# Billboard of Intolerance **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 22, 2005, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365 "2005-02-22T17:10:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/1 "2005-02-22T17:10:16Z")
So, driving to work a couple weeks ago, I first noticed this new billboard. I didn’t commit it to memory at the time, but it struck me that I should mention it here on the board, and this morning, I finally remembered to read it and let it stick in my head. > [@BillBoard](#): > > To Lunatic Atheists and Their Lawyers: > > Anti-God is Anti-American. > Anti-American is Treason. > Traitors Lead to Civil War. Even in West Virginia, it struck me as out of place. That’s some serious venom. There’s also an address on the bototm of the board, maybe he’s daring people to respond… ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/2 "2005-02-22T17:14:32Z")
Meh, nutjob fundie with too much money and time on his hands. Pay no mind. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/3 "2005-02-22T17:28:28Z")
Fascism with a twist of religion. Isn’t that cute? ---
**Author:** ![Roland\_Orzabal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@Roland\_Orzabal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roland_Orzabal)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/4 "2005-02-22T17:30:58Z")
Is that a highway billboard, or is it in a commercial district? Because if it’s anywhere near a sidewalk, I would have to spend a few hours standing across the street from it, taking note of how many people walk by it, smile, and nod (or otherwise express approval). I would then go home and be very, very depressed. Yeah, this is the sort of thing I do for fun. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/5 "2005-02-22T17:34:01Z")
I just glue quarters to the shopping mall floor and watch people try to pick them up. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/6 "2005-02-22T17:36:47Z")
> [@](#): > > Traitors Lead to Civil War Damn yankees. A founder is a traitor who wins the war. ---
**Author:** ![Daithi\_Lacha](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daithi_lacha/32/5430_2.png) [@Daithi\_Lacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daithi_Lacha)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/7 "2005-02-22T17:36:50Z")
I wouldn’t mind so much, free speech and all, but all three lines are syllogisms! The only way you could make that argument work is if, when your opponent spoke, you stuck your fingers in your ears and went LALALALALACAN’THEARYOULALALALA! ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/8 "2005-02-22T17:49:25Z")
> [@Daithi Lacha](#): > > I wouldn’t mind so much, free speech and all, but all three lines are syllogisms! The only way you could make that argument work is if, when your opponent spoke, you stuck your fingers in your ears and went LALALALALACAN’THEARYOULALALALA! Actually, it would be the whole argument — and not any individual “line” — that is a syllogism. But it’s not valid anyway because the conclusion is a non sequitur. The correct conclusion to the major premise and minor premise as given would be “Anti-God is Treason”. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/9 "2005-02-22T18:05:46Z")
I’m always baffled by anti-atheists who reach for an argument against atheism and come up with “unpatriotic”. Denying the Holy Word of God, rejecting Divine love and salvation, burning in hell for all eternity—those are just details, apparently. But impugning atheists’ patriotism—ooh, now **that’s** harsh! Huh? I guess maybe they’re trying to pre-empt the much more defensible argument that **religious intolerance** is anti-American. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/10 "2005-02-22T18:11:34Z")
> [@Liberal](#): > > The correct conclusion to the major premise and minor premise as given would be “Anti-God is Treason”. Actually, wouldn’t it be “Anti-God leads to civil war”? ---
**Author:** ![Fuji\_Kitakyusho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f0a364/32.png) [@Fuji\_Kitakyusho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuji_Kitakyusho)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/11 "2005-02-22T18:13:32Z")
Atheists, by definition, cannot be “anti-god”, for the same reason that they cannot be “anti-tooth-fairy”. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/12 "2005-02-22T18:14:33Z")
> [@Roland Orzabal](#): > > Is that a highway billboard, or is it in a commercial district? Because if it’s anywhere near a sidewalk, I would have to spend a few hours standing across the street from it, taking note of how many people walk by it, smile, and nod (or otherwise express approval). I would then go home and be very, very depressed. > > Yeah, this is the sort of thing I do for fun. Commercial. In what passes for downtown, actually, here. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/13 "2005-02-22T18:21:53Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Actually, wouldn’t it be “Anti-God leads to civil war”? No, 'cause theres nothing about anything “leading to” anything in either the major premise or the minor premise. Otherwise, you could have syllogisms like this: Moses was a Jew Jews are the chosen people Therefore, being Moses leads to being chosen (When in fact, being Jewish leads to being chosen) And that is setting aside that neither premise says anything about civil war either. The whole thing is just not a wiff (well formed formula). ---
**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/14 "2005-02-22T18:23:45Z")
I’m curious as to why BillTheBoard included their lawyers? Is there something going on right now in courts involving God and treason? And since when did traitors lead to Civil War? ---
**Author:** ![Abbie\_Carmichael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@Abbie\_Carmichael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abbie_Carmichael)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/15 "2005-02-22T18:28:29Z")
Whoever paid for the billboard is a WVU fan. Why are you expecting sanity? _ducks and runs_ 😃 ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/16 "2005-02-22T18:35:09Z")
> [@Liberal](#): > > No, 'cause theres nothing about anything “leading to” anything in either the major premise or the minor premise. Otherwise, you could have syllogisms like this: Not being well-versed in symbolic logic, I’m going to have to take your word for it. Besides, that billboard is such a load of tripe that it’s hardly worth working up a sweat in the first place. **CandidGamera** , who or what paid for that message? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/17 "2005-02-22T18:38:05Z")
> [@Billboard](#): > > Anti-God is Anti-American. > Anti-American is Treason. > Traitors Lead to Civil War. And the Civil War led to West Virginia. What’s this guy’s problem? ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/18 "2005-02-22T18:38:33Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Not being well-versed in symbolic logic, I’m going to have to take your word for it. Besides, that billboard is such a load of tripe that it’s hardly worth working up a sweat in the first place. Yeah, you’re right. The whole thing is malformed. Its premises are false. And it’s just plain stupid. But since this is the Dope and all, here’s a pretty good page on syllogisms for you, if you’re interested: [http://www.philosophypages.com/lg/e08a.htm](http://www.philosophypages.com/lg/e08a.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/19 "2005-02-22T18:38:51Z")
\*\*tdn \*\* is right. That billboard doesn’t really bother me. It’s so silly and over the top…still assholish enough to draw me in here, though. I find it funny to be called a “lunatic atheist” though. Is it my atheism that’s driving me insane? Or am I insane to be atheist? ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2005, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365/20 "2005-02-22T18:38:52Z")
> [@Abbie Carmichael](#): > > Whoever paid for the billboard is a WVU fan. Why are you expecting sanity? > > _ducks and runs_ > > 😃 Despite being a WVU grad, I don’t give a rat’s patoot about the football program, so you can bleed green all over the thread if you feel like it. 😉😛 tdn - I didn’t commit the address given on the board to memory, I’ll try to scope it out tomorrow morning. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/billboard-of-intolerance/291365.md?page=2)