# Trade your Bibles for Porn -- "Smut for Smut" Event!! **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [March 4, 2010, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251 "2010-03-04T06:27:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![LonesomePolecat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a88e57/32.png) [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/61 "2010-03-05T17:21:29Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > They didn’t insult Christians, but I can tell you that provoking Christians in the deep south is not a safe thing to do. As opposed to provoking Christians in other parts of the country? This is just your anti-Southern bigotry showing again. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/62 "2010-03-05T17:31:31Z")
I am from the south, but thanks for playing. I will, however, readily admit that there are regions besides the south where provoking Christians can be just as dangerous. ---
**Author:** ![Some\_Schmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Some\_Schmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Some_Schmo)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/63 "2010-03-05T17:57:49Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > That said, if their purpose was to convert Christians, then it was monumentally stupid. Doing something they consider crassly immoral and sacrilegious just confirms the stereotype that atheists are an evil force. Are people who buy into stereotypes really likely to be swayed by counter-evidence? (I prejudiced against prejudiced people). ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/64 "2010-03-05T19:06:32Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > I know, right? I never have religious people come to my door or hand me pamphlets on the train. I’m really sick to death of all those atheists trying to shove the Origin of Species and the God Delusion in my face. I mean, how many copies could I have? Plus, there’s always a copy of Breaking the Spell in every dang hotel I go to. > > Then, let’s not forget all the atheists trying to get evolution taught in the churches. You read about it all the time – a bunch of atheists get elected to some church board, and before you know it, they’re trying to get rid of the creationism curriculum in Sunday school and replace it with the Descent of Man. > > And, you never, ever have preachers with their own television show or radio programs – it’s always those dang atheists, asking for money for some secular cause or so they can have a refrigerated dog house or some crap. > > Effin evangelical, fundamentalist atheists. Can’t stand 'em. I never claimed that there were no jerks on the other side of the issue - but thanks for the strawman. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/65 "2010-03-05T19:08:26Z")
> [@LonesomePolecat](#): > > As opposed to provoking Christians in other parts of the country? This is just your anti-Southern bigotry showing again. Yes, very much opposed to that. No, speaking as a Texan, it isn’t ‘just anti-Southern bigotry.’ ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/66 "2010-03-05T20:01:41Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > I never claimed that there were no jerks on the other side of the issue - but thanks for the strawman. Hey, no problem. It’s on the house. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2010, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/67 "2010-03-05T23:45:41Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > I never claimed that there were no jerks on the other side of the issue - but thanks for the strawman. I be thinking that the point is that you’re complaining about the fours on one side of the aisle when the other side reaches ten and probably has an _average_ of six. ---
**Author:** ![GreatStuffMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f04885/32.png) [@GreatStuffMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreatStuffMan)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/68 "2010-03-08T11:17:30Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > If it’s trading for the kind of pr0n that it’s the bible, I’m not interested – incest and rape pr0n are not to my liking. 😃 > [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](#): > > They’re not giving out hand jobs, just porn. 🙂 Err, wrong word. I meant tactical. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Lestrade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Lestrade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lestrade)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/69 "2010-03-08T15:11:24Z")
> [@LonesomePolecat](#): > > \*“When in doubt, blaspheme. Fools will always mistake it for wit.” \*-- **Oscar Wilde** Do you know where he coined that? I can’t find anything similar on google. Also, I’m not sure I understand what he meant. Does it roughly mean, “If you don’t know what to say, say it in an interesting way?” ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/70 "2010-03-08T15:23:40Z")
> [@Lestrade](#): > > Do you know where he coined that? I can’t find anything similar on google. Also, I’m not sure I understand what he meant. Does it roughly mean, “If you don’t know what to say, say it in an interesting way?” I assume it means something like ‘upsetting the religious is an easy score, and thus only dumb people think it’s clever’. Dunno where the quote comes from, though. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/71 "2010-03-08T15:44:33Z")
It’s kinda like telling a dirty joke (well, most of them). It’s a way to get laughs without requiring any real creativity or cleverness. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/72 "2010-03-08T15:48:49Z")
> [@JThunder](#): > > It’s kinda like telling a dirty joke (well, most of them). It’s a way to get laughs without requiring any real creativity or cleverness. 'Know which social class was most prominent in the Old Testament? The Aristocrats!’ 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/73 "2010-03-08T16:17:04Z")
> [@Revenant\_Threshold](#): > > It’s a stupid idea. Even granting the thought that it has some merit for opening eyes to a sacred cow, surely there are ways to do that that aren’t a) offensive, b) going to actually put people off atheism and atheists, and c) likely as not will be stuck in fundraising and political support leaflets for anyone whose opinion of atheists is already not too good. If you are polite all the time, people tune you out. So yes, there is value in sometimes using shock tactics and humor to draw people’s attention to an issue. Nobody ever died from being offended. And it’s college, which is a pretty safe place to do stuff like this. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/74 "2010-03-08T16:42:13Z")
Trading the spiritual for the physical is a excellent example of what Atheism offers. It seems perfect that the offer is giving away the Love of God in Jesus for the lust of the flesh, a common theme in scriptures, and one of the items that Satan uses often. Pitiful ol’ Satan, as predictable as ever, nothing new here, move on. and God will use even this to His glory. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/75 "2010-03-08T16:58:29Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > Trading the spiritual for the physical is a excellent example of what Atheism offers. It seems perfect that the offer is giving away the Love of God in Jesus for the lust of the flesh, a common theme in scriptures, and one of the items that Satan uses often. > > Pitiful ol’ Satan, as predictable as ever, nothing new here, move on. and God will use even this to His glory. I like to think of it as trading fantasy for reality. That way, any time I feel the need for fantasy I can crack open a book and let my imagination fly free without danger of losing my grounding. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/76 "2010-03-08T17:10:48Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > Pitiful ol’ Satan, as predictable as ever, nothing new here, move on. and God will use even this to His glory. No, no. They’re not Satanists. They’re atheists. They don’t believe in god’s alter ego either. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2010, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/77 "2010-03-08T18:43:53Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > I like to think of it as trading fantasy for reality. That way, any time I feel the need for fantasy I can crack open a book and let my imagination fly free without danger of losing my grounding. You only _wish_ that the content of skin mags was your reality. ---
**Author:** ![kidneyfailure](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9f8e36/32.png) [@kidneyfailure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidneyfailure)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/78 "2010-03-09T09:04:42Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > And was it any good, or just weak-sauce stuff like _Oui, Hustler_, and _Penthouse Letters_? Granted I haven’t seen a copy in quite a while, but since when has Hustler been considered “weaksauce?” IIRC, it was pretty graphic. ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/79 "2010-03-09T13:55:32Z")
> [@GreatStuffMan](#): > > Am I the only one thinking this is funny as hell? > > Regardless of whether this was the most tactile event ever organized in the name of spreading Atheism, it surely did have an effect and sparked some debate. And that in itself is part of the point of the organization, I’m sure. Hence, they succeeded. I don’t think this act spread any atheism anywhere, it did insult and belittle a lot of people who will never forget how “bad” atheism has become. I tried to find out if atheist numbers are growing, but the prejudices were too high for me to tell. I know that people who say they are not religious are not necessarily atheists. It seems a very large group of spiritualists who believe in spiritual realms and a higher power are left out, or counted as atheists. Then there is a new religious movement that is bringing back into the church many of those that previously left due to negative preaching. This movement preaches a positive Christianity with no hell fire and damnation. It is never right to insult or belittle others about their beliefs, you will be judged as you judge others. The act lowered the status of atheists in the minds of Christians and non-Christians alike. It was a lose-lose situation for all. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251/80 "2010-03-09T15:23:13Z")
> [@lekatt](#): > > I tried to find out if atheist numbers are growing, but the prejudices were too high for me to tell. A fairly recent [Pew Report](http://religions.pewforum.org/reports) on religious trends looks reasonably unprejudiced, but as you note it’s difficult to distinguish atheists and agnostics (A&A’s) from other nonaffiliated types: > [@](#): > > The survey finds that the number of people who say they are unaffiliated with any particular faith today (16.1%) is more than double the number who say they were not affiliated with any particular religion as children. Among Americans ages 18-29, one-in-four say they are not currently affiliated with any particular religion. […] > > The Landscape Survey confirms that the United States is on the verge of becoming a minority Protestant country; the number of Americans who report that they are members of Protestant denominations now stands at barely 51%. […] > > Like the other major groups, people who are unaffiliated with any particular religion (16.1%) also exhibit remarkable internal diversity. Although one-quarter of this group consists of those who describe themselves as either atheist or agnostic (1.6% and 2.4% of the adult population overall, respectively), the majority of the unaffiliated population (12.1% of the adult population overall) is made up of people who simply describe their religion as “nothing in particular.” This group, in turn, is fairly evenly divided between the “secular unaffiliated,” that is, those who say that religion is not important in their lives (6.3% of the adult population), and the “religious unaffiliated,” that is, those who say that religion is either somewhat important or very important in their lives (5.8% of the overall adult population). > [@lekatt](#): > > The act lowered the status of atheists in the minds of Christians and non-Christians alike. It was a lose-lose situation for all. Except that it wasn’t. Sure, **some** people were offended or disgusted by this stunt, but others thought it was pretty clever, funny, and/or courageous. It must have some “win” aspects for the Atheist Agenda group, or they wouldn’t keep doing it (as I noted above, the event seems to have been initiated back in 2005). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trade-your-bibles-for-porn-smut-for-smut-event/531251.md?page=5)