Comments for Rock Beyond Belief

Comment on The single best video ever made about foxhole atheists (possibly NSFW) by how to have confidence in yourself

how to have confidence in yourself — Thu, 24 May 2012 22:16:22 +0000

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Comment on Everybody needs to wish Assassin Actual ‘get well soon’ by chain of infection

chain of infection — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:32:03 +0000

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Comment on Rock And Roll is Evil by justsomeguy

justsomeguy — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:29:34 +0000

@michaelblume:

Music, like all other art, is also subjective. Two people can look at the same painting, or watch the same movie, or listen to the same song, and have very different reactions. And because of its subjective nature, it’s possible for those two people to have vastly differing opinions on the subject and neither of them is incorrect.

It’s entirely reasonable that individuals will have strong negative reactions to whole genres of music. But the teacher in the story was not expressing her thoughts on rock as a subjective opinion. She was expressing her thoughts as objective fact. Not only that, but she was making a very broad statement about all iterations of rock music being equally bad. Blanket statements like that usually fall apart upon closer scrutiny.

Comment on Rock And Roll is Evil by michaelblume

michaelblume — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:15:28 +0000

I’m reminded of Dr. Manhattan’s line from Watchmen:

“A live body and a dead body contain the same number of particles. Structurally, there’s no discernible difference. Life and death are unquantifiable abstracts. Why should I be concerned?”

By which I mean — I’m sorry, but this is not a very good post. Not that I think rock music is evil, but the arguments *in this post* make no sense. They represent fake reductionism in the same way Dr. Manhattan’s line does.

“How can rock music be evil? It’s just pitches, and decibels.” is not an argument. You could just as well ask how rock music can be fun to listen to, or how a novel can be worth reading…

So, taking the ~~devil~~priest’s advocate position for a moment. How can rock music be evil? Simple. Music is heard by the ears and experienced by the brain and it produces altered mental states. As with all good art, certain kinds of music invite you towards certain kinds of emotion and away from others. They make some thoughts more thinkable, and others less. From there it is not a tremendous leap to claim that, say, certain kinds of music might create lustful thoughts that will cause you to “sin sexually” (again, *I* don’t think it’s *possible* to “sin” sexually with willing partner(s), but this is how the argument goes).

It’s all well and good to make fun of the religious for believing silly things, like that rock music is evil, but let’s have our arguments make sense.

Comment on Are you smarter than a 13th Grader? Muslim + Catholic editions by Erp

Erp — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:10:11 +0000

Peace and Submission in Arabic are cognates (the root is slm [Arabic/Hebrew roots are just consonants and vowels are used to indicate different meanings]) so Muslim is one who submits and salaam is peace. Hebrew has the same root, hence shalom (Hebrew for peace).

Comment on West Point’s dangerous medieval Christian Crusader imagery by Erp

Erp — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:01:00 +0000

@13 Actually the first crusade did make it to Jerusalem. Reading the accounts of the capture is pretty horrific (mass slaughter). The kingdoms they established lasted for about 200 years.

Comment on Rock And Roll is Evil by Tribeca Mike

Tribeca Mike — Thu, 24 May 2012 19:57:09 +0000

Jimmy Swaggart used to brag on his TV show about how he never played minor chords on the piano, since they are the devil’s work.

Comment on Are you smarter than a 13th Grader? Muslim + Catholic editions by Justin Griffith

Justin Griffith — Thu, 24 May 2012 19:26:56 +0000

LOL’d at IslandBrewer’s Catholic version.

Comment on West Point’s dangerous medieval Christian Crusader imagery by Old Rockin' Dave

Old Rockin' Dave — Thu, 24 May 2012 19:09:26 +0000

@Dave #3:
You would do well to read up on the Crusades. The First Crusade never got to Muslim lands but stayed in Christian Hungary for months, expecting to be fed and housed. The Hungarians finally drove them out by force. The Fourth Crusade destroyed the Byzantine Empire, the largest Christian kingdom in the world. Crusaders not only warred with Muslims but in many instances slaughtered and looted Christians who lived in the Muslim cities. Both in the “Holy Land” and on the way there, the oh-so-holy Crusaders massacred Jews wherever they found them, in Europe or in the Middle East. Their record is dismal, often evil, and they were all too often greedy and cruel. Greed, promises of salvation, escaping the miserable life of a serf, all were motivations that ranked higher with many, maybe most, of the Crusaders than any burning desire to deliver the “Holy Land”.
The use of Crusader symbolism is offensive to many people of all faiths and none, and should be offensive to all civilized peoples.

Comment on Rock And Roll is Evil by Skip White

Skip White — Thu, 24 May 2012 18:22:58 +0000

Watch out for music in odd time signatures like 5/4 or 7/8. I assume that too much use of those would eventually bring about the Antichrist. So that makes progressive rock extra-evil.