28.4.07

don't believe everything you read.

i've been thinking more of late with regards to what people tend to choose to believe. and i say choose because that's exactly it; it's a choice. people tend to pick and choose political beliefs, scientific beliefs, and religious beliefs to name a few.

for example, i pick and choose aspects of both left and right wing political thought to develop my more centralist views (typical canuck). there are some things that make me conservative on certain issues, while more liberal on others. it's just the way my mind works.

the religious stuff, however, is very interesting to me, most notably because i have a pretty straightforward view of religion: it's a joke. but that's my belief. what is really interesting to me is how particular some people can be with regards to their religious beliefs. some people think islam, as an example, is an inherently violent religion, while others like to emphasise the more benign aspects of it. the very book that osama bin laden quotes to go to war can be used to talk about peace and prosperity. with regards to the bible, you have situations where people will pick a certain passage and pass it off as the "bible truth," yet in the same breath, they will quote a different passage and say it's not to be taken literally.

this video clip from an old episode of the west wing sort of explains my point quite nicely i think. i suppose one has every right to pick and choose religious beliefs the way one picks and chooses scientific beliefs, but don't tell me it's the god's honest truth above all else, cause it's not. it's just not.