We are working on a brand new version of the game! If you want to stay informed, read our blog and register for our mailing list.
Bill: Respecting Individual Spirituality
Details
Submitted by[?]: Imperial Cildanian Egoists
Status[?]: passed
Votes: This is an ordinary bill. It requires more yes votes than no votes. This bill will not pass any sooner than the deadline.
Voting deadline: June 2453
Description[?]:
| RESOLVED: That religious organizations should not be allowed to collectively finance and promote the indoctrination of citizens into their religions. RESOLVED: That regardless of what may be done by organizations, no individual should be prevented from expressing his religious beliefs. |
Proposals
Article 1
Proposal[?] to change Government policy towards evangelism and religious advertising.
Old value:: Religions are permitted to freely promote and advertise themselves.
Current: Religions are permitted to freely promote and advertise themselves.
Proposed: Religious organizations are not permitted to actively promote themselves or advertise, however evangelism is permitted by individuals.
Debate
These messages have been posted to debate on this bill:
| Date | 15:53:46, September 08, 2007 CET | From |  Justice League of Cildania | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | What is an organization if not individuals working together? Your logic does not follow. |
| Date | 18:21:57, September 08, 2007 CET | From | Imperial Cildanian Egoists | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | The Nazi party was individuals working together? The Communist party of Russia was individuals working together? The Spanish Inquisition was individuals working together? An organization is, generally speaking, an entity to which individuals have surrendered their power, often because they have been deceived, forced, made to feel as if they have no choice. Those in charge of organizations do their best to promote the view that individuals must follow them or terrible consequence X will happen. (the consequence varies, in religions it is typically some variation on do as we say or you will burn in hell.) *Organized* religion is, by its very nature, opposed to the individual. Any organization which encourages the acceptance of dogma, and discourages free thought, is one which is opposed to the individual, and thus one which must be fought. Even when organizations come together with noble intentions, from individuals working together, they will grow over time. When any group reaches a certain size, the nobler impulses of the constituent members become suppressed, while their shared fears and hatreds begin to dominate the will of their "collective". This is how mobs of people can riot and cause massive property damage in scenarios where almost any given one of the individuals making up the mob would be appalled at the idea of doing so. Organizations tend to bring out the worst in people, and those people often feel like they do not have the choice to leave the organization. If we wish individuals to be the best they can be, to rise above their pettier impulses, and walk the path to a higher conception of humanity, we *must* pass bills such as this. |
| Date | 22:01:23, September 08, 2007 CET | From | Marxist-Leninist Happiness Front | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | And this bill is the communists and the John Galt party working together. And we have no problem with that if it helps in some way to squash the flow of the religious opiates that brainwash the people. And we fully agree that it's the proper role of the government to protect the individual from organizations of all varieties that threaten their mental or moral outlook. We also share their concern about organizations in general. In the end it's only The Party which is the vanguard of the people which individuals can trust to fight for their interests. |
| Date | 22:14:03, September 08, 2007 CET | From | Imperial Cildanian Egoists | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | Yes. The only point on which we disagree with the MLHF on this issue is that we most definately consider any communist leaning organization to be one of the things from which individual freedom must be protected. The difference between organized religion and communism is one more of style than substance. Religion worships a conception of God. So does communism. It is merely the case that the communist conception of a supreme being *is* the ("revolutionary") State. |
| Date | 00:59:04, September 09, 2007 CET | From | Justice League of Cildania | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | Are individual members of a mob or the Nazi politik not responsible for their actions? Do not the members of an organization larger than your magic threshold retain the freedom of choice? Our argument here is that each man is responsible for his choices and actions, regardless of what organization he happens to belong to or speak for. Think of the consequences of such a law as this: If a religious organization wished to proselytize, your gagging with police and courts would only serve to unify them as an oppressed group, and solidify their collectivist inclinations. Do not fear people that follow maligned ideologies, but by all means fight them if they try to force you to obey. It is not religious people or groups that are the threat here, it is those that try to use force on others. So it is the use of force that we must fight and deny... yet it is the use of force that you are now proposing here. Which side of the moral fence does that put you on? |
| Date | 02:23:38, September 09, 2007 CET | From | Imperial Cildanian Egoists | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | We do seek to limit their right to meet, or to speak amongst themselves. We do not even seek to prevent their constituent members from promoting their personal interpretation of the religion to any who will listen. The *only* thing this legislation would prevent is a representative of the organization, endorsed by the organization, claiming to represent the will of God, and declaring that any who disagrees shall burn for the sin of not accepting a particular brand of dogma. Besides, if a given religion is in the right, it need not do anything so crass as promotion and advertising. God will be on its side, what more does it need. |
| Date | 02:26:52, September 09, 2007 CET | From | Imperial Cildanian Egoists | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | The party must continue to oppose any law which encourages manipulators to trick those of small mind or willpower into accepting anti-individualist ideals. Such organizations get the masses of their membership from the easily duped, and anything which reduces how many dupes they can reach is of benefit to society. |
| Date | 06:53:57, September 09, 2007 CET | From | Marxist-Leninist Happiness Front | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | Than why is it that you oppose our efforts to suppress cults? The reasons you gave are almost the very definition of a cult. |
| Date | 17:36:56, September 09, 2007 CET | From | Imperial Cildanian Egoists | To | Debating the Respecting Individual Spirituality |
| Message | The definition of "cult" would change from administration to administration, depending on the particular prejudices of those in power. Much too inconstant. |
subscribe to this discussion - unsubscribe
Voting
| Vote | Seats | |||
| yes | Total Seats: 189 | |||
| no | Total Seats: 165 | |||
| abstain |
Total Seats: 71 |
| Random fact: References to prominent real-life persons are not allowed. This includes references to philosophies featuring the name of a real-life person (eg. "Marxism", "Thatcherism", "Keynesianism"). |
| Random quote: "Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first." Ronald Reagan (1911 - 2004) |