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Dat Nick

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    Organized Religion and why I want to do something about it

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted

    I would love to be able to change this kind of stuff as well, but I honestly think those who are strongly religious are never going to listen to anything that anyone else has to say, especially if they've grown their entire life believing what they have.

    Mm... yes, that is the sad, bitter truth of it, and by far the biggest obstacle...

    If your friend is hated just for being different than everyone else in the room (I didn't entirely understand from reading, sorry, but were they hating the character int he story? Or do they know that he is atheist? I think I got a bit confuzzled at that part ^-^;; But I'm sure it's just me, not at all the wording!),

    Ah, this was the character in the story, sorry for not clarifying...

    It's a sad belief and hard for me to try stand by, but I feel that's probably the truth here. I think a person would just need to learn to harden themselves to this and maybe even think if people are so affected from their bias, they'd rather not be friends with any of those people to begin with!

    There's definitely some truth to that, to find comfort in those whom are more open... the problem lies elsewhere though, where sometimes there just isn't anyone to relate to...

    Maybe you could share your story, idk how far it would go though cause I just don't know anything XD awwww

    I will talk to him about this and see if he's okay with it, probably when he leaves for college.

    I just also think that people who believe in their religions will not be easily stirred away from what they believe (and ha, I've even seen that on this forum!) and they have a strong will to stick to what they've been taught and those who teach it will be the same. If you tried convincing them to leave this, they'll probably just feel antagonized and not see that it could possibly be helpful.

    Yeah, that's right... and I've no problem with the concept of that, and I've no problem with wanting to continue believing in that, but some of those teachings carry a lot of hate, and I wish more people could see that...

    I also think, though, that even without religion to have a bias on, that people will still find bias on many other things. I just think it's part of our nature to do so =_= There will always be antagonistic views whether people want to see it or not.

    Mm, there's a lot of that too. Racism, homophobia, everywhere... it truly is sick and it's painful that it'll always exist in some form...

    I just hope hope hope that this doesn't need to happen again. I would try convincing him that those people aren't even worth his time to think about, but in many cases that could probably not make a person feel any better at all... I'm sorry that I'm not being much help here, I really want to help, it's just that I don't think I quite know how...

    Story of my life... no matter how minor, I want to do what I can about all of this... but I don't know what to do. I don't even know if I can do anything. Even if it's a minor contribution to the problem...

    There is an ex-Muslim who left Islam, and the whole Muslim community has practically shunned him, which is sad because he was once accepted by everyone as a companion. This guy comes in with questions about Islam, and the older Muslims start to freak out because they don't understand how a "believer" can question their religion. Out of anger for being ignored, he went to facebook, added every Muslim adult and kid he could find, and started posting about all the "errors" and "inconsistencies" in Islam. The Muslims were outraged and ostracized the man, who completely left Islam for Atheism. Now that he left Islam, you have Muslim parents acting like its the end of the world, as if they've never seen an Atheist before lol. They tell their children to stay away from Facebook and the internet and even philosophy so that their kids never question Islam. It's honestly hilarious to me because people don't realize that it is because of them that this man left the religion. They think that he's been possessed by a demon or something. So I tell them instead of bashing the man and his beliefs, just pray for him.

    ...My god... that's horrible. But yeah. I don't know how strongly I came across otherwise, but it's not religion I despise, as I think something's up there myself... it's just the intolerance that comes with it.

    What's funny though, is this man who left Islam because of their intolerance and arrogance, has now become an arrogant person who cannot tolerate any theist who disagrees with his claims. My facebook newsfeed these days is clogged up with his posts about "how the Quran has an inconsistency" or "how the Prophet was a pedophile" or something, with 500 comments of argument between Muslims and Atheists (and other religions sometimes like to butt in, mainly Christianity, to claim how their religion is correct but Islam is false). It's honestly more of an argument about who's dick is bigger, and always results in them bashing each other personally. The athiests will talk about how the Muslims (and other theists that decide to side with them) are blinded by their Creationist ideals, whereas the Muslims will (ironically) talk about how they're blinded by their arrogance and can't see the truth in front of them.

    Well... I don't mean to justify his current attitude... but I see how it was influenced. That does frighten me.

    My point is you can't fight hate with hate, because it will not get you anywhere. Especially when you're in the minority. Organized Religion isn't your problem, it's the natural tendency of the majority to become arrogant. The only way to stop arrogant people is to humble them. Fight intolerance and ignorance with tolerance and wisdom. Have the patience to tolerate them, and show that you have knowledge of their religion (or lack thereof) but simply want to learn more about everything.

    Will try to abide to that should I ever meet such a person.

    Best I can think of at the moment, if I can think of anything better I will let you know. Take care of yourself.

    Will do.

    I agree with Helios. It's more an issue of people who are religious just happening to be prejudiced douchebags at the same time. I know a lot of people who belong to "organized religion" as well, and they're perfectly nice people.

    I know they're not all bad. I don't think I emphasized this enough in the post, which is my fault. My mom's boyfriend goes to church and I do love him, he's sort of a distant father figure and he's helped a lot through the divorce. But well... you still need to take the bad with the good, you know? It's the bad I have a problem with...

    Don't blame the whole organisation for the ignorance of some of its members. Even if christianity didn't exist but simply the majority of people believed in a god, it's very likely that your friend would still suffer the consequences of being the "only" non-believer.

    Yeah... I know. Perhaps I should rephase, it's not the organizations I hate, it's the "consequences"...

    Thanks a lot for the posts, guys. Especially Datia and Helios, you two had a lot to say.

    Organized Religion and why I want to do something about it

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted

    Hi. Prepare for a wall of text.

    I was talking to a really close friend of mine last night about the Kony thing, and how the Invisible Children organization is probably a lot more self-centered than it should be... it left me with no one to really support on this, and I was really confused on how to help... I didn't just want to sit and do nothing but... I really didn't know what I should do. Just hope? Hope doesn't really help in the end. And that realization is what prompted me to make this topic... about another serious issue that I truly want to do something about, but... I don't even know if anything CAN be done about it. Read my post, tell you what you think.

    So, we're just gonna get this out of the way RIGHT now. I have nothing against the concept of religion in and of itself. You folks have something you believe in? Good for you. I believe there's something up there myself: After all, I met someone who changed my life for the better, and I don't believe it was coincidental. What I don't like is that this mindset isn't so much taught to people... it's forced onto them. And that's why I despise organized religion. Because it isolates people. It makes them feel different. It makes them feel hated. All because they don't believe what others believe. And that's a horrible thing.

    I'd like to talk about this a bit more... but first, I want to talk about my best friend. The most important person in the world to me. Very same friend I was speaking about the Kony issue with, actually, and that probably has a big part in why I'm posting this now. Seems like a drastic subject change... bear with me, please. Relevance will enter this.

    I met someone last May, on another site. He seemed pretty cool. I wanted to get to know him better. Spent quite a bit of time talking to him on the main chat of said site. One day I quit the chat for a bit to focus on other stuff, but I did like him and didn't want to lose touch with him... so we exchanged Skype IDs and we talked there for a bit. We got pretty close over time... we disagreed about tons of stuff but at the same time had lots of common interests. We talked to each other on a daily basis for hours and hours on end, and still do today. We got on so well he even got me something on Steam for my birthday. Course he was the generous type that used to give EVERYONE Steam gifts on their birthdays but...

    One day, my sister was kind of stressing me out. She wanted money for alcohol. She was in a sorority at the time... a sorority that treated her like shit. Will cover that in a bit. So anyway she wanted money for some pledge party. Money I could barely spare, but I have a hard time saying no to her. I blurted this out while we were talking one day... this will become relevant.

    Soon after this, my sister was arrested for petty larceny. The sorority made her do it. I was outraged. My sister can be a little rude at times, but she's NOT a god damn criminal. I was infuriated at the people who drove her to this. And at the same time... I was scared. She's not a bad person. She doesn't deserve to be in jail.

    I couldn't sleep that night. I did try, but... the nightmares wouldn't stop. And I had already told him the gist of things so... I told him she was arrested and why. It was obviously connected to the liquor after all. He calmed me down... I could sleep again. You see, my friend has a gift... a gift for knowing people. How they work. How to make them feel better in bad moods... I admit, it's a gift I'm very envious of. I WISH I knew people better. I don't... at all.

    Anyway... I would be using this gift a lot. There were a lot of issues left unresolved in my head that I never truly accepted weren't my fault... things about myself that I always felt made me different. And strange. Personal issues as well... I gave away all of my spare money. I'm still feeling the damage today. He was the only one I felt comfortable talking to about all this. He was the only one who helped... I had talked to lots of people about one particular issue before. And it never helped. It never made a difference. He was the only one that made me think that it may not have been my fault... that's how I knew he was special.

    Around Christmas time... I fell into a very bad rut. My parents were divorced this year. It would be my first Christmas with a split family. It was just my mom and my sister for Thanksgiving. I was so afraid Christmas would be just as lonely. I started to reflect on a lot of things... how I had pretty much fucked up my life when I was younger. I got put into a special ed program when I was younger because I was a little shit and I let my autism get the better of me. It's very humiliating... to walk around with that label. Everybody thinks you're different. So much different than everybody else. When you're not... you're just as good as them. Better perhaps. But nobody gives you the chance. All because of a mental condition that only controls you as much as you let it. I live with this goddamn disorder. I know how much it affects you. But that wasn't just it. Because of this, I didn't really make any friends because I was so isolated from everybody else. What I did about it was I spent my free time being a complete jerkwad on the internet. Particularly with you guys. It made me realize that everything I do has been a screw up. That even if I could accept that all of my family holidays from here on out would be with a split one... what difference would it make? I'd still die at the end of the day. I'd feel better about myself just to get punched in the face and die. Why bother fighting? Why delay the inevitable? I wasn't at the stage of considering suicide... but I was running out of reasons not to. I went to him about all of this... I needed more reasons to live. We talked, and I realized I had a very big one... him. I loved talking to him. I loved playing games and watching stuff with him. He was what life was worth fighting for, to me... even though we live many states away, I didn't feel alone with him with me.

    Then... something happened. I got out of my rut... but he began falling into one.

    He's a high school student. Yeah, I was shocked as hell when he told me, too. Always assumed he was at least my age, likely older... he didn't really tell me much about his personal life for a while. But well... eventually he had to. And here's where relevance enters the conversation. About religion. And how it isolates people.

    You see, he's an athiest. In Missisippi. Southern state. Yeah. It's difficult to find people with a relation to that in that area... not even his own family knows, because his mom is a religious fanatic. Called his sister a heathen on her wedding day... yeah. It translates to school too... he doesn't have any real friends there, so he's told me. Because they all love their god and haaaate their athiests. They were reading a story in literature one day, and one character mentioned he was an athiest in the story... and he tells me you could feel the negative aura in the room, how they all hated that story all of a sudden for the sheer mention of the word. And it did make me sick, hearing that... there was someone else close to him over the internet, who he was not in contact with at the time due to real life issues with that person... so I was the only one he really had to talk to about all of this for most days. It caught me completely off-guard that someone who had done so much for me had so many personal issues that were impossible to resolve due to the harsh and unaccepting environment... I still tried. I loved him like family, and I did try to make him feel like he wasn't alone, that I was always going to be there for him even if nobody else was, that I would accept him for his beliefs, even if they did conflict with mine... but it wasn't enough.

    One night, it all got to him... his cat was diagnosed with an incurable disease, school was getting bad, and there was just nobody there for him in real life, who he could be his real self with... and he completely flipped out. I... can't even bring myself to tell EVERYTHING that happened with him that night. But it was all very shocking, very disturbing... I was crying my eyes out nearly the entire time, to watch this happen to someone who I loved so much. I can give you a brief excerpt, to show you how bad it was...

    10:08:42 PM EST Victor Edgeworth Didn't you tell me something once?

    10:08:45 PM EST A Block of Writers LOOK AT ME

    10:08:45 PM EST A Block of Writers YOUR PAIN FEELS SO GOOD

    10:08:48 PM EST A Block of Writers CRY SOME MORE

    10:08:53 PM EST Victor Edgeworth That our worst moments do not define us?

    10:08:56 PM EST A Block of Writers RIGHT NOW

    10:09:01 PM EST A Block of Writers I DON'T GIVE A ****

    10:09:15 PM EST A Block of Writers WELL DID YOU EVER CONSIDER SOMETHING?

    10:09:26 PM EST A Block of Writers MAYBE IM A LYING ****TARD BEAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

    10:09:34 PM EST Victor Edgeworth You're not...

    10:09:41 PM EST Victor Edgeworth That isn't possible.

    10:09:52 PM EST Victor Edgeworth You could have pushed me while i was down.

    10:09:54 PM EST A Block of Writers REALLY

    10:09:55 PM EST A Block of Writers LET ME PROVE IT TO YOU

    10:10:00 PM EST A Block of Writers I SAID IN THE PAST

    10:10:03 PM EST Victor Edgeworth If you really hated me so.

    10:10:05 PM EST A Block of Writers I CARED ABOUT YOU?

    10:10:11 PM EST A Block of Writers LOOK AT ME NOW

    10:10:23 PM EST A Block of Writers LOOK AT THE PAIN IM CAUSING YOU

    10:10:36 PM EST A Block of Writers IM NOT REGRETTING ONE BIT OF IT EITHER BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

    10:10:43 PM EST A Block of Writers YOU WANTED ME TO ACCEPT WHO I AM

    10:10:47 PM EST A Block of Writers WELL NOW

    10:10:50 PM EST A Block of Writers I FINALLY HAVE

    10:10:59 PM EST Victor Edgeworth I don't ******* care what you want me to think.

    10:11:01 PM EST Victor Edgeworth This.

    10:11:04 PM EST Victor Edgeworth Is.

    10:11:04 PM EST Victor Edgeworth Not.

    10:11:06 PM EST Victor Edgeworth You.

    I sat through the entire tirade, as much as it crushed me to do so... Because I knew none of what he said was true. I knew he still cared about me, I knew he was just hurting too much, I knew it all had to come out, I knew he was damaged... so I watched the entire thing. And I tried to help... obviously nothing reached, but it was my obligation to try the best I possibly could. Eventually he did calm down, though I likely didn't help with that... but that only hurt more to hear.

    1:32:08 AM EST me Listen... I don't know or care how much you meant.

    1:32:15 AM EST me I meant every single word that I said.

    1:32:22 AM EST me I. Don't. Want. To. *******. Lose. You.

    1:32:32 AM EST me And if you don't tell her... I just might...

    1:32:51 AM EST A Block of Perhaps that only shows that I need to do something 'drastic', to show that you'd be better off without me anyway...

    1:32:56 AM EST me ****NO

    1:32:58 AM EST me DONT DO THAT

    1:33:02 AM EST me God please... don't do that....

    1:33:07 AM EST me Your drastic thing can be telling her...

    1:34:34 AM EST me Please...

    1:34:40 AM EST me I'll NEVER forgive myself.

    1:35:02 AM EST me I won't be better without you.

    1:35:00 AM EST A Block of And you'd need to learn that it wasn't your fault.

    1:35:07 AM EST me I'll be even more broken than I am now.

    1:35:12 AM EST me Yes it WOULD be ******* my fault.

    1:35:16 AM EST me Because I couldn't help you.

    1:35:32 AM EST me You're my best friend.... I understand more than anybody else does....

    1:35:31 AM EST A Block of Funny you hate Godot... you're a lot like him.

    1:35:37 AM EST me I ******* SHOULD BE ABLE TO HELP YOU.

    1:36:46 AM EST A Block of You can't help something that can't help itself...

    1:36:50 AM EST A Block of Hope I didn't cause too many sleepless nights tonight...

    1:37:06 AM EST me SO PLEASE CHANGE THAT.

    1:37:08 AM EST me Just try....

    1:37:13 AM EST me You can't not want to try....

    1:37:33 AM EST A Block of Is it worth it to try?

    1:37:35 AM EST A Block of When I do stuff like this?

    1:37:46 AM EST me You TOLD me it was worth it to try.

    1:38:36 AM EST A Block of Told YOU, yes...

    1:38:39 AM EST A Block of But I never told myself that.

    1:38:47 AM EST A Block of Because I never truly believed in that.

    1:38:51 AM EST A Block of And now I understand why I didn't.

    Before going to bed, he got fired up over something else, said "FUCK YOU, FUCK EVERYTHING, I'M DONE", and logged off.

    I didn't get any sleep that night. I spent the entire time staring at the ceiling with tears flooding my eyes. The worst part about the entire experience... I felt it was all my fault. I felt like it was my fault he felt alone. I felt like it was my fault I couldn't make a difference. I felt like I wasn't a good enough friend to live for...

    ...If the transitioning here is a little off, it's because, well, this is really painful to talk about. I spent a good few minutes trying to regain my composure to continue typing.

    He was even more serious about it the next day... wouldn't stop talking about it. How he didn't deserve me to be there after he wanted to hurt me. How I shouldn't be clinging onto him anymore. How not doing it wasn't the right path, just the one I didn't want him to take... I tried. I said every single thing that I possibly could. We talked for a good six or seven hours before I was too physically and emotionally drained to say anything more... and none of it helped. I hated myself for not knowing what to do... I couldn't stand the fact that I couldn't help someone who meant so much to me.

    The entire time this was going on, people on the site with the chat I mentioned at the start of this were all trying to comfort me, to say this wasn't my fault, et cetera... and I appreciated the sentiments from each and every one of them, I did, but it only helped so much... I was still completely broken during that time, because I was so afraid of losing him. Nobody could have replaced him... I don't think I could have moved on. He was everything in the world to me and then some. And I still would have blamed myself for it the entire rest of my life if something... did happen.

    Thankfully... someone who's better with people talked some sense into him. And it took a while, but eventually, I got this message.

    12:44:17 AM EST A Block of Writers And thank you, for giving me reason to stay.

    And even though that nightmare was dealt with... I've never truly healed from it. And even though it doesn't hurt as much now, I doubt I ever will. The whole experience does haunt me rather frequently.

    Anyway... that's my story about Organized Religion. Why I want to do something about it. Why I don't want anyone to feel that kind of isolation and pain ever again. Why I want everyone to love and accept each other no matter what they think about the subject. Because... I've seen firsthand what intolerance does to people. And it's sick.

    I truly want to do something... but is there even anything I can do? Is there any possible measure I could take that would make a difference, no matter how small or insignificant?

    Some of you probably think I'm selfish, wanting to do this only just now because I've been hurt personally by it. And I don't really give a damn if you do. I should have helped earlier, but I want to help now.

    And some of you probably hate me for coming back here just so I could make you all deal with my bullshit. And hey, I'm fine with that, too. I don't deserve the fast re-acceptance that I got.

    But, look... the point is... if any of you know a way that I could possibly do something about the pain and isolation that organized religion causes... please. Tell me. I've seen how horrible this problem is... I don't want anyone to have to experience it again. And I know there probably isn't, but... I just wanted to see if anybody thought anything.

    Kony 2012

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted

    Who else has read this letter? It's a real eye-opener... there was a critism video but I dont know how much of this it addressed...

    KONY 2012: Causing more harm than good.

    Dear Jason Russell,

    After being bombarded with your KONY 2012 crusade, I have no choice but to respond to your highly inaccurate, offensive, and harmful propaganda. I realized I had to respond in hopes of stopping you before you cause more violence and deaths to the Acholi people (Northern Ugandans), the very people you are claiming to protect.

    Firstly, I would like to question your timing of this KONY 2012 crusade in Uganda when most of the violence from Joseph Kony and the LRA (The Lord’s Resistance Army) has subsided in Uganda in the past 5 years. The LRA has moved onto neighboring countries like the DRC and Sudan. Why are you not urging action in the countries he is currently in? Why are you worried about Kony all of a sudden when Ugandans are not at this present moment?

    This grossly illogical timing and statements on your website such as “Click here to buy your KONY 2012 products” makes me believe that the timing has more to do with your commercial interests than humanitarian interests. With the upcoming U.S. presidential elections and the waning interest in Invisible Children, it seems to be perfect timing to start a crusade. I also must add at this point how much it personally disgusts me the way in which you have commercialized a conflict in which thousands of people have died.

    Secondly, I would like to address the highly inaccurate content of your video. Your video did not leave the viewer any more knowledgeable about the conflict in Uganda, but only emotionally assaulted. I could not help but notice how conveniently one-sided the “explanation” in your video was. There was absolutely no mention of the role of the Ugandan government and military in the conflict. Let alone the role of the U.S. government and military. The only information given is “KONY MUST BE STOPPED.”

    I would like to inform you that stopping Kony would not end the conflict. (It is correctly pronounced “Kohn” by the way). This conflict is deeply embedded in Uganda’s history that neither starts nor ends with Kony. Therefore, your solution to the problem is flawed. There is no way to know the solution, without full knowledge of the problem itself. We must act on knowledge, not emotions.

    Joseph Kony formed the LRA in retaliation to the brutality of President Museveni (from the south) committing mass atrocities on the Acholi people (from the north) when President Museveni came to power in 1986. This follows a long history of Ugandan politics that can be traced back to pre-colonial times. The conflict must be contextualized within this history. (If you want to have this proper knowledge, I suggest you start by working with scholars, not celebrities). President Museveni is still in power and in his reign of 26 years he has arguably killed as many, if not more Acholi people, than Joseph Kony. Why is President Museveni not demonized, let alone mentioned? I would like to give you more credit than just ignorance. I have three guesses. One is that Invisible Children has close ties with the Ugandan government and military, which it has been accused of many times. Second, is that you are willing to fight Kony, but not the U.S. Government, which openly supports President Museveni. Third, is that Invisible Children feels the need to reduce the conflict to better commercialize it.

    This brings me to my third issue, the highly offensive nature of your video. Firstly, it is offensive to your viewer. The scene with your “explanation” of the conflict to your toddler son suggests that the viewers have the mental capacity of a toddler and can only handle information given in such a reductionist manner. I would like to think American teenagers and young adults (which is clearly your target audience) are smarter than your toddler son. I would hope that we are able to realize that it is not a “Star Wars” game with aliens and robots in some far off galaxy as your son suggests, but a real world conflict with real world people in Uganda. This is a real life conflict with real life consequences.

    Secondly, and more importantly, it is offensive to Ugandans. The very name “Invisible Children” is offensive. You claim you make the invisible, visible. The statements, “We have seen these kids.” and “No one knew about these kids.” are part of your slogan. You seem to be strongly hinting that you somehow have validated and found these kids and their struggles.

    Whether you see them or not, they were always there. Your having seen the kids does not validate their existence in any shape or form or bring it any more significance. You say “no one” knew about the kids. What about the kids themselves? What about the families of the kids who were killed and abducted? Are they “no one?” Are they not human?

    These children are not invisible, you are making them invisible by silencing, dehumanizing, marketing, and invalidating them.

    Last year I went to Gulu, Uganda, where Invisible Children is based, and interviewed over 50 locals. Every single person questioned Invisible Children’s legitimacy and intention. Every single person. If anything, it seemed the people saw Invisible Children as a bigger threat than Joseph Kony at the time. Why is it the very people you are trying to “help” feel more offense than relief with your aid?

    “They come here to make money and use us.”

    “It makes us feel terrible to be presented as being so stupid and helpless.”

    These are direct quotes. This was the sentiment of the majority of the people that I interviewed in varying degrees. I definitely didn’t see or hear these voices or opinions in your video. If you are to be “saving” the Acholi people, the very least you can be doing is holding yourself accountable to them and actually listening to what they have to say.

    This offensive, inaccurate misconstruction of Ugandans and its conflict makes me wonder what and whom this is really about. It seems that you feel very good about yourself being a savior, a Luke Skywalker of sorts, and same with the girl in your video who passionately states, “This is what defines us”. Therefore, I can’t help but wonder if Invisible Children is more about defining the American do-gooders (and making them feel good), rather than the Ugandans; profiteering the American military and corporations (which Invisible Children is officially and legally) than the conflict.

    Lastly, I would like to address the harmful nature of your propaganda. I believe your actions will actually bring back the fighting in Northern Uganda. You are not asking for peace, but violence. The fighting has stopped in the past 5 years and the Acholi are finally enjoying some peace. You will be inviting the LRA and the fighting back into Uganda and disturbing this peace. The last time Invisible Children got politically involved and began lobbying it actually caused more violence and deaths. I beg you not to do it again.

    If you open your eyes and see the actions of the Ugandan government and the U.S. government, you will see why. Why is it that suddenly in October of 2011 when there has been relative peace in Uganda for 4 years, President Obama decided to send troops into Uganda? Why is it that the U.S. military is so involved with AFRICOM, which has been pervading African countries, including Uganda? Why is it that U.S. has been traced to creating the very weapons that has been used in the violence? The U.S. is entering Uganda and other countries in Africa not to stop violence, but to create a new battlefield.

    In your video you urge that the first course of action is that the Ugandan military needs American military and weapons. You are giving weapons to the very people who were killing the Acholi people in the first place. You are helping to open the grounds for America to make Uganda into a battlefield in which it can profit and gain power. Please recognize this is all part of a bigger military movement, not a humanitarian movement. This will cause deaths, not save lives. This will be doing more harm, than good.

    You end your video with saying, “I will stop at nothing”. If nothing else, will you not stop for the lives of the Acholi people? Haven’t enough Acholi people suffered in the violence between the LRA and the Ugandan government? Our alliance should not be with the U.S. government or the Ugandan military or the LRA, but the Acholi people. There is a Ugandan saying that goes, “The grass will always suffer when two elephants fight.” Isn’t it time we let the grass grow?

    Thank you.

    Sincerely,

    Amber Ha

    The bolded part is what really gets to me... can anyone honestly say that they're doing this for all the right reasons after hearing that?

    After reading that letter... the Invisible Children doesn't seem a whole lot better than Kony himself. Those who would do good only for the praise and not the deed itself... it concerns me, you know...?

    Hi.

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted · Edited by Tommy Wiseau

    No, I actually do remember stuff about Bishop Moulder. Kinda. Maybe a bit of Wallace, too. Don't 100% recognize your screenname, though.

    And no. 100% retired from debating. Even if I wind up staying, which I am starting to consider, I'm not going back to that. Never would have gotten as close as I am to someone outside of Serenes if I stayed the way I was. That life's behind me. I hate debating and I hate what it made me. That thing I posted in the OP, that's what I do now, that's where my heart is.

    Hi.

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted

    Didn't even realize you left me one, this system's kinda weird. Also what how have more people not seen that. It's a meme everywhere on the internet. Or do you mean real life? I actually was Tommy Wiseau for Halloween. I got a wig. Spreading the word.

    Hi.

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted · Edited by Tommy Wiseau

    Bleh it's taking me forever to try and make this post. I'm distracted by music, pokemon in another chat window, and Jackal talking about Skyrim. :P

    But yeah, I talked with Fox. It's reliving to know people I treated the worst are willing to let go of it. So... yeah. That was really all I wanted to do here, just leave this old life behind once and for all. Probably won't be staying. May. May not. Iono. Just really wanted to hear that, more than anything.

    Oh, forgot to leave my Skype. jportsman1. On there the most.

    And I thought you didn't like me, Mori.

    Hi.

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted

    None of the debate people, the people I hurt the most replied in this.

    Jackal told me nobody really cares anymore and that debating as a whole has died.

    It took me way too long to realize what a cuntbag I've been. Sigh.

    Hi.

    in Far from the Forest...

    Posted

    EDIT: Also, I was confused because Life went as BBlader at one point, probably intending to confuse me/us.

    Lol what the fuck? XD And Sirius, I probably won't be staying. Just wanted to clear the air.
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