"Every day I get in the queue, to get on the bus that takes me to you."
-The Who
BARCELONA — For a saucy country steeped in Catholic tradition, you might expect the vanity license plates to wildly scream "HE IS IN ME" or "JESUS CHRIST IS ON MY BUMPER" but for Spain, separation of church and state has hit a speed bump. This Chicago Tribune article by Christine Spolar explains that for many plastered buses in Spain, "GOD PROBABLY DOESN'T EXIST":
"This democracy is engaged in a bracing debate over God and state and deciding whether Catholic or secular visions should mold social policies and young minds.
A new citizenship course, introduced in secondary school in September, left politicians and church leaders tangling over what values should be formally taught. Laws passed in 2005 that essentially recognize gay marriage and ease divorce still rankle Catholic elders."
A new citizenship course, introduced in secondary school in September, left politicians and church leaders tangling over what values should be formally taught. Laws passed in 2005 that essentially recognize gay marriage and ease divorce still rankle Catholic elders."
Why am I am reminded of Bill Maher's book "When You Ride Alone You Ride with Bin Laden"? Like meditation or yoga, many devout people from all different faiths claim that regular religious worship not only gets them high but it also unites them. Speaking of meditation and yoga, unlike the local Catholic church which allows you to attend Mass for free, all of the yoga centers around here are strictly for-profit and charge you at least twelve bucks EACH session to painfully turn your body into a pretzel in an attempt to obtain nirvana - perhaps they'll roll out bus signs that read "THERE'S PROBABLY NO AFFORDABLE NIRVANA JOINTS ON THIS ROUTE. NOW STOP WORRYING AND ENJOY YOUR SHITTY LIFE."
Apparently, Spain isn't the first country to deploy the godless buses as Britain was the first. But why should the belief of atheism - that particular belief -- be marketed and branded like cheap laundry detergent? Our personal beliefs, now, must become cleansed through the Almighty Groupthink rinse cycle delivered to us, Oh non-existent Lord, by the Invisible Hand of One Big Godless Wiccan? How exciting!
I can't wait to see our local Muni buses plastered with signs that read "STOP WORRYING. DIG IT AND DIE LIKE DOGS."
-2Truthy
-2Truthy
3 comments:
Nice job 2T!! I like The Who connection. Spain. What a bunch of surrender cucarachas.
It is a shameless, new low in the eyes of the Lord Vishnu when religious dictates of any creed are "marketed and branded like cheap laundry detergent" on the side of a city bus. Without an actual rupee amount.
So true, O Venerable Swami. Once upon a time we lamented a "deadhead sticker on a Cadillac," now we must deal with buses wrapped in Orwellian epigrams. The message Spain is sending is clear--"Crucifix, bad. Burka, good. Atheism, even better." Your tax pesetas at work. Pardon me, euros. Remember, without the industry of the Germans, your goddamned euro would be worthless, and you Spaniards would be left swilling your sangria out of muslim turbans.
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