The US Federal Government ought to ban the selling of and possession of the Bible

The US Federal Government have the right to outlaw what is considered harmful. Marijuana was a drug that caused addiction, and harm to the mind and body. Therefore, it was outlawed. Alcohol was a substance that caused addiction, and harm to the mind and body. Therefore, it was outlawed. Cigars are substances that cause addiction, and harm to the mind and body. Currently, guns are subject to regulation due to how guns can be considered a primary cause of death. With the current logic the US government uses to justify the passing of the laws previously stated, it is legally feasible for the Bible to be banned if I am able to prove the dangers of its addiction, and the harms it causes the mind and body. Contention One: Addiction The Bible's affect on people can vary from person to person. It depends on how absolutist the reader of the Bible is. In places where every custom and activity stems from the Bible, people began to fear modern culture and customs. "Although he quit believing in God as a teenager, 50-year-old Brandon Osborn feared hell and damnation until he was 35. Raised in the "holiness movement" branch of the Church of LDS after escaping his mother"s abusive home, Osborn finds addiction and recovery fitting symbols for his experience. "I consider religion to be an imposed addiction"no different than holding a baby and shooting it up with small doses of heroin, increasing the doses as the baby grows," he says. "Religion is as poisonous and as attractive, to many, as heroin"Karl Marx said it right, "Religion is the opiate of the masses." I"m still recovering from it. Part of my recovery is helping others get free." This is not the only testimonial that details the extent of fear caused by the Bible. Thousands of other testimonials indicate a dictatorship like effect on the victims of the Bible. "Here I am, a 51-year old college professor, still smarting from the wounds inflicted by the righteous when I was a child," reads an anonymous online testimonial. "It is a slow, festering wound, one that smarts every day"in some way or another". I thought I would leave all of that "God loves" God hates"" stuff behind, but not so. Such deep and confusing fear is not easily forgotten. It pops up in my perfectionism, my melancholy mood, the years of being obsessed with finding the assurance of personal salvation." "Despite the fact that I"ve intellectually broken from Christianity, however, I cannot seem to let go of my beliefs. Every single day is a nightmare, plagued with mild panic attacks, de-realization, doubt, OCD, etc." relates another former Christian in the book Christianity Is Not Great. "Sometimes I think, "Oh, but this is exactly what they warned me about, the world can"t be trusted, and it doesn"t matter what reason says, the fact is that Christianity is true no matter what and even if it flies in the face of all reason. Reason is unreliable and you just have to keep believing. I know this is illogical, but every time I try to convince myself that, my brain just stubbornly insists that I just believe, believe, believe. My life is a living hell." ust like any drug, religion can be a lot of fun for some. In her book Sober Spirituality, author Elizabeth Esther describes how church experiences produce a "high." "There"s the ubiquitous mood lighting so that you can only see what"s meant to be seen" Loud music ensures you hear only what is meant to be heard" Several high-energy warm-up acts make you feel only what you"re supposed to feel" By the time the featured attraction steps on stage" you"re so amped up you"ll hand over your body, soul, and wallet. It doesn"t even occur to you that this might be destructive, because feeling elated is the desired outcome." The result, says Esther, can be a destructive quest for righteous euphoria. Former Christian Nate Zimmer describes the feelings of euphoria he experienced when he was a part of the Charismatic Christian sect. "You live for the high of having a metaphysical encounter with God, but more than anything you hope to have that experience in the presence of other believers," he says. "From conference to conference, waiting to see or hear the next great prophet or miracle worker. The substance of their message is often secondary to their "spiritual anointing."" A common response to these testimonials is that their is an abnormal quality these people possess which drives such fear evoking thoughts. Is their something wrong with the people in North Korea who live in constant fear of Kim Jong Un? The Bible is probable one of the most crippling forms of control, because its reliability depends upon the trust you have for your parents, teachers, and elders. In places where Christianity is essential, the Bible's laws must be obeyed. The consequences of such blind faith include: -Beating Oneself when sinned -Judging sex as shameful and dirty -Judging others who do not follow Christian law as bad -Threatening others with divine punishment All of these testimonials prove the extent of harm caused by the Bible. Contention Two-Hatred The Bible is known to cause people to organize into groups with the desire to spread hatred for a demographic in this country. It is a fact that every organized group that opposes gay people originates from the Christian religion. There have been more than 54 murders committed against gay people where the perpetrator was an avid Bible reader, and a Christian. Atheists also face discrimination from Christians. 20 counties in Mississippi are "no go" zones for atheists, gays, Muslims, and Jews. In more than 8 states in America, it is considered unacceptable by law to run for office. A recent FBI study concluded that their has been a massive spike of crimes committed against Muslims. Crimes rose approximately 67% from 3014 to 2016. There have been 264 hate crimes committed against Muslims this year. All perpetrators were practicing Christians. There have been 400 crimes committed against Jews this year. All perpetrators were practicing Christians. -This contention clearly proves the damage the Bible not only causes to the subscribers of it, but the people who must co-exist with the avid ones. Contention 3: God The Bible revolves around the commands of a celestial dictator who switched from the name Yawhey to God. The first half of the Bible details malicious acts committed by God including flooding the planet(genocide), destroying a city home to gays(Sodom and Gmorrah), and playing mind games with Job. God clearly shows a disregard for human life, and a need to be worshiped. God has been diagnosed by many well known psychologists narcissistic personality disorder. His need to be constantly worshiped and obeyed causes him to make unethical decisions on a consistent basis. God wants to be loved, admired, and worshiped. At the same time, he wants to be feared and obeyed. God tends to also be a pathological liar that will make up stories about how he himself alone created the world, and sent himself down to earth as Jesus. There is no evidence supporting his story of creating the world in 6 days. Jesus had no earthly father which would make it infeasible for him to be born. God's son is Jesus, yet God also claims that he is his son. God considers himself all powerful and all knowing which are typical narcissistic thoughts. The most invigorating part of God is the fact that he does not exist. All the pain, suffering, activities, customs, and death was caused by a book that revolved around an entity that did not exist. There are so many other religions that present their own narcissistic Gods. Con must differentiate the sanctity of the Gods upheld by the Greeks, Romans, and Persians from the God worshiped by Christians. The most consistent logic used to prove the existence of God is intelligent design. Intelligent design relies upon the notion that everything must have a creator. If this logic were to be true, than who created God? -The Bible causes people -to fear -to look down upon others -to hate others -to kill others -to talk to an imaginary friend -to be irrational -to be close minded With all preceding evidence, The Bible has clearly been proven to be dangerously addictive, and to cause damage to the mind and body. http://www.patheos.com... https://www.theatlantic.com... Works Cited: http://theinfluence.org... https://academic.oup.com... http://www.cnn.com... https://www.theatlantic.com... http://www.patheos.com... https://en.wikipedia.org...