Pat Robertson.
0
For those of you who don't know, Pat Robertson is the spokesperson for the 700 club. you know, that old guy that's always on TV preaching that god is watching you so donate to his cause.
Anyway, after the tragedy in Haiti, Pat Robertson went on the record as saying and I paraphrase, "The people of Haiti got what was coming to them. Their ancestors made a pact with the devil to drive out the french, and so now God is making them pay for their transgressions."
I dont know the exact quote, but I know that's basically what he said, without twisting words around.
So at first I became annoyed, because this reminds me of Jerry Falwell, whose ignorant ass went on the record as saying, "The reason God allowed 9/11 to happen was because of feminists and women getting jobs and not staying where they're supposed to." Basic same ignorant, "You made god angry, otherwise this would have never happened" logic.
However while I'm angry at Jerry Falwell for being a prick, I refuse to be angry at Pat Robertson. Yes I disagree with what he said, yes I still think it's a monstrous statement to make, but I will not blame him for saying it. According to Pat Robertson's beliefs, God is a good an all knowing being. No GOOD all knowing being would allow suffering without a reason, so Pat merely connected the catastrophe that his god allowed to happen to a reason he felt was plausible. Jerry Falwell's mistake was that he didn't blame the VICTIMS of the attack, but America itself, and then didn't even bother to clarify what his specific beliefs were, at least Pat Robertson had the balls to do that.
Yes what he said was stupid to the vast majority of people, but to those who believe as Pat Robertson believes, this is the true reason he felt God allowed this to happen. Now before anyone gets in my face about defending such an ignorant statement, know that I still think he's a douchebag, and I enjoy looking at the forums of such clubs as "Pat Robertson is a Douchebag" club, which is a real club on Facebook. I'm NOT defending him, I'm merely saying I understand where this line of thinking came from. A lot of people look at statements like these and ask, "How could they possibly think that." Well, I look at these statements and actually answer that very question, "This is how." It's still not right, but it explains everything.
My question to Faku, what do you think?
Anyway, after the tragedy in Haiti, Pat Robertson went on the record as saying and I paraphrase, "The people of Haiti got what was coming to them. Their ancestors made a pact with the devil to drive out the french, and so now God is making them pay for their transgressions."
I dont know the exact quote, but I know that's basically what he said, without twisting words around.
So at first I became annoyed, because this reminds me of Jerry Falwell, whose ignorant ass went on the record as saying, "The reason God allowed 9/11 to happen was because of feminists and women getting jobs and not staying where they're supposed to." Basic same ignorant, "You made god angry, otherwise this would have never happened" logic.
However while I'm angry at Jerry Falwell for being a prick, I refuse to be angry at Pat Robertson. Yes I disagree with what he said, yes I still think it's a monstrous statement to make, but I will not blame him for saying it. According to Pat Robertson's beliefs, God is a good an all knowing being. No GOOD all knowing being would allow suffering without a reason, so Pat merely connected the catastrophe that his god allowed to happen to a reason he felt was plausible. Jerry Falwell's mistake was that he didn't blame the VICTIMS of the attack, but America itself, and then didn't even bother to clarify what his specific beliefs were, at least Pat Robertson had the balls to do that.
Yes what he said was stupid to the vast majority of people, but to those who believe as Pat Robertson believes, this is the true reason he felt God allowed this to happen. Now before anyone gets in my face about defending such an ignorant statement, know that I still think he's a douchebag, and I enjoy looking at the forums of such clubs as "Pat Robertson is a Douchebag" club, which is a real club on Facebook. I'm NOT defending him, I'm merely saying I understand where this line of thinking came from. A lot of people look at statements like these and ask, "How could they possibly think that." Well, I look at these statements and actually answer that very question, "This is how." It's still not right, but it explains everything.
My question to Faku, what do you think?
0
...did you see his comments on the earthquake in Haiti?
I don't get how anybody could take hims seriously after that one
I don't get how anybody could take hims seriously after that one
0
Oops, my bad. But still, to blame victims for natural disasters is inexcusable. I mean, it seems like with Pats and Jerry's reasoning anytime something bad happens to them its there fault.
I just don't get why people continue to listen to them at all
I just don't get why people continue to listen to them at all
0
Pat Robertson's reasoning made just as much sense as Jerry Falwell's. It's bullshit reasoning, made to draw a line from Point B to Point A. (In other words, working backwards, with the conclusion first.)
You know what really explains how people like Pat and Jerry can say shit like that? They're bad people. They only care about themselves and their goals. They'll do whatever they can to make other people look bad.
You know what really explains how people like Pat and Jerry can say shit like that? They're bad people. They only care about themselves and their goals. They'll do whatever they can to make other people look bad.
0
It's almost scary that some people actualy beleive this guy.
“Nothing in the world is more dangerous than a sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”
-MLK Jr.
“Nothing in the world is more dangerous than a sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”
-MLK Jr.
0
ShaggyJebus wrote...
Pat Robertson's reasoning made just as much sense as Jerry Falwell's. It's bullshit reasoning, made to draw a line from Point B to Point A. (In other words, working backwards, with the conclusion first.)You know what really explains how people like Pat and Jerry can say shit like that? They're bad people. They only care about themselves and their goals. They'll do whatever they can to make other people look bad.
Jerry? I can see it. Pat? I don't think so. Look I don't think what he said was a good thing, and he'll probably be hated for a long time for this...poor guy. Oh yes, I said it, POOR PAT ROBERTSON.
See, it's not that he's simply drawing a line from Point B to Point A as yo uput it, he's truly drawing a logical(in his mind)conclusion as to WHY his god would allow something like this to happen. See, it's like the guys on Fox News. A Democratic President to them will always be bad, so any progress he makes is in the wrong direction, and anything he doesn't do makes him look ineffective. This is what they TRULY believe. They're not right for thinking it, but I can't blame them for thinking what they do. It's like telling a Satanist how wrong they are. Yeah, you think they are, but to them they're in the right, and everyone else is a freak.
0
poor guy. Oh yes, I said it, POOR PAT ROBERTSON.
When you make idiotic comments on national television you are going to get criticized. Freedom of speech goes both ways. You can say what you want, but people can say what they want back.
Truly, i don't feel bad for him at all.
0
BigLundi wrote...
ShaggyJebus wrote...
Pat Robertson's reasoning made just as much sense as Jerry Falwell's. It's bullshit reasoning, made to draw a line from Point B to Point A. (In other words, working backwards, with the conclusion first.)You know what really explains how people like Pat and Jerry can say shit like that? They're bad people. They only care about themselves and their goals. They'll do whatever they can to make other people look bad.
Jerry? I can see it. Pat? I don't think so. Look I don't think what he said was a good thing, and he'll probably be hated for a long time for this...poor guy. Oh yes, I said it, POOR PAT ROBERTSON.
See, it's not that he's simply drawing a line from Point B to Point A as yo uput it, he's truly drawing a logical(in his mind)conclusion as to WHY his god would allow something like this to happen. See, it's like the guys on Fox News. A Democratic President to them will always be bad, so any progress he makes is in the wrong direction, and anything he doesn't do makes him look ineffective. This is what they TRULY believe. They're not right for thinking it, but I can't blame them for thinking what they do. It's like telling a Satanist how wrong they are. Yeah, you think they are, but to them they're in the right, and everyone else is a freak.
Rarely does anybody say something that they don't believe to make sense. When Jerry Falwell made his comment, I'm sure he believed it was as logical as the shit Robertson says. Whenever a prejudice person says something, he believes he has some sort of logic on his side. It doesn't make him right, and it doesn't excuse him.
Also, this isn't the first time Pat Robertson has said something horrible. I'm not going to bother scouring the web for quotes, but there are certainly a lot of them. Robertson is far from being a people-loving, good Christian. What he said about Haiti was not a slip of the tongue or him on a bad day.
0
During the beginning of the Haitian rebellion, many slaves performed Voodoo rituals (as is customary in their culture) to give their soldiers strength, and to get help in driving the French out of Haiti. Robertson connected this stone cold fact to his religion, claiming that the island was sold to Satan, and making the assumption that God was angered.
It makes sense, if you look at it from a deeply religious standpoint. Prejudice has no role in this inference. I don't know if Pat Robertson hates black people, french people, Haitians in general, or whatever. I just could picture thinking that, if my beliefs were pointed that direction.
(Personally, it's just a fucking earthquake. Even if The Creator caused this catastrophe, it wouldn't change my response. My first thought was "Oh. Crap, that's a lot of life lost." rather than "Well, fuck those heathen bitches.")
It makes sense, if you look at it from a deeply religious standpoint. Prejudice has no role in this inference. I don't know if Pat Robertson hates black people, french people, Haitians in general, or whatever. I just could picture thinking that, if my beliefs were pointed that direction.
(Personally, it's just a fucking earthquake. Even if The Creator caused this catastrophe, it wouldn't change my response. My first thought was "Oh. Crap, that's a lot of life lost." rather than "Well, fuck those heathen bitches.")
0
IF the fucker is still alive then he can go to hell.The fuck is his problem saying its a punishment from God?Is he the messenger or something?We are free to interpret events but let's keep it too ourselves is what I like to smack in his face.
0
ShaggyJebus wrote...
Rarely does anybody say something that they don't believe to make sense. When Jerry Falwell made his comment, I'm sure he believed it was as logical as the shit Robertson says. Whenever a prejudice person says something, he believes he has some sort of logic on his side. It doesn't make him right, and it doesn't excuse him.
Also, this isn't the first time Pat Robertson has said something horrible. I'm not going to bother scouring the web for quotes, but there are certainly a lot of them. Robertson is far from being a people-loving, good Christian. What he said about Haiti was not a slip of the tongue or him on a bad day.
I KNOW it wasn't a slip of the tongue, I am fully aware he truly meant what he said. Pat Robertson felt that he was fully in the right to say what he did because of facts. He didn't just go, "Well, fuck Haitians." As a poster above me stated, it is fact that during the Haitian rebellions, Haitians used Voodoo to aid them in their fighting, which, as far as Pat Robertson is concerned, is making a deal with the devil. He is an extremely religious man, for him to even THINK that this was just something God did...just because would be just that, unthinkable. There HAS to be a reason that God let this happene, so he took this old fact and connected it to a current event. I willl always stand firm that what he said was a monstrous thing to say, but it's not without basis, it's not like he just hates hatians, it's not like he's saying "Fuck them./" Hell the 700 club is raising 400,000 dollars for the Haitians, so it's not like he's saying they get what they deserve and leave them to suffer.
0
BigLundi wrote...
I willl always stand firm that what he said was a monstrous thing to say, but it's not without basisMy point is, even if there was a basis to what he said, even if it made some sort of twisted sense, that doesn't change a damn thing. It was completely unnecessary to say such a thing on the show.
Also, it's okay if you don't condemn him for what he said because it made sense to him, but if you're not going to condemn him, you should also not condemn anybody else who says crazy shit due to their beliefs. You said that you couldn't understand why Falwell said what he did about 9/11. Well, guess what - what he said made sense in his own mind, and Pat Robertson actually agreed with him.
After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Falwell said on The 700 Club, "I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this happen.'" Fellow evangelist Pat Robertson concurred with his sentiment. Falwell further stated that the attacks were "probably deserved," a statement which was described as "treason" by columnist Christopher Hitchens. After heavy criticism, Falwell apologized.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Falwell#September_11th_attacks
To them, homosexuals and pagans and feminists are bad and go against God. Because America has a ton of them, God decided to punish America with 9/11. That's Jerry Falwell's and Pat Robertson's logic. It all boils down to God, no matter the event.
0
Well, I'm pretty sure Pat Robertson is of good intentions, and probably actually believes in the one true Christian God and the things that he says. Which possibly means he is mentally ill. But I wouldn't consider him a bad person, and I've actually met him. I think he is just misled by his beliefs. By no means should he be listened to, though. I'm just saying he isn't evil.
0
Hate the guy. He's an insult to Christians and gives Atheists more of a trump card by trying to lump all Christians into be cynical assholes such as himself. Believe me I know, I've tried to lump a few with him by being as equally assholish.
My favorite is probably when he said the world would end, and Jesus would come in 1982. Why didn't everyone discredit him then? No instead everyone seem to have conveniently forgotten and blindly let him give slanderous and libelous remarks without as much as a slap on the wrist. He should have gotten in trouble when he called for the assassination of Chavez on the 700 Club. Now, whether you agree with Chavez or not doesn't matter. You don't sit there and talk about how someone deserves to be assassinated on national television, and then manage to get away with it.
My favorite is probably when he said the world would end, and Jesus would come in 1982. Why didn't everyone discredit him then? No instead everyone seem to have conveniently forgotten and blindly let him give slanderous and libelous remarks without as much as a slap on the wrist. He should have gotten in trouble when he called for the assassination of Chavez on the 700 Club. Now, whether you agree with Chavez or not doesn't matter. You don't sit there and talk about how someone deserves to be assassinated on national television, and then manage to get away with it.