Posted on Feb 14, 2015
I propose that RP ban all Questions/Discussions relating directly to RELIGION. What are your thoughts?
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Religious questions/discussions have/are causing problems in RP. Most responses/comments are respectful; however, some posts are not and members are personally attacking other members.
If this issue is not dealt with expeditiously, RP stands to lose a lot of good members. We have plenty of other topics - ban all religious topics.
Edit as of 6,976 views, 1,228 votes and 491 responses/comments:
My intent with this question was to engage RP members in a discussion concerning in what I believe to be an increasing trend of unprofessional and disrespectful comments. I wanted people to arrive at the conclusion that banning a topic was not the answer, but rather doing something about the individuals making the unprofessional and/or disrespectful comments. In addition to that, I was hoping many members would not only identify the problem being individuals, but also come up with suggestions about how to deal with those individuals.
It is more than having a thick skin - we all have a military background and know what it means to be professional and respectful - it is my opinion there is no room here for members to be threatened, taunted or belittled. We can discuss any topic, agree to disagree, and verbalize our opinion or point of view without having to go there.
I realize there are already ways to report members on RP. Getting additional ideas and suggestions for improvements can never hurt, and most importantly, if we would police our own, giving down votes on unprofessional/disrespectful comments, and calling these individuals out, we can hopefully get them to change their behavior or help RP admins identify the ones who might need to take a break or be banned.
Last and certainly no the least, I am a devoted Christian, and would never support a ban on any topic. I know my question said that, but go back and read why I did it that way.
If this issue is not dealt with expeditiously, RP stands to lose a lot of good members. We have plenty of other topics - ban all religious topics.
Edit as of 6,976 views, 1,228 votes and 491 responses/comments:
My intent with this question was to engage RP members in a discussion concerning in what I believe to be an increasing trend of unprofessional and disrespectful comments. I wanted people to arrive at the conclusion that banning a topic was not the answer, but rather doing something about the individuals making the unprofessional and/or disrespectful comments. In addition to that, I was hoping many members would not only identify the problem being individuals, but also come up with suggestions about how to deal with those individuals.
It is more than having a thick skin - we all have a military background and know what it means to be professional and respectful - it is my opinion there is no room here for members to be threatened, taunted or belittled. We can discuss any topic, agree to disagree, and verbalize our opinion or point of view without having to go there.
I realize there are already ways to report members on RP. Getting additional ideas and suggestions for improvements can never hurt, and most importantly, if we would police our own, giving down votes on unprofessional/disrespectful comments, and calling these individuals out, we can hopefully get them to change their behavior or help RP admins identify the ones who might need to take a break or be banned.
Last and certainly no the least, I am a devoted Christian, and would never support a ban on any topic. I know my question said that, but go back and read why I did it that way.
Posted in these groups: 
Religion
RallyPoint
Religion RallyPoint
Edited 11 y ago
Posted 11 y ago
Responses: 158
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CSM (Join to see) I respectfully disagree people who act unprofessionally (flame, troll, and are overly defensive) when discussing topics that are sensitive should not be here, However, due to that unlikely happening it needs to be banned. Its a shame that we can't talk about hot button issues.
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LTC John Wilson
I agree, we are adults and some of us retired military leaders. Hot topics do affect what leadership does and we must discuss it openly. However, we have found that some are just not mature enough to discuss this topic with respect. Sad.
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CSM (Join to see)
SFC (Join to see) thank you for your comments and the way you made them. My intent of my original post was actually not to ban a topic but to get people to talk about the increasing problem of unprofessional behavior. I doubt very seriously any topic will be banned, and I can only hope something will be done about correcting the unprofessional behavior, such as suspending or deleting those offenders.
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CSM (Join to see)
LTC John Wilson , I agree wholeheartedly, Sir. A sad day indeed so many military and former military personnel are not mature enough to discuss this, or any topic, with respect. Maybe my expectations are too high.
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LTC John Wilson
CSM Dula,
No Jim, may I address you as Jim? The expectations for every individual in the armed forces is very high and we demand it of all our troops. We don't lower standards just because they can't relate to another person'[s opinion or values.
No Jim, may I address you as Jim? The expectations for every individual in the armed forces is very high and we demand it of all our troops. We don't lower standards just because they can't relate to another person'[s opinion or values.
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CSM (Join to see) CSM; could you be a little more specific in your definition of "relating directly to RELIGION"?
Would your proposal mean that it wouldn't be acceptable to describe murderous sociopaths whose conduct directly contradicts the contents of the Qur'an and the teachings of Muhammad as "Islamic" and we would all be forced to type "murderous sociopathic terrorists" rather than "Islamic terrorists" (a 72% increase in effort)?
Would your proposal mean that people would have to learn how to distinguish between "cultural" and "religious" factors?
Would your proposal mean that people would have to base their positions on actual facts that they have done something to verify personally and not simply on labels or what someone else has told them the facts are and how they are supposed to think?
Would your proposal mean that it wouldn't be acceptable to describe murderous sociopaths whose conduct directly contradicts the contents of the Qur'an and the teachings of Muhammad as "Islamic" and we would all be forced to type "murderous sociopathic terrorists" rather than "Islamic terrorists" (a 72% increase in effort)?
Would your proposal mean that people would have to learn how to distinguish between "cultural" and "religious" factors?
Would your proposal mean that people would have to base their positions on actual facts that they have done something to verify personally and not simply on labels or what someone else has told them the facts are and how they are supposed to think?
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Some one tried doing this With books back in the day...regardless, I think we're all grow men and woman with thick enough skin to be or have been in the military so we can deal with this. Even though it seems disrespectful I feel like it's cathartic, people need to express themselves and hear some real talk. If it turns discriminatory then those individuals should be dealt with. But saying we can't handle philosophical discussions isn't right. I hope we continue to keep sharing and keep the conversations free of judgment.
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Lets ban books that insight debate and disagreement too while were banning things.
Censorship is one of the first steps down the slippery slope.
Censorship is one of the first steps down the slippery slope.
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Ban Religion Top???? WOW..... I suppose Liberals like you want to ban someone from saying telling or giving a suggestion on different fire arms for example... I like this, If you see a post u don't like or what ever......delete it or ignore it. No one says you have to respond to a post
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CW3 (Join to see)
I didn't down vote you because of religion, I downvoted you because of namecalling. You have no idea what CSM (Join to see)'s political leanings are.
Furthermore, politics is tribal in that "liberal" and "conservative" are thrown around the same way a certain racial slur starting with N is thrown at people who look like me.
Your post is basically "You don't agree with me, therefore you're a bad person". That's lame.
Furthermore, politics is tribal in that "liberal" and "conservative" are thrown around the same way a certain racial slur starting with N is thrown at people who look like me.
Your post is basically "You don't agree with me, therefore you're a bad person". That's lame.
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SSG Leonard Johnson
Look guys....someone just said to "report"....I can tell who is a fobbit or does a support role...nothing wrong with that....In my section....we kept things in house...Never report unless actual threats or someone taking a pounding...and only report when the victim says to report.....that is the code of the motor pool ;)
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SSG Leonard Johnson
Well...sorry...get Lil bit up a Lil when I see freedom of religion gets attacked. I'll try to remember that we r all suppose to be nice
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Once upon a time a group of around a dozen Marines, myself included, were able to sit around a picnic table in the smoke pit and converse for hours on the various religions that were present. We had a couple catholics, a jew, a diest, two wiccans, a few baptists, a few athiests, a methodist, and a couple others that would come and go throughout our conversation. Somehow the clusterfuck that was our group managed to maintain civilized thought transfers about our various religions and a lot was learned and discussed.
My point is...a group of drunk Marines figured out how to have civilized discussions about various religious beliefs without anyone feeling like we insulted them. We had one cat get out of line and it was dealt with by the group by simply ignoring their disrespectful comments, they got the message and eventually settled into our conversation.
My point is...a group of drunk Marines figured out how to have civilized discussions about various religious beliefs without anyone feeling like we insulted them. We had one cat get out of line and it was dealt with by the group by simply ignoring their disrespectful comments, they got the message and eventually settled into our conversation.
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I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under GOD, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
I put the work GOD in all caps because that is what our nation is founded on.
Each and every one of us here as said these words at least ONCE.......... What is the last word?
I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."
I put the work GOD in all caps because that is what our nation is founded on.
Each and every one of us here as said these words at least ONCE.......... What is the last word?
I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."
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This is a poor method to achieve your purported goals. Creating an antagonistic discussion to try to guide people to a point of view never works and usually offends while missing the original point. Think things through a little more next time before your next attempt at this.
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Everyone is more worried about being PC then they are telling people how they feel. My feelings on this would be, If you don't like the topic do not respond. If you are not able to keep your composure do not respond. If you are not able to keep tack to not respond. If you are going to be a down right A$$ DO NOT RESPOND. If you can keep all of the above things going then by all means respond. I am not here to offend someone. I am here to do a job. If I offend you I am sorry but that is my Opinion. Like it or not that will never change.
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