Why I can't take John Travolta seriously

[Gutboy Barrelhouse]

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/showbiz/article-23390848-details/Air+miles+Travolta+urges+fans+to+%27do+their+bit%27+for+the+environment/article.do

Don't do as I do, do as I say.

[Jayce]

Interestingly, I read recently that it takes a fairly cheap engine modification to jet engines to make them carbon neutral.  I think the article said that (for commercial airlines) it would result in about a $2 hike in ticket prices.

I guess Travolta's just waiting on the mothership to come by and buy him one, though.

[Riggswolfe]

One word: Scientology. Seriously, if you follow a religion invented by a scifi author then I have no respect for you and don't take you seirously. This includes Tom Cruise and all the other hollywood freaks that are in to it. Everytime I learn an actor is a scientologist I lose a ton of respect for them.

[Damn Dirty Ape]

One word: Scientology.

[Spanky] And how! [/Spanky]

[Bunk]

I think this justifies a return to the Terl avatard, and a new sig.

[Damn Dirty Ape]

Hmmm...  My E meter is registering a rock slam.  There is great evil here.

[Triforcer]

It always amuses me how people who are tolerant of all other religions can openly state "I hate Scientology" and society agrees! (this isn't a criticism, its what I do too).

Scientology- its the Furry of Religions. 

[Nebu]

I see the hypocrisy in this, but don't any of you think it's absurd to compare John Travolta to the average Briton?  What's the guy supposed to do? Fly coach everywhere or better yet, walk?  At least the guy is using his popularity to promote a good cause.  No... not the whole Scientology nonsense.  
 

[Gutboy Barrelhouse]

From another website:

 It's even more awesome when you find out that John Travolta lends his jets to fellow closeted gay actors who want to have sex without the fear of paparazzi. So, to reiterate, John Travolta wants you to power your house with a bicycle and a car battery, but it's ok for him to melt the polar ice caps so Jake Gyllenhaal can break in his new butt plug. Yeah, that sounds reasonable.

[Paelos]

It always amuses me how people who are tolerant of all other religions can openly state "I hate Scientology" and society agrees! (this isn't a criticism, its what I do too).

Scientology- its the Furry of Religions. 

It's not a real religion, jackhole. That clear it up for you?

[Trippy]

It always amuses me how people who are tolerant of all other religions can openly state "I hate Scientology" and society agrees! (this isn't a criticism, its what I do too).

Scientology- its the Furry of Religions. 

It's not a real religion, jackhole. That clear it up for you?

How is it not a real religion? Heck it even has tax-exempt status now after a decades long battle with the IRS.

[schild]

Legally it's a religion.

Technically speaking, it's a religion.

And it does a good job at making fun of other religions by being so insane.

Unfortunately, it's SO INSANE that religious types can't turn that microscope on themselves. They're too busy laughing at the nutjobs hanging with Xenu.

This thread is going places.

[Damn Dirty Ape]

Yeah, "real" religions have talking animals, fiery flora, and resurrecting demigods rather than aliens and spaceships.  Scientology's only shortcoming on the "real" front is its founder lived and was well documented by neutral sources in our communication age as opposed to being shielded by centuries or millenia and subsequent accumulation of apologetics, tradition, and meddlings in politics.  

[Triforcer]

Uh Oh.  This thread has turned into Every Other Thread That Mentions Religion.  Can't we just summarize and move on?

"U AND UR INVISIBLE SKY DADDY LOLZ"

"U ARE BEING JUST AS INTOLERANT AS THE RELIGIONS YOU HATE OOOH SNAP"

"RELIGION HAS CAUSED ALL PROBLEMS, ATHIEST HIPPIES CAN BE INTOLERANT BECAUSE THEY HAVEN'T HURT ANYONE"

"THE SOVIET UNION WAS ATHEIST!!!"

"COMMUNISM WASN'T REALLY THAT BAD, AND CHRISTIANS HAVE DONE MORE DAMAGE"

"YOU PRAISED COMMUNISM OMG"

and so on. 

[Gutboy Barrelhouse]

So I guess:

Religion> hypocrisy + gay butt sex

[Selby]

Scientology's only shortcoming on the "real" front is its founder lived and was well documented by neutral sources in our communication age as opposed to being shielded by centuries or millenia and subsequent accumulation of apologetics, tradition, and meddlings in politics.  

Give it time.  The Appliantologists are making it more and more acceptable every day!  History gets written by the victors and as long as they continue to convince people that it is a "legitimate" religion, the further and further from reality and more into legend ol' L. Ron will become...

[Roac]

It's not a real religion, jackhole.

Why isn't it?

[Damn Dirty Ape]

Why isn't it?

Not enough Smiting.

[tazelbain]

It's the Amway of Religions.

[Llava]

I hate Scientology.

Most other religions I just dislike.

[Paelos]

It's not a real religion, jackhole.

Why isn't it?

How about this? Because I say so.

Any other reason would just give yall a reason to mentally masturbate. I'm tired of feeding that fire.

[Tebonas]

I cry for everybody who believes Scientology is a religion. Scientology is a criminal organisation with tax reliefs in some countries, and thats it. And in the USA they even had to resort to bribes and blackmail to get that status. Give me a break, people!

[Damn Dirty Ape]

I'm tired of feeding that fire.

An argument ad Rush why this type of "mental masturbation" isn't a bad thing:

All this time we're burning like bonfires in the dark
A billion other blazes are shooting off their sparks
Every spark a drifting ember of desire
To fall upon the earth and spark another fire

Discussions on religious differences tend to be caustic, I know from being a veteran at Internet Infidels, but they're worth it to find some common ground.

[Lantyssa]

Back to the original point:

"I use them as a business tool though, as others do. I think it's part of this industry – otherwise I couldn't be here doing this and I wouldn't be here now."

And here is the problem... he advocates going green as long as it doesn't impact his business.  So all you poor plebians can take lots of effort to make a miniscule difference while I don't have to because it makes me money.

If he was really concerned he could have a satellite feed and espouse how much he helped by using it over flying a plane for just himself.

[Riggswolfe]

I cry for everybody who believes Scientology is a religion. Scientology is a criminal organisation with tax reliefs in some countries, and thats it. And in the USA they even had to resort to bribes and blackmail to get that status. Give me a break, people!

Indeed. Though I will admit one thing. Scientology fasicnates me because I'd love to move 2000 years into the future and see what scientology morphs into. I know I'm walking dangerous ground here, but L Ron is the Joseph Smith of the 20th century, and it makes me wonder if Jesus and Moses before him weren't the L Ron and Joseph Smith's of their day as well.

[angry.bob]

I'm putting the blame firmly where it belongs: All you fucking retards who think Quentin Tarantino is anything other than a shitty no talent plagiarist. The only thing that sucks more shit covered dong than him is the people who thought anything he's crapped into a film can is worth watching. And without Quentin, Travolta would be rotting away in obscurity someway, hopefully being payed $50 to let old queens suck his dick under a bridge while he talks like Barbarino. Tarantino fucking sucks and if you like his shit, you're a fucking retard. Fucking fucking fuck.

Also, any Christian who thinks their fucking delusion is an ounce more valid than Scientology is a stupid fucking tool. They're both made up bullshit, Scientology is just newer. And frankly there's a much bigger chance there are actually aliens somewhere than there being any god whatsoever.

Also²Superfuck Travolta for saying "Maybe it's time to think about domed cities". Holy fucking shit...

[Paelos]

Also, any Christian who thinks their fucking delusion is an ounce more valid than Scientology is a stupid fucking tool. They're both made up bullshit, Scientology is just newer. And frankly there's a much bigger chance there are actually aliens somewhere than there being any god whatsoever.

One would hope you'd actually consider some of the tripe you spout before dolling out titles like "stupid fucking tool." But then again we're all just delusional.

[Oban]

... I know I'm walking dangerous ground here, but L Ron is the Joseph Smith of the 20th century, and it makes me wonder if Jesus and Moses before him weren't the L Ron and Joseph Smith's of their day as well.

Careful, that sort of thinking leads only to madness.

On that note... one of these does not belong:

[angry.bob]

One would hope you'd actually consider some of the tripe you spout before dolling out titles like "stupid fucking tool." But then again we're all just delusional.

It's been carefully considered by me for the last 40 years. Each and every christian I've ever met who's "believed" beyond just using their "faith" as a convenient tool for business or political networking has been just above functionally retarded. THey also always seem to have a personal life that was such a fucking train wreck that the only thing keeping them from killing themselves was absolute and unshakeable knwoledge that their god was real, omnipotent, and hates the icky fags. And usually the yabbering smelly brown foreigners. Of course it never occurs to them that if their imaginary god existed in any way he'd give them even a single tool or clue to make their lives just an ounce better. But it's always much easier to "fix" the lives of people who just want you to go the fuck away using your mighty jesus voodoo than it is to address your husband/wife banging prostitutes/the neighborhood stay-at-home dad, your son huffing paint because you sent him to gay-be-gone camp and it didn't "fix" him, and your early teen daughter getting drunk at parties and sucking a dozen cocks because she doesn't consider it sex since your sex talk consisted of you pretending that sex doesn't exists. And by "you" I mean the generic you.

I pray for the day we develop explosive brain implants that force everyone on the planet to behave in exact accordance with the fucking ridiculous "religions" they pretend to believe in.

[Jayce]

It's been carefully considered by me for the last 40 years. Each and every christian I've ever met who's "believed" beyond just using their "faith" as a convenient tool for business or political networking has been just above functionally retarded.

Well, I'm in that class of people, and while I may be functionally retarded (the jury's clearly still out on that one), I don't have any of the above problems you mention. In fact I'm extremely happily married.  I guess it's too early to tell if any of my kids will get into one of the below named pursuits, as they're 2 and 1 still.

Anyway, I came here to respond to

Also, any Christian who thinks their fucking delusion is an ounce more valid than Scientology is a stupid fucking tool.

by saying that I can agree to that.  There is no way to objectively figure out whether the mothership or a loving God is true, or even more likely than the other*.  Would be interesting to discuss, though.

Politics, here this thread comes   



*edit: Obiously, at least in the absence (thus far) of said mothership or the Second Coming.

[Damn Dirty Ape]

The Mothership is true!



Swing down, Sweet Chariot
Stop and let me ride

[HaemishM]

You know my thoughts on religion. I think Scientology is a perfect religion, because it illustrates just how easily led human beings are when you put faith into the equation.

But the real reasons I can't respect Travolta have nothing to do with hypocrisy. I can name 3, in order of appearance:

Look Who's Talking 1/2/3
Battlefield Earth
Wild Hogs

Fuck, who keeps giving him movies after BE? That movie gives 8 out of 10 lab monkeys colorectal cancer.

[Jayce]

You know my thoughts on religion. I think Scientology is a perfect religion, because it illustrates just how easily led human beings are when you put faith into the equation.

You coulda stopped there and it would be just as true.

[HaemishM]

True enough. Religion is just so much more effective at getting humans following blindly than anything else other than free sex.

[Damn Dirty Ape]

Which goes a long way in explaing why religion villainizes free sex.