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secularmerlin

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free will
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@Stronn
In what way is unpredictability observably different from random chance? 
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So we look at stuff he said that was on similar subjects...
How have you determined that we have accurate records in this regard?
Yes
This is not an answer to my question. How have you determined that we have accurate records of what Jesus said?

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How Did You Become An Atheist?
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@Mopac
@WyseGui has said
You have made a lot of assertions during this debate.
He thinks you are debating. It is dishonest of you to let him continue thinking this. If debate is unchristian and you are not debating but merely proclaiming your beliefs he deserves to know otherwise you are not having this discussion in good faith.
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free will
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@keithprosser
I thought you were bored with discussions about frrewill.
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
does his interpretation of what constitutes participation covered by free speech and or freedom of religion?  I think it does, so what you consider difference or complexity isn't relevant to his opinion and freedoms.
I'm going to be honest I've been trying to puzzle this out and I just don't get what you are trying to say here. I'm sorry to ask but could you possibly rephrase this?

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@Speedrace
So we look at stuff he said that was on similar subjects...
How have you determined that we have accurate records in this regard?

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@Speedrace
If Jesus was a historical figure he lived long before the concept of gay conversion therapy and as a consequence probably had very little to say on the subject.
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@Speedrace
I was never even talking about that
All of my replies have been a direct consequence of what you have posted. It is possible that we are misunderstanding one another. 

Tell me in what way do you feel you have been misrepresented? I would always prefer understanding. 

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@Speedrace
My argument is actually that it does not matter what it says in the bible but as I said we are getting off topic.
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@Speedrace
We are getting of topic and that is rude of us but I invite you to create a thread about this subject in which I may participate.
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@Snoopy
You should not say they don't have the option to buy a custom cake, or that they are barred from purchasing complex cakes since that has never been proven. 
When discussing the efficacy of legislation one must consider the worst case scenario.

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@Speedrace
This is your claim. Do you have evidence for this claim?
John 3:18
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.

Ok you have replaced your claim with the bible's claim. Now what? Do you have any evidence for the bible's claims or even just this one biblical claim?
The bible is not in my experience a good source for determining any given christians beliefs
That's your claim. Where's your proof for that 
Only that christians interpret the bible differently not just from denomination to denomination but from individual to individual. As an example am Amish person has very different ideas about what is acceptable in the eyes of the Yahweh (which is I believe one reason you see so few of them on the boards).

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@Speedrace
I should clarify; everyone sins, and Jesus is here to basically stand in for you when you refuse him you basically say that you'll take the punishment that you deserve for sinning
This is your claim. Do you have evidence for this claim?
Because we're talking about Christianity...
The bible is not in my experience a good source for determining any given christians beliefs and even if it was the mere fact that one specific person or even many people believe something is not evidence of the truth of the propisition.
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
If the cakes in the case are significantly different in complexity then it is also untrue in a more fundamental way. But let's assume that it is true for a moment. In that case and if the cakes in the case are what he is offering homosexuals then he has ALREADY baked several gay wedding cakes and I am unclear what difference one more or less would make moralistically or theologically. It rather invalidates the religious objection if that us true.

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@Speedrace
You go to hell for unbelief, not sin
How have you determined that this is the case?
And the Bible doesn't say most of us will go to hell, I believe it's actually a pretty large majority that will go to heaven (2/3+), but I'm not sure where it says that
If the bible gives any figures on this I'm unaware of it but even if it did how have you determined that the bible is an accurate source for determining it?
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
How does a cake for a heterosexual wedding differ from a cake for a homosexual wedding?
Ingredients?
Time in the oven?
Color of icing?
It seems like the two projects are similar enough that you could just make a cake for a heterosexual wedding and then sell it to someone having a homosexual wedding.

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
He was, he was offering heterosexual wedding cakes to anyone who wanted to buy one. 
Heterosexuality is not an attribute that cakes possess.

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Muslims are like gun owners.
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
If guns deter violence then why do all mass shooting involve guns?
they also always involve people, chicken and the egg thing LOL
Well stated.
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@Deb-8-a-bull
What if gay people are jeopardizing religious peoples afterlife.  Unfortunately this has to be considered right?
I don't think much of a deity that judges people based on the actions of others.

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
In that case endorsing gay marriage is not tantamount to endorsing gay sex and the morallity of such acts asside there is suddenly no logical objection.
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
quite simply you don't have to do an action, the verbs I listed, you can not change your skin color.  There are very religious gay people who believe gay sex is a sin so they don't have it (action/verb)
you also don't have to get married, totally voluntary and optional, skin color, not so much.
I hope that explains the difference that I see.
By that rational getting married need not involve sex (though like being homosexual it generally does) so the bakers objection to a non sex act is still quite puzzling.

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@Snoopy
The bible is based upon our relationship with God, not vice versa.
How does this prevent one from claiming religious objection to serving other races or disabled persons? Is there any way to prevent abuse of a "religious freedom" bill which is worded to protect one from being prosecuted for discrimination based on whatever post hoc religious justifications are offered?

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
we are going in circles here, how can I explain the difference between a ceremony,event,act (verbs) and skin color (noun) in any more of a plain way than I already have?
No the difference between skin color and sexual orientation. If one can object to a ceremony/act/verb based on sexual orientation then one could also object based on skin color. What is the difference?

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@Snoopy
Marriage is between a man and a woman, who are given to one another.  There is no such thing as homosexual marriage in Christianity.  It is like an oxymoron.  Interracial marriage would still be marriage.
Marriage in this context is a legal designation not a religious one. Otherwise no legislation would be necessarry or apply.

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@Snoopy
what you are saying is tantemanout to justification for repealing the Bill of Rights.  
No it is not.
It is a conscious act.
What is the above in response too?
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
I believe many religions have a long history on various issues.  Afaik divorced people can't get remarried in a Catholic church, or that was the case at one time.
A church is essentially a private club a bakery is not. If you wish to reap the benefits of opening your buisness to the general public then you must open your buisness to the entire general public. 
People shouldn't be forced to reach agreement 
The issue is not a failure to reach a financial agreement it is refusal of a service that is ordinarily open to the general public. We already have legislation that deals with financial agreements so if that were all then we would not need a "religious freedom bill" and we would not even be having this conversation. 

Also please address the following.

What specifically makes homosexual sex acts between consenting adults immoral and heterosexual sex acts between interracial consenting adults moral?

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
as I said objecting to the act of homosexuality or a religious event is not the same as objecting to someone's skin color, vastly different things
I'm afraid that I do not see the difference. Please tell me specifically what the difference is?
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
Also please address the following.

What specifically makes homosexual sex acts between consenting adults immoral and heterosexual sex acts between interracial consenting adults moral?
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
he felt that would be accepting and legitimizing a gay wedding which he objects to.
On what specific (non arbitrary) grounds? As 3RU7AL has stated repeatedly the bible commands against marriages being performed on saturdays and between devorcees and to weddings where lobster rills are served but none of those would seem to br an issue.  Why specifically are we drawing a line at homosexual marriage?

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@Snoopy
While I don't know why they are being refused, in one situation, people have apparently managed to convince the majority of society that it needs a business license from them, probably enforce something against the minority who don't want or have business licenses, and are now acting as a gatekeeper to people they deem unfit.  In the other, someone is minding their own business, apparently to do with wedding services, as they see fit.  

For the second one, I'm not sure if you literally mean refusing to entertain service for someone like, "Joe, I've tried to be reasonable with you, and I've had enough!  You need to leave." or as if they are being requested a service where they haven't been able to negotiate a mutual agreement
The situation is that one person sees another as immoral for reasons that are beyond their control (race, disability, sexual orientation etc.) and are using their religious beliefs to justify refusing them service even if they are perfectly reasonable paying customers that are doing nothing objectionable beyond being who they are.

If the case were that the customer were being unreasonable or a financial arrangement cannot be agreed upon then no "religious freedom" act would be necessary as we already have legislation that deals with those issues and we would not be having this discussion at all. 
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
I don't know, it's a religious thing and if we are to have freedom of religion then their beliefs must be accepted.
I'm not defending religion, just freedom.
How does this differ from objecting to am interracial marriage or a Jewish wedding in religious grounds? I'm afraid you cannot have it both ways. Either religious freedom gives carte Blanche to discriminate on religious grounds of it does not. If you feel that the baker would be justified in refusing to bake a cake for a homosexual person's wedding then you are also saying that he can refuse to do it for a disabled person's wedding or a black person's wedding. Is that your contention?

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
one includes the act of homosexual sex, the other does not.
What specifically makes homosexual sex acts between consenting adults immoral and heterosexual sex acts between interracial consenting adults moral?

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@Snoopy
For example, if they are ignorant, and using their power unjustifiably to harass people and run them out of business.

Would this include refusing them the services needed to run their buisness? (For example refusing someone a buisness licence because they are homosexual?)

Probably.
I agree. How is refusing someone the services necessary to perform a wedding different?

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
homosexual sex has been deemed immoral for a long, long time and in just about every country, I'm not sure if that's true for interracial couples.
What is moral is opinion. What causes harm can be measured in many cases. What specifically makes homosexuality immoral and interracial marriage moral? Certainly neither one harms the person baking the cake. 

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
Many racists have historically couched their objections as religious and I fail to see the difference between refusing to bake a cake for a black man and refusing to bake a cake for a homosexual man.
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@Snoopy
For example, if they are ignorant, and using their power unjustifiably to harass people and run them out of business.

Would this include refusing them the services needed to run their buisness? (For example refusing someone a buisness licence because they are homosexual?)
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@Snoopy
Then precisely what did you mean? What context makes it ok to call politicians ignorant savages if it isn't ok to call Jews ignorant savages?
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
no, before civil rights they were denying people, not actions,celebrations and things I've already outlined.
One of the ways they did this was by refusing services to certain individuals (say baking wedding cakes for interracial couples).
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@Snoopy
Ignorant savages? That sounds dehumanizing.
By what world view?
If someone called all blacks or all Americans or all southern Baptists ignorant savages would that be dehumanizing to any of those groups? If the answer in any of those cases is yes then it is dehumanizing in your world view.

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Is it irrational to believe that no God or god(s) exist?
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@mustardness
Excellent post by the way I understood every word. Thank you. Sincerely thank you.
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Is it irrational to believe that no God or god(s) exist?
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@mustardness
We cannot rule out anything. We can only verify what is observable and withhold belief in the absence of sufficient evidence.
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Is it irrational to believe that no God or god(s) exist?
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@Outplayz
A person built your garage with precise measurements and engineering to keep it up... hmm... 

That is one thing needed to keep a garage standing.

The other is the perfect spirit of a garage which unbeknownst to the builders enters the garage upon completion. Can you disprove this or are you simply being skeptical of an unnecessary and unprovable hypothesis? In either case how is this different than believing that the universe (most of which seems to get on just fine without conciousness) requires a conciousness in order to exist?
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
By the guidelines you have outlined a majority acting in concert can deprive minorities of certain freedoms entirely. This was the case before the civil rights act and why they were instituted in the first place. 

Your intentions may be noble but you ate creating a very slippery slope when you say "any reason". 

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@TheDredPriateRoberts
Ok then specifically you should not be allowed to make it more difficult to get married just because you do not like them getting married. If cakes are off the table what about a dj? A caterer? Flower arranger? How about someone to perform the wedding? 
If these are all services that you feel can be "refused to any one for any reason" and they are refused by everyone to a particular minority then that minority us effectively barred from being married. Does that sound acceptable to you? 

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@Snoopy
Ignorant savages? That sounds dehumanizing. It is the guided process of dehumanization that I am worried abput. It doesn't matter if that comes on the guise of racism or homophobia or religious/cultural purity.

I have been fairly clear about my fears if these laws take effect (that some classes of people will be legally denied the services that should be taken for granted.

What specifically are you afraid will happen if these laws do not get passed?
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
Let me ask you a question. If we all have the right to refuse service as you suggest then why do we need these "religious freedom" bills that by the way resemble the him Crow laws from the sixties.



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Muslims are like gun owners.
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@Snoopy
I did not cite this article I merely read it and found that it did not support the claims of the poster who did use it as a citation.
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@TheDredPriateRoberts
The issue is not forcing someone to do something that they would under normal circumstances refuse to do it is in insuring equality which sadly often requires legal action. A baker makes cakes. To refuse this service is not in and of itself a problem. Refusing this service based on someone's minority status is.

Do you feel that it is acceptable to refuse services to Asians? Women? Jews? Based on their color? sex? religion?

As 3RU7AL has stated repeatedly the issue is not refusing service it is claiming protection from legal recourse when guilty of discrimination under the very laws that are meant to prevent discrimination.
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Muslims are like gun owners.
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@Alec
This easily could be due to other factors, like states with tough gun laws coincidentally also tend to have a high GDP per capita, and rich people are less likely to commit homicide.  Cities which tend to have tough gun laws, tend to have a high GDP per capita by coincidence, but despite this, they also have higher homicide rates then poor rural areas, despite being richer.
All of which is to say that statistics can be faulty or in other words your quoted statistics about Jamaica were largely meaningless. This leaves us with little to go on other than personal opinion and the twin facts that a guns only purpose is putting holes in things from far away and that having more than ones alloted number of holes is very bad for one.

--> @Snoopy
Is our stated goal preventing gun violence or preserving imperfect institutions? The two may be mutually exclusive. 


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Muslims are like gun owners.
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@Greyparrot
And I quote "(Four others involved "unarmed citizens [who] confronted or persuaded the shooter to end the shooting.")" So it would seem that the courage to take a stand is the deciding factor and not personal armament.
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