Coinciding with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visiting the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Association center where Saturday’s shooting attack took place — a visit that is, frankly, impressive — comes word that Israel is not the gay-friendly place we’ve been led to believe!
If you want to believe the answers of roughly 500 folks polled by the newspaper Haaretz, 46 percent of them think homosexuality is a “perversion”; 42 percent said it isn’t. Not surprisingly: “The percentage was highest among Orthodox Jews, with 71 per cent believing it was a perversion. Sixty-four per cent of Arab Israelis and 24 per cent of people who described themselves as secular agreed.”
If only the Jews believed in hell, you’d all be going there.
Shelby
Only half? 3/4 of Americans think we are disgusting. I guess that makes Israelis more tolerant than us?
Chitown Kev
Oh, boy. this thread should be interesting.
idlewitness
100 percent of me thinks that religion is by far the most violent concept in the history of humanity. 100 percent of me understands that goodness may manifest, but when wrapped around the mythos of dogma it becomes suspect. 100 percent of me equates the Zionist state of Israel with the worst aspects of American Imperialism. 100 percent of me is gay and proud.
Zero percent of me is optimistic about any hope of peace in our future…In any way.
100 percent of me “thinks” – so what.
TANK
barack obama wouldn’t pull a move like that.
daftpunkydavid
@Chitown Kev: LOL indeed. I was in Tel Aviv last year and had the time of my life, in terms of culture, nightlife, sexual “first-times” LOL. This poll does come as a surprise because I always thought Israelis were more progressive (than western europe or north america, aus/nz, etc..) on questions of personal freedom. I guess I was wrong. it looks like they’re closer to bulgaria according to the haaretz article. too bad. i still plan on going back to that beautiful place in the distant future, absence of war permitting…
COCO
1/2 of California voters took away my rights.
daftpunkydavid
@daftpunkydavid: ***oops, pulled a freudian on this one: in the not-so-distant future LOL.
wanker
Jamaica is looking a lot better these days. They just beat us with tire irons there instead of shooting us right?
Mike
Does that make jews just as homophobic as christians?
Antonio
@wanker: We boycotted Jamaica, are we to boycott Israel too?
Dave
I think it would be a GREAT idea if a lot of us pulled our financial resources together, our talents and skill sets and buy our own fuckin island. Create a utopia for ourselves and fuck everyone else.
Israel was created out of one of history’s worst bigot based wars and they have the nerve to discriminate against those that are different? I’ve stood in a rail car that transported jews to the camps. Shame on them.
Steff
500 people out of a population of 7,400,00? I love statistics.
wanker
@Antonio:
Not boycott (girlcott?)…I don’t want to be thought of as anti-semetic, you know, the worse thing ever to be thought of as,
perhaps not buy michael lucas’ new DVD?
anyway boycotts don’t work except if you’re black in the south in the 1950s.
REBELComx
@Mike: Well since Christianity inherited it’s homophobia from Judaism, I’d say it’s about even. Prior to Christianity’s takeover of the Roman empire, ancient Judea was the ONLY culture on record to have any laws expressly forbidding homosexual activity. Everyone else saw it as either acceptable or even went so far as to deify it in myths.
I would almost say that the Christians just display it more openly, but then I remembered the anti-gay riots in Jerusalem when they had a Pride festival.
Antonio
@Dave: I always get a kick when people who have suffered the most injustice often have no sympathy for LGBT people. Look at Jews, African American folk and even my own hispanic people. I just havent been able to understand.
wanker
I remember as a youth here in NYC being offered sex on a few occasions by hasidic men in SUVs….Instead I went to the airport and shoe tapped my way into a hot orgy party set up by conservative republicans and their evangelical preachers.
coco
@Antonio: They all use religion. My grandmother says a rosary for my daily in the hope that I will one day turn straight woman and marry a nice Catholic hispanic man.
REBELComx
@Dave: I’ve often thought of that myself. A tropical island that can be a safe haven for queers from around the world. Kind of like Magneto’s island of Genoa from the X-Men comics. We’re such a diverse group, i’m sure the economy of the island would be spectacular. Of course, if you put us all on one island, it just takes one nut with a nuke to take us all out. I can just hear Achme-needs-therapy-nejad calling for the destruction of the island after he wipes out Israel. I wouldn’t put it past the likes of NOM either.
daftpunkydavid
@wanker: HAHAHAHA
wanker
@REBELComx: @REBELComx:
On this island will we have a government or a monarchy ? I can see it now, the day when RuPaul is announced as our patron saint…Saint RuPaul, pray for us.
coco
@REBELComx: That happens alot in my dreams.
Chitown Kev
@wanker:
No, we have a parlimentary government. RuPaul would be the Speaker of the House (a la Betty Boothrod, the former Speaker of the House of Commons for Prime Minister’s Questions)
Oh, can you imagine Prime Minister’s Questions in the gay Parliment?
REBELComx
Hmmm. Maybe instead of boycotting Jamaica, we should be invading it in full force…
Brian
Judaism, Christianity and Muslim, the Big Three Hate-Makers, ALL make homosexuals “perverted.” When are we going to reject that?
As long as we let Religion define us – especially without a fight, we will be hated. We will never win a popular vote. Gay teens will keep killing themselves. It’s time to end this LIE about homosexuals.
Ready TANK?
Smiley Barry
@daftpunkydavid: We *are* gay-friendly. Notice the main poll result is of ALL 6 groups which were polled, of which Orthodox jews, religious jews, (mostly religious as well) arabs, The Commonwealth of Nations (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nations), semi-religious jews and *then* secular jews. Percentage stands at 71%, 67%, 64%, 57%, 44% and 27%, respectively. However, note most of Israel is secular or only semi-religious. The “half of Israel” title was only done by the press to create mass publicity.
Data was adapted from the original article in Hebrew, if you want to know before you go all “OH RLY??? WHERE DID U FIND THAT?” at me. 😛
angus
What do the jews know? god made them his chosen people and they thumbed their collective nose at him.
Brian
@angus: I don’t think there should be a “g” in your name.
Brian
@Smiley Barry: “Gay-friendly” isn’t good enough. Secular Jews need to tell ALL Jews to change their doctrine. Make sure the changes include cheeseburgers, too. They’ll enjoy them.
SM
What a thread of jerks.
Instead of wasting hours each day on the negative. Start thanking the 6 million voters who voted no On Prop 8. What a concept.
You all need constant negative reinforcement to the point its just odd.
No On Prop 8 lost a 17 point lead in the polls and the best demonstrators in my area were high school kids. Where were the millions of LGBT in America? You did not lose your rights in California because of Religion.
Smiley Barry
@Brian: Right, because we can control the religious community. There’s a HUGE riot in Jerusalem over opening a parking lot on Saturday. They’re fighting the police, lighting tires on fire, and throwing stones at people driving by. You want us to tell them to accept gays?
edgyguy1426
Oy
Brian
@SM: Not because of Religion? What are you smoking?
Several studies confirmed “religious beliefs” as the reason to vote for Prop 8. Also, if the vote was limited to only person under the age of 40, it would have been defeated 60% to 40% BECAUSE younger people are twice as likely to be “non-religious.”
To suggest religion had no part in Prop 8 is to deny the facts. Every anti-gay sentiment is ALL ABOUT RELIGION.
Tel Aviv shooting – Religion (Probably Orthodox Jew)
Matthew Shepherd – Religion (Mormon and Baptist)
El Paso Gay Kissing (Baptists)
Prop 8 Funding (Mormons)
Maine Repeal Effort (Christians)
Washington Repeal Effort (Christians)
Iraq execution of Gays (Muslim)
The list goes on and on and on … for Centuries.
Brian
@Smiley Barry: There has never in the history of our struggle been a concerted effort to take a stand against Religion – ALL Religions. Because of this THEY have defined us. Unless we change that, we’re fucked.
Deonte Harris
I wasn’t aware of this,is this true?
Photographs were published yesterday showing the Russian Prime Minister stripped to the waist riding a horse through rugged terrain during a brief holiday in the Siberian region of Tuva. Wearing only green fatigues, his eyes hidden behind reflective sunglasses, Mr Putin also showed his gentler side as he fed the horse from his hand after the ride.
Mr Putin, who will be 57 in October, showed off a set of rippling arm muscles as he demonstrated his butterfly swimming stroke. The photos will inevitably trigger mass swooning by women all over Russia — as well as unfavourable comparisons of their husbands to Mr Putin’s manly physique. They will also confirm the Russian Prime Minister’s status as a gay icon.
Smiley Barry
@Brian: We can’t really fight something that can’t be 100% proven or 100% defied. And religion isn’t all that bad. I have several gay friends which are still semi-religious.
I agree, the “kill x if he slept with/likes men” statement is just wrong, but there are a ton others that are wrong and were cancelled throughout the years. Like killing for false testimony or bearing the god’s or king’s name in vain. Time will pass and more people will cancel and stop to mind that statement, just like the rest.
TANK
As far as the existence of the Jewish God, it can be proven with 100% certainty not to exist.
M Shane
No. 3 · idlewitness
“100 percent of me equates the Zionist state of Israel with the worst aspects of American Imperialism”
You’re on the money there. Naomi Klein in “ShocK Doctrine “expounds the fact that Isreal is the formost producer of Munitions in the Middle East. It is remarkable that the Zionist dream became our first major foot into a “humanitarian’ interest in the Middle East. From there we can unravel the Wolfowitz Doctrine of preemptory wars from here to eternity, claiming to be defending our ally.
It puzzles the hell out of me that for all the presumed knowhow people here have got about politics , they don’t mention at allthe fact that since 1992 , when the Doctrine was written , the U.S Military has enlarged to make the U.S. the most feared and hated force in the world.
It’s an interesting coincidence, with regard to Israel , that the very justification for punishing the Nasi’s the Nurenburg trials , are the very principles of Americas actions in Iraq and Afganistan and Israels inhuman treatment of Palestinians and their strikes into Lebonon. The victims of Nazism doing the same to others that was done to them.
Of course, interestingly thanks to the Neocons the American Military is still hundreds timess bigger than the Constitution allows and is the biggest threat to the entire world.
I’m just waiting for Obama to deflate it and if the conmgress will let him. That will tell is the true worth of this country. like the Nazis or No.
TANK
And who needs to have something proven to 100% certainty to affirm or disconfirm the existence of something? YOu must not believe in the external universe, then.
TANK
@Smiley Barry:
Go the the very source of their justification, and destroy it.
Brian
@Smiley Barry: You don’t have to debate whether or not it is TRUE, that’s not the point. We must REJECT the branding by religion that we are wrong, sinners and deviant. We are NOT WRONG. There is no need to fight them – just reject them for defining us with a LIE.
The hopeful part of the effort is that Non-religious + Spiritual person may actually be a majority. If we speak up and reject the branding we may realize we are not alone. Only then can we WIN anything.
merkin
500 people is not even close to a legitimate sampling. Also, what does it mean to say you think something is a perversion? Gays can serve in the military in Israel and more domestic-partner benefits than the U.S. So maybe they think its a perversion but they dont think we should be denied our rights.
And lastly, whatever the people of Israel feel should not be misconstrued to represent what Jews believe as a whole. There are Jews all over the world with many different viewpoints and denominations.
prissysissy
@daftpunkydavid: Generalizing Tel Aviv to the rest of Israel is like saying San Francisco is a true reflection of the rest of USA.
prissysissy
@wanker: They beat with tire irons the ones they could not throw into the ocean to drown.
ifonlyHillarywaspresident
It’s all Obama’s fault for not setting a standard in the US.
The Gay Numbers
@merkin: Actually, 500 is sufficient enough of a sample size to be an accurate reflection. However, what you should have written is that it does not by itself paint the picture. The reality is that one should take several polls over time. But, I got to say neither the anecdotal evidence from the terrorist attack, the Swatiska signs by Jewish extremism being painted on gay establishments or the general views of the gay rights activist in Israel point to the poll being wrong. Indeed, the poll is in accord with what everyone has been saying since the terrorist attack: the attack was a ticking time bomb waiting to happen. For example, in 2005, there was apparently another attack in which a Jewish extremist stabbed gay people.
Epluribusunumjk
That’s sad especially for a Zionist like myself. Although what about the secular Arabs who hate us even more?
Well this is disheartening isreal remain the only bastion of progress and hope in an oftentimes violent, clusterfucked region. It’s obviously the lesser of two evils, IMHO.
Brian
@merkin: What does it mean to say something is a perversion? Leviticus. The source of the idea homosexuality is perverted is simply Religion – Judaism. Chrisitianity, Muslim and the 34,000 other “faiths.”
daftpunkydavid
@Smiley Barry: thanks for the clarification!
Jon from Maine
Oh Please…..Look..they don’t even have any taste in hats…..
daftpunkydavid
@prissysissy: way to be prissy lol. i didnt generalize. i just said i had an awesome time in tel aviv. however my impression that israelis were more progressive principally stems from the fact that to my knowledge, people’s individual freedoms are not toyed around with like they were (or should i say are?) here in the good ole usa by rove and co. the politics are such that even though the crazy fanatics can spew their hatred, the majority/mainstream parties don’t (again, from what i know) incorporate that hatred to their platform, unlike in our country.
daftpunkydavid
@Epluribusunumjk: idk why you’re talking about arabs here… unless of course you know something about the murderer that the rest of us is not privy to? the fact that israel has more individual freedoms than all the other countries in the region is indisputable, and in fact, is to be lauded. it’s no excuse, however, for what happened. and this shouldn’t be used to score points in a debate that, although also related to entrenched hatred/religious intolerance/etc, is too alien to the discussion at hand, imho.
Bryan
In fairness, all of the polls that I’ve seen in the US show that Jewish people tend to be allies. This is Israel, not all Jews and this distinction should be noted.
TANK
There’s a world of difference between u.s. jews and israeli jews, but I’ve met homophobic u.s. jews, too. In fact, israeli jews don’t really consider u.s. jews authentic–been my experience, anyway. and good. Keep their hate.
Brian
@daftpunkydavid: It isn’t by “rove and Company,” it is Religion. Religion is the only thing that makes homosexuality wrong. Rove and Company are infected with religion – that’s why they behave that way.
daftpunkydavid
@Brian: fine, but rove and company are the ones who used the christianists (like andrew sullivan calls them) by toying around with our rights (and indeed the rights of all americans) to win elections. was it politically savvy for them? as sarah palin would say: you betcha! was it moral however? imho, no.
Brian
@daftpunkydavid: Yeah, that’s the political game. Gays will never win in that arena until we re-define ourselves by rejecting the idea that we are wrong, sinners and deviant. That idea comes solely from Religion.
Equality will mean our fellow Americans no longer hate or fear us – that will never happen until we undo what religion did. We need to tell the world we are Not Wrong and then we need to re-brand homosexuals as we really are – the same as them, except for a few minor details.
The good news is religion is going out of business. If the Prop 8 vote was limited to just people under the age of 40 it would have been defeated by a 60% – 40% margin. In 30 years, non-religious will be the new majority. I don’t want to wait – we should stand up for ourselves NOW. People will join us. Only half of the so-called “religious” actually take it seriously.
Make a sign that says “Not Wrong” and put it in your window. That’s a start.
hardmannyc
lies, damned lies and statistics. If you asked 500 people in any country, “Do you think homosexuality is a perverson,” many would say yes. If you asked the same people, “If you had a gay close relative, would you want him or her to have full and equal rights,” the same people would say, “Yes.”
Polls like this are idiotic.
CHIP
When it comes to polls, the way the question is phrased will impact the final results. When it comes to social issues, such as acceptance of gays, if the poll question is phrased as a positive or negative right will have an impact on the results. When phrased in the positive, polls show (at least in the USA) a significantly higher acceptance of gays and our civil rights than if the question phrased it as a negative right.
http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/06/how-to-get-63-of-americans-to-support.html
As for the make-up of the Israeli population, it seems to have four blocks – Secular Jews (more liberal), Israeli Arabs (more liberal when it comes to Israeli foreign policy, but not when it comes to homosexuality), Soviet Jews (Hawkish in foreign policy, more religious than secular Jews, and moderate in social policy), and Ultra-Orthodox Jews (Hawks and Socially Conservative). When it comes to who ends up running Israel’s government, it’s predominately been made up of Secular Jews since the very beginning. However, if you want to take population trends with birthrates, the Israeli Arabs and Ultra-Orthodox will become larger and be a greater proportion of the population. Arabs have a higher birthrate than non-Arabs, and the highest birthrate amongst Jews in Israel are the Ultra-Orthodox. Add to this that the Orthodox get exempt from serving in the military (they need to devote the time to studying the torah, talmud, etc. (I’m not joking, I’m being serious…) and that helps the Orthodox have a lower mortality rate which aids in population growth.
So, the point of all this is don’t be surprised if Israel becomes more conservative towards social issues because 20 years from now if there still is an Israel as it exists today it’s population proportionally will be less Jewish, and those that are Jewish will be more religious. Pretty much the opposite of what’s going on in most of the USA.
BMR
@Antonio:
“I always get a kick when people who have suffered the most injustice often have no sympathy for LGBT people. Look at Jews, African American folk and even my own hispanic people. I just havent been able to understand.”
This is not fair, not true, and very ignorant.
South Africa is the only African nature to have gay protections enshrined in its Constitution, and gays can get married there.
Jews routinely vote Democratic by HUGE margins here (75%+), second only to the black vote. Reform Judaism is one of the most tolerant and fully accepting mainstream religious denominations in the country.
Issey
Who gives a shit ? Do you guys wants to read my poll? I’m sure you do. Lol.
But seriously now, let me ask you this, how many of you are willing to respond to any poll? How many of you have the time and the patient to answer any of those polls who calls you over the phone? lets bet none of you, right? Right, I mostly hang up the phone after I say “sorry, I am busy”, because I am really busy, and have better things to do. Well, there is my poll, intelligent people do not have the time to answer stupid questions especially over the phone because they know that other people most likely to wipe their ass with it any way, and they have better things to do in their free time, if they have a free time at all.
Intelligent people do not take surveys because they are busy with things that makes them grow or teaches them something that would make them better humans. Intelligent people respect other people in all means any way, and wont call to disturb you if they don’t know you, especially if you did not ask them to or gave them your number, because they know it’s rude. Now, here is the answer, Who are those people that answered the survey? all the one that has nothing better to do, and sit at home waiting for a phone call like that to save their day, that for it self shows you how intelligent those people are, so it should tell us maybe how stupid that poll is, and yes, it is good to wipe your ass with it maybe if you are stuck in Bulgaria or Ukraine, but I am sure you’ll find a better paper in Israel.
What is important? is to remember that Israel was the first country ever to sent a transsexual to represent a state in the most important contest, the Eurovision song contest. And she won too. Something which none of the most gay friendly countries ever did before. So that’s says a lot for it self, beside, being gay in Israel isn’t a big issue any more, and most people in the every day life, do not have any problem with it. If you still doubting it go and see your self. But you do not want to go to Egypt or to the Palestinians or to any of the Arab countries because you wont stay a live long, if you’ll be so proud of who you are there.
Issey
And REBELComx, love your comment, I thought of it so many times through the years, maybe we should get it together and get our own state? I am sure that would be the best place on earth and the place where every body will want to go, every one will want to move there because it would be better than Haven. That is the sad thing which the straight people don’t get, without us in the world it would be all black and whit, we are the color, if we will take that away, you take what life is all about, if all going to move to one place where we might be the happiest people on earth, than we might take all the beauty, fun, Even the sun would follow us, but than who will make more of us? and where will they grow up? in a world full of darkness with no sun and a lot of drunk and cold lonely people? I wish we could build a state, but that would be a very sad thing to do to this world. I think We just have to remind the world that we bring a lot of joy, beauty, and light, and maybe than we will gain our place in society. That should not be a problem to do, it’s an approach we all must take, we just need to wake up the world, and remind them what and who we are. We are all the best that there is in this world, our hands are in every place that you see beauty, fun, and joy. No doubt.
daftpunkydavid
@Issey: wow. that’s some arrogance. not to mention a little ignorant too…
PatrickD
Considering the sources for the Homophobia for Christians and Muslims started in the Torah, the only thing surprising is that the Hatred wasn’t higher. NONE of my Jewish friends have been Observant. I’ve always taken that fact as meaning the same as my Christian friends who aren’t either…that if they WERE, they wouldn’t be around ME.
Brian
It’s time to reject religion. Religion is the source of all gay hatred, pain and suffering.
daftpunkydavid
though i’m not myself religious, and that i find many beliefs quite flabbergasting, i think the problem is not so much in religions as it is in religious people. after al, aren’t they gay affirming-[insert religious group of your choice] ? i believe that man times the problem is that people are just not enlightened. for me, the cure lies in more education as a source of improvement, not less religion. someone educated, able to think for herself, isn’t going to blindly follow religious dogma. that’s why we’ve come to where we are today. that’s how we can go further yet.
Helga von ornstein
@wanker: Speaking of Israel and Mr. Lucas……….on second thought lets just leave well enough alone.
TANK
@daftpunkydavid:
That’s where you’re wrong. Many of the 9/11 hijackers were extremely well educated–and terrorist group leaders come from cambridge, oxford, and the best schools the west has to offer. Education does not combat religious memes.
terrwill
CAN WE ALL STOP THIS BICKERING????? Lets talk amongst ourselves about our fabulous new Gay Island we are going to create. A meca dedicated to everything gay!!! My only concern is how we are going to choose a leader!! I am afraid that EVERYONE is going to want to be the Queen!!!!!
osocubano
That’s OK, I think all of Israel is.
Mark Cahill
Religion = Hate. If we don’t reject the religious LIE about homosexuals, we sanction the HATE.
daftpunkydavid
education is not the same as a degree; it includes it, sre, but it’s not limited to it. you can indeed get the best education “oxbridge” has to offer and yet end up a kamikaze for whatever cause. however put such a kid in an environment where difference is part of the make up and in an environment that teaches him to celebrate such diversity, then the likelihood is that you won’t get suicide bombers.
also, i don’t think it’s intellectually honest to take one example and deduce that the argument is wrong. this is not physical or biological sciences. in the social sciences, exceptions (however rich in consequence) to the rules can exist with the rules until these are replaced by better theories.
in all likelihood, there isn’t one single agent to help decrease hatred; but, inarguably imho, education plays a central role.
TANK
Right, if the world’s religions were taught to school children as a part of a survey class (without endorsing any one as the “right” one), dogmatic religious beliefs would decrease. The older you get with these belief systems, the less chance a diversity class is going to help you come to terms with your bigotry; especially if you view it as god’s imperative–which many religious bigots do.
In the soft sciences, exceptions to the rule are somehow treated as a good thing…when all it does is reduce the enterprise to a joke.
Mark Cahill
@TANK: I agree with the wisdom of TANK. I would add that 98% of all “religious” people NEVER “pick” their religion – they inherit it. +90% are the same religion as their parents. There is no “choice” here. Amazing that people have such “faith” in something they didn’t actually choose. Even worse – they put their harmful beliefs ahead of their own equality.
If Pat Robertson was born in Saudi Arabia – he would be a Muslim.
If Osama Bin Laden was born in Texas – he would be a Christian.
schlukitz
@Mark Cahill:
If Pat Robertson was born in Saudi Arabia – he would be a Muslim.
If Osama Bin Laden was born in Texas – he would be a Christian.
That is so obvious that it should hit a person in the head like a lead balloon.
One has to ask ones self, why religious fanatics like Pat Robertson or Osama Bin Laden, have never even considered or pondered that question, even for one teeny moment?
But then, religion, all religion, is not about using one’s brain, is it? The first essence of religious training, is to suspend all thinking and blindly accept whatever you have been told by your Priest, Rabbi or Shaman.
They’ll never figure it out on their own, sad to say. They are damaged goods that are beyound repair. 🙁
Mark Cahill
@schlukitz: Well, if they don’t wake up they will never have equality. It makes you wonder what’s more important – Fairy Tales or Freedom?
We should hasten the end of religion and take our long-overdue Equal Rights.
Sam Harris – The End of Faith understands the dangerous idea of “faith.” Sincere minds can Google it.
TANK
@schlukitz:
Well, for pat robertson, it’s about money. He believes this shit (he truly believes what he says about god, etc), but it’s also lucrative for him. As his wife said, it’s all about the money.
Osama is a religious fanatic who was deeply disturbed before becoming an islamofascist terrorist, and had all of the privileges vast familial wealth could afford him. His commitment is about fanatacism coupled with political power.
TANK
My theory is that extremely intelligent people who cling to these faiths are either busy with other things, and haven’t thought about it (which isn’t usually the case), or are extremely bored. It’s hard to defend these nonsensical fantasy, and they’re motivated by the challenge.
schlukitz
@Mark Cahill:
Sam Harris – The End of Faith understands the dangerous idea of “faith.”
An excellent read which I very much enjoyed. His “Letter to a Christian Nation” was an excellent follow-up.
Have you read any of the following books?
The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
God is Not Great by Christopher Hirtchens or
Demon Haunted World by Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan, as I am certain you are aware of, was the creator of the fabulous PBS series entitled “Cosmos”. He was a brilliant cosmologist who could explain the most intricate details of the known universe in a manner that was instantly comprehensible to even the most non-scientifically versed members of our society.
His recent passing was a terrible loss to the scientific community.
Bill Perdue
Wow, a few weeks ago they were calling the zionsit state, ala the worst Stalinist propaganda, a “gay paradise”. Now it’s been reduced to a cheap ‘lesser evil’, about as good for us as Bill Clinton, George Bush or Barak Obama. And Humpty Dumpty will never be quite the same.
Actually, the polls confirming widespread homophobia in the zionist state are a bit better than you might expect for a reactionary colonial bunkerstadt founded and maintained by state terrorism to steal land from Palestinians.
The zionist state was founded on the basis of murderous terrorist attacks like Deir Yassin, where Menachim Begin led an attack that killed over 100 Palestinians, mostly women and children. Menachim Begin, future prime minister of the zionist state bragged about his murders. “Arabs throughout the country, induced to believe wild tales of “Irgun butchery,” were seized with limitless panic and started to flee for their lives. This mass flight soon developed into a maddened, uncontrollable stampede. The political and economic significance of this development can hardly be overestimated.’”
As Palestinians moved our zionist colonists moved in. It’s still going on today in ‘settlements’. The most recent big attack, as distinguished from the day to day murders by settlers, police and the military, was in Gaza last December and January where 1,314 Palestinians were murdered, of which 412 – or nearly one third of all of the casualties – were children. Jennifer Lowenstein says it was planned to inflict the maximum casualties on civilians, especially children.
(Stats from http://www.counterpunch.org/gordon01272009.html by Yigal Bronner, Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizations, University of Chicago and Neve Gordon , chair of the department of politics and government at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and author of Israel’s Occupation – University of California Press, 2008. Jennifer Loewenstein is Associate Director of the Middle East Studies Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.) ).
The unending militarism and reactionary apartheid system of zionist society promotes homohating, just as the foreign wars of aggression and unremitting racism, islamophobia and misogyny in the US set the stage for homohating and rising levels of physical attacks and murders against LGBT folks here. Pro-war and islamophobic misleaders are pushing both societies to the right at an accelerated pace. That means more trouble ahead for GLBT folks in the US, occupied Palestine and the rest of Southwest Asia.
(The questions of zionist apartheid and fake charges of anti-Semitism to excuse it are examined here http://www.google.com/url?q=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1957644.stm&ei=6rB8SujEEorANbnvzPsC&sa=X&oi=spellmeleon_result&resnum=1&ct=result&usg=AFQjCNEspMBZZBqLfkMwxC2Z2S4nvXVU8A by Desmond Tutu, awarded for his courageous efforts on behalf of African LGBT folks, a renowned expert on apartheid and implacable enemy of colonialism, including the zionist variety.)
Cue the racists, zionists and islamophobes…
Phoenix (Plotting Anarchy From My Mom's Garage, We Got Kicked Out Of The Basement)
I believe that 100% of Abrahamic religions should be banned as bigoted, dangerous, violent and backwards.
Andrew
@TANK: The so-called “intelligent” people with Faith can’t help themselves. They were fed the serum before they could think – when their minds were very “trusting.”
Most people get to a place where they stop taking it very seriously – like an “ideal” but not as “truth.” Because I believe “religion” is an infection – we need more antibiotics. The only antibiotic I’ve seen work is “conversation.” For this reason, Religion has tried to make conversations about religion “taboo.” They don’t want people to talk about it from a “reason” or logic point of view. Of course not.
The only way to save religious people is to talk about religion. Reason wins or you’re just dealing within someone that’s terminally infected. People over 50 years old are pretty much impossible to save.
If 12 year olds were not brainwashed, but instead were presented with a class about the “religions of the world” including their beliefs and their history – they would never choose one OR STOP LAUGHING.
TANK
@Andrew:
It’s a disease–a thought disease that’s sole objective is to reproduce in people. Memetics is a very interesting field of study. I suggest reading breaking the spell. I’m not a big fan of dennett, but that was fun to read.
edgyguy1426
Why worship gods when you can worship the human imagination that created them?
edgyguy1426
The argument “Jesus must have existed because so many things were written about him” makes me want to go to New York to meet Spiderman
schlukitz
@edgyguy1426:
Post No. 83: Verrrry good! I like that.
Post No. 84: Sure makes ya wanna scratch your head, doesn’t it?
edgyguy1426
Besides, if there WERE an intelligent designer you’d think he would have installed anti-itch balls.
edgyguy1426
…and here we are on an earth that can really only sustain about a third of it’s current population…so I think marriage for procreative purposes is sick perverted and going to undermine society at large by bringing more hungry and polluting people into existance.
youcanthandlethetruth
@edgyguy1426:
If the earth can only sustain one third of the current population how are the other 4 BILLION people getting by??
Have you told your parents that you think they are “sick” and “perverted” for having you??
You seem like a very angry, deeply confused person.
edgyguy1426
Ah there’s the old YCHTT back again.
•Number of children who starve to death every day: 40,000
•Number of people who will starve to death this year: 60 million
If this is your idea of getting by just fine? Then I think YOU’RE the confused one.
•How often an acre of U.S. trees disappears: Every 5 seconds
•At present rate of deforestation, number of years before not a single tree will remain standing in the United States: 50
youcanthandlethetruth
@edgyguy1426: Sadly people have always strved to death even when the population was far smaller. Starvation isn’t a function of population size.
What are the stats for RE-forestation?
SM
@youcanthandlethetruth:
You could end world hunger and starvation with less money than all the chubby faced “Christians” in this country spend on TVs at the mall each year. I’m sure God is proud with your choices and he will judge you too. Good Luck with that.
youcanthandlethetruth
@SM: Are all Christians chubby??
Is there no end to your blatant christiophobic bigotry and nonsensical comments?
SM
@youcanthandlethetruth:
Can I go down to my local church and take pictures of all the people who waddle into their Church and then waddle to brunch.
Meanwhile, it would cost less to end world hunger than what they spend on shoes. Its a FACT.
God is watching…
youcanthandlethetruth
@SM: Is your church representative of the Body Mass Index of Christians around the world?
What about the millions of Christians in poor countries who are starving themselves?
And where did you get this mysterious “FACT”?
From the same place that states it would cost less to end world hunger than what homosexuals spend on arse-lube and gerbil food?
SM
@youcanthandlethetruth:
Good luck when God judges all the Christian Americans. We all know a flatscreen is much more important than starving children!
U.S. Consumer Spending
Furniture Stores: $91 billion.
Annual Cost of…
• Eliminating hunger globally: $30 billion.
• Providing education for every kid on earth: $12 billion.
• Providing access to water and sanitation: $15 billion.
• Reversing the spread of AIDS and Malaria: $23 billion.
Christian America spends 182 billion dollars a year at electronics stores and 3 billion at donut shops.
SM
@youcanthandlethetruth:
I hope you didn’t vote for Bush or Mccain because they were the “Christian” Republican candidates. We are not a Christian nation.
Congress and the White House allocate $522 billion a year to the Defense Budget.
To put the level of U.S. Defense Spending in perspective.
• $30 billion is the annual shortfall to eliminate starvation and malnutrition globally.
• $12 billion is the annual shortfall to provide education for every kid on earth.
• $15 billion is the annual shortfall to provide access to water and sanitation.
• $23 billion is the annual shortfall to reverse the spread of AIDS and Malaria.
youcanthandlethetruth
@SM: Actually the Defence Budget for next year is well over $600bn.
Those are the tax dollars of homosexuals as well as everyone else.
youcanthandlethetruth
Seriously I’m not sure world hunger can be eliminated just by throwing money at the problem.
Getting food to the right places and doing it indefinitely, and avoiding corrupt officials stealing the money on the way seems to be impossible.
edgyguy1426
It could be greatly reduced if the population was reduced to a negative growth situation.
I think people are too selfish, though to realize that large families are not a good idea. It’s not like we have to pop out enough kids to help run the farm anymore. Maybe subsidies to people who keep the number of chidren to 1. Or maybe the new Health Care plan will adopt that enforced euthanasia at age 65.
We don’t need more money we need fewer people and fewer corruption
TANK
You’re out of your mind if you think that the number of people who starve to death each day and year is necessary. It’s not, and this is a proven fact. it’s entirely avoidable. We have more than enough right now to sustain every person on this planet, and the potential to sustain billions more.
Every year, about ten to fifteen million children die of diarrhea around the world. This is an entirely preventable death, and yet they die in the millions because of it.
TANK
@youcanthandlethetruth:
That’s just it, hunger can be eliminated by throwing money at it. You’re out of your element here. STick to talking about god’s [your] bigotry, and leave ethics to the adults.
edgyguy1426
I think you meant that for me Tank
Andrew W
@youcanthandlethetruth: and the “Defence Budget” for the Mexican border was $700 million.
Mark C.
Millions die from AIDS each year in Africa. Fewer would but the Catholic Church won’t allow condoms. More christian compassion.
InExile
@Mark C.: They have blood on their hands now and always have! The Catholic Church is responsible for lots of misery throughout history.
schlukitz
@TANK:
You’re out of your element here. STick to talking about god’s [your] bigotry, and leave ethics to the adults.
Au contraire, Monsieur. People like YCHTT DO, in fact, know everything.
They’ve read the bible! ;o)
TANK
@edgyguy1426:
Only if you’re suggesting that global hunger is not an entirely solvable issue, and that it’s not about the supply, but access. I didn’t get that impression.
SM
Queerty and the diehards that live their lives here simply to bash religion are a joke. Queerty how much money do you make stirring the religious pot all the time?
Oh and lookie…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EN3zaJbYPFY
Mark C.
@SM: RELIGION is the REASON the shooting took place – it was RELIGIOUS BELIEFS. Religion Hurts.
How strange SM that you (I assume you are gay) could be such a supporter and promoter of religion. This is undeniably the institution that has caused ALL our pain and suffering for 2,000.
SM
@Mark C.:
Queerty makes profit off of the BS and your inequality and I don’t see people complain about that.
Religion gets away with their BS is America because MILLIONS OF LGBT PEOPLE ARE LAZY AND LET THEM!
How many MILLIONS of LGBT people have shown up at a townhall for their Representative?
Stop blaming anyone but LAZY LGBT!!!!!!!!!
AL
Posts like this one become a breeding ground for all Queerty’s anti-semitic and anti-Christian bigots. Firstoff, I doubt the accuracy of this ‘poll’. Isral is one of the most gay-friendly places on the planet. Why isn’t there an opinion poll like this among so-called ‘secular’ Muslim countries such as Turkey or Jordan. I bet 85% of them think you are disgusting. How about a poll of gays in Iran? I bet the number is over 99%. And they won’t just think you are disgusting, they think you should be stoned to death. What do liberal sissies have to say about that?
schlukitz
@Mark C.:
(I assume you are gay)
Nope! SM is straight…and works for the gay cause.
Now there’s a misnomer, if ever I heard one. She comes-off sounding like only she knows what’s best for the LGBT community.
And her justification for knowing what’s best for us?
She has a gay brother!
schlukitz
@AL:
Another apologist for religion heard from.
I often wonder how people like this manage to get rid of the shitty taste left in their mouths from all the ass-kissing they engage in?
Brian
@AL: Places with the highest number of “religious people” have the highest amount of gay hatred and discrimination. Iran, Iraq, (most of the Middle East) Muslim-Africa, Muslim-Asia, all places where homosexuality is “punishable by Death.” Italy, Greece and other Eastern Europe Countries have very little equality for gays.
Conversely, places with the fewest number of “religious people” have the most freedom and equality for gays. Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands and France are mostly full equality.
Check the Gallup Polls: http://www.gallup.com/poll/114211/Alabamians-Iranians-Common.aspx
This and other undeniable data proves that Religion = Homophobia.
Brian
@Brian: And stop apologizing for belonging to the Christian Club that condemns homosexuals. Religion has told a lie about homosexuals for 2,000 years. This lie that homosexuals are “wrong, sinners and deviant.” We are NOT WRONG.
By being a member of the institution of Religion you sanction the hate and discrimination created by that lie. Why not skip over to your Church and tell THEM to stop.
Religion is Anti-Homosexual.
AL
@schlukitz:
I am not an apologist for religion. The cause of hatred are people, not religions. Why aren’t there any posts on open-minded Christians, or Jews, or even Muslims? The focus of gay liberal media is predominantly on religious folks with fundamentalist views to justify their religion-bashing hatred.
Brian
@AL: There are 3,400 so-called “gay-friendly” churches in the US. The Vicki Gene Robinson “moderates,” (who incidentally have never changed their formal Christian doctrine that homosexuals are the “worst sinners in the World”), now represent 1% of the 350,000 churches nationwide. Wow, 1% after 2,000 years. Just think, in 98,000 years it could be 50/50.
Remind me how gay-friendly Christians have any impact whatsoever on our struggle? 99% of religion is gay-unfriendly.
schlukitz
@AL: @AL:
The cause of hatred are people, not religions.
Yeah. And the cause of homosexuality is queer people.
Next.
Brian
@Brian: “People” cause Hate? Huh? How could that be? People need to have “beliefs” to be hateful. Those beliefs are found in EVERY RELIGION in the World. Even your silly little gay-friendly ones.
schlukitz
@SM:
Stop blaming anyone but LAZY LGBT!!!!!!!!!
Fuck you and the bully pulpit you climbed up into like a monkey!
Don’t you need to wipe your gay brother’s ass or something like that?
schlukitz
@Brian:
Brian…I love you, but you’re pissing into the wind trying to get people like AL to see the light of day. Facts and figures are totally lost on the likes of such people.
They are blinded by religion and no matter how many pairs of eyeglasses you hand them, they will never be able to “see”.
So much for Getreal’s belief of winning hearts, one-by-one.
Yawn. LOL
schlukitz
@AL:
The focus of gay liberal media is predominantly on religious folks with fundamentalist views to justify their religion-bashing hatred.
Yep. It’s all the fault of those vicious LGBT, religion-bashing queers. They’ve brought all the bigotry, discrimination and hatred on themselves and they deserve exactly what they are getting.
Wearing a hair shirt while making posts like this shouldn’t be difficult, but how do you manage to type while you are flagellating yourself with the quirt?
Mark
@schlukitz: I love you, too Brian. I am headed to the big Baptist Church downtown with my sign “Homosexuals are Not Wrong.” That’ll show em.
schlukitz
@AL:
Why aren’t there any posts on open-minded Christians, or Jews, or even Muslims?
Why weren’t there just as many “open-minded Christians, or Jews or even Muslims” raising tens of millions of dollar to equal the efforts put forth by the queer-hating, religious homophobes?
Where are the figures (and the posts) revealing that information?
If we can manage somehow to find out how many bucks were raised by the Catholic Church and the Mormons to get Prop8 passed, they why are there no figures showing how much was spent on fighting Prop8?
Some links, please.
Brian
Let’s go to AL’s Church. That would be fun.
schlukitz
@Mark:
@schlukitz: I love you, too Brian. I am headed to the big Baptist Church downtown with my sign “Homosexuals are Not Wrong.” That’ll show em.
Excellent idea. I say go for it! ;o)
schlukitz
@schlukitz:
And while you’re at it, you can piss all over their floors…and their flucking flowers too! LOL
AL
Just to sum up previous comments, what do you people suggest we do with religion? Ban it, burn churches, and establish an atheist state, and then ship 20 million people to Gulags in the name of Holy Communism?
schlukitz
@AL:
It’s a good start……LOL
Andrew
@AL: No reason to be an “extremist” AL. Let me share the Math with you:
1/3 of Americans are “Non-Religious” and/or “Spiritual.
2/3 of Americans claim they are “Religious.”
Of that two-thirds many hold religion as an “ideal,” not the “truth.” Perhaps about half of them are “terminal,” and therefore un-savable. But, if we focus on the half that are “fair and open-minded” they will probably support our equality. If we achieved that we’d would have two-thirds on the side of Equality.
How do we do that? I’m not sure. I do think for the first time in the history of both religion and homosexuals we MUST reject the LIE that we are WRONG. MLK rejected the religious lies about Blacks and slavery and WON civil rights. Only the Episcopalians had the courage to reject slavery and racism formally and actually apologize, but other religions do “ignore” those parts of the Bible now.
There is NO EVIDENCE that homosexuality is wrong. That LIE was started by religion and we must demand that they end it. Before religion homosexuality was okay, even cool. After religion is was wrong. That’s an undeniable fact.
This coupled with all of us going “all out” to everyone, so they understand we are not wrong, will give us the voting power to prevail. A sad historical fact is that gays and lesbians have never one a single “popular vote.” Never. The problem is people vote their beliefs. We need to reject and retire the hurtful and hateful belief that we are wrong. Only then can we approach equality.
I have Faith in my fellow human beings IF they are not infected with a FALSE religious “belief.” I have Faith in human kindness and compassion – I cannot say the same thing about Religion.
So, start by putting a sign in your window or on your front lawn that simply says NOT WRONG.
We must have the conversation that lets people choose to put Equality BEFORE Religion. If we don’t have the courage to have that conversation then we sanction the hate and discrimination that results from the religious branding of homosexuals.
I’m not wrong – Religion is.
schlukitz
@AL:
Re: Your Post No. 116
Here’s a perfect example of your “open-minded”, lying, Christians. Forget about the “Fundamentalists” for a moment, if you will.
http://crooksandliars.com/node/30296@AL:
I find this excerpt from from Klingingshitt’s (who was a Navy Chaplain) comments the most fascinating of all.
Let their days be few, and replace them with Godly people. Plunder their fields, and seize their assets. Cut off their descendants, and remember their sins, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Yep. That’s real “open-minded”.
And lots of “Christian-style” love there too.
Amen.
AL
@schlukitz: I assume you are joking. Anyhow, the Soviet Union wasn’t a gay paradise either. Thanks to 75 years of commie indoctrination, Russia is still homophobic. Guess which party in Russian parliament sponsored the bill to re-criminalize homosexuality. Yes, it was CPRF (the Commie Party of Russian Federation).
schlukitz
@Andrew:
I’m not wrong – Religion is.
Hear. Hear!
But, sad to say, I don’t think Albert wants to hear that, much less say it! 🙁
schlukitz
@Andrew:
@schlukitz: I assume you are joking. Anyhow, the Soviet Union wasn’t a gay paradise either. Thanks to 75 years of commie indoctrination, Russia is still homophobic. Guess which party in Russian parliament sponsored the bill to re-criminalize homosexuality. Yes, it was CPRF (the Commie Party of Russian Federation).
See what I mean, Brian?
He’s hopeless!
schlukitz
Al, baby…how can you compare 75 years of “commie” indoctrination to two-thousand years of RC Catholic “religious” indoctrination?
Long before the “pinko commies” took over, there was Russian Orthodoxy. They didn’t like the queers either (read your history)so your argument that Russia is still homophobic is a strawman. It’s as ridiculous as saying that because of the communist take over in China, all of the people are still Chinese.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Russia
Guess which party in Russian parliament sponsored the bill to re-criminalize homosexuality.
And guess which Christian group, right here in America, wants a bill making homosexuality a criminal offense, punishable by
death?
GodhatesFags.com
Andrew
@schlukitz: Thankfully some gays and lesbians have balls. They aren’t afraid to stand up for themselves. Those people will lead the effort to re-define homosexuals and the the religious lies.
I have a “gay-friendly” pastor friend who agrees completely with the idea that we need to “reject the lie,” but doesn’t have the courage to fight – well, until I fill him with wine. Then he tells the truth about religion.
So, add to the plan: Vineyard.
schlukitz
@Andrew:
So, add to the plan: Vineyard.
I like it. I like it.
Even Jesus would have approved. LOL
AL
Say whatever you want, say how hopeless I am, and how much I supposedly root for the religious nuts. Given the ambiguity of major religious texts, they can be interpreted either way. Some chose to take things out of context to justify their bigotry. Some choose to live by a true Biblical principles – “Love thy neighbor”, “Thou shalt not judge”. Additionally, Jesus never said anything of homosexuality. Whoever invokes the name of Jesus to support their hateful rhetoric does not get the message of Christian faith across.
AL
@schlukitz: Westboro Baptist “Church” has less then 100 supporters and they definitely do not reflect the mainstream Christianity. America hates them. Stop mentioning those nutjobs!
Andrew
@AL: Say it is NOT WRONG.
You can do it AL. NOT WRONG. NOT WRONG. NOT WRONG.
Now say, I am no longer going to support any religious institution that makes homosexuality wrong.
Andrew
@AL: Jesus never said. Jesus never said.
Look, one of Jesus biggest supporters and “divinely inspired” the Apostle Paul (later achieving Sainthood) very clearly said:
“DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT THE UNRIGHTEOUS WILL NOT INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD? DO NOT BE DECEIVED. NEITHER FORNICATORS, NOR IDOLATERS, NOR ADULTERERS, NOR HOMOSEXUALS, NOR SODOMITES, NOR THIEVES, NOR COVETOUS, NOR DRUNKARDS, NOR REVILERS, NOR EXTORTIONERS WILL INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD.”
(1st Corinthians 6:9-11)
Sorry AL, no inheritance for you.
Andrew
I’m a little pissed about the “Drunkards” reference, too. No fun.
youcanthandlethetruth
@Mark C.: RELIGION is the REASON the shooting took place – it was RELIGIOUS BELIEFS. Religion Hurts.
____________________________________________________
I see the bigoted, hate-filled, brain-raddled religiophobes are back.
Guys like that are so confused it’s no surprise they decided to be homosexual.
youcanthandlethetruth
@Andrew: “DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT THE UNRIGHTEOUS WILL NOT INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD? DO NOT BE DECEIVED. NEITHER FORNICATORS, NOR IDOLATERS, NOR ADULTERERS, NOR HOMOSEXUALS, NOR SODOMITES, NOR THIEVES, NOR COVETOUS, NOR DRUNKARDS, NOR REVILERS, NOR EXTORTIONERS WILL INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD.”
(1st Corinthians 6:9-11)
_____________________________________________________
Andrew thanks for quoting those verses, they are so very relevant to most of this sad audience.
schlukitz
@youcanthandlethetruth:
I see the bigoted, hate-filled, brain-raddled religiophobes are back.
I see the bigoted, hate-filled, brain-addled, religious homophobes are back.
People like that are so confused it’s no surprise they decided to be homophobic.
schlukitz
@youcanthandlethetruth:
Andrew thanks for quoting those verses, they are so very relevant to most of this sad audience.
The only question remaining now, is which of those numerous categories YCHTT fits into?
Judging from the sheer size of that list, I suspect that there will be a paucity of denizens inhabiting the Kingdom of God. LOL