"From my point of view, I would ban religion completely. Organized religion doesn't seem to work. It turns people into really hateful lemmings and it's not really compassionate." --Elton JohnWhen I taught on a reservation, I had a kid who, when reading about something negative done by white people, would exclaim, "Man, white people always [fill in the blank]!"
Exasperated after a couple of episodes, I looked at him. "Dean--I'm white. Do I do these things?"
"Naah, not you; you're cool."
"Okay, then; next time, say, 'Some white people...'"
He nodded. The next time we read, and somebody did something stupid, Dean blurted out, "Man, white people always..." He glanced at me. "Some white people always..."
I guess that if a 14-year-old can learn this, there's hope for an adult celebrity.
There's a chance that I agree with the tenets of organized religion that are being criticized. However, I'd bring them up a bit differently--tactfully, perhaps.
So how about a little rephrasing? "Some members of organized religion..."
Or was it really not about the presentation at all? Would you still lump me with the rude ones merely because I disagree with your choices?
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