UofA makes a move ot block god from graduation

[OzSome]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

What a stupid fricken waste of time, couldn't they go and feed the hungry or study or something.

I lump these people into the same class of lunatics that that want to outlaw the phrase Merry Christmas, and change the name Halloween to Black and White Day.

No kidding!! What's next? Changed the holiday "Thanksgiving" to something else.

[Displaced Flames fan]

Originally Posted by photon

Your analogy is flawed, it would make sense if this was a religious ceremony (feminist issues, not a woman, non-religious ceremony, not religious).

Lets use your analogy. What if the graduation ceremony said to the glory of women and the honour of your country? Seems silly and possibly offensive to those who aren't women.

There's a difference between sex and religion/non-religion though, one being something one is, the other being something one thinks.

So what if it was "to the glory of liberalism or conservatism"?

This is a small potatoes example of how atheism is ignored or even attacked, but then again it's also small enough to effect change without making it into a supreme court case.

EDIT: If this was a Muslim or some other group making this request (if the speech was more overtly Christian let's say) the discussion would be around the merits of the request itself, not about the merit of asking.

Attacked is one thing, but ignored? What harm comes from an absence of belief being ignored?

And your edit...I'm not understanding. Are you suggesting a Muslim group would be more justified in making this request from my point of view?

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by photon

True, though I do appreciate evman's point and I'd probably agree that the majority of what most people look at (TV being worse than reading) does promote a non-scientific way of thinking.. Not overtly anti-scientific, but just a magical way of thinking as opposed to a rational way.

I appreciate his point as well, but I just don't agree with the target. Rowling isn't promoting it as truth or anything more than a fairy tale for kids. It's like saying Cinderella is "anti-science" because crystal shoes wouldn't make it in the real world.

And just as an aside, I really don't like Harry Potter books. I read the first one (it was sort of a "professional" responsibility for me at the time) but I didn't like it. I did see how much kids loved it though. Convincing a learning-impaired 10-year-old to read a book that's 4 inches thick and doesn't have any pictures is a hell of a trick and that woman pulled it off millions of times. Children are smarter if they read her books.

[Displaced Flames fan]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

I appreciate his point as well, but I just don't agree with the target. Rowling isn't promoting it as truth or anything more than a fairy tale for kids. It's like saying Cinderella is "anti-science" because crystal shoes wouldn't make it in the real world.

And just as an aside, I really don't like Harry Potter books. I read the first one (it was sort of a "professional" responsibility for me at the time) but I didn't like it. I did see how much kids loved it though. Convincing a learning-impaired 10-year-old to read a book that's 4 inches thick and doesn't have any pictures is a hell of a trick and that woman pulled it off millions of times. Children are smarter if they read her books.

Well said.

Actually, evman's stance on Harry Potter is very similar to many religious groups that he hates. Interesting little dynamic there.

[Cheese]

Non-religious Canadians are common throughout all provinces and territories. Non-religious Canadians include atheists, agnostics, humanists as well as other nontheists. In 1991, they made up 12.3 percent which increased to 16.2 percent in 2001 of the population according to the 2001 census. Some non-religious Canadians have formed some associations, such as the Humanist Association of Canada or the Toronto Secular Alliance.


It is suggested that the number is close to 35% or greater today.

[Traditional_Ale]

Originally Posted by OzSome

No kidding!! What's next? Changed the holiday "Thanksgiving" to something else.

I think they should change it to "Annual Meal of Noteworthy Importance" so as not to offend the descendants of the settlers who were too stupid to farm properly.

While we're at it, lets turn New Years into "Calendar Turn-Over Day" so as not to offend the people who wanted it to stay the former year for a while longer.

Easter can become "Choclate Day".

Rememberance Day should be renamed "War Sucks Day" because we wouldn't want to offend the virgin sensibilites of Little Johnny and Sally. Also to appease all the anti-war advocates.

Family Day would undoubtedly have to be renamed "Generic Holiday" because people without families wouldn't feel like they could participate (outside of a 12-case of beer and porn, but then how is that really different from now?).

St. Patricks Day would then have to be re-named "Binge Drinking Day" because alcoholism affects non-catholics too and they want their equal representation. Beer would be made available in all the colors of the rainbow.

Good Friday would become just "Friday" much like 9-11 the date has become "9-11". This is so the catholics could celebrate the brith of their religion, and non-catholics could utter the title in total disdain and everyone would understand what they mean without having to actually say anything non-PC.

Victoria Day I think would survive unscathed.

National Aboriginal Day would too, but we would then have to create National Original Day and National Un-Original Day.

Canada Day would be renaimed "Home Day" because after all, we're a multi-cultural society that allows one to keep the beliefs and customs of their homeland. Including thinking its actually just superior in every way despite how much improved their quality of life is here.

Nunavut Day would have to be supplamented by a day for all the other provinces...equality and all.

Labour Day would be renamed "GDP Celebration Day" because if the blue-collars get a day, then the white collars that own their souls should get it by default. Right?

Christmas Day would be renamed "Stupid Fat Red F***er Day" because without Coca-Cola, we all wouldn't be going broke every year come December 25th while lying to our kids trying to get them to be obidient.

And my favorite....

Boxing Day would have the same name, but would become a national celebration of Boxing and MMA. UFC all-day, on every channel. Also $500 tax credits to every man, woman, and child who would get in the ring on public access TV and beat the crap out of each other.

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by Cheese

Non-religious Canadians are common throughout all provinces and territories. Non-religious Canadians include atheists, agnostics, humanists as well as other nontheists. In 1991, they made up 12.3 percent which increased to 16.2 percent in 2001 of the population according to the 2001 census. Some non-religious Canadians have formed some associations, such as the Humanist Association of Canada or the Toronto Secular Alliance.


It is suggested that the number is close to 35% or greater today.

What, you mean this isn't about Harry Potter?

I wouldn't care either way if it was my graduation ceremony. It seems kind of petty to me that someone would bother to whine about it. Like they are looking to be, or trying to be, offended. It's a single line in a speech. Who cares?

That would go both ways though. I think it's kind of petty that people want it removed but it's equally petty that people insist it stays.

Soon enough the god parts would be silently dropped from the speech and nobody would know the difference anyway.

I do think it's kind of funny with all the people saying "don't they have better things to do!"

Of course they don't have better things to do. They are in university. I once spent an hour in a room full of people discussing the similarities between Hyman Roth from the Godfather II and some character in a Thomas Pynchon novel. University is the place to waste time.

No offense to anyone who works at a University of course. It really wasn't a waste of time. But it kind of was.

[photon]

Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan

Attacked is one thing, but ignored? What harm comes from an absence of belief being ignored?

What harm can come with an absence of maleness being ignored?

The harm is that it help perpetuates a negative view of atheism. People can have their negative views on whatever they want, but public things like governments and schools and such usually make an effort to be respectful of everyone.. atheists are an everyone too.

Not that the harm is intentional, it's obviously just a speech that someone somewhere wrote at one point and it's tradition, in this case it's not an intentional ignoring, but now that the request is made it makes sense to consider it seriously.

And your edit...I'm not understanding. Are you suggesting a Muslim group would be more justified in making this request from my point of view?

No I mean that in a hypothetical case where the speech was more overtly Christian and a Muslim group was making the case that the speech should be changed to be more accepting of others views, the discussion would be centered around the merit of the request itself. I.e. some would say that it's reasonable for reason x, some would say it's silly for reason y, someone would say if they wanted to move to this country they should respect the culture, etc etc etc...

But in this case the actual act of asking itself is being questioned and in some cases discounted before the merit of the question itself is even considered. You said yourself you question the motivation.

[photon]

Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan

Well said.

Actually, evman's stance on Harry Potter is very similar to many religious groups that he hates. Interesting little dynamic there.

How is evman's stance on HP similar to religious groups he "hates"? You'll have to spell that out a little more.

[evman150]

Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan

Well said.

Actually, evman's stance on Harry Potter is very similar to many religious groups that he hates. Interesting little dynamic there.

Yeah, I'm gonna need a little explication on that point as well.

[Thor]

On the topic of a group still PC to hate, atheists, you have a US governorial race that one lady accused the other of being atheist.

Now the fun part, the one being accused, worded it that she'd never be an atheist and that it offends her to be called such a slanderous word.

No matter how much you think non religious have too much free time or there are better things to fight against, we will stand up against specific institutional acknowledgments to praise or thank god, especially since that is a specific exclusion to a large and growing portion of our country.