Fleecing the credulous?

[squidfetish]

There's a lot of money to be made from the religious community. What is your opinion on selling religious crap to the theists and ripping them off?  Given that you're an atheist (or maybe agnostic), would you have any moral issues with selling religious trinkets to the faithful?
Hypothetically, if I've got a truckload of religious stuff that I want to sell on Ebay, and the theists are queueing up to buy my Handy Bendy Jesus with flashing cross and detachable loincloth, what's the problem?  If some dumbass is prepared to shell out thousands for a piece of toast with Jesus' gurning coumtenance singed into it, is it wrong to take their money and blow the lot on coke and whores?  (Jimmy Swaggart... don't answer that one!)

There are some obvious issues here, and probably some not so obvious. What do you think?

[Traveler]

Yes there's a problem. I'm a person of integrity. I would no more lie to take money from a christian than I'd lie to take candy from a child. Fleecing money from anyone is more a reflection on the person doing the fleecing than on anything else. My integrity isn't for sale, even to the gullible.

[Siz]

There's a lot of money to be made from the religious community. What is your opinion on selling religious crap to the theists and ripping them off?  Given that you're an atheist (or maybe agnostic), would you have any moral issues with selling religious trinkets to the faithful?
Hypothetically, if I've got a truckload of religious stuff that I want to sell on Ebay, and the theists are queueing up to buy my Handy Bendy Jesus with flashing cross and detachable loincloth, what's the problem?  If some dumbass is prepared to shell out thousands for a piece of toast with Jesus' gurning coumtenance singed into it, is it wrong to take their money and blow the lot on coke and whores?  (Jimmy Swaggart... don't answer that one!)

There are some obvious issues here, and probably some not so obvious. What do you think?

I'd be no more or less cynical about profiteering from the religious as profiteering from any other merchandise (I live in London where rip-off comes as standard). It's just not a business I'd derive any satisfaction from - you've gotta believe in your product to sell it effectively. Coke and whores however... well, our target customer is as likely to go for those as the trinkets...!

[lomfs24]

What if you started a business that would make money now but only would require you to work if their religious expectations came true?

For instance right now, I could start a business that would be an "After Rapture Pet Adoption Agency". Right now, they could pay me a fee to become one of my clients. Then, after the rapture comes and they are whisked away to heaven I would come round to their house and pick up their pet and make sure it's taken care of properly. Either I would take care of it myself or have a network of other non-Christian folks that would agree to take those pets when the time came.

[Stevil]

What if you started a business that would make money now but only would require you to work if their religious expectations came true?

For instance right now, I could start a business that would be an "After Rapture Pet Adoption Agency". Right now, they could pay me a fee to become one of my clients. Then, after the rapture comes and they are whisked away to heaven I would come round to their house and pick up their pet and make sure it's taken care of properly. Either I would take care of it myself or have a network of other non-Christian folks that would agree to take those pets when the time came.

That's a great idea. There must be many Christians worried about their loved pets starving to death after they are whisked up to heaven leaving them behind.

[Davin]

What if you started a business that would make money now but only would require you to work if their religious expectations came true?

For instance right now, I could start a business that would be an "After Rapture Pet Adoption Agency". Right now, they could pay me a fee to become one of my clients. Then, after the rapture comes and they are whisked away to heaven I would come round to their house and pick up their pet and make sure it's taken care of properly. Either I would take care of it myself or have a network of other non-Christian folks that would agree to take those pets when the time came.

That's a great idea. There must be many Christians worried about their loved pets starving to death after they are whisked up to heaven leaving them behind.

If only someone on the internet would do something like that...

Eternal Earthbound Pets
After the Rapture Pet Care
Post Rapture Pet Care

[lomfs24]

Dammit! Someone always beats me to the great ideas!

[Davin]

Dammit! Someone always beats me to the great ideas!

You could always start getting loans that you promise to pay back tenfold when you get into heaven.

Edit: wait, I think I'll make that website...

[lomfs24]

Problem is, I am not going to heaven. Even if there is a God, I am not making it now. And that plays too close to the lines of fraud. Whereas my other idea would be completely self sustaining business for many years to come, without being a fraud because I would still fulfill the service when the time came, just hasn't come yet. But having money that they could take to heaven or I would give back to them when they go to heaven, little too close for me. People die on a regular basis, whereas the rapture doesn't come around very often. 

What else would people need to take care of after they are whisked away?

[Stevil]

Problem is, I am not going to heaven. Even if there is a God, I am not making it now. And that plays too close to the lines of fraud. Whereas my other idea would be completely self sustaining business for many years to come, without being a fraud because I would still fulfill the service when the time came, just hasn't come yet. But having money that they could take to heaven or I would give back to them when they go to heaven, little too close for me. People die on a regular basis, whereas the rapture doesn't come around very often. 

What else would people need to take care of after they are whisked away?

Their atheist or unbaptised children

[Firebird]

I confess I've sometimes wondered what would happen if I burned a vague image of virgin mary or jesus into my toast and tried to sell it on ebay. It's worked in the past, to the tune of thousands of dollars.
But I have to agree with Traveler, I'd probably hate myself afterward for doing it.

[lomfs24]

I thought I saw a toaster just for sale the other day that had the coils in it shaped so that it would always burn that image or an image that you could pretend was Jesus. Seems that would be the goose that laid the golden egg.

http://www.amazon.com/Burnt-Impressions-jesus247-Jesus-Toaster/dp/B0042QRYO8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1325887317&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/Burnt-Impressions-Nativity-Toaster/dp/B006GTZDOM/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1325887317&sr=8-3

And both toasters are in stock.

[Firebird]

That is awesome! Might be a good gag gift

[Ali]

Yes there's a problem. I'm a person of integrity. I would no more lie to take money from a christian than I'd lie to take candy from a child. Fleecing money from anyone is more a reflection on the person doing the fleecing than on anything else. My integrity isn't for sale, even to the gullible.

I guess it depends on what it is that you're selling.  If it's a scam (like promising to adopt their pets after the rapture if they pay you now) then I would say that it is fleecing them.  If you are actually selling them a product (such as a bendy Jesus on a flashing cross) as long as you are giving them exactly what you advertise, if they are willing to pay X for it, then how is that fleecing them?  Sure, we think it's junk, but that's kind of a basic in economics - as long as there is a demand, there will be a supply.

Personally, I wouldn't sell flashy bendy Jesuses either because I wouldn't want to associate my name with that crap, but I don't think that it's a scam if another atheist DID, so long as the theist actually got the product that they paid for.

[lomfs24]

Yes there's a problem. I'm a person of integrity. I would no more lie to take money from a christian than I'd lie to take candy from a child. Fleecing money from anyone is more a reflection on the person doing the fleecing than on anything else. My integrity isn't for sale, even to the gullible.

I guess it depends on what it is that you're selling.  If it's a scam (like promising to adopt their pets after the rapture if they pay you now) then I would say that it is fleecing them.  If you are actually selling them a product (such as a bendy Jesus on a flashing cross) as long as you are giving them exactly what you advertise, if they are willing to pay X for it, then how is that fleecing them?  Sure, we think it's junk, but that's kind of a basic in economics - as long as there is a demand, there will be a supply.

Personally, I wouldn't sell flashy bendy Jesuses either because I wouldn't want to associate my name with that crap, but I don't think that it's a scam if another atheist DID, so long as the theist actually got the product that they paid for.

Religious folks get fleeced everywhere they go, doesn't make it right but it's true. God will forgive your sins if you drop a little in the plate as it goes by. Some take 10% right off the top, and if they don't think you are giving your fair share, they ask for your income tax statements. 10% of what you earn will make things square with God. Cause apparently the hit on Jesus...Er, I mean, Jesus sacrifice was actually paid for on an installment plan with revolving credit.
Then they get hit with fees to have their pets taken care of after the rapture.
My feeling is that if you are providing goods and services to them, even though it is religiously motivated, and you are holding up your end of the bargain you are not ripping them off.

As far as the pet care thing, I don't see how that is ripping them off. Let me illustrate.

I don't think that I need my car detailed, so, I don't go and get it detailed. You may prefer to have a looking car and you think you need to go get your car detailed. Now, we some some religious folks who think their pets need to be taken care of in the future. They certainly can't have that done within there own belief system because everyone will be with them. So they have to go to an outside source that will take care of their pets once they are gone. It is simply a service they feel they need. I don't see how that is ripping them off. To rip them off you would have to neglect picking up their pets when and if the rapture really does happen.