What does it take to offend you?
PostPosted: Sun Sep 26, 2004 5:39 pm
The day that my dad died, we were discussing this in church. My dad is the strongest believer I have ever known, and if I become half as close to Christ as he was, I will be extremely grateful. Anyway, much to the chagrin of some church members, my dad was an active fan of "The Simpsons," using examples from it in Sunday School lessons (he was the adult Sunday School teacher) and in Elder meetings (he was an Elder).
We were discussing America's policy on sexual harassment, in that the Navy (and other businesses) use what is defined as a "reasonable person" standard, or as my dad called it, an "unreasonable person" standard. You don't have to get chased around a desk, or even be threatened with being fired if you don't perform sexual acts. You just have to be made uncomfortable by the existance of human sexuality.
It takes a LOT to offend me. When I say a LOT, I mean it. I'm not offended by violence, by nudity, by sex, by swearing, any of that stuff. It is my opinion that everyone has a right to express themselves. I may not ever burn an American flag, but if I were to see someone doing it, I wouldn't tell them to stop. I realize that example is a bit outdated as I believe it is now illegal to burn an American flag (especially after 9/11), but I think it still stands.
Here's an example. Let's say that you were on a Navy ship (sorry, it's most of what I know). You walk into the electrician's shop late at night, after midnight say, and you see a bunch of guys sitting around watching a porno. What do you do? Personally, I would do whatever business was required of me, and leave as soon as possible. If it involved me staying in there for an extended period of time, I would request that they turn down the volume and keep the noise to a minimum, but I would certainly not request that they turn it off. After all, who am I to ruin their idea of fun? Most people would throw a fit and immediately complain to the supervisor, but I think that's being a bit ridiculous.
I think one of the problems in the world today is that people are too easily offended. I respect other people, even if they're bashing Christianity. Now, that's only if I'm not involved in the conversation. If someone starts bashing me PERSONALLY for being a Christian, or another Christian for that matter, I will certainly step in and defend my or that other persons' beliefs. But if it's a couple of atheists at the bar saying, "Yeah, Christianity is stupid," I say, let them have their fun for now, it'll all come back to them in the end and I'm going to stay silent on the issue.
What I'm really trying to say is, what offends you? I'm not talking about what you avoid. We all try to avoid hentai because it's not healthy for our relationship with God. But what do you find offensive?
We were discussing America's policy on sexual harassment, in that the Navy (and other businesses) use what is defined as a "reasonable person" standard, or as my dad called it, an "unreasonable person" standard. You don't have to get chased around a desk, or even be threatened with being fired if you don't perform sexual acts. You just have to be made uncomfortable by the existance of human sexuality.
It takes a LOT to offend me. When I say a LOT, I mean it. I'm not offended by violence, by nudity, by sex, by swearing, any of that stuff. It is my opinion that everyone has a right to express themselves. I may not ever burn an American flag, but if I were to see someone doing it, I wouldn't tell them to stop. I realize that example is a bit outdated as I believe it is now illegal to burn an American flag (especially after 9/11), but I think it still stands.
Here's an example. Let's say that you were on a Navy ship (sorry, it's most of what I know). You walk into the electrician's shop late at night, after midnight say, and you see a bunch of guys sitting around watching a porno. What do you do? Personally, I would do whatever business was required of me, and leave as soon as possible. If it involved me staying in there for an extended period of time, I would request that they turn down the volume and keep the noise to a minimum, but I would certainly not request that they turn it off. After all, who am I to ruin their idea of fun? Most people would throw a fit and immediately complain to the supervisor, but I think that's being a bit ridiculous.
I think one of the problems in the world today is that people are too easily offended. I respect other people, even if they're bashing Christianity. Now, that's only if I'm not involved in the conversation. If someone starts bashing me PERSONALLY for being a Christian, or another Christian for that matter, I will certainly step in and defend my or that other persons' beliefs. But if it's a couple of atheists at the bar saying, "Yeah, Christianity is stupid," I say, let them have their fun for now, it'll all come back to them in the end and I'm going to stay silent on the issue.
What I'm really trying to say is, what offends you? I'm not talking about what you avoid. We all try to avoid hentai because it's not healthy for our relationship with God. But what do you find offensive?