We’re in the 21st century, and the vast majority of us still believe in an utterly and obviously fictional creator deity. Plenty of people, even in developed countries with decent educational systems, still believe in ghosts or magic (e.g. voodoo). And I–an atheist and a skeptic–am told I need to respect these patently false beliefs as cultural traditions.

Fuck that. They’re bad cultural traditions, undeserving of respect. Child-proofing society for these intellectually stunted people doesn’t help them; it is in fact a disservice to them to pretend it’s okay to go through life believing these things. We should demand that people contend with reality on a factual basis by the time they reach adulthood (even earlier, if I’m being completely honest). We shouldn’t be coddling people who profess beliefs that are demonstrably false, simply because their feelings might get hurt.

  • JokeDeity
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    2511 months ago

    Here fucking here, I’m so tired of tiptoeing around Christianity and vaccine ignorance.

    • @[email protected]
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      -111 months ago

      Vaccines has nothing to do with Christianity. What you are tired of is willful ignorance, which absolutely is not tightly coupled at all.

      You are agreeing with a take that essentially is saying if you don’t believe what I believe your decisions shouldn’t be respected.

      That makes you as bad as the willfully ignorant christians you mention (cool blanket btw, very logical and defendable)

      For example, here is an SDA Christian university that is highly ranked for their medical program and hospital. They absolutely support vaccines and every other standard agreed upon by the medical field at large.

      Just this August ‘23: https://news.llu.edu/patient-care/us-news-world-report-names-loma-linda-university-medical-center-among-best-region

      Loma Linda University Medical Center has been named among U.S. News and World Report’s Best Hospitals in the Riverside-San Bernardino Metro Area for 2023-2024.

      The Medical Center was also nationally ranked in Pulmonology & Lung surgery and was recognized as “high performing” in four adult specialties: Gastroenterology & G.I. Surgery, Geriatrics, Orthopedics, and Urology.

      “These rankings acknowledge Loma Linda University Medical Center as the exclusive academic medical center in the region where science, compassion, and clinical expertise intersect to achieve outstanding patient outcomes,” Wright said. “The accolades and honors we receive, such as this one, serve as a clear testament to our community that they do not need to leave the Inland Empire to receive world-class care.”

      The “high performing” rating recognizes care as significantly better than the national average, measured by factors such as patient outcomes.

      Fourteen common procedures and conditions treated were also ranked as “high performing.” They are: aortic valve surgery, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, colon cancer surgery, diabetes, heart attack, heart bypass surgery, heart failure, hip fracture, kidney failure, leukemia, lymphoma & myeloma, pneumonia, prostate cancer surgery, stroke, and transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR).

      For the 2023-24 rankings and ratings, U.S. News evaluated more than 4,500 hospitals nationwide in 36 specialties, procedures, and conditions.

      The U.S. News Best Hospitals methodologies in most areas of care are based largely on objective measures such as risk-adjusted survival and discharge-to-home rates, volume, and quality of nursing, among other care-related indicators.

      Loma Linda University School of Medicine is a good medical school. Despite their religious inclinations, Loma Linda is prestigious for its medical program having produced elite medical doctors and professors in the country. The school is fully accredited to offer medicine, has a successful alumni network, and provides a serene environment for learning.

      Loma Linda University Medical Center is known for its exceptional cardiac surgery program. It is one of the few hospitals in the world that performs pediatric heart transplants and has one of the highest survival rates for heart transplants in the world. Since they have such a record of performing surgeries, it translates to the possibility of providing students with quality education in this regard.

      https://studentconsort.com/is-loma-linda-a-good-medical-school/

      Here they are pushing for vaccinations in Jan ‘21: https://news.llu.edu/community/covid-19-vaccine-clinics-open-large-scale-effort-vaccinate-community

      Michael Hogue, PharmD, FAPhA, FNAP, dean of LLU School of Pharmacy, has played an integral role in getting the clinic up and running and is eager to provide the vaccine to the community.

      “Our goal is to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible so we can bring this pandemic to an end,” he said. “We believe the most effective way to end the pandemic is to get 80% of our population vaccinated. We want to do our part to make that happen.”

      I feel like you will respond along the lines of this perhaps being an outlier, so here is the entire SDA Christian church organization affirming and supporting vaccination and other science based health initiatives: https://adventistreview.org/news/reaffirming-the-seventh-day-adventist-church-covid-response/

      This document has been produced by the General Conference administration, Biblical Research Institute, General Conference Health Ministries, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty Department, General Conference Office of General Counsel, and Loma Linda University Health. It builds on the immunization statement voted in April 2015 and affirms both this latter statement and the information on the COVID-19 vaccines shared on December 22, 2020.

      Beyond those benefits of healthy lifestyle principles and preventive public health practices, the church affirms and recommends the responsible use of vaccines as an important public health measure, especially during a pandemic.

      The current position of the church on immunization and vaccines, including COVID-19, builds on the insights of the comprehensive health message Seventh-day Adventists have endorsed early on… In the light of the global magnitude of the pandemic, the deaths, disability, and long-term COVID-19 effects that are emerging in all age groups, we encourage our members to consider responsible immunization and the promotion and facilitation of the development of what is commonly termed herd immunity (pre-existing community immunity of approximately 80 percent of the population or more as a result of previous infection and/or vaccination).

      But go on, tell us how Christians push vaccine disinfo. This isn’t a no true Scotsman defense, it’s a criticism on your blanket judgement of all who share a religious belief in relation to Jesus Christ and all that.

      • JokeDeity
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        111 months ago

        I just woke up, not feeling like reading a ton, but based off your first sentence I’m not missing out, I never said they were related.