| Just not right. |
[Sep. 4th, 2005|12:29 pm] |
| [ | Current Mood |
| | Disgusted | ] |
Over at Bungie.Net, Bungie has broken the general "game discussion only" to start two large threads regarding New Orleans. The first of which is a general plea to the fanbase to donate and help out. The second is to inform that Bungie has created a way for the fan community to donate to American Red Cross and the flood disaster relief.
For those interested, I'm referring to the "Fight the Flood" t-shirt available at the Bungie Store. At least $15 of each shirt purchased will go directly and immediately to Red Cross and disaster relief. And if you don't care for the shirt but are interested in some of the other Bungie gear, all proceeds for the month of September will be sent to Red Cross as well. Bungie's not making a dime off this, folks. Though, if you're not in the Lower 48, I suggest you find someone who is, send them the money and have them buy the shirt for you and mail it themselves. The closer they are to Washington State, the better. The shipping for items from the Bungie Store outside of the contiguous US is a bit... Well... Ridiculous. At any rate, this is just one of many different ways to provide relief. If you look locally, you should have no trouble finding places to give water, clothing, money, and blood.
Naturally, since it's a gaming website, idiots and jerks are everywhere. I check on the discussions every few hours and have been given the task of banning people who are misbehaving. Emotions are running high as it is, and there are people making some fairly terrible jokes. There are others that decided to complain that Bungie chose to make an update about flood relief, rather than discussing what changes are going to be made to the Xbox Live playlists. Others are more interested in getting in Bungie's face for not doing this same thing for international tragedies. Others are getting in EVERYONE'S face for this same thing. Several have suggested that residents of New Orleans should have "seen it coming" and were "stupid to live there to begin with." Idiotic comments by people who haven't quite made the connection that, if this happened as often as they suggest it does, there'd be nothing historical left in New Orleans to destroy. The destruction and death of the recent week is simply unprecedented.
But the worst, the absolute worst are the idiots that insist that no aide should be given because New Orleans was destroyed by God, a-la Sodom and Gomorrah, for being a place of debauchery and sin. Oh yeah. They're out there. I've seen a couple of them so far.
To those people I say: Fuck you, and fuck your infantile view of how a God acts. And most importantly, fuck your overbearing, ego-inflating, self-asserted sense that you exist to carry out your God's judgement. If He actually exists, you've failed him by coming to the conclusion that you should watch your fellow man die. You are the reason for the seperation of church and state; the self-entitled enforcement of a religion you don't even understand, and whose doctrines you corrupt through ignorance and egotism. And if He does exist, I know exactly where he'll send you when your time comes. It's not Heaven, it's where people who justify letting others suffer belong. |
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| Comments: |
Did you see the one on HBO? Katrina was punishment for, and I quote 'martigraw'
Yeah, I saw it. In fact, I think that's the first instance of this ill logic being displayed. My jaw dropped. My theory is that it's a 14 year old that's hearing similar remarks from their parents or someone older than they.
Yeah, but what's the parent's excuse?
Mistrust of intelligence or independence? Fear of the unknown? Too much junk food and mind-numbing television? Hell if I know.
Another thing to consider is that it's a powerful thing to be on the side of the Guy who can wash a city away in an afternoon. I'd imagine it's a pretty difficult thing to keep that feeling in perspective, and not get carried away with it like the jerk in question. Unfortunately, examples of religiously-derived intolerance are so pervasive, and have become so mainstream, that publicly demonstrating a sense of superiority over others in situations like this is an acceptable thing these days. Civil, compassionate understanding has taken a back seat to self-aggrandizing, hypocritical castigation. Everything becomes a moral lesson to be learned by somebody, and never the ones who need to learn it the most.
Whoa! I think I blew my whole societal bitching allowance for the month on that one! ;-)
I was hoping I wouldn't see those kinds of comments, but knowing the masses, it had to happen.
![[User Picture]](http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/24517387/5729870) | From: ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=92.2) cybrfrk
2005-09-05 01:03 am (UTC)
Whoa....there Tex. | (Link)
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Some of us religious zealots believe in the infinite love of our God and have hope in the capacity of humankind to ease the suffering of those in harms way. We each give in our own way, and besides donating at Church and supporting the Red Cross, I too bought two shirts. Please don't lump all us God fearing folk into the picket barrel with the idiots.
That's deffinetly not what he was getting at, I can guarantee. You're one for the "pro" column, Cybr. ;)
I imagine his beef is similiar to my own pet peeve: people that wrap their bigotry and hateful ignorance up in a convenient religion-blanket. It especially gets me when they're card-carying Christians. How someone can take the (very good) messages of loving-and-understanding, and subvert them for such putrescent notions... Ugh.
That said, there's just a lot of message board kids who probably have no idea HOW to react, and pretty much spout the first retarded "this'll-make-me-sound-badass" thing that comes to mind. That doesn't excuse what they're saying, 'course, I just hope they come around from those notions.
I'm pretty sure that the "diss" was directed at the people carrying the God-stick (with which they beat those with whom they disagree) and not those who actually keep the Commandments and remember the "condemn the sin, forgive the sinner" bit.
There are some pretty sick weirdos, of all faiths, who view divine power as some kind of Orbital Punishment Laser that'll smite the people they don't like; those toads are NOT welcome. Neither are those who wish to profit or glory in the suffering of others. And when I say "all faiths", I mean ALL.
-- Steve sometimes has to carry a program when the whackos come out, because you can't tell who's who without a program, folks...
![[User Picture]](http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/19957922/2754543) | From: tvansinden
2005-09-06 06:26 pm (UTC)
Re: Whoa....there Tex. | (Link)
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Aw, FRK, relax a little. Don't get defensive about something that obviously doesn't implicate you. When someone uses their religion to justify an anti-social attitude like the guy did on HBO, and someone like Shish here calls them on it, it says nothing at all about decent, devout folks like you. Most of us heathens out here can tell the difference. ;-)
| From: cybrfrk
2005-09-06 07:24 pm (UTC)
Re: Whoa....there Tex. | (Link)
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I'm calm, heck, I was never mad.
Just ensuring that those of us who do care are not packaged and drowned with the others.
It's all good now. Just wish I could spell PICKLE (vs. picket).
The thing about god fearing folks is that some of them are great. But the ones that think that God is some almighty prick who goes out and kills ten thousand people because he was bored are absolute morons. If he was punishing the wicked, then there'd be some rather accurate lightning strikes, rather than the wholesale destruction of a city. That and the pricks who decided that they would ruin the lives of the survivors with their guns and dickheadedness wouldn't have been the ones who survived. To me, the aftermath was far more tragic than the event.
You knew it was only a matter of time before some religious fanatic pointed a finger and started the, "God smote thee," comment.
Trust me, it pisses me off too. | |
