Friday, March 12, 2010

Why wage a battle when you cannot win the war?

Why wage a battle if you cannot win the war? I hear it all the time. Why fight the system, city hall, or hatred and bigotry? Why fight? I don't like having a big meaty bible thumping finger pushed in my eye for some fundie. Or in the case of Florida Atheist Michael Middlebrooks, a bumper sticker ripped from his shirt by Florida Governor Charlie Crist.

I found this today. Atheists are fighting back by waging the battle they cannot win. Heck, they will be lucky if hyper religious Florida Governor Charlie Crist pays them any attention at all let alone engages in a fight over his treatment of a Florida Atheist. Check out the Atheist of Florida podcast for more on the subject:
HOST: Matt Cooper. TOPIC: Why did Governor Crist lash out at a Florida citizen on Friday, March 5, literally shouting over his shoulder, "I feel sorry for you!" after ripping a campaign sticker off a man and pointedly turning his back on him? What would be a relatively minor incident in most cases takes on new and disturbing significance when the perpetrator of such a display of hatred, fear and loathing is none other than the chief executive officer of the state government, someone sworn to protect and defend the equal rights of all citizens without respect to any individual's opinions or beliefs about religion. Hear what happened or call to ask questions.
I think having the bumper sticker placed on Middlebrooks' chest was an affront all by itself. Having it ripped off could be seen as mercy.

Host Matt Cooper and friends are barking up the wrong tree by calling this a hate crime or asserting that Crist should resign. Crist will run away from an oversold controversy like this. He can legitimately claim we are acting crazy and people will believe him. Nor do I think the press would pay much attention to this argument. Crist was stating his opinion about his personal religious beliefs in a public setting in an inappropriate way. That alone would be newsworthy as it speaks to his character, which the press is already questioning. Overselling,,, It rarely works. Issue a press release, work the media. They are hungry for this type of story.

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