Gazelam wrote:Look. Expressing a view via a bumper sticker for or against abortion is one thing. that's expressing opinion.
BUSH SUCKS on a window is an expression of opinion.
Six inch by Four foot socially accepted foul language scrawled across a rear window is another thing entirely. that's begging for it. that's an open challenge to a fight.
Bond, how would you deal with the above scenario I posed to Seth?
Gaz, you would have loved some of the T-Shirts that Keene and I produced for sale.
Imagine a white t-shirt with the garment markings in big, bold black and in the center of the shirt, picture the words "Well Endowed".
Woops. Freedom of speech and all that rot that you seem to forget about at your leisure.
:P
That was one of our most popular shirts. I wish I still had some images of that one. Got us thrown off of BYU property a few times.
Gazelam wrote:Look. Expressing a view via a bumper sticker for or against abortion is one thing. that's expressing opinion.
BUSH SUCKS on a window is an expression of opinion.
Six inch by Four foot socially accepted foul language scrawled across a rear window is another thing entirely. that's begging for it. that's an open challenge to a fight.
Bond, how would you deal with the above scenario I posed to Seth?
There are many people in this country---and the world as well---who find Mormonism every bit as offensive as you found that sign. Does this mean that the Church should therefore limit its missionary efforts to the Zion Curtain?
Gazelam wrote:What kind of buttwipes go into a Mormon community and produce a shirt like that?
Would you go to India and sell shirts of a guy butchering a cow? Go to Iran and sell shirts of Mohammad smokeing your favorite brand of Hookah? These guys are mocking a religion and are damn lucky they havent been drug out into the street and curb-stomped.
Wow.
Pretty harsh. Would you do such a thing? butt wipes? Gross!!!
Whatever. People say much worse on this board and other boards about Mormonism, and you never say they deserve to be curb-stomped. Would you curb-stomp someone? Could you curb-stomp someone?
Depends on if my wife is there or not. The other day at target we came out and someone had a sign on their back window in big white letters "www.F*ckyoutshirts.com" I grabbed the Tire Iron out of the back of the car and was gonna smash it, but she stopped me and told me it wasn't worth having the cops called.
Live and let live is all fine and good, but where do you draw the line? At what point do we begin to make a stand for good principles? How tolerant do we have to be? At what point are we doormats for those who just want to "express themselves"?
I should have just smashed that window on that car and took the consequences.
You and the Taliban man!! YOu better talk to your bishop about this rage you have to things that offend you.
Gazelam wrote:Lets say the guy who's car I mentioned lived next to you and parked his car in his driveway where everyday your kids rode their bikes, and played in the yard, and had to see that large sign in his window everyday.
Now the kids come in and want you to explain to them what the sign means. "Daddy, what does F*Celestial Kingdom mean?"
And the big sign next door isn't going to go away, because when you knock on his door and ask him to remove it, he just tells you to take the sign to heart and "F*Celestial Kingdom off"
Now what. How far does your tolerance level go?
You teach your kids that you consider it a vulgarity and swear word and while some people like to use that kind of language you don't and don't want them too. Then you leave the guy alone. Or make friends with him and maybe your shining example will help him out.
Gazelam wrote:Lets say the guy who's car I mentioned lived next to you and parked his car in his driveway where everyday your kids rode their bikes, and played in the yard, and had to see that large sign in his window everyday.
Now the kids come in and want you to explain to them what the sign means. "Daddy, what does F*Celestial Kingdom mean?"
I'd tell them what it means. It's not the end of the world. I'm not one of those who subscribe to the notion that a written or spoken word here or there is so awful that a child who is exposed to it will be scarred for life. My only daughter is 14 years old, 8th grade, and she tells me she hears the f-word every day at school a zillion times. I'm not saying that's a good thing, but it hasn't made my daughter any less good.
Part of living in a pluralistic society is that not everyone is like you are, or me. We have to get used to that, and let others live as they let us live. We really can exist in a world where somewhere, someone is saying the f-word. Even if it's our neighbor. If you walk past a car with the f-word written on the window, just keep on walking and look at something else. Do as Boyd K. Packer suggested for dirty thoughts and start humming your favorite LDS hymn. ;-) But yeah, it's possible for you to live just as righteously as you think righteousness can be, and others around you can be how they want, and it doesn't have to affect you if you don't let it.
Mormonism ceased being a compelling topic for me when I finally came to terms with its transformation from a personality cult into a combination of a real estate company, a SuperPac, and Westboro Baptist Church. - Kishkumen
Gazelam wrote:What kind of buttwipes go into a Mormon community and produce a shirt like that?
They were probably hoping for the same type of reaction that boosted the beer sales for St. Provo Girl and Polygamy Porter beer. They certainly got notoriety, so that is worth something to them whether they discard the shirts or not. Think of it this way Gaz, if it was not for the Mormon tie-in, your would probably praise them for being entrepreneurs of our community, rather than outsider butt wipes.
Gazelam wrote: BUSH SUCKS on a window is an expression of opinion.
Is this a gratuitous reference to Bush's former cocaine habit? It is my understanding he quite this in favor of alcohol and later tapered off that in order to be subsidized by the oil industry as a future political hopeful.
Good job, Mormons! This was actually linked to from page 1 of cnn.com. Now millions of Americans are kind of laughing at the church now. Too funny.
by the way, I do have to say that the idea of a church trademarking the image of an angel is kind of disturbing. How can anyone blame the folks who call it LDS, Inc. when they're sending out cease and desist notices for violating a trademark on Moroni?
Mormonism ceased being a compelling topic for me when I finally came to terms with its transformation from a personality cult into a combination of a real estate company, a SuperPac, and Westboro Baptist Church. - Kishkumen
Okay, so I've done some searches on the US Patent and Trademark site, and I don't see the church or its IP holding company "Intellectual Reserves" having any trademark for anything to do with Moroni. I don't see any references to Moroni in the PTO databases, either. So where's the "registered trademark" that these guys are violating.
I figure that the almighty would be doing poor ol' Moroni a favor - if you had to stand on top of a freakin' building in the cold of a Utah winter, wouldn't you want a hot cuppa joe? I sure would.
by the way - I have to give props to Loquacious Lurker in the thread over on another board, who pointed out this lovely item:
For some reason, when I was in Rome, these were the funniest things I saw. I bought one for a friend. And now I wish I'd bought one for myself. It just struck my funny bone.
I may be going to hell in a bucket, babe / But at least I'm enjoying the ride.
-Grateful Dead (lyrics by John Perry Barlow)