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The Bible: a book where the protagonist kills more people and in more brutal, sadistic fashion than ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 29, 2020:
Indeed! The God of that great work of fiction called the Bible is an immorally indiscriminate mass murderer who was a greater threat to humanity than any devil ever was.
p-nullifidian replies on Jul 1, 2020:
@Word "First, generally speaking, discussing the biblical text as if fiction isn't too much of a problem except where facts that are in fact facts would not be deemed as not facts."
This Rumsfeldian beginning was a harbinger of what came next which, try as I might, was beyond my comprehension. Clearly, I am not on your intellectual plane. Peace.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 29, 2020:
Indeed! The God of that great work of fiction called the Bible is an immorally indiscriminate mass murderer who was a greater threat to humanity than any devil ever was.
p-nullifidian replies on Jul 1, 2020:
@Word "First, generally speaking, discussing the biblical text as if fiction isn't too much of a problem except where facts that are in fact facts would not be deemed as not facts."
This Rumsfeldian beginning was a harbinger of what came next which, try as I might, was beyond my comprehension. Clearly, I am not on your intellectual plane. Peace.
The Bible: a book where the protagonist kills more people and in more brutal, sadistic fashion than ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 29, 2020:
Indeed! The God of that great work of fiction called the Bible is an immorally indiscriminate mass murderer who was a greater threat to humanity than any devil ever was.
p-nullifidian replies on Jul 1, 2020:
@Word “Confused, illogical atheist?” I beg your pardon.
Please note that I identify the Bible as a work of fiction, enabling us to discuss the personalities in that book in the same manner as we might argue over the virtues and vices of the characters in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. In the absence of unbiased historical sources, one is left with the conclusion that none of these Biblical protagonists, including a so-called deity, were or are real—all is a fantasy. However, to claim that the Bible does not portray a murderous, petty and immoral God is to bury one's head in the sand and ignore the text, as written.
"Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. So God said to Noah, 'I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.'"
Genesis 6:11-13 (NIV)
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 29, 2020:
Indeed! The God of that great work of fiction called the Bible is an immorally indiscriminate mass murderer who was a greater threat to humanity than any devil ever was.
p-nullifidian replies on Jul 1, 2020:
@Word “Confused, illogical atheist?” I beg your pardon.
Please note that I identify the Bible as a work of fiction, enabling us to discuss the personalities in that book in the same manner as we might argue over the virtues and vices of the characters in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. In the absence of unbiased historical sources, one is left with the conclusion that none of these Biblical protagonists, including a so-called deity, were or are real—all is a fantasy. However, to claim that the Bible does not portray a murderous, petty and immoral God is to bury one's head in the sand and ignore the text, as written.
"Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. So God said to Noah, 'I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.'"
Genesis 6:11-13 (NIV)
You have been blocked
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 27, 2020:
Just wondering, but other than the raw material used, how is the skin color of a statue determined? Many historians assume that the "non-historical" character known as Jesus would have been of olive or brown complexion. How is this feature conveyed in sculpture and statues?
p-nullifidian replies on Jul 1, 2020:
@Rich177 Agreed, but I am approaching this particular topic from a practical point of view. Since statues aren't paintings, there are a wide variety of colors between marble and obsidian. To those who think it matters, how is the color of a subject's skin determined from a bronze statue?
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 27, 2020:
Just wondering, but other than the raw material used, how is the skin color of a statue determined? Many historians assume that the "non-historical" character known as Jesus would have been of olive or brown complexion. How is this feature conveyed in sculpture and statues?
p-nullifidian replies on Jul 1, 2020:
@Rich177 Agreed, but I am approaching this particular topic from a practical point of view. Since statues aren't paintings, there are a wide variety of colors between marble and obsidian. To those who think it matters, how is the color of a subject's skin determined from a bronze statue?
I don't know if all Christians are Karens but it seems all Karens are Christian.
Corvislover comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Hi all. I have had to hide my name Karen since it has become synonymous with something negative in the worl now days. Its sad since I used to like my moniker.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
Unfortunately the 'crowd' has spoken and the name chosen. Perhaps it will just be a fad that is soon past us?
If not, consider this: All Richards may called Dicks, but they aren't necessarily dicks, and there are millions more dicks than there are Richards. Probably doesn't help your situation, but once again, the 'crowd' picks these damn things!
Corvislover comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Hi all. I have had to hide my name Karen since it has become synonymous with something negative in the worl now days. Its sad since I used to like my moniker.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
Unfortunately the 'crowd' has spoken and the name chosen. Perhaps it will just be a fad that is soon past us?
If not, consider this: All Richards may called Dicks, but they aren't necessarily dicks, and there are millions more dicks than there are Richards. Probably doesn't help your situation, but once again, the 'crowd' picks these damn things!
I don't know if all Christians are Karens but it seems all Karens are Christian.
Paul4747 comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Aren't most Karen Buddhist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_people#Religion
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Can't watch that video without the gag reflex kicking in.
Paul4747 comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Aren't most Karen Buddhist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_people#Religion
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Can't watch that video without the gag reflex kicking in.
I don't know if all Christians are Karens but it seems all Karens are Christian.
Paul4747 comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Aren't most Karen Buddhist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_people#Religion
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
@Paul4747 I wasn't trying to accuse you personally of being part of the shaming ... if that was the message I sent, I apologize. My reply was more of a general statement. Peace.
Paul4747 comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Aren't most Karen Buddhist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_people#Religion
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
@Paul4747 I wasn't trying to accuse you personally of being part of the shaming ... if that was the message I sent, I apologize. My reply was more of a general statement. Peace.
I don't know if all Christians are Karens but it seems all Karens are Christian.
Paul4747 comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Aren't most Karen Buddhist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_people#Religion
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
I've known a number Karens, both Christian and Jew, and they were all very nice. I sympathize with @Corvislover that the choice of this particular name for such behavior is an unfortunate one, and so far as my life experience goes, simply does not square. Perhaps a movement should be started to come up with a better name for the behavior, and stop "Karen shaming."
Paul4747 comments on Jun 28, 2020:
Aren't most Karen Buddhist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_people#Religion
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 28, 2020:
I've known a number Karens, both Christian and Jew, and they were all very nice. I sympathize with @Corvislover that the choice of this particular name for such behavior is an unfortunate one, and so far as my life experience goes, simply does not square. Perhaps a movement should be started to come up with a better name for the behavior, and stop "Karen shaming."
Almost all U.S. presidents have been Christians, including Trump | Pew Research Center
FearlessFly comments on Jun 26, 2020:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Founding-Fathers-Deism-and-Christianity-1272214
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@FearlessFly A great story, that few have learned! Through a fate of timing, due in part to Thomas Paine's fever, his door was left open and the chalk mark was later covered when the door was shut! Bravo!
FearlessFly comments on Jun 26, 2020:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Founding-Fathers-Deism-and-Christianity-1272214
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@FearlessFly A great story, that few have learned! Through a fate of timing, due in part to Thomas Paine's fever, his door was left open and the chalk mark was later covered when the door was shut! Bravo!
THERE ARE NOT TWO SIDES TO THE MASK ISSUE IN THE U.
linxminx comments on Jun 25, 2020:
Thank you! This was posted on a friends FB news feed this morning. Although this is not a real organization, nor is this "right" covered under ADA, it is disconcerting. I was at a retirement reception yesterday, and who was not in a mask? The President of our college, who some are saying is in ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@Ohub The term "typos" is, IMO, a generous euphemism for a product of the ignorant and stupid ... in other words, those who Donald Trump welcomes.
linxminx comments on Jun 25, 2020:
Thank you! This was posted on a friends FB news feed this morning. Although this is not a real organization, nor is this "right" covered under ADA, it is disconcerting. I was at a retirement reception yesterday, and who was not in a mask? The President of our college, who some are saying is in ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@Ohub The term "typos" is, IMO, a generous euphemism for a product of the ignorant and stupid ... in other words, those who Donald Trump welcomes.
Almost all U.S. presidents have been Christians, including Trump | Pew Research Center
FearlessFly comments on Jun 26, 2020:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Founding-Fathers-Deism-and-Christianity-1272214
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@Amzungu Few of us recognize the contribution of Thomas Paine, a man who many wished to be erased from history. I rediscovered him through the writings of Robert Green Ingersoll, that great agnostic of the 19th century. One of Ingersoll's speeches on Thomas Paine is read by Michael Earle on his website, Reasonworks. I commend it to you. Peace.
http://reasonworks.com/audio/painetribute.mp3
FearlessFly comments on Jun 26, 2020:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Founding-Fathers-Deism-and-Christianity-1272214
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@Amzungu Few of us recognize the contribution of Thomas Paine, a man who many wished to be erased from history. I rediscovered him through the writings of Robert Green Ingersoll, that great agnostic of the 19th century. One of Ingersoll's speeches on Thomas Paine is read by Michael Earle on his website, Reasonworks. I commend it to you. Peace.
http://reasonworks.com/audio/painetribute.mp3
Almost all U.S. presidents have been Christians, including Trump | Pew Research Center
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 26, 2020:
What chance does an openly secular humanist or nonbeliever have toward attaining the highest office in the land? ZERO!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@LenHazell53 Indeed! In this administration's race to the bottom, there seems to be no depth to which they will not sink.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 26, 2020:
What chance does an openly secular humanist or nonbeliever have toward attaining the highest office in the land? ZERO!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@LenHazell53 Indeed! In this administration's race to the bottom, there seems to be no depth to which they will not sink.
Almost all U.S. presidents have been Christians, including Trump | Pew Research Center
FearlessFly comments on Jun 26, 2020:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Founding-Fathers-Deism-and-Christianity-1272214
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
Indeed! My avatar was among the 'movers and shakers' of philosophy during the late 18th century.
FearlessFly comments on Jun 26, 2020:
https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Founding-Fathers-Deism-and-Christianity-1272214
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
Indeed! My avatar was among the 'movers and shakers' of philosophy during the late 18th century.
Preacher Praises Jesus (Again) for Fixing His Backed-Up Toilet | Hemant Mehta | Friendly Atheist | ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 25, 2020:
He seemed to equate his plumbing issues with demonic possession as he ‘commanded’ the release of his loo. Are we talking toilet exorcism here? Complete and utter madness!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@LenHazell53 If you can provide the 'formal' definition, you should enter this word into a neologisms contest, such as that hosted by The Washington Post each year. It's a winner in my book!
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 25, 2020:
He seemed to equate his plumbing issues with demonic possession as he ‘commanded’ the release of his loo. Are we talking toilet exorcism here? Complete and utter madness!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@LenHazell53 If you can provide the 'formal' definition, you should enter this word into a neologisms contest, such as that hosted by The Washington Post each year. It's a winner in my book!
Do u agree or disagree?
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 22, 2020:
Wholeheartedly disagree. Hypocrites say one thing, and do another--they are liars who can never be trusted.
In his powerful pocket-sized book, *Lying,* Sam Harris makes too much sense. When we lie, Harris says, "we deny others a view of the world as it is. Our dishonesty not only influences the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@Rich177 I see what you mean, now. So, other than breaking the speed limit, what laws do you think are the most 'cherry picked?'
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 22, 2020:
Wholeheartedly disagree. Hypocrites say one thing, and do another--they are liars who can never be trusted.
In his powerful pocket-sized book, *Lying,* Sam Harris makes too much sense. When we lie, Harris says, "we deny others a view of the world as it is. Our dishonesty not only influences the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 26, 2020:
@Rich177 I see what you mean, now. So, other than breaking the speed limit, what laws do you think are the most 'cherry picked?'
Do u agree or disagree?
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 22, 2020:
Wholeheartedly disagree. Hypocrites say one thing, and do another--they are liars who can never be trusted.
In his powerful pocket-sized book, *Lying,* Sam Harris makes too much sense. When we lie, Harris says, "we deny others a view of the world as it is. Our dishonesty not only influences the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 25, 2020:
@Rich177 I must admit that I am unable to follow your arguments.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 22, 2020:
Wholeheartedly disagree. Hypocrites say one thing, and do another--they are liars who can never be trusted.
In his powerful pocket-sized book, *Lying,* Sam Harris makes too much sense. When we lie, Harris says, "we deny others a view of the world as it is. Our dishonesty not only influences the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 25, 2020:
@Rich177 I must admit that I am unable to follow your arguments.
Do u agree or disagree?
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 22, 2020:
Wholeheartedly disagree. Hypocrites say one thing, and do another--they are liars who can never be trusted.
In his powerful pocket-sized book, *Lying,* Sam Harris makes too much sense. When we lie, Harris says, "we deny others a view of the world as it is. Our dishonesty not only influences the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 24, 2020:
@Rich177 Forgiveness is an entirely seperate topic.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 22, 2020:
Wholeheartedly disagree. Hypocrites say one thing, and do another--they are liars who can never be trusted.
In his powerful pocket-sized book, *Lying,* Sam Harris makes too much sense. When we lie, Harris says, "we deny others a view of the world as it is. Our dishonesty not only influences the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 24, 2020:
@Rich177 Forgiveness is an entirely seperate topic.
I’m struggling with the statement people make when they say they are Free Thinkers, Critical ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 21, 2020:
In his book, *Demon-Haunted World, Science as a Candle in the Dark,* Carl Sagan observed:
“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light‐years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 22, 2020:
@Larry-new I’m in complete agreement! Much like Michael Shermer in his critique of Deepak Chopra, I find woo to be without form or substance and completely unsatisfying—I’m not having any either. ;-)
That said, perhaps a new vocabulary is needed? As @Marionville intimated, I equate ‘spiritual’ experiences to ‘emotionally moving’ or ‘awe inspiring’ ones, but even more fulfilling. Something akin to Abraham Maslow’s “Peak Experience.”
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 21, 2020:
In his book, *Demon-Haunted World, Science as a Candle in the Dark,* Carl Sagan observed:
“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light‐years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 22, 2020:
@Larry-new I’m in complete agreement! Much like Michael Shermer in his critique of Deepak Chopra, I find woo to be without form or substance and completely unsatisfying—I’m not having any either. ;-)
That said, perhaps a new vocabulary is needed? As @Marionville intimated, I equate ‘spiritual’ experiences to ‘emotionally moving’ or ‘awe inspiring’ ones, but even more fulfilling. Something akin to Abraham Maslow’s “Peak Experience.”
I’m struggling with the statement people make when they say they are Free Thinkers, Critical ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 21, 2020:
In his book, *Demon-Haunted World, Science as a Candle in the Dark,* Carl Sagan observed:
“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light‐years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 22, 2020:
@Larry-new Sorry to hear that. An old friend and 'fellow horseman' of Hitch's noted:
“Spirituality must be distinguished from religion—because people of every faith, and of none, have had the same sorts of spiritual experiences.”
Sam Harris, "Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion"
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 21, 2020:
In his book, *Demon-Haunted World, Science as a Candle in the Dark,* Carl Sagan observed:
“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light‐years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 22, 2020:
@Larry-new Sorry to hear that. An old friend and 'fellow horseman' of Hitch's noted:
“Spirituality must be distinguished from religion—because people of every faith, and of none, have had the same sorts of spiritual experiences.”
Sam Harris, "Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion"
I’m struggling with the statement people make when they say they are Free Thinkers, Critical ...
whiskywoman comments on Jun 21, 2020:
it might be more woo but WTF do you care live and let live if someone wants to say they are spiritual or green or from mars if they don't try and convert you who the fuck cares
some of you think to fucking much and stress over nothing get over yourselves
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
I resemble that remark. ;-)
whiskywoman comments on Jun 21, 2020:
it might be more woo but WTF do you care live and let live if someone wants to say they are spiritual or green or from mars if they don't try and convert you who the fuck cares
some of you think to fucking much and stress over nothing get over yourselves
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
I resemble that remark. ;-)
Answer to Why don’t atheists have the guts to mock Islam?
48thRonin comments on Jun 21, 2020:
I don’t need to mock Islam because it’s nothing more than the kids who felt left out creating their own club or better yet daddy Abraham didn’t love me so I’ll show him!
Seriously though I believe that the post was meant to satirical but it’s simply sad
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
Yup, ol' father Abraham banished our ancestor, Ishmael and his mother, Hagar, when his first and favorite wife, Sarah, gave birth to Isaac--so we'll show him, indeed! And so the descendants of half-brothers (the Arabs and Jews) have been at odds with one another ever since, as the story goes.
48thRonin comments on Jun 21, 2020:
I don’t need to mock Islam because it’s nothing more than the kids who felt left out creating their own club or better yet daddy Abraham didn’t love me so I’ll show him!
Seriously though I believe that the post was meant to satirical but it’s simply sad
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
Yup, ol' father Abraham banished our ancestor, Ishmael and his mother, Hagar, when his first and favorite wife, Sarah, gave birth to Isaac--so we'll show him, indeed! And so the descendants of half-brothers (the Arabs and Jews) have been at odds with one another ever since, as the story goes.
Answer to Why don’t atheists have the guts to mock Islam?
MoinMughal comments on Jun 21, 2020:
I'm an atheist and I used to be a Muslim.
Islam is crap
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
Personally, I accept your authority on the topic! ;-)
MoinMughal comments on Jun 21, 2020:
I'm an atheist and I used to be a Muslim.
Islam is crap
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
Personally, I accept your authority on the topic! ;-)
Answer to Why don’t atheists have the guts to mock Islam?
Amisja comments on Jun 21, 2020:
Why mock anyone? I wouldn't mock Christians or Jewish people. My life is about my own existence and my beliefs are my own. I would never deliberately set out to hurt anyone
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
The criticism, including satire and mockery, of ideas should not be conflated with doing the same to those who hold the ideas. I was taught to 'hate the sin, not the sinner.' Now, I despise the belief, not the believer.
Amisja comments on Jun 21, 2020:
Why mock anyone? I wouldn't mock Christians or Jewish people. My life is about my own existence and my beliefs are my own. I would never deliberately set out to hurt anyone
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 21, 2020:
The criticism, including satire and mockery, of ideas should not be conflated with doing the same to those who hold the ideas. I was taught to 'hate the sin, not the sinner.' Now, I despise the belief, not the believer.
Which is growing faster atheism or Islam
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 19, 2020:
Muslims by a long shot:
**Sociologist Phil Zuckerman's global studies on atheism have indicated that global atheism may be in decline due to irreligious countries having the lowest birth rates in the world and religious countries having higher birth rates in genera**
...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 20, 2020:
While I am troubled somewhat by the assumption that children "inherit" the religious beliefs of their parents, it does seem that when proselytizing fails and doors are shut in your face, there's nothing like having large families to help take up the slack in expanding a religion's coffers.
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 19, 2020:
Muslims by a long shot:
**Sociologist Phil Zuckerman's global studies on atheism have indicated that global atheism may be in decline due to irreligious countries having the lowest birth rates in the world and religious countries having higher birth rates in genera**
...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 20, 2020:
While I am troubled somewhat by the assumption that children "inherit" the religious beliefs of their parents, it does seem that when proselytizing fails and doors are shut in your face, there's nothing like having large families to help take up the slack in expanding a religion's coffers.
What's the stupidest reason for not wearing a mask that you've heard?
granny comments on Jun 19, 2020:
I heard some people say ,The condensation steams up ones glasses
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@LiterateHiker I put my 'readers' a little lower on my nose, and leave my mask where it is ... problem solved! ;-)
granny comments on Jun 19, 2020:
I heard some people say ,The condensation steams up ones glasses
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@LiterateHiker I put my 'readers' a little lower on my nose, and leave my mask where it is ... problem solved! ;-)
Which is growing faster atheism or Islam
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 19, 2020:
Muslims by a long shot:
**Sociologist Phil Zuckerman's global studies on atheism have indicated that global atheism may be in decline due to irreligious countries having the lowest birth rates in the world and religious countries having higher birth rates in genera**
...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@Jolanta Indeed. If Islamic countries and cultures remain fossilized in time, perhaps the prediction will materialize. But when women and girls are educated and given opportunity on a par with men, a number of fascinating changes generally occur. A rapid decline in birth rate, greater prosperity for individual households, and a less religiously fervent society.
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 19, 2020:
Muslims by a long shot:
**Sociologist Phil Zuckerman's global studies on atheism have indicated that global atheism may be in decline due to irreligious countries having the lowest birth rates in the world and religious countries having higher birth rates in genera**
...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@Jolanta Indeed. If Islamic countries and cultures remain fossilized in time, perhaps the prediction will materialize. But when women and girls are educated and given opportunity on a par with men, a number of fascinating changes generally occur. A rapid decline in birth rate, greater prosperity for individual households, and a less religiously fervent society.
God damn f'n climate-change denying catholics!!!
Amzungu comments on Jun 18, 2020:
I think the latest Pope has made great strides in bringing focus to this area of need.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Backwards indeed! Don't they still accept concepts like satanic possession, stigmata and the ability of their own priests to conduct exorcisms? By what scientific mechanism are such acts ostensibly accomplished?
Amzungu comments on Jun 18, 2020:
I think the latest Pope has made great strides in bringing focus to this area of need.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Backwards indeed! Don't they still accept concepts like satanic possession, stigmata and the ability of their own priests to conduct exorcisms? By what scientific mechanism are such acts ostensibly accomplished?
God damn f'n climate-change denying catholics!!!
oldFloyd comments on Jun 18, 2020:
They have come a long way since WWII. NOW, leave them kids alone!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay We don't need no thought control...
oldFloyd comments on Jun 18, 2020:
They have come a long way since WWII. NOW, leave them kids alone!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 19, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay We don't need no thought control...
I figure this entire site is a bunch of egos butting heads.
powder comments on Jun 15, 2020:
Do love irony
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 16, 2020:
@PondartIncbendog Yes, but you're on a roll today!
powder comments on Jun 15, 2020:
Do love irony
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 16, 2020:
@PondartIncbendog Yes, but you're on a roll today!
I figure this entire site is a bunch of egos butting heads.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 15, 2020:
In this space, I've been taken to task a few times, have reexamined my assumptions, and altered my thinking. Such is possible to those with open minds and open hearts, and the willingness to dig deeper into the bedrock of their core epistemology. It's a shame you haven't seen one person admit they ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 16, 2020:
@Rich177 The ego is a complicated thing ... we need it, yet it can dominate us in ways we may never have envisioned. Thank you for your compliment, but it seems to me that we're all intelligent guys and gals here, looking for comradery, validation and new perspectives. If any of us appear egotistical in our opinions, I hope you will join in 'calling us out!' Peace.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 15, 2020:
In this space, I've been taken to task a few times, have reexamined my assumptions, and altered my thinking. Such is possible to those with open minds and open hearts, and the willingness to dig deeper into the bedrock of their core epistemology. It's a shame you haven't seen one person admit they ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 16, 2020:
@Rich177 The ego is a complicated thing ... we need it, yet it can dominate us in ways we may never have envisioned. Thank you for your compliment, but it seems to me that we're all intelligent guys and gals here, looking for comradery, validation and new perspectives. If any of us appear egotistical in our opinions, I hope you will join in 'calling us out!' Peace.
When will the people smarten up the bible promotes racism,it even has rules on how to deal with your...
LenHazell53 comments on Jun 14, 2020:
When you can persuade people to actually read the damnable thing, which is not easy as it is deliberately made to be as intractable and boring as possible.
Most "Christians" have never read the book, but know a few names and passages parrot fashion that they learned in school and church when they ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 16, 2020:
Exactly! Well put indeed! As one of my favorite authors and philosophical heroes stated,
"All that is necessary, as it seems to me, to convince any reasonable person that the Bible is simply and purely of human invention -- of barbarian invention -- is to read it. Read it as you would any other book; think of it as you would of any other; get the bandage of reverence from your eyes; drive from your heart the phantom of fear; push from the throne of your brain the coiled form of superstition -- then read the Holy Bible, and you will be amazed that you ever, for one moment, supposed a being of infinite wisdom, goodness and purity, to be the author of such ignorance and of such atrocity."
Robert Ingersoll, 'The Gods' 1872
LenHazell53 comments on Jun 14, 2020:
When you can persuade people to actually read the damnable thing, which is not easy as it is deliberately made to be as intractable and boring as possible.
Most "Christians" have never read the book, but know a few names and passages parrot fashion that they learned in school and church when they ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 16, 2020:
Exactly! Well put indeed! As one of my favorite authors and philosophical heroes stated,
"All that is necessary, as it seems to me, to convince any reasonable person that the Bible is simply and purely of human invention -- of barbarian invention -- is to read it. Read it as you would any other book; think of it as you would of any other; get the bandage of reverence from your eyes; drive from your heart the phantom of fear; push from the throne of your brain the coiled form of superstition -- then read the Holy Bible, and you will be amazed that you ever, for one moment, supposed a being of infinite wisdom, goodness and purity, to be the author of such ignorance and of such atrocity."
Robert Ingersoll, 'The Gods' 1872
Is it not wonderful that you can live or die depending on the flag you wave .
Cyklone comments on Jun 15, 2020:
I'm Australian. We haven't upset that many people yet😄
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 15, 2020:
Just the locals, right?
Cyklone comments on Jun 15, 2020:
I'm Australian. We haven't upset that many people yet😄
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 15, 2020:
Just the locals, right?
What Are The Odds?
BitFlipper comments on Jun 14, 2020:
More than half the people in the world think they are smarter than average. That can't be right, but they believe it anyway.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@BitFlipper I don't have a clue as to how IQ is calculated either, as I haven't been tested since I was a lad. There are likely a wide range of IQ tests, which may or may not be filled with cultural bias. I was just making a silly point about how AVERAGES are calculated.
BitFlipper comments on Jun 14, 2020:
More than half the people in the world think they are smarter than average. That can't be right, but they believe it anyway.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@BitFlipper I don't have a clue as to how IQ is calculated either, as I haven't been tested since I was a lad. There are likely a wide range of IQ tests, which may or may not be filled with cultural bias. I was just making a silly point about how AVERAGES are calculated.
“I cannot say with absolute certainty that my wife is not a professional assassin hired by the ...
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 14, 2020:
There is a sliver of validity to that argument insofar as without evidence promoting a course of action one should not worry about that course of action.
However, the set up is all wrong. We know china, assasisn, and wives exist independent of each other. We also know (or at least it's not ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@WilliamFleming I'm afraid you're putting words into my mouth, or thoughts into my brain. I too am full of questions, am unsatisfied with the status quo, and am awed by the incredible expanse, complexity and diversity of the universe, a small fraction of which we have begun to comprehend.
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 14, 2020:
There is a sliver of validity to that argument insofar as without evidence promoting a course of action one should not worry about that course of action.
However, the set up is all wrong. We know china, assasisn, and wives exist independent of each other. We also know (or at least it's not ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@WilliamFleming I'm afraid you're putting words into my mouth, or thoughts into my brain. I too am full of questions, am unsatisfied with the status quo, and am awed by the incredible expanse, complexity and diversity of the universe, a small fraction of which we have begun to comprehend.
“I cannot say with absolute certainty that my wife is not a professional assassin hired by the ...
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 14, 2020:
There is a sliver of validity to that argument insofar as without evidence promoting a course of action one should not worry about that course of action.
However, the set up is all wrong. We know china, assasisn, and wives exist independent of each other. We also know (or at least it's not ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@WilliamFleming I am as baffled and bewildered as you, sir. I just have problems with the argument from design as it only leads us to ask, who or what designed the designer?
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 14, 2020:
There is a sliver of validity to that argument insofar as without evidence promoting a course of action one should not worry about that course of action.
However, the set up is all wrong. We know china, assasisn, and wives exist independent of each other. We also know (or at least it's not ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@WilliamFleming I am as baffled and bewildered as you, sir. I just have problems with the argument from design as it only leads us to ask, who or what designed the designer?
What Are The Odds?
BitFlipper comments on Jun 14, 2020:
More than half the people in the world think they are smarter than average. That can't be right, but they believe it anyway.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
They may be right. If the average IQ is 100, it is theoretically possible for more people to be above that number than below it, depending on the depth to which below-average IQ is calculated. Clearly, there's a difference between the average and the mean.
BitFlipper comments on Jun 14, 2020:
More than half the people in the world think they are smarter than average. That can't be right, but they believe it anyway.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
They may be right. If the average IQ is 100, it is theoretically possible for more people to be above that number than below it, depending on the depth to which below-average IQ is calculated. Clearly, there's a difference between the average and the mean.
“I cannot say with absolute certainty that my wife is not a professional assassin hired by the ...
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 14, 2020:
There is a sliver of validity to that argument insofar as without evidence promoting a course of action one should not worry about that course of action.
However, the set up is all wrong. We know china, assasisn, and wives exist independent of each other. We also know (or at least it's not ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@WilliamFleming Wait, are you making an argument from design?
TheMiddleWay comments on Jun 14, 2020:
There is a sliver of validity to that argument insofar as without evidence promoting a course of action one should not worry about that course of action.
However, the set up is all wrong. We know china, assasisn, and wives exist independent of each other. We also know (or at least it's not ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@WilliamFleming Wait, are you making an argument from design?
“I cannot say with absolute certainty that my wife is not a professional assassin hired by the ...
Fred_Snerd comments on Jun 14, 2020:
I forget this site has an anti-religion bent. I'm in full anti-fascism mode.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@Gareth Ah, but was it really a stick, or a snake?
Fred_Snerd comments on Jun 14, 2020:
I forget this site has an anti-religion bent. I'm in full anti-fascism mode.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@Gareth Ah, but was it really a stick, or a snake?
Texas Anti-Abortion Group Sued for Defamation for Calling Opponents “Criminals” | Hemant Mehta |...
Jolanta comments on Jun 14, 2020:
I have been wondering how come so many of these anti abortion people are men, not that there aren't women too, but it seems like it comes from mainly men.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
Indeed. In my opinion, men should have no say or any agency in the argument over a woman's right to choose. Perhaps men might understand this concept better if they could envision a day when women were the dominant voice in politics and debating State imposed castration or vasectomies.
Jolanta comments on Jun 14, 2020:
I have been wondering how come so many of these anti abortion people are men, not that there aren't women too, but it seems like it comes from mainly men.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
Indeed. In my opinion, men should have no say or any agency in the argument over a woman's right to choose. Perhaps men might understand this concept better if they could envision a day when women were the dominant voice in politics and debating State imposed castration or vasectomies.
Texas Anti-Abortion Group Sued for Defamation for Calling Opponents “Criminals” | Hemant Mehta |...
Fred_Snerd comments on Jun 14, 2020:
The US needs more unwanted children for the workforce and military.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
Don't forget the prison systems.
Fred_Snerd comments on Jun 14, 2020:
The US needs more unwanted children for the workforce and military.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
Don't forget the prison systems.
For those who are upset at statues and war memorials being desecrated.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 12, 2020:
Historic and cultural is a matter of opinion. Don't we all realize that Jim Crow era whites, during the late 19th to early 20th centuries, erected statues of so-called 'heroic' rebels who fought to sustain slavery, and that these cities and towns did this in order to make a statement--a very racist ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@powder I don't see the destruction of 'cult images' as erasing history. We have visual records, which are now digitized for all to see and learn. And as we agreed, a few samples may be preserved for public museums. But we as a species have an unfortunate predilection for idolatry--whether it's a statue of Zeus, the Virgin Mary or Robert E. Lee, the image becomes idealized, venerated, exalted and eventually worshipped. The same may be said for Mount Rushmore and the Lincoln Memorial, by the way.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 12, 2020:
Historic and cultural is a matter of opinion. Don't we all realize that Jim Crow era whites, during the late 19th to early 20th centuries, erected statues of so-called 'heroic' rebels who fought to sustain slavery, and that these cities and towns did this in order to make a statement--a very racist ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@powder I don't see the destruction of 'cult images' as erasing history. We have visual records, which are now digitized for all to see and learn. And as we agreed, a few samples may be preserved for public museums. But we as a species have an unfortunate predilection for idolatry--whether it's a statue of Zeus, the Virgin Mary or Robert E. Lee, the image becomes idealized, venerated, exalted and eventually worshipped. The same may be said for Mount Rushmore and the Lincoln Memorial, by the way.
I've heard a lot over the years about how religious moderates aren't hurting anyone and that they ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 12, 2020:
That moderates can create a safe space or provide top cover to the more extreme among them is a well-understood problem. But I am more concerned that these moderates are hypocrites. They’re what we might call, MINOs—moderates in name only.
A true moderate would insist that the scriptures ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Fair enough. Leave the 'original' (to the extent that such a thing even exists), but add commentary that identifies passages that are inconsistent with other passages, or are in error (historically or scientifically), or are simply immoral.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 12, 2020:
That moderates can create a safe space or provide top cover to the more extreme among them is a well-understood problem. But I am more concerned that these moderates are hypocrites. They’re what we might call, MINOs—moderates in name only.
A true moderate would insist that the scriptures ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Fair enough. Leave the 'original' (to the extent that such a thing even exists), but add commentary that identifies passages that are inconsistent with other passages, or are in error (historically or scientifically), or are simply immoral.
For those who are upset at statues and war memorials being desecrated.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 12, 2020:
Historic and cultural is a matter of opinion. Don't we all realize that Jim Crow era whites, during the late 19th to early 20th centuries, erected statues of so-called 'heroic' rebels who fought to sustain slavery, and that these cities and towns did this in order to make a statement--a very racist ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@powder I agree that they belong in a museum, but these statues are less art than they are propaganda, in my opinion, and do not compare with the ancient cliff Buddhas destroyed by the Taliban. My artistic heart is not wounded when statues of the despicable topple, whether it be Vladimir Lenin, Saddam Hussein or Edward Colston. Would we call this bust of Hitler (many thousands were made) art? Were it up to me, they would all have been melted down.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 12, 2020:
Historic and cultural is a matter of opinion. Don't we all realize that Jim Crow era whites, during the late 19th to early 20th centuries, erected statues of so-called 'heroic' rebels who fought to sustain slavery, and that these cities and towns did this in order to make a statement--a very racist ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 14, 2020:
@powder I agree that they belong in a museum, but these statues are less art than they are propaganda, in my opinion, and do not compare with the ancient cliff Buddhas destroyed by the Taliban. My artistic heart is not wounded when statues of the despicable topple, whether it be Vladimir Lenin, Saddam Hussein or Edward Colston. Would we call this bust of Hitler (many thousands were made) art? Were it up to me, they would all have been melted down.
Is human morality (ethics) hard wired or is it a learned behaviour? Or an a adaption of both?
AnneWimsey comments on Jun 10, 2020:
Studies with very young children (toddlers) show definite tendencies to help/assist others!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 11, 2020:
I found those studies with toddlers (and even infants) using puppetry to monitor emotional responses fascinating! It seems clear that, unless one is destined to become a sociopath, we are hardwired for empathy and a sense of fairness, or reciprocity.
AnneWimsey comments on Jun 10, 2020:
Studies with very young children (toddlers) show definite tendencies to help/assist others!
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 11, 2020:
I found those studies with toddlers (and even infants) using puppetry to monitor emotional responses fascinating! It seems clear that, unless one is destined to become a sociopath, we are hardwired for empathy and a sense of fairness, or reciprocity.
Planet’s view from above just got clearer
[qz.com]
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 11, 2020:
Impressive. Looks to be a good NIIRS 6.0.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 11, 2020:
@FearlessFly I was once an imagery analyst, or as we once were called, photo interpreter. ;-) Thanks for the info!
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 11, 2020:
Impressive. Looks to be a good NIIRS 6.0.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 11, 2020:
@FearlessFly I was once an imagery analyst, or as we once were called, photo interpreter. ;-) Thanks for the info!
Is human morality (ethics) hard wired or is it a learned behaviour? Or an a adaption of both?
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 10, 2020:
In my opinion, the foundations of morality are evident in other species, particularly our closest relatives. And just what are the foundations of morality? I have come to believe that there are only two pillars (or core thinking processes) upon which ALL morality is based: 1) Empathy; and 2) ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
@Scott321 With respect, it seems you're making this discussion more complex than it need be. As numerous studies using puppets with infants and toddlers have revealed, we are hardwired for these foundational ethics of empathy and reciprocity, or fairness. If babies who have yet to utter their first words are able to recognize and emote over morality plays with puppets, this capacity is innate.
Interestingly, there were a small number of babies who did not seem to react with the same care or compassion as their peers toward the puppet who was mistreated or behaved affectionately. Perhaps these babies are future sociopaths and narcissists?
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 10, 2020:
In my opinion, the foundations of morality are evident in other species, particularly our closest relatives. And just what are the foundations of morality? I have come to believe that there are only two pillars (or core thinking processes) upon which ALL morality is based: 1) Empathy; and 2) ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
@Scott321 With respect, it seems you're making this discussion more complex than it need be. As numerous studies using puppets with infants and toddlers have revealed, we are hardwired for these foundational ethics of empathy and reciprocity, or fairness. If babies who have yet to utter their first words are able to recognize and emote over morality plays with puppets, this capacity is innate.
Interestingly, there were a small number of babies who did not seem to react with the same care or compassion as their peers toward the puppet who was mistreated or behaved affectionately. Perhaps these babies are future sociopaths and narcissists?
Robin DiAngelo on "White Fragility" | Amanpour and Company - YouTube
Athena comments on Jun 7, 2020:
We are all ignorant to some things and unaware in some ways.
If the world is going to heal from the areas of disaster we've created due to our ignorance, we need to freely admit we didn't know or don't know and allow all conversations that will make us better.
If it's uncomfortable, ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Agreed! One thing we should all remember: those who, through centuries of domination and who controlled the narrative, should no longer have a platform here. Let's listen to the minority for a change and their history of systemic oppression, before we play our self-righteous "I'm not a racist!" white trump card.
If we look in the mirror and ask ourselves this one question, "Have I benefited in any way from the color of my skin?" and can honestly and earnestly nod our heads, that is the first step.
Athena comments on Jun 7, 2020:
We are all ignorant to some things and unaware in some ways.
If the world is going to heal from the areas of disaster we've created due to our ignorance, we need to freely admit we didn't know or don't know and allow all conversations that will make us better.
If it's uncomfortable, ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Agreed! One thing we should all remember: those who, through centuries of domination and who controlled the narrative, should no longer have a platform here. Let's listen to the minority for a change and their history of systemic oppression, before we play our self-righteous "I'm not a racist!" white trump card.
If we look in the mirror and ask ourselves this one question, "Have I benefited in any way from the color of my skin?" and can honestly and earnestly nod our heads, that is the first step.
Robin DiAngelo on "White Fragility" | Amanpour and Company - YouTube
WilliamFleming comments on Jun 7, 2020:
It’s easy to see which White people are racists. They are the ones going around, angrily accusing other White people of being racists.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Interesting point, however I sense no anger here, just a perspective.
WilliamFleming comments on Jun 7, 2020:
It’s easy to see which White people are racists. They are the ones going around, angrily accusing other White people of being racists.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Interesting point, however I sense no anger here, just a perspective.
This is still happening today folks
Hindu priest, 70, beheads man in Indian temple as a human ...
Charlene comments on Jun 9, 2020:
What The Actual Fuck..😳😲😳😲😳
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Sadly, this is fake news.
Charlene comments on Jun 9, 2020:
What The Actual Fuck..😳😲😳😲😳
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Sadly, this is fake news.
This is still happening today folks
Hindu priest, 70, beheads man in Indian temple as a human ...
dermot235 comments on Jun 9, 2020:
Human sacrifice can be found everywhere in most religions. The Jesus Christ fairytale was the human sacrifice of the son of God. Then we have a cannibal sacrament to remember him by. Now over 2 Billion people use this shit to believe in it as a message from God. We should not be surprised when every...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Nothing to see here, move along, move along...
dermot235 comments on Jun 9, 2020:
Human sacrifice can be found everywhere in most religions. The Jesus Christ fairytale was the human sacrifice of the son of God. Then we have a cannibal sacrament to remember him by. Now over 2 Billion people use this shit to believe in it as a message from God. We should not be surprised when every...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
Nothing to see here, move along, move along...
Helpful in understanding the mindset of conservatives.
[youtube.com]
FearlessFly comments on Jun 9, 2020:
A good talk. I have read "The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion" -- a very good read.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
It is a good book, however nobody should infer that because Conservatives appear to have 3 additional moral values over Liberals that they (Conservatives) are somehow more complex or nuanced in their morality.
FearlessFly comments on Jun 9, 2020:
A good talk. I have read "The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion" -- a very good read.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 10, 2020:
It is a good book, however nobody should infer that because Conservatives appear to have 3 additional moral values over Liberals that they (Conservatives) are somehow more complex or nuanced in their morality.
Consider this: people have used religion to justify and advance their agendas since the earliest ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 8, 2020:
"What can we conclude from these facts on the influence of God throughout history?"
Clearly NOTHING! One might as well ask the rhetorical question, "What can we conclude from the facts on the influence of garden fairies throughout history?"
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 9, 2020:
@Sgt_Spanky I agree, the concept of God is highly influential. People are willing to kill and die for ideas. My point is that non-existent things cannot, from a purely scientific point of view, influence anything.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 8, 2020:
"What can we conclude from these facts on the influence of God throughout history?"
Clearly NOTHING! One might as well ask the rhetorical question, "What can we conclude from the facts on the influence of garden fairies throughout history?"
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 9, 2020:
@Sgt_Spanky I agree, the concept of God is highly influential. People are willing to kill and die for ideas. My point is that non-existent things cannot, from a purely scientific point of view, influence anything.
Consider this: people have used religion to justify and advance their agendas since the earliest ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 8, 2020:
"What can we conclude from these facts on the influence of God throughout history?"
Clearly NOTHING! One might as well ask the rhetorical question, "What can we conclude from the facts on the influence of garden fairies throughout history?"
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
@Sgt_Spanky The bottom line is, a non-exsitant being has no influence on anything. Any influence is in the eye of the humans who either created or bought into the fabrication.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 8, 2020:
"What can we conclude from these facts on the influence of God throughout history?"
Clearly NOTHING! One might as well ask the rhetorical question, "What can we conclude from the facts on the influence of garden fairies throughout history?"
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
@Sgt_Spanky The bottom line is, a non-exsitant being has no influence on anything. Any influence is in the eye of the humans who either created or bought into the fabrication.
Consider this: people have used religion to justify and advance their agendas since the earliest ...
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 8, 2020:
"What can we conclude from these facts on the influence of God throughout history?"
Clearly NOTHING! One might as well ask the rhetorical question, "What can we conclude from the facts on the influence of garden fairies throughout history?"
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
@Sgt_Spanky Indeed! Let's trade one imaginary, non-existant entity for another! I'm with you!
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 8, 2020:
"What can we conclude from these facts on the influence of God throughout history?"
Clearly NOTHING! One might as well ask the rhetorical question, "What can we conclude from the facts on the influence of garden fairies throughout history?"
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
@Sgt_Spanky Indeed! Let's trade one imaginary, non-existant entity for another! I'm with you!
POC Atheists - What were your experiences leaving religion?
MusicManDre comments on Jun 7, 2020:
For me, it was pretty rough on a mental and emotional level. It's something I don't know if I'll ever really be able to fully recover from. I've shared the gist of my story a few times on here, but I guess I can share again. Probably more of an abbreviated version though...lol
Well, I was raised...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
Within your exceptional post, this one statement caught my eye and moved me: "My self honesty moment was the most humbling thing I've ever had to experience in life"
I fully agree! When I finally admitted to myself that I could be wrong, a cascade of 'what if's' flooded my psyche. It took me a very long time to realize that nobody has all the answers. If only there were more people of substance such as you! Peace!
MusicManDre comments on Jun 7, 2020:
For me, it was pretty rough on a mental and emotional level. It's something I don't know if I'll ever really be able to fully recover from. I've shared the gist of my story a few times on here, but I guess I can share again. Probably more of an abbreviated version though...lol
Well, I was raised...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
Within your exceptional post, this one statement caught my eye and moved me: "My self honesty moment was the most humbling thing I've ever had to experience in life"
I fully agree! When I finally admitted to myself that I could be wrong, a cascade of 'what if's' flooded my psyche. It took me a very long time to realize that nobody has all the answers. If only there were more people of substance such as you! Peace!
Consider this: people have used religion to justify and advance their agendas since the earliest ...
indirect76 comments on Jun 8, 2020:
Athiesm has been pretty much bloodless? I beg to differ.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
Here we go again! In the name of 'anti-philatelism' the non-stamp collector is guilty of crimes against those who choose to collect stamps? Atheism, as a conceptual point of view, is incapable of being saddled with, or assigned blame for, any criminal behavior.
indirect76 comments on Jun 8, 2020:
Athiesm has been pretty much bloodless? I beg to differ.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 8, 2020:
Here we go again! In the name of 'anti-philatelism' the non-stamp collector is guilty of crimes against those who choose to collect stamps? Atheism, as a conceptual point of view, is incapable of being saddled with, or assigned blame for, any criminal behavior.
BREAKING NEWS! Officer Aaron Torgalski Buffalo PD pushes elderly protester causing injury.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 5, 2020:
So what ever happened the the slogan, 'to serve and protect?' How is it that all these officers could ignore the poor old man, bleeding from his head? Why couldn't one (just one, please) officer immediately render aid to the injured man who was a victim of police violence?
The training, ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 5, 2020:
@Triphid A uniform doesn't inherently alter behavior. I served in uniform as a member of the armed forces, and I know a good number of firemen who remain 'themselves' (true to their character) while wearing the uniform. There's nothing inherently different from the uniform of a police officer and that of an airline pilot. It's all about training, expecations, accountability and integrity.
Policemen once walked the streets armed only with a baton and a whistle. I believe that something sinister has infected the training, behavior and attitudes of numerous police forces. I have a number of close friends who serve, or have served as police officers, including San Franciso and surrounding areas, and I consider them good and decent people. They have expressed feelings of disgust and anguish at the behavior by bad cops.
p-nullifidian comments on Jun 5, 2020:
So what ever happened the the slogan, 'to serve and protect?' How is it that all these officers could ignore the poor old man, bleeding from his head? Why couldn't one (just one, please) officer immediately render aid to the injured man who was a victim of police violence?
The training, ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 5, 2020:
@Triphid A uniform doesn't inherently alter behavior. I served in uniform as a member of the armed forces, and I know a good number of firemen who remain 'themselves' (true to their character) while wearing the uniform. There's nothing inherently different from the uniform of a police officer and that of an airline pilot. It's all about training, expecations, accountability and integrity.
Policemen once walked the streets armed only with a baton and a whistle. I believe that something sinister has infected the training, behavior and attitudes of numerous police forces. I have a number of close friends who serve, or have served as police officers, including San Franciso and surrounding areas, and I consider them good and decent people. They have expressed feelings of disgust and anguish at the behavior by bad cops.
Dave Grossman has been America's preeminent police trainer for about a decade.
Cyklone comments on Jun 4, 2020:
Dave Grossman was a damned good soldier and a very knowledgeable one. Soldiers are trained for combat. They're trained to kill, not preserve life, that's their job and the main diff between the two and the reason soldiers should never be used on your own civilian population. If your police are ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 5, 2020:
Soldiers are trained to recognize threats and distinguish between the combatant and the noncombatant. We have laws and conventions that restrain conduct in war. Good soldiers do not behave like Lt. Calley at My Lai.
But the police are not dealing with foreign combatants. They have an even higher standard, as they are interacting with their own citizens and neighbors. The rules of engagement are, or should be, much more stringent than soldiers in a war zone. Cops who draw their weapons or raise their batons on the unarmed are violating even a soldier's code. They are cowards who have discarded honorable action in favor of a darker, more sinister ethos. In some respects, law enforcment seems to have devolved into a previous, more violent time, where it was 'safer' to 'shoot first, and ask questions later.' This must end!
Cyklone comments on Jun 4, 2020:
Dave Grossman was a damned good soldier and a very knowledgeable one. Soldiers are trained for combat. They're trained to kill, not preserve life, that's their job and the main diff between the two and the reason soldiers should never be used on your own civilian population. If your police are ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 5, 2020:
Soldiers are trained to recognize threats and distinguish between the combatant and the noncombatant. We have laws and conventions that restrain conduct in war. Good soldiers do not behave like Lt. Calley at My Lai.
But the police are not dealing with foreign combatants. They have an even higher standard, as they are interacting with their own citizens and neighbors. The rules of engagement are, or should be, much more stringent than soldiers in a war zone. Cops who draw their weapons or raise their batons on the unarmed are violating even a soldier's code. They are cowards who have discarded honorable action in favor of a darker, more sinister ethos. In some respects, law enforcment seems to have devolved into a previous, more violent time, where it was 'safer' to 'shoot first, and ask questions later.' This must end!
Researchers report that more than two-thirds of self-identified atheists shed that label after their...
Cyklone comments on Jun 4, 2020:
So after people take a radically mind altering substance their minds are changed. What a huge f'ing surprise.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 5, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Sam Harris described his feelings of an incredible sense of caring and love for his friend, and other mind-altering experiences while on psylosiban. If a psychodellic trip changes one's perspective or even their worldview, so be it. But this only makes one want to dig deeper into the mechanism or causes and effects taking place in the brain.
One thing seems obvious, mind-altering drugs don't appear to impart a particular doctrine, religion or theology. So far as we know, there isn't a Christian pill, or a Muslim pill, or a Hindu pill, or even an atheist pill.
Cyklone comments on Jun 4, 2020:
So after people take a radically mind altering substance their minds are changed. What a huge f'ing surprise.
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 5, 2020:
@TheMiddleWay Sam Harris described his feelings of an incredible sense of caring and love for his friend, and other mind-altering experiences while on psylosiban. If a psychodellic trip changes one's perspective or even their worldview, so be it. But this only makes one want to dig deeper into the mechanism or causes and effects taking place in the brain.
One thing seems obvious, mind-altering drugs don't appear to impart a particular doctrine, religion or theology. So far as we know, there isn't a Christian pill, or a Muslim pill, or a Hindu pill, or even an atheist pill.
Prompted by calls to 'give grace' to cop who killed George Floyd, black activists question the rush ...
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 3, 2020:
@IAJO163 Calling the cops, it seems to me, is a major issue. The central dispatcher has a role to play. Do dispatchers pass the call on to the cops without qualifying the caller, or do they engage with them to determine the veracity of the call? In other words, are dispatchers trained to perceive bias? Or are the cops just sent to roll-in on somebody who passes a bad 20, or is barbecueing while black, or swimming while black, or whatever? If a white woman of privilege in Central Park can weaponize the adjective "African American" over her damn dog, anybody can. And the dispatchers who send the cops can happily wash their hands of what happens next.
If I were to pull a fire alarm at a school or any public place, the alarms would sound and the fire department would show up quickly, but they wouldn't come in with guns drawn. Yet, some idiot or racist or whatever can call 911 and convince a police dispatcher to believe there is a life threatening (racially based) emergency. And when the police roll-in, they don't come 'armed' with water hoses.
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 3, 2020:
@IAJO163 Calling the cops, it seems to me, is a major issue. The central dispatcher has a role to play. Do dispatchers pass the call on to the cops without qualifying the caller, or do they engage with them to determine the veracity of the call? In other words, are dispatchers trained to perceive bias? Or are the cops just sent to roll-in on somebody who passes a bad 20, or is barbecueing while black, or swimming while black, or whatever? If a white woman of privilege in Central Park can weaponize the adjective "African American" over her damn dog, anybody can. And the dispatchers who send the cops can happily wash their hands of what happens next.
If I were to pull a fire alarm at a school or any public place, the alarms would sound and the fire department would show up quickly, but they wouldn't come in with guns drawn. Yet, some idiot or racist or whatever can call 911 and convince a police dispatcher to believe there is a life threatening (racially based) emergency. And when the police roll-in, they don't come 'armed' with water hoses.
From Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy ([rep.
Triphid comments on May 31, 2020:
Bloody Hell, not another debate over Atheists versus Agnostics.
Hasn't this poor old Dead Horse been whipped enough already?
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 3, 2020:
@BD66 I remember a time when I was between two worlds, groping for answers. Thus, many of the arguments we 'old timers' have engaged in are new to many others. I recommend patience with those who are unaware of the prior interactions we have had, and who put themselves out there with an argument that may be 'old' to us but is 'fresh' to them.
Triphid comments on May 31, 2020:
Bloody Hell, not another debate over Atheists versus Agnostics.
Hasn't this poor old Dead Horse been whipped enough already?
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 3, 2020:
@BD66 I remember a time when I was between two worlds, groping for answers. Thus, many of the arguments we 'old timers' have engaged in are new to many others. I recommend patience with those who are unaware of the prior interactions we have had, and who put themselves out there with an argument that may be 'old' to us but is 'fresh' to them.
From Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy ([rep.
Triphid comments on May 31, 2020:
Bloody Hell, not another debate over Atheists versus Agnostics.
Hasn't this poor old Dead Horse been whipped enough already?
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 1, 2020:
@BD66 Perhaps this Agnostic.com system of levels will engender a self-correction? Does a level 4 self correct in order to achieve a level 7, for example? Or, is the entire 'game afoot' involving the aspiration to higher levels / numbers?
Answer me this: Should 'newbies' be embraced immediately for their 'fresh' ideas and 'unconventional' thinking? Or, should they be forced to undergo a pedantic and oppressive point system that was created by those who control and oversee Agnostic.com?
Triphid comments on May 31, 2020:
Bloody Hell, not another debate over Atheists versus Agnostics.
Hasn't this poor old Dead Horse been whipped enough already?
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 1, 2020:
@BD66 Perhaps this Agnostic.com system of levels will engender a self-correction? Does a level 4 self correct in order to achieve a level 7, for example? Or, is the entire 'game afoot' involving the aspiration to higher levels / numbers?
Answer me this: Should 'newbies' be embraced immediately for their 'fresh' ideas and 'unconventional' thinking? Or, should they be forced to undergo a pedantic and oppressive point system that was created by those who control and oversee Agnostic.com?
Prompted by calls to 'give grace' to cop who killed George Floyd, black activists question the rush ...
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 1, 2020:
@IAJO163 Unfortunately, too many in the 'majority' may be CINOs, and view their church as their 'in-group.' What does their congregation stand for? What do they accept? And what do they condemn?
Many view Jesus as their battlefield general. They seem happy on Sunday morning marching in step as they loudly sing Luther's battle hymn, "Onward Christian Soldiers!" The contrasting image of a 'gentle Jesus meek and mild' belongs, in the eyes of many, with bleeding heart liberalism.
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on Jun 1, 2020:
@IAJO163 Unfortunately, too many in the 'majority' may be CINOs, and view their church as their 'in-group.' What does their congregation stand for? What do they accept? And what do they condemn?
Many view Jesus as their battlefield general. They seem happy on Sunday morning marching in step as they loudly sing Luther's battle hymn, "Onward Christian Soldiers!" The contrasting image of a 'gentle Jesus meek and mild' belongs, in the eyes of many, with bleeding heart liberalism.
Actually, natural is neutral | Nature Human Behaviour
WilliamFleming comments on May 31, 2020:
I agree wholeheartedly with the article. Actually everything in the universe is natural. The sister of “natural” is “organic”. If someone tries to sell me a food by saying that it is organic, I reply that I am allergic to organic and eat only inorganic foods.
There is one exception that I...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
Hear, Hear! Whether it be smooth or crunchy, the only peanut butter worth consuming is the kind that must first be stirred!
WilliamFleming comments on May 31, 2020:
I agree wholeheartedly with the article. Actually everything in the universe is natural. The sister of “natural” is “organic”. If someone tries to sell me a food by saying that it is organic, I reply that I am allergic to organic and eat only inorganic foods.
There is one exception that I...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
Hear, Hear! Whether it be smooth or crunchy, the only peanut butter worth consuming is the kind that must first be stirred!
From Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy ([rep.
Triphid comments on May 31, 2020:
Bloody Hell, not another debate over Atheists versus Agnostics.
Hasn't this poor old Dead Horse been whipped enough already?
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
Bloody hell indeed! It's almost become an article of faith, for some!
Triphid comments on May 31, 2020:
Bloody Hell, not another debate over Atheists versus Agnostics.
Hasn't this poor old Dead Horse been whipped enough already?
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
Bloody hell indeed! It's almost become an article of faith, for some!
Prompted by calls to 'give grace' to cop who killed George Floyd, black activists question the rush ...
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
@IAJO163 Indeed, what would Jesus do? One thing's for sure, Jesus wasn't a blue-eyed aryan! I would prefer we ask what would Ghandi or MLK do? Better to have more contemporary examples, than one who is largely fictional, don't you think?
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
@IAJO163 Indeed, what would Jesus do? One thing's for sure, Jesus wasn't a blue-eyed aryan! I would prefer we ask what would Ghandi or MLK do? Better to have more contemporary examples, than one who is largely fictional, don't you think?
Do we have free will?
p-nullifidian comments on May 31, 2020:
I was taught that God is omniscient--that the future is as known to him as the past, down to the minutest detail. If that were true, God's knowledge of my future makes it fact, from the big things--like no longer believing in him, down to what color of socks I would wear next Tuesday. I began to ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
@Rodatheist In the first case, we may 'think' we are making choices, but in a universe governed by an omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent god, our choices are scripted. It 'feels' like free will, but God's knowledge of what we 'did' in the future, means it has already been determined. We are 'predestined' to choose the path that has been preordained by God himself. No free will, just the illusion of it.
In the second case, the choice to take another life, with or without remorse, was prescribed by our genetics and our environment, determinants that we had no control over. The results of this choice are immaterial to the determinant causes that produced the effect.
As I indicated, I reject both premises, and choose the blue pill.
p-nullifidian comments on May 31, 2020:
I was taught that God is omniscient--that the future is as known to him as the past, down to the minutest detail. If that were true, God's knowledge of my future makes it fact, from the big things--like no longer believing in him, down to what color of socks I would wear next Tuesday. I began to ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
@Rodatheist In the first case, we may 'think' we are making choices, but in a universe governed by an omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent god, our choices are scripted. It 'feels' like free will, but God's knowledge of what we 'did' in the future, means it has already been determined. We are 'predestined' to choose the path that has been preordained by God himself. No free will, just the illusion of it.
In the second case, the choice to take another life, with or without remorse, was prescribed by our genetics and our environment, determinants that we had no control over. The results of this choice are immaterial to the determinant causes that produced the effect.
As I indicated, I reject both premises, and choose the blue pill.
Actually, natural is neutral | Nature Human Behaviour
Rodatheist comments on May 31, 2020:
I agree. This means also that there is no such thing as good or evil.
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
Agreed. The terms 'good' and 'evil' are social constructs, based on values. However, it seems to me that we as a society may be able to make determinations as to what outcomes constitute a 'better' or 'worse' condition for the greatest number of members.
Rodatheist comments on May 31, 2020:
I agree. This means also that there is no such thing as good or evil.
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
Agreed. The terms 'good' and 'evil' are social constructs, based on values. However, it seems to me that we as a society may be able to make determinations as to what outcomes constitute a 'better' or 'worse' condition for the greatest number of members.
Do we have free will?
Mofo1953 comments on May 31, 2020:
we have free willy, and if you don't believe me, here is my willy for you, it's free
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
A whale of an offer...
Mofo1953 comments on May 31, 2020:
we have free willy, and if you don't believe me, here is my willy for you, it's free
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
A whale of an offer...
Prompted by calls to 'give grace' to cop who killed George Floyd, black activists question the rush ...
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
@Alchemy No good cops? I agree with @brentan that this is an extreme position. One might as well say there are no good soldiers, sailors and airmen, or that there are no good firefighters, or that there are no good people, period! Relatives and friends of mine have served as peace officers, and they are good people, so far as I am in a position to judge, and they see nothing heroic or defensible in the killing of George Floyd.
I agree with you that there is a much deeper problem here--even said so in my post--but criminal behavior, whether by civilians or police, is, by definition, conducted at the level of the individual, and justice may only be meted out by the legal system to one perpetrator at a time.
p-nullifidian comments on May 30, 2020:
If there is to be any justice for George Floyd and his survivors, the rogue cop must be tried, and his fellow cops prosecuted as accessories to the crime.
But beyond this case, more has to be done to police the police. Better citizen oversight of all aspects of policing including training, the ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 31, 2020:
@Alchemy No good cops? I agree with @brentan that this is an extreme position. One might as well say there are no good soldiers, sailors and airmen, or that there are no good firefighters, or that there are no good people, period! Relatives and friends of mine have served as peace officers, and they are good people, so far as I am in a position to judge, and they see nothing heroic or defensible in the killing of George Floyd.
I agree with you that there is a much deeper problem here--even said so in my post--but criminal behavior, whether by civilians or police, is, by definition, conducted at the level of the individual, and justice may only be meted out by the legal system to one perpetrator at a time.
Prompted by calls to 'give grace' to cop who killed George Floyd, black activists question the rush ...
Deb57 comments on May 30, 2020:
I hate that insistence that we should forgive those who abuse us. It's manipulative as hell.
p-nullifidian replies on May 30, 2020:
@SeaGreenEyez Excellent point! The 5th commandment--that parents must be honored--promotes a primitive and twisted sense of duty. Honor is earned and can never be demanded.
Deb57 comments on May 30, 2020:
I hate that insistence that we should forgive those who abuse us. It's manipulative as hell.
p-nullifidian replies on May 30, 2020:
@SeaGreenEyez Excellent point! The 5th commandment--that parents must be honored--promotes a primitive and twisted sense of duty. Honor is earned and can never be demanded.
A team of University of Rhode Island scientists and statisticians conducted a sophisticated ...
Toonces comments on May 27, 2020:
How do they explain the iridium layer?
p-nullifidian replies on May 29, 2020:
@Toonces If memory serves, there have been 5 mass extinctions, thus far, and the concern regarding runaway climate change is that it could lead to a 6th mass extinction. I meant no disrespect in my previous comment about the higher than normal iridium layer coinciding with the extinction of the dinosaurs, some 66 million years ago.
Toonces comments on May 27, 2020:
How do they explain the iridium layer?
p-nullifidian replies on May 29, 2020:
@Toonces If memory serves, there have been 5 mass extinctions, thus far, and the concern regarding runaway climate change is that it could lead to a 6th mass extinction. I meant no disrespect in my previous comment about the higher than normal iridium layer coinciding with the extinction of the dinosaurs, some 66 million years ago.
George Floyd was accused of trying to pass a fake $20.
Chickenwing comments on May 28, 2020:
What the cops did was wrong absolutely but rioting and burning down stores where you live? Burning down a brand new section 8 housing unit? Looting stores? I just heard someone was killed during the roots. What good does that do?
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
Oh please ... bottled up rage over decades of this type of treatment added to the inequities and broken promises, and the powder keg explodes. The destruction of property and violence is, of course, illegal, but the focus should be on the fuze that was lit here, not the inevitable explosion.
Chickenwing comments on May 28, 2020:
What the cops did was wrong absolutely but rioting and burning down stores where you live? Burning down a brand new section 8 housing unit? Looting stores? I just heard someone was killed during the roots. What good does that do?
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
Oh please ... bottled up rage over decades of this type of treatment added to the inequities and broken promises, and the powder keg explodes. The destruction of property and violence is, of course, illegal, but the focus should be on the fuze that was lit here, not the inevitable explosion.
Memorial Day thoughts of a former Nationalist.
PondartIncbendog comments on May 26, 2020:
I'm afraid you are still retaining the tribal instinct. There is no difference between the people who sacrificed their lives and those who did as civilians. Lots of police are dead. Lots of nurses and doctors are dead.
USAF VET.
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
@DavidLaDeau And thank you for your service. I have visited the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial to the fallen, with its 21,000 names, one of which was an officer I knew and whose kids played with mine. The Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-19 was far worse than the Coronavirus (thus far), and despite this, it has largely been forgotten to history. One wonders if decades from now the same forgetfulness of COVID-19 will occur.
PondartIncbendog comments on May 26, 2020:
I'm afraid you are still retaining the tribal instinct. There is no difference between the people who sacrificed their lives and those who did as civilians. Lots of police are dead. Lots of nurses and doctors are dead.
USAF VET.
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
@DavidLaDeau And thank you for your service. I have visited the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial to the fallen, with its 21,000 names, one of which was an officer I knew and whose kids played with mine. The Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-19 was far worse than the Coronavirus (thus far), and despite this, it has largely been forgotten to history. One wonders if decades from now the same forgetfulness of COVID-19 will occur.
A team of University of Rhode Island scientists and statisticians conducted a sophisticated ...
silverotter11 comments on May 27, 2020:
I had read that some in the field had doubts about the asteroid/climate extinction belief so this new evidence is pretty interesting. I guess I'd really perk up if they had found evidence of dinosaurs on the
Ark. :)
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
@phoenixone1 Which ark? Finding the boat is a fool's errand--Mount Ararat, are you kidding me? But the Ark of the Covenant is another legend to contemplate, with or without Indiana Jones.
silverotter11 comments on May 27, 2020:
I had read that some in the field had doubts about the asteroid/climate extinction belief so this new evidence is pretty interesting. I guess I'd really perk up if they had found evidence of dinosaurs on the
Ark. :)
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
@phoenixone1 Which ark? Finding the boat is a fool's errand--Mount Ararat, are you kidding me? But the Ark of the Covenant is another legend to contemplate, with or without Indiana Jones.
A team of University of Rhode Island scientists and statisticians conducted a sophisticated ...
t1nick comments on May 27, 2020:
Science is dynamic, not static like dogma. As technology improves and the accuracy and precision improve, along with new or improved techniques, newly acquired data allows us as a Science Community to alter our understandings and change our minds. If it did not work that way, I would be ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
Hear hear! All knowledge is provisional. Unlike science, orthodox religion remains locked in time, living fossils of their own interminable making.
t1nick comments on May 27, 2020:
Science is dynamic, not static like dogma. As technology improves and the accuracy and precision improve, along with new or improved techniques, newly acquired data allows us as a Science Community to alter our understandings and change our minds. If it did not work that way, I would be ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
Hear hear! All knowledge is provisional. Unlike science, orthodox religion remains locked in time, living fossils of their own interminable making.
Aries Spears Admits Struggle With Religion After Witnessing Police Brutality & Racism - YouTube
Spinliesel comments on May 27, 2020:
I saw the picture of the policeman kneeling on the black man's neck and started crying. What exploded into my mind was the picture of an SS man with his boot on the neck of a Jewish man that I saw in German newspaper as a child. I cried then, and I am crying now. But this time, it is out of shame...
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
As I white man, I look back to the 60's and early 70's when in my youth it seemed to me that things couldn't get worse, in terms of racial justice. And here we are in 2020 and we haven't progressed, have we?
Some of us thought that electing a black president made a difference, but as a country we remain in need of a deep and profound cleanse. I am incensed by this latest incident and am mortified that a white cop could actually murder a black man on camera and in front of witnesses. From the mayors on down to every front-line police officer in every city in the country, this behavior can never be allowed. And what's more, this cop and his fellow onlooking officers should all be tried for murder. Only through convictions will police behavior change.
Spinliesel comments on May 27, 2020:
I saw the picture of the policeman kneeling on the black man's neck and started crying. What exploded into my mind was the picture of an SS man with his boot on the neck of a Jewish man that I saw in German newspaper as a child. I cried then, and I am crying now. But this time, it is out of shame...
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
As I white man, I look back to the 60's and early 70's when in my youth it seemed to me that things couldn't get worse, in terms of racial justice. And here we are in 2020 and we haven't progressed, have we?
Some of us thought that electing a black president made a difference, but as a country we remain in need of a deep and profound cleanse. I am incensed by this latest incident and am mortified that a white cop could actually murder a black man on camera and in front of witnesses. From the mayors on down to every front-line police officer in every city in the country, this behavior can never be allowed. And what's more, this cop and his fellow onlooking officers should all be tried for murder. Only through convictions will police behavior change.
A team of University of Rhode Island scientists and statisticians conducted a sophisticated ...
Toonces comments on May 27, 2020:
How do they explain the iridium layer?
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
That was 66 million years ago, not 215.
Toonces comments on May 27, 2020:
How do they explain the iridium layer?
p-nullifidian replies on May 28, 2020:
That was 66 million years ago, not 215.
Since it is Memorial Day I want to give a salute to all those Atheist/Agnostics who fought, and ...
p-nullifidian comments on May 26, 2020:
"Pat Tillman was a famous atheist who fought for the US...and died in Afghanistan - allegedly accidentally by "friendly fire"....uh - huh...."
Do you doubt the findings of the inquiries made into the Tillman tragedy? Do you offer evidence that what we (the public and the Tillman family) have been...
p-nullifidian replies on May 26, 2020:
@Robecology "and perhaps you [me?] - fear and hate us." WTF? These are the words of a fear monger ... we who do not believe in a deity must rise above such recriminatory rhetoric.
p-nullifidian comments on May 26, 2020:
"Pat Tillman was a famous atheist who fought for the US...and died in Afghanistan - allegedly accidentally by "friendly fire"....uh - huh...."
Do you doubt the findings of the inquiries made into the Tillman tragedy? Do you offer evidence that what we (the public and the Tillman family) have been...
p-nullifidian replies on May 26, 2020:
@Robecology "and perhaps you [me?] - fear and hate us." WTF? These are the words of a fear monger ... we who do not believe in a deity must rise above such recriminatory rhetoric.
Since it is Memorial Day I want to give a salute to all those Atheist/Agnostics who fought, and ...
powder comments on May 25, 2020:
It's funny, the army taught me about indoctrination; the formal instruction in a doctrine using repetition and ritual so as to become a functional member of a group. This was during my Corp instruction.
The example they used was not religion, it was something we had all experienced. Military ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 26, 2020:
Gallipoli still haunts the collective memory. "All of those young lives betrayed."
powder comments on May 25, 2020:
It's funny, the army taught me about indoctrination; the formal instruction in a doctrine using repetition and ritual so as to become a functional member of a group. This was during my Corp instruction.
The example they used was not religion, it was something we had all experienced. Military ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 26, 2020:
Gallipoli still haunts the collective memory. "All of those young lives betrayed."
Pale Blue Dot - You Are Here (Carl Sagan) - YouTube
p-nullifidian comments on May 25, 2020:
Thank you for this wonderful memory! Carl Sagan had championed the idea of training the Voyager cameras back on our home for years, but the concept was not considered of scientific value. It wasn't until Voyager 1 had flown by Jupiter and Saturn and its cameras were about to be permanently shut off,...
p-nullifidian replies on May 26, 2020:
@MrDMC Thank you ... I found this article very illuminating ... enjoy!
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/02/first-person-see-pale-blue-dot/
p-nullifidian comments on May 25, 2020:
Thank you for this wonderful memory! Carl Sagan had championed the idea of training the Voyager cameras back on our home for years, but the concept was not considered of scientific value. It wasn't until Voyager 1 had flown by Jupiter and Saturn and its cameras were about to be permanently shut off,...
p-nullifidian replies on May 26, 2020:
@MrDMC Thank you ... I found this article very illuminating ... enjoy!
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/02/first-person-see-pale-blue-dot/
As a young catholic school girl, I tried so hard to believe.
Julie808 comments on May 25, 2020:
I think the religious songs are meant to choke us up and make us feel something that isn't really there. My mom used to play Ave Maria on the piano while we would sing. She was raised by my atheist grandparents, but sent to a catholic boarding school, where she learned to play piano. She had to ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 25, 2020:
@Julie808 And I get choked up watching Polar Express with the kids ... our mythological impressions run very deep.
Julie808 comments on May 25, 2020:
I think the religious songs are meant to choke us up and make us feel something that isn't really there. My mom used to play Ave Maria on the piano while we would sing. She was raised by my atheist grandparents, but sent to a catholic boarding school, where she learned to play piano. She had to ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 25, 2020:
@Julie808 And I get choked up watching Polar Express with the kids ... our mythological impressions run very deep.
As a young catholic school girl, I tried so hard to believe.
Julie808 comments on May 25, 2020:
I think the religious songs are meant to choke us up and make us feel something that isn't really there. My mom used to play Ave Maria on the piano while we would sing. She was raised by my atheist grandparents, but sent to a catholic boarding school, where she learned to play piano. She had to ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 25, 2020:
It's there, trust me ... the feelings elicited by sublime music are deep. I was raised in a Protestant faith that was (is) extremely anti-Catholic, and so I never learned the translation for Ave Maria (and the many other Catholic texts set to beautiful music) until much later in life. It didn't bother me that I didn't understand the words ... it was the music that mattered.
Julie808 comments on May 25, 2020:
I think the religious songs are meant to choke us up and make us feel something that isn't really there. My mom used to play Ave Maria on the piano while we would sing. She was raised by my atheist grandparents, but sent to a catholic boarding school, where she learned to play piano. She had to ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 25, 2020:
It's there, trust me ... the feelings elicited by sublime music are deep. I was raised in a Protestant faith that was (is) extremely anti-Catholic, and so I never learned the translation for Ave Maria (and the many other Catholic texts set to beautiful music) until much later in life. It didn't bother me that I didn't understand the words ... it was the music that mattered.
I read in my local newspaper some Atheists are being blamed for burning down a church in ...
Mofo1953 comments on May 24, 2020:
Obviously had to be an atheist who are well known to be so illiterate they cant even spell hypocrites. These memes prove so!
p-nullifidian replies on May 24, 2020:
Maybe they thought their spelling was closer to the original Greek! ;-)
Mofo1953 comments on May 24, 2020:
Obviously had to be an atheist who are well known to be so illiterate they cant even spell hypocrites. These memes prove so!
p-nullifidian replies on May 24, 2020:
Maybe they thought their spelling was closer to the original Greek! ;-)
Why Atheists Are Not as Rational as Some Like to Think
[phys.
p-nullifidian comments on May 23, 2020:
That atheists may be as irrational as believers is hardly news. On this very website, I have been upbraided by anti-vax'ers, anti-GMO'ers, pro-Trump'ers and flat Earthers who otherwise appear to claim a 'rational' doubt as to the existence of a supreme being! We have all heard of countless examples ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 24, 2020:
@BryanLV There is an attitude that is not left or right leaning and is akin to an article of faith that connects them: Anti-science.
The anti-vax’ers who refuse to vaccinate their children against measles and accept crackpot notions regarding autism; the anti-GMO’ers who, without a shred of evidence, would deny a starving planet drought tolerant crops; the pro-Trumpers who follow their leader in rejecting public health guidance and insisting on their right to be spreaders in the midst of a pandemic; and the flat Earthers who are, well, just plain insane.
They all deny fact-based evidence, not only in rejecting science, but attacking it and even those who practice or defend it. And worst of all, they selfishly seek to impose their madness on others.
p-nullifidian comments on May 23, 2020:
That atheists may be as irrational as believers is hardly news. On this very website, I have been upbraided by anti-vax'ers, anti-GMO'ers, pro-Trump'ers and flat Earthers who otherwise appear to claim a 'rational' doubt as to the existence of a supreme being! We have all heard of countless examples ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 24, 2020:
@BryanLV There is an attitude that is not left or right leaning and is akin to an article of faith that connects them: Anti-science.
The anti-vax’ers who refuse to vaccinate their children against measles and accept crackpot notions regarding autism; the anti-GMO’ers who, without a shred of evidence, would deny a starving planet drought tolerant crops; the pro-Trumpers who follow their leader in rejecting public health guidance and insisting on their right to be spreaders in the midst of a pandemic; and the flat Earthers who are, well, just plain insane.
They all deny fact-based evidence, not only in rejecting science, but attacking it and even those who practice or defend it. And worst of all, they selfishly seek to impose their madness on others.
Death takes a Holiday?
MrDragon comments on May 23, 2020:
Wasn't there a movie about that?
p-nullifidian replies on May 23, 2020:
@Matias Bolsonaro fancies himself as the 'Latin Trump.' Perhaps that means he must vie for as many cases and fatalities as we in the US have suffered? Pity Brasil, and any nation with feckless leadership.
MrDragon comments on May 23, 2020:
Wasn't there a movie about that?
p-nullifidian replies on May 23, 2020:
@Matias Bolsonaro fancies himself as the 'Latin Trump.' Perhaps that means he must vie for as many cases and fatalities as we in the US have suffered? Pity Brasil, and any nation with feckless leadership.
Has Evangelical Christianity Become Sociopathic?
[huffpost.com]
anglophone comments on May 22, 2020:
Evangelical Christianity was already sociopathic at the time of the Spanish Inquisitions. The United States of America has taken on the mantle of Isabella and Ferdinand 500 years afterwards.
p-nullifidian replies on May 22, 2020:
Although we may agree that elements of sociopathy may be found throughout the history of Christendom, the question raised by this article in HuffPo specifically applies to the Evangelical Protestant Christians in the United States today who back the current administration, not to the Roman Catholics of the colonial period.
anglophone comments on May 22, 2020:
Evangelical Christianity was already sociopathic at the time of the Spanish Inquisitions. The United States of America has taken on the mantle of Isabella and Ferdinand 500 years afterwards.
p-nullifidian replies on May 22, 2020:
Although we may agree that elements of sociopathy may be found throughout the history of Christendom, the question raised by this article in HuffPo specifically applies to the Evangelical Protestant Christians in the United States today who back the current administration, not to the Roman Catholics of the colonial period.
I checked in to see what agnostics are up to these days.
p-nullifidian comments on May 17, 2020:
Welcome! I have been traduced at times for being an atheist intruder here, but I personally don't make the distinctions that many do. I don't mind being labeled an agnostic, so long as that doesn't imply a vacillating, two-timing prevaricator. I also don't mind being labeled an atheist, so long as ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 22, 2020:
@MsDemeanour Indeed! Sadly, the days of American leadership, whether it be human rights, science or moral decency, appear well behind us.
p-nullifidian comments on May 17, 2020:
Welcome! I have been traduced at times for being an atheist intruder here, but I personally don't make the distinctions that many do. I don't mind being labeled an agnostic, so long as that doesn't imply a vacillating, two-timing prevaricator. I also don't mind being labeled an atheist, so long as ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 22, 2020:
@MsDemeanour Indeed! Sadly, the days of American leadership, whether it be human rights, science or moral decency, appear well behind us.
I checked in to see what agnostics are up to these days.
p-nullifidian comments on May 17, 2020:
Welcome! I have been traduced at times for being an atheist intruder here, but I personally don't make the distinctions that many do. I don't mind being labeled an agnostic, so long as that doesn't imply a vacillating, two-timing prevaricator. I also don't mind being labeled an atheist, so long as ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 22, 2020:
@MsDemeanour Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense, The Crisis ("These are the times that try men's souls"), The Rights of Man and The Age of Reason, and IMO, one of the most forward thinking minds of the 18th century. Without his pen, there may never have been a United States of America. And yet he was nearly forgotten to history due to his attack on religion.
"I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Roman [Catholic] church, by the Greek [Eastern Orthodox] church, by the Turkish [Islamic] church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church.
All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit."
The Age of Reason, 1794
p-nullifidian comments on May 17, 2020:
Welcome! I have been traduced at times for being an atheist intruder here, but I personally don't make the distinctions that many do. I don't mind being labeled an agnostic, so long as that doesn't imply a vacillating, two-timing prevaricator. I also don't mind being labeled an atheist, so long as ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 22, 2020:
@MsDemeanour Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense, The Crisis ("These are the times that try men's souls"), The Rights of Man and The Age of Reason, and IMO, one of the most forward thinking minds of the 18th century. Without his pen, there may never have been a United States of America. And yet he was nearly forgotten to history due to his attack on religion.
"I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Roman [Catholic] church, by the Greek [Eastern Orthodox] church, by the Turkish [Islamic] church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church.
All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit."
The Age of Reason, 1794
In my last post I mentioned how Christ had no knowledge of science, especially biology and ...
LenHazell53 comments on May 19, 2020:
IF one believes in the Trinitarian doctrine, one has no choice but to agree with the atheist who rightly claims that if reality was designed, it was designed by a quarrelsome committee.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Aristippus, @LenHazell53 It is my understanding that the regions you're referring to are star formations, not explosions resulting from collisions. The likelihood of two stars colliding during a merger of galaxies has been calculated to be infinitesimally small.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dZUNAZI2eg
LenHazell53 comments on May 19, 2020:
IF one believes in the Trinitarian doctrine, one has no choice but to agree with the atheist who rightly claims that if reality was designed, it was designed by a quarrelsome committee.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Aristippus, @LenHazell53 It is my understanding that the regions you're referring to are star formations, not explosions resulting from collisions. The likelihood of two stars colliding during a merger of galaxies has been calculated to be infinitesimally small.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dZUNAZI2eg
In my last post I mentioned how Christ had no knowledge of science, especially biology and ...
LenHazell53 comments on May 19, 2020:
IF one believes in the Trinitarian doctrine, one has no choice but to agree with the atheist who rightly claims that if reality was designed, it was designed by a quarrelsome committee.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Aristippus "Despite the Andromeda Galaxy containing about 1 trillion stars and the Milky Way containing about 300 billion, the chance of even two stars colliding is negligible because of the huge distances between them."
https://phys.org/news/2016-10-galaxies-collide.html
"Although stars don't collide when two galaxies merge, the much larger gas clouds do."
http://www.astronomy.ohio-state.edu/~ryden/ast162_8/notes35.html
LenHazell53 comments on May 19, 2020:
IF one believes in the Trinitarian doctrine, one has no choice but to agree with the atheist who rightly claims that if reality was designed, it was designed by a quarrelsome committee.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Aristippus "Despite the Andromeda Galaxy containing about 1 trillion stars and the Milky Way containing about 300 billion, the chance of even two stars colliding is negligible because of the huge distances between them."
https://phys.org/news/2016-10-galaxies-collide.html
"Although stars don't collide when two galaxies merge, the much larger gas clouds do."
http://www.astronomy.ohio-state.edu/~ryden/ast162_8/notes35.html
In my last post I mentioned how Christ had no knowledge of science, especially biology and ...
LenHazell53 comments on May 19, 2020:
IF one believes in the Trinitarian doctrine, one has no choice but to agree with the atheist who rightly claims that if reality was designed, it was designed by a quarrelsome committee.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Aristippus When galaxies collide the stars don't slam into each other, but the two galaxies engage in a 'dance' over the millennia which inevitably ends in a much larger galaxy. The collision of galaxies, such as M51, is a beautiful story of summation, not destruction. Albeit without a supernatural explanation.
LenHazell53 comments on May 19, 2020:
IF one believes in the Trinitarian doctrine, one has no choice but to agree with the atheist who rightly claims that if reality was designed, it was designed by a quarrelsome committee.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Aristippus When galaxies collide the stars don't slam into each other, but the two galaxies engage in a 'dance' over the millennia which inevitably ends in a much larger galaxy. The collision of galaxies, such as M51, is a beautiful story of summation, not destruction. Albeit without a supernatural explanation.
Utah Decriminalizes Polygamy with Near Unanimous Support by Legislators - Daily Citizen
Fred_Snerd comments on May 20, 2020:
Their men are in different kind of heaven.
"Some Christians actively debate whether the New Testament or Christian ethics allows or forbids polygamy and there are several Christian views on the Old Covenant. This debate focuses almost exclusively on polygyny (one man having more than one wife) ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Lorajay Polyandry and polygyny are subsets of polygamy, which is not a gender specific term.
Fred_Snerd comments on May 20, 2020:
Their men are in different kind of heaven.
"Some Christians actively debate whether the New Testament or Christian ethics allows or forbids polygamy and there are several Christian views on the Old Covenant. This debate focuses almost exclusively on polygyny (one man having more than one wife) ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
@Lorajay Polyandry and polygyny are subsets of polygamy, which is not a gender specific term.
Utah Decriminalizes Polygamy with Near Unanimous Support by Legislators - Daily Citizen
PadraicM comments on May 20, 2020:
If somebody wants more than one spouse, let them. They deserve it. I think I would rather shoot myself in the leg with a nail gun while getting a root canal (or something equally gruesome). But what floats my boat, doesn't have to float theirs, as long as all involved parties actually consent.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
The nail gun is only a distraction from the root canal!
PadraicM comments on May 20, 2020:
If somebody wants more than one spouse, let them. They deserve it. I think I would rather shoot myself in the leg with a nail gun while getting a root canal (or something equally gruesome). But what floats my boat, doesn't have to float theirs, as long as all involved parties actually consent.
p-nullifidian replies on May 21, 2020:
The nail gun is only a distraction from the root canal!
I spent far too much time looking into which group this would be most appropriately posted, so it ...
p-nullifidian comments on May 19, 2020:
I only learned of Origen after I had abandoned my faith. It is apparent that, despite Paul's attempts to doctrinally unify the early Christian church, the fledgling faith had become home to a diverse set of beliefs and authors, many of which were eliminated by the council of Nicaea (325 A.D.). It is...
p-nullifidian replies on May 19, 2020:
@Amzungu And formal education!
p-nullifidian comments on May 19, 2020:
I only learned of Origen after I had abandoned my faith. It is apparent that, despite Paul's attempts to doctrinally unify the early Christian church, the fledgling faith had become home to a diverse set of beliefs and authors, many of which were eliminated by the council of Nicaea (325 A.D.). It is...
p-nullifidian replies on May 19, 2020:
@Amzungu And formal education!
The new dog! She reminds me of Anubis, the Egyptian god.....those ears!
Dunnottar comments on May 18, 2020:
Anubis would be an awesome name for her!!
p-nullifidian replies on May 19, 2020:
Personally, and with due respect, I've long felt that the name 'Artemis' evokes a uniquely X chromosome strength.
https://camp-mythica.fandom.com/wiki/Artemis
Dunnottar comments on May 18, 2020:
Anubis would be an awesome name for her!!
p-nullifidian replies on May 19, 2020:
Personally, and with due respect, I've long felt that the name 'Artemis' evokes a uniquely X chromosome strength.
https://camp-mythica.fandom.com/wiki/Artemis
My Grandma is Racist. She Hates Exactly Half of Me- the Latina Half.
p-nullifidian comments on May 16, 2020:
Thank you for sharing this article. I love this sentiment:
"Racists are assholes. Their problem with me being mixed is and always will be their problem, not mine."
I was blessed to have a mother who was very progressive. When I was in the 1st or 2nd grade, I once came home from school and ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 18, 2020:
@Justme43 No offense, but I am not a fan of Dr. Phil nor, for that matter, any afternoon talk show, from Phil Donahue to Sally Jesse Rafael to Jerry Springer to Oprah, and everyone in between. Nevertheless, it's important that we see a bigot's unvarnished and unapologetic argument. "Whose fault is it?" indeed!
p-nullifidian comments on May 16, 2020:
Thank you for sharing this article. I love this sentiment:
"Racists are assholes. Their problem with me being mixed is and always will be their problem, not mine."
I was blessed to have a mother who was very progressive. When I was in the 1st or 2nd grade, I once came home from school and ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 18, 2020:
@Justme43 No offense, but I am not a fan of Dr. Phil nor, for that matter, any afternoon talk show, from Phil Donahue to Sally Jesse Rafael to Jerry Springer to Oprah, and everyone in between. Nevertheless, it's important that we see a bigot's unvarnished and unapologetic argument. "Whose fault is it?" indeed!
Obama reminds us of what a US president should sound like.
Bobbyzen comments on May 17, 2020:
He speaks eloquently. It’s too bad he bailed out the banking industry and left homeowners bankrupt. Murdered civilians in the Middle East with unmanned drones. Expanded the immigration detention system and separated children from families—at least he stopped when he was caught! Repealed the ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 17, 2020:
@LiterateHiker Sadly, much of what @Bobbyzen is true. The abuses of Guantanamo were essentially overlooked and the jail remains, the drone strikes without a declaration of war, or even due process, were widely expanded, and the mass detention of immigrants were part of the Obama legacy. Justified criticism of our politicians is not only a right, but a duty.
Bobbyzen comments on May 17, 2020:
He speaks eloquently. It’s too bad he bailed out the banking industry and left homeowners bankrupt. Murdered civilians in the Middle East with unmanned drones. Expanded the immigration detention system and separated children from families—at least he stopped when he was caught! Repealed the ...
p-nullifidian replies on May 17, 2020:
@LiterateHiker Sadly, much of what @Bobbyzen is true. The abuses of Guantanamo were essentially overlooked and the jail remains, the drone strikes without a declaration of war, or even due process, were widely expanded, and the mass detention of immigrants were part of the Obama legacy. Justified criticism of our politicians is not only a right, but a duty.
Obama reminds us of what a US president should sound like.
p-nullifidian comments on May 17, 2020:
As Stephen Colbert said, "I miss George W. Bush." Compared with what we have today, even "W," the man who gave us, "Is our children educated?" appears more presidential!
p-nullifidian replies on May 17, 2020:
@Rodatheist Moe for sure, he's brilliant by comparison, but Curly and Larry are 45's peers.
p-nullifidian comments on May 17, 2020:
As Stephen Colbert said, "I miss George W. Bush." Compared with what we have today, even "W," the man who gave us, "Is our children educated?" appears more presidential!
p-nullifidian replies on May 17, 2020:
@Rodatheist Moe for sure, he's brilliant by comparison, but Curly and Larry are 45's peers.
My Grandma is Racist. She Hates Exactly Half of Me- the Latina Half.
Triphid comments on May 16, 2020:
Nothing wrong with Claire as far as I can see, I'd give her a 10 out of 10 on all counts and hey, whippets are great dogs, fit, healthy, loyal and very easy going as well.
p-nullifidian replies on May 17, 2020:
@LiterateHiker Dog lovers, what can you say ... sorry! Back to the topic at hand, I fully agree with @Triphid.
Triphid comments on May 16, 2020:
Nothing wrong with Claire as far as I can see, I'd give her a 10 out of 10 on all counts and hey, whippets are great dogs, fit, healthy, loyal and very easy going as well.
p-nullifidian replies on May 17, 2020:
@LiterateHiker Dog lovers, what can you say ... sorry! Back to the topic at hand, I fully agree with @Triphid.
My Grandma is Racist. She Hates Exactly Half of Me- the Latina Half.
Triphid comments on May 16, 2020:
Nothing wrong with Claire as far as I can see, I'd give her a 10 out of 10 on all counts and hey, whippets are great dogs, fit, healthy, loyal and very easy going as well.
p-nullifidian replies on May 16, 2020:
@Triphid Never heard of that breed until now ... thanks. I just know that when we took our german shepherd mix (who died last year) to the dog park, she kept up with the whippets pretty well, until they shifted into a higher gear!
Triphid comments on May 16, 2020:
Nothing wrong with Claire as far as I can see, I'd give her a 10 out of 10 on all counts and hey, whippets are great dogs, fit, healthy, loyal and very easy going as well.
p-nullifidian replies on May 16, 2020:
@Triphid Never heard of that breed until now ... thanks. I just know that when we took our german shepherd mix (who died last year) to the dog park, she kept up with the whippets pretty well, until they shifted into a higher gear!
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