"There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge." - Isaac Asimov
My grandmother was a "casual" Baptist. She rarely went to church, I never heard her pray, and as far as I know, she never tried to proselytize anyone. Yet, she believed she was, and called herself, a Christian. Because of her lax attitude others may have believed she wasn't a Christian. That is how frivolous and fickle belief can be. Because she could not prove her beliefs nor did she impose her beliefs on us, her beliefs were easily ignored, they meant nothing to anyone else and died with her.
My grandmother was an intelligent woman, but as far as her religious beliefs were concerned, she was ignorant. She thought Jesus and the disciples were white and very much like Baptists. Should I have respected this ignorance? No, not at all. Should I have put her in her place because of her ignorant beliefs? No one had to, because she was not outspoken about her faith. Inadvertently, she was considerate of others and their beliefs or non-belief.
But what if my grandmother was determined to strap a bomb to her ass and blow up the local Kingdom Hall? What if all her efforts went into "correcting" others by pushing her Christian agenda? What if she denied others the right to marry because it was contrary to her beliefs? What if she wanted control over other peoples lives and bodies because of her beliefs? What if she was influenced to vote a certain way because of her beliefs and not for the good of her country? What if she thought that the color of her skin gave her special privilege over others and made her superior to them? Others would be forced to confront her ignorance and deal with her dangerous attitudes. The definition of ignorance is: "lack of knowledge or information". To respect someone's religious beliefs is to respect their ignorance, their lack of knowledge or information. To respect the beliefs of those who are willfully ignorant, the cult mind, is foolish and dangerous. These people have deluded themselves to the point of denying everything that is contrary to what they BELIEVE so that they may KNOW that ONLY what they BELIEVE is true. That is insanity.
The sane and rational, those who care about truth, reality, and life on this planet, are the only ones who can stop this insanity. If the crimes Trump has committed are not impeachable crimes, then what is? Those who refuse to impeach him are simply complicit in those crimes and are embracing a cult mindset.
I created an earlier post which deals with the religious and cult mind: "Humankind has evolved to the point that they are conscious of their own mortality."
8
Enjoy being online again!
Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.Create your free account
6 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.What is religious about Trump trying to deflect attention from his ongoing impeachment? Do you ever think these religious types do not have the wisdom of God?
SeanMoore
Level 4
Jan 5, 2020
0
Trump uses proven cult tactics to ensnare those who are inclined to believe rather than think. You will notice Trump will consistently tell the same lies over and over, even when they have been proven false.
“According to Cicero derived from relegere "go through again" (in reading or in thought)…However, popular etymology among the later ancients (Servius, Lactantius, Augustine) and the interpretation of many modern writers connects it with religare "to bind fast”… via notion of "place an obligation on," or "bond between humans and gods."
Religare (religion) is the mind “bound fast” with no free thought, and continually contemplating the same ingrained idea or belief over and over again (bible study; church; Fox News).
"See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda." George W. Bush May 25, 2005
"Through clever and constant application of propaganda, people can be made to see paradise as hell, and also the other way around, to consider the most wretched sort of life as paradise." Adolf Hitler (Mein Kampf)
As far as wondering if religious types have the wisdom of god, would be same as wondering if the religious can smell their god's farts. To put it concisely, god is not defined by reality or existence, believers make the assertion that it is, the god makes no assertion whether it exists or not, it is therefore the believer who must then prove the assertions they make. The believer would have to prove their god exists FIRST before they can say they possess it's "wisdom." Believers simply want you to accept that their particular god exists without evidence.
Form Wikipedia
In the field of psychology, the Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which people mistakenly assess their cognitive ability as greater than it is. It is related to the cognitive bias of illusory superiority and comes from the inability of people to recognize their lack of ability. Without the self-awareness of metacognition, people cannot objectively evaluate their competence or incompetence.
As described by social psychologists David Dunning and Justin Kruger, the cognitive bias of illusory superiority results from an internal illusion in people of low ability and from an external misperception in people of high ability; that is, "the miscalibration of the incompetent stems from an error about the self, whereas the miscalibration of the highly competent stems from an error about others."
EdEarl
Level 8
Sep 28, 2019
1
Calvin and Hobbes Effect
Fuck these Nut Jobs, They Must be eliminated and driven back underground . They have destroyed a great Country .
There is No Reasoning with these Complete FOOLS AND ASSHOLES . I cannot wait until this Orange Communist Pile of Dog Shit is in a Prison Cell where he belongs and the length and breadth of This Con is exposed .
GEGR
Level 7
Sep 28, 2019
1
Like I've said before, I can talk to those who are honest and fully admit there is no proof, and books are man made with ideas, and believe it is a leap of faith for them. A leap I am not making; a leap, I see no reason to leap toward.
Beowulfsfriend
Level 9
Sep 27, 2019
2
I agree on principle. Where safe, I call out the religious on their ignorant bullshit.
Killtheskyfairy
Level 9
Sep 27, 2019
2
Ignorance requires the work of avoidance in the face of knowledge....intelligence is the ability to do work with knowledge ....religions are institutionalized ignorance working against victims keeping them from learning intelligence ....ignorance is the death of life potentials including longevity as religion encourages early / inflicted death
GreenAtheist
Level 8
Sep 27, 2019
2
Yes, willful ignorance is purposeful avoidance of knowledge.
Recent Visitors 34
BirdMan1
Florida, West Coast.,
nogod4me
Asheville,
SeanMoore
Canada
GreenAtheist
RainbowDubuqueLarryEcoBear,
Krish55
FL, USA
Photos 1,871 More
Posted by HippieChick58Donnie thinks he had every right to interfere with the 2020 election
Posted by UnitySometime in the late 40’s, before either man was famous, Frank Sinatra appeared in a theater in New York.
Posted by UnityWe would make great strides in a world without racism
Posted by William_MaryIt rarely never fails.
Posted by UnityNo one is born a racist.
Posted by William_MaryIf You Wish Someone a Happy Memorial Day, You Fail to Understand Its True Meaning The mythology perpetuated at Memorial Day benefits no one save the militarists and war profiteers.
Posted by SeaGreenEyezFlorida: Arrests to follow regardless of legal gender status
Posted by SeaGreenEyezFeinstein: ‘I haven’t been gone. I’ve been working’ | The Hill
Posted by SeaGreenEyezDemocrats win Pennsylvania special election, keeping control of state House | The Hill
Posted by SeaGreenEyezMassachusetts US Attorney Rachael Rollins to resign after Justice Department watchdog probe – WSB-TV Channel 2 - Atlanta
Posted by SeaGreenEyezBiden vetoes bipartisan resolution resuming solar tariffs | The Hill
Posted by SeaGreenEyezChasten Buttigieg worries his new LGBTQ children's book could be banned
Posted by SeaGreenEyezDEA extends telehealth prescriptions for controlled substances
Posted by SeaGreenEyezRosie O'Donnell Lets It Spill About Her Time on 'The View': One Co-Host 'Was as Mean as Anyone'
Posted by SeaGreenEyezMcCarthy unveils long-awaited GOP plan to raise debt limit, cut federal spending
Posted by SeaGreenEyezOf course!!! STOP THE STEAL organizer (Ali Alexander) is caught asking young boys for dick pics, claims he's the victim [youtu.be]