A Comment Recently Received
We recently received a comment from Elaine B., which may be interesting to some Seattle Atheists members.
You do not, under any kind of decent moral standing have the right to target children with your ads. The idea of using a child fantasy such as Santa Claus to attract their attention is just as moral as Camel cigarettes using Joe the Camel to sell their garbage.
I am all for your free rights of speech. You have a right to push your ideas. Just as I have a right to push what I believe in. But, SHOVING your NON beliefs down the throats of children that have other cultures is unacceptable.
I just read your news release. Using the founding fathers as you are, if you have legitimate proof of their religious standings is one thing. But having a giant Santa Claus to get little childrens attention is very immoral. What were you thinking?
Then again, religion is often the foundation of teaching morals, so maybe that is what has happened with your decision making ability?
How would you like me to stand somewhere your child/grand childre, or someone in your organizations young people, and tell them you are a liar? Just as your ad says to our children? Would you like your child to pass such contradiction of what you teach? Maybe I should put some ads out there with, I don’t know, a super hero,with a big ad as ignorant as yours, stating, “I got all my powers from God”
Everyone in this world has a right to believe what they do, and to raise their families the way they find to be the truest in their hearts.
What this ad is trying to accomplish is the very thing you are supposedly fighting!You attempt to brainwash people! Leave MY children alone.
Any serious problems with the content of the comment will be left as an exercise for the reader. However, I would like to point out a couple of things which might be important to people:
- The Santa Claus bus signs on the outside were contracted by the Freedom from Religion Foundation, and are completely independent of our signs on the inside of the bus.
- That whole part about “How would you like me to stand somewhere your child/grand childre, or someone in your organizations young people, and tell them you are a liar”? That happens. A lot.
- Atheism is apparently as bad as smoking.
- I’m also pretty sure that the whole super hero thing she’s talking about already exists. Just sayin’.
The idea that religion promotes good morals is self-supporting, but a sham. How many wars are promoted with religion? How many people is the Pope (*any* Pope) killing right now, with his self-serving teachings on condom use?
I look at the backward denials of the radical right wing and how closely they’e been tied to and promoted by religion, and I think that the only way that we won’t all end up killing each other is if enough people wake up and realize that religious myths are just that: myths.
Think for yourselves, people!
(Starting with you, Elaine B.)
a) As sam said, it’s not our sign.
b) I think folks need a lesson in reading/image comprehension 101 before going off about the Santa Claus image. It has to do with a mythical figure, not some ham-fisted attempt to lure children to atheism.
I have also seen COUNTLESS ads promoting religion that are deliberately insulting to non-believers in my travels. So… as sam said… they (churches) already DO this on a regular basis. They’re guiltier than ANYONE at trying to recruit children.
I think it’s high time we (Seattle Atheists) had our own signs (as seen on the *insides* of the buses), and I think it shows remarkable maturity that they are directed at other atheists as a general affirmation of our existence to one another, and NOT as insults or rebuttals against the religious community.
Just learned about your bus signs and I must make a comment. I am an atheists but find your ad mean spirited. You folks must really be filled with a lot of hate to take such an approach. Get a life for gosh sakes and learn to coexists.
Will
You first, Will.
I am interested in this debate taking place within this blog on this topic. I don’t know the context of how the posters are being displayed so I have mixed views dependingon how this is taking place.
Firstly as a Christian, we need to think and reason out thought. We cannot close off other people’s views. As C.S. Lewis said in “The Problem of Pain” God gave us the ability of free will and doubt. Hence we should follow the example – God is gentle and doesn’t force people to come to him (I understand that Religion has done the opposite over the years)
But if the Ads are not done in a constructive way that are not focused on proper logical thought vs. making fun of someone else – it could come across as ’sour grapes’. While I don’t subscribe to other religions I respect them and do my best as a member of the human race to find commonality where I can. Words can sometimes be more painful that physical blows – when the intent is to do something like this then I feel we can no longer debate propertly.
I long when both sides can discuss this with (human) respect for each other.