Why do I read the comments on some articles?

[blpurdom]

So tired of people automatically saying about both Orson Scott Card and Stephenie Meyer that their being Mormons explains anything they don't like about them. There are plenty of Mormons who manage NOT to actively work to dehumanize sexual minorities and take away what few rights they have (OSC) or who manage NOT to create characters who are

Comments

[author_by_night]

Oh, I can't stand that. It seems for whatever reason Catholics and Mormons are acceptable targets. I disagree with many of the teachings many of the louder members uphold, but I can say the same of all Christian denominations and religion as a whole. Not everyone's views are extreme, and just because someone's views happen to be strict or different doesn't automatically mean they're bad. I'm not Catholic (although I do have Irish Catholic heritage, so I am maybe a bit sensitive there) or Mormon - I just believe in acceptance.

Also, there's a difference between Mormon cults in Arizona and Mormonism.

SMeyer's role models are horrible, but it's not because of her religion, it's because they're not well written.

[blpurdom]

They don't seem to get that by dismissing anyone out of hand for their religion is an ad hominem attack. (JK Rowling actually has an amusing example of this, when Harry is reading a Daily Prophet article about Madam Marsh resigning from the Wizengamott and this is followed by something like, "For more about Madam Marsh's ties to subversive goblin groups, turn to page 17." That's an ad hominem attack, a dismissal of anything Madam Marsh says because she supposedly has ties to these subversive groups.)

And it's ridiculous because we're all members of one cult or another. For some people it's the cult of atheism, for others it's the cult of Dr. Who or One Direction. Can we all just agree that we're cultists of one stripe or another and move on, instead of dismissing people out of hand and not really engaging with the topic in question?