Good selection, but not really a book (I know I know, I said text, but since it's the official book we should go that route, my bad). I'm not saying there aren't other historical texts that have influenced the US as a whole and states in particular, but for somewhere like Tennessee, in the heart of the Bible Belt, the Bible HAS played a significant role in the history of the state and the lives of many, and you'd be hard-pressed to deny a majority, of those who lived there since the state's founding.
Ummm... ok. The question was:Stonewall Jackson, basically anything to do with the historical significance of Tennessee military volunteers in the civil and revolutionary war. The role Tennessee played in the national park system and the TVA.
and your answer is just a list of things, none of what you listed is a text let alone a book.If Tennessee sat down and said, "We need a state book, what book has had the most influence on the history of our state?" I challenge you do come up with a different text.
We're already called the Volunteer State, the State Poem references Jackson as a major figure, our Declaration references all of this and the national park information.
We already have that stuff here...
This isn't meant to offend others, it's just a way of stating something that is fairly commonplace in Tennessee. You live in Nashville and I originally come from that area, you have to admit that Christianity is fairly common.
“The rains have ceased, and we have been graced with another beautiful day. But you are not here to see it.”
Stonewall Jackson is a book. And any of the myriad of books relating to the formation and younger years of the State of Tennessee would be a shitload more relevant and educational as to be the state fucking book than the Christian Bible.
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There are many books regarding the history of Tennessee, especially regarding the role it played in the civil war, women's suffrage, country music, and the role it played in the civil rights movement. None of these critically important aspects of Tennessee have anything to do with the bible.
Gotcha. When the book title is also just a famous person's name its a bit confusing. I also won't dispute the educational claim, anything discussing what you listed would be more educational. But I think we're arguing different things. You're saying that a historical book about the younger years of Tennessee would be more relevant as a state book. And from a historical educational standpoint you can make a solid case for that.
What I'm saying is that to the people who actually lived during the younger years of Tennessee the Bible was an important book to them. Same thing for a lot of what you listed below. You don't think civil war soldiers didn't find the Bible and religion to be an important aspect of their lives? You don't think religion and the Bible played a role in people involved in the civil rights movement? You don't think Christianity pops up in country music? The Bible and Christianity have played an important role in the historical lives of both the citizens and the state (most any state, but especially in the Bible Belt) is what I'm saying, and in this context the Bible isn't an inappropriate nor surprising choice as a book representative of the state and its history relative to any other book.
Also if you walked up to a person on the street and said "The Bible." they'd know what you were talking about, if you said the name of an educational text about the early history of Tennessee you'd probably get a blank look.
Well it's the best book.
I too live in Tennessee (though I'm not thrilled with the fact), and I can tell you there are a lot of ass-backwards, knuckle-draggin' Neanderthals here. Many of them haven't gotten out of the Civil War yet and that was 150 years ago. Everyone and their brother's dog has some stupid fucking "church", since it's not hard to get ordained and voila! - easy, tax-free income from the endless supply of non-thinking derps.
I've also been around the country a lot, and have lived in several states, but I've never seen so many homeless and destitute people on nearly every street corner like here in Nashville, holding up signs begging for help at intersections and elsewhere. Not just in the city but in outlying areas as well.
Thus you have a ready supply of unfortunates reliant on churches for charity (because there are virtually no state funded programs), that the churches constantly use to shove religion down their throats in order to receive the help, which keep the religious fanatics going and less money that the local & state gov'ts have a responsibility for, so of course the gov'ts support it.
Works out well for those who benefit directly from tax breaks & corporate welfare for the top income brackets. So yes, you can bet this 'state book' thing is a big pander in an election year.
Last edited by Caolela; 2016-04-05 at 11:12 PM.
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“The rains have ceased, and we have been graced with another beautiful day. But you are not here to see it.”
Freedom of speech isn't freedom from speech, freedom of religion is not freedom from religion.
On that note the Tennesse legislature is, of course, wasting their time doing something that is symbolic at best and possibly worse than a waste of time. Text is text though, and the Bible is simply a text, the interpretation of the Bible as real and spiritual fact is what makes it religious.
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