[Politics/Religion (I guess)] Bill Maher tries too hard

[Fuzzy]

Anyway, back on topic...

The hard-core environmentalists have basically declared war on golf (courses.)  Maybe Gleek and Dys know a bit about the Sharp Park story.  Here's a story written by golf course architecture champion Geoff Shackleford - Sharply Divided - giving "our" side of the deal.  ("Our" meant to refer to golfers not wingtards.)  Admittedly the golf industry has come very late to the table as regards water management and chemicals concern.  It's not a binary equation though.  Golf and environment can, and often do, coexist in a beautiful synergy.  Golf courses are green space after all.  Seems to me there's plenty of common ground if the parties are reasonable.

While Maher frames his commentary as some sort of a stand-up routine I have little doubt he takes a strong position on golf courses.  I'm willing to accept him at his word on this.

On a lighter note I defer to Al Czervik...

http://www.carlspackler.com/sounds/049.mp3

 

[gleek]

As a libtard atheist type, I read Sam Harris's A Letter to a Christian Nation and I watched Maher's Religulous and walked away from both with the exact same feeling: I agree with the sentiment, but the approach sucks. As a person who gets accused on a pretty regular basis of being an *bunghole*, I still recognize that being an *bunghole* isn't the best way to get people on your side. All you do is make those who agree with you agree with you more, and those who don't continue to believe you're an *bunghole*.

If all you want to do is reinforce people of their opinion that you're an *bunghole*, it's a great technique. If you actually want to be persuasive... not so much. Again, coming from a person who gets accused on a pretty regular basis of being an *bunghole*.

I think the premise of this "approach" is that no approach is going to convince a believer to become a non-believer. However, the assumption is that there are a lot of closet non-believers out there who, for one reason or another, are afraid to accept their non-belief let alone openly express their non-belief. A combination of reason and ridicule of fundamentalism is an approach to convince the closet atheists that they're not the ones that should be considered bat *feces* crazy.

[Blader]

I think the premise of this "approach" is that no approach is going to convince a believer to become a non-believer.

Not so sure I agree with this. Doubt can be an excellent weapon against faith.  It has a corrosive effect.  The atheists are merely trying to create doubt. 

Maher is not a card carrying libtard.  He's also not exactly a libertarian.  He's a strange breed, purposely so, for entertainment purposes--so he can be provocative against both ends of the spectrum.  Yet he is no centrist.  He's just vapid and I guess he appeals the the vapidocracy. 

But he says what he says to make noise, because what he most needs to be is not the proverbial tree falling in empty woods.  Controversy sells-ask Beck and Limbaugh and Hannity and the Big O and so forth.

Personally, I can't take his HBO program in increments much longer than 60 seconds.

[Uisce Beatha]

How does one define arcane concepts like 'Promote The General Welfare'?

However one wants?  Which is pretty much the trouble with the domain space, yes?

We're not talking 'Domain Space' here. We're talking 'Egregious' principles that this country was founded on and and the basic law of the land.

Anyway, Maher's an ass and I could give 2 *feces*s what he thinks about golf courses.

You misunderstand me.  I don't believe the principles upon which the country was founded (again, whatever the hell that means) are egregious.  I believe Maher's positions on some things are egregious and in instances decidedly not of the libertarian bent.  For me, labeling him politically doesn't make much sense (I say this after I call him a libtard, douchebag and *bunghole*, LOL.)

It's cool you don't give 2 *feces*s but I'll probably leave the topic open anyway.  When prominent environmentalists rail against golf I think we golfers might want to take note.  Trust me, in 20 years we might be looking back at a bunch of courses we're play today and scratching our heads.  "WTF happened to Bupkiss National G.C. over in Cornhole County?  They tore it down and put up a Walmart/NIH facility/take your pick."

[MFAWG]

I'd like to change my original answer to:

[Uisce Beatha]

I think I understand you now.

Bill Kilgore was here likes pie.

[MFAWG]

Well, that and Maher is from goddamn New York.

[stroh]

I liked this place better when it wasn't a golf forum.