Do The Amish Want To Move Forward?

[poodicat]

Watching the amish teenagers on channel five,is the amish religion holding them back,a bit like a taliban regime,but not as full on..

[pastafreak]

I don't think comparing the Amish to the Taliban is a fair observation.......they are at opposite ends of the spectrum.

[ummmm]

Plus the Amish get to sample life outside their community before they make a choice.

[poodicat]

I know that pasta,but they have similar traits...

[saxy_jag]

Traits?

You mean like congenital deformities, or apt to bite?

[yelenots]

Damn I forgot that was on!

[pastafreak]

Like what poodi??...

[pastafreak]

I'm catching it on 4+1 yelenots....5 minutes to go.

[poodicat]

Their women being subservient to men...

[Vagrant]

No, the Amish do not want to move forward - isn't that the whole basis of their religion?

[B00]

Ya know, i dont happen to think its a bad life to lead!

They lead a wonderfully simplistic lifestyle, without our stresses and worries. Good on them I say, they're harming no one, and as someone has already pointed out, they aren't brainwashed, they do get a chance to sample life on "the outside", and the choice is theirs whether they return to their orginal lifestyle or not.

[saxy_jag]

Looking a little closer, the Amish believe in leading a simple life, without reliance on electricity, television or internal combustion engine. They are peaceful, non-combative people whose only desire is to be left to live in peace and provide for themselves through hardwork and old-fashioned values.

The taliban - mysogenistic, patriarchal insurgents who will happily massacre or torture anyone who happens to disagree with them.

Yep - very similar.

[pastafreak]

They are a peace loving people poodi.....and do not question what they see as gods will for them,they also do not look down on those in the outside world....they seem to be non-judgemental.

[boxtops]

I am very impressed with these Amish teenagers, they have their heads screwed on very right. They are open to suggestions from the outside world but what we saw tonight showed that in general the Amish people are happy leading a simple self-sufficient life with none of the blatant consumerism that makes so many of the rest of us dissatisfied. They are certainly not backward in their knowledge of the world in the way it relates to them. I didn't know until now that the teenagers are able to spend a year in the outside world and make up their minds about staying in, or leaving the Amish people. A huge decision but a great one so they can see the outside world, they don't have to stay - but I can see why some of them would want to, it sounds like life in this country a couple of hundred years ago, with some of the benefits (e.g. medicine) of living in the 21st century.

[poodicat]

Yep ure right...

[ummmm]

They are not subservient to men. They just have different rolls...

[yelenots]

I agree too

[karenmac60]

Beards?

[boxtops]

I've been watching the programme on BBC2 weekdays (Ben Fogle's Escape in Time) where families have competed at various tasks in living just like this on a farm. Those families found it very hard work, the Amish accept it as part of living. They do lead a traditional life with the men in the fields and managing the stock and the women looking after the children and being domestic with embroidery etc. They seem a very happy people.

[boxtops]

They don't have to wear beards, karen, that was discussed last week. My OH has a beard so I have no problem with that!