Which nation can really tolerate the difference in religion?

[ray245]

When I joined this board, I still have a idealistic view of the US being another country where difference in religion is tolerated.

Only after reading more news reports and facts given by the board members, have I realise that US religion tolerance only exisit on paper so to speak.

Many posters have often posted about how many times they have been harrassed by the christians for the lack of any religious beliefs.

So which country can really tolerate religion difference on a personal level, between friends, families and etc?

A country where people can say out loud that jesus may not exist and people can tolerate and respect that person for his own beliefs instead of convincing and 'saving' him.

[Warsie]

Actually the US is nice in that regard. The Cities are AMAZINGLY tolerant in that regard. The places where that happens tend to occur in the southeast United States, and Rocky Mountain region I think.

Well I'll phrase it differently. A significant portion of Americans are religious and biased. Many other Americans aren't religious, or respect diversity. This is more likely in the cities; where more of the minorities are.

For nations that respect religious diversity MORE than the United States (as a whole), try Canada and the European Union.

[Hawkwings]

The US is a big country. The environment in Berkeley, California is very different from the environment in Nowhere, Alabama.

[Kitsune]

Even in Nowhere, they will not hunt you down generally like they might in some place in Africa for your religious beliefs (or lack), but they will try to get their religious morals put into the laws and school system.....

[Gil Hamilton]

Even in Nowhere, they will not hunt you down generally like they might in some place in Africa for your religious beliefs (or lack), but they will try to get their religious morals put into the laws and school system.....

They won't hunt you down and chop you up with machetes, but that's not to say you will be tolerated. Smalltown, USA sucks if you aren't a protestant Christian. Or, alternatively, if you aren't Mormon in Utah.

The cities themselves are pretty alright for tolerance, but it depends on where. I wouldn't say that Topeka is just as tolerant as San Francisco or Boston, for instance.

[Kitsune]

If you are different, there will always be problems....
You are male and have a male roommate, they assume you are gay if in a city or not in a city...

[Shinova]

Depends on city size too. If it's a megacity like New York or San Francisco, then it's very tolerable. If it's a small city, then there's a better chance of religious intolerance, especially if it's dominated by one ethnic group or another.

[Shinova]

Basically any place that forces many people to live alongside many other people will almost always be very tolerant.

[Warsie]

Only after reading more news reports and facts given by the board members, have I realise that US religion tolerance only exisit on paper so to speak.

Many posters have often posted about how many times they have been harrassed by the christians for the lack of any religious beliefs.

I forgot to include this: a significant portion of this board's population is made of atheists. You should factor this in as they may be skewed against religion and they focus on those examples.

[HemlockGrey]

You are male and have a male roommate, they assume you are gay if in a city or not in a city...

What the hell kind of cities are you living in?

[Ariphaos]

If you are different, there will always be problems....
You are male and have a male roommate, they assume you are gay if in a city or not in a city...

Never saw this, not even in Rapid City. Even being openly atheist was at worst met with respectful discourse (at least towards me as a person).

[Rye]

When I joined this board, I still have a idealistic view of the US being another country where difference in religion is tolerated.

Only after reading more news reports and facts given by the board members, have I realise that US religion tolerance only exisit on paper so to speak.

Many posters have often posted about how many times they have been harrassed by the christians for the lack of any religious beliefs.

So which country can really tolerate religion difference on a personal level, between friends, families and etc?

A country where people can say out loud that jesus may not exist and people can tolerate and respect that person for his own beliefs instead of convincing and 'saving' him.

The UK outside of Northern Ireland is pretty good for religious tolerance. There's a load of varied faiths at my uni, and for the most part, people there are very secular. In fact, expressions of strong religiosity are looked down upon as creepy and I've never had any problems from saying religion's bullshit and gets people killed.

[Master of Ossus]

They won't hunt you down and chop you up with machetes, but that's not to say you will be tolerated. Smalltown, USA sucks if you aren't a protestant Christian. Or, alternatively, if you aren't Mormon in Utah.

The cities themselves are pretty alright for tolerance, but it depends on where. I wouldn't say that Topeka is just as tolerant as San Francisco or Boston, for instance.

I have relatives that live in Salt Lake City, and the Mormons don't bother them at all. They said that shortly after they moved in, some people came by to proselytize, and they just said that they weren't interested and to please remove them from their list. The Mormons have never been back. Although, they did mention that liquor stores still DO close on Sunday.

[Darth Wong]

They won't hunt you down and chop you up with machetes, but that's not to say you will be tolerated. Smalltown, USA sucks if you aren't a protestant Christian. Or, alternatively, if you aren't Mormon in Utah.

The cities themselves are pretty alright for tolerance, but it depends on where. I wouldn't say that Topeka is just as tolerant as San Francisco or Boston, for instance.

I have relatives that live in Salt Lake City, and the Mormons don't bother them at all. They said that shortly after they moved in, some people came by to proselytize, and they just said that they weren't interested and to please remove them from their list. The Mormons have never been back. Although, they did mention that liquor stores still DO close on Sunday.

I've seen business signs in the US that say "Christian Owned". I'm sure that nets them either an increase in business or at worst, no change. Would you want to take a chance on putting up a business in Utah with signage that says "Atheist Owned"?

Religious discrimination in America is not as bad as it is in some places. But as with many things, it doesn't come anywhere near to their lofty rhetoric about being the "home of the free". There is a big gap between the way American describe their own country and the reality, partially because the rhetoric is so incredibly florid, and partially because there is a tendency to see people as disloyal if they criticize the nation. And you can't even criticize this, because they will react by accusing other countries of acting the same way, even though it is not routine in other countries to continually describe themselves as "the greatest country in the world".

[Gil Hamilton]

I have relatives that live in Salt Lake City, and the Mormons don't bother them at all. They said that shortly after they moved in, some people came by to proselytize, and they just said that they weren't interested and to please remove them from their list. The Mormons have never been back. Although, they did mention that liquor stores still DO close on Sunday.

The person I've known who's lived in Utah, though granted not in Salt Lake City (I believe, he was in the same town as Brigham Young University), mentioned that there isn't really an open hostility from the Mormons, but there WAS a very definite atmosphere that he wasn't one of them and that he was more put up with than really accepted.

The guy in question had a hell of a time dating because of it, cause he kept meeting girls from BYU, but couldn't hold on to them when people found out he was Catholic. Particularly due to parental pressure.

[Darth Wong]

The line I always heard about Utah was that if you start a business there, it really helps to be Mormon.

[Kitsune]

What the hell kind of cities are you living in?

Tidewater area of Virginia, home of Pat Robertson.....

[Darth Wong]

What the hell kind of cities are you living in?

Tidewater area of Virginia, home of Pat Robertson.....

That explains it. Having same-sex roommates doesn't mean much in more progressive areas, as long as you're not sharing a bedroom.

[Aquatain]

A country where people can say out loud that jesus may not exist and people can tolerate and respect that person for his own beliefs instead of convincing and 'saving' him.

Well you can here in Denmark, but then again the danish population is pretty much the most non-religious bunch of people you'll find any place.

[Master of Ossus]

The line I always heard about Utah was that if you start a business there, it really helps to be Mormon.

Well, that may be true, but he's doing pretty well in his private practice. Mind you, I'm not saying that Utah is the perfect example of a religiously tolerant society (though they DO seem to tolerate the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints jackasses a little TOO much if you ask me), I'm just reporting that Uncle Harry hasn't mentioned any major problems with living there.

[Kamakazie Sith]

The person I've known who's lived in Utah, though granted not in Salt Lake City (I believe, he was in the same town as Brigham Young University), mentioned that there isn't really an open hostility from the Mormons, but there WAS a very definite atmosphere that he wasn't one of them and that he was more put up with than really accepted.

BYU is the problem. The more south from Salt Lake you travel the more conservative things become.

Salt Lake is a liberal city and has had a democratic mayor for a long time now. It is also one of the few cities in Utah, and nationwide that I'm aware of in which sexual orientation is a protected class.

[Kitsune]

That explains it. Having same-sex roommates doesn't mean much in more progressive areas, as long as you're not sharing a bedroom.

I don't presently have the same bedroom but that has occurred in the past with a small apartment. It was two separate beds though and still I ask why that it would make a person assume that they were gay?

[General Zod]

That explains it. Having same-sex roommates doesn't mean much in more progressive areas, as long as you're not sharing a bedroom.

I don't presently have the same bedroom but that has occurred in the past with a small apartment. It was two separate beds though and still I ask why that it would make a person assume that they were gay?

Because closeted homophobes wind up projecting their insecurities and expectations onto everyone else. To them, anyone behaving in <x> fashion must be gay; since that's the opposite of what they perceive acceptable masculine behavior to be.

[Kitsune]

Because closeted homophobes wind up projecting their insecurities and expectations onto everyone else. To them, anyone behaving in <x> fashion must be gay; since that's the opposite of what they perceive acceptable masculine behavior to be.

I was more being rhetorical than anything else.....
It was more complaining about how automatic it is to assume that you are gay when you have a roommate of the same sex and you have a small apartment for cost reasons......