Tanner Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 Religulous is an exceptional movie. Hilarious, but scary. Bill Maher is the man. Thought I'd let you all know the boys made it. Go see it! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mastershake Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 yeah i saw it today and noticed the song. i'm surprised wilco let them use it - i don't really think tweedy agrees that believing in god is stupid Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 i don't really think tweedy agrees that believing in god is stupid There's a big difference between believing in god, and believing in organized religion. From what I've heard, the movie explores the latter. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Good Old Neon Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 Richard Dawkins, atheist extraordinaire has tried to spark an Atheists for Jesus campaign - I could get behind that. Dawkins: I am no memetic engineer, and I have very little idea how to increase the numbers of the super nice and spread their memes through the meme pool. The best I can offer is what I hope may be a catchy slogan. 'Atheists for Jesus' would grace a T-shirt. There is no strong reason to choose Jesus as icon, rather than some other role model from the ranks of the super nice such as Mahatma Gandhi (not the odiously self-righteous Mother Teresa, heavens no). I think we owe Jesus the honour of separating his genuinely original and radical ethics from the supernatural nonsense which he inevitably espoused as a man of his time. And perhaps the oxymoronic impact of 'Atheists for Jesus' might be just what is needed to kick start the meme of super niceness in a post-Christian society. If we play our cards right - could we lead society away from the nether regions of its Darwinian origins into kinder and more compassionate uplands of post-singularity enlightenment? I think a reborn Jesus would wear the T-shirt. It has become a commonplace that, were he to return today, he would be appalled at what is being done in his name, by Christians ranging from the Catholic Church to the fundamentalist Religious Right. Less obviously but still plausibly, in the light of modern scientific knowledge I think he would see through supernaturalist obscurantism. But of course, modesty would compel him to turn his T-shirt around: Jesus for Atheists. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mastershake Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 There's a big difference between believing in god, and believing in organized religion. From what I've heard, the movie explores the latter.no, it's an attack on both organized religion and god in general. in the movie, maher comes off as an atheist that thinks god is just an imaginary friend in the sky. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 In a total, non-busting way, I can't help but ask - how many threads do we need about this film? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
markosis Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 Yay, another religion discussion. 'Scuse me a sec: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SquashedFrog Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 Mahar didn't request "Theologians"? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mountain bed Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 no, it's an attack on both organized religion and god in general. in the movie, maher comes off as an atheist that thinks god is just an imaginary friend in the sky.He may come off as an atheist in the movie (I haven't seen it yet, but I plan to) but there are numerous instances in both print and television where Maher says that he doesn't really know for sure. I can't really argue with that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sgtpepper64 Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 I just saw the movie tonight and yelled "holy shit, this is Wilco" out-loud when it started playing, meaning to say it only in my head. That being said, I think if one were to pay attention to what Bill was actually saying in the movie and watched his show on HBO, they'd know he basically comes from the standpoint of being skeptical of people who believe they know for sure. He's selling doubt, as he says. He's not anti god I don't think, He's anti stupidity. He's anti certainty and he's anti pointlessness. Good movie for sure, but frightening. I can't believe how many people are nuts... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Golden Smoghead Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 On the question of "what if Jesus were alive today?" I have always loved the Guthrie song on this topic. Lyrics for "Jesus Christ": Jesus Christ was a man who traveled through the landA hard-working man and braveHe said to the rich, "Give your money to the poor,"But they laid Jesus Christ in His grave Jesus was a man, a carpenter by handHis followers true and braveOne dirty little coward called Judas IscariotHas laid Jesus Christ in His Grave He went to the preacher, He went to the sheriffHe told them all the same"Sell all of your jewelry and give it to the poor,"And they laid Jesus Christ in His grave. When Jesus come to town, all the working folks aroundBelieved what he did sayBut the bankers and the preachers, they nailed Him on the cross,And they laid Jesus Christ in his grave. And the people held their breath when they heard about his deathEverybody wondered whyIt was the big landlord and the soldiers that they hiredTo nail Jesus Christ in the sky This song was written in New York CityOf rich man, preacher, and slaveIf Jesus was to preach what He preached in Galilee,They would lay poor Jesus in His grave. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sweet Papa Crimbo Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 In a total, non-busting way, I can't help but ask - how many threads do we need about this film topic? Getting tiresome indeed Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 Getting tiresome indeed Good point. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Good Old Neon Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 Getting tiresome indeed The proliferation of such threads - the fact that you continue entering into them against your own will (?) or all of the above? (With all due respect) I ask only because though I agree this could have been posted in the Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Jules Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 (With all due respect) I ask only because though I agree this could have been posted in the Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Golden Smoghead Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 I kind of thought this was a slightly-different topic from the other threads, because it was more about the Maher movie and the appearance of Theologians in the movie. That said, I quit reading the other one about 30 pages ago, so maybe it's about the Maher movie now. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Party @ the Moontower Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 No, there certainly are not useless threads started on this board by anyone. Nothing cluttering up the board anywhere else but here. All threads outside of here are full of thick ass substance. I can smell the substance from here. I like this thread because it's a place to discuss this movie and Bill, a movie I finally get to see Saturday night. I'll be back... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Good Old Neon Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 Or, point it out to the person, so maybe next time they will use the search function and avoid cluttering up the forum with needless extra threads. Or that, if you really feel the need to point that sort of thing out. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Jules Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 I like this thread because it's a place to discuss this movie and Bill, a movie I finally get to see Saturday night. I'll be back...Fine, but it doesn't belong in here. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Party @ the Moontower Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 Religulous is an exceptional movie. Hilarious, but scary. Bill Maher is the man. Thought I'd let you all know the boys made it. Go see it! Thanks! I can't wait to see it and hear Wilco. Bill Maher is the man Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Doug C Posted October 6, 2008 Share Posted October 6, 2008 Isn't 'Just A Fan' the appropriate place for a thread about a Wilco song appearing in a movie? Of course it is. There seems to be so much posted that is thinly-veiled adversarial falderal. If I could find a betting parlor that would take book on the likelihood of specific posters posts being replied to by other specific posters no matter the thread's subject matter, I'd be able to afford to have Bill Maher and Wilco play my back garden. If anything clutters up the board, it's that type of nonsense. Back to the thread. I would have probably also said 'Holy shit' or somesuch out loud! I wonder if Maher is a Wilco fan? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TheMaker Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 A few statements which should be obvious on their face: first of all, this discussion may become tiresome at times, but it should never feel tired to any of us who have a personal stake in it. And I'm pretty sure we all do, without exception. Secondly, this is a very brave movie from a very brave director (Larry Charles, who helmed and also co-wrote Bob Dylan's brilliant but misunderstood cult classic "Masked and Anonymous", as well as the hilarious, bawdy and genuinely provocative "Borat"), so I think it deserves at least a modicum of respect from those who disagree with its thesis. I saw Charles and Maher on CBC's The Hour, and Bill said something that resonated with me, as I suspect it did for a lot of atheists: that he needn't condescend to the religious by treating them with kid gloves, because they've certainly never bothered to extend that courtesy to those of us who have outgrown their fairy tales. They don't tend to murder or torture us quite like they used to do, but they sure do love to stigmatize us, even in the 21st Century. Thirdly, I don't think it behooves anybody to speculate idly about Jeff Tweedy's thoughts or non-thoughts on the nature of religion or Maher's interrogation techniques. Whether he agrees with them principally or not is for him to comment on, and I think he's clearly not opposed to the movie's taboo-busting aspects if he's licensed a song for use in the flick. (And personally, I would never wear an "atheists for Jesus" shirt. Have you ever read the New Testament? The guy was a murderer and a jerk, not to mention a bigot! To hell with him. Er, no pun intended, of course... ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bobbob1313 Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 Jesus murdered people? That's news to me. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tanner Posted October 7, 2008 Author Share Posted October 7, 2008 Sorry for the duplicate forum. I thought this one could be specific to the song being in the movie. And besides, it's a forum... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted October 7, 2008 Share Posted October 7, 2008 Sorry for the duplicate forum. I thought this one could be specific to the song being in the movie. And besides, it's a forum... I wish it could be what you had in mind. We should have a thread called Wilco - Songs in Movies and Television Shows or something like that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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