Agnostic.com
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THE RESULTS Earlier I posted a thread asking why only about 1% of registered users seem to be ...
Fernapple comments on Dec 17, 2019:
Dating. Don't have an opinion. I asked what was the point of it once, and was told that we have had several marriages ! Groups. Yes there are a lot and I think it should be made harder to start new ones, but I can not see that they put members of, and remember that if you do get the numbers of ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 17, 2019:
@Bierbasstard Sorry to say that I started a group a bit since, and am making most of the posts, not all I am happy to say, but of course when it is new you hope it will grow, so you try to keep it rollling. If it does not grow, then in six months or so I shall be well ready to close it.
‘Journalism is dying’: US govt ‘has its tentacles’ in every part of media, reporter who quit...
Fernapple comments on Dec 16, 2019:
You have to think though. RT does not of course come from a country where the government takes a hand in the press. I have watched RT for a long time, and the complete about face, and the change from reasoned reporting to blatant America bashing which occured when Putin took over, was stark.
Fernapple replies on Dec 17, 2019:
@Archeus_Lore Yep. you do deserve the bashing perhaps, but let us hope that the report of the death of the free press, is a bit premature.
What can be done about the inactive members problem on this site?
Fernapple comments on Dec 16, 2019:
That's about normal for most sites, groups and clubs, perhaps a little low but not that much. Sites of any sort which have ten percent or more active members, are very rare, lots of people join lots of things and then never take part, it is the same everywhere. We are though perhaps a little ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 17, 2019:
@Sgt_Spanky Yep. I think it is the first one mainly, that a lot of people just come for curiosity then go.
I'd like to make a suggestion as I watch more folks jump ship over moral differences with the site ...
Fernapple comments on Dec 16, 2019:
You can hide groups, just do that with the ones you don't like. If they still appear on your page then you have reason to contact Admin.
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
@RavenCT Then contact Admin. shame to loose good members over fixable things.
I saw this in the next village, some very neat stylish hedge cutting, obviously a work of passion, ...
moosepucky comments on Dec 16, 2019:
Well beyond my desires. I do have some full size Bonsai 😁
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
They look very good.
When I joined this site almost 2 yrs ago, I had high hopes for a conversation with like minded ...
Marionville comments on Dec 15, 2019:
No...I don’t understand a word of that post. What rules are getting too much for you? It feels like you and I are on completely different sites!
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
Agreed.
(LINK) "I understand why it’s hard for normal people to believe that white evangelical Christians ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 16, 2019:
So my siblings are sadists? Wow, I would never have suspected! And my parents? How did they manage to conceal their sadism all those years that I was growing up? It’s a damn good thing Hilary Clinton was not elected because she is a card-carrying member of the United Methodist Church, which ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
@WilliamFleming Appears he contradicts himself, not surprising, not a great article.
I saw this in the next village, some very neat stylish hedge cutting, obviously a work of passion, ...
Allamanda comments on Dec 16, 2019:
I wonder if it matches part of the house? Nicely done!
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
Not that I could see, you can see part of the house in the photo.
(LINK) "I understand why it’s hard for normal people to believe that white evangelical Christians ...
linxminx comments on Dec 16, 2019:
"For instance: Not only is it OK to cheat women out of equal pay for equal work because they are women; women *actually want* to be cheated." Socially accepted sadism. This describes Baylor University when I worked there. Meanness-hate-viciousness-discrimination, justified because they ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
@Marionville The article did include misogyny as one of its sub types of sadisim.
(LINK) "I understand why it’s hard for normal people to believe that white evangelical Christians ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 16, 2019:
So my siblings are sadists? Wow, I would never have suspected! And my parents? How did they manage to conceal their sadism all those years that I was growing up? It’s a damn good thing Hilary Clinton was not elected because she is a card-carrying member of the United Methodist Church, which ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
Actually the article did not say 'ALL' evangelical christians, and part way through did define the fact that there are other groups within that sect, it was very particular that it was only talking about 'some' E.C.
The cutting edge of Human Evolution is the integration of science and religion.
Donotbelieve comments on Dec 5, 2019:
Pass
Fernapple replies on Dec 16, 2019:
@skado Of course they are not opposed, you missread me completely if you think that that is my view. Why should something which hardly exists except as a dream, be in opposition to anything worthwhile. Someone today posted something which about sums everything up very well. https://getpocket.com/explore/item/why-the-best-things-in-life-are-all-backwards?utm_source=pocket-newtab
Does this seem racist?
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 14, 2019:
I don’t know about some of us being mutts. I thought there was supposed to be a continuous churning and selection of genetic traits through evolution. Particular traits are only superior relative to particular environments. Being able to survive and reproduce in a complex society is a valuable ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 15, 2019:
@WilliamFleming Maybe not. Plenty of animal have gone down the route of total dependency, many parasites for example have lots all ability to function outside their host and without its support, exchanging freedom for rapid easy reproduction. And as we become ever more dependent on our technology it will come on faster to us too. Agriculture alone certainly changed human evolution, until ten thousand years or so ago, human brains had been increasing in size, but during the last ten thousand they have started to shrink. Perhaps to survive on a poor diet, brains are expensive, and a post agriculture diet, while more reliable is not as rich as a hunter gatherer diet, and also perhaps because we no longer need them to compete with many other species on the plains of Africa. And as we become ever more dependent on machines, we will no longer need such good social skills. While medicine takes away many of the dangers of aggression yet its benefits to the individual remain, so that we will probably become more aggressive and less social We also have to take into account the new possibilities of genetic modification and engineering, which may only be available to the rich. Which will then deepen the rich poor divide, and perhaps in time create two human species. PS. Jeffmesser. Is incorrect on one or two small points, especially that Africans are the most genetically 'pure' people. In fact genetic variation increases with time, and since humans have been living in Africa far longer than the rest of the world, variation has accumilated there. Meaning that Africans are the most genetically diverse group of peoples in the world. The rest of the worlds populations being only the decendents of a few who escaped from Africa, and despite inputs fromNeanderthals etc. are all very closely related, when compared to the vast differences betweeen Africans. But that can be seen as a strong point fro Africans, since genetic variation is a source of strength, preventing the effects of inbreeding, not 'racial' purity, that is an old outdated racist assumption.
Madison’s reasons for Church State Separation, 1785.
Fernapple comments on Dec 15, 2019:
The other side of the coin though , is that across Northern Europe many countries have state churches of some sort, (though never enforced membership ). And guess what ? Across Northern Europe religion is nearly dead, compared with the US anyway. One of the best reasons for having a state church, is...
Fernapple replies on Dec 15, 2019:
@Gareth True, and I think that it would be a very dangerous trick to try, so I would not seriously recommend it. Having said that, in this case I can see more than just correlation. For one thing when you have a state church, then one of the churches most valuable assests, that it provides an alternate voice to the state, and a refuge and support for political dissidents is removed. Also it becomes tainted by politics and the crimes of politics, (The involvements of chuches in promoting wars for example.) with a lose of credibility. It also suffers a lose of competetive edge when removed from the free market place, where US churches for example have to compete with all sorts of educational establishments and the media for attention, a state church just sits and lives of its assets. Remember we are talking about a single national church, not linking all churches to the state, as with the US tax system. Plus it is also to be noted that the church in Europe is perhaps strongest of all in Russia, where the state tried to ban it.
there seems to me to be way to much animosity towards religion.
skado comments on Dec 14, 2019:
There seems to be way too much misunderstanding about what "religion" is, and isn't. I'm happy to give full credit for that misunderstanding to Richard Dawkins, Chris Hitchens, and a tip o' the hat to Sam Harris. What they really meant was *corrupt* religion, and they know it, and have said as ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 15, 2019:
@Storm1752 Very neat and exact, well said. Personally I have lived most of my life with objective truth and never felt the need for anything more. And I am now so near to mortallity, I can't see that I ever will.
there seems to me to be way to much animosity towards religion.
Fernapple comments on Dec 14, 2019:
Yes they may pass, (not proved but ok) and I am happy in my freedom. But I reserve the right to be outraged, on behalf of those of my fellow humans, and other creatures, who still suffer, and to fear that I may one day be among them.
Fernapple replies on Dec 15, 2019:
@Storm1752 I agree of course. If nobody had ever got outraged, rich people would still be owning slaves and be proud of it, people would be imprisoned for debt, girls who got pregnant would be enslaved by the church, and we would still hang starving children for stealing food.
Does this seem racist?
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 14, 2019:
I don’t know about some of us being mutts. I thought there was supposed to be a continuous churning and selection of genetic traits through evolution. Particular traits are only superior relative to particular environments. Being able to survive and reproduce in a complex society is a valuable ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 15, 2019:
That is a common misunderstanding of Darwinian sellection. Darwinian genetic fitness in todays world is not winning a sporting trophy, but being a fat slow couple who are able to withstand a high fat low fibre diet, live on little exercise, and make lots of babies. Darwinian fitness, means not fit in the physical sense, but, 'best fitted'. ( Someone once joked, not to be taken too seriously, that. "Being stupid enough to not understand how to use contraception, will be the main qualification required for membership of the future master race." )
there seems to me to be way to much animosity towards religion.
AnneWimsey comments on Dec 14, 2019:
It isn't exactly "animosity towards religion", it is the way organized religion treats others, IMO, in direct contradiction to WWJD!
Fernapple replies on Dec 15, 2019:
@AnneWimsey I am with blzjz on this, I had to google WWJD the first time I encoutered it on this site. Too many acronyms are not good. This is after all, an international site, and few countries share the same conventions, it seems unreasonable to over use acronyms, unless they are very common and international, when that means making fifty people google something.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
Paul4747 comments on Dec 6, 2019:
The entire drive of human history, as far as I can tell, has been to get as far away from nature as possible. Who am I to buck the trend. Good luck, though...
Fernapple replies on Dec 15, 2019:
@Storm1752 True it is often a vicious fight for survival. But does that alone not tell you something? So just quoting Darwin. "It is interesting to contemplate a tangled bank, clothed with many plants of many kinds, with birds singing on the bushes, with various insects flitting about, and with worms crawling through the damp earth, and to reflect that these elaborately constructed forms, so different from each other, and dependent upon each other in so complex a manner, have all been produced by laws acting around us. These laws, taken in the largest sense, being Growth with reproduction; Inheritance which is almost implied by reproduction; Variability from the indirect and direct action of the conditions of life, and from use and disuse; a Ratio of Increase so high as to lead to a Struggle for Life, and as a consequence to Natural Selection, entailing Divergence of Character and the Extinction of less improved forms." He did not say then that this vision was pretty, the phrase he used was. "There is a grandure in this view of life." I would never say that it is comfortable, but neither is life in human society. And the big point is, that we are all culture victims to some degree, even those of us not caught in the extreme forms of culture such as religion. For many people, especially urban people, the only inputs their brains receive, come from human controlled media, and all humans who control media have a hidden agenda, so that many people they can live their whole lives without any input which is not distrorted. What I would say however is how will you ever understand human society, unless you study that which is not human society, and that which produced society in the first place. You can not know the depth of the sea, without sounding to the mud at the bottom.
there seems to me to be way to much animosity towards religion.
Paul4747 comments on Dec 14, 2019:
I'm plenty happy with my freedom. Religion, on the other hand, is not. Therefore, like Jefferson, I have sworn eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.
Fernapple replies on Dec 14, 2019:
@blzjz Surender is not freedom.
It's ironic when a Christian say that gays have more rights than them now.
JonnaBononna comments on Dec 14, 2019:
Equality feels like oppression when you are used to privilege.
Fernapple replies on Dec 14, 2019:
That's worth quoting. Will post it in the quotes group.
I also posted this one in Natural History, but it works here too.
JackPedigo comments on Dec 12, 2019:
I only feed the birds in the winter and that with suet. Birds need fat to help them through the winter. I also built a roosting box. https://www.thespruce.com/wild-bird-roosting-boxes-386642 Birds enter from the bottom and there are several perches inside. I open it periodically for cleaning. Maybe ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 13, 2019:
Never tried a roosting box, it sounds very worth while, I think that I will give it a go, thanks for the hint.
Creationists Claim Stonehenge Built By Satanic Giants | Michael Stone
LucyLoohoo comments on Dec 11, 2019:
They walk among us! I once read that the Grand Canyon is the result of Satan trying to confuse us into disbelief about the validity of Noah's flood. If they used their brains as long trying to understand evolution, science...they might actually develop some intelligence.
Fernapple replies on Dec 11, 2019:
I heard one say that the Grand Canyon was the result of the waters from Noahs flood draining away. I love the way when they part with reason, they all start comming up with so many different arguments no two even remotely alike.
The water vole was once a common sight here in the UK, you could hardly ever take a walk by a stream...
Musicmanmike comments on Dec 11, 2019:
Such cute little creatures ! They remind me of the Muskrat here in Canada . To bad the North American Mink has made it to the U.K. also the loss of habitat can be devastating. I hope the breeding in captivity can keep these little Water Voles going ! I wonder if these can be brought to North ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 11, 2019:
A bit smaller than a musk rat I think. They may be harmless but you never know. One of the reasons the Mink may have been so devastating it is thought, is because our otters its natural competitors have been in decline.
Do you think that " I have found god" should mean the same as "A get out of Gaol/Jail free" card.
Sticks48 comments on Dec 10, 2019:
A photograph with God, Bigfoot, and a unicorn together.
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
@KKGator And the bartender says. Sorry we don't serve spirits in here.
Has anyone noticed that this forum, in recent weeks, has started to deteriorate into a ...
DavidDuhon comments on Dec 10, 2019:
yes, and I suspect it is not as much of this particular time as it is of a small number of individuals, who if you run into their presence make it seem like it is everywhere and un-ending. The other FB-esque aspect for me is people simply popping up links. I would be happy if there were no links ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
And not only do they pop up links, but the links are full of pop ups. Some asking for money, data or body parts before they will let you read, what usually turns out to be twaddle with no relation to the posted headline anyway.
“It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well”.
zeuser comments on Dec 10, 2019:
Descartes went into a bar and ordered a beer. After he finished, the bartender asked, "Would you like another beer, Monsieur Descartes?" The old philosopher answered, "I think not", and he disappeared.
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
@zeuser Well that puts me in my place, with a right pair of Co-ordinates.
I think someone in Admin should look into member "Blah Blah" before they make level 7.
freeofgod comments on Dec 10, 2019:
As long as Fred doesn't go back to quoting the bible chapter and verse I have no problem with him. The bible quotes were tiresome. For those I would read the local paper :(
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
He only had one bible quote. He never quoted the whole thing.
“It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well”.
zeuser comments on Dec 10, 2019:
Descartes went into a bar and ordered a beer. After he finished, the bartender asked, "Would you like another beer, Monsieur Descartes?" The old philosopher answered, "I think not", and he disappeared.
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
Groan.
I think someone in Admin should look into member "Blah Blah" before they make level 7.
skado comments on Dec 10, 2019:
I don't think he's a troll. He may be non-neurotypical, but I probably am too. If his ramblings are tedious, maybe blocking is a good remedy, but if his account is deleted he'll just come back with another one. I don't see that he intends any harm. On the rare occasion when I can understand what...
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
And on those occasions when, I can't understand him, I wonder where I can get some of the stuff he's taking.
What Is Religion? - YouTube
Fernapple comments on Dec 9, 2019:
So basically the young man is saying that the definition of the word religion is not clearly defined, and admits of enough subjectivity to require a different usage to be assigned for each user. Apart from the obvious, (That that is something which applies to every word, and that people who ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
@maturin1919 It is to address the clusterfuck that you require people to explain their usages, there is no other way round it. Words do not have meanings, only usages. And dictionaries list usages, just look in the average dictionary and you will find few words with single simple meanings listed. That is they way things are whether we like it or not, and there is no power on earth known, which is able to alter that. . The idea that words have meanings, is one of the greatest sources of error in human life, perhaps even as great as religion. A typical example being people who think that when they have defined an a word, they heave made an argument, when in fact no word ever proved anything. Aroute that this young man, wisely, just stoppped short of going down. We are all culture victims, with our human cultures standing between us and a true understanding of the world, we can however at least be aware of that, and keep in mind many of the traps into which our cultures lead us. Of which the belief that, language is a source of truth, instead of just a messy, undesigned and and distorted series of historical accidents often infected with past attempts to deliberately distort the thruth is perhaps one of the worst.
This is something for the US. I wish we had these beautiful birds here in the UK. [youtube.com]
henthabox comments on Dec 9, 2019:
This is the common Jay for the eastern U.S. Very bossy and loud. In the western states the Steller's Jay abounds. All of the Jays are true corvids in their behavior. But, yes, they are undeniably, ostentatiously beautiful. Thanks for this post.
Fernapple replies on Dec 10, 2019:
Thank you.
What Is Religion? - YouTube
Fernapple comments on Dec 9, 2019:
So basically the young man is saying that the definition of the word religion is not clearly defined, and admits of enough subjectivity to require a different usage to be assigned for each user. Apart from the obvious, (That that is something which applies to every word, and that people who ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 9, 2019:
@maturin1919 Perhaps but that is the way things are whether it is a good thing or not.
The Funniest Tweets from Parents this Week
Fernapple comments on Dec 9, 2019:
If you'd like to answer the question, "What's the meaning of that???" a hundred thousand times a day, then coming on this site might be for you."
Fernapple replies on Dec 9, 2019:
@demifeministgal I am easily bored.
That was smooth...
Fernapple comments on Dec 9, 2019:
Actually you can get down to the bottom much more easily and safely, by putting alternate feet on the steps, at the rate of about two per second. Works well for me. Just though I would share.
Fernapple replies on Dec 9, 2019:
@BeeHappy Saves wear on the trousers too.
And here is why your health systems are crap, along with education, social housing and national ...
LenHazell53 comments on Dec 9, 2019:
in other news "Sky is blue"
Fernapple replies on Dec 9, 2019:
Sadly it will be news to a lot of people, though they probably would not read a posting like that on a site like this.
The wild Chicory, Chichorium, grows in many of the hedgerows in this part of the UK, where it ...
Mark013 comments on Dec 9, 2019:
We have it in the US and here in Wisconsin. Classified as an invasive species. I have probably seen it but there are a lot of wild flowering plants along the roadside.
Fernapple replies on Dec 9, 2019:
Thank you.
This was my first encounter with the large, impressive and much hallowed White Stork in Portugal.
Spinliesel comments on Dec 8, 2019:
In my youth, in Northern Germany, we had a pair of storks that nested on an old wagon wheel that the townspeople had installed on top of an old smokestack by the community dairy. The arrival of the storks was always an event. The newspaper posted pictures of the nest building, then announced eggs ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 9, 2019:
@Spinliesel Possible. It is still the case that even today, when we are largely sheltered from seasonal changes, that more people are born in spring than any other season. It must have been more so in the past.
This was my first encounter with the large, impressive and much hallowed White Stork in Portugal.
Spinliesel comments on Dec 8, 2019:
In my youth, in Northern Germany, we had a pair of storks that nested on an old wagon wheel that the townspeople had installed on top of an old smokestack by the community dairy. The arrival of the storks was always an event. The newspaper posted pictures of the nest building, then announced eggs ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 9, 2019:
Lovely. And of course in the old days, when people including their sexuality were even more affected by the seasons, most babies arrived in the spring. I often wondered if that could have been the origin of the storks bring babies story.
What is our purpose in life?
Sgt_Spanky comments on Dec 8, 2019:
Life has no purpose other than to reproduce itself. We have to define our own purpose or give life its own meaning.
Fernapple replies on Dec 8, 2019:
@Beowulfsfriend Including the Shakers.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I see competition among people as an integral and important part of nature. There has always been a blending of unity and competition. There’s no cabal of powerful people who control the agenda. Nature sets the agenda.
Fernapple replies on Dec 8, 2019:
@WilliamFleming I am in full agreement with that, and think that there is no better way to social reform, than setting a good example of how to be happy without being a burden. If we enough of us could make a good job of that, then the world would certainly improve. And your good efforts are appreciated by me, very much so.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I see competition among people as an integral and important part of nature. There has always been a blending of unity and competition. There’s no cabal of powerful people who control the agenda. Nature sets the agenda.
Fernapple replies on Dec 8, 2019:
@WilliamFleming Perhaps it works this way. We divide the world into groups or categories to which we give names, such as birds and bees, which are two groups of things that fly, or hammers and saws for example, two types of tools. Of all the things that chimps could own, I think you will agree, there are at least two groups. Those, such as toenails, which are made following the instructions found in DNA working through RNA and then ribosome's ( the phenotype, ). And those which are made by DNA working through RNA and ribosome's, but only after they have first produced a fully functioning brain, followed by neural nets, which have then added another layer of instructions. These, such as stones and peeled sticks used for fishing out termites, we can then call, tools, artefacts, and sometimes cultural products, though that is more complex yet since it needs several brains working together. ( Technically they are all called, I am told, the extended phenotype. ) Artefacts, meaning literally, the products of art, are as you quite rightly say, just as natural as anything else in the universe, using natural to mean all the products of nature, or in other words the whole universe. However artefacts are a special sub-group of things, because they are the products of that extra layer of instructions coming from brains. And we use the term 'artificial', made by art, to describe the groups character. Unfortunately it is a convention of our language, that there is no word for, none artificial, defining the other group of things that do not fit in that group, except 'natural'. And that of course results in natural, (and its opposite unnatural, ) having two meanings, both, all that there is, and, all that does not go into the sub-group of things made using artistry. In another language except English this problem may not occur. It just shows the problems of trying to use language, which is a series of historical accidents cobbled together, often badly and very imperfectly, to express concepts in reason and logic, and why humans felt it needful to invent mathematics and science, in part, as a more rigorous alternatives to language and culture.
It is my contention that specialization should be left to those who are not mentally gifted at...
JackPedigo comments on Dec 7, 2019:
Mentally gifted? I consider myself a generalist but never it thought it required some special mental ability.
Fernapple replies on Dec 7, 2019:
@JackPedigo The closer you look the less you see.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I see competition among people as an integral and important part of nature. There has always been a blending of unity and competition. There’s no cabal of powerful people who control the agenda. Nature sets the agenda.
Fernapple replies on Dec 7, 2019:
@WilliamFleming And are the chimps toenails also called tools.
It is my contention that specialization should be left to those who are not mentally gifted at...
JackPedigo comments on Dec 7, 2019:
Mentally gifted? I consider myself a generalist but never it thought it required some special mental ability.
Fernapple replies on Dec 7, 2019:
In some ways I think that it is the hardest thing of all. At least doing it well and grasping the big picture.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I see competition among people as an integral and important part of nature. There has always been a blending of unity and competition. There’s no cabal of powerful people who control the agenda. Nature sets the agenda.
Fernapple replies on Dec 7, 2019:
@WilliamFleming And do they also have toenails ?
No matter how widely you have traveled, you haven't seen the world if you have failed to look into ...
Cutiebeauty comments on Dec 7, 2019:
I haven't traveled the world at all yet but I look forward to it
Fernapple replies on Dec 7, 2019:
Go. Life is short, its a big world and you, I am sure, know how to look into hearts. The best thing about travel is that, not only do you learn a lot about foreign lands and people by traveling, but you also learn vast amounts about you own country and people. So much so that you wonder if you ever understood them at all before !
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I see competition among people as an integral and important part of nature. There has always been a blending of unity and competition. There’s no cabal of powerful people who control the agenda. Nature sets the agenda.
Fernapple replies on Dec 7, 2019:
@WilliamFleming Did you say that chimpanzees have rocks which they use as tools ?
In Israel, some Ultra-Orthodox Jews, known as Haredim, trade tradition for modernity - The ...
Fernapple comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Sorry it won't let me read it without paying.
Fernapple replies on Dec 7, 2019:
@Allamanda No How do you do that ?
TRAVEL... TRAVEL Who is planning to travel outside the U.S. during Christmas holidays?
Fernapple comments on Dec 6, 2019:
No wish I was, holidays will just have to wait until Jan. Regularly travel in Moslem countries though, most often Turkey, and I love it, especially hearing the call to prayer as a wake up first thing in the morning.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@Geoffrey51 It is, especially in a high green valley in the mountains, where it is normally so quite you can hear bird song a mile away.
After seeing the photos of Mark Zuckerberg in meetings with Trump, and seeing how he's been ...
StarvingArtist comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I hope you find an alternative! I deleted mine,,and it damn near takes an act of Congress to have them remove your profile. Your data is their gold!
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@birdingnut quite possibly. Yet he probably is not done yet.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
Flowerwall comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Nothing. The fourth amendment of the constitution has been obliterated and noone is phased. Cut that piece of the paper out, tear it up and throw it in the garbage. The right to privacy is nonexistent.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@moosepucky I only have a land line for going on line. My mobile is kept only for medical and other emergencies, and is only switched on twice a year, to keep the contract live.
The cutting edge of Human Evolution is the integration of science and religion.
KyleDavis comments on Dec 5, 2019:
For the record the 2 began integrated. They diverged with time as the reality science unveiled further disagreed with the assertions of religion.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
And as science and to a lesser degree philosophy became our path to truth, so religion was left only with exclusive access to the remaining lies. (Any truth it once had being also incorperated into science and philosophy.) Which leaves religion, as increacingly, the business of pedaling lies, it has no other route to go down.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I see competition among people as an integral and important part of nature. There has always been a blending of unity and competition. There’s no cabal of powerful people who control the agenda. Nature sets the agenda.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@WilliamFleming Although all things fall within nature in the big sense of that word. Are not words like 'artificial and unnatural' words that we use to define things developed from, and after, the emergent principles of culture and technology were produced as developements beyond what was there before.
That's the irony of believing in god...
FearlessFly comments on Dec 5, 2019:
. . . not irony : https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irony
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
Why not irony. Seems to fit these given usages. incongruity between the actual result of a sequence of events and the normal or expected result (2) : an event or result marked by such incongruity b : incongruity between a situation developed in a drama and the accompanying words or actions that is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
Flowerwall comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Nothing. The fourth amendment of the constitution has been obliterated and noone is phased. Cut that piece of the paper out, tear it up and throw it in the garbage. The right to privacy is nonexistent.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@moosepucky Yes i do use Google and always will perhaps sadly. Facebook I have an account for my business but not personally, and as I am now getting close to retiring that will soon be gone. And a good thing too, FB is loathsome.
It is my contention that specialization should be left to those who are not mentally gifted at...
IamNobody comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Who's to say who is and who isn't?
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@IamNobody I am a butterfly, I never stick at anything, just flit here and there.
It is my contention that specialization should be left to those who are not mentally gifted at...
IamNobody comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Who's to say who is and who isn't?
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
No idea.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
WilliamFleming comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I see competition among people as an integral and important part of nature. There has always been a blending of unity and competition. There’s no cabal of powerful people who control the agenda. Nature sets the agenda.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
So there is no appropriate usage for the word unnatural then ?
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
LatentumCattus comments on Dec 6, 2019:
What stands in the way? Nothing. We can only hope that, like all times, there are small pockets of forces that don't run with the rabble - those who chose education, who go into the hard sciences, who choose to make the world better, who can ignore, play along, or resist the agenda long enough for...
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@LatentumCattus I hope you are right about the long view, we do tend to get things right in the end. Though as D. C. Peatie said "The speed drunk monkey tends to act faster than it thinks." Thank you for the book hint.
Amusing the cat and myself with the squirrels.
Fernapple comments on Dec 6, 2019:
You are lucky. My friend who feeds the birds in her garden, gets very annoyed when the squirrels steel the nuts from the bird table, she bangs on the window to scare them off but it does not work. And yet my bird table and garden, where I would love to see them, and which are only about two hundred ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@Mark013 Yes, though I do not think it is fear that keeps them away. It may be that I live on the edge of the village with a good woodland garden, which you would think would suit them. But here of course they would have to work for a living, while in the village centre there are bird feeders every ten yards, also my nearest neigbour keeps a really vicious cat, which is free to roam.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
Flowerwall comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Nothing. The fourth amendment of the constitution has been obliterated and noone is phased. Cut that piece of the paper out, tear it up and throw it in the garbage. The right to privacy is nonexistent.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
I do not know much about the US constitution , but that seems to be the trend world wide.
In Israel, some Ultra-Orthodox Jews, known as Haredim, trade tradition for modernity - The ...
Fernapple comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Sorry it won't let me read it without paying.
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@NoPlanetB It may be because I am in the UK, they may do it for free as a promotion for the paper in the US but make overseas people pay to read the content.
Almost the entire drive of human history has been, to find better ways of fooling your fellow ...
LatentumCattus comments on Dec 6, 2019:
What stands in the way? Nothing. We can only hope that, like all times, there are small pockets of forces that don't run with the rabble - those who chose education, who go into the hard sciences, who choose to make the world better, who can ignore, play along, or resist the agenda long enough for...
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
A good summation.
Gender in atheism
Spinliesel comments on Dec 6, 2019:
Your question reminds me of a similar one that popped up in our 5 am DD coffee circle: why are there so few women philosophers? We came up with an answer; women have real-life work to get on with. No time to develop and discuss philosophy. By the way, that group consisted of 7 guys and 2 women...
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
Also to a degree philosophy is a done deal, with most of the big ideas being delt with already in the past, before women had any equal rights.
After seeing the photos of Mark Zuckerberg in meetings with Trump, and seeing how he's been ...
StarvingArtist comments on Dec 6, 2019:
I hope you find an alternative! I deleted mine,,and it damn near takes an act of Congress to have them remove your profile. Your data is their gold!
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
It would not be too bad if you did not feel that the Zuk is trying to turn the internet into his own personal empire, run for his profit and benefit.
How do you define "evil"?
towkneed comments on Dec 5, 2019:
For the record, I define "evil" as the set of actions or the single action taken in a moment that is the most destructive to human life and/or the quality of human life (as defined within parameters delineated by the basic physiological needs for food, water, shelter, attention and sex) and the ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
Pretty good. I think that Geoffrey51 above has a shorter one which works perhaps even better, though I would add just the one word "unnecessary" to it, since sometimes it is necessary to cause harm and I don't think that is evil.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
Paul4747 comments on Dec 6, 2019:
The entire drive of human history, as far as I can tell, has been to get as far away from nature as possible. Who am I to buck the trend. Good luck, though...
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
@Paul4747 No I did not say that things in nature are not into foolling, many things in nature are as you say very good at that. I said that "nature", as an abstraction, is not trying to fool "you", especially about the big issues. Individual animal and plants do use deception wonderfully well, but that is only for the individuals benefit and targeted at other individuals, there is no organized mega-deseption over issues of no immediate benefit. Indeed it is because it helps us to understand deseption which is one example of how useful to education an understanding of nature is. For example. Some ochids tempt bees and other insects into providing them with a pollination service, by pretending to be sexual partners, even giving off powerful sex scents, and looking like the insects themselves. Often they are larger brighter and more highly scented than real sexual partners would be. The lesson therefore for humans who can easily see through the deseption, because it is not directed at us is. "If it seems too good to be true, it probably is too good to be true." Would not the orchid and the bee, be a good lesson for every school child, especially if it is made memorable by introducing them to the practical, and beautiful, physical evidence ?
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
Paul4747 comments on Dec 6, 2019:
The entire drive of human history, as far as I can tell, has been to get as far away from nature as possible. Who am I to buck the trend. Good luck, though...
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
The entire drive of human history, has also been to find better ways of fooling your fellow humans, or better ways of killing them if they refused to be fooled. The best thing about nature is that it is not trying to fool you, so if you know nature you know what reality looks like for comparison. Go on buck a trend or two. Hm. Like this may post it.
Drunk driver hits power pole. Power outage for 500 people.
AmmaRE007 comments on Dec 6, 2019:
another interesting, and related article. https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/jul/09/bottled-water-shipped-halfway-round--world-madness
Fernapple replies on Dec 6, 2019:
It is said, that the water industry does not sell water, but just plastic bottles to put it in. I know this from personal experience, since though I do buy far less than the 30 litres per year average, maybe 4 or 5, a bottle every couple of months. I do occasionally buy it, usually when caught out on a journey far from home. I do however reuse and refill the bottles for the tap until they fall apart. I do not think that for most people the water quality issue is the big thing, it is just convienience, the worlds habits have changed. Once everyone carried a flask, but how often do you see that now ? Now everyone buys bottled water, or coffee in once use cups.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
Seeker3CO comments on Dec 5, 2019:
Sign me up
Fernapple replies on Dec 5, 2019:
Just click on the link.
The cutting edge of Human Evolution is the integration of science and religion.
Fernapple comments on Dec 5, 2019:
For those who do not want to bother, I just listened to it all the way through. There is actually no mention of integrating science and religion. Except to say that some religious 'spiritual' practices are being studied by his science. There is a lot of self promotion to his sycophant interviewer. ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 5, 2019:
@1of5 That's ok.
The cutting edge of Human Evolution is the integration of science and religion.
IamNobody comments on Dec 5, 2019:
Whoever wrote the article ( I didn't read it, just the idea rattles me a bit)....How does he plan to merge or justify the coexistence of faith versus repeatable and verifiable data?
Fernapple replies on Dec 5, 2019:
@Observer-Effect Yes I left it three times because I though that several people may be interested in seeing it. Not a thing I usually do but since they are people I respect, and they said quite rightly that they could not be bothered to read it themselves I did the synopsis for them. They may not thank me, but you do your best. Using spiritual was a deliberate irony, because I think of it the same way you do.
The cutting edge of Human Evolution is the integration of science and religion.
IamNobody comments on Dec 5, 2019:
Whoever wrote the article ( I didn't read it, just the idea rattles me a bit)....How does he plan to merge or justify the coexistence of faith versus repeatable and verifiable data?
Fernapple replies on Dec 5, 2019:
For those who do not want to bother, I just listened to it all the way through. There is actually no mention of integrating science and religion. Except to say that some religious 'spiritual' practices are being studied by his science. There is a lot of self promotion to his sycophant interviewer. There is a lot of, word spaghetti, thrown at the wall, presumably hoping that the listener will find meaning where none was included to start with. He lists some modern world problems, which he then lumps together under the title of, "meaning crisis" and then says that he is trying to find a way to resolve it, while listing no particular direction; presumably because he has none. In the end he uses the early history of literacy and its effects on human progress, as a metaphor for for what he and his friends intend to achieve, saying that it will move the world forward in the same way, without giving any plain outline of his intentions, or any reason why anyone should believe the metaphor of literacy is justified. I pass no judgment, since without enlargement on his ideas there is nothing there to judge, it may be that he will come up with something so profound he will become the new Buddha, or maybe he is just a self delusionist lying twerp.
The cutting edge of Human Evolution is the integration of science and religion.
Donotbelieve comments on Dec 5, 2019:
Pass
Fernapple replies on Dec 5, 2019:
Don't want to waste your time but. For those who do not want to bother, I just listened to it all the way through. There is actually no mention of integrating science and religion. Except to say that some religious 'spiritual' practices are being studied by his science. There is a lot of self promotion to his sycophant interviewer. There is a lot of, word spaghetti, thrown at the wall, presumably hoping that the listener will find meaning where none was included to start with. He lists some modern world problems, which he then lumps together under the title of, "meaning crisis" and then says that he is trying to find a way to resolve it, while listing no particular direction; presumably because he has none. In the end he uses the early history of literacy and its effects on human progress, as a metaphor for for what he and his friends intend to achieve, saying that it will move the world forward in the same way, without giving any plain outline of his intentions, or any reason why anyone should believe the metaphor of literacy is justified. I pass no judgment, since without enlargement on his ideas there is nothing there to judge, it may be that he will come up with something so profound he will become the new Buddha, or maybe he is just a self delusionist lying twerp.
Cork Oak, Quercus suber, grows in semi open habitats under the hot dry Mediterranean sun, its bark ...
JackPedigo comments on Dec 4, 2019:
Cork is a wonderful material and a renewable resource (as long as it's allowed to regrow when harvested). When remodeling the house I did not want tile for the kitchen floor nor stone for the countertops. Stone is not renewable and tile is impractical for a kitchen floor. A friend mentioned Bamboo ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 5, 2019:
@JackPedigo Perhaps I don't know, but it is the forest which matters and not the individual tree.
Cork Oak, Quercus suber, grows in semi open habitats under the hot dry Mediterranean sun, its bark ...
JackPedigo comments on Dec 4, 2019:
Cork is a wonderful material and a renewable resource (as long as it's allowed to regrow when harvested). When remodeling the house I did not want tile for the kitchen floor nor stone for the countertops. Stone is not renewable and tile is impractical for a kitchen floor. A friend mentioned Bamboo ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 5, 2019:
It is always sustainable, the trees are perminant plantings, since it takes twenty years at least to get the first crop, and the trees are not harmed by harvesting.
Heres a little mystery to excite the brain cells.
AnneWimsey comments on Dec 4, 2019:
These things are all over India, where they are adorned daily, sometimes anointed with various liquids/oils, and venerated, prayed to, and adored...some are Huge!
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
Interesting, I have never heard that similar things are still in use.
This may not be the last eating babies joke, but it may not be a joke any longer just delicious.
St-Sinner comments on Dec 4, 2019:
It looks really good. We can adjust the ingredients to what we went too. Eggs, flour, milk, maybe light sugar, nutmeg is great, little butter... all sound good. But what is the deal here? .... syrup, preserves, confectioners' sugar or cinnamon sugar?
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
It is very like a yorkshire puddinng but with more egg, and treated as a sweet. I guess you could vary the ingredients to your own taste.
Heres a little mystery to excite the brain cells.
Cast1es comments on Dec 4, 2019:
Many of men's objects of worship , sculpture , towers seem to be pride of penis .
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
You are the second person to go down the phalic route, but I think there could be a lot more to these than that, if that is the main thing then why don't they look more like penises.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
Storm1752 comments on Dec 4, 2019:
What's the name of it?
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
Natural History. Just follow the link if you like.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
Pralina1 comments on Dec 3, 2019:
Very nice . I am in 🙌
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
Natural history. Just follow the link if you like.
The Only Human To Be Buried On The Moon [youtube.com]
MojoDave comments on Dec 3, 2019:
He was a legend to us science nerds!
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
Yes the father and son discovery of the iridium spike in the fossil record, alone, has to be one of the classic science stories.
Cork Oak, Quercus suber, grows in semi open habitats under the hot dry Mediterranean sun, its bark ...
Allamanda comments on Dec 3, 2019:
after my trip to Portugal and Spain this year, I had two impressions on this - please correct me if I got it wrong, my Spanish is not good. Firstly the cork oaks were/are badly affected by a disease, and plastic corks had to be used instead, there was a shortage (or screw-tops etc.). Secondly I saw ...
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
If there is a disease problem then that will be a double blow to the cork forests, but certainly they were being felled a couple of decades ago due to falling demand, and only economic demand will reliably protect them. There may be a lot of shabby products available, I am sorry to say that you do have to seek out the good stuff, I found several artisan producers while traveling in Portugal who were producing really good things, sadly though the seat in the photo is not one, that was a down load because I needed a fourth photo to make the square up.
There may be a few Corvids here since they are a personal favorite. Enjoy. [youtube.com]
FearlessFly comments on Dec 3, 2019:
Corvidae is a cosmopolitan family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs, and nutcrackers.
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
Its a big family and almost all of them are very smart, there are dozens of smart Corvid videos on Youtube it was hard to select one, but I thought this one was short and snappy.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
St-Sinner comments on Dec 3, 2019:
Is there anything about people or just nature?
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
No this is just nature, exactly because we are too self absorbed and need to get over ourselves more than anything.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
CallMeDave comments on Dec 3, 2019:
We need another new group like we need another
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
I know tell me about it, but it is my first and only one, and there did seem to be a gap.
So I am attempting to start a new group, ( it was bound to happen one day ).
Grahame comments on Dec 3, 2019:
I’d love a group about nature and plants and animals. Where do I join?
Fernapple replies on Dec 4, 2019:
Follow the link.
Uhhhm, yup.
Fernapple comments on Dec 3, 2019:
The information collecting bots. and algorithms etc. of the on-line media, are adjusted to collect negative information about the things people hate. Because that tells you more about them. ( As in. What sort of weather do you like ? Answer. Sunshine. Is not very useful because nearly everyone likes...
Fernapple replies on Dec 3, 2019:
@1of5 That's a good if novel pairing. Throw in politicians and arts pseuds, for me as well.
“At the still point of the turning world.
brentan comments on Dec 3, 2019:
He's a tough nut to crack. I think he's talking along the lines of 'the power of now', as per Tolle, but I've no idea what he means by the dance.
Fernapple replies on Dec 3, 2019:
A. Perhaps he means that movement is relative to stillness, and that without stillness therefore, there would be no movement. B. He could just be tossing word spaghetti together, and hoping someone will read more out than he put in. C. Both of the above.
The Mahonia bealei ( It may be Mahonia x media, help with that would be appreciated.
Besalbub comments on Dec 3, 2019:
I don't believe I've ever saw one of those , interesting foliage .
Fernapple replies on Dec 3, 2019:
It is a close relative of what I think is called Oregon Grape in the US.
Trump's lies and cruelty fueled a real resistance. There's hope for progressivism.
RoyMillar comments on Dec 1, 2019:
Love all your signs ,looking good
Fernapple replies on Dec 2, 2019:
@LiterateHiker Just an idea, change the 'and' for 'not'.
Each year a Christmas tree goes to the village, for display in the square.
Cutiebeauty comments on Dec 1, 2019:
Cutting down trees for a holiday is so wrong
Fernapple replies on Dec 1, 2019:
The tree has to go anyway because it is crowding it neighbours. They were planted thickly as a crop, and the final stand needs to be thinned.
The funny thing about having a so called "baby face" is so many people being shocked when I tell ...
St-Sinner comments on Nov 30, 2019:
28 is still a baby
Fernapple replies on Dec 1, 2019:
You ageist old grump. I completely agree with you. LOL
I need to ask a question here, but have to remember it first.
Charlene comments on Nov 30, 2019:
Umm, the answer is, well...42.
Fernapple replies on Dec 1, 2019:
Yes but what good is the answer if you don't know the question?
Writers Beware: Global book marketing scams
UpsideDownAgain comments on Nov 30, 2019:
It's amazing to me that these scammers keep trying after you've found them out. It's like they think they can still somehow convince you they are legit.
Fernapple replies on Dec 1, 2019:
I think that many of them are just automaticly posted by the computers, no though involved.
This kind of reminds me a bit of Myspace and orkut I will give this a try I think that Facebook is ...
Fernapple comments on Nov 26, 2019:
Hello and welcome. Thanks, but we really need more of a challenge than Facebook.
Fernapple replies on Nov 30, 2019:
@Blackatheist1985 The Zuk is trying to build a alternative internet that only he controls, using a very naff product. And if he does then all the good things about the net especially its freedom and its inclusiveness will go up in smoke. Plus as you say his politics are yuk.
What is so special about human life anyway?
Fernapple comments on Nov 26, 2019:
You may like watching this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsXP8qeFF6A
Fernapple replies on Nov 26, 2019:
@AnonySchmoose And of course they had to learn the order of the numbers in the first place.
One thing that puzzles me about believers in any religion is the conviction that it’s their God ...
Gwendolyn2018 comments on Nov 25, 2019:
Because Satan is deceiving everyone else. People want to be right.
Fernapple replies on Nov 26, 2019:
@Gwendolyn2018 Nor the one about the people who never heard of his book.
Its cold and damp here today in the UK, was yesterday, will be tomorrow.
rogerbenham comments on Nov 26, 2019:
Clearly must have a very good double glazed window behind him. The echo supports that. Outside there would be wind noise and sound deadening. Personally my fingers would rapidly get too cold. Well the final shots suggest that he is outside so the whole thing is miming. I'd guess on a really warm ...
Fernapple replies on Nov 26, 2019:
Yes I thought it must be recorded in a studio and then mimed to outside.
Most common/ridicuous argumento pro religion?
LenHazell53 comments on Nov 26, 2019:
Here are a few of them You cannot be moral and atheist as morality is god given without god you are by definition immoral regardless of your actions Something can not come from nothing except god who simply is The bible is true because it is the word of god and we know this because god ...
Fernapple replies on Nov 26, 2019:
Good list.

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