# Stop telling God what to do, please **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 29, 2001, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867 "2001-11-29T04:43:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/41 "2001-11-30T01:46:44Z")
It means we might actually have a nice Pit fight occur. If **Mr. Cynical** sees the post. Which I doubt he will. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/42 "2001-11-30T10:43:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Maeglin \* > **It could be imperative or subjunctive, depending on the punctuation or inflection of the voice. The morphology is ambiguous.** “People named Romans, they go the house?” ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/43 "2001-11-30T11:04:26Z")
I just want to know which deity’s name the OP says at orgasm. And BTW, Mr Cynical hasn’t been Mr Cynical for a long time. ---
**Author:** ![freshmeat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c4cdca/32.png) [@freshmeat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freshmeat)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/44 "2001-12-01T16:46:46Z")
> [@](#): > > I just want to know which deity’s name the OP says at orgasm. You want to know what I say when I orgasm? Get in line, bub… ---
**Author:** ![johnson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@johnson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnson)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/45 "2001-12-01T16:55:40Z")
> [@](#): > > “People named Romans, they go the house?” Isn’t the proper phraseology “Peeps named Romans, they take it to da house?” ---
**Author:** ![Nacho4Sara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Nacho4Sara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nacho4Sara)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/46 "2001-12-01T17:01:09Z")
I’ve seen several signs hanging on overpasses that say, “GOD WILL SAVE AMERICA!” Now, I understand that’s supposed to be reassuring for God-followers, but to me it reads like… GOD **BETTER** SAVE AMERICA…or else! Sort of like my “I WILL pass this test. I WILL pass this test” mantra. Just kind of creeps me out, is all. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/47 "2001-12-01T17:32:25Z")
> [@](#): > > You want to know what I say when I orgasm? Get in line, bub… I’m sorry, but I read this as: “You want to know what I say when I orgasm?: ‘Get in line, bub…’” and was thinking that this guy has an _interesting_ sex life! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![lucwarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@lucwarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lucwarm)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/48 "2001-12-01T17:46:33Z")
The polite skeptic’s prayer: > [@](#): > > God if there is a God, save my soul if I have a soul, from Hell if there be a Hell. Please. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2001, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/49 "2001-12-03T10:08:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Polycarp \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > You want to know what I say when I orgasm? Get in line, bub… > > I’m sorry, but I read this as: “You want to know what I say when I orgasm?: ‘Get in line, bub…’” and was thinking that this guy has an _interesting_ sex life! 😃 \*\* My first reading of it too. But then I thought, “Maybe **freshmeat** gets off by doing the conga”… ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2001, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/50 "2001-12-03T12:14:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tevya \* > \*\*God, get me a beer now. Please. \*\* Oh Lord, woncha buy me a Mercedes Benz? If you’re gonna ask for something, ask for something BIG. ---
**Author:** ![Chickenhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7cd45c/32.png) [@Chickenhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chickenhead)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2001, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/51 "2001-12-03T16:47:08Z")
It’s not the imperative mood, I agree. It’s like saying, May God bless you, or I hope that God blesses you, or Would that God bless you. I don’t think it means Hey God, you’d better start blessin’ America before I come up there and regulate; just who the hell do you think you are, anyway? > [@](#): > > 1. The subjunctive also survives in a few idiomatic phrases in English as well. For instance, when someone sneezes, we say, “God bless you,” or “Bless you,” rather than “God blesses you.” In this case, examine the subjunctive phrase and contrast it with the indicative. > > Subjunctive: “You sneezed! God bless you.” > > In the subjunctive, the phrase indicates a hope or desire that God bless the sneezing individual. Obviously, God isn’t blessing that person at the moment, because the person is sick, so the subjunctive indicates a wish contrary to current reality in the speaker’s viewpoint. > > Indicative: “God blesses you each day.” In the indicative, the author indicates that God really does bless the individual. This speaker uses the indicative to reflect what he sees as reality; i.e., God blesses people. [http://www.uoregon.edu/~kwheeler/resource\_subjunctive.html](http://www.uoregon.edu/~kwheeler/resource_subjunctive.html) ---
**Author:** ![NetLord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90ced4/32.png) [@NetLord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetLord)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2001, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867/52 "2001-12-03T21:58:28Z")
In the culture I hail from, the polite response to someone’s sneeze means, literally, “be healthy”. As in “I hope it’s a mosquito up your nose as opposed to a case of terminal 'flu”. Quite agnostic. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-telling-god-what-to-do-please/95867.md?page=2)