Another article

[Aileron]

I seem to be quoting a lot of other sources today. This one is actually from my local newspaper at State College, PA.

 

Centre Daily Times

 

This flat out sickens me. Freedom of Religion is granted under the US cons!@#$%^&*ution, and this freedom extends to Catholicism. By what right can a piss-ant zoning commision dare to go against the US Cons!@#$%^&*ution?

 

Face it, they claim that this area doesn't allow recreational buildings and that the area is viewed as historical, but that's an excuse not a reason.

 

I've seen this treatment before. I grew up around York, PA. Some years ago, some lawyers implicated the city mayor in some racial riots that occured in the 60s in which a black woman was killed. It turned out that he wasn't really involved in it, but the trial non-theless attracted the notice of a group of skinheads, and an extremist anti-racist group of anarchists. Both decided to protest on the same day at the same place, and were it not for York putting the entire police force between them, its certain that the town would have been home to a battle of idiot fanatics.

 

The next year, when the skinheads tried to apply for another protest, the city cited a group of obscure laws that basically said that if they wanted to protest in York, they had to pay the local library something of the order of a few million dollars. Skinheads don't have that kind of money, so the racists didn't bother the city again.

 

I can understand why York gave the racists that treatment. These were a group of violent hulligans who were not going to bring anything to the community except maybe a riot. I don't understand why State College feels they have to give a group of Catholics the same treatment. The center has only positive things to offer the community. There won't be a Catholic riot if they approve the center. (there might be a riot if the DON'T, but...) Such a center is probably going to be intilectual in nature, would be willing to host community events, and would only add to the cultural cornicopia of State College.

[MonteZuma]

Rules are rules. Freedom of religion doesn't mean freedom to erect buildings wherever.

 

Clearly it isn't a church that they plan to build. It is against zoning rules and the residents don't want it. Time to pick up the bat and ball and look for somewhere else to play.

[»Ducky]

Skinheads don't have that kind of money, so the racists didn't bother the city again.

The line threw me off.

Can't believe editting didn't catch that.

 

It's hard to make a judgement on the article without knowing what historical referance is supposedly protecting the area.

Lincoln's piss tree and the grave of 20,000 soldiers are two completely different scenerio's.

 

I did notice that the use of the Skinhead anecdote was basically irrelevant to the main point, but used to coax the reader into some favorable mindset.

 

Basically, I believe it was an inefficient article full of 'filler' theory and suspicion without the most important main fact listed to the reader.

---------

 

On a side note, if the historical significance turns out to be quite low, I do agree that the community is getting jipped of something that is 'basically' harmless.

[Aileron]

The "historical significance" is a just a few old houses, not something extremely special.

 

The point about ths skinheads is that when somebody that a community doesn't want around tries to come in, communities sometimes use meanial regulations such as this one to get around the first amendment. The Skinheads had every cons!@#$%^&*utional right to protest in York, even if a riot is likely, but the county used obscure rules to scare them off.

 

In the case of the skinheads its justified, they are abusing the first amendment only in hopes of creating chaos.

 

I'm just hurt that Centre county is treating Catholics like skinheads.

[Yupa]

that's an excuse not a reason

excuse:

something offered as justification or as grounds for being excused

 

justification:

the act or an instance of justifying

 

justifying:

to prove or show to be just, right, or reasonable

 

reasonable:

being in accordance with reason

 

I've never really understood why most people don't know what "excuse" means - I s'pose because teachers and other people that feel they're worthy to discipline children use it incorrectly and the kids figure they're right.

[Aileron]

Um, the way I used it satisfies your definition.

[Yupa]

you said it was an excuse, not a reason - an excuse is a reason, so no, you did not

[Aileron]

No, excuse = rationalization. There's a subtle but very important difference

 

A reason is something offerred inductively starting with raw facts and ending at a previously unknown conclusion.

 

Excuses and rationalizations result when somebody starts with a conclusion and works his way backwards.

 

 

Basically, the way this arguement went about is that they started with "we don't want a group of Catholics in our neighborhood" and ended with "ah, we can keep them out by saying they violate the zoning code". If they were using reason, their logic would have started with the building code, and ended with a variety of options.

 

 

And, yes, throughout this whole topic I've been rationalizing myself...it IS a very easy trap to fall into and does of the potential of making sound arguements.