tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post720786152268785977..comments2023-10-17T08:19:58.196-04:00Comments on FreeThinke: FreeThinkehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-81767652240477316942017-02-10T06:44:20.300-05:002017-02-10T06:44:20.300-05:00A good point,Rob, but in BARRING ENTRANCE to ALL M...A good point,Rob, but in BARRING ENTRANCE to ALL MOSLEMS, –– which I would make MANDATORY for the FORESEEABLE FUTURE ––, still makes perfect sense, because it is not only FOOLISH, it is INSANE to import MORE potential trouble than we ALREADY have.<br /><br />Expressing sympathy for Muslims is too much like feeling sympathy for CANCER CELLS.<br /><br />Another for instance: I love dogs, but I realize a certain percentage of them are bound to be RABID. Of course, I feel sorry for any animal so afflicted, but no one in his right mind would want take one into his house and try to live with it as a pet.FreeThinkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-63745111618096670642017-02-10T06:36:24.507-05:002017-02-10T06:36:24.507-05:00And I am obsessed primarily with Beauty, Order, Re...And I am obsessed primarily with Beauty, Order, Refinement, Nobility, and tangible evidence of the highest possible degree of Aspiration to Excellence –– especially in matters aesthetic. <br /><br />All of these things in my view point us toward a more intimate knowledge of God which cannot help but increase and strengthen Faith, Hope, Courage, and Determination as it increases our capacity for Loyalty and ever-deepening Affection.FreeThinkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-53538286575316594262017-02-07T20:56:04.662-05:002017-02-07T20:56:04.662-05:00Out of 10,000 legal American citizens, it might be...Out of 10,000 legal American citizens, it might be safe to say that 10 are morally-reprehensible scum who should be put down like rabid dogs.Robhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02101289328294242999noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-89338724034458103872017-02-06T10:09:02.237-05:002017-02-06T10:09:02.237-05:00Fine by me. I've just realised that the deepes...Fine by me. I've just realised that the deepest difference between us is that you don't care about epistemology, and I'm obsessed by it.jeznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-31347841613173768652017-02-06T07:52:02.175-05:002017-02-06T07:52:02.175-05:00Well, we will simply have to agree to disagree on ...Well, we will simply have to agree to disagree on this, and leave it at that, Jez.<br /> <br />You said "we <i>can't</i> go to extraordinary lengths and take pre-emptive measures [to protect ourselves from potential harm]." <br /><br />I say <b>we not only CAN, but we MUST</b>, unless, of course, we do not value ourselves, and have no wish –– or any feeling of <i>need</i> –– to survive.<br /><br />When it comes to matters of personal safety, the safety, security and well-being of loved ones, my community, my country, my preferred system of governance, and the standards, values and principles I hold dear, there are virtually NO LENGTHS to which I would no go to preserve, protect and defend them.<br /><br />Not to wax trite, but the obvious truth remains:<br /><br /><b>AN OUNCE of PREVENTION is WORTH a TON of CURE.</b><br /><br />Sadly, there will always be "BARBARIANS" of one sort or another lurking "outside the gates" waiting to ATTACK, ROB, then DESTROY what they have not been able to produce for themselves.<br /><br /><b><i>"He who would be kind to the cruel will be cruel to the kind."</i></b><br /><br />That, I've been told, is an ancient Jewish proverb, and as all ought to know by now, no identifiable ethnic identity has done a more effective job of surviving against insuperable odds than the Jews.<br /><br />Could their incredible DETERMINATION to BE THEMSELVES regardless of the cost, be the reason they have been almost universally feared, ridiculed, despised, rejected and mercilessly persecuted?FreeThinkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-41538512997091322002017-02-06T05:21:19.935-05:002017-02-06T05:21:19.935-05:00The medicines (and groceries) you buy are "gu...The medicines (and groceries) you buy are "guaranteed" to meet certain quality requirements, including purity. Yes, sometimes mistakes or tampering happens, but when it does the industry is held responsible, so they go to extraordinary lengths and take pre-emptive measures to meet those requirements, eg. a lot of product is destroyed, even if there's only a low probability of any of it being unsafe.<br /><br />We can't treat people like that: justice cannot be pre-emptive. On the other hand, people don't come with guarantees. You might meet an absolute rotter, and no third party would accept responsibility for that encounter. Maybe that's the difference.jeznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-61954940607639216132017-02-03T18:17:43.156-05:002017-02-03T18:17:43.156-05:00Oh hello again, Jez. I'm glad you came back, a...Oh hello again, Jez. I'm glad you came back, although I'm not sure any reply I might make could ever satisfy you. I don't believe I said your example of the potentially deadly effects of Skittles has anything to do with my thoughts about the presence of Muslims in our midst –– quite the opposite in fact.<br /><br />After all ingesting Skittles –– or any of ten dozen other potentially harmful commercial products –– is something an informed consumer may reject and avoid by a simple act of will, whereas the possible presence of deadly Jihadists in any given group of Muslims is mostly hidden, and remains unknown until it's too late to avoid violent confrontation, gruesome murder, possible maiming, and devastating loss of valuable property.<br /><br /><b>In other words we may CHOOSE to avoid Skittles or any other potentially harmful substance such as drugs and alcohol, but when we deliberately import and welcome an unknown quantity of potentially deadly terrorists into our midst we are in effect playing a kind of Russian Roulette with the lives of innocent citizens.</b> <br /><br />I'll take the liberty of repeating what i said to Jersey below, since you might have missed it.<br /><br />"Do you remember the Tylenol Poisoner? He she or it was never caught, managed to introduce a lethal substance into some of the capsules that contained the product then, thus killing several people at random for no reason whatsoever.<br /><br />"This forced the makers of Tylenol to remove ALL their products from the shelves of ALL their source of distribution,the REDESIGN the product by getting rid of capsules altogether and replacing them with tamper-proof "caplets," which are nothing more than solid, old-fashioned "pills." <br /><br />"The tylenol Poisoner ALSO caused the manufactures of virtually EVERY ingestible product to redesign their packaging to as to make it impervious to efforts at tampering –– <i>changes that make using these products much less convenient for consumers</i>.<br /><br /><i><b>One rotten apple in a barrel ...<br /><br />One Tylenol capsule out of millions injected with poison ...<br /><br />A few M&M's laced with poison ...<br /><br />A small percentage of Muslims who are Jihadists ...<br /><br />Do you NOW begin to get the idea at last?<br /><br />Oh, and I nearly forgot poor old Typhoid Mary. Do you remember her? If not ou can easily learn from Google.</b></i><br /><br />There is a fundamental PRINCIPLE at stake here, Jez, –– a principle I believe should be held should be held both sacrosanct and inviolable.<br /><br />I am very sorry for the millions of poor benighted so<br />ups who've had the bad luck to be born and raised in Islamic States and forced to live inner Sharia Law, but I am adamantly opposed to introducing their perverse culture, demented ideology, savage views on what constitutes morality, decency and proper governance into OUR admittedly-flawed, but far more enlightened society.FreeThinkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-49610905655086943772017-02-03T11:17:13.618-05:002017-02-03T11:17:13.618-05:00Not intending to badger you, but just wanted to po...Not intending to badger you, but just wanted to point out what is missing from my understanding of your position. Although you have said that you believe the skittles analogy supports your belief that America should not increase its exposure to foreign-born muslims, you have not said <i>how</i> it supports that belief.<br />You have said that it is obvious, and you have said it is nothing to do with how I understood the analogy to work, but you have not stated how you think it actually does work.<br /><br />Not that you have to, of course.jeznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-76354519099906964752017-02-03T06:07:37.874-05:002017-02-03T06:07:37.874-05:00By the way, Jersey, do you remember the Tylenol Po...By the way, Jersey, do you remember the Tylenol Poisoner? He she or it was never caught, managed to introduce a lethal substance into some of the capsules the product came in then, thus killing several people at random for no reason whatsoever.<br /><br />This forced the makers of Tylenol to remove ALL their products from the shelves of ALL their source of distribution,the REDESIGN the product by getting rid of capsules altogether and replacing them with tamper-proof "caplets," which are nothing more than solid, old-fashioned "pills." <br /><br />The tylenol Poisoner ALSO caused the manufactures of virtually EVERY ingestible product to redesign their packaging to as to make it impervious to efforts at tampering –– changes that make using these products much less convenient for consumers.<br /><br />One rotten apple in a barrel ...<br /><br />A few M&M's laced with poison ...<br /><br />A small percentage of Muslims who are Jihadists ...<br /><br />Do you NOW begin to get the idea at last?<br /><br />Oh, and I nearly forgot poor old Typhoid Mary. Do you remember her?<br /><br /><b>There is a fundamental PRINCIPLE at stake here –– a principle that should be held both sacrosanct and inviolable.</b><br /><br />FreeThinkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-15634727883238890742017-02-02T16:32:33.732-05:002017-02-02T16:32:33.732-05:00Well, Jersey, all I can see is that I disagree pro...Well, Jersey, all I can see is that I disagree profoundly with your observations. Do read my statements to Jez above –– especially the last one. I would hope that would make my position on this issue clear.<br />I'm hardly unfeeling, but I do have a firm belief that "CHARITY BEGINS at HOME."<br /><br /><b>By the way, please feel free to alert us here as to what's happens at your blog, and be sure to provide a link each time you do.</b> FreeThinkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-64332644800936845502017-02-02T16:22:24.395-05:002017-02-02T16:22:24.395-05:00Thank you for the reply, Jez.
You said, "Wha...Thank you for the reply, Jez.<br /><br />You said, <i>"What is abstract about humanitarian ideals? How can someone who often seems to struggle to find superlatives adequate to sufficiently denounce muslim lands dismiss those actually suffering under them and seeking to escape as abstract concerns. I don't understand."</i><br /><br />First, I never "struggle" to find adjectives and adverbs. NEVER! };-)> But more importantly "concepts" or "mental constructs," if you prefer are <i>always</i> abstract in the true meaning of the word, To wit:<br /><br /><b>ABSTRACT<br /><br /><i>noun</i><br /><br />1. existing in thought or as an idea but not having a physical or concrete existence. "abstract concepts such as love or beauty"<br />synonyms: theoretical, conceptual, notional, intellectual, metaphysical, ideal, philosophical, academic; <i>rare</i> ideational<br /><br /><i>verb</i><br /><br />1. to consider (something) theoretically or separately from something else. "to abstract science and religion from their historical context can lead to anachronism."</b><br /><br /><b>My point is exactly what I said it is. I see absolutely nothing illogical in what-to-me-are the obvious implications of the M&M picture and its accompanying caption.</b><br /><br />Despite sharing the same vocabulary, we really do speak a different language. I'm afraid it's generational and probably a matter of two entirely different styles of social conditioning.<br /><br />If you knew me, you would soon learn that I am one of the most humane and generous people alive. I'm not going to list the eleemosynary uses to which I have put my money; that would be unseemly and in poor taste, but anyone who truly knows me would tell you I am generous to a fault, and have been helpful to many all my adult life.<br /><br />I love animals, and often suffer pangs of sorrow that so many are doomed to lead wretched lives –– unloved, uncared for, physically abused, abandoned, and left to die in misery from untreated ailments or simply from starvation. <br /><br />With that in mind I have done what I can by adopting animals and giving them a good home, or I take it upon myself to find homes for foundlings, but I realize there must be LIMITS, because it would not do the animals –– or ME –– a particle of good were I to take in so many that my house became overwhelmed and ths uninhabitable with urine feces, disease and the carcasses of poor dead, or sorely undernourished creatures.<br /><br /><b>As individuals we are only able to do what we are able to do.</b><br /><br />I believe the same 'logic" apples to COUNTRIES, <br /><br />Of COURSE I feel deeply sorry for ALL the wretched people who inhabit the earth, but at the same time I realize there are STRICT LIMITS in practical reality as to what we can do for them lest we become overwhelmed by THEIR wretchedness.<br /><br />I often wish things were not as they are, but "<i>wishing,"</i> as has oft been said, <i>"will not make it so."</i><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />FreeThinkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16682678301019952436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-42401473678467677462017-02-02T00:04:30.530-05:002017-02-02T00:04:30.530-05:00By this logic, FT, we would never allow any immigr...By this logic, FT, we would never allow any immigration or travel from anywhere at all. Heck, by that same logic, we'd be caught in a heck of a paradox, as we are far more dangerous to each other than foreigners are to us!<br /><br />We haven't taken many of these refugees and we check them pretty thoroughly. With the travelers, we're talking about a lot of professionals, students, missions and charity work, and so forth. It's not like we're accepting hoards of these folks. Just look at the small numbers of people involved in the initial days. That's why is was such an easy political move. Great distraction theater.<br /><br />JMJJersey McJoneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15426560061830038806noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-9882769707595370662017-02-01T20:36:35.357-05:002017-02-01T20:36:35.357-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-43991340559211852912017-02-01T18:52:48.368-05:002017-02-01T18:52:48.368-05:00Wonderful!Wonderful!Ronald Reagannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-27231927432804944822017-02-01T18:51:39.966-05:002017-02-01T18:51:39.966-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.REDDITnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-20390501547700656702017-02-01T15:07:44.825-05:002017-02-01T15:07:44.825-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Suehttp://theleftinme.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-87902593777023399362017-02-01T13:09:02.931-05:002017-02-01T13:09:02.931-05:00People choke on food; you may recall W's close...People choke on food; you may recall W's close call with a pretzel. It's far more common than terrorism, among the top causes of accidental death (a few thousand per year in America) -- far more common than terrorism -- candy is a frequent culprit. I can only estimate how often skittles are implicated, but it's a pretty good size for choking on.<br /><br />I wouldn't expect an unexceptional death by choking to get any news coverage, unless a celebrity like W were involved. Whereas terrorism attacks are news-worthy, in every sense of the word -- ie genuinely in the public interest, but at the same time ghoulishly sensational, so are covered ad nauseum.jeznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-9969495788597281382017-02-01T13:02:11.168-05:002017-02-01T13:02:11.168-05:00How do these “useful or useless idiots” claim that...How do these “useful or useless idiots” claim that Trump’s Executive Order is a ban on Muslims when not all Muslim countries were not affected? In fact most of the Muslim countries were not affected.Joannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-47827660379812877272017-02-01T12:55:12.833-05:002017-02-01T12:55:12.833-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Just to Clear Things Up.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12333475856772157308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-36546365363353544572017-02-01T12:52:13.220-05:002017-02-01T12:52:13.220-05:00I don't mean to be confusing. "Logic"...I don't mean to be confusing. "Logic" is a chain of irrefutable inferences leading us from premises to a conclusion; an "internet meme" is any widely shared artefact (in this case a captioned picture, but could be bare text or video). I don't think I used conflation here (not a "trendy" term as far as I know, but I am woefully under-informed about what kind of language the kids are using these days), but it is where two similar-sounding but distinct ideas are used in each others' place, eg. if I were to answer your point about pounds of feathers and iron with a point about the value of the pound sterling, I would be conflating the two meanings of "pound". It can be used artistically, but it is often used by mistake or as an underhand rhetorical trick. Watch out for it!<br /><br />Of course analogues only need to be similar in one respect, and are allowed to be dissimilar in all others. But that one aspect of similarity should support the wider point being made. If that wider point is about risk and reward, then I don't think the analogy supports that. Could be that's not the point at all, and I'm mistaken.<br /><br />I think you're treating muslims as a special category of risk, separate from all the other risks you negotiate every day. I think you habitually take much larger risks in your stride, and I'm not sure what good reason there could be for considering them differently.<br /><br />What is abstract about humanitarian ideals? How can someone who often seems to struggle to find superlatives adequate to sufficiently denounce muslim lands dismiss those actually suffering under them and seeking to escape as abstract concerns. I don't understand.<br /><br />Obviously I think that the risk/reward ratio is absolutely the point: on what other basis should my attitude to the one mirror my attitude to the other? But you think the point is something else: what? Does it have something to do with the pound of feathers?<br /><br />Under what circumstances would accepting a refugee not be treason?jeznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-44511745970186126232017-02-01T11:40:29.470-05:002017-02-01T11:40:29.470-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11291386577335294637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-82336256397995664792017-02-01T11:35:23.038-05:002017-02-01T11:35:23.038-05:00The Senate Republicans pushed through a pair of Pr...The Senate Republicans pushed through a pair of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees Wednesday, upending standard committee rules to circumvent a Democratic boycott.<br /> <br />If you Democrats/ Liberals are still confused, let me know and Mommy will explain it to you with little words so that you can understand.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11291386577335294637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-11721303800897256402017-02-01T09:16:46.737-05:002017-02-01T09:16:46.737-05:00This was recorded from the speech of a Pre-School...This was recorded from the speech of a Pre-School Teacher at an all black anti-Trump rally in Seattle (last weekend?), please see the transcript of some excerpts from the woman's screed:<br />“F*ck white supremacy, f*ck the U.S. empire, f*ck your imperialist a** lives. That sh*t gotta go.<br /><br />White people, give your f*cking money, your f*cking house, your f*cking property, we need it f*cking all!”<br /><br />“And we need to start killing people.”<br /><br />"First off, we need to start killing the White House. The White House must die. The White House, your f*cking White House, your f*cking presidents, they must go! F*ck the White House! Your f*cking White House. ” <br /><br />“I am a f*cking preschool teacher who’s going to f*cking (unintelligible). Teach your kids to throw that f*cking cop car in the garbage. That sh*t has got to go. That sh*t has got to go.”<br />And the all black audience enthusiastically cheered all of the above statements.<br />Disgustednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-71256945745039294362017-02-01T09:03:11.363-05:002017-02-01T09:03:11.363-05:00McDonalds Flew the American Flag Upside Down in Un...McDonalds Flew the American Flag Upside Down in Uniondale, New York yesterday,<br />Boycott Them for heaven sakes!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145653764764266444.post-5369813565681760932017-02-01T08:59:38.825-05:002017-02-01T08:59:38.825-05:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.TOMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14210479399761047671noreply@blogger.com