# Privileging religious whiners **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 6, 2018, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850 "2018-09-06T01:41:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/21 "2018-09-06T18:02:02Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > This is a historic occasion! It’s possibly the very first time I’ve agreed with **octopus** unreservedly. Same here. But he’s right. I don’t care what anyone wants to believe provided: It harms no one else They don’t try to impose it on anyone else They don’t claim special treatment or consideration They don’t hide behind it to fuck over anyone else When they don’t seem capable of doing that anymore, fuck 'em. That includes HobbyLobby types, dominionists, reconstructionists, and Pence types. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/22 "2018-09-06T18:29:41Z")
The OP could be talking about so many religions. What possiblities have been listed so far - > [@Riemann](#): > > I think it started when the angel Moroni gave some golden plates to Joesph Smith. > [@Flyer](#): > > If you’re talking about Scientology, have the decency to say so. If you’re not talking about Scientology, shut up. > [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > . . . like scientology and the JWs . . . . There are also Wiccans or other neopagans or new-agers. The Rapture is also new. > [@eschereal](#): > > No, no, you have to hash your metaphors up. Something like _the Angel Moroni took Mary Baker Eddy up on his shining eagle and bore her forth unto Sun Myung Moon who bestowed upon her the golden plates, but on the return flight, they came unbound from her satchel, fell to the Earth and conked a young Hubbard on the head_. Nice. Might need a broomstick or some crystals, but nice. And it’s not like being old will save a religion from claims that it’s fake. Anything that can be described as “your religion” is open to accusations of fakery. The important thing is that no one is going to appreciate being called WRONG and no one is going to appreciate jokes about their religion. Try changing the subject if their talk about their religion bothers you. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/23 "2018-09-06T18:57:48Z")
Well, yes, repeat, no. If a sincerely religious person wants some consideration, I’m willing to accept it, or at least consider it. Amish don’t want any military service, I can adjust. Jehovah’s Witnesses refuse to pledge allegiance, well, no biggie, so long as no actual treason is contemplated. Refuse medical efforts for yourself, ok, you’re nuts but that’s your prob. Refuse on behalf of your children, no, no way, no day, full stop. Not strictly rational, there is no proof that I owe this to them, or that they owe it to me in return. But reason is not rationality, reason is informed by a generous and accepting spirit. Let us reason, together, it really isn’t that damned hard. And no, I can’t prove that spirit, either, which is as much religion as I’ve got and as far from religion as I’m likely to get. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/24 "2018-09-06T19:32:14Z")
I’ve been an atheist some 44 years or so now. Since I was about 12, anyway. I believe in no gods, no afterlife, nor in anything supernatural. You know, though, I don’t consider atheism the defining facet of my whole life that many non-believers I encounter on the web seem to do. In addition to not believing in any gods, I also don’t believe in the Tooth Fairy or Santa Clause or that people get picked up by space aliens for purposes of bum-probing. There’s an incredible raft of shit in which I do not believe. In day to day life, this has no impact on me whatsoever. It’s enough for me that I don’t believe. If other people do, well, that’s their lookout. If they begin to bore me or attempt to convert me, it’s easy enough to politely change the subject. Evangelical atheists are just as annoying as evangelical believers. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/25 "2018-09-06T19:39:18Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > I’ve been an atheist some 44 years or so now. Since I was about 12, anyway. I believe in no gods, no afterlife, nor in anything supernatural. You know, though, I don’t consider atheism the defining facet of my whole life that many non-believers I encounter on the web seem to do. In addition to not believing in any gods, I also don’t believe in the Tooth Fairy or Santa Clause or that people get picked up by space aliens for purposes of bum-probing. There’s an incredible raft of shit in which I do not believe. In day to day life, this has no impact on me whatsoever. It’s enough for me that I don’t believe. If other people do, well, that’s their lookout. If they begin to bore me or attempt to convert me, it’s easy enough to politely change the subject. Evangelical atheists are just as annoying as evangelical believers. Obligatory xkcd: > **[Atheists](https://xkcd.com/774/)** > > 'But you're using that same tactic to try to feel superior to me, too!' 'Sorry, that accusation expires after one use per conversation.' And a much easier position to take when you’re not (say) an LGBT teenager living in the Bible Belt. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/26 "2018-09-06T19:40:21Z")
Am I the only one who read the OP and thought of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster? ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/27 "2018-09-06T19:51:20Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Obligatory xkcd: > > [xkcd: Atheists](https://xkcd.com/774/) > > And a much easier position to take when you’re not (say) an LGBT teenager living in the Bible Belt. Your experience is what it is. My experience as an atheist in a devoutly Catholic family is what it is. One of the many things I don’t believe in is that there is any point in “who had it harder” arguments. Your little comic strip was amusing. It is funny, in a meta kind of way, that you have found a way to feel superior to me through someone else’s work. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/28 "2018-09-06T19:51:21Z")
I for one resent that the Flying Spaghetti Monster cult replaced the Church of the Sub Genius as the quintessential fringe religion. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/29 "2018-09-06T19:56:48Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > I for one resent that the Flying Spaghetti Monster cult replaced the Church of the Sub Genius as the quintessential fringe religion. Some of that was, I think, because the Church of Sub Genius got too far up its own ass with being transgressive for the sake of being transgressive. I first encountered Bob as an undergrad. I read the books and attended a few devivals. It was fun for a while, but everybody involved seemed just so pleased with themselves for being so edgey and iconoclastic. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/30 "2018-09-06T19:58:20Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Am I the only one who read the OP and thought of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster? Well, only in the sense that a parody mimics reality. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/31 "2018-09-06T20:02:41Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Well, only in the sense that a parody mimics reality. According to Poe’s Law, there’s no way to tell the difference. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/32 "2018-09-06T20:11:14Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > One of the many things I don’t believe in is that there is any point in “who had it harder” arguments. > [@Scumpup](#): > > I first encountered Bob as an undergrad. I read the books and attended a few devivals. It was fun for a while, but everybody involved seemed just so pleased with themselves for being so edgey and iconoclastic. The argument against your patronizing attitude is not a “who had it harder” dispute, it’s that you occupy a privileged “I’m all right, Jack” position. The compelling reason to push back against the privilege of religious views is not to make yourself look smarter, it’s to oppose active ongoing harm. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/33 "2018-09-06T20:35:26Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > The argument against your patronizing attitude is not a “who had it harder” dispute, it’s that you occupy a privileged “I’m all right, Jack” position. The compelling reason to push back against the privilege of religious views is not to make yourself look smarter, it’s to oppose active ongoing harm. The argument against your patronizing “you don’t know how hard I’ve had it” attitude is that your are gaysplaining my own experience to me as if you know, not only your own experience, but also mine. You believe you had it harder? Fine. If that sends you, it sends you, and doesn’t cost me a dime. ---
**Author:** ![G0sp3l](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/34 "2018-09-06T20:41:25Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > I for one resent that the Flying Spaghetti Monster cult replaced the Church of the Sub Genius as the quintessential fringe religion. Look, if Bob had been willing to sell indulgences for parmesan use he’d still be god. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/35 "2018-09-06T20:58:52Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > The argument against your patronizing “you don’t know how hard I’ve had it” attitude is that your are gaysplaining my own experience to me as if you know, not only your own experience, but also mine. You believe you had it harder? Fine. If that sends you, it sends you, and doesn’t cost me a dime. Neither of our personal childhood experiences are relevant here. The point is that it’s only from a comfortable privileged position that one could possibly make the patronizing claim that religious fundamentalists and militant atheists are equally annoying. If you’re an LGBT person growing up in the Bible Belt or living in many Christian African countries or many Muslim countries, where religious piety is the vector for propagating bigotry, I doubt that you’re really too concerned about how annoying vocal atheists can be. ---
**Author:** ![HookerChemical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/36 "2018-09-06T21:37:09Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > I for one resent that the Flying Spaghetti Monster cult replaced the Church of the Sub Genius as the quintessential fringe religion. Eris wept. ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/37 "2018-09-06T21:40:10Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Obligatory xkcd: > > [xkcd: Atheists](https://xkcd.com/774/) > > And a much easier position to take when you’re not (say) an LGBT teenager living in the Bible Belt. Before clicking I’d assumed it was this obligatory xkcd: > **[Beliefs](https://xkcd.com/154/)** > > Scientists are also sexy, let's not forget that. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/38 "2018-09-06T21:48:26Z")
> [@DavidwithanR](#): > > Religion is an idea like any other. No. There are such things as ‘good’ ideas. Notably different in that simple regard from religion. Other than that little quibble I don’t see much wrong with the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/39 "2018-09-06T22:43:25Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > I for one resent that the Flying Spaghetti Monster cult replaced the Church of the Sub Genius as the quintessential fringe religion. > [@HookerChemical](#): > > Eris wept. I was going to ask if CoSG hadn’t nudged out Discordianism. It certainly developed later. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850/40 "2018-09-06T22:43:27Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Your little comic strip was amusing. It is funny, in a meta kind of way, that you have found a way to feel superior to me through someone else’s work. “Sorry, that accusation expires after one use per conversation” 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileging-religious-whiners/820850.md?page=3)