I'm not bothered by the memorials themselves. But having them on public places just opens the door for others to insist that they can put whatever their beliefs are on display. I think those insisting that their religious symbols be put on public buildings are looking for controversy. We could all get along better by simply keeping our monuments on private property. Why invite trouble?
I fish weekly multiple times and go by a house flying a Confederate Flag and has done this for years, so what thoughts on that one. I doubt the owner would take it to well if asked to remove it, he lives on a hilltop and can be seen a very long way, also a US and Texas flag displayed properly, removed by sundown daily and re flown daily. Nice clean place and yard.
I live in Maine, and there are two houses in Millinocket that regularly fly a Confederate flag. I don't know if they came here from the South, but I suspect it has more to do with the recent practice of tearing down Confederate memorials. That has riled up more people than the Southerners.
Exactly. I wouldn't take kindly to anyone advising me about what flag to fly on my own property. MYOB. That's the problem with most of this country; busybodies.
When one explains to me where the universe begins and the universe ends, then I can label myself. Until then I believe in the universe as the ultimate power. In my own mind, I just replace the use of the word God with the universe. "One nation under the universe, etc." "In the universe we trust." Who can deny that? Should we omit God from the pledge and our currency? I say no, it makes no difference. We are all controlled by the all-powerful universe and closer, our solar system. One giant asteroid strike and it is over for the earth. Someday the earth will get so near the sun, it will vanish. It seems to me that the universe is the boss of me.
I agree Sheldon: Knowing right or wrong is not put in us by a god. Even the wlidlife, of all species, have a code of conduct within their species that they are born with. They have it from the moment of birth. They are not taught it by anything or anyone. It is innate. Humans are just another species of animal. We are born just knowing certain things.
For most southerners, the Confederate flag never had anything to do with racism. It had to do with not agreeing with how things were going in Washington, not feeling adequately represented and not wanting to be a part of it any longer. I suspect this is why there is a sudden surge in the display of that particular flag. I wouldn't fly it because I wouldn't offend someone on purpose, but I do agree with the statement it makes regarding most of our politicians.
As appalling as I find the Civil War in the history of our nation, and I had ancestors who served both sides, flags and monuments are as germane to our history as what is learned in the books. It happened, learn from it and live with it.
Hal, sorry for the late response, but let me slip in this rebuttal to your previous charge on war and religion which Ken picked up on. I don't expect to make a believer out of you and don't wish to change the thread from its current, interesting subject. But, I'd like to counter a common fallacy with some evidencial truth. People often assert that religion is the #1 cause of violence and war throughout history, yet the historical evidence refutes this claim. Philip and Axelrod’s three-volume Encyclopedia of Wars assessed the 1,763 known wars of the past 5000 years and found only 123 as being religious in nature - about 7%. When wars waged in the name of Islam were excluded, the percentage was reduced to a little more than 3%. Two other scholarly sources, The Encyclopedia of War (edited by Gordon Martel) and The Myth of Religious Violence (by William Cavanaugh), confirm this data. The truth is, non-religious motivations and naturalistic philosophies bear the blame for the majority of human wars. Consider these figures of lives lost by government dictators that wanted nothing to do with God: (by R. J. Rummel in Lethal Politics and Death by Government): Joseph Stalin - 42,672,000 Mao Zedong - 37,828,000 Adolf Hitler - 20,946,000 Chiang Kai-Shek - 10,214,000 Vladimir Lenin - 4,017,000 Hideki Tojo - 3,990,000 Pol Pot - 2,397,000 Almost 170 million civilians have been killed by non-religious governments in recent history. This doesn't deny or excuse the Catholic church's historical atrocities or Islam's current atrocities, but it should curb some of the excessive animosity charged against Christianity and other peaceful religions. The historical evidence is contrary to popular belief. It is not religion that causes most wars, but rather, evil men generally seeking power, control, or wealth in some form.
Small children believe their parents are responsible for everything that happens. When people become adults they still need to feel that someone is in charge. Hence the need for a God. Many people also need icons to worship, hence religious statues and weekly church gatherings. Too many people won't take responsibility for themselves, they need priests and ministers to guide them. Moses was given a set of rules which all humanity needs to live by in order to have a reasonably civilised society. That pretty much sums up what religion is all about.
^^^ Bingo. I know several people who rarely reveal that they are atheists for that reason. I don't care; I tell anyone who asks. People are often shocked when I tell them. They often say something like: "I can't believe it; you're so nice." Which means they put atheists into categories of their own mindsets.