2006-09-15

Letter to Wal Mart

Came across this. I am quoting it here:

To be sent on November 1, 2006
TO:Lee ScottPresident and CEO Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.Bentonville, AR 72716-8611
Dear Sir,
We, the undersigned, respectfully request that Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. cease distribution of the book known as the Holy Bible. We make this request after careful consideration, having examined numerous passages in the Holy Bible that are repulsive, stridently offensive and/or illegal. The following five examples reveal the obscene nature of this book and help you to understand why we are making this request.
1) The Holy Bible demands that readers murder hundreds of thousands of Wal-Mart employees.
In Exodus 31:15 the Holy Bible demands: “For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must be put to death.” This demand is repeated in Exodus 35:2: “For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a Sabbath of rest to the LORD. Whoever does any work on it must be put to death.” To put these demands in context, please see Isaiah 40:8, 1 Peter 1:24-25, Psalm 19:7 and Matthew 5:18-20.
Mr. Scott, you are in a unique position to understand how dangerous these statements are. Hundreds of thousands of Wal-Mart's employees work on the Sabbath. The Holy Bible demands their murder. This threat to employee autonomy and safety should be both repugnant and highly offensive to Wal-Mart’s senior management team as well as Wal-Mart's employees.

2) The Holy Bible demands that readers discriminate against women. This type of sexual discrimination directly affects female employees working for Wal-Mart. In 1 Timothy 2:11-12 the Bible says: “Let a woman learn in silence with all submissiveness. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over men; she is to keep silent.” See also statements like 1 Cor 14:34-35 and Numbers 31:14-18. These statements should be repugnant to every member of the Wal-Mart management team, since a large percentage of Wal-Mart's employees and managers are women.

3) The Holy Bible fully endorses slavery, which is today strictly illegal in the United States. The Bible also endorses such egregious behaviors as the beating of slaves.
In Leviticus 25:44 the Bible says: “Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves. You may also buy some of the temporary residents living among you and members of their clans born in your country, and they will become your property. You can will them to your children as inherited property and can make them slaves for life.” In Exodus 21:20 the Bible says: “If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property.” Statements like Col. 3:22 and Titus 2:9 in the "New Testament" fully endorse slavery. Slavery is illegal in the United States, as is assault and battery, and the Holy Bible flagrantly disregards these statutes. Slavery is barbaric. A book that condones slavery is highly offensive.

4) The Holy Bible demands that readers murder homosexual men. The Holy Bible incites readers to commit hate crimes against innocent citizens. In Leviticus 20:13 the Holy Bible commands: “If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death.” The Holy Bible clearly incites its readers to commit murder. The Bible provokes hatred against, and threatens the lives of, innocent citizens in Wal-Mart communities across the nation.

5) The Holy Bible demands that readers murder those who do not believe in the “god” of the Bible. In Leviticus 24:16 the Bible demands: “Anyone who blasphemes the name of the LORD must be put to death. The entire assembly must stone him.” See also 2 Chron 15:12-13 and Deut 13:12-16. In the “New Testament” of the Bible, the man known as Jesus also condemns all unbelievers. Since the majority of Earth's citizens, and a sizeable percentage of the citizens of the United States, do not believe in the "god" of the Bible, these statements are both highly offensive and dangerous.

We, the undersigned, recognize that any book which demands the death of innocent Wal-Mart employees, which commands sexual discrimination against women, which endorses slavery and the beating of slaves, which incites hate crimes against innocent citizens of the United States, and which demands the murder of people of other faiths, is so obscene that Wal-Mart should cease distribution of the book. The dictionary defines the word obscene in this way: offensive to morality or decency; indecent; depraved. causing uncontrolled sexual desire. abominable; disgusting; repulsive.The Bible fits this definition. Any book that incites murder, hate crimes and discrimination is offensive to morality and decency. It is apparent from the five examples listed above that the Bible is depraved, abominable, disgusting and repulsive. Two years ago, according to this article in USA Today - Stewart finds controversy - Wal-Mart refused to distribute the #1 best-selling book “America”, by Jon Stewart. The reason cited was a nude photograph of the members of the Supreme Court. Wal-Mart felt that this photograph was obscene, so Wal-Mart chose not to distribute the book in its stores. In Jon Stewart’s book, it is obvious that the intent is comedy. The Bible, on the other hand, is deadly serious and is frequently cited as an authoritative justification for discrimination and hatred. For example, the Bible was cited as an authoritative justification for slavery during the American Civil War. Readers of the Holy Bible act on its discriminatory statements every day. A book that openly demands the murder of millions of innocent Americans, that directly discriminates against women and that fully condones slavery and the beating of slaves is outrageously obscene. By Wal-Mart's own obscenity standards, as well as by the standards of civilized society, a book such as the Holy Bible has no place on the shelves of any Wal-Mart store.
Some Wal-Mart customers may argue such attributes as "wide readership" and "historical precedence" in order to maintain the Bible in Wal-Mart's inventory. They may also argue that removal of the Bible from Wal-Mart's shelves represents censorship or an attempt to "ban the Bible." It is important to note that we, the undersigned, do not advocate censorship. Nor is Wal-Mart "banning the Bible." The removal of the Bible from Wal-Mart's distribution network simply acknowledges the reality of the situation: many parts of the Bible are transparently obscene, and Wal-Mart (like most retailers) has a longstanding policy on obscene material. No book, regardless of popularity, has the right to endanger lives by directly and undeniably inciting its readers to commit murder and hate crimes.

We, the undersigned, trust that you, Mr. Scott, will look at the five examples listed above and recognize the deep and systemic problems found in the Holy Bible, along with the highly offensive, obscene and illegal nature of its content. We request that you work within your organization to expediently remove this book from Wal-Mart’s distribution chain.
Sincerely,

found at this link

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