On Standing By One's Words...

Greetings once again,

Ok, so it's been a little bit longer than usual, but you'll have to forgive me - I've been a bit busy. Of course, there was the holiday (I hope you all had a peaceful and reflective one), and then there were just a lot of other things going on that I can't really go into much detail about, yet.

One thing I will say is that I finally got another job, though it pays exactly $4.05 less per hour than what I was previously earning at the old job. It will pay the bills, though, and right now that's enough. Again, I'm not going to go into much detail about it, but I will say that it's a big corporation that would never dream of tolerating the type of bullshit harassment that I put up with at the old job.

I guess that's kind of what today's sermon will be about. Harassment. I was recently made aware of some comments that an old acquaintance of mine made on another blog site about my decision to stop posting on said blog site. Now, I want this to be clear: I don't care enough about this old acquaintance to give his words the time of day, except for one part of what he wrote. This guy can talk all of the shit he wants about most of what he said. It is irrelevant and inconsequential because the words that come from his mouth (or in this case, his fingers) hold about as much profound truth as those of Grima Wormtounge in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The one thing he did say that I want to address, however, is that I can't take what I dish out. I alluded to this in a post-script addendum to my farewell blog on the other site, but I thought I might clear the air here as well, so that there will be no misconception.

As I said on the old blog site, my record speaks for itself when it comes to responding to comments of disagreement left by readers of my blogs. I can say with the utmost confidence that I have responded boldly to each and every comment of disagreement concerning any blog I've written. In fact, not only have I responded, but I've responded thoughtfully and fairly. In some instances, I've even retracted my original statements. I am not afraid of ANYBODY'S opinion, no matter how bad the stench. I am not afraid to be wrong, nor am I too proud to apologize.

I only adhere to one guideline when responding to comments on my writing - it's an old expression whose original author eludes me: Never argue with an idiot; they drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience. I can only think of one time in which I have really had to use this guideline, and that was when another old acquaintance of mine started trying to tell me about spirituality in response to an old blog. This particular old acquaintance couldn't put together a coherent thought if his life depended on it, so I simply chose to tell him that I didn't want to talk to him anymore - for the good of both of us.

Other than that rule, all else is fair game. I will answer any and all comments of disagreement. I make my blogs colorful because I think that the writing style I use has some entertainment value (an idea that is continually reinforced by comments from my readers - thank you). If what I say offends you, I'm sorry that you are offended, but I'm usually not sorry that I said what I said - unless, of course, I'm wrong. In that case, I will almost always issue a public apology and recant my incorrect statements.

I should also mention that a great deal of my "offensive" remarks revolve around religion, and that a great deal of the "offended" readers who like to make comments are old acquaintances of mine from my church-goin' days. Here's the deal: Even when I was heavily involved in the Christian church, I smelled a lot of things that I thought were just wrong. A lot of times I spoke out about them. I still speak out about essentially the same things, only now, I've followed my thought processes through to a more thorough completion point. A big part of the journey that has led me to the position I currently occupy has been the idea that if God is omniscient (all knowing), omnipotent (all powerful), and omnipresent (everywhere), then He knows my heart. He knows that I am honestly searching for truth, and most of all, He has no reason to fear my thoughts or my words. I am not "mad at God" or anything like that at all. I simply don't buy the conventional Christian dogma anymore, and I've not seen or heard anything from the God to whom I earnestly pray, or anyone else, for that matter, that has convinced me otherwise.

Why is it always the people who claim to follow the "One TRUE God" that get so upset about what I say? If you all really believed that your dogma was absolute truth, wouldn't the correct response be to pray to your God that my heart be changed? If you really believed in the things you claim to believe in, you wouldn't be afraid of my words, and you certainly wouldn't have any reason to be offended by my remarks. The fact is, I am not really trying to attack your beliefs, I am simply trying to point out what I see as logical fallacy and inconsistency. My remarks should only really be offensive if they are so convincing that they shake your worldview up, or if they are just blatantly wrong. (Well, actually, I guess if I call you a nasty name or something, you should probably be offended, but I'm trying to get away from that kind of writing.)

If they are wrong, then please tell me why. I have at least one friend who never fails to point out my own logical fallacy and contradiction, and I welcome his comments, because he keeps me honest.

If my remarks hit home, then before you lash out in defense of your comfort zone, think about what I've said, and don't be afraid. The truth will still be the truth, even if it won't fit into the box we've made for it. I don't claim to have the absolute truth, or the way to salvation, or any of that exclusive stuff that is so popular with evangelicals. I am simply examining my experience in this life with honest and pure intent, and I believe that counts for a lot.

Ok, that's about all I have to say about this stuff for tonight. If I don't write anything before Tuesday, Happy New Year to everyone. May 2008 turn out to be your most prosperous year yet!

I am the Reverend Humpy and, AS ALWAYS, I approve this message.