Sorry, but the Tea Party has nothing to do with race. That's the media trying to turn it onto something it's not.

Exactly what I was going to say. Such movements are basically secular religions and can be as intolerant as any other religion.

I'm sorry but that sounds wrong to me.  Such movements are based on possible effects on the world.  There is a stark difference between an anti-war stance because war causes casualities in 'real-life' as opposed to a religious belief in fear of a 'supposed' damnation.  Such movements are certainly not "basically secular religions".  I agree with HappySqurriels comment on this statement though.

I got better question why do homosexuals care what religion X thinks about them?

And why are they so obsessed on enforcing their believes on other people ?

And how the hell is that picture full of homosexual activity. I don't see anyone performing sexual acts there.

The quote is flawed because it assumes too much. 'We construct a fantasy about how we are superior to those who don't share our views?' Oh, is that so? I like how the author of this quote is labeling anyone who is "religious" as self-righteous. How insightful.

"Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, 'If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.'" - Mark 9:35

"Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight." - Isaiah 5:21

These are but two of many, many verses on pride and humility. Jesus befriended thieves and murderers, and Christians are called to live in the same humble manner has he did. While I can't speak for other faiths, any Christian who is being condescending to you isn't following the teachings of Jesus at all.

Furthermore, the author can only assume that we aren't inadequate, unsatisfactory and helpless; in fact, the author seems to want to invalidate such an opinion entirely. Egotistical much?

The true irony of this quote is that the author is making very arrogant assumptions while at the same time calling out religious persons for believing themselves to be "superior".

I was speaking a bit loosely. There is an immense amount of dogmatism in such groups, and I think it's probably most noticeable among the green movement. One can be a rational environmentalist, certainly, but it requires basing one's conclusions on the evidence and not manipulating the evidence to fit one's conclusions. I've seen too many greens display as much zealotry and intolerance as any Islamic extremist when confronted by a skeptic.

People who are vehemently anti-religious have a tendency to make politics their religion.

Well inherently when you try to figure out what defines a certain thing, there are going to be some who mistake it as more a "who" doesn't define this certain characteristic.  See this in the Middle East all the time, but it is more of a religious barrier.  I'm not saying all of the Tea Party movement is like this, but when you discuss what they are discussing, there are always going to be the radicals that use it for racial discrimination, religious discrimination, and discrimination against immigrans/foreigners.  Geez I swear you were suggesting I said all of them like that.  Silly.

@the bolded - Are you referring to homosexuals in this statement? Because I don't think wanting to be recognized and treated the same as everyone else could really be called a "belief", and it's hardly being forced on anyone. Now, the religious right is forcing their beliefs on everyone else in regards to homosexuality, and if that's what you're referring to then the answer is because the bible tells them to and they actually are paying attention to that particular part.

OT- I prefer former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura's quote:

"Religion is a crutch for the weak minded"

Ohhhhhhh, did that go over well. He did not get reelected we'll just say that. Not that I agree with the above statement, I just wanted to show a more pointed statement. Overall I'd like to see Christians be more concerned with helping others, as they are called to do by Jesus, than condemning others, which is god's perogative.

*applauds*

But this issue has been inflated.

For example, the racial slur that was said to be yelled at the healthcare vote.. not a single camera captured it, not a single congress men heard it, and not a single person who was there, said they heard it.

So there is a 99% chance it didn't happen, but every headline at every media outlet was talking about it like it was fact. This is the problem.

I head an interview from a black man who spoke at one of the largest events, and he said when he got done, and people came up to talk to him, not one mentioned race. No one said they though he was a "great black american" or anything like that. Just a great American.

They all wanted to talk about the issues, and no one them were about race. None of them ever have been.