Profile for Muji
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Displayed name | Muji |
| Member number | 6347 |
| Title | Warrior |
| Postcount | 124 |
| Homepage | |
| Registered | Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
Recent posts
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| Author | Recent posts |
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| Kissing a girl in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 16:55
Profile
quote:Well, if you get off on the forbidden, I definitely recommend joining a puritan religion or two. :D -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Politics and Beliefs in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 15:09
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~takes the Zen approach~ Everybody's wrong! About everything! Including me, regarding this statement! ~cackles insanely and stumbles away~ -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Happy Birthday Eagle! in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 15:06
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I'd say happy birthday, but I'm scared of angering the locals... :( So instead, I'll just comment on the freaky cat-pic! Wtf! :eek: -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| First Kiss in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 14:47
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quote:Good luck with that. And that's not sarcasm, I mean it. The only advice I can give is don't be in a rush. I've always looked at relationships as golf; low score is win. Well, "always" is a strong word, but at least for as long as I've given the issue serious thought. ;) Actually, I can also give another bit of advice... "don't settle". Follow your heart. Take your time. It's worth it. -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Kissing a girl in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 14:43
Profile
quote:Hehehe, yup... I just joined a while ago to ask a few questions about BoA... I had no idea this would come of it! But I've been a part of quite a few communities on the web throughout the year, and I must say, I'm quite happy with how easy it was to just dive right in, here, especially considering the topics at hand. quote:Far more than most of us realize, I think. Humanity is at crossroads, and we have front-row seats. Good or bad, it doesn't matter... the fact remains that we live in immensely interesting times. And when I look at all the things that are coming together in this particular day and age, I can't help but marvel, it seems so surreal. Almost as though this is when we're meant to be alive. And as much as our human world pains me much as it is, I can't quite conceive of a more meaningful time period to be part of. Granted, I don't know what the future holds, but compared to any other time period in recorded human history (and some are very interesting indeed!), this one seems head-and-shoulders above. I read something yesterday that very nearly floored me (unfortunately, I can't find it again, or I would quote it... it was in an article from Scientific American). Something about how light from the big bang was just now reaching us. They didn't elaborate, as this wasn't the main topic of the article (I read two yesterday... one about black holes, and the other about a potential pre-big-bang, as hypothesised through string theory). I wish I did, though... it was just this tiny mention, and I'm not entirely sure what they meant, but it got me thinking. Present estimates have our solar system at about 4.5 billion years old, the galaxy near 11 billion years, and the universe at 13.7. What did they mean about the light just now reaching us? Our ability to see the early universe—from my understanding—relies mostly on the strength of telescopes (stronger ones able to see farther, therefore capturing light which hasn't reached us yet). I'm not clear on the implications... if the big bang happened 13.7 billion years ago, and it's just reaching us now... where does that leave us? This page says that by some calculations, our universe is probably 156+ billion light-years wide... that's pretty damn big. So if (arguably a big if) all these things are true, what are the chances that we happen to be at the exact spot that the light from the beginning of the universe would reach us as we'd start looking? Granted, cosmic time is not on the same scale as our own (humans have been around for a nano-fraction of the cosmic existence of all that surrounds us), but even looking at it in a relative sense, we seem to be at a "right place at the right time". Even such vagueness put aside (as I said, I'm still not sure about the implications of what I've just ranted about), even thinking locally, it seems that this generation is in a very special and particular "in-between" position... Then again, maybe it just looks like that cuz now is now. Humans do have a tendency of seeing things as more important than they really are when they're directly involved. ;) quote:Indeed, t'was I! :D quote:Yes, definitely. And true, no need to rush anything. We don't want to overload, or anything. ;) I'm staying away from the old threads on purpose. Otherwise, I'd be far too tempted to revive them myself, and I hardly feel that's my place. If someone else was to do so, though... ;) Oooo... I'd love to tackle hell and eternity/eternal with you sometime. Sounds like fun! quote:Well, more Christian than me. You still come from that background, to a degree. Neither of my parents are religious, and I had to find my spirituality on my own. A large chunk of the people in my social circle are atheists, unfortunately. Makes for boring conversations. :P Organized religions are definitely a mess right now. It seems that a lot of the evils in the world today can be attributed to them. Even if not directly, at least by association, because of the religious polarization and friction we're seeing all over the globe these days. Which is a pity. I appreciate science, and I find it very fascinating (I mentioned Scientific American a bit higher. Yes, I got myself an online subscription, and I very much love it). But on the overall, I find it lacking in spiritual matters, which only religion and philosophy seems to be tackling. quote:"In fact, I don’t believe there can be." ~nods~ I think that the most important things in this world are beyond empirical proof. For now, at least. But that shouldn't stop people from seeking answers. We might not always find the answers we seek, but we can often find all sorts of other interesting things on the way. I know what you mean about preachy, I have the same problem. :( But I think that's unavoidable, to a degree. If you speak passionately about something which you hold dear to your heart, if someone disagrees, there's often a good chance they'll take it as preaching. This applies as much to scientific things as it does to spiritual matters. In the end, the best we can do is keep an open mind and remember the imperfections of language. Hope is something severely lacking in this world, IMHO. Even among the faithful, I would say... considering all the friction between the different Faiths we see all over the world these days. People seem to be so caught up in the past, so intent on proving their side right (which is, arguably, impossible... faith, in the end, being a matter of faith). Instead of fighting and telling each other how wrong we are, what would happen if we focused on the common threads? I think that if humanity was to focus on its similarities instead of its differences, it would find that we all have far more in common than we might think... quote:I couldn't agree more. I know two languages, and I can't think of any words in either to describe how utterly majestic "it" all is. It's easy to forget, sometimes, when bad things happen... but whenever I manage to remind myself... ~just shakes his head~ -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Everyone's a Comedian in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 13:37
Profile
~LMAO!~ Brilliant! ... [Edit:] Okay, I know this is long, and many of you have probably seen it, but since we're going for puns, I simply couldn't resist. I nearly die every time I read it. ... (We take you now to the Oval Office.) George: Condi! Nice to see you. What's happening? Condi: Sir, I have the report here about the new leader of China. George: Great. Lay it on me. Condi: Hu is the new leader of China. George: That's what I want to know. Condi: That's what I'm telling you. George: That's what I'm asking you. Who is the new leader of China? Condi: Yes. George: I mean the fellow's name. Condi: Hu. George: The guy in China. Condi: Hu. George: The new leader of China. Condi: Hu. George: The Chinaman! Condi: Hu is leading China. George: Now whaddya' asking me for? Condi: I'm telling you Hu is leading China. George: Well, I'm asking you. Who is leading China? Condi: That's the man's name. George: That's who's name? Condi: Yes. George: Will you or will you not tell me the name of the new leader of China? Condi: Yes, sir. George: Yassir? Yassir Arafat is in China? I thought he was in the Middle East. Condi: That's correct. George: Then who is in China? Condi: Yes, sir. George: Yassir is in China? Condi: No, sir. George: Then who is? Condi: Yes, sir. George: Yassir? Condi: No, sir. George: Look, Condi. I need to know the name of the new leader of China. Get me the Secretary General of the U.N. on the phone. Condi: Kofi? George: No, thanks. Condi: You want Kofi? George: No. Condi: You don't want Kofi. George: No. But now that you mention it, I could use a glass of milk. And then get me the U.N. Condi: Yes, sir. George: Not Yassir! The guy at the U.N. Condi: Kofi? George: Milk! Will you please make the call? Condi: And call who? George: Who is the guy at the U.N? Condi: Hu is the guy in China. George: Will you stay out of China?! Condi: Yes, sir. George: And stay out of the Middle East! Just get me the guy at the U.N. Condi: Kofi. George: All right! With cream and two sugars. Now get on the phone. (Condi picks up the phone.) Condi: Rice, here. George: Rice? Good idea. And a couple of egg rolls, too. Maybe we should send some to the guy in China. And the Middle East. Can you get Chinese food in the Middle East? [ Sunday, October 09, 2005 13:38: Message edited by: Muji ] -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| First Kiss in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 13:31
Profile
I don't want to remember... :( But that's mostly because of everything associated with it, what happened after. The kiss itself, in a nutshell... I was visiting my uncle's, and my best friend (at the time, anyways) had come along (yes, my best friend was a girl). Sleeping arrangements were somewhat limited, so we were sharing the fold-out couch in the living room. I don't quite remember what led to it, but we had just been lying there, talking. When all of a sudden, she rolled over and gave me a kiss (can't remember if there was tongue or not... if there was, it was just a bit). Took me completely by surprise (if I recall correctly, what we had been talking about wasn't anything hot or what one might think would lead to a kiss). By itself, it was quite cute and romantic. But that was the beginning of a long drawn-out relationship which left me heart-broken, and from which I never fully recovered. I don't remember the exact age, but late teens... I'm 26 now. -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Everyone's a Comedian in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 13:23
Profile
Must... stop... crying... with... laughter... *gasps* ... Chicho, good translation. ;) Reminds me of this one: This is a little story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done ... And Synergy, those are my favorite kind. The lamer, the better... as long as the pun is good. The kind that makes you unsure if you should groan, then laugh, or laugh, then groan... so instead you try doing both at the same time. -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Kissing a girl in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 13:11
Profile
quote:Don't mention it. It was a very long post (and I know long posts!), but a good read and—under the circumstances—fully appropriate, I think. The Christian-context spiritual symbology, IMO, was one of the things that gave it so much weight. I'm not Christian, nor have I ever been, so I could have never made those points. But I found it very interesting to read, and quite informative. It made a lot of sense to me. I'm glad you decided to put it back. :D quote:It can be hard, but we do what we can. And nobody's forced to read anything they don't want to. I don't know about anybody else, but personally, I find these discussions to be among the most rewarding aspects of being on the internet. After all, isn't that what the net is all about, in its purest form? The sharing of thoughts and ideas. And I find a delicious irony in the fact that such meaningful discussions can come about from such a simple and banal common thread as shareware games. ;) I've always marveled at that. The way people—sometimes literally on the other side of the planet—come together, linked by some mundane, material and arguably meaningless (at least in the big picture) topic, then sometimes end up dealing with some core existencial aspects. I find that beautiful. quote:Oh, that was you? Yes, I remember that comment. And I had replied how that could make an interesting discussion in itself. If you want to make a starting post, I'll follow along. ;) quote:I knew about the no-contraceptives bit, but not about the infertility aspect... :eek: Still, that's Catholicism. Not all Christian sects look at it the same way (in regards to contraception), but homosexuality, in general, is viewed as "bad". I must admit I at least respect internal consistency, but are all those things seen as equal? That's not a rhetorical question, I'm actually asking (and not just Thuryl... anyone who has an answer). I could be wrong, but it would seem to me that, by and large, homosexuality is viewed as a far greater sin than simply wearing a condom. And does anybody have more info about the whole infertility thing? I'd be curious to know more about how the Church sees that, how they explain it in a religious way (is it punishment? A test? What?), etc. [ Sunday, October 09, 2005 13:16: Message edited by: Muji ] -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Sleep in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 11:10
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I answered sleeping 12 hours, going to bed at 4am. That's what I've been doing lately. But I don't really have a schedule, so I can't give a proper answer. For a good chunk of the last few years, I averaged 13-14 hours or so, and would go to sleep between 8am and 11am. These days, when I'm not working, I seem to have settled into the "schedule" I voted. When I'm working, I get 3 to 6 hours of sleep a night. As for -when- I sleep, it depends, because I work 12 hour shifts and I'm on call, so it varies a lot. quote:Maybe we should make a poll, asking people if they think we should stop making polls? :D quote:Around 10am is one of my favorite times to go to sleep. quote:Sleeping 24 hours is one of my life's goals. I've managed 22-23 hours because I was sick, once. The most I've managed without being sick was 20-21 hours. -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Everyone's a Comedian in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 10:58
Profile
quote:Strangely, this is the one that made me laugh the most. I don't understand why it has to be an elephant, but I guess that makes it funnier because it doesn't make sense. ... Most jokes I can think of would violate the CoC, so... yeah... not posting. But! Still got a few: I was looking for #9, cuz I couldn't remember the exact wording (I still think it was different when I first saw it), but, yeah... here you go, 10 puns: * 1. Two vultures board an airplane, each carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at them and says, "I'm sorry, gentlemen, only only one carrion allowed per passenger." * 2. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. The one turns to the other and says, "Dam! ... " * 3. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too. * 4. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says, "I've lost my electron." The other says, "Are you sure?" The first replies "Yes, I'm positive." * 5. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? He wanted to transcend dental medication. * 6. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. 'But why?" they asked, as they moved off. "Because", he said, "I can't stand chess nuts boasting in an open foyer." * 7. A woman has twins and gives them up for adoption One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named "Ahmal." The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him "Juan." Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birth mother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes she also had a picture of Ahmal. Her husband responds, "They're twins! If you've seen Juan, you've seen Ahmal." * 8. These friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh MacTaggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to "persuade" them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he'd be back if they didn't close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that Hugh, and only Hugh, can prevent florist friars. * 9. Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him ...(Oh, man, this is so bad, it's good)... A super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis. * 10. And finally, there was the person who sent ten different puns to his friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did. ... Here's my favorite joke of all times. It's so lame, and so zen-like in its subtle simplicity: "A man walks into a bar... and says ouch." -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Kissing a girl in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 10:36
Profile
I'm not sure how "big" a post I should make this... especially considering Synergy edited and cut his (which was a very long and very good post, btw. I saw it before the edit). I guess I'll try to keep it as short and simple as possible (which doesn't mean much, in my case). I just want to say, though. If you want to discuss further about anything, please don't hesitate to PM me. :) ... Alex, again, thank you for your post. Not only for the trust in your fellow board members, but for giving, I believe, giving anyone who reads it something to seriously think about. It may be intensely personal, but by the same token, it's well-written and—I believe—touches upon certain core principles of the human condition. With the heart and honesty you put into it, I can't help but see your post as a gift to us. Enough with that... on to my ramblings. ... First of all, if you haven't read Synergy's full reply, I strongly suggest you ask him for it. He said many things I would have liked to say, and better than I could have said them. Second of all, I'd like to state for the record that I believe that our natural state is bisexuality. Personally, I guess I would consider myself bi-curious. There's no doubt in my mind that I prefer women a lot more, and I very much look forward to starting my own family. It's entirely possible that I'll go through my entire life without having a homosexual encounter, and I'm fine with that. But conversely, if it happens, it happens. And I'm fine with that as well. I think Synergy did an excellent job dealing with the religious aspect, so I'll leave that alone. Not coming from a religious background, I wouldn't be able to do it justice like he did. I haven't read the Bible yet (though it's at the top of my "must read" list). There's just one aspect I'd like to focus on, and that's love. In the end, I think that's the most important thing. I simply can't see how anything done with genuine love can be wrong. And by the same token, I consider heterosexual sex devoid of love as much of a "sin" as homosexual sex devoid of love. From a "natural" standpoint, heterosexuality makes sense within the context of reproduction. But relationships between humans aren't limited only to reproduction. Sex is something intimate to be shared between people, and IMHO, approached from a position of love, trust and integrity, it can be a beautiful thing, no matter the genders involved. It's a unity shared by people who care about each other. I'd just like to point out that homosexuality and bisexuality is prevalent in nature. Sex isn't always about reproduction, it's also a powerful sociological act. I don't believe that any act or state of being is inherently sinful; what makes the difference is the approach taken. I'll try to finish this off... I could ramble on an on and on... especially if I took the time to explain where I'm coming from (which would be relevant, but extensive). So again I remind you, if you'd like me to continue, I'd be happy to do so in PM. I'll just finish off with this thought: If homosexuality is seen as wrong because procreation doesn't enter the picture, then what is to be thought of a heterosexual couple who simply chooses not to have children? What makes them any different than a homosexual couple? A homosexual couple might even want children. And, in some places, be able to adopt. By the same token, what are we to think of a man and/or a woman who is infertile? It's not their fault. It's not their choice. If we see homosexuality as being unnatural and sinful simply because it goes against the "natural order of procreation", then must we not also damn any heterosexual victim of infertility as being inherently unnatural and sinful? In conclusion, just stick to the path you're on... it seems to be a good one, if not an easy one. Follow your heart. That's the best advice I can give anyone. If you're honest with yourself (which you seem to be) and listen hard enough, your heart can never lead you astray. ... quote:Yes... and I think that's good advice for just about anyone. I know that people tend to say that politics and religion should be left out of a relationship, especially at first, but personal experience has taught me that next time I enter any kind of relationship, those are two of the first things I'll bring up. I guess this isn't for everyone, but for people who have strong beliefs one way or another, I think that it's important that those issues are addressed and made clear from the get-go. One relationship in particular comes to mind... incredible compatibility on so many levels. And there were troublesome issues to deal with (about to get a divorce, but wasn't finalized yet, had a daughter from a previous relationship, etc.)... things that required serious considerations. But in the end, it was our religious differences that drove us apart. We had waited too long to deal with those and had already gone too deep. It hurt. A lot. So kids, learn from my mistakes. ;) quote:Or being gay without being religious. Depending on where you live, and your background, being gay—by itself—can be hard enough to deal with without dragging religion into the mix. ... Much love and respect, Alex. :) -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Lag in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 10:01
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quote:Haven't checked for viruses. I have a bootable Norton somewhere, but no clue where it is, so I can't. I recently moved, so all my stuff's deep in boxes still... :mad: I doubt it's a virus, though (never had one in my life), but it's still a possibility... quote:I've looked into doing that, but I can't quite figure out how on OS X... :( quote:That's very weird! I'll have to run Activity Monitor and see if it's doing that for me as well, would explain stuff. Any idea what can be done about that? quote:I'm playing ASR. Nothing weird. quote:To tell you the truth, I don't even know how to turn on virtual memory in OS X, or how to check if it's on. I checked the System Profiler, but it didn't say anything. If I do "About This Mac", though, the memory it says I have is my built-in... but I don't know if it would show virtual memory if it was turned on... I have 1.55gb free of a 10gb HD. I threw away all I could recently (hoping it would help), but didn't do much difference. quote:I know that question wasn't directed to me, but I'll answer anyways, for the record. ;) OS X 10.2.8 quote:Bah! :( Any idea what I could do to help things run smoother? -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| ASR: Empire vs. Rebels in Blades of Avernum | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Sunday, October 9 2005 09:47
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Okay, thanks. :) I guess I'll just keep a save file just before I choose, and try both. -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Kissing a girl in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Saturday, October 8 2005 07:50
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quote:No way. That was an incredible post. As much because of the courage of its honesty as for the depth and breadth of the subject matter. I just woke up, but expect a proper reply later. -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Politics and Beliefs in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Friday, October 7 2005 21:40
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quote:But Gravity and Evolution don't deal with the same topic... Evolution and Intelligent Design, on the other hand, go hand in hand. They both have to do with our origins, albeit at different stages. Gravity is just a physical law. quote:Impossible to prove, for now. But that's what I'm saying. ID, as a science, is still too young. But approached from a properly scientific angle... who knows what we'll discover in a year? A decade? A century? And if/when that happens (if/when ID becomes a valid scientific theory), I think that could be extremely interesting. "Evolutionary Design 101"... :D ... I'll leave you all tonight with a lil' ranting tangent. One theory I've heard (I don't think it's particularly widespread) is that life started on Earth from bacteria that landed here on a meteor. Which, in a way, would make us all aliens. :P I like that. Another theory I've heard (even more obscure) is that the meteor came from Mars. It's immensely unlikely, but I like it anyways. I'm a huge fan of conspiracy theories, and utterly obsessed with Mars. Some (very few) argue that, at one time, in the extremely distant past, Mars had been like Earth. A living world with an atmosphere. Maybe we're Martians? But going on a slight tangent from this, and continuing with the idea of ID/Evo, perhaps that meteor didn't land on Earth by accident. ... Imagine: (crazy theory time) Some alien civilization (our ancestors), somewhere far away (or perhaps not so far), a very long time ago... realized that something was gonna happen (cataclysm or somesuch... perhaps a large asteroid was going to hit their planet soon and vaporize them). So they coded their knowledge into DNA... programmed themselves into bacteria, and shipped it off-world towards a planet they knew would—by the time it would be reached—be a prime spot to support life, thereby insuring the survival and continuation of their species in the long run. It could be that their technology was not advanced enough to make the trip themselves, but that in bacterial form, on a cellular level, they knew it could reach. Perhaps their technology was advanced enough that they could send something else... Perhaps they calculated how long it might take us to evolve to a certain level of civilization and technology, and so they sent a slow-flying probe or something... on a billion year journey. Maybe in a few years, we'll intercept it, and we'll find... a message from our great-great-great-(add a few zillion more greats)-grandfathers and grandmothers. Or something like that. ~blinks~ I think I'm tired... ;) ~coughs~ I'm going to bed. Otherwise I'm probably gonna start rambling about the Anunnaki... :rolleyes: -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
| Politics and Beliefs in General | |
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Warrior
Member # 6347
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written Friday, October 7 2005 21:15
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~nods~ So there's really no point in teaching it as something separate. :P Unless the purpose is to sneak Christian Creationism into the mix. ~shakes his head~ I'd love to go to school and hear about Evolution-by-Design, though. That would actually be worth taking a biology class for! -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 21:04
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I knew I had forgotten something... quote:Good point, and I think that's the key issue. It's not about how much minimum wage is, it's about what it'll get you. I've stated how much I think it should be, but I forgot to mention why. Canada's minimum wage supports... life. But I wouldn't exactly call it decent. If you work 40 hours/week at a minimum wage job, you can get by, but barely, and Montréal (from what I've heard, not sure how true it is) has one of the lowest costs of living in North America. So I can imagine that in all the other places, people are having that much more of a hard time if they're only making minimum wage. Cost of living goes up all the time. But I can't even remember when the minimum wage went up. That doesn't work out too well. quote:Well, yes... I wasn't quite serious about raising the price. The rich wouldn't care and, arguably, it's the poor that need easy, safe access to it the most anyways. I just meant that it's something that should be used as a last resort, and that our society—despite fully supporting it, and making it as available as possible—should foster a frame of mind where it wouldn't have to come to that too often. quote:Isn't it, though? ;) I should go to bed. But I don't want to miss anything. :( I'm scared of what there'll be to read/reply to tomorrow! :eek: Glad I'm not working until Sunday. ;) quote:Oh! My bad. I had understood that you didn't want to give any to anyone. -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 20:46
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quote:I think that's what she meant. :) -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 20:40
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Dammit, every time I'm about to post a reply, I see someone else has replied, so I have to edit my post. :P So it keep growing and growing... all that just so I don't double post! So don't complain it's too long. ;) ... quote:Good point. Still, such a fuss over semantics... :( quote:That makes sense. I must admit, I hadn't considered the alien perspective. Of course, that not how most people are looking at ID, but, well, I guess that's another story. The main concern people have with ID is that it's the Religious Right's attempt at "sneaking" religion into schools. That ID is, despite its claims to vagueness, specifically about Christian Genesis. A concern I can understand, and share. I'm all for theorizing about aliens, though. But looking at it like that, ID and Evolution aren't mutually exclusive... Consider this outlandish and exaggerated scenario, if you will: Some alien race, for some reason unknown to us, decided to create us. And so they planted the "seeds of life" on Earth. Using their highly advanced knowledge of evolutionary biology (among many other great skills), however they set things up, they made it so that life would grow and evolve on Earth. So you get ID (the aliens "creating" us, jump-starting life on this planet) and Evolution (the subsequent growth of said life). What's wrong with that? I personally quite like the idea. I don't believe it, but I like it. It's a nice story. Point is, we don't have the slightest clue of where (or why) we come from. I'm not an atheist. I very very strong beliefs about the physical and spiritual nature of our universe. But I believe in evolution. It makes sense. I'm all for a scientific inquiry into the theory of ID, but it doesn't seem to me that it's gone through enough scientific "tests" and research to be taught in schools as a direct competitor to evolution. I'm not saying it never will. I'll be glad to see the day where, in our schools, scientists and teachers are honest enough to say "Hey, you know what? We don't know. But we have a couple of theories, and here they are...". As I mentioned before, I'm not a huge fan of science. Not that I don't believe in it, but I strongly dislike the cold and impersonal approach it leads to. As much as I wouldn't say science, by itself, fosters atheism, I do believe that our approach to science tends to lead many in that direction. Which I find sad (but hey, that's just me). As I've mentioned before, Science, to me, is nothing more than the new world religion. It's a personal paradigm that's easy to succumb to. It's a world view. It's a Faith. My biggest beef with it, though, is that since it only deals with what it can touch or see, it completely ignores the spiritual world. I can't wait for the day that science reaches a level where it can go further than skin-deep. But back to ID; as I said I've been telling myself to do for a while, I started doing a bit of research. I do emphasize a bit... I haven't gotten very far. But I did find a few things. Here's something about the whole science vs. religion bit, and why a religiously-fuelled ID theory doesn't belong in science class: quote:But when you say this: "ID supports the idea that life was created by completely non-deistic aliens as well as it supports the idea that life was created by God", well, Evolution doesn't necessarily preclude ID. Here's something else I found, this written in 2001. quote:Within this context, ID doesn't need to be against Evolution. The only time where Evolution and ID come to clash is when you take ID from a decidedly Christian perspective and take the Bible as empirical truth, as opposed to metaphor. Again, a quote from that last page: quote:This becomes Christian because that's what the Bible says, doesn't it? That God created man and all living creatures. Each one individually. Independently. Without this core Christian belief, why would anyone have a problem with Evolution? Even if they believed in Intelligent Design? I read something else about all this, but I unfortunately can't find it to quote it right now. But to paraphrase, it basically said that the theory of evolution is one of the strongest scientific theories we have right now. That it's constantly being put to the test and proven right. I'm all for ID, if it can reach that level of scientific solidity. In the end, it's the Christian bias of ID that's problematic. I'll leave you with one word against ID: mosquitos!! Unless our intelligent designers have a cruel sense of humor. ;) And why would you regret getting into this? This is what this thread is for! This is fun! :D quote:I didn't know that! About needing a constitutional amendment. Interesting. Forgive me, I'm Canadian. ;) quote:I'm well aware Bush's tax cuts were mostly for the rich. And I'm fully in favor of doing something to change that. But I'm just saying, the poor could actually use those tax cuts. Why not give it to them? If you removed them from the rich, you could give some to the poor and still have plenty of money left to help with the deficit. And you'd be raising the lower classes from the much while you're at it. quote:I'm not sure what I should be saying here, but I feel I should say something; I agree fully. There. I said something. Those words could have been my own. Or close enough. quote:That's an excellent point! I had never thought of that! ~puts on his pro-choice marching costume~ It's too late to stop it. Banning it would just make things worse. :( quote:Yup. In some countries, you can get stoned to death for being gay. And here we are, arguing about semantics! ~LoL~ -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 19:06
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Fascinating... So the only difference is names? What's the big deal, then? I don't get it... :eek: -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 18:45
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quote:I never meant that I could replace anyone. Thus my saying that maybe I could help, as opposed to my saying that I could do it ("it", of course, being replacing the leaving oldies). :) quote:Back off!! Johnny's mine!! :mad: ~shakes fist~ I may not be a petite blonde, but I speak French! ;) -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 18:39
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quote:I fully agree with that. I'm all for abortion, but it shouldn't be a decision made lightly. What if it cost a fortune or something? I dunno... By no means am I advocating that people should see human life as cheap and/or easily disposable. Abortion should never be undertaken lightly. Sadly, I can't help but feel as though many people think somewhere along the lines of "It doesn't matter too much if I'm pregnant, I'll just get an abortion". It should, IMO, be a last resort. But I still feel it should be a viable option. Far too many people aren't "worthy" of being parents, for lack of a better term. And I know this sounds bad, but I mean... Parenthood is not something to be undertaken lightly there's no doubt about that. And it seems that a vast number of new parents (I don't want to say "majority", although it does seem that way to me) simply aren't ready. All this energy we spend on abortions vs. no abortions could much better be spent trying to make sure people don't end up in a situation where they'd want to get an abortion. No? Of course, putting a kid up for adoption is always an option, but there's already tons of children without parents waiting to be adopted. Imagine how many there would be without adoptions? What about young teenage girls who did something stupid, or simply got unlucky? If our (by "our", I mean North American) society follows the Right in regards to abortion, I fully expect we'll be hearing a lot more about babies found in dumpsters in dark alleys. But yes, I'm 200% behind you on prevention being better than abortion. quote:What's the difference, exactly? Is it simply the religious aspect? If that's the case, what if it's not a Christian wedding? Or, by the same logic, why should non-Christian weddings be legal? quote:It's called the theory of evolution, not the law of evolution. Nobody says evolution is the Absolute Truth. At least, nobody whose opinion on the subject matters much. As such, it doesn't need proof in the absolute and empirical sense. It is, on the other hand, a theory based on various scientifically-determined facts and observation. This can't be said about Creationism and Intelligent Design. There's nothing wrong with teaching Creationism and/or Intelligent Design, but it has no place in a science class room. It's the domain of philosophy. And I say this as a philosopher, I've never been overly fond of science. So don't think I'm bashing anything here. quote:It's the "alongside" I have a problem with. As I said, this is something I've been wanting to do some research on (i.e. I don't have all my facts straight, so it's not like I'm claiming I know what's happening or anything), but from what I've heard, they want to teach Intelligent Design alongside evolution in science class. I don't know what's being taught in American schools these days. I don't even know what's being taught in Canadian schools these days. But when I was in high school, we learned about Evolution in science class and Creationism in religious studies. In neither case did someone say "This is the truth!". In both cases, the subjects were presented as theories, and beliefs held by some. If this is what is meant by "alongside", then I don't have the slightest problem with it. But from my understanding of the situation, that's not what's meant by "alongside". By what stretch of the imagination can "Intelligent Design" not be considered religion? Even if you try to distance it from the Christian faith, the fact remains that its central paradigm is one of a sentient, willful, creating force. In other words, a god, if not the God. Seriously, I'm very much curious about this. I'm not just saying these things to infer that you're wrong, I'm honestly asking the question (being a student of religion), wanting to understand the situation better. quote:Where do you live, and where are you from? I'm curious, your sig being in French... quote:Looking forward to you having time... ;) -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 16:57
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quote:Haha, indeed! :D Huzzah for unending discussion. ;) quote::eek: In that case, Ben, I invite you to PM me. I don't want everybody mad at me for opening Pandora's box. Or is that Ben's box? Whatever... :P quote:I saw a movie like that, once. It was about this guy who was pissed off at God, because his life sucked. The movie was about the main character's quest to find God and ask him why things were the way they were. Along his travels, he met some other people... a young woman who was about to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge, an old bitter priest, and another or two that I can't remember. In the end, they find God. Some novelist, living in his country home. When they get there, God's sitting in his backyard, writing peacefully. So they start questioning him n' all... Them: "Why, oh why? Why all the pain, suffering and misery?" God: "My life sucks. What, you think I'd give my characters a happy life? No way!" It was a comedy. And it was French. Very bizarre movie, but quite entertaining. ... On a more serious note, though, I doubt we could ever truly prove we exist. For to do that, we'd all have to agree on a definition of what "to exist" means, and I seriously doubt humanity will ever manage that one. Even then, even if we did. I think the "Truth" can't be proven in the empirical sense I think you mean. As for caring, I do... but to explain why, well... we'd be here a long time. ;) [ Friday, October 07, 2005 17:03: Message edited by: Muji ] -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |
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written Friday, October 7 2005 16:48
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quote:Allow me to introduce you to a very useful little site. ;) http://www.xe.com/ It'll change any currency into any other. 5£ is 8.80251$ USD or 10.3332$ CAD. That's quite nice! Then again, things are very expensive in the UK. :( That's another important factor to consider: cost of living. quote:Thing is, abortion doesn't just happen. It takes a conscious, concerted effort to bring about. Homosexuality, on the other hand, just happens. It's a natural phenomena. It's not just some "crazy human invention". Saying something "should not happen" is all well and good, but it does. Abortion is a human invention, homosexuality isn't. How do you propose to control a natural event? quote:Please do elaborate! quote:I'm new, so I don't know. ;) I wouldn't mind a quick nutshell. :) -------------------- "Take time to listen to what is said without words, to obey the law too subtle to be written, to worship the unnameable and to embrace the unformed." -- Lao Tzu Posts: 124 | Registered: Monday, September 26 2005 07:00 |