That's My King!

[moonhead]

What's the over/under on jose starting a atheist/agnostic thread?

i started one once. but it got locked. and spammed by knapplc.









just playing.

[bobbing_headz]

As to the rest of that post, it's not like there are 5 different threads about religion in here. One thread was started. Big deal. Why is it people get so worked up about one thread? And then of course it's too difficult for them to avoid that one thread even though they know all it's going to do is get them in the middle of something they don't want to be in? Crazy... One thread is so miniscule on the scale of the site that I totally fail to understand that. Would be like having one ant in your house. Would you have the house exterminated ASAP and tell the exterminator your house is "infested" with ants over one ant? Come on man, don't overreact to something so very tiny. And no, the Cafe isn't becoming more religious, but when the vast majority of the world believes in a higher power of some sort (be it God, Budda, or any other higher power), there's going to be occasional talk about religion and/or non-religion. All I expect is for it to stay civil, and that's a reasonable request. For those that can, that's great. For those that can't, they will be dealt with. No different than any other topic (like the Cowboy/Eagle example from earlier).

I think the thread here has brought religion up too bluntly. It's just the way the this thread was posted that may have been an issue for some. I'll even admit that personally the thoughts that immediately came to mind when I saw this were that it didn't belong here. I've relaxed my view a bit after reading all the comments but I still feel that there is a place for religious discussion and the Cafe may not be the best place. It's not that I have a major problem, it's that religion is one of the most, if not the most controversial topic that could be brought here. I think that alone is grounds to steer clear unless you're wanting to start an argument over it. The difference between this and say a the Cowboy/Eagle thing is that the other thread is lighthearted while this is most certainly not. I don't think anyone is really gonna care if you bash their team but bashing their religion is something on an entirely different level. And I don't think anything has gotten out of hand here, at least everything has been said that would be expected from a thread like this. This shouldn't be an issue that ends up dividing the Cafe, and it hasn't really, yet. We should make sure we don't let it come to that though.

I think Omaha's original post said it best

I'm a born-again Christian bighaas, as are quite a few other guys around the Cafe, especially in GT. But GT is not a for blatant witnessing. Ask anyone and they know my faith, as well as the faith of others like Knapp, Joel, Azrael, Nfl Fan, etc., but not because we've posted videos proclaiming so. Only when it pertains to conversation. Stick around and bring it up when appropriate. These types of posts will only instigate negative replies like we have here and locked threads.

[Madison]

I still feel that there is a place for religious discussion and the Cafe may not be the best place.

I'll agree here. The Cafe may not be the best place if one is looking to preach or worship, but that doesn't mean we should ban all talk on religion. There's nothing at all wrong with a civilized discussion about that topic, and there's no reason to treat everyone as if they cannot behave like reasonable adults. For me it boils down to censorship. We have a few things we don't allow here as it's a family site (cussing, porn, etc) and we follow the laws (like no posting about how to evade IP checks, no sharing copywrited pay content, etc), but the whole point is having a solid community of people that can discuss even tricky topics like religion and politics like reasonable adults that have respect not only for their fellow members, but also for themselves.

So if a religion (or non-religion for that matter) thread is started and it falls to the bottom of the page with no replies because people would rather avoid that topic, that's cool and fine by me. Officially banning that topic isn't cool to me for two reasons. Number one would be that I'd consider that censorship, and I don't like censoring things, especially when there's really no valid reason for it. Number two would be that if we had to ban it, we don't have the kind of community we'd like. There's always going to be a knucklehead that acts like an idiot in those kinds of threads, and we deal with them on a case by case basis, as I believe the community as a whole is adult enough to be able to discuss touchy topics like religion and behave accordingly. Might as well tack on a third one, banning religion talk would/could only lead to further topics that cannot be discussed. There's an election next year that people will want to discuss. After that, what's next? Sox/Yanks rivalry (or the football equivalent if there is one - I have no favorite football team, so you guys tell me what's the most heated)? I know of no other sports rivalry that drips with hatred as much as the Sox/Yanks. Some people get downright brutal in those threads. Now is it reasonable in the slightest to ban that discussion because of a few knuckleheads? Not to me, and religion is no different in my eyes. There's no way I want to start the censorship ball rolling, and neither should anyone else. It cannot and doesn't lead anywhere good.

[joelamosobadiah]

Sox/Yanks rivalry (or the football equivalent if there is one - I have no favorite football team, so you guys tell me what's the most heated)? I know of no other sports rivalry that drips with hatred as much as the Sox/Yanks. Some people get downright brutal in those threads. Now is it reasonable in the slightest to ban that discussion because of a few knuckleheads? Not to me, and religion is no different in my eyes. There's no way I want to start the censorship ball rolling, and neither should anyone else. It cannot and doesn't lead anywhere good.

Great summarization of the thread so far IMO.

And as for the rivalry thing, I think that the Sox/Yanks takes the cake.

NFL rivalries tend to have a high turnover rate. Among the top classic rivalries though would be Steelers-Browns, Packers-Bears, and of course, the Cowboys-Redskins and Giants-Eagles.

[bighaasdog]

I have had the opportunity to speak with about 5 or so of the cafe members via private messages as a result of this thread and have enjoyed my conversation with all of them. I would actually enjoy bringing out some of what has been discussed in private and post it on the General Talk forum, but I think I'll keep it where it is.

If I start another "religious" thread (I really don't like that word), I'll try to do so in a way that is less vague.

peace,

Haas

[josebach]

I have had the opportunity to speak with about 5 or so of the cafe members via private messages as a result of this thread and have enjoyed my conversation with all of them. I would actually enjoy bringing out some of what has been discussed in private and post it on the General Talk forum, but I think I'll keep it where it is.

If I start another "religious" thread (I really don't like that word), I'll try to do so in a way that is less vague.

peace,

Haas

Well, one thing I'm sure we both agree on...having a good support system for your beliefs is crucial to maintaining your faith.

[bighaasdog]

I have had the opportunity to speak with about 5 or so of the cafe members via private messages as a result of this thread and have enjoyed my conversation with all of them. I would actually enjoy bringing out some of what has been discussed in private and post it on the General Talk forum, but I think I'll keep it where it is.

If I start another "religious" thread (I really don't like that word), I'll try to do so in a way that is less vague.

peace,

Haas

Well, one thing I'm sure we both agree on...having a good support system for your beliefs is crucial to maintaining your faith.

Yes indeed!