I Don't Think Jesus Saves Bad Business Practices

So. This wacky guy in OK has a commercial where he's hocking siding and, for good measure, Jesus.

Yeah guy, that's kind of a weird insert of highly questionable politicization in your commercial. I often wonder why people sometimes feel the need to include personal beliefs and opinions in situations where it seems generally understood that it's inappropriate to do so. Then I stumbled upon some reviews of his business. Now I understand completely. There are only two reviews that I found, but neither one of them was flattering or really surprising given the general attitude of the commercial.

Buyer Beware

The siding work provided by Terrell's was mediocre at best. Repairs were needed within two years. When I called to get the work repaired, Terrell's put me on a waiting list. I called again a couple of months later and they said I was still on the waiting list. I called back one more time and was told the same thing. Terrell's never called me back and I finally realized that the waiting list was just a ploy to deflect or put off their customers. I don't think they ever had any intention of standing behind their work.

Later, I went to another siding person and had to spend about $2,000 to have my siding put in good repair. I would not recommend Terrell's to anyone.

The second review is far more telling.

Rudest, worst service ever recieved.

We asked for a quote to enclose our patio into a sun-room, as we had from numerous other companies.

The quote we were given by the owner of the company was the most expensive and when we informed him about it, he yelled at my spouse, using profanity and had very ugly things to tell about how people of our race come into his country and take advantage of everyone, etc, and slammed down the phone.

It was very disturbing to experiance such hatred from the owner of the company, someone we would xpect would know better.

My spouse called him back to ask him id he realizes what he had just said to which the answer came back that "so what, s**(litigate) me you a*******".

May the Lord forgive him for all the hatred he carries.

So of course he's going to utilize that sweet sweet Christian privilege and appeal to his douchey tea bagging brethren - the business obviously can't stand on it's own merit.

Thanks to Unreasonable Faith and Cynical-C for the heads up.

Vandalism Is Wrong, But You Were Asking For It

There's a silly little group out there called the Institute for Creation Research (I know) who is saying very silly things about the string of vandalisms that has seemed to follow the atheist bus and billboard campaigns across the country -

While vandalism should not be condoned, these recent events shed light on what some Americans will do when they feel that their freedom of speech is threatened. An atheist spokesman in North Carolina said their message is needed to “let people know we exist and that there’s a community here.”

Yet he failed to mention the concerted effort of atheist groups to stop religious Americans from freely exercising their religion. Not content with having the freedom themselves to worship or not as they see fit, militant atheists increasingly seek to shackle the beliefs of their fellow citizens through their own distorted interpretation of “separation of church and state.”

It is perhaps not surprising that some of those fellow citizens object.

When I read this, my immediate thought was - what an idiot - but Zach Voch over at the Friendly Atheist (where I learned about this story in the first place - thanks Hemant!) summed up my response to this quote quite well with an apt revision -

While vandalism should not be condoned, these recent events shed light on what some Americans will do when they falsely feel, thanks to propagandists like me, that their freedom of speech is threatened. An atheist spokesman in North Carolina said their message is needed to “let people know we exist and that there’s a community here.”

Yet he failed to mention the concerted effort of atheist groups to stop religious Americans from institutionalizing and forcing their religion on others. Not content with having the freedom themselves to worship or not as they see fit, secularists increasingly seek to preserve the equality and religious liberty of their fellow citizens through their historical and ethical reading of “separation of church and state.”

It is perhaps not surprising that theocrats and propagandists like myself object.

Christians and other religious groups, let me be as clear as humanly possible with this - taking away your unfounded privilege is not in any way taking away your rights. You can't act like you're being persecuted when you're the ones going around trying to stop other people from having a public voice.

Also, your vandalism sucks. Unimaginative and humorless - way to perpetuate your own stereotypes.

America - Turning Into A Theocracy?

Come on, Iowa conservatives, WTF?

DES MOINES, Iowa —

An influential group of religious conservatives said Monday it would sit out the fall gubernatorial election as promised after candidates it favored lost in last week's Republican primary.

The Iowa Family Policy Center's decision was a blow to Republican Terry Branstad, who had banked on support from religious conservatives in his race against Democratic Gov. Chet Culver. The group said neither major party candidate met its standards.

Danny Carroll, chairman of the Iowa Family Policy Center, said in a statement that Republican officials were pushing conservatives to support Branstad. His group had said earlier it would not support the former governor if he won the primary.

"After nearly a week of calls for blind partisan unity from Republican loyalists, the Iowa Family PAC today reaffirmed their intention to withhold support from either major party candidate for governor in 2010 unless one or both of them illustrates a fundamental transformation," Carroll said in the statement.

Despite pressure from Republicans, Carroll said, "Our commitment to Biblical principles and the constitutional rule of law is not the result of any political affiliation, nor is it something that changes depending on the names on the ballot."

Religious conservatives are important to most Republicans seeking statewide office because they make up such a large percentage of Iowa's GOP voters.

Polling conducted during the last round of presidential caucuses in 2008 showed that six out of 10 who attended Republican caucuses described themselves as evangelical Christians.

Although the Iowa Family Policy Center is withholding its support, Steve Scheffler, who heads the influential Iowa Christian Alliance, has backed Branstad.

My question is, why the hell is this group so influential in the first place? Religion seems to be creeping into American politics more and more, and with each increased amount of influence, this country is being led further and further away from what it was created to be - a place where anyone can believe anything - or nothing - and still be treated as an equal citizen with equal rights. The more we allow theocracy to seep into our political culture, the more we are at risk of destroying the very foundation of this country and what makes it so great.

I think we're past the point of incredulously wondering is these people are seriously trying to make the USA a theocracy, they obviously are and their political influence is enough to make an actual difference in some areas of the country. Now we should be focused on making sure they fail in their efforts to do so.