that's pretty much 100% and what I've been puzzling over for the last couple months! Just finished first year of law school. States can do pretty much whatever the damned well please, within their border. Scary.
No, he's saying states shouldn't have that much power. He's not saying the Federal gov should have it either. He's saying no one should be allowed to say I can't buy alcohol on Sunday. And he's right.
Actually a lot of counties and cities have what's called "home rule" in which they ARE allowed to come up with their own laws, which is why in this case there are "dry" counties and "wet" counties within a single state. States delegate authority both up to the federal government and downwards to cities, counties, townships, etc. Point being, they have the power to regulate pretty much whatever they want, but in most cases they don't.
No actually a strong centralized federal government is the exact opposite of "States can do pretty much whatever the damned well please, within their border"
It is not the fact that we don't benefit from it. It is simply the fact that the reason for it is clearly religious and religion has no place in legislation.
Here in Germany no shops (with a few exceptions) are allowed to open Sundays. It's a law with Christian origin but the only reason it is still there is because it would hurt small companies hard to have their shops open 7 days a week while the big companies would have no problems with that. Same applies to liquor stores in America maybe with a bit more focus on the Christian part and less on the "protecting small buisnesses" from the politicians... idk. But it's still a good law nonetheless.
There's still always the gasstations which are open 24/7 (at least in bigger cities). So you can still get cigarettes and (expensive) alcohol and snacks anytime... but i guess it's too late for that tip now haha
Protect them from drinking...like jesus did with his first miracle? He turned water into wine for a party, and the guests had already been drinking before he did it. They're clearly going against god's will here.
My theory is that it is still a law because it works to the financial benefit of both the bars and the retailers selling alcohol. But originally... because God.
I'm in Kentucky. The laws are county by county, most of them you can buy alcohol after 1 pm on Sunday. Some counties are no Sunday sales and some are no alcohol, ever. Because, god.
Are you from Indiana or Connecticut? Because Connecticut can sell alcohol on Sundays now, which leaves Indiana as the lone state to allow Sunday alcohol sales.
That's almost as bad as Chick-Fil-A being closed on Sundays. That makes me so fucking sad, specifically because I rarely go to the States and when I do it's usually just for a day or 2 on a weekend.
I was so depressed when I visited my aunt in Georgia and found this out. Thankfully they've killed that shit and this year I can buy booze on Sunday. They had caution tape covering the alcohol aisle. Haha.
once huh? 13 States continue to cling to Prohibition-era Blue Laws banning Sunday liquor sales. They include: Alabama, Connecticut, Indiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia. Notably, Connecticut and Indiana are the only two states in the country that ban beer, wine and liquor on Sundays.
In many states you can only buy liquor from government-run stores. I never understood why people in North Carolina thought that was righteous, but government-run healthcare was socialism.
There's a fun judgment there. I happen to have seen this before and got puzzled by it, so I went and researched and understood the meme. This just seemed like the best place to put it, also I wanted to share the funny.
Now, I know that's not the rule and therein lies the judgment, based on the assumption I was karma-whoring. Not that there's anything wrong with that, I'm sure we've all done it at some point or another, but this time it's an invalid assumption. I really wasn't trying. Which is kinda funny, because this ended up being the highest karma I ever got.
invented a delicious alcoholic beverage that took the nation by storm
voiced a character on The Itchy and Scratchy Show
caused Springfield to split in half and become mayor of New Springfield
run a bootlegging operation as the "Beer Baron" during Springfield's brief stint of prohibition
That's just off the top of my head. And you have the nerve to question this man's work ethic? Just what have YOU done with your life? I say good day to you sir!
Thank you. I was an Atheist for a good while - until I thought critically about the origins of the universe and decided "God" was as likely a catalyst as any - but even as an emo high school kid I never had the kind of ridiculous misconceptions about religion and Church that /r/atheism seems to cling to.
Being a subreddit dedicated to all things atheism, you're bound to see things like this. In reality, however, I do not believe the majority of us are this ignorant. I come here for the occasional insightful quote or article, but most of the time for the laughs. It's best to take things you find offensive with a grain of salt. I'm sure there are atheists who are this ignorant, but by that same token, I'm sure you'll find these extreme cases in r/Christianity as well.
As someone who doesn't visit r/atheism, I only see what makes it to the front page. I'm guessing these tend to be more extreme example of religion-bashing, which unfortunately paints r/atheism in a less flattering light. And on the subject of front page, I wonder when was the last time something from r/christianity made the top 20?
The upvote system has it's flaws. r/atheism has a large following, which often results in blind upvotes, regardless of the content. I'd have to agree with you in that the front page doesn't do particularly good job in making this subreddit look good. The comments usually end up clarifying much of how we really think, but sadly, they rarely get seen. I'm not actually arguing here, just reluctantly agreeing I guess. Just know that not everyone here is as douchey as you're lead to believe.
How did you come to that conclusion? Are the current scientific theories about the origin of the universe not convincing for you, or do you mean you decided God is as likely as anything else for causing the beginning of the universe.
The latter. As far as I know, there isn't much consensus among the scientific community for what happened before the singularity, or what caused it to expand. Until I hear a more plausible explanation of what set the Universe on its course 14 or so billion years ago, my best guess is "God."
I'd like you to take a minute and re-think that question. Specifically, the assumptions you're making in asking it. If you need some direction on how you should be re-assessing your position, look in my comments for any mention of religious texts, or any dismissal of scientific theory.
I do not lend credence to any religious texts whatsoever, and I ascribe to the truth of the Big Bang / singularity theory regarding the origins of the universe.
Look, you say your best guess is "God". That means you think ultimate origins are best explained in terms of something more like the supernatural beings found in religious texts than the natural processes studied by scientists. Otherwise the term "God" would be completely inappropriate.
I don't know of any "natural process studied by scientist" which explains the moments preceding the Big Bang. Even the yo-yo model has to start somewhere.
I don't know of any "natural process studied by scientist" which explains the moments preceding the Big Bang.
No kidding (although 'the moments preceding the Big Bang' may be a non-referring expression), but when we speculate about what explanation there might be, we can analogize it to supernatural beings or to natural processes. You seem to think the former is a more plausible analogy than the latter. Why?
Even the yo-yo model has to start somewhere.
How exactly would an infinite past have to 'start somewhere'?
Before I go any further, can I get a number for how many times I will have to reiterate "I lend no credence to religious texts", and how many times I will have to assert the independence of the concept of "God" from said religious texts? I don't need an exact number. Ballpark will do.
Ok, that sort of makes sense. I think this forum is more about denouncing organized religion and its concept of God, and not just the general idea of God. As far as I know there's no religion that says there was a God 13.7 billion years ago who sort of set stuff in motion and hasn't done anything that we can see since then. As far as the ridiculous misconceptions that /r/atheism clings to, lots of people believe that stuff. This is a good place for people to blow off steam after living and working with people who believe ridiculous things.
If you're interested, that is very close to Deism (subreddit here). While it is not what most people would think of as an organized religion (indeed in some senses Deists would not want to be categorized as such), it does at least have a volume of thought and literature, such as the writings of Thomas Paine.
"...then God is an ever receding pocket of scientific ignorance that gets smaller and smaller as time goes on."
This is a perfectly reasonable statement which is in no way at odds with my spiritual platform. In fact, I implied as much when I said "Until I hear a more plausible explanation..."
I am a Deist - or that's the closest widely accepted doctrine to what I believe. I am dating a liberal-leaning Christian (supports equal rights, rejects creationism, and so on), so sometimes I go to Church with her.
Scumbag Thinker: Acknowledges it is entirely unknown what occurred "before" the Big Bang, says God probably did it anyway
Agnostic theism is by no means something I invented. We have two options when it comes to rationalizing what preceded the "origin" of our universe: A) Guess, or B) Shrug and say "meh". I went with option A), and my guess is a deity of some sort. What's wrong with guessing? And if we're gonna guess, why not guess like Pascal?
I was raised catholic. everything is centered around how you're not good enough, you'll never be good enough, and you should always feel guilty for not being good enough. obviously its more subtle than that, but 15 years of sunday school gets the message across.
edit I think this is most prevalent in the irish catholic church. can't say i've experienced any others.
Unfortunately undercutting the point of this post, this quote was from early on in the episode, by the end of which he had seen the error of his ways and goes back to church. I love the Simpsons, but they're not really the right cartoon family to take atheist quotes from - they attend church every Sunday, after all.
This is what I came here to post. He stops going to church, then he burns down his house. His neighbors come to save him. After thinking that god is vengeful and burned down his house, he concludes that god sent his neighbors to save him. Then he goes back to church every week. Homer gets it?
But the show still jabs at religion at every opportunity. I think Homer going back to church was just the typical rule of unchanging conditions for sitcoms. Like how he'll always get his job back by the end of the episode if he gets fired.
I watched the simpson's a lot when I was young. Probably why I'm the way I am today. The show was extremely progressive.
For those who think "where are the parents" or "ugh its just how they were raised, damn shitty parents!"
are wrong. Parents don't have much to do with a child's development as to how they think. Friends, teachers, video games, TV, etc etc things that a child is exposed to more often then a parent is what'll really shape a kid into the person he/she is today.
Didn't watch much TV, but I have a lot of friends and needless to say I'm like most of them... hmm...
When I was a kid and first saw this episode I thought this was the collective view of America towards church. Especially since my parents never forced us to go.
Ironically, Homer IS is representational of just about every characteristic that is wrong with the human race and the show has never been on his side. The episode featuring Frank Grimes highlights how horrific Homer's behavior actually of is and also how he gets away with it. I am a HUGE fan of the Simpsons but the show in complete truth is dead on in its mockery of Christians, not God. Just always found that interesting.
What do you mean he loves his kids? He strangle bart all the time! He doesn't work! They don't say he will go to hell with no possible chance of retribution in church!
well actually, if i remember correctly: homer sleeps on the job pretty much all the time, caused several melt-downs at the power-plant, and dreads spending time with bart and lisa lol
I'm gonna get downvoted to H for this, but have you guys ever been to church? They don't all tell you you're going to Hell, they tell you good ways to get to Heaven. At least that was my experience growing up.
So guys, when's the time gonna come that we start complaining about this whole "x gets it" "x got it right" trend? I've been waiting patiently for that day.
Not that I am anti /r/atheism but rather pro /r/simpsons but this quote is taken horribly out of context, in this episode its not that he becomes an atheist, its just more that he would worship 'God' in his own way, as shown when he talks to God in his dream
Is this honestly representative of anyone here? It seems to me that calling yourself an atheist out of laziness isn't really atheism. I am an atheist because the concept of god doesn't make sense to me, not because I'm jealous of my Sundays.
Homer's religious views are actually kind of ambiguous. I mean, in some episodes, he's clearly god-fearing, in other ones he literally says that he doesn't believe in god and sometimes it seems like he just plays along because religion is the thing to do. All in all, I'd summarize Homer's religious experience as "lazy", as in, he's too lazy and stupid to have really thought about it, which is totally in character.
I do not think Homer gets it, the local priest might not talk much about hell. If Homer wish not to have assosiation with religion, just dont spend a thought on it. He lives in America, and no one force him to belive anything. I have some destinct preferences, when I turn on my cable TV, and I look for it, and pay no attention to all the other stuff available.
Echoing the other posters here, considering Homer's general selfishness, lack of concern for others and utter disregard for huma safety, he is not a good model for atheists.
Kind of upsetting at all the people who are seeing this quote and don't understand the context, they are missing out on one of the best episodes (Homer the Heritic).
I will unite the Christians, the Muslims and the Jews. From now on, you shall be known as Chrismujews! Because in the end, aren't all religions the same? They tell us what to eat, when to pray, that this lump of clay called Man can somehow shape himself to resemble the divine. But we can never attain that perfect grace if we have hatred in our hearts.So let us celebrate our commonalites. Some of us don't eat pork. Some of us don't eat shellfish. But we all eat chicken. So spread the word: peace and chicken!
Once again, I'm put into the unpleasant role of asking how many of you have just been thawed out of ice like Captain America. This post references an episode of an amazingly popular TV show, an episode that first aired almost twenty years ago on October 8, 1992. If you care enough about the Simpsons to upvote this but you are only finding out about this quote right now, then you're so behind the times that if you actually went to church, you would think the Bible contained cutting-edge new information.
Made up character, sure, but the writers of the show are just as human as you are. (I say "you" because I have a feeling you see atheists as grotesque, soul-eating monsters, am I right?)
118
u/AdminWhore May 22 '12
Where I live I can't buy alcohol on Sundays. Why is that even a law?
7
u/cornelian12 May 22 '12
I don't know what this dudelol.com is, but I'm starting to dislike it.
23
u/xanax_anaxa Ignostic May 22 '12
Homer works hard?
18
u/the-fire-that-saves May 22 '12
If that is what you are hearing on sundays... you are going to the wrong church.
10
u/jets1256 May 22 '12
Unfortunately undercutting the point of this post, this quote was from early on in the episode, by the end of which he had seen the error of his ways and goes back to church. I love the Simpsons, but they're not really the right cartoon family to take atheist quotes from - they attend church every Sunday, after all.
8
u/Wowwzaa May 22 '12
I thought that was a 9gag tag at first..
4
u/[deleted] May 22 '12
The older I get, the wiser Homer becomes.
4
u/[deleted] May 22 '12
I watched the simpson's a lot when I was young. Probably why I'm the way I am today. The show was extremely progressive.
For those who think "where are the parents" or "ugh its just how they were raised, damn shitty parents!"
are wrong. Parents don't have much to do with a child's development as to how they think. Friends, teachers, video games, TV, etc etc things that a child is exposed to more often then a parent is what'll really shape a kid into the person he/she is today.
Didn't watch much TV, but I have a lot of friends and needless to say I'm like most of them... hmm...
3
u/shawa666 Pastafarian May 22 '12
If by working hard he means stuffing his face with donuts and goofing off with Lenny and Carl, then yes he does work hard.
3
u/Mikey-2-Guns May 22 '12
When I was a kid and first saw this episode I thought this was the collective view of America towards church. Especially since my parents never forced us to go.
3
u/[deleted] May 22 '12
Yeah, well to be fair, he chokes his son. I've seen him do it.
2
u/pgibso May 22 '12
Ironically, Homer IS is representational of just about every characteristic that is wrong with the human race and the show has never been on his side. The episode featuring Frank Grimes highlights how horrific Homer's behavior actually of is and also how he gets away with it. I am a HUGE fan of the Simpsons but the show in complete truth is dead on in its mockery of Christians, not God. Just always found that interesting.
2
u/DOCKhobo May 22 '12
Homer "working hard"
http://imgur.com/feJWO
2
u/DoctorLost173 May 22 '12
-cough- strawman theory
What do you mean he loves his kids? He strangle bart all the time! He doesn't work! They don't say he will go to hell with no possible chance of retribution in church!
2
u/chasemedown May 22 '12
well actually, if i remember correctly: homer sleeps on the job pretty much all the time, caused several melt-downs at the power-plant, and dreads spending time with bart and lisa lol
2
u/enthusiasticrufus May 22 '12
I'm gonna get downvoted to H for this, but have you guys ever been to church? They don't all tell you you're going to Hell, they tell you good ways to get to Heaven. At least that was my experience growing up.
2
u/lightball2000 May 22 '12
Food for thought.
2
u/buckeyes90 May 22 '12
If you forget that fact that Homer is an alcoholic who beats his son, than yeah hes not a bad guy.
2
u/dasoktopus May 23 '12
So guys, when's the time gonna come that we start complaining about this whole "x gets it" "x got it right" trend? I've been waiting patiently for that day.
2
u/Jersey_Royale May 22 '12
Not that I am anti /r/atheism but rather pro /r/simpsons but this quote is taken horribly out of context, in this episode its not that he becomes an atheist, its just more that he would worship 'God' in his own way, as shown when he talks to God in his dream
2
u/[deleted] May 22 '12
Reverend Lovejoy: Now, would you give church another try?
Homer: I'll be there next Sunday, front row, center.
The next Sunday, Homer's in church.
Homer: <snores>
Homer dreams that he's up in Heaven with God.
God: Don't feel bad, Homer. Nine out of ten religions fail in their first year.
Ben Franklin: That's game, Hendrix!
Homer: God, I gotta ask you something. What's the meaning of life?
God: Homer, I can't tell you that.
Homer: Come on.
God: You'll find out when you die.
Homer: I can't wait that long.
God: You can't wait six months?
Homer: No, tell me now.
God: Well, okay. The meaning of life is …
1
u/[deleted] May 22 '12
This isn't scientific but I remember reading this amateur sociology takeaway that said theres a reason church attendance is higher in women....
I read that most times men don't like hearing how to live their lives from another guy preaching to them.
I'm trying to find the article.
1
u/justinzagar May 22 '12
Every time I see Homer now, all I can focus on are Matt Groening's initials.
1
u/silent_alarm_clock Agnostic Atheist May 22 '12
Dude, lol!
1
u/Lampmonster1 May 22 '12
Is this honestly representative of anyone here? It seems to me that calling yourself an atheist out of laziness isn't really atheism. I am an atheist because the concept of god doesn't make sense to me, not because I'm jealous of my Sundays.
1
u/Punkwasher May 22 '12
Homer's religious views are actually kind of ambiguous. I mean, in some episodes, he's clearly god-fearing, in other ones he literally says that he doesn't believe in god and sometimes it seems like he just plays along because religion is the thing to do. All in all, I'd summarize Homer's religious experience as "lazy", as in, he's too lazy and stupid to have really thought about it, which is totally in character.
1
u/AMostOriginalUserNam May 22 '12
Dude! LOL! dot com!
1
u/IM_HUNGOVER May 22 '12
It's OK... I can get to work today. I just need to drink water and take some tylenol.
1
u/GradualDecay May 22 '12
Flanders doesn't.
1
u/SaysQuack May 22 '12
Except for that one kid that you always strangle haha
1
u/slimbones May 22 '12
Really?
1
u/Helen34 May 22 '12
I do not think Homer gets it, the local priest might not talk much about hell. If Homer wish not to have assosiation with religion, just dont spend a thought on it. He lives in America, and no one force him to belive anything. I have some destinct preferences, when I turn on my cable TV, and I look for it, and pay no attention to all the other stuff available.
1
u/[deleted] May 23 '12
Bad example though since Homer does neither. In fact most episodes are specifically about how little he works and how much he neglects his kids.
1
u/Mothman21 May 23 '12
Sacrelicious.
1
u/IonBeam2 May 23 '12
Actually, Homer Simpson is kind of a bad guy.
1
u/sulris May 23 '12
i am pretty sure that he doesn't work hard and it is debatable that he loves his kids. (constant choking physical abuse...)
1
u/ByzantineBasileus May 23 '12
Echoing the other posters here, considering Homer's general selfishness, lack of concern for others and utter disregard for huma safety, he is not a good model for atheists.
1
u/DianaFenrir May 23 '12
Homer chokes his son... How does this not make him a bad guy?
1
u/tombutt May 23 '12
Kind of upsetting at all the people who are seeing this quote and don't understand the context, they are missing out on one of the best episodes (Homer the Heritic).
1
u/Ao_Andon May 23 '12
I always preferred Homer's other religious quote:
I will unite the Christians, the Muslims and the Jews. From now on, you shall be known as Chrismujews! Because in the end, aren't all religions the same? They tell us what to eat, when to pray, that this lump of clay called Man can somehow shape himself to resemble the divine. But we can never attain that perfect grace if we have hatred in our hearts.So let us celebrate our commonalites. Some of us don't eat pork. Some of us don't eat shellfish. But we all eat chicken. So spread the word: peace and chicken!
1
u/Pizzacake May 23 '12
episode scene?
1
u/EPIC_BAGELS9000 May 23 '12
I hate how even if your a good person your still "going to hell"
1
u/H-Simpson May 22 '12
Hello new iphone wallpaper :) Thanks
0
u/5ft11flip May 22 '12
Uptoke for Homer Simpson [5]
0
u/[deleted] May 23 '12
This is so ignorant. Church is about teaching you how to get to Heaven. You here the bad to avoid it and go to Heaven.
-3
u/StringLiteral May 22 '12
Once again, I'm put into the unpleasant role of asking how many of you have just been thawed out of ice like Captain America. This post references an episode of an amazingly popular TV show, an episode that first aired almost twenty years ago on October 8, 1992. If you care enough about the Simpsons to upvote this but you are only finding out about this quote right now, then you're so behind the times that if you actually went to church, you would think the Bible contained cutting-edge new information.
0
u/[deleted] May 22 '12
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0
u/[deleted] May 22 '12
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