Atheist files complaint over Lancaster County restaurant's church-bulle

[Southern Patriot]

I live in the same state as you, and I would beg to differ on this. I'm neither religious, or athiest. I simply do not know, so I chose not to believe in any extreme, cause there isn't enough knowledge to credit or discredit a God. Nor will there ever be, probably.

I'm guessing you are probably in a different part of the state from me. Just depends on the area and the people you hang around with I guess. From what you said here, I'd basically consider you an agnostic. You do have to admit though that many of the "radical atheists" (my term for the ones who go out of their way to be offensive towards religious people) are quite annoying, and do more harm than good to the views of their fellow atheists.

[Southern Patriot]

No argument here about this guy's issue with this restaurant, he is being childish for the sake of it. I don't how ever see anything suggesting that someone is trying to keep someone else from worshiping what ever.

I don't quite agree with you there. Many Christian business owners who offer discounts such as this to other Christians do so as a way of honoring God, which in itself is a part of how they choose to worship Him.

[Southern Patriot]

And yet even if you add up all those evangelizing atheist, they would still be overshadowed by the amount of the evangelizing theist.

I don't dispute the fact that the evangelical atheists (or "radical atheists" as I call them) are far outnumbered by evangelical Christians, but that doesn't make their belief and practices any less of a religion.

[ILikeTobacco]

Sorry but this is in no way religious descrimination because athiesm is not a religion. There are legal forms of descrimination as it is. Senior citizens menus and kids menus are age descrimination after all. Like it was said before, it amounts to nothing more than the bulletins being coupons. The resturant could always just give the churches a coupon to print on their bulletins and then this person wouldn't have **** to say.

On a side note, athiesm is turning into its own religion/cult. About twice a month, door to door athiest activists come by trying to sell it. There are more athiest groups on the local college campus than religious groups. They have weekly meetings, collect dues to keep their organizations running, and has a single leader that gets up and teaches their views at their meetings. All that has to happen is all these groups form a greater nationwide group to fall under and then they will be no different than any other religion. Also, where is the empirical evidence that god doesn't exist? Stop using the line that the religious believe in something that has no imperical evidence to support it unless you have imperical evidence to support that it doesn't exist. It's a pointless statement otherwise and just gives them more fuel. If you are going to argue against a religious nut, unless you can do it using their way of thinking, you might as well argue with a brick wall.

[ILikeTobacco]

I don't dispute the fact that the evangelical atheists (or "radical atheists" as I call them) are far outnumbered by evangelical Christians, but that doesn't make their belief and practices any less of a religion.

I actually prefer the Mormon evangelicists. At least they are nice. Had one athiest show up on my doorstep and flat out call me an idiot before even asking me if I beleived in god or not. When I finally told him I don't, I proceded to tell him to **** off and that he was retarded for thinking anyone would want to listen to his ramblings if the first order of business was him insulting them.

[shakey]

I actually prefer the Mormon evangelicists. At least they are nice. Had one athiest show up on my doorstep and flat out call me an idiot before even asking me if I beleived in god or not. When I finally told him I don't, I proceded to tell him to **** off and that he was retarded for thinking anyone would want to listen to his ramblings if the first order of business was him insulting them.

You had a atheist come to your doorstep to preach non belief? I doubt this happened.

[nominak]

You had a atheist come to your doorstep to preach non belief? I doubt this happened.

This. Hard to believe.

[HSoft]

Sorry but this is in no way religious descrimination because athiesm is not a religion.

Actually athiesm is a religion in the strict definition :-

a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects:

the body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices: a world council of religions.

(dictionary.com).

You can be religious on the fact that bacon tastes good.

[cybertimber2008]

All of the McDonalds in my area (6 or so McDonalds... big area) offer this kind of discount.

[ILikeTobacco]

This. Hard to believe.

You are right. My entire life is a lie. Everything I thought happened was a dream. Have you never been to college and met activitists? Ever had a door to door person come by and argue why the health insurance bill shouldn't be passed? Pro and anti abortion activities come by at all? I can't remember the last time there was a big issue and nobody did door to door on it. I wish i lived in the same fantasy world as some of you were crazy people didn't exist but every day, after work, I have to go back home to that same world.

[shakey]

You are right. My entire life is a lie. Everything I thought happened was a dream. Have you never been to college and met activitists? Ever had a door to door person come by and argue why the health insurance bill shouldn't be passed? Pro and anti abortion activities come by at all? I can't remember the last time there was a big issue and nobody did door to door on it. I wish i lived in the same fantasy world as some of you were crazy people didn't exist but every day, after work, I have to go back home to that same world.

Well, after that cry, I would say so... We only said we doubt that a Atheist was going door to door, speaking about their non belief and insulting those who do not think the same... But after you went that far, I would have to accept the belief that you are a little on the exaggerating side.

But, on a side note, being a atheist doesn't lump me into the same group as any other atheist. Being a atheist doesn't mean living by any standard or set of rules. It doesn't require any one to do any type of anything or behave in any certain way. One's actions, thoughts, and anything else done by an atheist, is not something that can be pinned on all. Atheism doesn't have any thing to "hold to", unlike actual organized religions.

[mudslag]

I don't dispute the fact that the evangelical atheists (or "radical atheists" as I call them) are far outnumbered by evangelical Christians, but that doesn't make their belief and practices any less of a religion.

Actually athiesm is a religion in the strict definition :-

the body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices: a world council of religions.

(dictionary.com).

You can be religious on the fact that bacon tastes good.

Dictionary.com

1.

a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.

2.

a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects: the Christian religion; the Buddhist religion.

3.

the body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices: a world council of religions.

4.

the life or state of a monk, nun, etc.: to enter religion.

5.

the practice of religious beliefs; ritual observance of faith.

In the strictest sense atheism is just the lack of belief of god, it's nothing more and nothing less. You could make an argument that the radicals treat it more along the lines of how radical theist act. But at the same time those radical atheist represent a very small minority of atheism itself and don't represent atheism as the whole. Atheism doesn't fit into any of the parameters that's normally associated with religions in general. Atheism doesn't have a particular set of practices, rituals or places of worship and the ONLY belief is the non-belief of a deity.

Again calling atheism is a religion, is like suggesting that not collecting baseball cards or coins is a hobby.

[nominak]

You are right. My entire life is a lie. Everything I thought happened was a dream. Have you never been to college and met activitists? Ever had a door to door person come by and argue why the health insurance bill shouldn't be passed? Pro and anti abortion activities come by at all? I can't remember the last time there was a big issue and nobody did door to door on it. I wish i lived in the same fantasy world as some of you were crazy people didn't exist but every day, after work, I have to go back home to that same world.

Sounds like it.

Nope.

Nope.

You wanna know who comes knocking on my door every now and then. God damn Jehovas witnesses. Trying to preach to me to follow their religion, after being told multiple times that we don't follow religion. I've been to a funeral for a jehovas witness, and I gotta say, they are bat**** insane. They were bad mouthing the deceased, in front of their own family.

You know who doesn't come to my door? Everyone else.

[Hum]

A family-owned restaurant in Pennsylvania is under a state discrimination investigation for offering a ten percent discount for diners who present a church bulletin on Sundays.

The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission confirmed there is an investigation against Prudhomme?s Lost Cajun Kitchen in the town of Columbia. The complaint was filed by John Wolff, a retired electrical engineer.

?I did this not out of spite, but out of a feeling against the prevailing self-righteousness that stems from religion, particular in Lancaster County,? Wolff told the York Daily Record. ?I don?t consider it an earth-shaking affair, but in this area in particular, we seem to have so many self-righteous religious people, so it just annoys me.?

According to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, a restaurant classified as a public accomodation. As such, restaurants are not allowed to discriminate based on religion ? among other things.

Sharon Prudhomme, who owns the restaurant along with her husband, said she?s not discriminating against anybody ? and plans on fighting the charges.

?What freaks me out is the state of Pennsylvania is basically agreeing with this guy,? Prudhomme told Fox News Radio. ?We?re just a mom and pop. We?re not some big chain like the Olive Garden.?

Prudhomme said the trouble started in April of 2011 when she received the first of several letters from the Freedom From Religion Foundation. The FFRF is a Wisconsin-based organization of ?more than 17,000 freethinkers, atheists, agnostics and skeptics,? according to its website.

The FFRF demanded that she stop giving discounts to patrons who brought in a Sunday church bulletin.

?I just filed it and blew off the other letters,? Prudhomme said. ?I said I have no intention of taking it off the website.?

Last Friday the restaurant was served with a 16-page complaint from the state of Pennsylvania ? accusing her of discrimination.

?I?m an American,? Prudhomme said. ?This is America. This is my business and we?re not breaking any laws.?

She said a representative from the state suggested that she should compromise and sign an agreement that she would offer discounts to any civic organization in the town.

?I said, ?Wait a minute ? you?re asking my husband and I to give anybody coming through my door a discount??? she recounted. ?They said yes.?

?I said, ?Are you crazy???

?We have taxes to pay,? she said. ?We have utility bills, payroll, mortgages and they?re expecting me to give everyone a discount??

Prudhomme said that?s just not going to happen.

?This is our business,? she said. ?We?re the ones paying the taxes. We need the people coming in. Our life is in this ? and then to have someone come along and tell me what I can do and what I can?t do??

She wondered if their other discounts might be considered discriminatory ? like the one on Tuesday night ? where kids under 12 get to eat free. Or what about the senior discount?

?Could someone under 65 complain?? she asked.

more

[Ice_Blue]

Here we go again. Mr Wolff is crying wolf for no reason.

I am surprised the FFRF is supporting this. I always assumed they would have a sense of (ahem) reason on matters of this sort. Read him the riot act, as it were.

It's a bloody coupon, ffs. Available to all and sundry. If it's not, then I stand corrected. :rolleyes:

[srbeen]

They are not breaking laws. Should they want to discount everyone who comes in with a silly hat on Thursdays to a church bulletin on Sundays, then so be it...

I don't think you have to practice the religion to get the bulletin either, do you? I'm sorry I know nothing about what a church bulletin is. Sounds like a newsletter of sorts available at a church.

[Growled Member]

America is not America anymore anyways. It's turned into this crazy place where everyone has to be PC.

[Ice_Blue]

On a side note, athiesm is turning into its own religion/cult. About twice a month, door to door athiest activists come by trying to sell it.

You gotta be sh*tting me. What other extremes would you go to to make Atheists look bad?

[Ice_Blue]

+ infinity

The problem is a lot of atheists claim not having a belief system while evangelizing their beliefs more than some evangelical churches do (full disclosure - I'm Evangelical Lutheran.)

Gimme an example..

Come on!

[Noir Angel]

I wonder how long it's going to be before he starts getting death threats.

[Ice_Blue]

Actually athiesm is a religion in the strict definition :-

the body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices: a world council of religions.

(dictionary.com).

You can be religious on the fact that bacon tastes good.

What would it take to get you people to understand this:

Athiesm IS NOT a belief.

[ncoday]

I wonder how long it's going to be before he starts getting death threats.

I wouldn't be surprised if they haven't already started.

Honestly, I think he deserves some of it. Instead of going around trying to find a reason to be offended, why doesn't he just mind his own damn business!

The restaurant is not saying you have to present a church bulletin to be able to eat there, only to get a discount. If this isn't thrown out of court, there will be some serious protests.

[compl3x]

People need to stop trying to define atheism as a religion. We know what you're doing, and it isn't going to work.

People think if they can convince others atheism is a religion it will undermine atheists' criticisms of religion. It's a very poor tactic that can easily be exposed and refuted.

[shiven]

America is not America anymore anyways. It's turned into this crazy place where everyone has to be PC.

How unbelievably true this is.

[theyarecomingforyou]

What would it take to get you people to understand this:

Athiesm IS NOT a belief.

I'm an atheist and have no problem with it being classed as a belief, given the dictionary definition:

1) a principle, proposition, idea, etc, accepted as true

2) opinion; convictions

As I have not read every scientific paper or religious text on the origin of life much of my knowledge is based upon the conclusions of others, though - unlike religion - scientific evidence exists, is freely available and validated by peer review. And just because belief is often associated with religion / spirituality does not make it exclusively so.

On a side note, athiesm is turning into its own religion/cult. About twice a month, door to door athiest activists come by trying to sell it.

I find that incredibly hard to believe.

Also, where is the empirical evidence that god doesn't exist?

That's not how science works. Science looks to establish evidence that something DOES exist. It's very hard to disprove that something doesn't exist, hence the Flying Spaghetti Monster parody belief.

I actually prefer the Mormon evangelicists. At least they are nice. Had one athiest show up on my doorstep and flat out call me an idiot before even asking me if I beleived in god or not.

Again, that seems incredibly unlikely - especially given your hostile approach. Such claims fly in the face of common sense, especially given your defence of religion. You have zero credibility and people will not take you seriously unless you can substantiate your claims.

Have you never been to college and met activitists? Ever had a door to door person come by and argue why the health insurance bill shouldn't be passed? Pro and anti abortion activities come by at all? I can't remember the last time there was a big issue and nobody did door to door on it.

I never came across religious or atheist activists at university. I have never had an atheist come door to door or preach in the streets, whereas I have had Jehovah's Witnesses knock on my door numerous times and seen obviously crazy Christians preaches in the street. I have never had any visits about abortion or government / social issues. Is that sort of thing common in the US? That strikes me as absolutely ridiculous, verging on outright scary. Can't people keep their beliefs to themselves? In the UK most campaigning takes place in the streets as the privacy of your home is (generally) respected.