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Whirled Views 10.15
Good morning!
Today’s movie quote: “Snakes. Why’d it hafta be snakes?”
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back to top64 Comments to “Whirled Views 10.15”
Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark
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Darn. I knew that and I was off playing Freecell. Anyway I agree with the sentiment. I hate snakes. That’s one reason I miss my dog. I always felt like she was chasing the snakes off ahead of me when I went for a walk.
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My wife is very fond of the garter snakes she finds from time to time in our garden. She hopes they will eat the slugs.
Speaking of creepies and crawlies, back in the days of “classic” wmb, I announced a contest. I’ve decided to announce the winners this week, though I probably won’t send the money until the end of the year, but the winners can designate what they want me to purchase for them.
In part, I’ve decided to close the contest entries a little early because I’ve had a “sign.” As I am a Radical Agnostic, I don’t believe in “signs,” but I’ve decided to act as if a recent event I regard as a coincidence actually were a sign from the heavens (or somewhere).
Also, I had a vague feeling that I should try to be “objective” and “fair” in choosing the winners. I decided not to be, to indulge to all my biases and prejudices and play favorites in choosing winners. So I have.
Also, I originally planned to pick two winners. One would be from what I call the loyalists, primarily conservative Christians, and the other would be from the rebels, a motley, ragtag group of atheists, agnostics, liberal Christians, homosexuals, and perhaps a few crazy people as well, though I think the latter come in all flavors, frankly.
Their is one person who perhaps might be a rebel, but perhaps doesn’t exactly fit that label, so I decided to aware a third prize as well, just because a feel like it and because I had a sign that was not a sign.
More tomorrow.
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A poster screen-named Key asked me to read a book called “Who Made God?” apparently in the hope that reading this book of apologetics would convince me to become a Christian.
I was not offended by the request, as I am not offended when people say (as they do from time to time on wmb) that they are praying for me.
I did read the book and found it well-written and interesting. It did not convince me to become a Christian.
People on wmb often speak of winning and losing debates and of proving points such as the existence of God or of absolute moral values. I’ve decided in my cranky old age that I’ve become a postmodern person, though just as I describe myself as a “high” agnostic (very close to atheist), I would describe myself as a “low” postmodern. That is I believe there is such a thing as “truth” and it is “out there” somewhere (as they used to say on the X Files, but we will never know it for sure.
As far as who ever “wins” a debate on wmb, there is no way to know for sure. Perhaps God and Jesus know, though they may disagree and have to call in the Holy Ghost as a tie-breakers. Something to be said for a Trinity in that regard.
In any case, I will comment more on the book, though not with the intent of “debating” those Christians who may find it quite persuasive, or of “disproving” the authors’ theses. I will comment (later this week as I have to go to work now) just because I feel like commenting and you are a captive audience, though you can scroll past me, as I am sure many do, and good for you.
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I would think that someone “won” a debate, if they made me change my opinion or at the very least caused me to rethink my original opinion. That has happened a few times, but very seldom on the big stuff.
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Over the weekend, I’ve come to realize how little I love God.
I read something, which although isn’t a new thought or a revelation, is something that stuck with me and is bothering me.
It says:
You only love God as much as the person you love the least.
Ouch.
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Out in your churches across the country, have you observed an upswing in spiritual warfare? Churches with financial woes, pastors under more extreme forms of pressure, discouragement rampant and tired believers?
Obviously, spiritual warfare goes on all the time, but it just seems like I’m hearing a lot more about it these days and I’m curious if it’s me, or anyone else.
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VS,
I’ve similarly come to the conclusion that if I break any of the commandments, I’ve broken the first one. I’ve also come to the sobering realization, that I cannot keep any of the commandments.
Now this realization can be a bad or a good thing depending on how I approach it. If I sit down in despair, it’s a bad thing. But if I confess this before God, and accept his salvation in the work of Christ, and celebrate the forgiveness available there, it’s an exceedingly good thing.
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Random, it is sometimes frustrating when people speak of “winning” and “losing” debates. Sometimes the result isn’t so obvious, and I’ve seen both “sides” claim victory (of course, we see this is political debates all the time). Other times, the winner is very obvious (here is a link for a “classic” debate between a Christian and an atheist; even most atheists I’ve read lament the fact that their “side” did poorly at this particular debate, and have even referenced it in terms of “how not to debate”: http://www.bellevuechristian.org/faculty/dribera/htdocs/PDFs/Apol_Bahnsen_Stein_Debate_Transcript.pdf)
I’ve also often heard it said, by debaters themselves, that debates are not for the two sides debating (neither of them is likely to change his/her mind), but for the audience. Of course, if someone comes to a debate with his/her mind already made up (or, to use the example you gave, comes to a book in the same manner), then little change will be made. This is one of the reasons I suspect that folks pray for you (and, trust me, there are plenty who do this w/o letting you know about it), because you will only change your mind if God first changes your heart. Paul speaks about this in Romans 1, of the unbeliever, even though God suppressing the truth and knowledge of God in unrighteousness. There is a deep theological and philosophical issue here, but to put into simpler terms, it would be like my wife’s grandfather insisting that men never landed on the moon, or 9/11 “troofers” who believe that the gov’t orchestrated the destruction of the twin towers. No amount of “evidence” will convince them. Of course, evidences are always interpreted according to the presuppositions of the person viewing the evidence. And unless a person is willing to discard faulty presuppositions, the evidence will continue be viewed according to that preconceived (and often faulty) paradigm.
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BTW, would it be fair to say that “Raiders of the Lost Ark” was the original “Snakes on a Plane”?
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Well, today is not starting out well at all…
As most of you know I have lost my voice for several months now. I’ve spent lots of money and taken a ton of prescriptions to no avail.
I just came from the ENT, who has informed me that I need to be put to sleep and have a biopsy done on my vocal cords. It’s set of Oct. 30th.
He said the odds are that nothing serious is wrong, but he wants to be sure. (Where have I heard that before?) I don’t smoke and I’m not sick, so it’s baffling as to why I’m having this problem.
So today I’m going to check the ENT out and see what kind of malpractice history he has. I’ve only been to him twice, so I really don’t know anything about him.
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VS, thank you for your comments in # 6. As I was studying through Galatians 1:6-10 for yesterday’s sermon, the latter part of verse 10 struck me: “For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.” Of course, this follows the famous anathema verses in this letter, and because of that, I never had quite let these words sink in. Paul was accused of being a people-pleaser (which he obviously was not), when he tells us that we are to be bond-servants (literally “slaves”) of Christ. The language of redemption (being bought back out of slavery by Christ and being united to Him) is here, as is a reminder of our first love. We are to love God, the gospel, the things of Christ, and one of the unmistakable results of this is love for one another. And Paul loved the Galatians so much that he was willing to offend them with his harsh words because their souls were more important than their feelings.
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Quick note from foster-care land. The girls are out of school today for the fourth straight day. THe other three days have been very, very good days–until yesterday evening. Yesterday evening and this morning we’ve had much disobedience and many meltdowns.
This afternoon a favorite adult from church is coming over to watch the girls while I go to parent-teacher conference. And then, if the girls are in an obedient frame of mind, we’ll go to the zoo. They love animals and should really enjoy that (they don’t yet know about it), but I’ve learned that taking these girls in public if they’re less than obedient is a recipe for disaster.
Anyway, keep praying for us. For the most part it is going better each day, but I will be glad when they’re back in school tomorrow at the end of our four days off.
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Michelle, #7.
That definitely describes what we experience in our church. Only, we no longer have a pastor. Or, we don’t have a pastor, yet. (perspective depends on where a congregant is in their grief process).
Everybody:
Haven’t had internet since Friday! Just got internet after 2 1/2 hours on phone with tech. support! So, if I haven’t responded, that’s why.
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Despite not appearing there in person, Ron Paul still wins the Conservative Leadership Conference’s GOP presidential straw poll at the Nugget Casino with 33% of the votes.
Mitt Romney shows up, takes second place (i.e., first loser) with 16%.
So what does the headline read on MSNBC’s “First Read” news blog?
ROMNEY LOSES NV STRAW POLL
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/10/14/410525.aspx
Conclusion: The MSM DOES have a liberal bias!
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Anlir: My dad went through a similar thing about 12 years ago. He did smoke at the time. They also removed some tissue from inside his mouth. Luckily it turned out to be scar tissue from his bite being off. Point is: Don’t jump to conclusions. There are many reasons for something like this to happen. Just PLEASE, PLEASE if the doc puts you on voice rest DO IT! My dad was so afraid he had cancer that he woke up in recovery trying to talk to make sure he hadn’t lost his vocal chords. Good Luck!
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Michelle, we’ve been there as a church. Hope it will encourage you to say we are now experiencing such blessings we don’t know what to do. Baptisms are higher than ever. Attendance is hovering around 1000 in worship (100 or so lower in SS). No earthly reason for any of it. Through the dark days I learned to trust God to care for his church and to use the situation(s) to mold us into His image. So glad we stayed where God had put us!
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Deb,
That is very interesting to me in light of what our church is experiencing.
Would you mind describing what it was like at the lowest point? Also, how long ago that was, and what the turning point was (if there was one)?
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;-(
testing
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Michelle – Yes, our church has been in a time of testing, too. And other friends in other places have mentioned problems in their churches as well.
We are hopeful, however, & trusting that God has a plan in all of this.
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Michelle, I’d be wary about labeling struggling churches as “spiritual warfare” simply because they’re struggling.
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Lynn, does WOTW intend to address the growing scandal at Oral Roberts University?
The financial allegations alone, if true, are disgusting. The sexual allegations are even more disgusting, especially since they involve Lindsay Roberts, the wife of Richard Roberts, who’s in her fifties. According the the original lawsuit, she has received hundreds of messages from “underage males” between the hours of 1 and 3 am, on phones provided to them at school expense.
Three professors, John Swails, Tim Brooker and Paulita Brooker, were fired for allegedly voicing concerns about the university’s involvement in Tulsa’s recent mayoral race — a move that would jeopardize the school’s tax exempt status.
“We turned it over to the board of trustees, and at that point we all found ourselves separated from the university,” Swails said.
The professors’ lawsuit alleges that Roberts took money from the university’s coffers and remodeled his family home 11 times in 14 years, spent more than $26,000 on his daughter’s senior trip and even required university employees to complete her homework.
The suit also alleges that Roberts’ wife, Lindsey, spent more than $39,000 of the school’s money on clothing and ran up more than $800 monthly in cell phone bills, which included hundreds of text messages in the middle of the night to “underage males who had been provided phones at university expense.”
http://www.abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=3706360
Now another lawsuit has been filed saying that Richard Roberts fired the schools’ comptroller after 26 years of service as retaliation. The suit also claims that on nine separate occasions his wife Lindsay spent the night with a 16 year old boy alone in the school’s guest house. It’s also claimed that for a time she even moved him into their own home, which disgusted even her out of control children.
Inside the petition is a scandal vulnerability assessment which contains a web of new allegations.
It claims Mrs. Roberts spent the night in the university’s guest house with an underage male on 9 separate occasions.
It states there are 29 photos of Mrs. Roberts and the underage male alone in her sports car after city-wide curfew.
The university’s Board of Regents was added as a defendant in the lawsuit.
It claims Roberts and the board gave a convicted sexual deviant unrestricted access to the students of the university as a “mentor.”
It also says three days after the original lawsuit was filed, ORU and Roberts terminated ORU’s financial comptroller.
Then it states witnesses have reported that voluminous materials and documents were shredded and destroyed.
It also quotes a taped phone call where Roberts was heard saying, “I have the deck stacked — I am elected to three year terms and if a regent appears to give me trouble, I remove him. I stack the deck.”
http://www.kjrh.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=34ac9d61-ca95-4a35-aac8-85426e499587
It’s hard for me to understand why a Christian news site hasn’t covered this story.
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“allegations” “allegedly” “alleges” “alleges” “claims”
Maybe this is why they haven’t covered it.
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#10 “Snakes on a plane” Someone would have to give me lots of cash to see that movie.
Anlir, still that sounds scary. I’ll say a prayer.
Things are going very well with our church. We baptized 30 last Sunday. I hope that’s not a bad sign.
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Ah, “Snakes on a plane.” Saw the trailer, and my wife had to keep hitting me in the ribs to stop my laughter. Dumbest. Movie. Ever.
Then the debate kids wanted to watch at a summer pizza party. Now that was interesting. Pretty soon the music types were pointing out the “hero” themes, along with the echo of Richard Strauss (I had referred to the wrong segment). The few Hollywood obligatory sex on plane scenes were dismissed with a collective “ick”. At the end, the original judgment stood triumphant: dumbest. movie. ever.
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Wow, kbells. So several professors at a well known college claiming that they got fired for exposing serious financial wrongdoing at the school isn’t newsworthy? And that they claim that they have proof of this means nothing? Wow.
I’m pretty sure that if this story involved Harvard, or say Planned Parenthood misappropriating tax exempt funds, you’d have a different opinion.
By your logic, no news outfit should’ve mentioned OJ Simpson’s recent arrest, since everything is “alleged”. For that matter, none of them should have covered his trial for murder, since that was merely alleged, until after he was convicted. And since he was acquitted, even the fact that he was tried for murder should never have been mentioned in the press at all.
And Christians wonder why people laugh at them?
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Nighttrain, You asked, I didn’t know, I made a guess. Gee, lighten up.
“I’m pretty sure that if this story involved Harvard, or say Planned Parenthood misappropriating tax exempt funds, you’d have a different opinion.”
No I wouldn’t.
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I’m against censorship. Censorship is a bad thing. When people are censored, they become afraid to say anything.
Another problem is people who are too sensitive. Why bother talking to people when any little thing, like not respecting their delusions, is taken personally. The solution is to just avoid talking to sensitive people and also avoid talking in places that are likely to censor the truth.
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Well, Night Train, the other Christian sites I go to have been covering this, so I don’t know that you can make any assumptions about Christians in general from the lack of coverage here. (i.e. “And Christians wonder why people laugh at them?”)
This site has also not covered the huge issue of California and Arnold Schwartzenegger signing into law the “anti Mom and Dad” legislation. You’d think they’d have covered that too, especially as a Conservative magazine.
So, maybe there’s not a “conspiracy” after all, just that someone hasn’t gotten on it like they should have.
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Why bother talking to people when any little thing, like not respecting their delusions, is taken personally.
******And this is coming from the person who goes non-linear when someone questions him intensely or even slightly appears to get personal??
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Well, Night Train, the other Christian sites I go to have been covering this, so I don’t know that you can make any assumptions about Christians in general from the lack of coverage here. (i.e. “And Christians wonder why people laugh at them?”)
How is asking Lynn if WOTW plans to cover this making assumptions about Christians in general?
The remark about the world laughing at Christians was not directed at Lynn or WOTW for not covering this story. It was directed at Kbells who evidently believes that news orgs should only write about crimes after they have been proven in a court of law.
So, maybe there’s not a “conspiracy” after all, just that someone hasn’t gotten on it like they should have.
Where did I allege or even hint at any sort of conspiracy? I asked Lynn if WOTW had any plans to cover the story, and said that I think this story belongs on a Christian news site.
And out of that you get “conspiracy” talk where?
I’ve said it several times, and I’ll say it again. WOTW has the more careeless readers I’ve ever seen on any kind of internet forum.
Period.
Please learn to read more carefully so that next time you can respond to what I actually wrote, and not what you somehow imagined me writing.
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Michelle, I hesitate to say what all was happening because it is in the past. I’m sure my recollections are different from another’s and while I can see the benefit to you, I do not want to open that can of worms again. Just keep on trusting the Father to work in the corporate life of the church as well as individual lives. Pray for God to keep people’s stories away from you. While it is always good to pray for each other, we never need to hear details from a third party. My prayers are with you. I know this is painful. I also know now such joy on the other side of the pain.
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BTW I’m not a big fan of Oral Roberts. I think he has done more harm to the cause than some who are trying. This may very well be all true. I wouldn’t be surprised. But I’d rather wait until all the facts are out before forming an opinion. I’m just sick of the media jumping on half-baked rumors before the facts are all out, only to bury the story when it turns out to be nothing.
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Anlir,
Make sure the doc is board-certified. If you need a biopsy/anesthesia, get the best you can. Atlanta’s a big place–if he’s not board-certified, it wouldn’t take long to find someone who is. I know one in Gwinnett, but that’s a bit of a hike for you!
May I pray for you about this?
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Hi everyone. Sorry I have been out of town on business the last two weeks. How has everyone been?
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#9 TJ,
I suspect you are probably the best debater who participates regularly on worldmagblog. As a consequence, I tend to reply rather slowly and carefully to your comments.
Some debates are decided fairly clearly. Not many people are arguing about whether the world is flat or round any more. Semmelweis was correct that doctors should wash their hands before attending to women giving birth; although he died before his observation was accepted or put into practice in very many places, every doctor now knows to do this..
Although the world is not completely free of slavery today (not even the United States), you would have a hard time finding a person who would argue with a straight face in today’s world that one person should be the property of another. This was a slow motion debate that was decided over centuries, but not really by any “proof” or “decision.”
Nevertheless, most people, whether as participants or as members of the audience, come to debates to reinforce their beliefs. This is true at worldmagblog. It’s remotely possible that some reader at wmb has become a religious believer or lost religious belief by reading some of the thousands of messages posted here with such urgency, but if it happens at all, it is very rare and the person to whom it happened has been very quiet about it.
Nevertheless, every day computer screens are filled with people advancing their opinions with great urgency and conviction. Really, if one thinks about it, it is a very strange phenomenon. The Skinnerians say that intermittent reinforcement is the most effective and lasting type, but this is ridiculous. What do people think they are doing?
(Before anyone asks: 1) I am amusing myself—I am too easily amused; 2) I am a frustrated comedian, but too slow-witted to get up on a stage and subject myself to heckling; 3) in a sports metaphor, I am “playing the seams”; 4) I will soon be taking a six-month (at least) sabbatical, during which time I will write solipsisticaly on my own blog; I will tend my garden, visit my granddaughter, and cultivate a business where I sell flash drives imprinted with “Jesus Saves” to atheists.
Really, people, why do you post your opinions over and over even though it never changes anyone else’s mind?
Meanwhile I contemplate all the prayers for me arising in the sky like smoke, along with qwerty’s denunciations of me for being an agnostic wuss.
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I am hearing rumblings about something Bill Cosby said on Meet the Press yesterday. Anyone know what I am talking about?
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This story cracked me up. It’s also pathetic. What’s the word for something that’s sad and hilarious at the same time? Or is there such a word?
I just finished reading Hollywood Station by Joseph Wambaugh, which is a gritty look at cop life in LA, and how the cops have pretty much got their hands tied behind their back nowaday due to Political Correctness and race hustlers like Anthony Bradley and Al Sharpton. Wambaugh’s a great writer, and after reading the book you’ll not only have been entertained, you’ll also wonder why any sane man would choose to be a cop, and you’ll marvel that the cops manage to put any bad guys away at all with all the impediments they face.
Well, now a black cop in Chicago is denouncing one of the police force rules as “racist”. What’s the “racist” rule? That cops can’t hang out with criminals. She says that since black people are far more likely to be criminals than white people are, black cops are being discriminated against.
Now, if Ann Coulter or Pat Buchanan said that blacks are fare more likely to be criminals than whites, they’d be excoriated. Even though it’s an undeniable fact, we’re not supposed to mention it, and we’re supposed to condemn those who do. But this woman can get away with it.
And if you’re not already convinced that she’s a genius, there’s more. She claims the law was specifically written to discriminate against blacks. The truth is that the law dates from the 1970s, and was aimed at corrupt cops, many of who were Italian, who had ties to Mafia figures. But never mind the facts; she know better.
Yes, we’ve got some real geniuses on our big city police forces. And not only is this woman a genius, she’s also upset that the can’t associate with criminals. Our future looks brighter every day.
blockquote>An African-American Chicago Police officer contends that a rule barring cops from associating with criminals discriminates against black officers.
The officer argues the rule is more restrictive on black officers because of the disproportionate number of African Americans who have had contact with the criminal justice system.
http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/602276,CST-NWS-cop14.article
Look for an article any day now from WOTW’s Anthony Bradley on those horrible, racist Chicago cops.
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Why do I have to keep logging back in today? I was logged in for about 2 weeks and today every time I have tried to post I have had to log back in.
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Anlir – Our Pastor had a very similar problem and his Dr. attributed it to some on-going heartburn problems and as long as he takes an OTC med to counter that, he’s been fine.
Not saying that yours will be this “simple” but maybe so!?!
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Kim – That’s very funny (as in odd) because I’ve had that problem pretty much since this new blog has been up and running – today is the only day that I haven’t been logged out even once and I was even away from my computer for almost 4 hours straight.
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Kim – We stayed home from church yesterday due to not feeling well. We watched Meet the Press.
Did you see it, too, or are you just hearing things about it?
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Hi Joe B
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I am just hearing about it. Last night when I was checking email there was a link to it but I didn’t read the story. Today one of our assistants was saying something about it. I am uninformed and ignorant but would like to know what was said.
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# 36: Ah, Random, your posts never disappoint me. I may not agree with you, but I do respect the sly wisdom you often treat us with.
You are wrong on at least one point: I would not say I’m the best debater on WMB. Ok, maybe top 10…
However, I would tend to agree with you that most folks enter a debate to have their own ideas reinforced. That is not universally true, of course, but I would say it is probably true most of the time.
However, there are two other observations I would add to the mix: 1) What takes place on Internet sites, even ones like WMB, are not really “debate.” A true debate is much more formal, sticks to one thesis, has a moderator that makes sure rules and thesis are followed, allows for equal time, rebuttals, etc. Blogs and such do not usually lend themselves to such a format, and you often have multiple participants, sometimes ganging up on a person, multiple rabbit trails that crop up, etc. I would propose that these may also be contributing factors as to why these exchanges. My second point is perhaps even more relevant: 2) The way people behave on a blog like this, hidden behind the safety of their computer screens, tends to hurt such “debates.” People often speak to each other in a way that they would never do if they were meeting over dinner or a cup of coffee. We tend to speak more kindly to one another in person (and we tend to choose our words more carefully, including being clearer in the ways in which we speak).
Having said all that, I am glad you are not a Skinnerian (?). We are all certainly much more than poorly trained animals, even if certain folks popular in the media speculate that we are quasi-chimpanzees. If Skinner were right, these such exchanges are only the result of the stimuli we are engaging in (a never-ending cycle, perhaps), so no one should fault anyone else for behaving in such a way, unless certain forms of punishment/reward therapy (or massive amounts of drugs perhaps) are used. I, for one, am happy to see that there are those on the other side of the aisle who see the futility of that. I would never suggest that I rob your dignity in that way, and I would venture to guess that you would treat me with the same respect.
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Now that Random Name has that cute little kiwi (or whatever it is) on a white background for a avatar, it looks much better when he makes odd-numbered posts than when he makes even-numbered posts. Just a random observation. If he were to try to make odd-numbered posts, then his randomness would drastically decrease. Not sure what all this means. . .
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Kim – In a nutshell-
Cosby gives talks to folks in various black communities, & has written a book, urging them to be involved (& married) parents, to stop blaming institutionalized racism & take personal responsibility, & to be serious about education.
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Random Name wrote: I suspect you are probably the best debater who participates regularly on worldmagblog.
Does this mean I win the prize as “best debator” and that the prize of a charitable contribution comes my way (i.e., left to my designation)?
I had no idea I was even in the running!
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Does anyone have an email address for Lynn or another WMB editor? I can’t find one, and would like to ask them to fix a formatting problem that I caused with a long URL on another thread.
Thanks.
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A kiwi? I thought Random’s avatar was a spider? But you know how much I goofed on your avatar TRR!
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#48 TJ
Well, actually, you weren’t in the running, but you’re such a good debater you sold me, so I’ve now expanded the prizes to four and one of them will be yours. Let us know the organization you want me to donate to. It has to be recognized as a “legitimate” charitable tax-deductible organization by the IRS; within that limitation, anything goes.
That’s all, folks, the door is closed. Everybody else can award themselves a prize for whatever reason they deem worthy, but they will have to make their own donations.
That would be a good Christmas celebration for worldmagblog, come to think of it.
Everyone who participates here give yourselves an award for whatever you think most worthy about your wmb participation, and in your own honor, donate $100 (or whatever amount you can afford or deem proper) to a charitable organization for Christmas, or any other holiday you deem appropriate. qwerty could do Darwin’s birthday, or in honor of the first creature that crawled out of the sea onto the land and sprouted lungs.
Or call it the Hitchens-Dawkins Day award.
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#49 Night Train
There used to be a general wmb email address, but I forgot it.
I do know Lynn’s email, but I don’t know if she wants me to post it here in front of God and Man and everybody.
So here is what I will offer you if somebody else doesn’t do me better:
email me at eman_modnar@yahoo.com
It’s a goofy address, but it works and I will mail you back Lynn’s email. I think she will forgive me, but if not, she can ban me.
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Night Train, try worldblog@gmail.com.
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Take the period (dot) off the end of the e-mail address to make it work.
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Anlir, I do hope there’s nothing wrong with you. I went to law school while working full time, and this was exhausting for someone in her late 30s. I didn’t lose my voice entirely, but I was so tired, it squeaked. So I tried not to talk as much as possible. (You can still type and communicate that way!) My voice did get better after school ended, but I can no longer sing — even when I’m alone. It just doesn’t come out for long. Hopefully, all you need is a good rest! And yes, I’m praying for you because I know you’re worried. It’s a scary thing, but you don’t have enough “facts” so wait for the test and think positively.
Kim, what do you mean by “rumblings?” I saw the Meet the Press interview, and I thought it was a good interview. If people like Bill Cosby and Prof. Pouissant (I doubt I spelled his nane correctly) don’t speak up, who will? They are saying things that need to be said. I have a black friend who is a “Sister Elder” in her church and she’s been saying these same things in her church and community for years. It doesn’t have the same effect when a white person tells a black kid that learning math isn’t black or white, it’s just math. I hope Mr. Cosby succeeds in his mission.
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And I was very surprised about Mrs. Roberts. Not becaus I know anything about this family or their school. She spends money like water, and I think there should be an investigation.
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Hi Joe B,
Welcome back.
Did you have a nice trip?
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trr #46: Now that Random Name has that cute little kiwi (or whatever it is) on a white background for a avatar…
I enlarged it (IE7 allows up to a 1000% zoom) and it looks to me like a little toy man, fitting for one who goes by Random Name. Of course, at that size it is blurry. When at regular size, it reminds me of a tick. I guess living near the woods with deer all around must have something to do with it. I hope it doesn’t carry lyme disease!
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Never credit a conspiracy when simple incompetence will do. I have been struggling for several weeks to get an icon to work (hideously embarrassed all the while). That was the first successful one. Actually, nobody has guessed what it is or where it came from. Maybe when I have time I will try again.
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Tychicus wins! Raiders of the Lost Ark is correct. Here’s your digital cash…
$$$$
(sorry so late!)
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I’m a winner?!? It’s hard to know when Random is pulling my leg. If you are serious, though, here’s the organization I’d like you to donate to: Outreach North America, the home missions organization for my denomination, the ARP church. Here’s the website, and the address can be found there as well: http://www.outreachnorthamerica.org
If you have any questions, email me/contact me via my Gairney Bridge blog.
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Meanwhile I contemplate all the prayers for me arising in the sky like smoke, along with qwerty’s denunciations of me for being an agnostic wuss.
Thanks Random. I’m already in trouble with the Thought Police here.
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The Thought Police used psychology and omnipresent surveillance to find and eliminate members of society who were capable of the mere thought of challenging ruling authority.
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NJLawyer 56, have you priced water lately? More expensive than gas these days.
Random Name, your avatar is clearly an upright being. I thought it was a spider, or maybe a crab, but now it looks like an overweight, upright turtle standing in the corner when I get up close to the monitor. hmmm
Don’t tell. I made the mistake of answering questions about my avatar out of guilt for having a working one when no one else could get theirs to work. Learn from my mistake.
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