I am English. Please educate me about the attitude to religion in the USA.
In England religion is very rarely discussed on the street, in the office in the pub etc. It plays no part in the community’s assesment of your character.
I am told that in the USA anyone arriving to set up home in a new place is often asked “Which church do you go to?”. From over here it seems that you folk can easily be sold stuff. An advert could appear on television stating “Use our soap on your face twice a day and you will become more handsome. When applied to other body parts it will improve both health and performance”. There would be enough of a percentage of your population that would believe that nonsense such that the company would make numerous millions of dollars before quitting. The profitability of the vast number of ‘God’ channels attests to this principle. Advertising seems to be respected in the USA as a noble profession, whereas in the UK a person employed in such a profession is regarded as a bit of a shyster.
In England there is in general more of a ‘prove it and then I will believe it’ attitude. People in positions of authority often have some of their decisions questioned by their underlings, albeit politely.
Undoutedly there will be English people on here who do not agree with my characterisation of the English. That’s what we do. We routinely challenge assertions. It is much more difficult to sell us utter crap and religion.
I think you’re barking up the wrong tree with advertising and gullibility. You might enjoy “Religious America, Secular Europe”, by Peter Berger and others. It covers the history better than I could. THere’s an online preview.
The important things are, we had a lot of people come here to escape your King and your fights with Protestants and Catholics and your religious requirements. And don’t tell me that’s all over either. Then we put religious freedom in our Constitution. So, of course we set about inventing new religions and sects thereof, we were free to do it.
For a very long time the populations of both countries have had complete religious freedom and freedom to be not religious.
England is gradually becoming more secular whilst it is obvious that in the USA ‘God’ is still good business, well sustained by authority mechanisms such as television.
Politicians in England saying “God bless England” would seriously leak votes, so it never happens. But “God bless America” seems to be almost compulsary because not to say it would lead to a leak in votes.
If you’re just going to say things like “a very long time” and not acknowledge that we started on a very different path from you 300 years ago, then I don’t have time for you. Read a book.
If you're just going to say things like "a very long time" and not acknowledge that we started on a very different path from you 300 years ago, then I don't have time for you. Read a book.That's very discourteous, Lausten. He presented a rational topic--and one that should be discussed by rational people.
We did indeed go down different paths but have for a very long time been on the same path with regard to being able to practise whatever religious or non religious beliefs that we have.
As for not being able to use expressions such as ‘a very long time’, well just listen to a song :- - YouTube
As an English person I regard the song as probably the best ‘pop’ song of all time. It needs no video, you can see it all in your mind. I absolutely refuse to dismiss it merely based upon its opening few words.
I am English. Please educate me about the attitude to religion in the USA. In England there is in general more of a 'prove it and then I will believe it' attitude. People in positions of authority often have some of their decisions questioned by their underlings, albeit politely. Undoutedly there will be English people on here who do not agree with my characterisation of the English. That's what we do. We routinely challenge assertions. It is much more difficult to sell us utter crap and religion.Perhaps the English are more rational when it comes to religion. But how do you like paying taxes for "crap" like homeopathy?
Homeopathy is not something which is routinely bought by the gullible from exposure to television. I suggest that there are a few more ‘God’ channels than homeopathy channels. Thus we have the relative perspective of the religion v homeopathy threat to our well-being and our wallets.
‘‘Homeopathy is a ‘treatment’ based on the use of highly diluted substances, which practitioners claim can cause the body to heal itself.
A 2010 House of Commons Science and Technology Committee report on homeopathy said that homeopathic remedies perform no better than placebos, and that the principles on which homeopathy is based are “scientifically implausible”. This is also the view of the Chief Medical Officer, Professor Dame Sally Davies.
Homeopathy is not available on the NHS in all areas of the country. Two NHS hospitals provide homeopathy, and some GP practices also offer it.
Homeopathy is usually practised privately and homeopathic remedies are available from pharmacies. The price for an initial consultation with a homeopath can vary from around £20 to £80. Homeopathic tablets or other products usually cost around £4 to £10’’.
So indeed homeopathy would seem to be without merit, a waste of a negligible amount of the tax take. Undoubtedly any member of the public could find numerous examples of any government’s expenditure that he / she could object to.
Overall I suggest that the number of thriving ‘God’ channels is an indication of a serious amount of gullibility leading to a serious personal waste of money. These channels cannot survive merely on faith.
But we still love you all. I am not being aggressive here. There is no doubt that we have faults.
What better entertainment can there be than a two-pronged attack by Richard Dawkins and Lawrence Krauss? They kick arse. In England a rumour of ass kicking could
result in a visit from the RSPCA who have powers of prosecution.
England is gradually becoming more secular whilst it is obvious that in the USA 'God' is still good business, well sustained by authority mechanisms such as television.Television sustains many conceptualizations. Including your views on this topic. It's not nearly as bad as it is portrayed. You need to visit here for a length of time. Nobody can tell you what you're interested in knowing. And docs and articles are going to be hyperbolic. Believe me, the number one religion in the USA is worshiping the Almighty Dollar.$$ Most of the crap in the government(like god bless America) is just a tradition, like your boys wearing powdered wigs.
England is gradually becoming more secular whilst it is obvious that in the USA 'God' is still good business, well sustained by authority mechanisms such as television.Television sustains many conceptualizations. Including your views on this topic. It's not nearly as bad as it is portrayed. You need to visit here for a length of time. Nobody can tell you what you're interested in knowing. And docs and articles are going to be hyperbolic. Believe me, the number one religion in the USA is worshiping the Almighty Dollar.$$ Most of the crap in the government(like god bless America) is just a tradition, like your boys wearing powdered wigs.I don't know. I think it depends on where you live. Down south religion rules. In urban areas it doesn't. But regardless of your location, like someone said, the almighty dollar is THE god of gods.
It’s a pity you folk are so adverse to advertising. You might find certain products useful. Toothpaste, for example. It’s thought here there may be too many that are skeptical of dental hygiene in particular in England’s green and pleasant land.
It isn’t clear to me what relation there is between soap and religion. But as for religion here, it’s a rather large place, and some parts are more overtly religious than others. This may have something to do with the number of Republican voters present. We haven’t yet created our own national church, and for the most part don’t go chasing priests and holding anti-pope rallies. There’s no Guy Fawkes day, alas. We’re pleased that your royal family may marry now Roman Catholics as of 2013. That seems rather late for so secular a nation. They’re still required to renounce any claim to the throne if they join the Roman Catholic Church, though, from what I understand.
I don't know. I think it depends on where you live. Down south religion rules.This is what I mean by hyperbole and rhetoric. I never experienced any religious rule in all the times I lived down South. Seemed pretty normal to me. Some people went to church on Sundays, just like in the North... After that it was the same old America... Yeah, if you go looking for it, you can find anything. I can find religious zealots and cultural religious persuasions anywhere. Up North, in the UK, wherever..
If you're just going to say things like "a very long time" and not acknowledge that we started on a very different path from you 300 years ago, then I don't have time for you. Read a book.That's very discourteous, Lausten. He presented a rational topic--and one that should be discussed by rational people. We've had many discussions about your inability to be rational, which is why I don't give you much of time either.
I don't know. I think it depends on where you live. Down south religion rules.This is what I mean by hyperbole and rhetoric. I never experienced any religious rule in all the times I lived down South. Seemed pretty normal to me. Some people went to church on Sundays, just like in the North... After that it was the same old America... Yeah, if you go looking for it, you can find anything. I can find religious zealots and cultural religious persuasions anywhere. Up North, in the UK, wherever.. Just one example, obviously not a rule, but not something I ever in my 50 years "up north". I went to Memphis, did an audio tour. I walked into one of the stores on the tour, it was an art store. Two nice ladies asked about our audio devices on our heads, we explained, she said, "Oh, isn't that a blessing, we're on the audio tour." Had a couple other incidents with total strangers, started chatting, nice folks, but I could hear the key words about god, if I had responded with something like, "yeah, well, I'm an atheist", I know they were ready to "witness."
But we still love you all. I am not being aggressive here. There is no doubt that we have faults. .Uh-huh. We-ins, in our quaint little towns across the pond, we call that "passive aggressive".
Had a couple other incidents with total strangers, started chatting, nice folks, but I could hear the key words about god, if I had responded with something like, "yeah, well, I'm an atheist", I know they were ready to "witness."You've never encountered that "up North"? What a lovely anecdote. I have. Many times.
I don't know. I think it depends on where you live. Down south religion rules.This is what I mean by hyperbole and rhetoric. I never experienced any religious rule in all the times I lived down South. Seemed pretty normal to me. Some people went to church on Sundays, just like in the North... After that it was the same old America... Yeah, if you go looking for it, you can find anything. I can find religious zealots and cultural religious persuasions anywhere. Up North, in the UK, wherever.. Just one example, obviously not a rule, but not something I ever in my 50 years "up north". I went to Memphis, did an audio tour. I walked into one of the stores on the tour, it was an art store. Two nice ladies asked about our audio devices on our heads, we explained, she said, "Oh, isn't that a blessing, we're on the audio tour." Had a couple other incidents with total strangers, started chatting, nice folks, but I could hear the key words about god, if I had responded with something like, "yeah, well, I'm an atheist", I know they were ready to "witness." Even worse, you could have been lynched.
If you're just going to say things like "a very long time" and not acknowledge that we started on a very different path from you 300 years ago, then I don't have time for you. Read a book.That's very discourteous, Lausten. He presented a rational topic--and one that should be discussed by rational people. We've had many discussions about your inability to be rational, which is why I don't give you much of time either. Suit yourself. We've had just as many discussions about your inability to be rational, so we're about even, I'd say.
Had a couple other incidents with total strangers, started chatting, nice folks, but I could hear the key words about god, if I had responded with something like, "yeah, well, I'm an atheist", I know they were ready to "witness."You've never encountered that "up North"? What a lovely anecdote. I have. Many times. Don't get me wrong, I've met fundamentalists. I have one for a neighbor. But I've never experienced anything like the quantity I experienced in just one week in the South.
If you're just going to say things like "a very long time" and not acknowledge that we started on a very different path from you 300 years ago, then I don't have time for you. Read a book.That's very discourteous, Lausten. He presented a rational topic--and one that should be discussed by rational people. We've had many discussions about your inability to be rational, which is why I don't give you much of time either. Suit yourself. We've had just as many discussions about your inability to be rational, so we're about even, I'd say. I don't see any way we can both be right.