Fla teachers claim persicution when another calles devil theory absurd.
Offline I hate the way the mass media has been reporting this story. The politically correct left is not doing any service to this skeptic teacher who rightfully called fellow teachers devil theory of earthquakes absurd.
Up until I found this article I hadn't run into the detail of the actual exchange that lead to the "assault" on the skeptic teacher.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/if-you-must-debate-religion-in-class-say-713458.html
I think claims of hate speech and assault are absurd. I simply think two ignorant teachers didn't like their god being challenged and decided to poke fun at the skeptic. But I do not think it was assault or harassment or even hate. I am an open atheist at work and my co-workers poke fun of my atheism all the time. I think the "left" does a disservice to this skeptic by painting the situation out to be more than it actually was and allows the believing teachers to falsely play the persecution card. WHICH THEY ARE NOW DOING.
To the believing teachers I'd ask them this. If a Muslim claimed that Allah caused the earthquake, would you buy that? No, you wouldn't. So to poke fun of someone for telling the truth that magical guys with pitchforks have nothing to do with plate tectonics, is immature.
AND to the skeptic teacher who rightfully shot down the "devil theory of earthquakes". Don't give the nutters what they want. Treat them like the childish people they were acting like. When you cry discrimination or hate that allows them to falsely claim persecution.
The skeptic teacher did the right thing in saying that the moon isn't made of cheese. But when you claim hate when it merely was a childish emotional reaction, you allow them to falsely play martyr.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
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Wait, wait, wait a second ! A teacher has a "devil theory about earthquakes"....?
A teacher ? Seriously, a teacher ??
And you're worried about the "politically correct left" ?
What's the big deal? I have a pixie theory about fireflies, and a magical groundhog theory about train tunnels.
The "devil theory about earthquakes" really is stupid, though. It is completely at odds with my giants-stomping-around theory of earthquakes.
"Yes, I seriously believe that consciousness is a product of a natural process. I find that the neuroscientists, psychologists, and philosophers who proceed from that premise are the ones who are actually making useful contributions to our understanding of the mind." - PZ Myers
I go to a catholic school. If a teacher here starts going on about demons causing whatever, they'd be discretely taken aside and given the number of a good psychiatrist. The level of lunacy you americans are forced to deal with is just mindblowing to me.
I mean, what's next ?
"Where's your homework ?"
"Dog ate it, sir"
"Yeah right, pull the other one"
"Demon-dog ate it !"
"Oh well, in that case, I'm sorry for even asking"
A-yep. In America, we're proud of our folks who let their internal fantasies affect their judgment. We call those folks "spiritual," and mean that as a good thing. Americans believe their fantasies as hard as they can. It's like a game, or something. You can even score bonus points if you allow your fantasy to trump reality (such as the whole "devil earthquakes," "intelligent design," and 'Nickelback makes good music').
Sigh.
Maybe someday we'll grow up into an adult society. But I'm not holding my breath.
"Yes, I seriously believe that consciousness is a product of a natural process. I find that the neuroscientists, psychologists, and philosophers who proceed from that premise are the ones who are actually making useful contributions to our understanding of the mind." - PZ Myers
First, about 50% of the population is going to have to become comfortable with the fact that people have sex with one another. Then, I'm thinking reading something other than Dan Brown or Harry Potter. Nickelback can be thrown into the water at any point, of course. At some point, also realizing that the advice of experienced people has more value than that of inexperienced people ... yeah, this could take a really long time.
Saint Will: no gyration without funkstification.
fabulae! nil satis firmi video quam ob rem accipere hunc mi expediat metum. - Terence
Jeez. You put it into perspective like that, and it seems like this is going to need one hell of a Gantt chart.
"Yes, I seriously believe that consciousness is a product of a natural process. I find that the neuroscientists, psychologists, and philosophers who proceed from that premise are the ones who are actually making useful contributions to our understanding of the mind." - PZ Myers
Well at least it's a story about Florida teachers that didn't involve sex with the students for a change.
Probably the teacher should have said to the student that their comment was inappropriate in a public school and cut off discussion on God & the Devil. Since she didn't she should have gone into detail about how Haiti gained their independence which clearly shows the Pat Wacko Robertson fairy tale for what it is.
Since these people wish to believe adversity happens to Haiti for this fairy tale they might want to account for the adversity that happens in Florida every year, namely hurricanes and tropical storms that kill. If in Florida it's because of location, a big ass land mass that protrudes and says to any good sized storm, hit me please, why then when they hit Haiti is it payback for a fairy tale pact with the Devil? And what deals did Chile make with the Devil to deserve an earthquake? Or what about the Tsunami in the Indian Ocean? Probably something to do with criticism of Robertson, so God smacked them.
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"I guess it's time to ask if you live under high voltage power transmission lines which have been shown to cause stimulation of the fantasy centers of the brain due to electromagnetic waves?" - Me
"God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, - it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks please. Cash and in small bills." - Robert A Heinlein.
It's kinda hard to bring all that up when your fellow teachers are throwing perfume at you.
I don't think it's absurd.
I just don't give a shit, either!
"OH! LOOK @MOI! I MOVE TECTONIC PLATES WITH MY BARE HANDS!"
“A meritocratic society is one in which inequalities of wealth and social position solely reflect the unequal distribution of merit or skills amongst human beings, or are based upon factors beyond human control, for example luck or chance. Such a society is socially just because individuals are judged not by their gender, the colour of their skin or their religion, but according to their talents and willingness to work, or on what Martin Luther King called 'the content of their character'. By extension, social equality is unjust because it treats unequal individuals equally.” "Political Ideologies" by Andrew Heywood (2003)
Pefumed Holy Water perhaps??
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"I guess it's time to ask if you live under high voltage power transmission lines which have been shown to cause stimulation of the fantasy centers of the brain due to electromagnetic waves?" - Me
"God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, - it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks please. Cash and in small bills." - Robert A Heinlein.
From the article :
"The two teachers, Rainer and Robinson, have been removed from classroom duties while the school district investigates the holy-water allegation. The women, who appeared at Dozier's church with their lawyer this week, claim that it was just perfume, and not a drop of it landed on the atheist."
I guess they were hoping some of it would hit her in the eye, so they could get a nice reaction, proving their "demon" point.
Yeah, it was all over the Orlando Sentinel. All I see is 2 irresponsible immature religious fanatics promoting God on My Tax Dollars. They should be suspended without pay not just removed from classroom duties as was done. Clearly by their arguing the Devil Pact and God they overstepped the line regarding separation of Church and state and were evangelizing on Florida Tax Money, meaning my tax money. I don't pay taxes in Florida to promote any gods whether it be Allah, Zeus or the Christian God myth.
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"I guess it's time to ask if you live under high voltage power transmission lines which have been shown to cause stimulation of the fantasy centers of the brain due to electromagnetic waves?" - Me
"God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, - it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks please. Cash and in small bills." - Robert A Heinlein.
THANK YOU! jesus christ, i was starting to think i'd just been taking crazy pills for the last 5 or 6 years. it's like creed all over again...
just because of creed and nickelback, i made a new genre of music called "douchebag rock." i also made "douchebag soft rock." dave matthews, jack johnson, and john mayer are in there.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
HEY! I like Nicklebacks songs they keep writing over and over. Ha
What? Mayer, nicleback, and creed I understand, they are terrible, creed and nickleback are really horrible bands. But what could you possibly have against jack jonson (besides his slow vibes maybe?), he's a hippie surfer who writes wicked around the campfire music, I don't think he belongs in this catagory of bad music. His songs aren't horribly awkward and about girls, his songs may get boring to some, but that's his style.
look, man, jack johnson is ben harper light. surely you must agree with that.
and even ben harper only barely makes the cut in my book, just because of his reggae connection. i'm a serious blues and reggae fan, both styles which ben harper immitates passably, and jack johnson immitates poorly. for christ's sake, i don't even like bob marley's work with island that much. i prefer the early, hardcore stuff he did with scratch perry and the upsetters. i guess i'm just crotchety that way.
then again, i'm very drunk on vodka, beer, and spanish wine right now, so take all that with a grain of salt...
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
AKA "Everyone's an art critic nowadays."