Bill Maher--enlightened?

By Doug Hagin

Are you a Christian? Muslim? Jew? Hindu? A person of any religious faith at all? Well if you are then many Americans seem to think you are a person with mental problems. Yes, you are a basket case according to some on the political left. You are, according to these folk's logic, a closed-minded, non-thinking, person with no belief in science or rationality. Gee, I wonder what they really think.

Bill Maher, host of the HBO show "Real Time" is one of these anti-religion zealots as his recent remarks made crystal clear. Appearing on "Scarborough Country" on MSNBC Maher made some decidedly bigoted remarks about religious folks. Consider the kind of person who would make the following hateful and ignorant remarks about any group of people.

Commenting on why he thinks America is a less enlightened nation than European nations Maher opined this; "We are a nation that is unenlightened because of religion. I do believe that. I think that religion stops people from thinking. I think it justifies crazies. I think flying planes into a building was a faith-based initiative. I think religion is a neurological disorder. If you look at it logically, it is something that was drilled into your head when you were a small child. It certainly was drilled into mine at that age. And you really can't be responsible when you are a kid for what adults put into your head."

Now for people who believe in a higher power, these remarks are insulting, insensitive, and hurtful to say the least. In fact, Maher manages to not only insult people of faith, but Americans as a whole with his asinine commentary.

Consider he first tries to paint America as "unenlightened." This is, of course, a fairly common declaration made by the far left in America. They love to criticize America as stupid and uncultured. Moreover, they dearly love to drone on and on about how much better Europe is. Generally speaking, the folks who engage in these inane claims are the ones who seem unenlightened to most Americans.

Maybe it makes them feel better about themselves to look down their noses at other people. Maybe these folks need to feel smarter or more cultured. No matter how they feel, their remarks end up showing how classless and snobbish they really are. They are pathetic really. They are like the kid from school that always made a point of telling their classmates how much money their dad made, or how big their house was. Yes, Bill Maher is one of those children who never grew up and still feels it necessary to show everyone else how smart he is.

Bill Maher has, with his comments, shown himself to one of these self-important snobby elitists. He has a definite right to his faith or lack there of. He has a right to think whatever he thinks of religion. His comments, however, must be noted as no better than anything the Klueless Klutz Klan or any other hate group has spewed over the years.

Bill Maher clearly thinks himself smarter than those of us who express a belief in God. He thinks himself more rational, saner, and more enlightened than people of faith. Those who have watched his show might question his self-proclaimed mental superiority though. This is a man who cannot seem to make any point without using the "f" word at least three times. This certainly takes a higher mental state now doesn't it?

I suppose in Bill Maher's obviously superior mind saying the "f" word makes you better, or more rational than people who go to church or read the Bible. Using this logic Rap music must be considered well above the works of Beethoven or Bach. After all those guys never had a symphony with the "f" word did they?

Bill Maher's comments are all too commonly spoken about people of faith. They are often labeled as stupid, or loony, or backwards. They are often called fanatics too. In addition, they are repeatedly called closed-minded by intellectual wannabes like Bill Maher. Consider some more of Maher's rant. "When you look at beliefs in such things as, do you go to heaven, is there a devil, we have more in common with Turkey and Iran and Syria than we do with European nations and Canada and nations that, yes, I would consider more enlightened than us."

Never mind that we are the most charitable nation, no matter the great scientific and technological advances we have given the world. No, matter any of that to Bill Maher. Too many of us pray so that makes America less intelligent than Europe or Canada. Of course, Bill Maher is a big believer in global warming and evolution, scientific theories that have never been proven. Doesn't that make him superstitious? Doesn't that make him a man who believes in things that cannot be seen? Doesn't that mean he is, by believing in these theories, acting on faith? Hmmm...

Well whatever Maher's beliefs say about him I will not label him as a fanatic, or mentally inferior to me. As to his comments let us just say this, Bill Maher can think his rude commentary makes him more enlightened if he wishes to. To most of us though, his comments show him to be many things, but enlightened? Sure Bill keep telling yourself that.

© Doug Hagin