So this is a poll... do atheists believe in capital in capital punishment?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 25, 2019:

I doubt there's a correlation, any more than between religious people who supposedly believe in the "right to life" and at the same time, often support and push for execution. Personally, I don't, except in the most clear-cut and egregious cases- say, a school shooting or serial killer in which there is no doubt whatsoever that *this*, this here, *this right here* is the guy who did it. (And it is overwhelmingly males who commit crimes of this nature.) I supported the death penalty for those involved in planning the 9/11 attacks as well, to the extent we could prove who were the masterminds, not simply messengers or cogs in the machinery. Simply belonging to Al-Qaeda during 2001 was not sufficient to be tortured to death in some shithole country that extradited people for us.

"Just whip it out."

Paul4747 comments on Oct 25, 2019:

I thought this was something to do with Blazing Saddles.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0wKf8KEYnY

Does this quote resonate with you?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 22, 2019:

I have a visceral reaction to this. I don't believe life will break me (or by extension, anyone else) as long as I resist. The act of resistance is victory.

SHOULD AGNOSTICS & ATHEISTS CELEBRATE HALLOWEEN?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 22, 2019:

I might add, should atheists or agnostics celebrate any holiday, since technically we would have no holy days whatsoever? I hark back to the golem Constable Dorfl in Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels, one of that world's only atheists, who said, "Either All Days Are Holy, Or None Of Them Are." (That's how golems talk on the Discworld, just go with it.) And it should be noted that this was a fictional world where gods actually intervene, and live physically on a mountain, so it takes some chutzpah to be an atheist. He demanded rational proof of the existence of gods. When holy lightning struck him, melting his helmet off, Dorfl commented, "I Don't Call That A Very Convincing Argument."

Why so many posts about God?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 22, 2019:

I feel it's probably by those who are still not certain of their beliefs (technically non-beliefs) and want to clarify their thinking. Those like me, who are interested in theology, even though we don't believe a word of it, tend to respond and keep the threads going. I also keep an open mind and read this kind of thing because, who knows, someone may have a logical argument that I've never seen before that will make me believe, against all expectation, in the existence of some god. It hasn't happened yet and I don't expect it, but just in case...

SHOULD AGNOSTICS & ATHEISTS CELEBRATE HALLOWEEN?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 22, 2019:

It's basically a holiday that celebrates giving away candy, scaring the snot out of little children, & lurking in the bushes with a garden hose to drench any kid that looks like he has intentions of egging or toilet papering your house. Why not join in?

Green Party communications manager Michael O’Neils, peaking on behalf of the Green Party, Friday.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 21, 2019:

"Ranked choice voting and proportional representation" aren't in the Constitution. Maybe the Greens want the US to look more like Italy or something, but it doesn't. The fact is, the Greens and Libertarians sucked votes from the Democratic party and that's how Trump managed to slither in in a few key races. The same happened in Florida 2000, then we got Bush II. Way to go, guys. Now they blame the 2 parties for their inability to drum up votes. Greens and Libertarian voters want the perfect but they aren't going to get it. What they get instead is the satisfaction of making a statement. Meanwhile, the Republicans get the White House.

Opposite beliefs in a relationship

Paul4747 comments on Oct 21, 2019:

I wish I could help. I only know that the worst kind of opposite beliefs in marriage are the most intimate. For instance, I believe the toilet paper should be hung so that the paper rolls off the top. My ex believed it should roll off the bottom. It was irreconcilable differences.

Ok.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 21, 2019:

Point of order: Calling out factually incorrect beliefs is not the same thing as "bashing". For example, if someone believes that the Universe is 6,000 years old, or that no species ever alive evolved from another, and these are cornerstones of their belief system, these are factually wrong and should be corrected. How these beliefs then reflect on a belief in a Creator entity is up to the person involved to decide. And then, of course, we have the realm of politics, which you didn't bring up, but which currently contains a very fertile ground for bashing, especially when there are so many verifiable factual statements that are being misstated. Now, the manner in which one goes about correcting can be seen as "bashing", but that's subjective. Surely you're not calling for errors of fact to be left unchallenged for eternity?

How many of you have been told you are going to hell?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 19, 2019:

Already been there. It's up near this town called Pinckney. I've seen worse. Now if I had to spend eternity in, for instance, Flint, that might frighten me. The size of the motel cockroaches alone...

Stephen Hawking Says, in Final Book, “There Is No God.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 17, 2019:

He's dead??! When did that happen? Shit, I got to start watching the news again...

Ideally, should religious people be:

Paul4747 comments on Oct 16, 2019:

Seen & not heard. They have such childlike minds.

Very many of us talk about the negativity in the media, in the public conversation such as it is, in...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 16, 2019:

Here's what it is: The nice things that are happening, on a small scale (such as, my group insurance through work is going to cover massage therapy starting next year, so that's nice, and laser eye surgery will have a one-time payout, so I will think about it, maybe I can lose these glasses for a decade or two...), are outweighed by the shit things that are happening on the world scale. So, it may feel nice to contemplate when something nice happens for someone, but it doesn't change the fact that we just abandoned the Kurds and gave Russia a huge advantage in the Middle East. All because our president doesn't have a damn clue about foreign policy, he just thinks it will appeal to the America First crowd.

Why are you a humanist?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 16, 2019:

They taste good when properly cooked. No, wait, that's "Why are you a humanitarian". Like, "Why are you a vegetarian".

Ralph Reed: Christians Have a “Moral Obligation” to Support Donald Trump in 2020 | Sarahbeth ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 16, 2019:

"Your moral obligation is to support this abominably indecent and immoral man. He may be a liar and a rapist, but he's *our* liar and rapist." The Republican party and the Religious Right are riding into this election with their double standard waving proudly in the air, and somehow *nobody* is calling them on it.

Televangelist: Christians Who Don’t Vote Trump Are ‘Guilty Of Murder’ | Michael Stone

Paul4747 comments on Oct 16, 2019:

So, he doesn't seem very concerned about Trump's hurry-up on resuming Federal executions then? Because I personally consider the death of a born, possibly innocent, definitely human human being more provoking than the fate of a not-born, not-yet-thinking embryo. Yet somehow the "Christians" don't. It's amazing how, before the 1980s, this was a non-issue, but then it was chosen as *the* cultural wedge to drive religious voters away from the Democrats and into the Republican party.

Should the Supreme Court Be Reformed?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 15, 2019:

FDR tried adding justices back in the '30s, it didn't work then either. America is a deeply conservative nation, with brief spurts of liberalism. This is reflected in our history. The liberal periods bring about vast reactionary forces, which we are living through right now. Partly this is because it's so much easier to unite and hate something new than it is to unite and push for change. It's easier, for instance, to hate Obamacare than it is to support a complex health care law. But slowly, liberalism becomes the status quo.

Trump: Mexicans Are a Bigger Threat Than the ISIS Prisoners I Let Escape [vanityfair.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 15, 2019:

"Let the rest of the world go to hell, as long as I get my wall..." Betray your allies and let your friend, Putin, step into the vacuum, because he is a very fine person. He told you he is, after all. Next up- American troops pulling out of South Korea.

A Pastor Used the Death of an Atheist Mom’s Baby as a Sermon Illustration | Hemant Mehta | ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 15, 2019:

So let me get his "message" straight. Tragedy can strike you due to your "sin" of lacking faith in god. So, god (who controls everything) drowned this woman's child because she's an atheist. How, then, does he explain the tragedies which happen to all the believers in his church every Sunday? He reminds me of the guest pastor who spoke at my ex-wife's great-aunt's funeral and really started me down the road to atheism. That one said that if you had led a blameless life, but were in danger of backsliding and falling into sin, god might "take you before your time" to prevent you from going to hell. So... god killed an 89-year-old woman who was about to do some type of sin, according to this theory. Right...

I decided to do the DNA test to discover who I really am.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

I wanted to know who I really was, so I looked in a mirror until I was sure that was me.

What book (or series) would you like to see made into a movie?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

*Armor* by John Steakley. We certainly have the technology now to do the 3m tall alien ants now, although it would take some imagination to pull off the biggest twist of the book without completely blowing the reveal. It would make up for the mess John carpenter made of Steakley's second novel, *Vampire$*, turning it into the absolutely awful and formulaic *John Carpenter's "Vampires"*. In, fact, tell you what, I'd like to see a proper adaptation of *Vampire$* as well. Probably a series would be needed to do either one right, they're both incredibly rich and complex novels.

Elizabeth Warren trolls Facebook with ad claiming Zuckerberg supports Trump.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

Well... I'm going to be forced to support whoever eventually is on the ballot with a D next to their name. Doesn't mean I'll like them necessarily. I'll probably end up working for change from within.

Watching a talk by Neil deGrasse Tyson and thought of the fact that trump is building cathedrals ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

It's a Freudian thing. His hotels are phallic symbols. Ask Melania what he's compensating for...

The nightmare scenario! Glenn Kirschner @glennkirschner2: 1.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

How do you get to "#9 he can cancel the election altogether"? I'm sure he would like to, but that would be beyond the pale even for this Court.

High Court Chief Justice Susan Kiefel gives Capilano Honey the green light to poison the Australian ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

What I'm reading here is that Shane Dowling is the Alex Jones of Australia, a conspiracy theorist accusing companies of selling poisonous fake honey and accusing judges of being pedophiles, then being surprised when his seemingly frivolous allegations and lawsuits don't get resolved the way he expected. In this current matter, from what I can tell, he made a motion to appeal to the High Court and the justices dismissed it because his cases hadn't been through the lower courts in New South Wales yet. "In each matter, the applicant’s application for an order for removal under s 40 of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth) of a cause now pending in the Supreme Court of New South Wales is refused. No proper basis for removal of each cause is identified and, given the current state of each cause, an order for removal is premature. Moreover, there is no basis identified to fragment the ordinary judicial process." This is corruption?

What activity has most consistently given you a feeling of inner peace?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

I used to masturbate a lot, but the older you get, the less practical that becomes... now I read a lot more.

The US lets down another ally.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

Make sure you distinguish between "The United States" and the moron currently commanding the troops to bail out. Turkey mortared our Special Forces already, aiming at Kurds who were in the same neighborhood, and gave a lame excuse... Trump has put our troops in danger, but you don't hear Republicans talking about it. He is unfit to be Commander In Chief. But that's something we always knew.

William Barr: Our Less Christian Society Is To Blame For Mental Illness And Drug Abuse

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

He doesn't read his own DoJ statistics, does he? Violent crime is *down*, in this era of increased secularism... maybe people these days feel it's not excusable to commit incest or rape or murder because there are so many example in the Bible?

Ex-U.S. Attorney Reveals Sign Trump Is About To Throw Giuliani Under The Bus

Paul4747 comments on Oct 12, 2019:

I suggest a new nickname: Rudy "Speed-Bump" Giuliani

Not the tan suit!

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

It's a classy look.

@Janefonda is getting arrested because of the ClimateEmergency.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

Lawyers have an enormous carbon footprint. I prefer to take action that doesn't lead to lawyers.

Josh and Shannon Harris separation: The author of abstinence book I Kissed Dating Goodbye is ending ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

I once read that only 30% of those who took abstinence pledges kept to them, and most of those who broke the vow did NOT use birth control. But my favorite all-time statistic was that 2/3 who didn't have intercourse DID have oral sex.

We must spread the word far and wide that the “deep state” is a malevolent fiction created to ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

It's a fantasy created by paranoids from both sides as an excuse for what they think is wrong with the world. Things didn't go the way you thought they should? It's the Deep State. Your candidate didn't win? Deep State. This is the latest permutation in the conspiracy theories that have gripped both sides since our nation's founding.

Edward Snowden is the top whistleblower of the century.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

Considering that "the century" isn't 20 percent done yet, isn't it kind of early to make that judgment? It's like calling something released in February "the best movie of the year".

Colin Powell, "“The Republican Party has got to get a grip on itself." [washingtonexaminer.com]

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

I can't read whatever he had to say, I get a "Page Not Found" error.

Colin Powell, "“The Republican Party has got to get a grip on itself." [washingtonexaminer.com]

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

Once I respected Powell. Then he allowed himself to give cooked intelligence about WMDs in Iraq in front of the world. He should have known better and my guess is that he did know better, but he was caught between a rock and a hard place.

Is it too late? Has climate activism failed? Are we into damage control? [grist.org]

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

Pretty much, yeah

Kansas Girl, 13, Arrested After Making Gun Symbol [msn.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

Paranoia has gone out of control. I sometimes mime putting my fingers to my head when I'm frustrated, I guess it's a good thing I haven't been sent for a suicide referral...

Long, long, looooonnnngg posts! Those of you who think you can entice me to read 5000+ word ideas, ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

Eh, whatever.

Today I heard from a very religious family member that you are very miserable and have no reason to ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 11, 2019:

I have that same thing, but with beer and coffee.

Bernie Sanders talks about his heart attack. [twitter.com]

Paul4747 comments on Oct 10, 2019:

So, he's out, right?

I'm making this post just to get the points.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 10, 2019:

Well done. Bonus points for honesty. And thank you in return for my double points! (First reply!)

There is a quantum difference between Elizabeth Warren and most politicians.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 9, 2019:

That's a big assumption about what "most" people go into politics for. I've encountered and dealt with a number of politicians in Michigan, and all of them felt they went into politics to serve their constituents. The way they do that might be vastly different from the way we think they should, but it's still a sincere belief. For instance, I'm sure many Republicans *sincerely believe* based on economic and philosophical principles that we'd be better off as a nation without Social Security and Medicare, and that the free market takes care of everything much more effectively than government programs. They're wrong, and their heads are up their asses about it, but it's what they sincerely believe.

Donald J.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 9, 2019:

The truth doesn't matter to his followers, and people who've been paying attention already know the truth. It's those who don't pay attention one way or the other that he's hoping to spin, the people who get their information from 3-second sound bites and social media and only take in the loudest and most easily digested "news" without bothering to dig any deeper... those who take everything at face value and vote based on who promised them a tax cut most recently, the hell with the deficit. Our only hope is that more people are paying more attention lately, and that they're not as stupid as the Republicans think they are. I'm actually not optimistic, since Trump won in the first place.

Anti-abortion activists always point out that every human life is sacred and has an unconditional ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 9, 2019:

There's no point looking for logic in these things. For instance, if all life is sacred, how do you go out and cheer for the death penalty? How do you turn a blind eye to poverty? It's just a smokescreen for the Republican party takeover of evangelical religion.

"Net Neutrality" is synonymous with "Free Speech.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 9, 2019:

You just conflated two things there. Unfiltered speech has absolutely no guarantee that it will be thereby closer to "the truth" than news from a network or publisher with editors and journalists spanning the globe. Take a look at NPR, which the Right pans as a liberal mouthpiece- it was NPR who broke the Monica Lewinsky scandal, and who scrupulously state when the subject of a story is also a contributor to their network. "Free speech" in the form of some gonzo with a website has nobody fact-checking it, nobody telling it to go talk to another source and verify the story before going to press, no accountability. And it has a veneer of credibility, like Breitbart or Alex Jones, because "they" wouldn't let people put it on the internet unless it was true, would "they"? When in fact there is no "They" in charge of anything, and in fact there really needs to be. Anything claiming to be news should have to go through the Washington Post Fact Checker or Snopes before being released. (Man, would those people have to do some hiring!) There's only one reality. I'm just not so sure you're connected with it.

For you Trumpers.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 8, 2019:

This does seem to be the main complaint... someone has revealed Trump's dealings, not that the dealings themselves didn't happen. He's since gone on to proclaim he has the right to ask foreign heads of state to tryi to dig up dirt on his domestic rivals and their families. Imagine the screams of horror if a Democrat were to ask another nation to investigate Trump's real estate deals in that country. They'd be outraged. (And in fact this is happening- they're pissed that Congress is questioning his deals on the Russian Trump hotels...) So it's okay for Trump, but not for the other side. Just like in religion, what is done by our side is different from the same thing done by another.

So they put "RT is funded in whole or in part by the Russian government.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 8, 2019:

Nice rant. On a serious note, yes, you should be put off by a dictatorship-masquerading-as-a-democracy funding a supposed news channel, especially Putin's dictatorship. On yet another note, what makes you think that CBS, BBC, et.al., have anything to do with bombing anybody? None of those are government agencies, nor are they government funded, and they have nothing to do with government policy other than reporting on it. All the broadcast networks you mention are privately owned and operated, with the exception of the BBC which operates under royal charter, but which is still not government funded- its operating money comes by way of license fees paid by the great British public. (Evening, all!) In short- what the hell bee got in your bonnet tonight?

Had to take a break from the site.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 7, 2019:

In what specific way? That would be helpful information... rather than just saying we were acting like assholes. (Thanks, by the way, for not just flat-out *calling us* assholes, which would be a different bag of fish.)

Anyone see The Joker?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 6, 2019:

Honestly not interested. This recent trend of "villain protagonist" origin shows ("Hannibal" for instance), as well executed as they might be, just leave me cold.

Online dating, now the most common way for couples to meet, is desegregating America

Paul4747 comments on Oct 6, 2019:

Hooray! I'm part of a social movement!

Have a look at this chart . . . .[epi.org]

Paul4747 comments on Oct 6, 2019:

Swap the word "neglect" for "Republicans" and then you got it.

McConnell vows to 'stop impeachment' as Trump keeps incriminating himself

Paul4747 comments on Oct 5, 2019:

They don't care about truth or what's right and wrong any more, only that they control Washington. I'm sickened. The problem is not the 2-party system, it's the Republicans. Boot 'em the hell out.

Televangelist Jim Bakker: The American Left Is Under ‘Massive Demon Possession’

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

It's true.... I admit it. My demon's name is Xylopxytopleyes. I can't pronounce her but I can picture her. (She's a horny little thing.;))

This is why nothing matters when it comes to Trump's crimes.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

For some people, politics is the same as sports or religion- you pick a team and believe in it no matter what happens. The worse your team is, the more loyal you are, because your identity is bound up with theirs. It's not about rational thought, it's emotion.

This is old news of 2013.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

You're right, it's old news. Especially if you read the actual article. 'Robert Stack, deputy assistant secretary for international tax affairs, rebuts certain "myths". "Fatca provisions impose no new obligations on US citizens living abroad... US taxpayers, including US citizens living abroad, are required to comply with US tax laws," he says. "Individuals that have used offshore accounts to evade tax obligations may rightly fear that Fatca will identify their illicit activities. Yet a decision to renounce US citizenship would not relieve these individuals of prior US tax obligations."' Why do Americans give up their citizenship? Tax evasion. In 2008, for example, one of the co-founders of Facebook (Brazilian Eduardo Saverin) gave up his American citizenship just before the company went public. Evidently Boris Johnson (current Prime Minister) had dual citizenship, which he recently renounced, as he didn't want to file tax returns for both nations anymore. Of course, there's also the case of Vincent Cate, an encryption expert living in Anguilla, who chose to renounce his US citizenship to avoid the possibility of violating US laws that may have prohibited US citizens from "exporting" encryption software. So, not directly about taxes, but about money nevertheless. It's all basically about money.

CNN refuses to air 2 Trump campaign ads over "demonstrably false" claims

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

I'm sure Fox is airing them free of charge...

So how do we feel about the latest on Schiff? Should he be prosecuted as well?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

For what exactly?

Hypothetically, how does someone who is not an expert in a field differentiate from "real science" ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

The scientific method consists of: Observation of empirical data Form a hypothesis based on data Predict future results based on the hypothesis Experiment to prove or disprove the hypothesis If someone has used the scientific method, that's real science. If they change their hypothesis when new evidence becomes available, that's real science. If they revise their hypothesis when the experimental results don't back it up, that's real science. It's not real science (also known as "Not good science") when someone predetermines the hypothesis and then ignores or tries to explain away any conflicting evidence.

I have a sore throat, a huge headache and am rather lethargic. What is wrong with me?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

Eastern Equine Encephalitis? No... I guess you're on the wrong continent for that...

How many days a year do you get for holidays in the US?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

Didn't I see that guy in *Jabberwocky*?

Does anyone need any more reason to support FFRF.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

My purchases on Amazon support the FFRF.

Only an idiot would want to shut down the US oil and gas industry.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 4, 2019:

Only someone who wants to preserve the environment, would want to shut down the gas & oil industry... not to mention the coal industry. However, I don't read anything in the article about "shutting down" the oil industry, only restricting selected aspects of it. But wait- I forgot, you automatically ascribe the title "idiot" to anyone who accepts the science on climate change, unlike trump, who thinks it's all a con game by the Chinese. (Speaking of idiots...)

How about this election map? Dirt can't vote.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 3, 2019:

Yet another reminder that*** Hilary Clinton won the popular vote.*** Trump fans HATE hearing that.

Beto O’Rourke: Buttigieg Opposes Gun Confiscation Because He’s ‘Afraid to Do the Right ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 3, 2019:

Or possibly because it's unconstitutional? The Brady Bill included NO gun confiscation. Shooting deaths and in fact ALL violent crimes are actually lower than they were 30 years ago. Confiscating guns owned by law-abiding owners is NOT the solution; keeping guns out of the hands of criminals is. Holy shit, they've made me repeat the NRA's line. Except that I support universal, effective background checks.

Viral subway opera singer on her way to a record deal

Paul4747 comments on Oct 3, 2019:

You shouldn't be on the subway of you have a virus....

Hello from Oktoberfest!! Second stop of our week away - Munich for the beer festival to end all ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 1, 2019:

A village around here had their Oktoberfest 2 weeks ago. Yes, Oktoberfest in September. :|

So for those of you who recommended Plenty of Fish, I made a profile.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 1, 2019:

I think it should mean you scored 10 points at least.

Anyone else feel like the weather has been unusual in your area lately?

Paul4747 comments on Oct 1, 2019:

August felt like October. September felt like June. June felt like March. Now October is going to be like July. But climate change is a scam started by the Chinese to bilk the American coal miners. :|

Evangelical leader says impeaching Trump would anger ‘600 million Americans’ (U.

Paul4747 comments on Oct 1, 2019:

You have to take into account how many Americans might be added by Russian rigging of the voting machines...

Some people in my Atheist group I'm in on Facebook need to enhance their knowledge more about ...

Paul4747 comments on Oct 1, 2019:

That's how Satan (Lucifer, I should say) works on the Netflix series...

Two daring pranksters allegedly hacked a billboard to play pornography

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

Ah, I miss the drive-in movies.....

[youtu.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

What I want to know is--- who the hell is "Steve"? "Steve" walks warily down the street- with his brim pulled way down low- And then there's an ambush, and someone bites the dust. *Who the hell is "Steve"?*

I’m too selfish to adore an entity outside of myself!

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

I have no idea what to do with this thought.

Dubious record

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

At least it's some accomplishments....

Why is it that religious people think saying “well that was Old Testament” is a valid argument ...

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

It's the equivalent of looking back at some shameful exploit in your own history and then excusing it by saying, "Well, but I was only 19 then." The idea is that they are excusing all the violence and misogyny and incest by saying, "Well, it's the OT..." The idea is that the OT is an "immature" set of documents in which God was instructing and shepherding a single chosen people in a hostile land full of enemies, and all those horrible things were somehow necessary for the survival of the Jews. The NT, on the other hand, is supposed to be a "mature" testament intended for the whole world to embrace. Beyond ignoring that most of the OT is pure mythology, this ignores the fact that Jesus, himself a Jew, was an apocalyptic preacher who expected the world to end in the generation of his disciples (if we believe the writings that came down several decades later). His preaching was for his fellow Jews. It was the Gentile Paul (Saul) who generalized this message for the world. Jesus would be spinning in his tomb if he knew what has become of his religion.

Bishop: Girls Should Skip College So They’re Not Smarter Than Their Husbands - Women should avoid ...

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

Women smarter than me, please come my way... I'm tired of doing all the work in conversations.

Trashy much?

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

"Greta"? Who's "Greta"?

And the map is fake. That's not from 2016.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

Hmmm...

Pat Robertson: God is bringing back leprosy as punishment for abortion – DeadState

Paul4747 comments on Sep 30, 2019:

What's the punishment for being a fraudulent old hack?

[sciencealert.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

"Impostorism"?? This is a word?

For those who think Biden is a great guy.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

Longer and more accurate version of this headline: "After I committed a possible felony and violated the non-disclosure agreement I signed with my employer, a contractor for the federal government, and then went on the run rather than face the music, Joe Biden did what any other representative of the United States would do and tried to get me extradited back to stand trial in the justice system." I don't care that a whistle-blower is a whistle-blower *per se*. But if your cause is just, if you feel strongly enough to reveal it to the world, and then you get outed, well, you stand up and get a lawyer and get your day in court. That's what the whistle-blower protection statutes are there for.

Donald J.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

No recollection of history, even the history that he himself tweeted on multiple times. https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2019/feb/07/donald-trump/Yes-President-Trump-Congress-also-investigated/

It's a little overcast and rainy but my last weekend in Michigan with family before heading home.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

If you pass through Adrian, give us a wave!

Trump’s baffling tweet about hyphens and Adam Schiff, explained - The Washington Post

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

Also, "never ending" should be hyphenated ("never-ending"). And if you want to put an apostrophe anywhere, it would go in the middle of the word, as in "Li'l Donny Trump", for example. The English language must make his liddle head spin.

Trump’s baffling tweet about hyphens and Adam Schiff, explained - The Washington Post

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

But- but- but- that's an apostrophe.... (Those were hyphens.) Am I the ONLY ONE who now wants to add "violent abuse of punctuation" to the list of charges against Trump?

Well, there are the Quick and the Dead...

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

I'm not sure if I'm not still doing 3G? I was in the Army, not the Air Force, helicopters didn't pull that many Gs...

The modern guru

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

Makes perfect sense... but he forgot to mention that the whole thing was staged at Area 51 using captured alien technology by Nazi scientists from Project Paper Clip who had assassinated Kennedy and framed Oswalt, because he opposed the Bay of Pigs invasion (which was really an attempt to capture the UFO landing base in Cuba). When did they start saying "Words By" instead of just "Written By", in magazine articles??

Rough couple of days Wednesday evening my back was spasmodic.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 28, 2019:

Do you have a massage therapist? Mine does wonders for me, at least temporarily, and sees me in emergencies...

Oh dear.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 26, 2019:

You need leather balls to play rugby.

Is there anyone but agnostics or atheists in foxholes?

Paul4747 comments on Sep 26, 2019:

Having been a soldier & in the company of soldiers, and having studied the military all my life, I have to say there are different kinds of believers (among those who do believe). One, who was portrayed quite accurately in the film *Saving Private Ryan* (the character Private Jackson), actually believes that God personally intervenes in individual lives and guides events. This can be either a very stable or a very dangerous kind of person to be around, depending on whether they are a humble person due to this belief or whether they think they know what "God's" plan is and believe they have a have a special place in it. Another is the more typical believer who was raised up in religion, but doesn't put any special emphasis on it any more than they do philosophy or politics. Typical believers (like most people, believer or not) aren't deep thinkers, they simply go to the services Sunday (or Saturday) and the rest of the week go about their business. If asked, they will tell you they believe in God, but it doesn't shape their lives more than any other factor. In a dangerous situation, they might well exclaim, "God, don't let me die here," but then again, an atheist might say "Oh my God, I don't want to die" too. It's cultural conditioning. Other believers don't even go to the services but practice a private belief. And then there are a certain number of agnostics/atheists in the military, as I was. I still have my dogtags reading "No Religious Preference". While everyone else was at the chapel Sunday mornings, I was in my bunk reading the field manual. The military is a cross-section of the civilian world, and you'll find the same beliefs there as anywhere else... at least that is my finding.

APOCALYPSE NOT?

Paul4747 comments on Sep 25, 2019:

So, we're getting our science and climate news from the Competitive Enterprise Institute now, right? Because they're sure to be completely unbiased and have no stake whatsoever in whether there are tighter regulations on carbon emissions, pollution, waste disposal, fuel efficiency, or any of a dozen things that actual scientists are urging in order to stop the continuing trend of the destruction of our climate... Meanwhile, anyone looking at actual science (like the UN report) would conclude that we're fucked. We fucked ourselves and the world for the next 1000 years. For example, global mean sea level has risen by over 3 meters, if I read the report correctly, since 1901, and it has accelerated fastest since 1990. That ain't coincidence. That's *us* fucking the planet. And it's really too late to unfuck. The most we can do is hope to *stop making it worse.*

[businessinsider.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 25, 2019:

"Mauldin told The New York Times that his intentions were to give voters the facts, but his websites only target Democrats." Gosh, now who does this remind me of... Oh, that's right. This is a quote straight from Wikileaks' defense playbook. "We just want to tell the truth", but we're only telling a carefully edited version of it and it will only make our enemies look bad, not our (infinitely worse) friends.

beware! as the whistleblower issue intensifies we see a sudden outbreak of -- get this -- why ...

Paul4747 comments on Sep 25, 2019:

It's really not surprising. The "progressives" have been angry at Pelosi for a long time now, for not being progressive enough, not being liberal enough, being willing to compromise with Republicans and actually get things done (you know, accomplishing things with politics instead of advertising her principles)... and on the tip of this iceberg has been her unwillingness to burn political capital by starting impeachment hearings which she knew certainly wouldn't go anywhere in the Senate, but might easily backfire and increase the fervor of Trump's base. Pelosi may be an idealist at her core, but she's also a strategist, and there's no ground to be gained in fighting a battle where the outcome is almost certainly going to be a Pyrrhic victory; impeachment in the House, and acquittal in the Senate. Now that there may be an almost incontrovertible issue, where Trump will be almost impossible to defend, and on which the Senate has already once voted unanimously, it's time to start impeachment proceedings. She's no fool.

The indoctrination of America to bring Wikileaks into disrepute - "on Sept.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 25, 2019:

Be that as it may, from what I read; Assange wrote on WikiLeaks in February 2016: "I have had years of experience in dealing with Hillary Clinton and have read thousands of her cables. Hillary lacks judgement and will push the United States into endless, stupid wars which spread terrorism. ... she certainly should not become president of the United States." In conversations that were leaked in February 2018, Assange expressed a preference for a Republican victory in the 2016 election, saying that "Dems+Media+liberals woudl [sic] then form a block to reign [sic] in their worst qualities. With Hillary in charge, GOP will be pushing for her worst qualities, dems+media+neoliberals will be mute.". Having released information that exposed the inner workings of a broad range of organisations and politicians, WikiLeaks started by 2016 to focus almost exclusively on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. In the 2016 US presidential election, WikiLeaks only exposed material damaging to the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton. WikiLeaks even rejected the opportunity to publish unrelated leaks, because it dedicated all its resources to Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party. According to The New York Times, WikiLeaks timed one of its large leaks so that it would happen on the eve of the Democratic Convention. The Washington Post noted that the leaks came at an important sensitive moment in the Clinton campaign, as she was preparing to announce her vice-presidential pick and unite the party behind her. The Sunlight Foundation, an organisation that advocates for open government, said that such actions meant that WikiLeaks was no longer striving to be transparent but rather sought to achieve political goals. WikiLeaks explained its actions in a 2017 statement to Foreign Policy: "WikiLeaks schedules publications to maximize readership and reader engagement. During distracting media events such as the Olympics or a high profile election, unrelated publications are sometimes delayed until the distraction passes but never are rejected for this reason." On 7 October 2016, an hour after the media had begun to dedicate wall-to-wall coverage of the revelation that Trump had bragged on video about sexually harassing women, WikiLeaks began to release emails hacked from the personal account of Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. Podesta suggested that the emails were timed to deflect attention from the Trump tapes. In 2010, Donald Trump called WikiLeaks "disgraceful" and suggested that the "death penalty" should be a punishment for WikiLeaks' releases of information. Following the dump of e-mails hacked from the Hillary Clinton campaign, Donald Trump told voters, "I love WikiLeaks!" Trump made many references to WikiLeaks during...

To me she and Bernie are the true Democrats.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 25, 2019:

Are you using the "No true Scotsman" test? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_true_Scotsman One of the greatest things about the Democratic party is that pretty much anybody can be a Democrat, except for Republicans.

I think insomnia has found me again.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 25, 2019:

:( I feel for you. And in the same boat, since I have to go drive my daughter to school in... 3 hours?

Here is my vote . . .

Paul4747 comments on Sep 23, 2019:

Thanks for effectively voting Republican. They appreciate it. You have a choice in any election: vote your "conscience", or vote effectively. If voting for what you see as the lesser evil prevents a greater evil, I'll take that any day of the week and twice on Election Day.

War is when government tells people who their enemy is.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 23, 2019:

Fun fact: in the Revolutionary War, only about 1/3 of the American colonists actually *revolted*, as such. 15 to 20 percent of the colonists remained loyal to the Crown, and half (or more) tried to stay out of the whole business. I suspect, as an historian, that most if not all revolutions follow this pattern: a minority of activists and hotheads on either side, and in the middle, the majority who just wish people would quit shooting up their homes and businesses and go the fuck away. Chairman Mao made this point explicitly: that the revolutionaries must make the majority take sides, either by forcibly recruiting them, or by implicating them in acts of anti-government violence so that they would face reprisals and have no choice but to join the partisans. Let's put it this way: if there were a Revolution tomorrow, I'll bet most of us wouldn't like it either.

Here's the thing: All IMAGINARY things are the same.

Paul4747 comments on Sep 23, 2019:

This strikes me as a brand of Buddhism: "Nothing has a real existence, only our minds perception seem to give it reality." But electricity, for example, has a real existence which predates our minds (and all life on Earth). The names for our measurements are imagined, and we might as well call them Fleems, Microfleems, and Quadzorks for all the difference it makes, but the things being measured *exist*. Art, on the other hand, is a human concept. Paint on a canvas or rock on a plinth exist, but they may or may not be art. Government is a human construct: People sitting in a building exist, but they are only a government because of agreed-upon human constructs. Same goes for laws: Pieces of paper exist, but the law is a product of imagination. On the other hand, try walking into a diamond merchant's, lean over the counter, and walk out with a handful of pretty pretty rocks, and then, when the men in blue uniforms (hey, police are just an imaginary concept) point their metal sticks at you and shout "Freeze!", wave merrily and keep walking. Their imagination will become your reality in a heartbeat.