Mencken Quote
Maybe I shouldn't be quoting a racist, but I thought this was a funny way of putting the current state of affairs in America:
"As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron."I also thought this was a funny quote from the same guy, and it applies whether you're religious or not:-- H.L. Mencken, 1920
"We must respect the other fellow's religion, but only in the sense and to the extent that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart."
post by Andrew at 4:21 p.m.
2 Comments:
Nice quotes.. I have heard both of these before.
I particularly like his quote on respect. I have never understood the whole concept of religious respect, how we must all learn to respect each other.
What is respectful about a person who believes in a being that does not exist? Or, what is respectful about a person who fails to acknowledge his own divine creator who died for him? What is to respect about a religion that directly counters your own beliefs?
I, being a Christian, have no respect for other religions, including atheism. Instead, I tolerate them. :)
Barely.
8:25 p.m.
Yeah, I think we have to respect each other's beliefs in a very practical sense -- the cynical one that Mencken is describing. We can respect each other for other things, though :) A lot of people think the specifics of worship don't matter, and that as long as you believe you'll be rewarded. For obvious practical reasons, blind faith is the most universal aspect of religion, so maybe you can respect the other person's faith, not their faith in any specific doctrine.
After all, if your specific beliefs require a leap of faith (like that the holy trinity could ever, ever make sense, for example) then how can you hold that over someone else's head (Mohammed was a prophet) without sounding like a hypocrite? I don't hear a lot of good arguments as to why Christianity is obviously the one true religion over its rivals -- beyond a shadow of a doubt -- leaving any rational religious person (chuckle) with no room for doubt; then again, I haven't looked too hard for the details, since to begin with none of it's particularly more convincing than Scientology.
2:05 a.m.
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