This is so terrible. ?

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Necessary services LOL.

Be good. Do good.

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

It's nice to see people happy.

Thankful for this day...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

That's too cute!

Sadly true.

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

There's a lot of truth to that. Probably mostly true, I think.

Becoming common place where I live

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Ouch. Not an accident, I guess.

Greetings from Springfield, OR. That would be the working mans side of the freeway from Eugene. ...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Welcome aboard!

How jocund did they drive their team afield! How bowed the woods beneath their sturdy stroke! ...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

That's nicely put by the man. It has a similar theme to Ozymandias. Ambition is probably a good thing in itself but not the type that is just the craving for power and money,

"None is more impoverished than the one who has no gratitude. Gratitude is a currency that we can ...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Well OK but you might have to have something to be grateful for. That raises the question if you state you have nothing to be grateful for, could you be stating a truth or must it be that you have a bad attitude?

Kiss Your Afterlife Goodbye! You can only hope to achieve an afterlife if you have some sort of ...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

The hypothesis would fall apart if the mind is not housed in the brain. That would place consciousness outside the body and the brain would be a tool to access and process thoughts, then storing them at this external location. It may well be that when we die, our processor dies but it wouldn't matter since we would be existing on the same plane as consciousness.

I hope everybody has a chance to be with family and friends today!

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Time to pull all the skeletons out of the closet. Just add alcohol!

Thankful for all of you on this day !!!!

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

.....and thank you too!

Old joke made currant

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Clever! That looks like a raisin with attitude!

Democracy should allow you to make an informed decision on who is most suitable to represent your ...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

I think what we have now is globalised democracy, in that our political parties are all servants of the global market so there is no difference between them except maybe 'the narcissism of small difference'.

Painter....

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Excellent! Very clever!

Reading Hunter Thompson's son's autobiography this week. He's only a few years older than me, and ...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

Is it that the world is less or we are less so the world isn't so open to us? I can't imagine what's it's like to have a paternal role model who is a powerhouse in any way. I've seen a lot of films where strong fathers destroy their sons. There were also stories about sons who became strong men because their fathers were weak. Anyway, I think it must have been very difficult to be a regular human being living in the shadow of someone extra-ordinary. I'll leave that paragraph alone in case it means something to someone but re-reading your post, I think I misunderstood. Could you elaborate a little?

Do i really need to work??

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

I felt that way all my life in a very extreme way. I'm not sure whether it was because my priorities were right about having far better things to do or it was a heavy, gloomier perspective on life.

“I’ve never been a millionaire, but I just know that I’d be darling at it”....another from ...

brentan comments on Nov 22, 2018:

I often thought that too. I think I would have been a very happy aristocrat, enjoying access to culture, travel etc. I'm not sure if I would have been bothered by the poverty of other people. Things had to go wrong for me before I really thought how unfair the world is.

I am just a poor boy -- [youtube.com]

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

Wonderful!

Insanity is no longer a state of mind. It has become a right of passage.

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

Great! I'll be fine. Do you mean it confers an advantage?

How do you begin to be comfortable in your own skin? What do you do to gain/maintain self ...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

I think you should start by forgiving yourself for being less than perfect.

I can’t believe I turned 55 years old today. Where does the time go??

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

Happy Birthday! I don't like the idea of my life passing by so fast but I like having little time to be bored.

<iframe src="[facebook.com]? Please listen to this - When a young Jewish boy learns of the ...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

I couldn't access it either. I can only suggest listening to Jordon Peterson. The whole world has suffered and still does. We need to play a part in shouldering our piece of responsibility for making it better.

Laibach - The Lonely Goatherd [youtube.com]

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

Bizarre! It made me think how far removed we can be from nature.

[nypost.com] Ban on Female Genital Mutilation is Ruled Unconstitutional - WTF!!!!

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

No reason given for the decision? I wonder is it the traditional reluctance of governments to interfere in the inner workings of the different religious

Remember everyone:

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

Half the country? Surely not!

Many words have been reduced to offensive terms such as the much over used word Fuck, which simply ...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

We'll need a new politically-correct dictionary to cross a minefield of faux-pas.

I once read that there is a term for how certain words gradually become offensive if they are used ...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

That was an interesting read. I think the word 'special' has changed its meaning too.

@admin Lately I've been getting a lot of "post not available " messages on alerts.. I usually get ...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

I see it now and again. It's always after I've differed strongly with someone. I hope your problem is just technical.

GALOOT. - Noun....mainly used in Scotland and North America....a clumsy, awkward or ungainly man. ...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

It might have gone out of fashion because it's not strong enough for today's invective.

My sister-in-law's sister got but by a drunk driver. Her car is destroyed but she made it out mostly...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

God v Volvo.

Grins.......

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

Is it a stuffed head?

Another one from Dorothy Parker.....”That would be a good thing for them to cut on my tombstone: ...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

I'd like to come up with a really good epitaph. I would like to be cremated but I don't know if there's any room for one when you do it that way. I'm not sure either if ordinary people merit epitaphs.

Good morning, and happy day before Thanksgiving!

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

This happens when half the American people get Tourettes.

At this age...

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

They made me smile.

"A man's only as old as the woman he feels." - Grouch Marx

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

It's only a joke. It is, isn't it?

This is how I live my life. Maybe it's a Jewish thing. Maybe it's just because I'm Jewish.

brentan comments on Nov 21, 2018:

I think there is a perception that Jewish people will only interact with other people if they are doing business with them.

Holidays are a little bit sad. Not miserable, just kind of sad. Does anyone else feel this way?

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Oh gosh yes. It's all the sentiments about brotherly love and happy families that makes the season worse for people who aren't in a position to enjoy such things. But how real is it? I suspect that it's great for young families whose children make the magic real through their unquestioning enthusiasm for the occasion. My adult self survives the season in the knowledge that it's mostly an illusion but my inner child yearns for the time of innocence that loved Christmas.

One thing I find I appreciate about being agnostic/atheist is the not needing faith. I'm not so ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

There must be something about faith that bothers you that prompted you to write this post. I had faith so I'm sympathetic to people who still have it. I live contented enough but I must admit the notion of living for all eternity through faith is a wonderful hope.

Quote from the Netflix movie last kingdom tonight. I dream of humping you tonight. It is written in ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

I think we were too busy drinking and humping to create an empire in the first place.

What life-altering things should every human ideally get to experience at least once in their lives?...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Disaster, I think. The opportunity to re-think everything.

I may be old, but I cn still remember when I was -- [youtube.com]

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Maybe I was always old.

After 35 years of marriage, a husband and wife came for counseling. When asked what the problem was,...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

It makes me think about how woman think of men as more than sexual objects but marriages break down because sex is absent.

Got home to find a note from the missus on the fridge...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Gosh, I completely relate to that. Goodbye and good luck!

"Unacceptable and horrible crime" says Trump. But no sanctions, still allies. Seems to me he's ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Unacceptable and yet acceptable. Maybe he means morally unacceptable and politically acceptable.

I wish I knew how to deal with personal stress a lot better than I do now. I tend to completely ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Is it the sort of stress where everything seems just so hard to do and creates anxiety or is it a war of attrition going on between you and you?

We only use this "C" word when they are small but what about all those young women and men who went ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

I guess cult is a mainstream-centric word.

Do you like music in languages you don't understand?

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

I listen to several Hispanic singers even though I usually have to translate the lyrics. I really like Robi Draco Rosa but also like Reuben Blades and Juan Luis Guerra.

"Marks and Spencer knickers display branded 'vomit-inducing'" Feminists have described a Marks & ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

They are annoyed because they know sexual attraction is a social construct.

It is truly perplexing to me when Christians act as if their opposition to abortion is rooted in a ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

It's shocking. You give them life, feed and educate them, and when you decide you hate the little bastards and want to kill them, the state behaves like it owns them.

J.S.Bach. - Erbarme Dich, Mein Gott (St.Matthews Passion). Nigel Kennedy live at an open air ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Delightful music, location and man. Everything is right in this music video.

Sounds legit and the treasure catalog is a bargain for only a quarter. :D

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

I'm on my way! I hope there's something left to find.

N.W.A 100 Miles and Runinn (Explict ; ) [youtube.com]

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

No Whites Allowed!

DREICH. - Adjective....of the weather; wet, dull, dismal, gloomy, dreary or a combination of any or...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

It has an onomatopaeic sound to it. It describes the Irish winter well, sometimes our summer too. I went to live in Seattle in the early 90s and was surprised to see how their idea of their lousy local weather had even become memes on T-shirts - 'Seattle Rainy Season - Jan 1 to Dec 31'. I never found this quite true. I thought their summers were terrific and their winters more extreme and changeable than our permanent gloom.

A federal judge overruled President Trump's order limiting migrants requesting asylum. His order ...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

Checks and balances are a great idea. Could a counter-argument be made in this particular circumstance, and especially in the case of the mass migration in progress right now? I think a change in the law might be in order.

Is there anyone here who actually enjoys being older? There's a lot about it I'm enjoying. I feel...

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

I couldn't agree more. For me (being a bit on the autistic side) it's the power I have to stay away from painful circumstance like work, religious group etc.

Brainwash yourself

brentan comments on Nov 20, 2018:

I hope the general concensus about reality is close to objective reality, if there is a concensus and an objective reality.

Opinion on people of faith.

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

I've found 2 types: 1. the ones who aspire to a better life 2. the ones who use it like social club

Bible verse on Starbuck's cups? I looked it up this is a real verse.

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

Jerusalem must have been one fucked-up place.

If you have freewill then how did I get you to read this post?

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

You have special powers.

Rolled out a feature to let you completely hide a group from this site. It only works on groups ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

Excellent!

[aish.com] Keeping American Jews Jewish -What is a Greater Threat Assimilation or Anti-Semitism. ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

I think they are 2 things Jews would lose through assimilation: 1. the pleasure in believing they are God's special people 2. the drive and ingenuity that resulted from persecution through the centuries Perhaps many Jewish people feel those two things just aren't worth it.

I've been raking my yard. So I don't have...you know....a forest fire.

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

I read some time ago that forest land needs to have fires to burn off the topsoil so not to die. I have no idea if this is true or not but if it is, that might mean that fires need to be managed, not stopped.

Make a change.

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

We must be careful not to wreck the economy.

Right Wingers and Ayn Rand. A slight rant, I suppose, but one conservative saintly reference that...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

I've heard nothing but bad about her from today's public intellectuals. I watched a YouTube video of a show she did with Phil Donahue and I thought she defended her views very well. That said, I'm a big fan of social democracy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3u8Jjth81_Q

Preachers and televangelists are stating that the fires in California are god's punishment because ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

From what I know about the Bible, God is more put out by pride and arrogance than he is about gay people. Here's what he said about Sodom: Look! This was the sin of your sister Sodom and her daughters: Pride, too much food, undisturbed peace, and failure to help the poor and needy. In their arrogance, they committed detestable practices in my presence, so when I saw it, I removed them - Ezekiel 16:49, 50.  Looked at from Ezekiel's perspective, there's a lot more going on there than gay sex.

Seems a member this group here blocked me so I can't view her post. Bit sad for a progressive and ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

The shutters are coming down on discussion.

persiflage -- light and slightly contemptuous mockery or banter “Ziegenhalss, at any rate, ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

That's a good one! We used the term slagging each other when friends would tease each other.

Absolute power corrupts always has and always will.you see it in any branch of our government that ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

I wonder has anyone ever spelled out the dynamics of the process.

Another one from Dorothy Parker....The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

It's a delightful part of being a child. Perhaps it was never intended to be confined to childhood but to be a permanent characteristic of being human. I think I see that 'childish' curiosity in the facial features of Albert Einstein and other very bright people. It's a crying shame that it disappears for so many people who must get caught up in a wonderless, repetitive world just to pay their bills.

If man could be crossed with a cat, it would improve the man, but degrade the cat. (am pretty sure ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

Ne'er the twain should mix.

At 60, I still feel "uncomfortable" with younger people calling me "sir". Sir was my dad. ...

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

I feel there's still hope for society when I hear sir being used.

What are your favorite words for the love of words, language, books, semantics, etc.?

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

Logophile is very uncommon, i think, for loving words. Then there is bibliophile for books. There is a Japanese word too (I can't remember it) for someone who loves books so much, they are always buying them and never get to read the half of them.

I love Leah Remini. She exposed scientology and now she’s going after jehovah’s witnesses!

brentan comments on Nov 19, 2018:

I'm an ex-JW so I would love to see these shows. Can I see them online?

Check it out...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

I guess he can breathe and that's enough!

Maya angelou - beacon of strength

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

Kindness is a nice virtue. It seems easier to do than love everybody. I would love to see someone with clout advocate a Global Kindness day.

I love Jim Jefferies [youtu.be]

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

Harsh, and very funny!

Always liked this one by the Beach Boys...Help Me Rhonda. [youtu.be]

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

When I heard this song as a boy, The Beach Boys songs were like they came from a different planet and the name Rhonda was so foreign to me. The world gets smaller little by little and would you know, I ended marrying a woman named Rhonda!

AC/DC - Highway To Hell [youtube.com]

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

Gosh, that song has a lot going for it!

Moral Roots of Liberals and Conservatives; great Ted Talk! a little under 19 minutes long ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

"Good people can disagree" - Jesus in The Walking Dead. Then there's the idea attributed to Hegel that truth is the sum of different opinions. I think the problems arise, not so much theoretically (in the abstract), but in how yin/yang can be applied to real-world problems. I think Jordon Peterson would argue that the right's compulsion towards order is a basic social necessity while the left's propensity towards change should be effected only within the right's hierarchical order.

The thing I like the most about country music is the stories. This one says "Always stay humble ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

It is a wonderful sentimental but not very realistic.

Need changing...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

It's true but what to do with these left of centre and right of centre parties. It's like same shit, different diaper.

Is there anybody out there. [youtube.com]

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

I think I would like it even more if I was completely sure what it is about. I don't just like it. I respect it. My guess is it's about childhood trauma and the effect it has on our adult life. There is another song somewhat like it by Supertramp. It's called Hide In Your Shell and I love it too.

Wanted to highlight a small but excellent youtube channel that not many seem to know about called ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

I guess this bad god is the Jehovah god of the Kabbalah and 'the ultimate good god' is the Ein-Sof.

Chicago. - Hard Habit To Break.....new 80s Symphonic version. Only released a week ago this is ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

They were different. I can't quite put my finger on why. The lead singer has a very pleasant, vulnerable voice. Maybe that's what I like about them.

The Doors - When the Music's Over [youtu.be]

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

Is it very heretical to think The Doors are very over-rated?

razzle-dazzle showiness, brilliance, or virtuosity in technique or effect, often without ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

Nonetheless, I think superficiality has its place. I'm thinking of those wonderful shows like the Ziegfield Follies.

I'm not good in English.I've been worshipping deity Allah.Still 1.5 billion people worship ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

I like the idea of 'live and let live'. I'm familiar with the Western attraction to Christianity but I have no idea what attracts Muslims to Islam in such a big way. BTW, welcome to the forum!

What's the one thing you hated eating as a kid but now love? For me that's celery.

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

Broccoli.

I was being friendly the other day with a young woman on twitter when she called me pops. I ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

Yes, it's not ideal but think of all the worse things we could be called.

Strong Women (And Men) Lift Each Other Up.

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

That's a world of back pain.

“Curiosity, especially intellectual inquisitiveness, is what separates the truly alive from those ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

I didn't read it as a criticism of religious people. I thought it was more akin to Socrates idea that 'the unexamined life is not worth living'.

FINAGLE. - Verb....obtain by dishonest or devious means. Act in a dishonest or devious manner. To ...

brentan comments on Nov 18, 2018:

There but for the grace of God....I mean..

‘God will not bless America’: Texas pastor curses nation after 'Godless' Democrats win midterms...

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

It must be some kind of functional insanity. I just don't get it.

[aish.com] The Women's March Saying No To Anti-Semitism-I Didn't Know This Was an Issue. ...

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

While I'm appalled by the treatment of Palestinians in 'Israel', it seems outrageous that the women's movement would not include the rights of Jewish women in its ranks. But I wonder have I got it wrong? Is the complaint really about criticisms of Jews in Israel and nothing to do with Jews in the women's movement? Sure, Jewish women can be upset that not all women agree with Israeli policy but they can hardly feel that everyone should agree with their politics.

Religious hypocrisy 673

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

... and a helicopter out back.

Kindness...

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

Sometime while I was a Christian, it occurred to me that kindness was more important, or perhaps more pragmatic than love, even though they say God is love and we should try to be like him. This might be true if perhaps principled (agape to Christians) love is akin to kindness by the way it is expressed to other people.

Not surprising that the "alt-right", aka fascists have misappropriated Nietzsche as one of their ...

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

That's an interesting article.There's always someone feeling hard done by and looking for someone to blame.

Teen sings her way through brain surgery, so doctors can preserve her talent

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

Let's hope she stays well.They might have used this technology: A brain positron emission tomography (PET) scan is an imaging test that allows doctors to see how your brain is functioning. The scan captures images of the activity of the brain after radioactive “tracers” have been absorbed into the bloodstream. These tracers are “attached” to compounds like glucose (sugar). Glucose is the principal fuel of the brain.

CONSTELLATE: (verb) to gather together in a cluster or group

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

So that's what all these electronic companies do in California.

Whats the differance in "exotic" and "kinky"?

brentan comments on Nov 17, 2018:

I think kinky has the quality of perverseness attached to it.