating world wide. He also was too friendly with young seminarians and some left because of him.  Three different officials say they made formal complaints to the Vatican about Zanchetta between 2015 and 2017. Yet, in 2018, the Vatican claimed it was unaware of any complaints about Zanchetta. This might be a good time to repeat the Catholic hierarchy claims to have the sole authority handed down from Jesus to what the faith stands for. It condemns as sinners those who practice birth control, have abortions and gay sexual relationships. Handing the hierarchy this responsibility would make som
Read more

The Religious Capitol Invaders May Yet Win

Image
So much about U.S. society and religion can be learned from the Civil War and what happened afterwards. After its defeat, the South started a myth about the unethical soldiers from the North. The South fought for principles of God and states rights. The North did not. It was the South, this propaganda told the country, that had the high moral ground.  The Capitol invaders, encouraged by Trump, swallowed the myth that Biden's election was stolen. Thus, they think they held and still hold the high moral ground. This was reinforced by the cross and prayers during the invasion. Even with Trump is gone, we will see political opportunists like Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley stroking crowds and feeding the same lies as Trump. Like "the South will rise again" these gullible followers will talk of victory over the unclean. After the Civil War the South rallied around the phrase, Lost Cause. For decades, and maybe to this day, there are ceremonies remembering fallen martyrs, Re
Read more

Father Frank Pavone, the Ultimate Crook

Image
Recently, the Vatican defrocked Frank Pavone. His diehard fans are outraged. This is because he cleverly manipulated his fans and the press all the while living well from donations and, apparently, abusing some women. By making abortion the "sin" of the century, and himself the main opposition to this one sin, he himself could get away with any sin he pleased.  As the link points out, Pavone was the perfect priest for the Trump era. Trump is so self-important laws have no role in his life. He felt accountable to no one. Women were there to be had. Pavone and Trump are interchangeable.  Pavone was very successful raising money. In his mind, abortion was so important in Catholic beliefs and he was so important in anti-abortion the money he raised opposing it was his to do with what he liked. The Catholic Church, the brand name he used to raise this money, thought the money belonged to it. When he gave the Vatican the bird, it gave him walking papers. With polls showing the majo
Read more