> --- Jose Colaco <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > I see nothing wrong with the above quoted from > > Gilbert >Lawrence. > > > > All he says (in effect) is that he (Gilbert > > Lawrence) would IGNORE an atheist, as also > > someone who smokes, divorced, lives a homosexual > > life style or cheats on his spouse. > > --- Santosh Helekar <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > I find Gilberts statement bigoted because of the > following reasons: > > 1. Under all democratic constitutions an atheist is > no different from a person of any other faith. > He/She should not be treated differently from others > because of his/her religious beliefs or lack > thereof. Nobody would dare to announce in this > forum that he/she reacts to a Catholic with "benign > neglect". > Mario observes: > Santosh is correct that all individuals in a democracy are to be treated equally under the law. However, for an individual to treat someone else with "benign neglect" is not against any law in any democracy the last time I checked. > Santosh also has a short and self serving memory. While he didn't suggest that Catholics or other religious people be treated with "benign neglect", he did denigrate their rock solid moral code as "fake morality" using basically bogus evidence. > Santosh writes: > > 2. The lumping of a smoker, a divorcee, a homosexual > and an atheist with someone who cheats on his/her > spouse reveals how contemptuous and discriminatory > Gilbert is towards the former four types of > individuals. Nobody would dare to claim in this > forum that his "benign neglect" towards a Catholic > or a Goan is no different from that towards someone > who cheats on his/her spouse. > Mario observes: > The word bigoted is defined as "a person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices; especially : one who regards or treats the members of a group (as a racial or ethnic group) with hatred and intolerance." > Whether suggesting that a group be treated with "benign neglect" meets the standard of showing "hatred and intolerance" is highly questionable, especially when compared to Santosh's accusing all religious people as having a "fake morality". >
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