How long will rational people permit a social climate which treats fundamentalists with kid gloves because we mustn't question matters of faith?
I think that we have to differentiate. First all, we need to differentiate between the beliefs and the behavior of the believers. People are entitled to their beliefs, whatever they might be. As long as they're not violating anyone with them, they're entitled. In this statement you are talking about fundamentalists. If we're going to be hostile toward anyone, it's fundamentalists. Leave the quiet believers alone. With fundamentalists, for us it's self defense. There's no reason to pick on the rest. It's the fundamentalists who have the beliefs that cause the problematic behavior. And it's not all the fundamentalists, either. It's the evangelical fundamentalists, the politically active evangelical fundamentalists, the Christian Soldiers.
Let's keep our apple and our oranges sorted out. Seems to me the hostility, if any, ought to be aimed at behavior, not beliefs. So whether or not agnosticism is "weak" or not against these folks isn't really relevant. We argue the behavior, not the beliefs. No need to point out to them that a goat is a goat unless they're hurting someone. |
