Ok.
Maybe it's not that bad.
Usually.
The messages in the group are usually about homeschooling, but the God-y-ness is everywhere. Fine. This group is for everyone, Jesus freaks and all, and if they want to talk about how they fit prayer into their school day between every lesson, yippee. I'm sure there are MANY people on the list who are dying to hear about it. Feel free. And if they want to put up messages about the content in books or movies, that's great too. More info about things you spend money on is all good, even if you're telling me that- gasp- this movie doesn't show the proper respect for televangelists. I don't care, but it's thoughtful of you to share.
But why oh why do they insist on telling me what I like? Why oh why do they always assume everyone on the list is a Christian? There was a message that said "This article will make you proud you're a homeschooling mamma!!!!" I read it. It was about how pitiful Hillary is, and how homeschooling mamas are great because they submit to their husbands and would never think of themselves as feminists and their faith in God keeps them strong and blah blah blah.... And then I had to shower. But afterwards I posted a reply that said "Or it will make you throw up in your mouth a little bit. To each their own." Because what made me mad was not that the article had a different viewpoint than my own, nor was it that it was put in my inbox. It was that the post-er had assumed that I would love it. It's the difference between the subject line reading "Article you will love" (the actual subject line) and "Article about Homeschooling Moms". Hell, I probly wouldn't even have been bothered with "Interesting article".
Of course, afterward, someone posted another inspirational article about how faith gets us poor women through our school day, but with the apologetic preamble "I am almost afraid to make the post but will give it a try and hope it is well accepted." It isn't the posts, dumb asses! If it's about homeschooling, plop it up there! Just don't tell me what to think about it. Sheesh.
Of course, this doesn't come naturally to many Christian types, because every Sunday they're told how right they are and how wrong everyone else is and how they need to tell everyone else what to think and how to believe. No one tells them to trust that people have the common sense to figure out their own spiritual beliefs. No one tells them to respect other opinions. No one says to live and let live. No, all the good Christians must proselytize, and if that doesn't work, they have to legislate everything from who can marry to what can be done to your own body, and it's all so that everyone in America, regardless of religion, will have to behave like Christians.
Pant, pant, pant...
Sorry to go off like that. I needed to rant a little, because I realize that the yahoo group is not the appropriate place. Mercifully, this is, because it is my place. This means, oh Christian ones, that if I have offended, go back to your own place and rant about me there. I can stomach no more Christianity today.
Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only "secular" homeschooler there. I'm pretty sure I must be the only Atheist, because no one else ever bitches. Also, no one else ever posts things like "simple explanation of evolution found here" or "teach your kids about culture jamming" or "free screening of An Inconveinent Truth tonight!". I was thinking about this and feeling very Cartman-esque .
The trouble is, there is no similar group where I do feel at home. So then I thought- Aha! I'll quit bitching and make my own Yahoo group, and if the Christians try to join I'll say they have cooties and I didn't want to be their friend anyway- I mean, umm, I'll quit whinging and make what I need. Then I looked at the people in my address book and realized that I know about 10 people that might be at all interested in such a yahoo group, which means that maybe one person would actually join.
This was all going on yesterday and the day before. Today I'm feeling like I just don't care. I can't even get interested in the blogs I usually read- it all seems vapid somehow. Blah blah blah, me me me, my opinion matters, I happened.
Maybe I'm starting to cackle.
ephelba
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