Fernapple's Profile

Something very easy, that most of us can easily do for ourselves, which makes a big difference, and ...

girlwithsmiles comments on Feb 4, 2021:

True, but it will more achievable when the days are longer.

Fernapple replies on Feb 4, 2021:

@girlwithsmiles Some lovely places for walking round you. Nottingham, are you in the country or the city ?

Something very easy, that most of us can easily do for ourselves, which makes a big difference, and ...

wordywalt comments on Feb 4, 2021:

For over 15 years I walked 3 to 5 miles a day through our neighborhood and surroundings ones. It was good for me in many ways. It helped me to stay fit and helped me to control my diabetes. It also enabled me to see what was doing on in the area and get to know people in the area. I was known in...

Fernapple replies on Feb 4, 2021:

Sounds like living the dream, well done.

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Feb 4, 2021:

@skado Actually I have just viewed the results. In fact the results seem to be both shambolic and accompanied by inarticulate text. So it would seem there was either little interest or thought put into it, because he did not care or have any real interest, or it expresses his disappointment with the results.

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Feb 4, 2021:

@skado Good, obviously the bias in the questions, which may not have been deliberate, was not enough to tip the result. Perhaps he did get what he came for. Good luck to him in his search.

"Be happy for no reason, like a child.

henthabox comments on Feb 2, 2021:

I get the idea alright. But that is a trick I have not learned.

Fernapple replies on Feb 3, 2021:

Nor me. If I was to lose my health for example, I would be very unhappy. I think that some people just get lucky, and are born with happy child like genes, and others are not.

The back story perhaps, and what the KGB may have done. [theguardian.com]

powder comments on Feb 2, 2021:

OK, critical thinking time. That the KGB was interested in recruiting Trump is very plausible and they no doubt had a file on him. But did the FSB (which replaced the KGB when the USSR fell in 1991) continue the contact? I seriously doubt it, especially during the Yeltsin years when Russia was a ...

Fernapple replies on Feb 3, 2021:

Yes that is very true, good thoughts thank you. Altough I suspect that within the Russian intelligence services there was a great deal of continuity even through the Yeltsin years, since they are and were very independent, and of course, well linked to the mafia. I do not doubt that Trump was 99% a home grown product, the treasonable links are important not to excuse America, but to show how low its its chosen figure head had sunk, without anyone noticing.

For anyone who still doubts this is a pandemic: More people died of covid in the state of California...

Fernapple comments on Feb 2, 2021:

You should also, not forget that that is, after, taking measures to reduce transmission. In the UK it is said that, we average about eight thousand deaths each year from winter flu, without taking serious precautions. We are now at a hundred plus thousand, covids deaths, times twelve, and that ...

Fernapple replies on Feb 3, 2021:

@Paul4747 Sadly the latest video to go viral in the UK, shows our chief medical officer, a none political appointment and a highly respected scientist, being insulted in the street by a moronic youth shouting 'liar' at him.

Will it end, or just fade away and keep coming back?

Julie808 comments on Feb 2, 2021:

As long as people continue to travel and move about giving the virus new hosts, it will be with us unless it's found that the vaccinated folks can't transmit the virus asymptomatically. Because travel is big business and governments (such as in Hawaii) tend to give in to demands of the travel and...

Fernapple replies on Feb 2, 2021:

Well said, especially the last line.

A most excellent idea

powder comments on Feb 1, 2021:

Plus it's a great way to keep political leaders to account, recognising when they are sprouting bollocks

Fernapple replies on Feb 2, 2021:

And the advertizing industry.

"Be happy for no reason, like a child.

LiterateHiker comments on Feb 1, 2021:

I disagree. Born an ebullient optimist, I am an energetic, resilient and happy person. I find the wonder and joy in life. The infinite pleasure in the touch of a hand, the joy of tasting a juicy, ripe peach. Intense, playful, passionate and determined, I have fun every day. I love hiking...

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

@LiterateHiker Then I think that you and your aunt, have/had exactly the happy like a child, mind the author is talking about.

Biggest Contradictions in the Bible.

Triphid comments on Jan 31, 2021:

There are many including, " Thou shalt not make graven images," ooops the Catholics in particular have screwed up on that quite badly, "Thou shalt keep the Sabbath Holy unto Me," Chrustians still have NOT figured out which actual DAY is the Sabbath, " Thou shalt NOT have other Gods before Me," ...

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

@Triphid Oh perhaps I have been misinformed. I understood that it was a late addition.

"Be happy for no reason, like a child.

LiterateHiker comments on Feb 1, 2021:

I disagree. Born an ebullient optimist, I am an energetic, resilient and happy person. I find the wonder and joy in life. The infinite pleasure in the touch of a hand, the joy of tasting a juicy, ripe peach. Intense, playful, passionate and determined, I have fun every day. I love hiking...

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

Well true, even if you did go blind and lame, you would still have memories.

"Be happy for no reason, like a child.

1950debris comments on Feb 1, 2021:

Hmm, broadly agree with this. But some reasons for happiness might just be unstealable.

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

They may not be stealing, it could go by accident or mallice.

"Be happy for no reason, like a child.

Fernapple comments on Feb 1, 2021:

And do good unto others, because ? Well why not.

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

@josephr Going to quote you in the quotes group.

Will it end, or just fade away and keep coming back?

yvilletom comments on Feb 1, 2021:

Viruses other than covid were doing what they do from about the rime that life began, eons before human life began. I understand that human DNA contains evidences of those struggles.

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

Yes introns and jumping genes. It is said that they may even have helped with our evolution, by giving us the power to use genes in bits, so that a few genes can be used for many purposes, among other things.

I am at level two! Wondering if I have joined atheist or Scientology?👣.

Fernapple comments on Jan 31, 2021:

Hello and welcome. We are a very board group here.

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

@Marionville broad. Though sometimes just a little.

Biggest Contradictions in the Bible.

Triphid comments on Jan 31, 2021:

There are many including, " Thou shalt not make graven images," ooops the Catholics in particular have screwed up on that quite badly, "Thou shalt keep the Sabbath Holy unto Me," Chrustians still have NOT figured out which actual DAY is the Sabbath, " Thou shalt NOT have other Gods before Me," ...

Fernapple replies on Feb 1, 2021:

Good points. Though actually the eleventh comandment, there are eleven. Thou shalt not make graven images. Is a late addition by protestants, not found in early editions.

“I’m an atheist, and that’s it.

Fernapple comments on Jan 31, 2021:

Best one yet.

Fernapple replies on Jan 31, 2021:

@Marionville My thought exactly.

Good Saturday morning, all you "heathens".

girlwithsmiles comments on Jan 30, 2021:

Oh gosh, that just reminded me of an awful vegan I served at a wedding one evening. I’d been taking special care to go out of my way for him but when I asked if he’d be having cake and he said not if it had aborted chicken foetuses in. At that stage I asked another member of staff to deal with ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 30, 2021:

The whole vegan business has its heart in the right place. ( Heart metaphoically. ) But its head in a lot of bad propaganda and disinformation. One who posted on here, said that one reason for not eating honey, was that. When queen bees are artificially inseminated, the male bees are killed by squeazing their insides out. Which ignores two things. Firstly that, very few queen bees are artificially inseminated, and most back yard beekeepers don't do it. And secondly that, Ripping the males insides out, so that they die, is exactly what a queen bee does, when they mate naturally. And there were dozens of such examples in the post, which was obviously copied from a website.

Just an interesting story about two plants.

Behind-the-dog comments on Jan 29, 2021:

Love that accent! That was fun, thanks. I grew up with a backyard overrun by English ivy. Interestingly, though my parents (who still live there) have done nothing to get rid of it, it is nearly all gone. It might be interesting to explore how that came to pass...

Fernapple replies on Jan 30, 2021:

In the UK it is regarded as a great ecological boon, since it provides, a last late autumn feed for bees and moths, shelter for many creatures and some of the most valuable winter berries for the birds.

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Jan 29, 2021:

@skado No I had no wish to have it or him removed, and it is possible that it may be true. In which case I think that sceptics are big enough to live with it. It does not matter how you get nearer to the truth, only that you do so and continue to do so. I am still only saying that I don't think he will learn anything from it, he came looking for confirmation, was careful to make sure he did not get negative results, and so will get what he came for.

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Jan 28, 2021:

@skado How he spins it may not be important. If, as it probably will, it gets into the hands of the hate preachers, who, working on the principle of Gorbels. If you want to get your followers to commit atrocities then you must first make them stop seeing the enemy as human. They will invert it to. 'Sceptics are so unnatural/lost to god, they can not even manage to be human enough, to have good relationships with their fathers.'

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Jan 28, 2021:

@skado I would love to think that was true, but sadly a, 'worldview well grounded in reality', gives little protection against wild eyed thugs waving guns and the only book they ever read.

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Jan 28, 2021:

@skado The only threat is that it will be used by those wanting to promote theocrasy, as amunition to undermine sceptics especially in the views of their followers.

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Jan 27, 2021:

@skado Did not mean it would hurt you. I meant it is not likely to help his education, though you never know, maybe.

[agnostic.

Fernapple comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I have got a feeling that his survey, is so obviously a load of c##p, that he has not had many if any takers anyway. Let him stay, he may just learn not to take theist propaganda a face value, you never know.

Fernapple replies on Jan 27, 2021:

@FrayedBear That's right, so the only thing to do is not to fill it in, but the fact that he is still almost begging for members to do so, proves that members have more sense anyway.

[agnostic.

Fernapple comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I have got a feeling that his survey, is so obviously a load of c##p, that he has not had many if any takers anyway. Let him stay, he may just learn not to take theist propaganda a face value, you never know.

Fernapple replies on Jan 27, 2021:

@FrayedBear Actually, I managed to get a look at the survey without completing it. And he will certainly get the results he wants anyway, because the questions are rigged so that they can provide only one outcome. For example, one question reads something like. 'Did your father pray with you, read the bible with you or say grace before meals ?' Obviously if your answer is no. Which in most former Christian countries outside the US. Like Canada and the UK, which he is specifically targeting, is the answer 99% of people will give, because who does that any more ? Then that can clearly be interpreted as both: did not have a good relationship with/spend time with father, and not religious. If he really wanted an honest answer, then why not just ask two questions. Did you have a good relationship with your father ? Are you a Christian believer ? The other eighteen are clearly rigging.

[agnostic.

skado comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I signed up to be notified of the survey results. I suspect he will find no significant correlation, which might be a positive contribution toward his education. I don’t think we have anything to fear from information.

Fernapple replies on Jan 27, 2021:

Actually, I managed to get a look at the survey without completing it. And he will certainly get the results he wants, because the questions are rigged so that they can provide only one outcome. For example, one question reads something like. 'Did your father pray with you, read the bible with you or say grace before meals ?' Obviously if your answer is no. Which in most former Christian countries outside the US. Like Canada and the UK, which he is specifically targeting, is the answer 99% of people will give, because who does that any more ? Then that can clearly be interpreted as both: did not have a good relationship with/spend time with father, and not religious. If he really wanted an honest answer, then why not just ask two questions. Did you have a good relationship with your father ? Are you a Christian believer ? The other eighteen are clearly rigging.

[agnostic.

Fernapple comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I have got a feeling that his survey, is so obviously a load of c##p, that he has not had many if any takers anyway. Let him stay, he may just learn not to take theist propaganda a face value, you never know.

Fernapple replies on Jan 27, 2021:

@FrayedBear Oh yes. 'Keep your enemies close.'

Humanists UK, Atheist Alliance International or National Secular Society?

Marionville comments on Jan 26, 2021:

I have no experience with any atheist organisations in the U.K., and although I did flirt with the idea of joining Humanist U.K. at one time, I never did. The National Secular Society may prove to be a better fit for you if you feel the need to join an umbrella group. I’m a lifelong ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 26, 2021:

@tsallinia What Marrion said, ditto.

Posting on here is like therapy to me.

AnneWimsey comments on Jan 25, 2021:

I see nothng to be gained by stirring the anthill. Not so long ago it was considered the height of rudeness to bring up either politics or religion in social conversation!

Fernapple replies on Jan 26, 2021:

@Cyklone You can resort to personal insults as well, though that may not count as polite.

Jackdaws and my next doors chimney.

Behind-the-dog comments on Jan 25, 2021:

I read many years ago that Jackdaws can (how to put this?) *understand* numbers up to six (apparently researchers are reluctant to say that they "count"). Here's a better, brief explanation I just found on a [website describing some cool crow ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 26, 2021:

good article. Yes Corvids are among my favourite birds too.

“Man’s inhumanity to man, makes countless thousands mourn!”.

Fernapple comments on Jan 25, 2021:

It is a freezing cold day in Jan here, miserable, so something summery. Flow gently, sweet Afton! amang thy green braes, Flow gently, I'll sing thee a song in thy praise; My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream, Flow gently, sweet Afton, disturb not her dream. Thou stockdove whose echo ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 25, 2021:

@Marionville Very sweetly sung. Though it is only the first verse, and there are about seven in all.

FFS "There is no evidence of a pandemic" says anti vaxxer

Fernapple comments on Jan 24, 2021:

I am sure there are a few of those. But without a citation of your source, or a link, what are we to make of it ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 24, 2021:

@Petter Sorry. 'Without'. Put it right.

I was just lucky enough to get close, for a couple of quick, hand held long zoom shots, which don't ...

Hathacat comments on Jan 24, 2021:

Have you ever seen a pigeons nest? They just throw a couple twigs and call it done. Not even protected from the pictures I saw. Them N.Y. pigeons are thugs, lol.

Fernapple replies on Jan 24, 2021:

@Hathacat I think that their numbers may be the problem. Originally when they were few in number, they would nest on rocky ledges, and other such places, where nest building may not have been needed. But since they are so common thanks to humans giving them agriculture which they love, they are short of nest sites, which suit their limited building skills.

I was just lucky enough to get close, for a couple of quick, hand held long zoom shots, which don't ...

Hathacat comments on Jan 24, 2021:

Have you ever seen a pigeons nest? They just throw a couple twigs and call it done. Not even protected from the pictures I saw. Them N.Y. pigeons are thugs, lol.

Fernapple replies on Jan 24, 2021:

Yes, they are one of the worst, and they do often lose chicks and eggs, which fall through or drop over the side, so it is not like it did not matter.

When folks don’t understand why it’s a big deal that Harris is the Vice President(no matter your...

Fernapple comments on Jan 23, 2021:

Are the pictures in the right order, I can't work it out ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 23, 2021:

@Barnie2years Well I am from the wrong side of the pond. Its comforting to know it got some Americans too, though you did work it out without help, well done.

“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire”.

Fernapple comments on Jan 23, 2021:

But so often the matches are damp.

Fernapple replies on Jan 23, 2021:

@Marionville That is true, and I was also thinking of a very, horrible religious education teacher I had, who was trying to pedal the most banal fundamentalist drivel, while belitling every other human endevour.

“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire”.

Fernapple comments on Jan 23, 2021:

But so often the matches are damp.

Fernapple replies on Jan 23, 2021:

@Marionville Actually I think that a lot are filling the pail, to deliberately put the fire out.

When folks don’t understand why it’s a big deal that Harris is the Vice President(no matter your...

Fernapple comments on Jan 23, 2021:

Are the pictures in the right order, I can't work it out ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 23, 2021:

@tinkercreek Oh of course they are VP's I was thinking they were presidents, that is why I could not work it out. Stupid.

Despite the cold, the spring bulbs are still forcing their way up.

MikeInBatonRouge comments on Jan 20, 2021:

Informative botony lesson! 🌷

Fernapple replies on Jan 20, 2021:

Thank you, I know its technical, but I always hope that gardeners take a real interest in their plants.

Edited to be less rude, because I can be a rude prick and I want to work on that.

Fernapple comments on Jan 18, 2021:

I wonder who would want to read such things. I type fast and loose then often have to go back, even when I notice things after people have liked/commented. A record such as. "Today Fernapple corrected five spelling mistakes, added three commas and seven full stops, deleted two commas and changed a ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 20, 2021:

@Gwendolyn2018 Good. PS Don't let anyone tell him he can't do empathy either.

Edited to be less rude, because I can be a rude prick and I want to work on that.

Fernapple comments on Jan 18, 2021:

I wonder who would want to read such things. I type fast and loose then often have to go back, even when I notice things after people have liked/commented. A record such as. "Today Fernapple corrected five spelling mistakes, added three commas and seven full stops, deleted two commas and changed a ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 20, 2021:

@Gwendolyn2018 Sounds like your grandson and I could be twins. One thing I am sure you do not need to know, but I will say it anyway, is. DO NOT EVER, let anyone write him off or limit his opportunities because of his autism. If needed, fight his corner like the most fierce tiger gran who ever lived.

Edited to be less rude, because I can be a rude prick and I want to work on that.

Fernapple comments on Jan 18, 2021:

I wonder who would want to read such things. I type fast and loose then often have to go back, even when I notice things after people have liked/commented. A record such as. "Today Fernapple corrected five spelling mistakes, added three commas and seven full stops, deleted two commas and changed a ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 19, 2021:

@Gwendolyn2018 I am borderline autistic and have the concentration span of a nat, sorry gnat. Probably the nightmare student.

Edited to be less rude, because I can be a rude prick and I want to work on that.

Fernapple comments on Jan 18, 2021:

I wonder who would want to read such things. I type fast and loose then often have to go back, even when I notice things after people have liked/commented. A record such as. "Today Fernapple corrected five spelling mistakes, added three commas and seven full stops, deleted two commas and changed a ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 19, 2021:

@Gwendolyn2018 There were two ! Will do that one too. Hope Jeff is writing all this down.

I have a suspicion that @Thirst2learn and @imback are the same person.

Fernapple comments on Jan 19, 2021:

Don't think it is against the rules, but is that not one of the things the points system is supposed to be there to discourage ? And I know this is social media where the normal rules don't apply, but are you sure it is a good idea to air mere 'suspicion' in public.

Fernapple replies on Jan 19, 2021:

@creative51 Why don't you just mail them and ask them ?

Edited to be less rude, because I can be a rude prick and I want to work on that.

Fernapple comments on Jan 18, 2021:

I wonder who would want to read such things. I type fast and loose then often have to go back, even when I notice things after people have liked/commented. A record such as. "Today Fernapple corrected five spelling mistakes, added three commas and seven full stops, deleted two commas and changed a ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 19, 2021:

@Gwendolyn2018 Done. You see it works.

I have a suspicion that @Thirst2learn and @imback are the same person.

1of5 comments on Jan 18, 2021:

Multiple people sharing 1 brain isn't as uncommon nowadays as you might think.

Fernapple replies on Jan 19, 2021:

Explains a lot. Especially if they each get a different part.

I would like to suggest that ALL ideological echo chamber groups on this site be removed o removed.

Joanne comments on Jan 16, 2021:

I can see a point here. I really dislike how almost everything is some sort of group. There are times when I would like to reply to a post, but I have to join the group to do it. And, quite frankly, I don't want to join certain groups. Another problem, as I understand, is that a person can be ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 17, 2021:

@Joanne Don't think there is any technical limit on how many times you can join/leave a group, but the group can block you yes. So what if you have told them what you think for once.

Does anybody know what happened to @Donotbelieve?

altschmerz comments on Jan 17, 2021:

She stated that she was leaving the site, if I recall correctly.

Fernapple replies on Jan 17, 2021:

Yes can confirm that. She got fed up and said she had had enough.

I would like to suggest that ALL ideological echo chamber groups on this site be removed o removed.

Joanne comments on Jan 16, 2021:

I can see a point here. I really dislike how almost everything is some sort of group. There are times when I would like to reply to a post, but I have to join the group to do it. And, quite frankly, I don't want to join certain groups. Another problem, as I understand, is that a person can be ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 17, 2021:

The easy way that I use is. Join the group, make your comment, then a couple of days latter, leave the group.

I hope someone can identify this Happy fella.

LenHazell53 comments on Jan 14, 2021:

Is it just me or does that look like an old fat Jimmy Carter

Fernapple replies on Jan 15, 2021:

Yep, that is what I thought.

What did Trump do, if anything, to incite violence?

Fernapple comments on Jan 14, 2021:

As a follow on from my former comment, I do have to add. That in the past, he has often promoted a violent culture. For example in his famous "You can get away with anything, grab them by the pussy.", quote about women, and many other similar, which certainly show open approval of a violent culture,...

Fernapple replies on Jan 14, 2021:

@JeffMurray Yes I think you are quite right. The more I think about it the more I am sure he is guilty. The trouble of course is finding evidence to courtroom benefit of the doubt standard.

What did Trump do, if anything, to incite violence?

Fernapple comments on Jan 13, 2021:

He did not, as some people seem to think, directly promote violence as far as I have seen, but he did promote division which of course, you would have to be stupid to not realize leads to it. And even the none condemnation of violence can be a thing which makes you complicit in it, Re. Pontius ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 14, 2021:

@KKGator I just added this thought too. That in the past, he has often promoted a violent culture. For example in his famous "You can get away with anything, grab them by the pussy.", quote about women, and many other similar, which certainly show open approval of a violent culture, and therefore have to share in the blame if there is a rise in violence under his administration.

Watch: Donald Trump, son and team party moments before Capitol Hill riots [indiatoday.in]

Fernapple comments on Jan 11, 2021:

Since he does not actually seem to, work, at governing your country. What do people suppose he does all day and everyday.

Fernapple replies on Jan 14, 2021:

@Dyl1983 Something that gets in the way of social media time. Don't get involved in it, not a good idea.

2 gorillas at San Diego Zoo test positive for COVID-19

BitFlipper comments on Jan 12, 2021:

Very interesting. I wonder if it's exactly the same virus, or a variant on what we get.

Fernapple replies on Jan 13, 2021:

Would think that they caught it off humans. Doubt its the original strain, don't forget that humans caught it of bats in the first place, so the standard strain can do a wide range of species.

i didn't know i could do this. [agnostic.com]

Wisterious comments on Jan 13, 2021:

Didn't know you could do what, see yourself in the looking glass? Actually, I think it rolled out of my back yard.

Fernapple replies on Jan 13, 2021:

Of course he can't see himself in a looking glass. He is an Agnostic/Atheist, we can't see ourselves in looking glasses and we burn up instantly if we go out in daylight. Or so my Christian friends tell me.

Trump loves the poorly-educated.

CuddyCruiser comments on Jan 13, 2021:

This sums it up......

Fernapple replies on Jan 13, 2021:

I must be stupid too, because I can't even work out what that is intending to say.

Scientist and poet Miroslav Holub, wrote a wonderful poem called ’ The Test-tube ’, for when we ...

Fernapple comments on Jan 12, 2021:

No. Why should it ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 12, 2021:

@Mcflewster I would far rather be in a, ( very large ) test tube, where I can breath and see out, and climb out if I wish. Than be squashed flat between pages of a really heavy old book.

It passed 5 days ago, no one noticed & I've only just twigged.

Fernapple comments on Jan 12, 2021:

Well done. Stuck at it for three years, that makes you a senior here, and only just in your twenties.

Fernapple replies on Jan 12, 2021:

@FrayedBear Got it from my. 'Lying little creep will say anything to engineer a bit of fake flattery.' Program of course.

Watch: Donald Trump, son and team party moments before Capitol Hill riots [indiatoday.in]

Fernapple comments on Jan 11, 2021:

Since he does not actually seem to, work, at governing your country. What do people suppose he does all day and everyday.

Fernapple replies on Jan 12, 2021:

@Mooolah Thanks, where is that nausia button these days.

Watch: Donald Trump, son and team party moments before Capitol Hill riots [indiatoday.in]

Fernapple comments on Jan 11, 2021:

Since he does not actually seem to, work, at governing your country. What do people suppose he does all day and everyday.

Fernapple replies on Jan 11, 2021:

@AnneWimsey Well yes. But for some people that counts as party play.

MAGA is political speak for treason.

Fernapple comments on Jan 10, 2021:

From this side of the Atlantic I never understood the slogan. Are they claiming that America stopped being great, and if so when ? And how do Mexico/Canada feel about being told they are not great ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 11, 2021:

@t1nick Yep, my questions were retorical/ironic, but the fact that you took the trouble to answer, and did it very well is appreciated.

As an atheist, what would you wish to be done with your body after death?

Petter comments on Jan 8, 2021:

**The End of Sentience** The day I die, that’s it. I’m Dead. Remember whilst you’re sighing That the act of life, of birth and being, Includes the act of dying. No mausoleum, no funeral pyre, Just lay me in the earth. Let my body restore a part of what It has plundered since its...

Fernapple replies on Jan 11, 2021:

Good poem, like that one.

A lady serving at the supermarket has just told me that 1 in 50 in our area apparently have Covid ...

Krish55 comments on Jan 9, 2021:

I have been told many times that I look like a mutant…

Fernapple replies on Jan 10, 2021:

You will fit in well on this site then.

“When the Know-Nothings get control, it will read “all men are created equal, except negroes, ...

Word comments on Jan 9, 2021:

The ideal "all men are created equal " is erroneous. The commonality, that would only be rather equal, could be seen in that, we are all created by DNA. I can understand, it is a philosophy that would, let's say, level the playing field. But, in reality, some are taller than others, some ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 10, 2021:

Very true, in fact of course, if everyone was created equal, then we would not need laws, because everyone could equally defend their own corner. Civilization, the rule of law, government, manners, and morallity, all stem from the fact that people are different.

La Vie, c'est tout merde de cheval.

Fernapple comments on Jan 9, 2021:

Tomatoes !

Fernapple replies on Jan 9, 2021:

@Dyl1983 De l'arrière du cheval à mon assiette.

When I ask a religious friend about the factual accuracy behind the existence of God, they would be ...

Fernapple comments on Jan 8, 2021:

Hello and welcome. It is in fact true that god and religion are two quite different things. It is therefore possible, that there is a god but no true religion, because god does not choose to communicate, and it is also possible to have religion without there being a god, which is what most people ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 9, 2021:

@JeffMurray My thought exactly. The questioner may well be really interested in the subject, and therefore deserves a good reply if possible.

Why do religious people let god get away with being so horrible? : atheism

Fernapple comments on Jan 6, 2021:

Because god gives them what they want. A god is made by its worshipers not the other way round. And if you take someone who does not want to make the effort to be a good human being, and say to them. Join my club and that makes you superior to all the other humans, with bragging rights. Then they ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 8, 2021:

@bbyrd009 You are not alone.

Why do religious people let god get away with being so horrible? : atheism

Fernapple comments on Jan 6, 2021:

Because god gives them what they want. A god is made by its worshipers not the other way round. And if you take someone who does not want to make the effort to be a good human being, and say to them. Join my club and that makes you superior to all the other humans, with bragging rights. Then they ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 6, 2021:

@bbyrd009 It could be your speaking voice then. LOL

Some wood-turners like to do mushrooms, some do bowls, and some do both.

Wisterious comments on Jan 6, 2021:

Very cool, and beautiful. What woods were used?

Fernapple replies on Jan 6, 2021:

The large ones are birch and the small one maple.

Some wood-turners like to do mushrooms, some do bowls, and some do both.

FrayedBear comments on Jan 6, 2021:

As you say interesting black impregnation but what trees did they come from.?

Fernapple replies on Jan 6, 2021:

@FrayedBear That's wonderful. You should post that link for the whole group to see.

Some wood-turners like to do mushrooms, some do bowls, and some do both.

FrayedBear comments on Jan 6, 2021:

As you say interesting black impregnation but what trees did they come from.?

Fernapple replies on Jan 6, 2021:

Birch, trees for my own garden, cut and dried in my shed. A lot off the fun for me comes from finding my own 'hedgerow' timber. I rarely buy from the wood merchants.

Yeah take that Republicans

Fernapple comments on Jan 5, 2021:

You Americans amaze me. You never have to wait to vote in the UK, there is a polling station well maned in ever village and suburb. You just walk in, get your paper, vote and leave; we get the votes counted within twenty four hours, and the former Prime Minister gets booted out of number ten within ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 6, 2021:

@DangerDave That is kind of what I thought. I think that there is a problem with complacency, if you have the national myth that you lead the world in democracy, why try to improve things.

Has anyone else got this problem?

Fernapple comments on Jan 5, 2021:

Everybody knows you anyway.

Fernapple replies on Jan 5, 2021:

@FrayedBear Yes miscounted the noughts, only two point five prcent then. Obviously you are very uninteresting.

Henry David Thoreau on boredom.

Fernapple comments on Jan 5, 2021:

I am rarely bored when left to myself. But Henry lived alone in the woods, so people left him alone to get on with the things which interested him. The main time I get bored, is when people think I need amusement and that they can provide it. Maybe that's what he meant when he said, that, he would ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 5, 2021:

@LiterateHiker Yes I love "Walden" one of my favourite childhood books.

Anyone here in the NC Triangle area into hiking?

LiterateHiker comments on Jan 5, 2021:

Hiking in Cascade Mountains, WA, we **turned down** a woman who showed up barefoot. "You can't come with us because you need boots to protect your feet," we said. "The trail is rocky, steep and hazardous with sharp rocks and tripping roots. We don't want to carry you out."

Fernapple replies on Jan 5, 2021:

And you don't fancy men , with dog #### between their toes. LOL

Has anyone else got this problem?

Fernapple comments on Jan 5, 2021:

Everybody knows you anyway.

Fernapple replies on Jan 5, 2021:

@FrayedBear 25% that's quite high, since I usually suppose that in any group there are usually only about ten percent really active and interested members.

Can you recognize logic when you see it?

Fernapple comments on Jan 4, 2021:

OK. Here's a little puzzle. Are two peas in the same pod really identical, or can they be genetically different, can you work this out from first principles ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 5, 2021:

@Mcflewster That's it it is the same.

Can you recognize logic when you see it?

Fernapple comments on Jan 4, 2021:

OK. Here's a little puzzle. Are two peas in the same pod really identical, or can they be genetically different, can you work this out from first principles ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 5, 2021:

@GeorgeRocheleau Good, that is I think, the correct answer, well done. The point being that logic is not enough, some knowlege and /or experimental evidence is also required, not all things are workable from first principles alone. Most people I suspect are not that bad at logic crunshing on its own, but often try without the knowledge or the care and effort needed, which is why it is such a crime to live in cultures which degrade and despise education, learning and science.

How about a vote on these two pieces? Is this a Rorschach test?

Fernapple comments on Nov 17, 2020:

Number two I think. What is the band round the middle ?

Fernapple replies on Jan 5, 2021:

@PondartIncbendog Have tried it now. It goes by the same name in the UK, it is really good too for making dowles fit snug as well.

Can you be scientifically based and follow astrology?

PondartIncbendog comments on Jan 4, 2021:

Define "follow".

Fernapple replies on Jan 4, 2021:

Hello Pontartinvbendog, little while no see. You doing OK ?

I've never been one for labels.

Fernapple comments on Jan 2, 2021:

Always call myself a Broad Church Sceptic, pretty much the same as your non-believer I think. Because I am open to, and accepting of all positions, on the sceptic spectrum, from deist and pantheist to atheist. Since I do not see belief, or not, in a maybe non-existent, and certainly in those cases, ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 2, 2021:

@Canndue No it means that I think all churches are narrow, and I will never find a wide one. LOL

The problem with Libertarianism is a question of motivation and intent.

Fernapple comments on Dec 31, 2020:

Agree with all of that good post. But sadly the biology is a little off, the idea of species as an evolutionary unit demanding sacrifice from the individual, is long since discredited. Family or clan is the largest unit, and even that is biologically much weaker than the family.

Fernapple replies on Jan 2, 2021:

@t1nick Sorry. I have reread and rethought your post, and think that I may have misunderstood it. But I think that it would be better to use the words, species, sub-species, race, rather than the vague, group, and evolved, rather than benefit.

The problem with Libertarianism is a question of motivation and intent.

Fernapple comments on Dec 31, 2020:

Agree with all of that good post. But sadly the biology is a little off, the idea of species as an evolutionary unit demanding sacrifice from the individual, is long since discredited. Family or clan is the largest unit, and even that is biologically much weaker than the family.

Fernapple replies on Jan 1, 2021:

@t1nick Read Richard Dawkins on Gould, or Simon Conway Morris. Don't get me wrong I love reading Gould, he writes wonderfully well, researches deeply, and his essays are amazing. But It may be a trans-Atlantic thing, he is treated very critically and does not get the prophet like reverance this side of the pond, that he does in the US. And you can hardly regard any of his more widely published writings as textbook.

The problem with Libertarianism is a question of motivation and intent.

Fernapple comments on Dec 31, 2020:

Agree with all of that good post. But sadly the biology is a little off, the idea of species as an evolutionary unit demanding sacrifice from the individual, is long since discredited. Family or clan is the largest unit, and even that is biologically much weaker than the family.

Fernapple replies on Jan 1, 2021:

@t1nick Je. Where are you getting your information from, not an out of date populist like Gould. Do please buy a good up to date text book.

Atheists like Dawkins say most believers are atheistic about all gods but one, and he ( Dawkins ) is...

Fernapple comments on Dec 29, 2020:

There are very few, true, hard atheists about, an actual certainly held belief in there being no gods is rare, to the point of vanishing, so this is very much a straw-man argument. However, even as an agnostic, I do not think I would find this very convincing. Attempting to define god into ...

Fernapple replies on Jan 1, 2021:

@skado Thank you for your detailed reply it contained a lot which was of interest. I am especially pleased to find that we agree on the dubious role of agriculture in human history, it was not something that I mentioned, but it is certainly most important. I would however diverge from that, in that although agriculture is important, it is quite a late to develop technology, and not perhaps the one with the biggest on going effect. To my mind the most important, and in some ways dangerous technology of all is language, which came far earlier, and with it, its child culture. Which in the widest terms is certainly a technical development. Thus sadly, I would say, that the fall, from being a pure and happy animal, ( If those ever existed, which they probably don't, but let us go with the standard narrative. ) came much earlier and began when we first started to tell stories around the camp fire. Because, since language and culture are late technical developments following biological evolution, we can have had no pre-evolved, hard wired, biological mechanisms to deal with them. Thus the first real technology we gained, perhaps even before we learned to make fire, and cook. ( No, forget that "perhaps", because there are still people today, like the Andaman Islanders who do not have fire making, but undoubtedly have cultures.) Was the ability to alter the mental state of other people, 'brain washing' if you like. If that seems extreme, to use a phrase such as, 'brain washing' dating from the era of the Cold War, and then considered an advanced technology, when refering to early humans, then consider this. When stories were first told around the camp fire, the story tellers could, and did, inform the tribe about many things not directly observable, that's what a culture is basically. And no doubt they informed the younger members about other groups, say the people who lived over the mountain, and no doubt, they told tham how some were found in the past to be friendly and some hostile. Therefore when, perhaps on some hunting expedition, far from home, the younger members encountered strangers for the first time, they did not have to go through the normal rituals common to many animals, of finding out if they were friendly or not. Because they already knew. The story tellers had told them, that for example, the people who wear fox skins round their waist are friendly and you may trade with them. And they also knew, that the people who had the white painted faces were hostile, and therefore dangerous. So naturally they would probably strike first, pre-emptively. Possibly killing only because of their now unnaturally high fear, fed by the stories, of just one particular group of strangers, without ever taking the time to go though the normal greeting ...

I move that the name of this site be changed to "Atheist.

Fernapple comments on Dec 31, 2020:

The bullying of new members should never be acceptable, anywhere any time or for any reason. Though I would go the other way and call the site, Sceptics.com ( Skeptics.com ) to make it plain that it is a site for a board spectrum of none believers.

Fernapple replies on Jan 1, 2021:

@TheMiddleWay Yes,. Though Humanist is a little more obscure, has slightly more baggage than some names, and was a sister site to this one, as a go alone, it could perhaps have worked.

Lets have some fun in the last day of the year. Short clip from a UK quiz show. [youtube.com]