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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsBill Maher Takes Heat Over Tim Tebow Tweet
http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/dish/201112/comedian-takes-heat-over-tim-tebow-tweetEven in defeat, Tim Tebow creates controversy -- this time in Tinseltown.
HBO's Bill Maher created a firestorm over the Christmas weekend with a scathing reaction to Tebow's subpar performance in Buffalo. Shortly after Tebow threw four interceptions in the Broncos' lopsided defeat to the Bills, Maher turned to his Twitter page to poke fun at the very religious NFL star. (And a warning: Maher's tweet includes harsh language and divisive references.)
"Wow, Jesus just [screwed] #TimTebow bad! And on Xmas Eve! Somewhere ... Satan is tebowing, saying to Hitler "Hey, Buffalos killing them," Maher tweeted.
Maher, a proud atheist who supports legalizing pot, same-sex marriage and is a board member for PETA, upset a number of conservatives, according to Entertainment Weekly. Eric Bolling of Fox News responded to Maher by calling him "disgusting vile trash," among other things.
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Disgusting vile trash? really?
msongs
(67,193 posts)Exactly!
JoePhilly
(27,787 posts)yodermon
(6,143 posts)can be construed as "punishment".
This "grace" effect also allows them to perform any number of hideous things and then ask for forgiveness, and all is hunky dory.
Paul realized this theological loophole and tried to close it in his writings; it's hilarious really:
"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase ? May it never be! (romans 6:1&2)"
yeah that'll stop 'em paul, good thinking
NashVegas
(28,957 posts)Would love to have a thoughtful conversation on this sometime, in the religion forum.
FormerDittoHead
(5,155 posts)Yavin4
(35,356 posts)If you're on defense.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)He likes to run aggressive plays.
yellowcanine
(35,692 posts)But that doesn't mean they always win. Losses build character and God loves character.
yellowcanine
(35,692 posts)NoGOPZone
(2,971 posts)spanone
(135,632 posts)BootinUp
(46,924 posts)Logical
(22,457 posts)Union Scribe
(7,099 posts)that became a cliche after the nine millionth person said it in under two hours..."
Of course, that's true of a great deal of Maher's material.
UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)isn't enough.
Logical
(22,457 posts)Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Can you imagine, the Atheist gay weddings with clouds of pot smoke?
Think of the children!
lapislzi
(5,762 posts)There are plenty of legit ways to make your point without offering offense. And, politicizing sport is lame.
Maher = fail.
izquierdista
(11,689 posts)Stirring shit up is how he makes his money, and there is no subject that he can't politicize. His show is on HBO, not PBS, so of course the premise is not to inform, but to offend. Why else would people watch?
TheWraith
(24,331 posts)The sad thing is, sometimes when Maher actually has some insight, he can be exceptionally good. Unfortunately, most of the time his "material" consists of his own towering, colossal ego telling him that he's the world's greatest authority on everything, mixed with the belief that he can invite right-wingers on his show and actually have a discussion instead of talking points being spewed.
lapislzi
(5,762 posts)Except for "New Rules," Maher just isn't funny, at least not to me. Towering egos rarely are.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)nevermind the obvious questions, like "why is god intervening in football games but not Darfur"
then it's legitimate to ask what the fuck happened when you LOST.
Oh, I know, special pleading! special pleading! don't make fun of my special special beliefs!
Yavin4
(35,356 posts)which is why so many religions are constantly raising money. They have to pay off his debts.
emilyg
(22,742 posts)Skip Intro
(19,768 posts)Blacksheep214
(877 posts)"Bill Maher does not represent the best of what the left has to offer"
C'mon now. How can one person represent anything except themselves? We have allowed ourselves to be 'assigned' representatives by the right, usually Hollywood and outspoken, someone who can be mocked for some juvenile reason.
Enough. As for Maher, I like 75% of his stuff and actually dislike the rest. PETA?
aquart
(69,014 posts)And "sport" has been limping for years.
Shankapotomus
(4,840 posts)you're in comedy which Maher is. I mean, if he were a politician making a serious and formal speech and said those things you'd have a point. But he's a comedian and as such everything he says is in a comedic context. That's why criticizing comedians is a losing battle. They are supposed to say outrageous things. That's what makes us laugh.
barbtries
(28,702 posts)evangelizing sport. jmo
Fleshdancer
(17,703 posts)rhett o rick
(55,981 posts)HopeHoops
(47,675 posts)Ever read "Brain Droppings"? That's what comedians DO for a living! These people need to get a damn grip on reality.
geardaddy
(24,924 posts)I posted this because the pearl clutching going on at Fox.
HopeHoops
(47,675 posts)The difference is that he's a comedian. He's SUPPOSED to make fun of shit. FOX claims to be a news station, but we all know better.
Puzzledtraveller
(5,937 posts)Broncos are'nt aired much in my region. Players have been kneeling after touch downs for EVER!, some motioning to the sky and other forms of acknowledgement and or praise and thanks to some "other" . So, really, who cares? I just don't understand the pathological resentment of whatever Tebow does.
immoderate
(20,885 posts)He's selling something. It is a product to which I am resistant, and as it is already not among my favorite teams, it gives me a good reason (as good as any) to root against him. Major sports figures are not usually known for creative thinking, and progressive and free thought. Tebow is outspoken and will suffer some derision. For Maher, it was a cheap shot, except that I think the humor here was that he managed to get both Satan and Hitler into the joke.
I root against the Cowboys for pretty much the same reason -- Tom Landry, and then Roger Staubach's commercials about their self righteousness. I liked Don Meredith, though.
--imm
Yavin4
(35,356 posts)Because if you did, you'd understand the resentment of the constant media obsession over a less than average NFL QB.
mrmpa
(4,033 posts)I've never liked Tebow since he was in College, where he could be seen every Saturday with black mark under his eyes noting "John 3:16" (I think that was it). I disliked him even more, when he contemplated buying time during the Superbowl 2010 for his anti abortion stance. I think that he doesn't respect women.
As for integrating God into his football routine, I remember reading (wish I could remember where), that some of his team mates were fed up with his prosletizing in the locker room.
I am a woman and a pro football fanatic, the talent of each player is something that they work at day in and day out, God is not the ultimate reason they are what they are. Each team is not the way they are because of God.
I've 3 nephews who've played football and baseball at the Division I, II and III levels, they tell me the way they are and the way their teams play is because of the hard work they do, not because of God. Even though all 3 attend church regularly.
aquart
(69,014 posts)Reminds them that they have a few things they need to be doing or they go to Hell.
JohnnyRingo
(18,581 posts)It stands to reason he has to blame God when he doesn't.
If everything, including football, is a struggle between the good and evil of Satan and God, then Tebow has to wonder what he did to cause The Lord to smite him. Maybe he didn't pray hard enough or publicly enough. Perhaps Tebow should hold his hand on a hot burner until he smells his flesh searing to prove his devotion next time.
Were Tim Tebow's recruitment numbers down this week? Sure, he spreads the word on the football field, but I'm sure God keeps track of the number of converts he collects, and maybe Tebow needs to kick it up a notch with a halftime service held on field.
Bill Maher doesn't believe this shit, Tim Tebow does.
Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)Well, if your magical friend has the power to save you, why is he such a tremendous pathological murdering asshole to other, presumably mostly good and innocent, people? ... They never quite go there, only giving the sky fairy the credit for the good and never the blame for the bad. Yet when their hypocrisy is pointed out, as by Maher, they go ballistic.
Fuzz
(8,827 posts)Cali_Democrat
(30,439 posts)truebrit71
(20,805 posts)...to him...
Question: Did the Righteous One drop to his knees to thanks his personal saviour after every INT, or does his imaginary friend only need thanks after each touchdown...
(It's a good thing they didn't see what Jesus_M_Christ tweeted during that game...now THAT was funny!!!
Better Believe It
(18,630 posts)AtomicKitten
(46,585 posts)Iggo
(47,487 posts)Warren Stupidity
(48,181 posts)The missing word is "fucked".
And for those not getting why, it is because Tebow, rightly or wrongly, became the darling of the fundaloon theocratic set, and his short run (pun intended) as a rookie sensation, which came to a grinding halt and was sacked for a loss when the NFL defensive coordinators figured out he couldn't actually pass the ball at pro levels, was annointed as proof that God Loves Murka and Rewards Those Who Proudly Display Their Religiousity (despite theirHoly Book explicitly demanding that one not do that). In other words they asked for it.
geardaddy
(24,924 posts)The guy who wrote the article did.
I agree with Maher's choice of word.
trumad
(41,692 posts)Perfect one paragraph post that hits it right on the head.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Waaaaah.
kentuck
(110,950 posts)That means God does not want you to succeed? Perhaps God works in mysterious ways? Maybe they will win Sunday and then beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in the playoffs? Who knows? It is rather premature to call the game before it is over.
NavyDem
(516 posts)Everyone knows that if there is a God, he/she is a Packers fan.
rufus dog
(8,419 posts)Wrong because he would be a 49er fan, but good.
Oh, if only the Niners had picked Rodgers!
Good luck though, your team is my second favorite even though they knocked the 49ers out numerous times. For full disclosure the Broncos used to be in the #2 spot, and I hated Elway in college but respected the hell out of him. Tebow is just a side show.
NavyDem
(516 posts)I'd actually have to say the Niners would be my second favorite team, and I'm glad to see them doing so well this year.
I don't really care what Tebow does on or off the field, I don't know the guy. I do know a lot of people that became "worshippers" of all things Tebow when he had a little success, but let's be real. Tebow didn't win any games by himself, and when he faced a team that his teams defense couldn't slow down, Tebow was of no consequence in the outcome.
rufus dog
(8,419 posts)I actually laughed. As for Tebow, it was a great run, actually amazing if you saw some of the games. He sucked, and I mean SUCKED, for three quarters in two of the games I watched yet the Broncos ended up winning by staying close then Tebow took them down the field. To me it was humorous. He has much less talent than Vick, and has a slightly better decision process. For a football fan it is easy to dismiss, a great run, but no staying power. And to be fair, they vaulted Vick to saviour status without any thought into the downside. Tebow is just the latest. I am just hoping the Broncos make the playoffs so I can bet against them.
Ferretherder
(1,445 posts)...that I MUST point out to you guys that it is unbecoming of progressives, like ourselves, to suggest that ANY imaginary deity prefers his or her favorite sports team over any other organization playing said sport........
.....although, it should be obvious that god prefers the New Orleans Saints.......
....c'mon, now............
He's defintely not a Jets fan
geardaddy
(24,924 posts)Odin2005
(53,521 posts)originalpckelly
(24,382 posts)Personally, I think this was better:
"Note to Tebow: it's hard to throw a ball while nailed to a cross."
styersc
(2,847 posts)All the tolerance of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck combined.
Yeah, people with beliefs different from his should be ridiculed.
Just what we need on the left.....
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)"Never mind that I say the Earth is 4,000 years old and my magic friend thinks it should be illegal for you to use birth control. Weeeeve my weeewigin out of it!"
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Sorry, no sale.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)That's an outright lie and I dare you to prove otherwise.
Prove otherwise. Here's where I throw down the gauntlet. You're LYING if you say he thinks Jesus is "personally intervening". You're LYING if you say he ever even IMPLIED that.
If you can, show me the quote where Tim Tebow HIMSELF said something to the effect of "Jesus looked down on me and made me throw for X yards and run for X more in the last X minutes of the game, then blew the ball wide of the goalpost off of the opposing kicker's foot in overtime..."
If you can show me where he said something to that effect, I'll donate $50 in your name to DU, and match that to your favorite charity. My claim is verifiable. Yours isn't.
If you CAN'T? All you need to do is admit you were making shit up to support your hatred and intolerance for his faith.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)(Oh, he does? How about verifying THAT claim)
Sorry, he doesn't. He probably never did. (Cough. Mithras. Cough. Osiris.) But even if he did, he wouldn't give a shit.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)No comment on that?
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)instead, I think I'll watch Bob Weir put a duck in bondage gear.
barbtries
(28,702 posts)though it's probably not specific enough to meet your specs. anyhow i'm at work and must stand off the discussion. i don't even follow football and somehow (NPR perhaps) got that tebow thinks gawd makes him win at football.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)barbtries
(28,702 posts)read it in context. it's pretty funny actually.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)styersc
(2,847 posts)I didn't vote for you.
How is it skin off your nose if a Christian believes the earth is 4000 years old, or an Indian believes that man came out of a mound through a red stick or an Inuit thinks a whale spit out the universe?
You don't use birth control because someone else thinks you shouldn't?
Maybe it would be easier if you just gave us all a list of things we are allowed to believe Mr. Limbaugh, er, Mr. DeMontague.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)You don't get to demand no one make fun of it, or you.
styersc
(2,847 posts)feel the need to "make fun of" others.
Otherwise, where would we get bullies?
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)I know, we're only a couple days past the horrible war on Christmas, even.
How do you handle it? *Sniff*
I know! Bullies!! Can you believe it? I'm SURE that the VAST MAJORITY of bullying, for instance, in the country's schools is helpless church-goers being savagely bullied by roving gangs of Atheist kids, quoting Darwin and Diderot as they club their poor Christ-minded peers with heavy hardcover books on evolutionary biology. I bet it happens EVERY fucking day, especially in places like Alabama.
styersc
(2,847 posts)You are Limbaugh. A bigot.
Warren Stupidity
(48,181 posts)You cannot protect your belief system from criticism by waving your "its my religion" card.
Lionessa
(3,894 posts)a two year old.
styersc
(2,847 posts)But the likes of you and Limbaugh come after anyone different.
Lionessa
(3,894 posts)don't seem to have the faith you claim to have.
When it fails you completely, please come and join our rational side of things.
styersc
(2,847 posts)I avoid the company of narrow minded bigots.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)you don't get to demand that no one ever make fun of it.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)My name correction has been rescinded! Crap!
Well, at least you can't revoke my soul for tryin'.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)And that is skin off 'my nose'. Care to argue that?
Response to Bluenorthwest (Reply #126)
Post removed
LAGC
(5,330 posts)Looks like EarlG tombstoned his ass for his hateful comment -- good call!
Logical
(22,457 posts)Lionessa
(3,894 posts)We need so much more of it.
Shankapotomus
(4,840 posts)Why are so many people holding him responsible for what he says as if he were a politition? Is it because he wears a suit? Is that too formal that it throws people off? Lisa Lampanelli is 90 times worse and everybody gets her.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Never. I find it hilarious, and a reason to root for the guy.
Just think... a Denver win OR an Oakland loss this weekend and Tebow's playoff bound. Heads are about to burst and I can't wait.
Too funny.
styersc
(2,847 posts)Never was a Tebow fan and have never been a fan of public displays of faith, but his detractors have me thinking he's getting their goat....
Logical
(22,457 posts)LanternWaste
(37,748 posts)I imagine you may even believe you speak for the implied collective of people who make fun of him. We often project our opinions onto a whole and as a fact-- human nature and all that.
I myself have noticed that one person-- especially a sports figure may attract ridicule for any number of reasons, one not denying the other; unless of course we rely on one and only one interpretation for the cause/effect of a rather subjective thing...
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)trying to run the rest of our lives.
Beyond that, pointing out that the Emperor has no clothes isn't being "threatened" by the clothes. It's pointing out an obvious yet unpopular truth that seems invariably to cause shit-fits in the minds of the people who don't want to accept it.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Does anyone but you run your life? Could anyone but you run your life? Would you let anyone else run your life? If the answers to those questions is no, then why get so hot and bothered over someone else's faith?
I'll stick with what I posted. His faith threatens the beliefs of others and their own intolerance forces them to ridicule him. Plain and simple.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)why get so "hot and bothered"? well, let's see. Creationist clucktards fucking up OUR kids' science education. Jesus-drunk pharmacists holding womens' birth control prescriptions hostage. The neverending crusade to make it impossible for women to control their own bodies or decide themselves whether or not to stay pregnant. The apparent NEED to have "displays of faith" all over courthouse and city hall lawns, because, you know, there's that giant fucking church shortage in this country, nevermind the tax exempt status. The fact that "god" and "Jesus" have become cultural dog whistle clubs with which to endlessly bludgeon the rest of us, sort of like how some people LITERALLY have giant fucking temper tantrums if you say "Happy Holidays" to them.
There wouldn't be a problem if we didn't have a SERIOUS fucking problem in this country whereby right-wing fundamentalists almost exclusively of the Jesus Tim Tebow variety have been SERIOUSLY screwing up our collective civic and political life. Apparently, "live and let live" isn't an option for the folks threatened by the existence of gay people, folks fucking for non-procreative purposes or science teachers teaching proven facts about reality in public schools.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)The hatred in you is palpable. Let it out.
FWIW, I don't even notice "displays of faith". Not threatened by them at all. Are you always on the lookout for such things, and when you find them, doesn't your blood just boil? Doesn't it just?
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)not to mention "our kids are getting a sub-par science education because imbeciles who refuse to accept the facts of evolution are screwing up science textbooks" parts flew right past ya, huh?
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)She's now a candidate for gender reassignment surgery. She's out, proud, and looking to go the distance. She's met NO resistance other than from her Mom, and her Mom DOES NOT BELIEVE IN GOD. Go figure. Bigoted atheists? Who knew THEY existed?
Your seething hatred and ridicule of anything having to do with "faith" are in my mind their own brand of bigotry.
For what it's worth... my daughter goes EVERY WEDNESDAY NIGHT to prayer meetings at the same Nazarene Christian school she attended from kindergarten. Sometimes she even stands in for the Pastor who runs the class.
As I stated before, your hatred is palpable. I would even lift it to the level of bigotry.
Not much just "flies right past me" bro. I see a bigger picture than you do I guess.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Sorry, you're just blibbering gibberish. What's bigoted? Yes, I'm making fun of the guy who thinks Jesus helps him win football games. Waaaaah. Bigoted mean atheists!
Oh, and you have gay relatives and you even claim to be more tolerant than an atheist, somewhere.
I guess that proves, ah, well, something. Like that Christians are persecuted horribly, and we should stop picking on Tim Tebow, and Jesus really DOES intervene in football games. (but, for some odd reason, not Darfur! Oh, did I say that? Out loud? I guess I'm hatin' on Christians again! Sorry. Go team! Score a touchdown for Christ!)
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)That you would make that argument just cements my claim that your bigotry blinds you.
Lionessa
(3,894 posts)Having just recently left Idaho, it isn't just about things like gay marriage. I'm an older woman with two kids, completely hetero, but not promiscuous, and yet...
When the Catholic and Mormon neighbors found out we were atheists, their children were no longer allowed to enter our house. Whenever my children went to their houses, they would get cornered and encouraged to disregard and disrespect me and one family even "offered" to get H&W to take her away from me. Fortunately my children (now grown) didn't take the bait, but
YES I FEEL THREATENED BY THEM, EVERY ASPECT OF THEM. And as they take over the right wing of politics (be that D or R after their name) again, it is scary, it needs outrage, and it needs volume. "it" being the pushback against any "faith" influencing us.
Eliminator
(190 posts)Religion is a cancer on humanity.
LanternWaste
(37,748 posts)As are all human constructs which exist nowhere but our own imaginations-- politics, philosophies, arts, etc...
Unless of course we realize that any belief system, any philosophy, and political party may be used to help humanity as well as hurt humanity.
Otherwise, one may as well say "philosophy is a cancer on humanity"
Eliminator
(190 posts)Religion's central feature is willful ignorance of reality. Politics and philosophy at the very least attempt to reflect reality in an honest way, even if they fail to achieve it. Only religion tells people to believe in things that are proven false.
Lionessa
(3,894 posts)Things in the head just don't seem to work correctly and clearly.
Control-Z
(15,681 posts)Unless you want to get all nit picky about it and bring up the in-your-face religious nuts who will walk in your house uninvited and preach to your face that you will burn in hell if you don't do things their way. Other than that, yeah, you've pretty much got my gripes covered.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)No hyperbole here. Nope.
Le Taz Hot
(22,271 posts)Logical
(22,457 posts)If someone believed their cat made them play football better then I would laugh at that also!
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)God made them "play football better".
For that matter, do everyone a favor and find the quote where TT said "God is on the side of the Denver Broncos" or even came CLOSE to implying it.
You can't, won't, and it doesn't really matter anyway.
Bigotry is what it is, and it's practiced by all sides every day. That's just the way of the world. Call it human nature.
Logical
(22,457 posts)cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Otherwise, you might as well be thanking the grass for not letting your cleat slip as you made the cut inside the linebacker.
Hatred and intolerance. Nothing to see here... move along!
Logical
(22,457 posts)I don't think you thought too deeply about this! LOL
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)definition.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)because I object to Jesus-drunk pharmacists lecturing women who want their oral contraceptive prescriptions filled, because I think the dominioninst, fundamentalist movement in our country is horribly dangerous to everyones' liberty.
Mostly, because I'm an Atheist who doesn't do what we've been expected to do for so many years, now-- namely, keep our traps good and shut about our lack of belief.
For this, I'm full of "hate". Oh, and because I'm making fun of the fundy football player, and as such persecuting the endlessly put-upon Christian majority in this country, still nursing their wounds from being told "Happy Holidays" at the supermarket and not being allowed to put a giant wooden baby Jesus on the courthouse lawn, instead -sniff!- having to set him up on the tax-exempt church lawn. UNFAIR!
So hate is probably in the eye of the beholder.
Logical
(22,457 posts)Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Funny, I think it was.
Lionessa
(3,894 posts)Eliminator
(190 posts)Every time someone prays for a game to be won, or a pass to me made, or a goal to be scored is believing that God somehow is involved in the outcome. Every time someone thanks God for their good fortune they are saying God helped. Do they have to say the actual words "God helped" for you to be satisfied?
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)They don't pray for outcomes.
Put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Eliminator
(190 posts)And if you want to pretend like that isn't the case, then there's no point in continuing this.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)truebrit71
(20,805 posts)...and many other athletes that claim that god is on their side, without admitting the logical fallacy that means by definition he is 'against' the other side...which is weird from a god that supposedly loves everyone unconditionally, with conditions...
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)I think not.
truebrit71
(20,805 posts)...or words very close to that...I know, I remember, I threw up a little bit in my mouth when the sanctimonious prick said it...
styersc
(2,847 posts)...it just seems to be causing "shit-fits" in you.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)styersc
(2,847 posts)to make fun of others for their beliefs.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Taunt me for logic and evidence-based reasoning, and I will mock you for reflexively defending creationists and people who think Jesus cares about the outcome of football games.
Fair is fair.
styersc
(2,847 posts)All I've seen so far is narrow minded bigotry. Same as a Klan member trying to convince his neighbors that African-Americans live for watermelon and a Freeper spewing hatred towards Muslims. No difference.
Lionessa
(3,894 posts)Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)your football games on Planet Earth.
Control-Z
(15,681 posts)What I don't understand is why you care. Sincere question.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)Were it not for dogmas and ignorance, there could be equal rights for my people. We are not 'threatened' we are actually attacked with words and actions using the religion as an excuse or rationalization.
Is that really funny? It sure is not funny to me and others who want equality and get told that some delusional person thinks 'God sanctifies only my kind'.
Heretics by the standard of their own faith, and lousy neighbors by any other. And no, they are not 'all like that'. Still, they do what they do, and they do it in the name of their religion. They speak, of course, for God Almighty. Of course!
DirkGently
(12,151 posts)Why else be angry? Maher's just pointing out the obvious. It's the obviousness that's threatening.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)What motivated Maher to tweet...?
Dawson Leery
(19,348 posts)This charlatan needed to be cut down to size, and he was.
For the right, "controversy" exists just by the existence of non right wingers.
RZM
(8,556 posts)Do you think his faith isn't genuine? Seems to me he really is a person of strong faith. I don't doubt he truly believes what he says he believes. If he is faking, he's damn good at it. From what I know his parents were missionaries - no doubt he was raised a household where Christian faith was instilled from day one.
I don't think his performance is much connected to his faith, but I don't doubt that he thinks it is.
Dorian Gray
(13,469 posts)is the wrong word.
I find the hatred vs. the absolute love for him based upon his religiosity perplexing. I did find myself rooting both for him AND against him because the way his success or failure riled people up was amusing to me.
Football players have often thanked God for their successes. Like this is something new?
AngryOldDem
(14,061 posts)He just needs to understand that jamming his faith down our throats is not a way to make friends and influence people.
I have no issue with people's faith...only when they make such a big show of it as Christ in Cleats does.
jpak
(41,741 posts)ramen
Skip Intro
(19,768 posts)Just curious.
DU seems very selective in it's mockery of religions at times.
Moses2SandyKoufax
(1,290 posts)but if Tim Tebow were muslim he would be loathed by the vast majority of people who support him.
noamnety
(20,234 posts)tend to be less concerned about emotionally damaging people in the majority who hold power, vs. minorities who are oppressed. So I imagine the thread would be different because of that.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)And I'll be the first to add that I don't excuse nutbaggery in the name of Islam any more than I do in the name of Christianity or Judaism.
aquart
(69,014 posts)As a rule of thumb, the tighter the stranglehold on women, the greater the suck.
Warren Stupidity
(48,181 posts)when he refused to stop doing whatever is the islamic equivalent of tebowing.
FarLeftFist
(6,161 posts)Conservatism is solely based on 100% HATE and FEAR.
bluestate10
(10,942 posts)Stop claiming that God takes sides in athletic contests, then people like Maher won't have platforms to demonstrate the absurdity of claims of celestial intervention claims. Everyone that boycott HBO will attract three people that buy HBO because of the boycott.
BOHICA12
(471 posts)The bookends of the fundamental wacko spectrum in the United States.
aquart
(69,014 posts)Calling atheism "wacko" reminds me that Shaw said that Christians haven't accepted death, they have refused to die on any terms whatsoever.
Now that's wacko.
BOHICA12
(471 posts)Maher & Westboro represent the extreme of their belief systems and in general appear to be very small and damaged people.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)God Hates Fags. Some of us see a clear difference, we know who is a friend and who is out to do great harm to innocent people.
Bill is a militant atheist, who attacks religions and those who believe differently than he does.
No different from fundamentalist Christians, Muslims, whatever.
Neither has any respect for the other!
RZM
(8,556 posts)I think a lot of the people who dislike him are motivated less by him personally and more by their disdain for faith and people of faith in general. Tebow's just a convenient target.
But this is not a big deal. It's a joke about religion. It's not the first time Maher's done that, nor is it even a particularly eyebrow-raising example of his humor.
Actually I thought it was kind of funny
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)Matthew 6:5
Keep in mind that atheists are the most knowledgeable group about religion in the USA.
Consider also that the majority of atheists in the US were raised as Christians, it's people like Tebow who drive many intelligent people away from church and religion.
http://pewforum.org/Other-Beliefs-and-Practices/U-S-Religious-Knowledge-Survey.aspx
On average, Americans correctly answer 16 of the 32 religious knowledge questions on the survey by the Pew Research Centers Forum on Religion & Public Life. Atheists and agnostics average 20.9 correct answers. Jews and Mormons do about as well, averaging 20.5 and 20.3 correct answers, respectively. Protestants as a whole average 16 correct answers; Catholics as a whole, 14.7. Atheists and agnostics, Jews and Mormons perform better than other groups on the survey even after controlling for differing levels of education.
RZM
(8,556 posts)Not familiar with his interpretation of faith. Though I do think he does charity work on a regular basis.
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)If those Christians would just let us figure out they are indeed Christians.
Matthew 7:16
RZM
(8,556 posts)At least it is in my opinion. But I also think that many people are over the top with their core beliefs, religious or otherwise. Certainly plenty of people on DU are.
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)That's what we're here for, people not only let their hair down, some of them put on personas. I certainly don't believe everything I read on DU.
I could not possibly care less about football, Tebow is the only current player I could even pick out of a lineup, the reason I'm familiar with his face is that it's been stuck all over DU for years now, almost entirely due to his remarkably public religious antics.
Some things and some people are just aesthetically displeasing, I feel that way about Tebow.
RZM
(8,556 posts)If you're not familiar with him, he's one of the more well-known talk show hosts on African-American radio (and he's from my hometown
He pointed out that black athletes have been displaying their faith on the field for decades, yet nobody seemed to care much about it until Tebow. Not sure what to make of that.
GoCubsGo
(32,061 posts)I suspect that may have had a lot to do with all the attention paid to this clown. That made him the instant poster child of the holier-than-thou crowd. BTW, I have seen numerous displays of faith my Latino baseball players over the years, too, and nobody ever cared about that, either.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Funny that someone would think those are character-damning negatives.
GoCubsGo
(32,061 posts)The right wing, and their propaganda channel are experts at projection. If ever there was "disgusting, vile trash", it would be him and everyone who works with him.
kentuck
(110,950 posts)Are you supposed to win every game? If you win 5 in a row and then lose 1, that proves you to be a hypocrite and that God does not want you to win?
It's a silly argument, whichever side you may be on, whether you are religious or not.
Tim Tebow is a football player. And a pretty tough one at that. He is a young man who is a product of his environment. Maybe he will change as he gets older.
If the Broncos go on a winning streak and make it to the Super Bowl, does that prove there is a God?
Of course not!
I try to be tolerant of religious or non-religious beliefs, but some crap is just over the top.
randr
(12,408 posts)He has taken the sport from the game and turned it into another reason to cause division.
All I want to do is watch great football. I do not want to know about any players personal life, beliefs, or what they eat for breakfast.
I hope the Broncos trade Tebow asap much like they did with Marino. Maybe there is another Elway out there.
seabeyond
(110,159 posts)tridim
(45,358 posts)I wonder what it feels like to have the tweet power famous people have? It has to feel strange.
Red Mountain
(1,704 posts)And I think that it deserves at least a little ridicule.
Hosnon
(7,800 posts)Pretty simple really.
And it's gag-worthy for a coddled human being (in the grand scheme of things) to claim such a thing when millions of innocent children worldwide are dying due to no fault of their own.
If that's your god, I say he's one sick bastard and to hell with him.
Loge23
(3,922 posts)Oh come on, where else will all the good christians get their guilt-free T&A?
yellowcanine
(35,692 posts)Colbert and Stewart will likely be envious of his accomplishment.
otohara
(24,135 posts)I'm sorry, love BM, but this just isn't funny.
DirkGently
(12,151 posts)Here he's talking about a sincere, hardworking young athlete whose faith apparently sustains and inspires him. Nothing wrong with any of that. So perhaps Tim Tebow is not the best choice of targets for religious mockery.
But it's also true that Tebow's flavor of religious zeal -- where "Jesus" is an active supporter of nice, clean-cut young men everywhere, helping them win football games and the like, IS ridiculous arrogance and part and parcel of the worst of American Christian fundamentalism. "Look at me, my entire life is the special project of an almighty, omniscient deity who favors my worldview and political preferences. I'm special, and my church is right about everything."
Pretty silly, and not entirely innocuous either. If Tim Tebow writes Biblical citations on his lampblack patches, and Tim Tebow thinks abortion is immoral, and Tim Tebow wins football games because he has earned the favor of Jesus, we should all think seriously about disagreeing with him.
It's not going too far to point out how ridiculous and pompous all of that is by raising the obvious question of what it means when the Chosen One falls flat on his face. Is his god weak, or did he simply displease him? Etc.
Again, Tebow wouldn't be my first choice of a target for this kind of scathing, dead-on accurate mockery. I doubt he's ever stopped to think that all the Christian posturing is a form of self-aggrandizement. But it is, so it's not entirely unfair for Maher to point it out, either.
Ganja Ninja
(15,953 posts)This is really pretty tame for Maher.
Honestly if you're going to praise God every time something good happens to you then you have to expect people point to God as the source of your poor performances as well.
hifiguy
(33,688 posts)and that is that when trying to throw a football he looks like a moose trying to fuck a washing machine. And that's totally true.
rocktivity
(44,555 posts)because it plagiarizes me!
rocktivity
applegrove
(118,012 posts)they indoctrinate their viewers with lies if the truth is on HBO Friday nights.
center rising
(971 posts)ellisonz
(27,709 posts)liberalpress
(1,554 posts)IIRC Jesus and his Dad were in North Korea, taking care of some business.
Blacksheep214
(877 posts)Why would an all powerful creator construct a world in which to survive, creatures must rip apart other living, breathing creatures in a vision of violence and gore? Being eaten or swallowed alive. This is who people choose to worship?
This is intelligent design?
I think the Air Fern qualifies as a success.
If someone asks if I'm a Christian, I ask them if they have a small penis. Both questions are personal and private.
I'm old enough to remember when America had dignity and manners and wouldn't ask strangers such things. All faiths flourished. Now with the outspokenness and political moves, membership is tanking.
It's not Mahers comment, but the fact that religion has lost respect due to the outspoken extremists, i.e. Falwell, Robertson, any mega church, ... These days it's all in the show.
Dont'cha miss the days of quiet reflection?
geardaddy
(24,924 posts)I do miss the days of quiet reflection.
Response to geardaddy (Original post)
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