I'm so sick of religion, and I'm so sick of people--PROGRESSIVES!--arguing over it. I'm sick to death of atheists, agnostics, etc. pissing all over threads of religion. I despise organized religion intensely, but I generally try not to piss all over innocent threads of discussion of religion--this IS Religion/Theology, and I like to talk comparative religion as much as anyone else.

That said, I'm sick of theists who also post provocative topics attempting to draw the ire out of atheists and the like. I'm sick of threads that are obviously made to get a rise out of a certain group of people, whether it be atheists trying to piss off the religious or the religious trying to piss off atheists.

I'm sick of people misinterpreting things. I'm sick of theists automatically jumping to attack, viciously, when atheists post things from Sam Harris or other such thinkers or even their own ideas. I'm sick of atheists automatically jumping to attack, viciously, when theists post quotes from the Bible or the Qu'ran or the Torah or whatever. These behaviors are counterproductive, and while I once engaged in them for sport, I'm ashamed of myself for doing so.

I'm sick of theists who feel marginalized here, or threatened by the atheists, and then post vicious pity-party circle-jerk threads about how marginalized they feel. That is just counterproductive--all it is going to do is get atheists to immediately start listing all the ways that theists are NOT marginalized in this world, many of which bear remembering by the theists.

I'm sick of atheists who feel marginalized here, or threatened by the theists, and then post vicious pity-party circle-jerk threads about how marginalized they feel. That is just counterproductive--all it is going to do is get theists to immediately start listing all the ways that atheists dominate R/T, many of which bear remembering by the theists.

Theists, we KNOW you aren't fundamentalists. Please stop telling us this, and START telling us about who you ARE, and what you are doing to coutner the religious right. You have more influence over the conservative religious than atheists/agnostics do. Atheists, listen to the theists when they talk--you can't debate them until they've had their say, and not all theists are out to force their religion upon you.

Atheists, we KNOW that you are "America's most mistrusted minority," and that in certain states you can't technically run for office, etc. Please stop telling us this, and START telling us about who atheists ARE, and what atheists think and feel, and what progressive theists can do to help remove the stigma atheists have in the general public. Theists, listen to the atheists when they talk--you, too, cannot debate until you've heard what they have to say, and not all atheists are out to kill theists and take away your rights to worship as you wish.

Please, people. There are wackjobs on both sides of the fence, and it's time we realize this, get over our egos and our pride and our fear, and work together, theist and atheist, believers and nonbelievers, to actually discuss religion and theology in the world today and how progressives of all stripes can make religion work for the religious and be unintrusive for the unreligious.