David,

For someone who wants to talk science and evidence you seem evasive in your reply.

To make it simple, you only burn Christians. Is that correct?

You don't make up similar silly and offensive plays on the names of important days for other religions?

You haven't planned anything similarly offensive to burn Muslims on Prophet's Day, for instance? This is a list of the major religious days, many are missed, but it is a guide. What about you tell us which ones you would capitalise on to challenge 'religion' and which ones you would rule out and why?

http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/a-multicultural-australia/calendar-australia/

The Australian Human Rights Commission has this to say about religion,

"Freedom of religion and belief is a fundamental human right protected by a number of international treaties and declarations, including article 18(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). This right encompasses freedom of thought on all matters and the freedom to manifest religion and belief individually or with others, in public or in private.

The right to freedom of religion is supported by the right to non-discrimination on the grounds of religion, contained in article 26 of the ICCPR.

International human rights law also protects people against the promotion of religious hatred which amounts to incitement of discrimination, hostility or violence (ICCPR, article 20)."

Speaking for myself, while I do not necessarily share the beliefs of others I am more than happy to be accepting and tolerant. Most seem to do no harm and there is a lot of good done especially for old and vulnerable people, especially during Christmas. As far as your group is concerned, I can't see how being rude and offensive to people for their beliefs could assist your credibility and standing in the community at all.

However that is your choice and I would defend your right to offend, although you do seem quite one-eyed and gutless in your choice of target.

>>You don't make up similar silly and offensive plays on the names of important days for other religions?<<

Banana-Ramadan? Best I can do.

Cheers,

Tony

David, no need to thank me for setting the Xmas cat among the Xmas pigeons, or doves.

Once again how can you be definitive when there is no closure one way or the other? So theist or atheist, the term is a nonsense in practice and gives only a descriptive of a thought process. One relies on faith and one relies on rebuttal based around incredulity, neither thought process relies on facts.

Amazingly I have managed to insult both camps with one post....agnostic is the correct description given an atheist would change their thought process if actual events that defied physics as we know it materialized. So I stay on the fence at the agnostic end.

Dave, I am a thinking man, theists and atheists are emotionally driven. The “thinking man” tag was not intended as an insult to intelligence, but a descriptive of a thought process. If you can’t prove or disprove something you cannot be sure of your legitimacy in thought.

As Arjay mentioned, atheists are committed to ridiculing something that they can not disprove.

My, my, full of self-righteous indignation aren't we onthebeach?

While most atheists I know quite like Christmas as a social celebration (if not the actual religious bits), you can surely understand that in Australia and western countries they tend to take aim at Christianity more than others because:
1) Christianity is by far the most dominant religion in the countries they live in
2)It also tends to be the one they know most about and are familiar with, i.e. their own own cultural background

I know quite a few ex-Muslim and ex-Hindu atheists that wouldn't dream of making fun of Christianity, but will certainly go to town on their own cultural backgrounds. After all, I don't think they learnt much about our silly traditions in their Sunday schools, but we did.

I think that you should realise this before you get all up and offended that someones making fun of your religion and noone elses. After all it is Christmas.

maybe the atheist should celebrate the earths sudden appearance on anyday and call it random chance day. Just don't advertise the odds as it will make you look very silly.

It's not all tinsel and glitter, onthebeach, and happy National Day of Qatar and Niger to you. Spare a thought on 26 December for all those observing Zarathurst No Disco mourning the death of Zoroaster. I don't know what happened to his horse Toranado.

(By the way, sonofgloin, I did my best to disprove belief on Immaculate Conception Feast Day on 8 December.)

Of course Hindus are lucky and get from 21 to 25 December for their Panza (Sancho) festival - ingored on the DOIC calendar.

Islam? Do you agree that Rama Lama Ding Dong isn't fulfilling?

Maybe you could just accept that Jesus would be miffed it took his followers four centuries to get his birthday wrong, as well as that anyone and anything worthwhile can survive satire and ridicule.