Comments on: The “War on Christmas” in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania

By: Laura

Laura — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 15:57:54 +0000

Bob is criticizing the atheists who want to honor atheist veterans, claiming it’s as dishonorable for atheists to honor only atheist veterans as it is for Christians to honor only other Christians.

I don’t quite see it that way. I don’t see it as atheists being exclusionary; rather, I see it as atheists wanting to be included along with the Christians who are already the honored majority.

I’ve seen this happen with gay people. When gay people ask to be included, there are straight people who complain that the gay people want “special rights”. When Black people ask for what everyone else has, they’re accused of “taking over”. I’ve heard similar complaints about women.

I think dominant majorities feel threatened when a minority becomes visible and asks for the same rights the majority has.

By: Bob

Bob — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 13:50:35 +0000

What’s wrong with this picture is this group is only honoring atheist veterans. I think excluding everyone else who served our country is as dishonorable as a Christian organization choosing to only recognize veterans belonging to the Christian faith.

The fact that many vocal atheists don’t see or have an issue with that is as much a concern about atheism as anyone else promoting an exclusionary religious ideology.

By: DH

DH — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 00:01:28 +0000

Wow, that’s an incredibly childish response from a government official (not that experience hasn’t taught me not to expect it). He’s acting the same way about atheists as teenage pot smokers do about cops. “Why do you gotta hassle us dude? We’re just expressing ourselves” Yeah, you’re doing it illegally and you know you’re breaking the law but when someone asks “Hey can we break the law with you guys?” they’re the bad guys?

By: K

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 13:27:52 +0000

Christ-mas isn’t about Christ anymore. Try telling that to all the nutcases participating in the annual Black Friday insanity. Go and tell them that it isn’t AT ALL about the presents, the shopping, the sales… but about a baby king and slavemaker named Jesus.

And on a side note, let’s put Freya back in Friday. She was one Norse/pagan goddess I could be hip to.

By: Michael

Michael — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 07:34:49 +0000

Hey, I’m no Philosopher…. but in my humble opinion, I must ask this question: Why is seeing signs about Atheism so offensive to ‘believers’? Could it be that they’re afraid of what a careful look at their beliefs might reveal about them to themselves? Could it be that they’re afraid to face the falseness & emptiness of their beliefs…. They act like admitting the truth would destroy their lives…. and maybe it should. Maybe that would be a good thing. Believing in falsehoods is not good for anyone. And by the way, they say they’re offended by our signs……….. Well I’M OFFENDED BY THEIR DAMN SIGNS WHEREVER I LOOK!!! SO F THEM!

By: cathy

cathy — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 20:14:29 +0000

“He wouldn’t say that about the Jews” May hold true in some parts of America, put I’m from that area and it’s Klan country with Neo-Nazi and Catholic Anti-seminte groups too. Here’s the Southern Poverty Law Center’s marked hate groups and they only consider groups who have commited or who routinely advocate direct violence http://www.splcenter.org/intel/map/hate.jsp#s=PA (consider population distribution as well, Chambersburg area is not heavily populated and towns like St Thomas have only a few hundred people)
For reference, here’s where Chambersburg is http://maps.google.com/maps?sourceid=navclient&rlz=1T4TSHB_enUS306US313&q=chambersburg+pa&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Chambersburg,+PA&gl=us&ei=VDAQS87uDZLAlAfEhpyWBA&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBQQ8gEwAA

My hometown is an hour away from Chambersburg and 15 minutes away from St. Thomas and personally, I’d be more afraid as a Jewish person than as a white atheist in that area.

By: Don

Don — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 19:59:47 +0000

Keddaw,

One of my colleagues always puts a ‘Put the Christ back in Christmas’ sign on his office door, I generally respond with a ‘Put the Thor back in Thorsday’ sign.

It really only works if you’re a Geordie.

By: teammarty

teammarty — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 17:15:33 +0000

I fight my own little was on X-mas by not participating.
Remember the reason for the season.
Happy Solstice.

By: hoverFrog

hoverFrog — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 17:11:10 +0000

I’m looking forward to the War on Christmas this year. I’ve mined the chimney, put razor wire around my guttering and I’m planning on poisoning the milk and cookies. There’s no way that bearded bastard will get away this year.

By: muggle

muggle — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:00:55 +0000

Frankly, it was the right decision to take them all out of the public square.

Silverman seems to be upset about this but that’s because he also wants to put in the public square what doesn’t belong there. Let them all move to private property. The Council made the right decision even if it was for the wrong reasons but who cares? As long as they made the right decision? The government should be neutral.

Hemant, you sure he didn’t mean the Jews by that crack about this group or groups more odious? I’m not. Could mean that he meant Muslims or Satanists were more odious but it could also be the Jews, as far as we know. Let’s not ask him to clarify, please.