The Cost of Visiting Earth May Be Too Astronomical For Aliens

Buttercup comments on Dec 27, 2020:

This is pretty much my own view, I think we are closer to the limits of engineering than speculative science assumes. They always use numbers that assume very compact, efficient and reliable drives. It may be that the best fusion drive will always be somewhat clunky. They also rely on the prospect that protecting the vessel at speeds a large fraction of the speed of light from collision for decades or more without a single failure is possible. Interstellar travel with realistically achievable machines is very difficult and dangerous.

In 23andMe, I share the common H7 maternal haplogroup with the likes of MarieAntionette.

Buttercup comments on Dec 26, 2020:

They should DNA type some relics, If Jesus had a Y chromosome, it would have to have come from his father and anyone else who had it would have been another bastard child or god's grandson

Will "Trumpism" Become History? [dailykos.com]

Buttercup comments on Dec 26, 2020:

Joe Mcarthy (?sp) and Nixon were extremely popular, much surpassing Trump at their peak and it's the rare person now who admits it.

The Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn has been in the news of late.

Buttercup comments on Dec 25, 2020:

Lots of people think a conjunction means no separation between the visible discs (a partial eclipse) which only happens with Saturn and Jupiter at intervals of tens of thousands of years.

Based on the responses I got, I should have posted this here.

Buttercup comments on Dec 24, 2020:

I don't remember the pork but the beef was abominable, shreds of utility beef in hard congealed fat and water. The spiced ham loaf (generic Spam) was pretty good.

Can you name any TV shows or movies that seem secretly by and for atheists?

Buttercup comments on Dec 23, 2020:

Lucifer pokes a good bit of fun at Christianity, I'm surprised it hasn't generated more hate.

What's the funniest compliment you received?

Buttercup comments on Dec 15, 2020:

We were choosing sides in basketball and one of the captains picked me," I want that Frankenstein lookin' motherfucker"

Does anyone know why vaccines are injections only, the exception I know of being polio?

Buttercup comments on Dec 14, 2020:

Polio and other organisms that can infect through the digestive tract are good candidates for oral vaccines. Respiratory viruses and others that infect through blood and mucus are too fragile for that route. There are nasal flu vaccines. Your respiratory and digestive systems are evolved to protect you; the injection bypasses much of your passive immune defense.

Do you remember Rudolph?

Buttercup comments on Dec 13, 2020:

Have a Holly Jolly Christmas

Forrest Sherman-class destroyer USS Turner Joy (DD 951), during her WestPac deployment,1982.

Buttercup comments on Dec 3, 2020:

Docked in Bremerton Wa, toured it with my kids.

This isn't very deviant, but just something I was thinking about earlier.

Buttercup comments on Nov 30, 2020:

After AF

Rational discourse from someone with credentials and expertise. [thewashingtonsentinel.com]

Buttercup comments on Nov 26, 2020:

It's the Onion without the funny

Happy Tuesday everyone! (For me, TEQUILA! )

Buttercup comments on Nov 17, 2020:

Tequila for me too, because it tastes worst coming back up

Do you guys really vote when you got worse and worst option .

Buttercup comments on Nov 17, 2020:

I'm not happy to choose between the Christian fascists and the center right but it is a clear choice. As clear as choosing between only McDonalds and going hungry.

I will use the flu vaccination as an example for this question.

Buttercup comments on Nov 16, 2020:

Most flu vaccines aren't weakened (attenuated) but inactivated and completely incapable of causing disease as are the leading covid vaccines currently under development. The immune response they generate does not cause the symptoms you list, those are tissue damage caused by the runaway growth of the virus.

I need to talk with someone.

Buttercup comments on Oct 26, 2020:

People are so different, I have a friend who's just a free spirit without much of a filter who said to me," Wouldn't it be wonderful if we had kids together, we'd have such beautiful children" just because I know her, I'm absolutely certain it was a totally innocent flight of fancy which would I take differently from almost anyone else in the world. If this was an isolated incident, just take it as face value. Body language experts talk about observing people's baseline. Also as you have no doubt noticed sometimes we just say things without considering all the ramifications.

Arlo Guthrie is retiring due to health reasons.

Buttercup comments on Oct 23, 2020:

Most affecting show I've ever seen, he was subdued and introspective, missing his dad, and when he sang,"This Land" there wasn't a dry eye in the house

Stumps Lancashire dialect for feet.

Buttercup comments on Oct 20, 2020:

I remember old timers saying this when I was a kid, they were of an age to have picked it up in Britain in WWII but it's also the kind of thing I wouldn't be surprised it arose spontaneously

Extracted from "The Perfumed Garden", a 600 year old, Arabic book on sex.

Buttercup comments on Oct 5, 2020:

Human sexuality is never that simple no matter what "that" is. Some women like really deep penetration (A- spot) but even then you can get the wrong angle and hit something more tender and hurt them. A lot of women don't orgasm through penetration period

I am curious.

Buttercup comments on Sep 14, 2020:

I've been pleasantly surprised at how frisky and open minded women I've known have been. I think the key is making it about the mutual experience rather than the kink. If the sex is good they are usually inclined to go along with the program and as time goes on the challenge becomes keeping the sex fresh and interesting and they get eager to experiment. Too much too soon makes them feel objectified.

Vale noun the world, or mortal or earthly life: this vale of tears.

Buttercup comments on Sep 11, 2020:

I've misapplied this my whole life as "veil of tears" thinking it referred the obscuring of vision by a semi transparent sheet.

OK, Solve this puzzle:

Buttercup comments on Aug 31, 2020:

Guyana

Post a song that you feel is out of this world sexy. [youtube.com]

Buttercup comments on Aug 7, 2020:

I like the sly innuendo in this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URAqnM1PP5E

Post a song that you feel is out of this world sexy. [youtube.com]

Buttercup comments on Aug 7, 2020:

We did a poll on the best make out song on Seattle Craigslist rants and rave and this was the winner https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-cbOl96RFM

Hey everyone! Who's your favorite celebrity MILF ? Or Your favorite celebrity FILF? 😂

Buttercup comments on Jul 29, 2020:

Eva Green is way up there, not technically a mom but she's played the hot milf a few times. My wife kinda surprised me her hall pass list had some classic hunks but also Jackie Chan.

I was one of the children whose 4 and 5-year-old nightmares were about the "Atom Bomb" as we knew it...

Buttercup comments on Jul 16, 2020:

We did duck and cover and they even let us out of class early once. We were quite near some important bases. On a different note the thing that gave me nightmares was Lassen volcano. There were walkways with no rails that went through boiling mud pits and I was plagued by visions of falling in and being cooked alive.

This song moves me to tears... [youtube.com]

Buttercup comments on Jun 15, 2020:

Me too, ever since it was new. Too bad it is still so topical

curiosity killed the kitty ...[agnostic.com]

Buttercup comments on Jun 6, 2020:

Sisters are doing it for themselves

Hey everybody! My Italian parsley is ridiculously happy and as little container and I'm afraid it's ...

Buttercup comments on May 30, 2020:

Mine is out of control and grows year round, so I just pick it as needed. Kentucky is as warm as Washington, it might be easier to have fresh all the time.

I thought my shop should of been able to stay open and that what better way to relieve stress than ...

Buttercup comments on May 29, 2020:

There is definite precedence. Vibrators were invented by and for doctors who believed (rightly, I think) that orgasms were good for women's health. https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/medical-vibrators-treatment-female-hysteria

More on what consciousness is or how it works: [aeon.co]

Buttercup comments on May 22, 2020:

Personally I think vitalism is a quirk of human cognition and consciousness like phlogiston and the divine spark of life will disappear into the background of quantification. It's a forest and there isn't a magic number of trees that make it suddenly appear.

Freon.

Buttercup comments on May 20, 2020:

I say it and know I'm technically wrong but use it generically like Xerox, maybe drop the capitalization on both.

Came across this pic from high school - my hippie days. Can you find yours and post it?

Buttercup comments on May 13, 2020:

Berkeley Free Clinic, 71 or 72. Sitting with Rhonda another volunteer who I found on Facebook about five years ago. In the intervening years we had lived contemporaneously in Denver and Seattle but didn't meet.

BREAKING NEWS MSNBC: Trump okd letting NYC use the USS Comfort for Covid-19 patients.

Buttercup comments on Apr 6, 2020:

Was this what the doctors wanted? He has a habit of ignoring competent advisors

Apoplectic adjective Extremely angry; furious: He became apoplectic at the mere mention of ...

Buttercup comments on Mar 30, 2020:

One of my absolute favorite words, it was once surmised that one could become so angry and frustrated it could damage your brain( back in phrenology days). Post stroke agitation in some people really does look like it. I find it somewhat plausible that a spike in blood pressure from emotional distress could trigger a stroke.

[apnews.

Buttercup comments on Mar 29, 2020:

If you extrapolate the Who numbers and our current lack of action, it's a lot more than that. More like 1 to 2 million

[yahoo.

Buttercup comments on Mar 1, 2020:

I'm high risk too and only 10 miles or so from Seattle

The Utah senate has voted to decriminalise polygamy, downgrading it to being a misdemeanour.

Buttercup comments on Feb 19, 2020:

I think legal marriages should be secular and purely contractual. It's for surviorship, division of property and care of children etc. Freely entered by legal adults. The number of people and their genders shouldn't matter.

Covert Kink... have you ever, in public, secretly got your kink on?

Buttercup comments on Feb 14, 2020:

In a church, as a favor to a friend though. It was her turn-on. She had a thing for Jesus and Santa. Does road head even count as a kink. Feels mainstream to me.

I discovered Chanterelle mushrooms while hiking last year. I wonder what they taste like?

Buttercup comments on Feb 7, 2020:

They're great though they do tend to be a little chewy. They are one of the safer mushrooms to pick and identify.

Is there a voice in your head? Yes? [ryanandrewlangdon.wordpress.com]

Buttercup comments on Jan 31, 2020:

Yes and it doesn't shut off except when meditating,drifting into or out of sleep, and focus demanding motor tasks. (Ironically, fast reading is one)

BANNED FROM FACEBOOK FOR 3 DAYS: 5 White Women Were wearing T-shirts that said (all together) Only...

Buttercup comments on Jan 21, 2020:

They should have been banned

Something from 1900 we could learn from - [news-gazette.com]

Buttercup comments on Jan 13, 2020:

This speaks to me, I have a bird and bee friendly yard. I like useful plants that manage themselves and have many volunteer herbs and veggies. I still have way too much lawn though, I was the last house on a dead end street and neighborhood playground but it's past time for a change.

If you are interested in the geology of the PNW you might enjoy this video: [youtube.com]

Buttercup comments on Nov 29, 2019:

I'll try to watch it later, the casualty projections for a Ranier eruption are horrifying, a huge mudslide from the mountain to the sound.

what are your prefered porn sites if any ?

Buttercup comments on Nov 19, 2019:

Spankbang, user uploads and downloads so it feels friendly and hands on. Pirate Bay and other torrent sites have stuff none of the standard webpages can't post because of copyright. Xhamster is cute.

Back due to popular demand, but please stick to subject of dating photos.

Buttercup comments on Nov 1, 2019:

My straight toothed smile (time to change pics) I have a Santa but probably should shop something for the interim (Turkey, pilgrim?)

TAUTOLOGY--saying the same thing twice in different words, considered a fault in style, In logic, a ...

Buttercup comments on Oct 21, 2019:

The first rule of tautology club is the first rule of tautology club.

JIFFY - Noun.

Buttercup comments on Oct 15, 2019:

Also used in science and quantified; I'd heard it used to describe short lived particles "The earliest technical usage for jiffy was defined by Gilbert Newton Lewis (1875–1946). He proposed a unit of time called the "jiffy" which was equal to the time it takes light to travel one centimeter in a vacuum (approximately 33.3564 picoseconds).[2] It has since been redefined for different measurements depending on the field of study."

Will Trump start a war with Iran in an attempt to keep from being impeached or to help him get ...

Buttercup comments on Oct 14, 2019:

I don't think Trump is intelligent and disciplined to have planned it. The Iranian Kurds might well come to help their besieged brothers which could be spun as Iran attacking Turkey and therefore NATO

Today we found plane wreckage on a 1943 crash on a nearby mountain.

Buttercup comments on Oct 13, 2019:

Cool, there is a B17 near me.

So earlier at work I met a guy who works for the NASA branch in Maryland.

Buttercup comments on Oct 13, 2019:

If they know the answer to a stupid question, they learned the answer themselves at some point. If they don't...

Not the tan suit!

Buttercup comments on Oct 11, 2019:

I call it taupe instead of tan, still clashes with orange

What is your favorite WTF holy bible passage?

Buttercup comments on Oct 8, 2019:

Ezekiel 23:20 She remembered her lover with the penis like a donkey and a flood of semen like a horse.

Flu shot is critical, but only half of American adults plan to get it - ABC News

Buttercup comments on Oct 5, 2019:

Got mine, hooray for evidenced based medicine.

Good article! I have to admit i agree [scientificamerican.com]

Buttercup comments on Oct 2, 2019:

Science doesn't let you just make shit up. Until at least one religion presents a falsifiable definition of god, atheism is the default. I generally don't refer to myself as an atheist because I'm Spinzoan. But at least as far as the scientific method is involved, it doesn't exist if it can't be shown to exist.

Are there "normal" words that bug you and you refuse to use?

Buttercup comments on Sep 30, 2019:

Zit, kind of icky. Penis or vulva outside of a medical setting.

Ok.

Buttercup comments on Sep 30, 2019:

Lots, I like frisky girls. I initiate more but I'd be insulted if they never did.

The Scientific Method and Quantum Physics

Buttercup comments on Sep 29, 2019:

That is what Einstein thought, the randomness could be resolved. Since we have limits to resolution though it is moot.

Dental question -- Do you think this is legitimate?

Buttercup comments on Sep 27, 2019:

Shop around, there is a lot of room for disagreements on treatment options even if the different dentists are acting in good faith. Age, smoking or prescription medication affect the progress of periodontal disease so you need to know if other dentists would make the same recommendation.

I had an epiphany moment this morning.

Buttercup comments on Sep 26, 2019:

Goes back much further, at least to the Caesars using "bread and circuses"to placate the proles. Religious and political leaders have to be cynics. They know if they want divine intervention they have to invent it

I hate to say this, but now that the senate voted 100% on releasing the documentation on trump's ...

Buttercup comments on Sep 25, 2019:

Trump is a patsy, at this point Pence has a better shot at being president so it's time to get rid of him.

Boy Scouts

Buttercup comments on Sep 24, 2019:

Shop around, I was a scout leader for years and we just ignored the antigay and religious stuff

I thought i’d show you guys my Guinea pigs, Jedi, Blossom and Jinx posed for a group ...

Buttercup comments on Sep 24, 2019:

My handle is in honor of Buttercup, my pig. I had one named Blossom too.

I would like to learn about meditation, some one have some recommendation.?

Buttercup comments on Sep 18, 2019:

Jon Kabat-Zinn has some good guided videos.I couldn't find the series but this one may be worth a try. They were around 20 or 30 minutes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DTmGtznab4

I often find myself in an awkward situation.

Buttercup comments on Sep 14, 2019:

Life's accumulated baggage can be heavy, I've seen references to fictional vampires who proposed that immortality was a curse because you had to watch everyone else suffer and decay. Sometimes in my darker moments that does seem a compelling argument.

A question: if you find out, during lovemaking/foreplay that your partner has nerve endings, ...

Buttercup comments on Sep 11, 2019:

Everybody is different, that by itself wouldn't be much of a problem.

Wendell Berry in the Nation. [bit.ly]

Buttercup comments on Sep 10, 2019:

I can't get the link to work

Yes, let's recap.. 🙄😒

Buttercup comments on Sep 8, 2019:

They were reduced from 2006 to 2016 but have spiked up since Trump has rolled back controls. You really should learn to fact check your reposts.

Due to the fact that my grandfather had Alzheimer's disease, I attach great importance to my brain's...

Buttercup comments on Sep 8, 2019:

He's got true believer syndrome and goes too far but he's less quack than showman. A lot of what he says makes sense, basic heathy living, nutrition, exercise and avoiding injury probably is a reasonable approach to brain health.

Truer words were never spoken

Buttercup comments on Aug 31, 2019:

Stole this my FB

Have you ever done something "iffy" to combat religious indoctrination and influence?

Buttercup comments on Aug 29, 2019:

3 of my friends who were chafing at forced attendance at Catholic school urinated in the holy water fountain at the associated church. I went to public school so I was the one who stood guard.

Delaware joins multistate lawsuit suing Trump Administration over treatment of immigrant children | ...

Buttercup comments on Aug 27, 2019:

I'd really like to see Trump before the world court, these are crimes against humanity, according to the treaty, Protocols for the Treatment of Refugees. The US is a signatory and Trump is not only violating it, it is his sworn duty as US president to enforce it.

After the orgy and why I love going to the dentist.

Buttercup comments on Aug 26, 2019:

We used to get high on nitrous from whipped cream cans when we were kids, which still seems to be true. You can buy also little cartridges on Amazon. The law is a little vague in Washington but I think you could get away with self administering without fear of prosecution.I've done poppers but I could never pay attention in the middle of an orgasm to see if they really extend it.

Vibrator recommendations.

Buttercup comments on Aug 25, 2019:

Hitachi Magic Wand is a perennial favorite, I've given them as gifts with good reviews.

And people wonder why most conservative don’t like Obama.

Buttercup comments on Aug 21, 2019:

Might want to check snopes

I need to tell this yoga teacher I just don't want to be touched in class.

Buttercup comments on Aug 21, 2019:

I think the cards need to come back, she's the employee and multiple customers are complaining. Unwanted touching is a very serious subject today and you may want to point that out to someone responsible for the business.

I’m missing someone so badly right now that doesn’t love me back.

Buttercup comments on Aug 20, 2019:

Hey, I like you, you're good people, his loss. Emotional hurts are like physical hurts, the pain can help if it keeps you from injuring yourself again and if you pick at it it takes longer to heal. (not that I'd ever follow this advice, so if you're smart you probably shouldn't listen to me)

Some in the Jewish religious community is now pushing their agenda on our right-to-die programs.

Buttercup comments on Aug 20, 2019:

In the US the Jewish community is far from monolithic, I suspect that secular reform Jews would be more in favor of right to die (this one for sure) and don't support trump or the current Israeli government

The following groups have no good reason to vote republican and for trump.

Buttercup comments on Aug 20, 2019:

Humans, even the people that are getting short term advantages are hurting the world they have to live on too.

The benefits of sheep.

Buttercup comments on Aug 19, 2019:

Welcome to Wyoming where men are men and sheep are nervous. I heard it so much I started to wonder how much they were kidding.

Why do we desire and seek a romantic, intimate relationship with the opposite sex full well knowing ...

Buttercup comments on Aug 19, 2019:

Love the ride and it hurts at most only to the degree it was worth getting into. I think our lives have emotional conservation almost as reliably as thermodynamics.

What's the biggest red flag when meeting new people?

Buttercup comments on Aug 18, 2019:

Trump Christian Fascists are right out.

The field, Country Joe McDonald with his anthem vs Vietnam

Buttercup comments on Aug 18, 2019:

They closed Telegraph Ave in Berkeley for a free concert. If memory serves it was 70 or 71, towards the end of the war

Mansplaining, what does it mean to you?

Buttercup comments on Aug 18, 2019:

It's a clever turn of phrase that I really liked initially, I use it in the limited literal sense. A man being patronizing because he considers women intellectually inferior. I've seen patronizing women too in the same sense, many times I've heard, "my husband is just another of my children" and that men are only capable of thinking about one thing at a time.

Real exchange... you deviants might not be the right folks to ask 😁

Buttercup comments on Aug 18, 2019:

After only three days, you should both be on your best behavior, too soon? For her obviously, if it's a deal breaker, move on. It's also to soon for her to be critical and mean spirited, she may be bitter or disillusioned with men. A polite but firm, "I don't like that" and accepting your apology and moving on is fine. If she punishes you and expects you to grovel for a small gaffe, she is into humiliation, she is the one dishing it out.

Question: When you are about to have sex with someone the first time, how do you go about crossing ...

Buttercup comments on Aug 16, 2019:

I always have the std/ family planning talk first. There has been enough flirting and making out already that it's open to discussion

As a woman I'm often pretty bold about speaking my mind sexually.

Buttercup comments on Aug 16, 2019:

It could be great, depending on the person. Sex for me is more art than science, seducing a shy girl can be really hot. It's nice if she is self aware enough to realize that it's her true self not a role she was shamed into. Maybe it's luck or kinkdar, I do think we tend to attract people on an unconscious level, but I've found they tend to get very open minded once they have a safe place to express themselves. I like complexity , surprise, and inspiration, art shouldn't be routine.

Sanders thinks Israel should decline aid if they refuse admission to two members of congress because...

Buttercup comments on Aug 16, 2019:

It's the presidents job to defend and uphold the constitution, including the free speech of all citizens. He was wrong, Israel is wrong in my opinion but Trump was wrong legally.

Every time I log on with my Desk Top to Agnostics, I get and error message from Microsoft telling me...

Buttercup comments on Aug 16, 2019:

That redirect is not from Microsoft or Agnostic, you need to update or upgrade your security software. Good that you're smart enough not to respond.Check CNET for removal tools. It's been a while but I think malwarebytes works. I've also found https://www.majorgeeks.com/ a good source of free software.

I think everyone of all ages would benefit from this.

Buttercup comments on Aug 14, 2019:

I suppose it's an advantage, my childhood was so crazy nobody had time to make me feel guilty about sex.

Do you think sociopaths and psychopaths can't really help their actions since they didn't really ...

Buttercup comments on Aug 14, 2019:

I think the disease model is more realistic and practical than moralizing but this also allows that punishment could be an evidence based intervention. Whether we love them or hate them is less important than can we teach them or force them to behave in a manner consistent with the greater good.

What is your favorite curse word?

Buttercup comments on Aug 13, 2019:

Weener, especially weener dog for a frustrating individual. I frequently sprinkle my speech with more prosaic obscenities too.

Where would one go to buy good furniture in Godalming?

Buttercup comments on Aug 13, 2019:

Used to be a bar in Denver called the Monastery and the main room was the former chapel.

I found reason just recently to block another participant here on this forum.

Buttercup comments on Aug 12, 2019:

I only block jerks, not conflicted at all. Opinions are welcome, insults aren't.

I think this may be from the Talmud, words to live by -

Buttercup comments on Aug 11, 2019:

Yeah, loved this for years.

You are brave.

Buttercup comments on Aug 10, 2019:

I like Brene Brown's, "Pretending to be brave is being brave"

“ Is nothing SACRED?

Buttercup comments on Aug 10, 2019:

Gahan Wilson is GOD!

I always wince when somebody compares /equates Trump with Hitler.

Buttercup comments on Aug 10, 2019:

I agree Hitler wrote his own books, put on a uniform and fought, and worked his way to the top through grit and wit. He was a malignant tumor, Trump is an ass pimple on the human race, it would be humiliating if it spread and killed us.

what do y'all think of this remark?

Buttercup comments on Aug 9, 2019:

Dumbass troll who'll say anything to get attention. Looking for any deeper meaning is futile.

Juneteenth: this word is from the Civil War period of the US and of black slave origin.

Buttercup comments on Aug 9, 2019:

I had a friend in Amsterdam who's birthday was June 19 so I told her about it's origin. I think I got flagged by a government listening program(Echelon, Carnivore or some such) because of some keywords for violent rebellion related to Civil War. My firewall used to alert me of a server redirect whenever I messaged her to a place near DC