The Wal-mart Bible Letter

[Reverend AtheiStar]

http://thebibleletter.com/

 

To be sent on November 1, 2006

 

TO:

Lee Scott

President 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.”

 

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,

 

 

 

Please sign the Wal-Mart Bible letter:

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Total Signatures to Date = 2218

[Dhampir]

Not sure how I want to approach this... do we want them endorsing yet more censorship?

[Reverend AtheiStar]

Not sure how I want to approach this... do we want them endorsing yet more censorship?

 

I would never buy my books from Wal-Mart, first of all. I have more class than that. lol... Second, I can't say I'm fond of hypocrisy, so I'm all for banning the Bible from this store. If Jon Stewart's book, something that was made to make people laugh, wasn't good enough, certainly the vile and disgusting book known as the Bible could never be!

[Kuroikaze]

Being employed by Walmart is only one level above slavery anyway. I refuse to shop there...ever.

[Everglaze]

The Bible needs to be removed from all department stores. Wait a minute, isn't it just fiction?

[Reverend AtheiStar]

Being employed by Walmart is only one level above slavery anyway. I refuse to shop there...ever.

 

Well, I wish I could say the same, but they have really good prices and we don't have much money to spare. We have to spread it around as wisely as possible. So, while I may disagree with the policies and actions of corporate, I feel it is necessary to shop there.

 

The Bible needs to be removed from all department stores. Wait a minute, isn't it just fiction?

 

It is, most definitely. But the point is that they have a long standing policy of either censoring books and cds or simply not carrying them because of "objectionable content." If this is the criteria for banning or censoring then the Bible must go -- to be fair!

[Everglaze]

 

The Bible needs to be removed from all department stores. Wait a minute, isn't it just fiction?

 

It is, most definitely. But the point is that they have a long standing policy of either censoring books and cds or simply not carrying them because of "objectionable content." If this is the criteria for banning or censoring then the Bible must go -- to be fair!

 

Oh, yeah...I agree! The Bible crosses the line in that area, more than anything else I've seen banned in stores anyway.

[Legion]

This is just my two cents, just my opinion. I think that this effort to ban the Bible from any store is worse than a waste of time. It may even be counter productive.

 

Christianity is like a Chinese finger trap. The more you fight it, the stronger it grows.

[Reverend AtheiStar]

This is just my two cents, just my opinion. I think that this effort to ban the Bible from any store is worse than a waste of time. It may even be counter productive.

 

Christianity is like a Chinese finger trap. The more you fight it, the stronger it grows.

 

In all actuality, it's extremely unlikely it will get banned, Wal-Mart is owned by fundies. But this misses the point. The point it to show the hypocrisy of their policies and to expose the Bible for what it is. This the Letter is doing.

 

The same can be said of Atheism. The more they fight us, the more we respond. It's just like any other arms race. They escalate, we escalate.

[Dhampir]

With prices like that, how can you not love it?

 

Walmart: Always low prices. ALWAYS.

 

Resistance is futile.

[Lorena Rodriguez]

Forbidding something is the best publicity for anything. It is called reverse psychology.

It is part of human nature to want what we can't have. If people can't find bibles at Walmart, they will feel the persecution syndrome and will buy it somewhere else anyway.

[Legion]

This is just my two cents, just my opinion. I think that this effort to ban the Bible from any store is worse than a waste of time. It may even be counter productive.

 

Christianity is like a Chinese finger trap. The more you fight it, the stronger it grows.

 

In all actuality, it's extremely unlikely it will get banned, Wal-Mart is owned by fundies. But this misses the point. The point it to show the hypocrisy of their policies and to expose the Bible for what it is. This the Letter is doing.

 

The same can be said of Atheism. The more they fight us, the more we respond. It's just like any other arms race. They escalate, we escalate.

 

Well Reverend, if pointing out to others their hypocrisy is your cup of tea, then I suppose that this letter may be moderately effective in that regard. I seem to be more interested in discovering what hypocrisy remains in myself however.

 

In so far as non-believers being in an arms race with believers though, I think that may be a somewhat misleading analogy. The way I see it, Christians are like children. Those of us who have outgrown the "the faith" might be better off to just be patient with those who still adhere to it. In time they may come to outgrow it themselves.

[Reverend AtheiStar]

Forbidding something is the best publicity for anything. It is called reverse psychology.

It is part of human nature to want what we can't have. If people can't find bibles at Walmart, they will feel the persecution syndrome and will buy it somewhere else anyway.

 

You know as well as I do that the Bible will never get banned from Wal-Mart. There will be no persecution complex -- not from this event, anyway. No, what is happening is that this is yet another good reason to shine a spotlight on the immorality of the Bible -- and the inconsistency displayed by the good people at Wal-Mart when deciding what and what not to censor or ban.

 

 

Well Reverend, if pointing out to others their hypocrisy is your cup of tea, then I suppose that this letter may be moderately effective in that regard. I seem to be more interested in discovering what hypocrisy remains in myself however.

 

I like to do both, actually. It's good to check your own attitude from time to time.

 

In so far as non-believers being in an arms race with believers though, I think that may be a somewhat misleading analogy. The way I see it, Christians are like children. Those of us who have outgrown the "the faith" might be better off to just be patient with those who still adhere to it. In time they may come to outgrow it themselves.

 

Perhaps it's too violent of a comparison. I suppose it's more of a tug of war. They pull and gain ground on us and so we pull back and try to regain what we lost. This is what I see constantly with the SOCAS battles.

[The Sage Nabooru]

Good luck. I work in a Wal-Mart. It's a fundie paradise. For as long as I've known they've pandered to the rural evangelical neo-con fanbase. If you don't believe me, try buying a Catholic Bible or book there.

 

I don't see any changes coming soon, but I'll still allow them to sign my paycheck without giving anything of value in return.

[snookums]

Wow......no catholic bibles! Just lots of Scofield Reference Bible Huh? Not that I'm into either kind...in fact I don't own one at all...

 

Geeze...good luck with the letter...but I'm petty sure I know where it will end up. Don't 'they' - the owner's etc. have people to screen their mail?

 

Thankgawd Australia hasn't got Walmart yet....imagine a country without one.

[Reverend AtheiStar]

Good luck. I work in a Wal-Mart. It's a fundie paradise. For as long as I've known they've pandered to the rural evangelical neo-con fanbase. If you don't believe me, try buying a Catholic Bible or book there.

 

I don't see any changes coming soon, but I'll still allow them to sign my paycheck without giving anything of value in return.

 

Yeah, I know, it's doomed to failure -- if it's goal was to get this book removed from this store. I think the true goal is to serve as the spotlight to show what's wrong with both. The letter is simply a vehicle.

 

Sorry you have to work there, btw.

 

Wow......no catholic bibles! Just lots of Scofield Reference Bible Huh? Not that I'm into either kind...in fact I don't own one at all...

 

Geeze...good luck with the letter...but I'm petty sure I know where it will end up. Don't 'they' - the owner's etc. have people to screen their mail?

 

Thankgawd Australia hasn't got Walmart yet....imagine a country without one.

 

I've heard Australia is a great place to be an unbeliever (aside from the Atheist couple who were hacked to death by that axe-weilding nut job). I've heard that you guys even have elected officials who are Atheists! Is this true?

[dr_funkenstein]

I've heard Australia is a great place to be an unbeliever (aside from the Atheist couple who were hacked to death by that axe-weilding nut job). I've heard that you guys even have elected officials who are Atheists! Is this true?

 

That may well be true. We also have homosexual members of parliament, but unfortunately our Prime Minister is a staunch Catholic.

 

There's also this...

[Kuroikaze]

 

Well, I wish I could say the same, but they have really good prices and we don't have much money to spare. We have to spread it around as wisely as possible. So, while I may disagree with the policies and actions of corporate, I feel it is necessary to shop there.

 

 

 

hmm...maybe its where you live. When I worked there I didn't really notice a huge price difference...a very few things were noticeably cheaper. I usually buy most of my household goods at a dollar general store, they are often cheeper than walmart if you don't mind not being able to buy name brands.

 

of course these days for electronics I my best buy discount But I never bought electronics at walmart anyway because the selection they had was so horible.

 

It also means I have to shop in more than one place to get all my stuff, but considering the note I left walmart on (I just walked out one day before I was supposed to leave and never came back) I woudn't give them to satisfaction of shopping there.

 

And all in all I think I probably only spend an extra 10 dollars a month by not shopping there...maybe less than that, well worth it, to me, to avoid the long lines and poorly trained employees. (seriously, the training they give is a joke)

[snookums]

Reverend AtheiStar ...

 

I've heard Australia is a great place to be an unbeliever (aside from the Atheist couple who were hacked to death by that axe-weilding nut job). I've heard that you guys even have elected officials who are Atheists! Is this true?

 

 

 

Yeah ......murder and mayhem happen here too...

its pretty good I guess compared to what goes down in the States but as DrFrank points out....we still have our little foibles.......& some of the elected officials are also moderate to hot xians. The PM Howard ..I swear still acts as if its the 1950's. I also think he secretly thinks he's a citizen of the US of A....and maybe even desires BUsh Jr..in a very unchristian way...

 

On one hand thou'.....living in a so called secular society can be worse for the fundy family, the kids etc. For example ....there's more fear of the 'contamination' from the outside world and such bullshit. As a kid....I personally felt more confined than what I gather some of 'yews' were feeling.

Once I got out thou' it was wonderful - not too much interference except of course from the family.

 

Btw....Anyone seen the doco about Walmart? Its great....

"WAL-MART - THE HIGH COST OF LOW PRICE" - this is the Wal-Mart doco which lifts the lid on corporate greed & anti union tactics in the workplace. ...

I don't have time to find it sorry....

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-green...b_1940.html?p=2

 

byw.....about the letter....its very funny! Hope it makes the rounds on the internet and really pisses em' off.

[The Sage Nabooru]

Babes, I work there, and I can tell you, every word that comes out of their mouth about how "associate-friendly" and caring and loving they are is a fucking dirty lie.

 

My fellow associates are great people, and I've worked at worse places (coughKohl'scough). But they offer no great health plans or salaries, just training based on customer fellatio and ass-kissing to a humiliating degree. For all the benefits I might as well work at any other minimum-wage joke box store.

 

You think we're poorly trained? Try shoplifting there. Go ahead. I'm not daring you, I'm telling you. Because none of us working there knows a damned thing about what to do about shoplifters. They never bother telling us; it's simply not part of our training. We lost $200,000 in our single department last year to them. We're just not trained in how to accuse any customer of anything. That's why people treat Wal-Mart employees like such shit with total disrespect: Our company encourages it.

 

Still, though, I imagine I have it a lot better off than the 14-year-olds stitching Wal-Mart's clothing together and assembling their store-brand appliances in Sri Lanka and China for two bucks a month.

 

"We're not anti-union, we're pro-associate!" Wal-Mart: KISS. MY. ASS.

[Reverend AtheiStar]

I've heard Australia is a great place to be an unbeliever (aside from the Atheist couple who were hacked to death by that axe-weilding nut job). I've heard that you guys even have elected officials who are Atheists! Is this true?

 

That may well be true. We also have homosexual members of parliament, but unfortunately our Prime Minister is a staunch Catholic.

 

There's also this...

 

Openly homosexual political leaders who aren't forced to resign? Wow! That is amazing in it's own right. Sucks about the Catholic, but at least there's a good chance he believes in evolution. Seems to be the Catholic way.

 

Reverend AtheiStar ...

 

I've heard Australia is a great place to be an unbeliever (aside from the Atheist couple who were hacked to death by that axe-weilding nut job). I've heard that you guys even have elected officials who are Atheists! Is this true?

 

 

 

Yeah ......murder and mayhem happen here too...

its pretty good I guess compared to what goes down in the States but as DrFrank points out....we still have our little foibles.......& some of the elected officials are also moderate to hot xians. The PM Howard ..I swear still acts as if its the 1950's. I also think he secretly thinks he's a citizen of the US of A....and maybe even desires BUsh Jr..in a very unchristian way...

 

On one hand thou'.....living in a so called secular society can be worse for the fundy family, the kids etc. For example ....there's more fear of the 'contamination' from the outside world and such bullshit. As a kid....I personally felt more confined than what I gather some of 'yews' were feeling.

Once I got out thou' it was wonderful - not too much interference except of course from the family.

 

Btw....Anyone seen the doco about Walmart? Its great....

"WAL-MART - THE HIGH COST OF LOW PRICE" - this is the Wal-Mart doco which lifts the lid on corporate greed & anti union tactics in the workplace. ...

I don't have time to find it sorry....

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-green...b_1940.html?p=2

 

byw.....about the letter....its very funny! Hope it makes the rounds on the internet and really pisses em' off.

 

Oh, I'm not saying it's a perfect utopia -- no such place exists. Just from what I've read, it sounds a lot more Atheist-friendly than the FundyLand™ I live in.

 

Yes, I, too, hope to see this Letter sent far and wide. It's got some really good info in it.!

 

 

Babes, I work there, and I can tell you, every word that comes out of their mouth about how "associate-friendly" and caring and loving they are is a fucking dirty lie.

 

My fellow associates are great people, and I've worked at worse places (coughKohl'scough). But they offer no great health plans or salaries, just training based on customer fellatio and ass-kissing to a humiliating degree. For all the benefits I might as well work at any other minimum-wage joke box store.

 

You think we're poorly trained? Try shoplifting there. Go ahead. I'm not daring you, I'm telling you. Because none of us working there knows a damned thing about what to do about shoplifters. They never bother telling us; it's simply not part of our training. We lost $200,000 in our single department last year to them. We're just not trained in how to accuse any customer of anything. That's why people treat Wal-Mart employees like such shit with total disrespect: Our company encourages it.

 

Still, though, I imagine I have it a lot better off than the 14-year-olds stitching Wal-Mart's clothing together and assembling their store-brand appliances in Sri Lanka and China for two bucks a month.

 

"We're not anti-union, we're pro-associate!" Wal-Mart: KISS. MY. ASS.

 

While we're dropping work places, I work at the grocery store known as Harris Teeter and we are heavily trained when it comes to shoplifting. They teach us all the strategies that they employ, how to spot them and how to stop them. It's a constant thing there. It's actually the best I've ever seen. They even show us interviews with people they've caught and the confessions that came from them! It's all pretty interesting especially if you like the art of catching the slipperiest prey of all -- people.

[Vigile]

What's the point of this letter? The only outcome I can see in this is that if it gets press it will just be fodder for the xian self-assigned persecution machine.

 

On the other hand, the bible itself doesn't lead anyone into xianity; just the opposite.

 

Finally, you are asking for censorship; something of which all freedom loving people should be opposed to. While I agree with your sentiment, I disagree with sending this letter. That said, you are free to exercise your free speech, so I won't oppose you sending it.

[Reverend AtheiStar]

What's the point of this letter? The only outcome I can see in this is that if it gets press it will just be fodder for the xian self-assigned persecution machine.

 

On the other hand, the bible itself doesn't lead anyone into xianity; just the opposite.

 

Finally, you are asking for censorship; something of which all freedom loving people should be opposed to. While I agree with your sentiment, I disagree with sending this letter. That said, you are free to exercise your free speech, so I won't oppose you sending it.

 

This letter is asking for the hypocrisy and inconsistency to end. They censor much less objectionable material all the time. Why not add a book that really deserves it? Besides, it's not like we're talking about censorship at the government level. This amounts to censorship within a private enterprise, a much different case.

[Scarlett]

The Bible needs to be removed from all department stores. Wait a minute, isn't it just fiction?

 

They should put it in the fiction and/or mythology section in bookstores.

[Jennifer]

The Bible needs to be removed from all department stores. Wait a minute, isn't it just fiction?

 

They should put it in the fiction and/or mythology section in bookstores.

 

 

 

If you notice, in alot of bookstores, 'mythology' and 'religion' are right next to each other (Yes, I'm talking about B&N)