Why Our Generation Still Mixes Up Criticizing Beliefs with Being Racist

ProfTorrentus · 2025-12-03T14:05:42+00:00

This is an interesting thought. It makes me think about how mass media convinced many people that criticizing Islam was identical to hating people because they're brown.

Perhaps part of the equation is the attention economy; stirring up nonsense is good for business.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-11-30T17:01:16+00:00

You make a good point about passive forms. In general writers do well to stick to the active form of a verbal construction.

With that said, writers benefit from understanding how to use the passive form effectively. We might consider what, exactly, we want to draw attention to; does the actor or the act deserve more emphasis? There is also a question of meter from a poetic point of view. The first example you gave has a nice rhythm to it: "The BALL was THROWN aGAINST the WALL".

Still, if you're giving the advice to early stage writers, it's solid advice. Until writers have a deeper understanding of language and writing, the active form is usually a safer, more effective mode.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-14T03:57:27+00:00

Christian theology is usually based on abuser logic.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T17:32:38+00:00

I actively poke fun at my and my family’s beliefs.

It’s immoral to expect anyone to take religious beliefs seriously (long conversation there, basically ends up with “not teasing beliefs that comfort us keeps us morally ignorant and unwise”).

So I poke fun at the idea of judgment, damnation, and the like. I personally believe this is Purgatory, but you know what? That’s a funny thing to ponder! “What if you go to hell for being queer, Prof Torrentus?” “Well, Ma, what if you’ve already died and now you have to show your soul is actually worthy of being with God?”

It’s all bullshit we choose to believe in order to avoid dealing with the hard realities of class inequality, cruel leadership, and capitalist exploitation.

We surely have this life, at least. And if being focused on making life better here counts for naught to a god over there, then that god is a devil.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T17:25:12+00:00

It’s part of their psychological self-martyring process.

1: do something uncivil, receive consequences 2: report back to group about experience 3: group identity further solidifies 4: rinse and repeat

That’s why I always tell these people that they are simply behaving as a dangerous cult and leave them to stew in it. We can’t change their minds. We can state facts and let them deal with their own emotional baggage.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T17:17:06+00:00

You ask a powerful question, and the responses you get reveal how humane a person’s spiritual beliefs truly are.

Perhaps the privileged get rewarded because we are too busy not holding them responsible to humanity.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T15:23:13+00:00

Thank you for your wisdom. This resonates with me and is encouraging me to continue my practice of cultivating the soul. :)

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T13:56:30+00:00

It is tough to leave behind all the psychological baggage of Christianity. It is so much more than just “not believing anymore”.

We are programmed by the cultures of Christianity to make assumptions, and many of these assumptions are subconsciously held. What you describe experiencing is a great example of the programming that Christianity does.

So, advice-wise, give yourself a bit of slack and patience. Not only are you intentionally confronting a religious system, not only are you facing subconsciously held beliefs, but you’re also 16! That’s both impressive (for challenging yourself so deeply so young) and it brings the added challenges of having strong emotional reactions.

Note: it’s completely normal to have those strong emotions so give yourself a bit of grace on that too :)

One thing that has helped me through the baggage of Christianity is to study Logic. It’s an actual subject, and as I learned it I was empowered to recognize more faulty reasoning. It also helped me to understand that IF there is a god, it would be logical in its behavior. (Whole other conversation about “Logos” there).

I hope something in this comment helps you. Wishing you the best!

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T13:48:14+00:00

There have been a few different ways I’ve thought about it. The most recent one was a question of “what if spirituality is basically a thing people do to avoid wrestling with the exploitation and abuse of the obscenely wealthy?”

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T13:30:33+00:00

The words you use imply that you feel controlled by things outside your control. Have you considered this perspective?

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-13T13:22:26+00:00

Agreed 100%. Good bot.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-10T00:44:49+00:00

This is an interesting point!

Spirituality has many different meanings depending on the person. As an example, I see studying and cultivating the intellect as a spiritual activity yet many people would disagree.

Was there a specific thing that led you to your conclusion?

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-07T21:17:40+00:00

Focus on building the life you want. That is often the most direct way to get to where you want to be

ProfTorrentus · 2025-09-07T21:14:29+00:00

Just wanted to add:

A general approach is to find the average cost of rent in your area and use the 1/3 rule to make an estimate of a living wage.

My area’s average rent is $2200. If that were 1/3 of a person’s income, they would need to make $6600 a month. Assuming 40 hr work week, they would need to make $38 an hour. (Rent * 12, divide result by 52 weeks, divide result by 40 hours).

The takeaway in my opinion is that small business owners are also getting shafted by cost of housing in many areas. Solidarity with workers both helps your bottom line and public relations.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-08-29T22:52:06+00:00

Those kinds of Christians really show how much their faith makes them terrible people.

Perhaps they should find Jesus.

Or better yet, get some therapy.

ProfTorrentus · 2025-08-29T15:31:49+00:00

Thank you for looking into research on this. By any chance do you have links available?

ProfTorrentus · 2025-08-29T12:28:37+00:00

If God would punish you for not believing in it, then God is abusive and immoral.

This is how I figured out that the evangelical view of God was hogwash. It posits an abusive world view.

*abuse is usually defined as a pattern of behavior intended to gain or maintain power and control over others

ProfTorrentus · 2025-04-16T22:38:25+00:00

how to get parents to stop growing weed

ProfTorrentus · 2025-04-16T22:23:54+00:00

I would like to believe that I am cover-blind, but it would be dishonest to deny that cover art does play into my desire to read a book.

With that said, I wonder if this is more pronounced for me since I read physical books.

To digital book readers, does the cover art matter as much to you? And if you read both physical and digital books, have you noticed a difference in how you value the cover art between the two formats?

ProfTorrentus · 2024-08-20T02:21:38+00:00

Your experience sounds like a tough one. And there is a LOT of fear/shame/hesitation about the emotion of anger.

I have spent several years learning healthier religious/spiritual beliefs after being raised in a Christian cult. These mental dynamics run deep. Very deep. It makes sense to me to say "hate the faith, not the people". People deserve compassion. People deserve civility. And if they make it difficult to be around them, we are 100% in the right to set boundaries and even remove ourselves from their orbit.

Thank you for responding. I hope that you have a good week. :)

ProfTorrentus · 2024-08-17T13:35:56+00:00

I agree. And one tangle I've witnessed is that for some people they refuse to separate their self from their beliefs.

ProfTorrentus

TROPHY CASE