Preacher at my school today.

[Jmaxfie1]

He was spouting off the traditional intolerant nonsense that sidewalk preacher usually spout off. But this post isn't really about him. There were to things I found disheartening about the Progressive/Liberal students response to the situation. I although I didn't take a poll, I'm fairly certain that most of the people arguing with him would describe themselves as such.

The first thing I found most troubling was their tactic to push him out of the "Free Speech Zone". We have an area around this circular sitting area that has a concrete block with a brass plate of the First Amendment on it. This I guess is a "Free Speech Zone". The idea that their is a need to block off a section of the school and desegregate it a "Free Speech Zone" is itself disquieting. To actually try to force someone out of the "Free Speech Zone" is even more troubling. Now, no one was trying to physically push him out, but they surrounded him and tried to inch him toward the said boundary.

The second thing I found troubling was some of the heckling of him going on. I've noticed with sidewalk preachers and particularly right-wing extremists, they deliberately bait a crowd of people with nonsense and then towards the end of their rant start saying things that actually make sense. By, this time, however, they have so fired up the crowd that the knee jerking attack whatever he says. For instance he said something about drugs destroying children's lives. Some people in the crowd yelled back about how they were going to go home and get high, instead of saying yes, drugs are dangerous to children what does this have to do with Christianity or hating gays. I know some of people were just trying to sound funny, but it honestly just makes them look crazy, callus or oblivious.

People like him have no interest in converting the people heckling him to his world view. If, however, he can make those that disagree with him look just as crazy and intolerant as he is, he has a much stronger chance of converting the person on the fence. The best response to one of these street preachers I've ever seen was by a Liberal Christian that knew his Bible. For every crazy point the preacher made, the guy calming pointed out passages in the Bible that contradicted the preacher or he pointed out contradictions in the preachers statements. The angrier the preacher got the calmer the other man became. In the end the preacher left in a huff. Watching this debate the preacher came off as an intolerant nut that didn't even know his Bible or theology.

My real point in posting this little rant of my own is how to deal with Tea Party people. I love the video where Al Franken is talking to them. They start out screaming and spouting out nonsense. Instead of screaming back, he goes over the facts point by point. To me this is the epidemy of Liberalism. We have the facts on our side we neither need to, nor should, lower ourselves to the standards employed by reactionaries.

Comments? Agree, Disagree?

Thanks for reading :)

[msongs]

1. high school? college? public or private?

[Jmaxfie1]

2. College, Public. n/t

[ProgressiveProfessor]

4. Free speech zones are rarely enforceable on public university campuses

and are a travesty to begin with.

It does not surprise me that some of the students were trolled...it is fairly easy to do.

[Glorfindel]

3. Agree "We have the facts on our side "

100% and thank you for a thoughtful post. :hi:

[county worker]

5. I think proselytizing sucks when ever and where ever it takes place.

I grew up going to Catholic schools. I was taught to proselytize and found that I really did not believe what I was telling people. I was just mouthing what was said to me.
I finally stood up to the nuns and brothers and developed a philosophy for myself.

Now when a preacher comes along to convert me he is telling me that what I took as a philosophy for myself is somehow less of a way of life than what he picks for himself. I say screw that. I don't try to convert him to my way of thinking and I don't want him to try to convert me.

Now if he asks about what I think I'll tell him, likewise he should wait until I ask about what he thinks.

To proselytize to unwilling people is the hight of selfish elitism!

[Jmaxfie1]

6. I agree, honestly the best policy for extremists is to ignore them.

People like the Phelps thrive on attention. I think most sidewalk preachers do also. If people didn't pay them any attention they wouldn't come back. Having a group of "sinners" to yell out only feeds their ego as some self appointed prophet.

[TlalocW]

7. I have to admit that I have been a heckler...

But I was either so good at it, or the guy not smart enough that he never went into the part of the rant where he said things nobody would rightly disagree with... He kept right up calling everyone whores and whoremongers, railing against homosexuals, and the evils of music and dancing. Along with the heckling, I did point out other parts of the Bible that disagreed with things he was saying... but mostly heckled.

TlalocW

[Shagbark Hickory]

8. I think we should quietly and calmly let them speak.

Then proceed to whoop their butts.

[hifiguy]

9. When I was in college

Brother Jed and Sister Cindy showed up every spring like clockwork. People would take coolers full of beer and sandwiches with their lawn chairs out to the mall and make a day's sport out of heckling them. The hecklers knew the preachers' shtick so well they'd chant along with the oft-repeated greatest hits. I used to love throwing in my two cents worth of snark while walking by.

[TheMightyFavog]

10. It's all part of the fun in Speaker's Corner in London, too

When I was interning in London a few years ago, Speaker's Corner was my hangout on Sundays! Half the fun is heckling the speakers, particulalrly the religious loonies. When you get a crew of good hecklers, it's like a live action MST3K.

[hifiguy]

11. "a live action MST3K"

That is EXACTLY what it was like. If I had an hour to kill I'd hang out and watch the interactive theatre - it could be hilarious.