Well, any kind of bullies suck! I've been bullied for most of my childhood, mostly because I was not a big talker. Those are the kind of kids bullies seek out, because they know they won't do anything to them. I've always stood tall, but I never wanted to hurt anyone. No matter how much they deserved it. Looking back now, there are times I wish I had given some of the bullies from my past a very good rap on the head. But again, my first thought is that I don't want to hurt anyone. No matter what. Nowadays though, I am so unpredictable, I don't know what I'd do if I was faced with a bully again. I wanted to punch Patti in the face when she had me cornered in the kitchen one night. She was indeed a bully. To this day, I wish I had punched her. But my instinct wouldn't allow it. My primary concern was just to try and get along. And I did try HARD to get along. I think if I would have hit Patti, that would have been the equivalent of just giving up, and I couldn't do that.
That is when the bullying is worse, is when it is done by someone who is older, and should have known better. I don't know what got Patti started in her little bullying campaign. But I am not here to discuss Patti. I am here to discuss bullying in religion. We've all seen and heard of the muslims bullying the world with their terrorist acts. It is because these are the majority of what is shown in the media that we have a lot of islamophobes today. I am one of them. I admit it. Unless muslims learn to clean up their act. It's hard for me to hear the word "muslims" and "terrorists" and not think "who are they bombing today?" I know that's a stereotype, but it is something I cannot help thinking of. Stereotypes are not here because something never happened. Stereotypes are here because the media blows events like this out of proportion. Ya know, that is why I see the old 1940s cartoons from when they were still played in their original form back in the early 90s, and I look today and all the good stuff is taken out because "it presents a stereotype". Well, don't they think those stereotypes mostly exist because they were true?
Well, there are some stereotypes I saw from those old cartoons that I do believe are unfair. Like where African American people were presented as looking like monkeys. I know this kind of BS is harmful. But like on the early 1940s Tom and Jerry cartoons, there used to be this maid, and she had this thick accent. I used to like her! But they've either cut her out of the cartoons, or I've noticed they have changed her voice to sound a lot less with the accent. But the fact of the matter is, a lot of African-American people really do have that thick accent. That's not "just a stereotype". It's truth. I like their accents. I think it sounds cute on them.
But to be bullied for the sake of religion. That's terrible! And muslims wonder why we hate them! But it isn't just muslims who bully for the sake of religion. Almost every religion does it. Catholics are very big bullies! I recently heard the story of a man named Richard Kuklinski, better known as "the Ice Man". He was a notorious serial killer in the mid 20th century. He was from a religious family. But his parents used to beat him for the sake of religion too. He was also sent to a special school as a child, a Catholic school, where he was also beaten by the nuns. The funny thing about that is, I remember reading somewhere that Richard Ramirez was also from a highly-religious family too. Don't know though if he was bullied in the name of religion. Ramirez is also known as "the Night Stalker", and killed 20 people in Los Angeles before he was 20 years old. I don't know if he was bullied because of religion, but I am pretty sure he was forced to go to church as a child. I think when a parent forces anything on their child, especially something as controversial as religion, it just makes the child hate religion even more.
I remember when I was younger, my mom forced religion on me and my sis. We would be bullied if we spoke out against the religion or even against going to church. And GOD forbid we did the slightest thing to act out in church!! We'd receive the beating of our lives when we got home. I remember one Sunday after going to church, my mom kept threatening to spank me when we got home, but she never really told me why she was going to spank me. She just said "You know what you did!" whenever I asked her why. We were with Tara and Brenda in the car, and Tara was giving me ideas of how to get out of it. LOL! Typical children. But I still didn't know what I did to have this weight brought upon me. I didn't remember acting out in church or anything. And that is why I learned to hate religion and going to church. Because of lashings like this. Well, ma never did spank me that day, but she never did give me a straight answer as to what it was I did to make her threaten to spank me. All I knew was that it had something to do with church, and things like that just made going to church a lot less enjoyable. And ma always wondered why I never wanted to go.
It wasn't just the lashings and bullying that made me not like going to church. It was the fact that religion was forced on us in such a way that we had to give up things we love. Like my sis's music collection. She took months to create that collection, and even I enjoyed listening to her music. But because of some stupid thing said by a stupid show--namely the 700 Club--my mom went into my sis's room one day while she was at school, and just threw all her music away in the trash. My sis was so angry when that happened, she even threatened to kill mom. And I never did forgive The 700 Club for what they made my mom think to do!! To this very day, just hearing the name of that show pisses me off to no end! It was just the fact that religion was being forced upon me and my sis. I had to go to school all week long, and going to church on Sundays, the only day I would have off was Saturday, and I liked to relax on weekends. I would have done it more often if I could have. But to me, going to church was worse than going to school, because I had to wear a dress. I hate wearing dresses!!! It's just not my style. I still hate wearing dresses. I never got over that. But I think I've noticed a pattern, when something is forced upon a child, it just makes them angry, and it makes them turn into resentful people. I think it happened with me. I'm no serial killer, but I do hate people and I do tend to resent people a lot. I show it a lot too.
And my mom knows how it feels to have something forced on her. Grandma used to force her to learn how to sew. Mom hated sewing as a result. Well, I was forced to go to church, and I learned to hate going to church as a result. I think a decision like that should be left up to the child. Not the parent. The parent can guide the child, and say to them "Here is what I would like for you to do, and why I would like you to do it." But forcing something on a child is only going to make them angry. If the child goes to church, and likes it, and continues to like it, that's fine. By all means, take them to church. But if they try it, and find they don't like it, then the parent should not force that child to go if they don't want to. That only turns the child into an angry, bitter adult.
Now, don't get me wrong, I do believe in GOD, and HE has blessed me in many ways. But I don't think I have to go to church just to prove I believe in GOD. Church is just a building. I can just as easily do my worshipping at home as I can in a big, fancy building surrounded by strangers.
That is when the bullying is worse, is when it is done by someone who is older, and should have known better. I don't know what got Patti started in her little bullying campaign. But I am not here to discuss Patti. I am here to discuss bullying in religion. We've all seen and heard of the muslims bullying the world with their terrorist acts. It is because these are the majority of what is shown in the media that we have a lot of islamophobes today. I am one of them. I admit it. Unless muslims learn to clean up their act. It's hard for me to hear the word "muslims" and "terrorists" and not think "who are they bombing today?" I know that's a stereotype, but it is something I cannot help thinking of. Stereotypes are not here because something never happened. Stereotypes are here because the media blows events like this out of proportion. Ya know, that is why I see the old 1940s cartoons from when they were still played in their original form back in the early 90s, and I look today and all the good stuff is taken out because "it presents a stereotype". Well, don't they think those stereotypes mostly exist because they were true?
Well, there are some stereotypes I saw from those old cartoons that I do believe are unfair. Like where African American people were presented as looking like monkeys. I know this kind of BS is harmful. But like on the early 1940s Tom and Jerry cartoons, there used to be this maid, and she had this thick accent. I used to like her! But they've either cut her out of the cartoons, or I've noticed they have changed her voice to sound a lot less with the accent. But the fact of the matter is, a lot of African-American people really do have that thick accent. That's not "just a stereotype". It's truth. I like their accents. I think it sounds cute on them.
But to be bullied for the sake of religion. That's terrible! And muslims wonder why we hate them! But it isn't just muslims who bully for the sake of religion. Almost every religion does it. Catholics are very big bullies! I recently heard the story of a man named Richard Kuklinski, better known as "the Ice Man". He was a notorious serial killer in the mid 20th century. He was from a religious family. But his parents used to beat him for the sake of religion too. He was also sent to a special school as a child, a Catholic school, where he was also beaten by the nuns. The funny thing about that is, I remember reading somewhere that Richard Ramirez was also from a highly-religious family too. Don't know though if he was bullied in the name of religion. Ramirez is also known as "the Night Stalker", and killed 20 people in Los Angeles before he was 20 years old. I don't know if he was bullied because of religion, but I am pretty sure he was forced to go to church as a child. I think when a parent forces anything on their child, especially something as controversial as religion, it just makes the child hate religion even more.
I remember when I was younger, my mom forced religion on me and my sis. We would be bullied if we spoke out against the religion or even against going to church. And GOD forbid we did the slightest thing to act out in church!! We'd receive the beating of our lives when we got home. I remember one Sunday after going to church, my mom kept threatening to spank me when we got home, but she never really told me why she was going to spank me. She just said "You know what you did!" whenever I asked her why. We were with Tara and Brenda in the car, and Tara was giving me ideas of how to get out of it. LOL! Typical children. But I still didn't know what I did to have this weight brought upon me. I didn't remember acting out in church or anything. And that is why I learned to hate religion and going to church. Because of lashings like this. Well, ma never did spank me that day, but she never did give me a straight answer as to what it was I did to make her threaten to spank me. All I knew was that it had something to do with church, and things like that just made going to church a lot less enjoyable. And ma always wondered why I never wanted to go.
It wasn't just the lashings and bullying that made me not like going to church. It was the fact that religion was forced on us in such a way that we had to give up things we love. Like my sis's music collection. She took months to create that collection, and even I enjoyed listening to her music. But because of some stupid thing said by a stupid show--namely the 700 Club--my mom went into my sis's room one day while she was at school, and just threw all her music away in the trash. My sis was so angry when that happened, she even threatened to kill mom. And I never did forgive The 700 Club for what they made my mom think to do!! To this very day, just hearing the name of that show pisses me off to no end! It was just the fact that religion was being forced upon me and my sis. I had to go to school all week long, and going to church on Sundays, the only day I would have off was Saturday, and I liked to relax on weekends. I would have done it more often if I could have. But to me, going to church was worse than going to school, because I had to wear a dress. I hate wearing dresses!!! It's just not my style. I still hate wearing dresses. I never got over that. But I think I've noticed a pattern, when something is forced upon a child, it just makes them angry, and it makes them turn into resentful people. I think it happened with me. I'm no serial killer, but I do hate people and I do tend to resent people a lot. I show it a lot too.
And my mom knows how it feels to have something forced on her. Grandma used to force her to learn how to sew. Mom hated sewing as a result. Well, I was forced to go to church, and I learned to hate going to church as a result. I think a decision like that should be left up to the child. Not the parent. The parent can guide the child, and say to them "Here is what I would like for you to do, and why I would like you to do it." But forcing something on a child is only going to make them angry. If the child goes to church, and likes it, and continues to like it, that's fine. By all means, take them to church. But if they try it, and find they don't like it, then the parent should not force that child to go if they don't want to. That only turns the child into an angry, bitter adult.
Now, don't get me wrong, I do believe in GOD, and HE has blessed me in many ways. But I don't think I have to go to church just to prove I believe in GOD. Church is just a building. I can just as easily do my worshipping at home as I can in a big, fancy building surrounded by strangers.
1 comment:
I'm with ya dude, I know all about ma and her fascination with church. I was talking about this a few weeks ago.
I hated having religion being forced on us, especially in my teen years, and back then, I was an atheist. I loved rock music, I loved music videos, I loved the latest fads. But with ma and her religion she took all that away from us. I was not allowed to be a teenager and I was being punished for stupid things.
The problem with ma was that I never really called her a Christian. We really did not grow up as a Christian family. Before she started church, she cussed a lot and she smoked. Changing your family from one lifestyle to another is not a good idea. She never made us read the bible or memorize a bunch of verses. I really only think she made us go to church just because she wanted to make friends. Did you ever noticed how ma always used this stupid phrase "you embarrass me in church?" I had to hear that everytime I was just trying to be myself. You can tell that alone that FRIENDS was the key for ma.
I remember the shit about the 700 club and rock music being the "devil's music." Seriously, I don't think the devil likes music, he hates everything cool, so how can rock and roll be the devil's music? If they based it on some stupid thing they did with playing a record backwards and hearing the devil's name, let me say this: ITS A FAKE!!!! First of all, you cannot play a record backwards, its is mechanically impossible. Second, it sounded like a voice over when I heard it, so there was no real proof that will dispute their claim. I'm surprised that show is still playing on TV and they haven't canceled that crap.
I hate religion, it totally sucks now. I would much rather go back to being an atheist than to do like what ma did to us. Everything you said and I said here is the reason why I don't do organized religion. I don't have to go to a building to prove that I know God. I don't need to rely on a book to tell me how my life should be lived and it is possible to believe in the existence of God without believing in the bible and being overly religious. The bible is just a book, a church is just a building, but my belief in God is real.
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