you do have a stereotypical view. you're blaming religion for shit, and talking solely about religion. what you don't get, is that back then, religion and society went hand in hand, and people followed whoever was "in charge" of them, no matter what they told them to do.

I'm guessing, that you're from an area that is dominated by religion? see, I'm not, so I am pretty damn educated on my area that I live in. the influence that is in my area, is the ghetto bullshit that people preach, not the Church.

man I'm not trying to start an argument or anything, but seriously, quit shouldering all of the blame on religion and trying to make it out to be something bad, just because you don't like or agree with it.

 

yet back in the 1800s, adultressess and women that had sex out of marriage were stoned and they were cast out of society because it was against gods will, they were labeled whores by the religeous sect that controlled society, i mean read the scarlet letter, it was the priests that ran society, and sex was looked down upon. The catholic church denounces sex outside of marriage, to the point where public schools can't give out condoms, to prevent children. Women who go to abortion clinics are called whores, and baby killers, and a host of names by religeous fanatics, i respectfully think you are overlooking the affect of religeon on the culture.

Do i think that gangster rap demoralizes women and sex? yes i do.

 

Evidently you havent been paying attention to how many people listen to what the Pope has to say, how much powewr the Vatican wields over people. How about how many people belong to mega-churches and are hardline conservative christians with political influence. Religion and society still very much go hand in hand, the only difference is now it is not so much out in the open as it was in say the first 17 centuries (thats 1-1699 AD)

Actually no, I am not from an area that is dominated by religion, The issue we are having here is that your viewpoint is small and stuck in the ghetto that you live in, unable to see a much larger and broad picture of religions influece on society.

As for not liking or agreeing with religion, it is quite the opposite. I think everyone should be allowed to worship as they see fit. There is a wiccan (shudder) maxim that says be at harm none do as thou wilt. That as long as you are not harming another person then worship as you see fit. Nor did I say religion was bad, I merely pointed out the influence of religion on socity and social morals. Please try to follow along with I am saying before viewing it as an attack on religion. Like your viewpoint of things, your mind needs a bit more widening.

 

I am not overlooking it. I mentioned that religion has definitely had a hand in it. I think you blame religion for too much.

I think that gangster rap has much more of an influence nowdays than religion does, and I will explain why. Majority rules, that is how it always is. Whatever is widely accepted, is law, everywhere. In some places, that is religion, but in most places nowadays, it is the "ghetto mentality" and all of the bullshit that comes with it, that influences people and enforces majority rule.

 

I'm not from a ghetto. I'm from an oldschool blue collar town, that most of the residents successfully kept that bullshit from the ghettos out of, because people didn't need guns, didn't sell drugs, because they were more honorable and had more integrity than that. my viewpoint is a lot wider than most people's and a lot more open, because I grew up there.

and no, my mind does not need a bit more widening, I just don't appreciate people trying to blame religion for everything, when infact, it's the majority rule that is at fault.

 

that has nothing to do with sex though, i mean if anything it allows the flow of sexuality, and it makes casual sex out to be good and acceptable, whereas the catholic church preaches abstinence. and is a preventer of free love.
Honestly, religion truly affects the older people in the country, who are in power, more so then the casual teenager who is influenced by gangster rap. I don't see any of our senators getting influenced by gangster rap, but i do see them getting influenced by religion, banning gay marriage, and putting forth more Christian beliefs into our society. I'm not denouncing religion, but i am saying that it has a much bigger influence on the way this country is run, then the rappers do. At the end of the day, the government is putting forth laws more to the sound of "thou shalt not kill" then "i killed this nigga, cuz he was talkin shit".

 

I think you need to stop viewing ghetto culture and such as the majority. Implying that only makes it appear that your view is rather small and unable to see past what the urban poor do and talk about.
What I find most ironic is that you stated earlier that "ghetto trash" felt that they were better than most people and I have noticed in this thread and several others that you have posted in that you place yourself above most people. "my view point is wider than most" "i am better educated than most" and comments such those.
careful with that because one day you are going end up with a rude awakening that you are not a special little snowflake who is better than a lot of people, that you like the rest of us are just another person and that is it.

 

there is something special about only sharing yourself with one person who does the same in return...
the sacrifices it takes to maintain that trust should be the tides that bind the union together.

 

no, not really

gangster rap preaches women as objects, preaches about "getting yours" by fucking over other people, preaches inqeuality. so you're wrong on that one

you blame religion for way too much, probably because you're one of the people who tries to enforce "majority rule"

you lump religion in with government, because that is your ignorant view. you clearly hold the bullshit that these pieces of trash preach, just as highly as they do, because you believe in it.

 

nope, not really

I come from the working class, bud, I have known urban poor people personally, I am somebody who has had very little money most of my life, and I have not been handed very many things at all. Ghetto trash, are the people who come from the same situation, but somehow think they are entitled to shit without earning it, so they jack it, or drug deal, or gangbang, and fuck over people who actually earn things.

as far as ghetto culture being the majority...look around you man! how many wiggers, how many wannabe thugs, how many kids who wear "hood" clothing do you see every single day? or how about the clothing companies that charge lots of money for more expensive versions of the same clothes ghetto types wear? they did the same thing with trying to mimic the working class years ago, except the thing is, the people that the majority try to be like, should not be idolized, because they are trash.

and I don't think that I'm better than anybody, and frequently preach equality for everybody, so trying to claim that I do is not going to help you any.

how many times have you heard an ignorant dude, talk shit on a woman he just fucked, or talk about how much of a playa he is, or the same shit you hear in gangster rap music? you think that's a coincidence? gangster rap is just as, if not more closed minded than religion is, because religion is about morals, and gangster rap is about selfishness and bullshit.

 

ppl will never dig it because its our primal instinct to claim property. Humans could only belive in this if they were convinced either u own nothing or own everything....

 

claiming other people as property is not human instinct, that's just a cop out. claiming anything, is a result of our evolution as a society, because before people became "civilized" as some say, things were more communal, and everything was shared within the group.

claiming women as property or anybody else, is being closed minded, and closed mindedness is the thing standing in the way of any kind of Free Love or communal type society really. first, it started with the Church, but eventually we got rid of the majority of the restrictions due to religious influence, and now it's the government, and also the bullshit attitude being preached by the majority, about a lot of things. all it takes to change the world is changing enough minds to make a difference.

by the way, not trying to come at you or anything, was just saying that that is a cop out

 

by the way, all sides of the spectrum are welcome to share their opinion, whether it's people who are totally against free love and things like that, or people who are totally for it, I'm not trying to argue with people who have a differing opinion than me.

I think the biggest problem, and infact the biggest problem facing any progressiveness or freedom of ideas or other things, is that people would rather argue about who's to blame for a problem, than try to figure out a solution.

 

And I think you're not willing to admit religion has caused as much harm as it has. I don't want to get into a big long pointless argument, and I'm not saying religion is the cause of all the ills of our society, but I think in your attempts to attack us "godless atheists" on the board, you automatically put yourself in the defend religion camp and you're not willing to admit when there is an actually valid point made. Instead of "you're always attacking religion! f you!" type of responses, maybe you should try, "okay, I think I see your point, and there might be some validity to it, but I disagree due to reasons X, Y, and Z." Maybe the discussions will stay a lot more civil around here.

 

If you actually were civil, instead of attacking religion, insulting me, mocking people you don't even know, then maybe you would get a discussion.

but it seems that you want more of a pissing contest than anything.

and I acknowledge that religion has played a big part in supressing freedom of ideas and things like that, but it isn't solely to blame. what you don't seem to understand, is that the problem is closed mindedness, and majority rule, which you have displayed enforcing both, many times on this forum, just because you don't agree with something somebody says or believes in.

if you want a discussion, you should take your own advice, and that's not a shot, it's the very obvious truth.

 

Baller, I think you're mistaken on the influence of rap in today's culture.

If anything, rap impresses a certain degree of sexual inhibition upon the young folk of today. It's the older generation, I feel, who largely vilify 'casual' sex - and this is a result of their upbringing, in a time when rap was virtually unknown. Their upbringing was probably ruled by the twin powers of religion (either theirs, or their parents) and the desire to maintain social standards.

While rap may be a powerful force where YOU live, it certainly isn't, say, where I live. Who's to say that where you live is a better representation of the world than where I live?

 

Agreed

 

Well, I don't think it is possible to make a statement to the sentiment of you always preaching about equality when I have seen some of the comments you have made about you being better in one way or another, having this more than others or verbally attacking people on the board and then turn around and claim that you are for equality and such. Actions and anger speak louder than claims made and this goes for anyone, myself included.
And as for ignorant dudes and such, I rarely if ever hear that, having it talked about around me and part of it is the state I live in and also part of it is that I work with intelligent people so such comments are non-existent.

**edit**
I will have more to say on the topic of social-sexual identities later, for now its 510am and I need to get to work. Have a Grateful day

 

I actually beleive we are free in the sense that no one owns anyone else. This summer my OH and I (who live in different countries also at the moment) are both absolutely bogged under with work and so we are currently at a "catch me when you can" phase - cause we both know we love each other and are thinking of each other but breaking yourself and stressing out over getting to phone or fitting in time to talk etc... actually caused us to fall out the other weekend - he wasnt there when he asked me to call and I took time out to call so got pissed over it (tired etc...from working too much also so it all got blown out of proportion) - This way its much easier and when my text bleeps its a lovely surprise and when the phone rings at 4am its so much nicer. I think people get too tied up in the belonging to each other stuff, I never ask where he's going or stuff like that - if he wants to tell me he will and I trust him 100percent. BUT saying that I dont agree with sleeping around either.