Discussion about hot topics trending today

[Annoyed]

(irc it's 70 though I'm not sure how they keep replenishing their stocks) come again? if they die as non-sinners - by their standards - they go to heaven, period

and if they die in combat as in your scenario they go to one of the higher if not the highest level of heaven (they got several levels apparently)

As I understand it, their good book tells them to convert all non-believers. The more radical segments say "convert or kill".
Carrying out that mission requires an active church for people to convert to, and it requires that they be alive to do the converting. If Iran is turned into a sandbox, there won't be a church in Iran, nor will there be anyone to do the converting. They may not wish to render their sacred mission a non-starter.

[SoulReaver]

As I understand it, their good book tells them to convert all non-believers.

maybe proselytism helps them get xtra points at judgement time (get to higher level in heaven or something) but that's beside the point
reward doesn't hinge on success only on intent anyway
if they fall during their jihad they get the ultimate reward which is all that matters so logic says they'd be looking for a fight like orks seeking Armageddon

[Annoyed]

reward doesn't hinge on success only on intent anyway

Is that based on your knowledge of that religion's practices? Or how you expect it to be?

if they fall during their jihad they get the ultimate reward which is all that matters so logic says they'd be looking for a fight like orks seeking Armageddon

As I said, on an individual basis, certainly. They want their reward. But I don't think you will see the leaders of that or any other organization follow that path. If your organization looses a few individuals, eh, so what? There's more where they came from. The organization can keep pursuing its goals. However, if the organization is wiped from existence, game over. Bad strategy.

[EDIT]
Ran into below after posting this. Kinda supports my point.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opini...-irans-regime/

Both events fit into a well-established pattern. Though the regime in Tehran has killed Americans over the years, it has usually tried to avoid direct responsibility for doing so, mainly by operating through proxies. And when world attention is focused on it, as is now the case, the Iranian government actually places a priority on not killing Americans.

By contrast, Iranian leaders almost always consider their own people to be expendable.

The decision to not target Americans in the missile attacks is strong evidence of the calculated nature of the regime’s responses to major threats. The terrible blunder that followed — and the government’s handling of the shoot-down and its aftermath — shows how little the regime values the lives of ordinary Iranian people.

[SoulReaver]

Is that based on your knowledge of that religion's practices? Or how you expect it to be?

try based on common sense
else that'd be like saying humans must be infallible & thus...perfect like God himself? heresy

As I said, on an individual basis, certainly. They want their reward. But I don't think you will see the leaders of that or any other organization follow that path. If your organization looses a few individuals, eh, so what? There's more where they came from. The organization can keep pursuing its goals.

However, if the organization is wiped from existence, game over. Bad strategy.

you're assuming each individual would care more about the organization than about themselves - when their fate in heaven or hell is at stake
lol

[Annoyed]

try based on common sense
else that'd be like saying humans must be infallible & thus...perfect like God himself? heresyl

Common sense based on your ideas of how things should be.

Who the heck knows what these nut job extremists consider to be common sense?

Oh, and see my edit to my post above.

[SoulReaver]

Common sense based on your ideas of how things should be.

so your idea of common sense is...the only alternative to what I said?
ok so humans are gods

Who the heck knows what these nut job extremists consider to be common sense?

one thing's for certain they'd never consider heresy else they'd have to execute themselves

Oh, and see my edit to my post above.

good so back to the OP

if they fear a human army more than God then they're not that religious to begin with

but maybe there's an alternate explanation: they spare the US cause they're closet christians :|

[Annoyed]

so your idea of common sense is...the only alternative to what I said?
ok so humans are gods

one thing's for certain they'd never consider heresy else they'd have to execute themselves

good so back to the OP


but maybe there's an alternate explanation: they spare the US cause they're closet christians :|

The main point I'm making is that I have no idea what religious fanatic's mind thinks. I would certainly hope that it makes no sense to me, anyway.
I just don't get how someone can think as they do. To me & you, something may make sense. What makes sense to a nut job may be totally different.

[ScifigirlSG]

Is this the first step, reducing liabilities, MGM is doing for a possible Stargate series?
https://www.latimes.com/business/sto...dalay-bay-sale

[Annoyed]

Is this the first step, reducing liabilities, MGM is doing for a possible Stargate series?
https://www.latimes.com/business/sto...dalay-bay-sale

Wait a minute.. How did a post about Stargate end up in this thread?

From the article:

The joint venture includes private-equity and real estate company Blackstone Group and MGM Growth Properties LLC.

So, MGM is selling its resorts/casinos to a LLC which itself is part of MGM?

I'd read that as corporate shell games intended to hide assets from someone, perhaps the tax collector or some regulatory authority.

I dunno how you get anything about Stargate out of that.

[aretood2]

From the article I posted on 12/27

They aren't checking. If the applicant simply answers yes when asked if they are a citizen, it is assumed they are telling the truth. No verification, the state has directed that the local county clerks not check.

And with illegals allowed to get licenses, that lie grants voting eligibility to illegals. And now they want to automatically register any license applicant. This is a clear path to allowing illegals into the voting booth. I don't get why you can't understand that.

To be honest, I don't buy it. The guy said that a person tried and failed to do this so there is obviously something preventing that from happening. You said there was a case where an illegal alien registered to vote, and that is not supported anywhere in any source you have provided. It's the guy claiming that clerks recieved secret orders that are found nowhere in writing to mind bogglingly not check the citizenship status of individuals seeking voter registration. Am I to expect that they'll check to see if someone is a felon but not a non-Citizen? That is a huge claim that requires equally huge evidence. In any event, how come thousands of legal aliens haven't registered to vote before any of this? Why isn't there a flood of legal aliens doing so now? Where are the whistleblowers? (oh wait, the GOP hates whistleblowers, nevermind).

I don't live in that city, so I have no standing; can't vote there, etc. But it is a shining example of what happens when the Left/Democrats have unchallenged control of government for decades, and why public employee unions should be broken. The whole system is as corrupt as hell. The govt. officials, such as the school board are in bed with the unions, who are also in bed with key officials in many other levels of govt., including the courts.

More speculation it seems. You seem to be of the kind that sees a little sign that may confirm your preconception and then jump on it as irrefutable proof of the entire preconception beyond whatever said sign actually points towards.

The Unions pressure their members to vote Democrat, as well as directly contribute financially to their campaigns. In return, the corrupt officials tend to the needs of the unions with tender loving care.

Not sure what unions you've been a part of, but no union I know of is able to coerce its members to do squat.

The entire system is run by and for the benefit of the unions and elected officials, rather than the students they are supposed to be educating. Have I mentioned this is one of the worst performing school districts in the entire country?

The early 1900s called, they want their concept of reality back. Look, there's a lot that goes on to a school being terrible but you seem to focus on just one boogeyman and base it off of....mainly speculation and confirmation bias really. Yes, there is something hinky going on there but that's not proof that the sky is falling everywhere else. Wait...aren't you the one that keeps invoking chicken little? How ironic.

The Democrats have and have had a lock on the school board, which is elected. They have such little chance of changing the Republicans don't even bother running candidates or even primaries anymore. And like most Democrats, they are in bed with the public employee unions. So there is no chance whatsoever of getting a decent school board in thereat the voting booth.

It's almost like if a one party system is naturally bad................

Even the (Democrat) mayor of Rochester called for a state takeover of the district early last year, before this budget scandal blew up in their faces. She knows as well as anyone the system as is is so badly corrupt it CAN'T be fixed. This effort was shot down in the courts.
There has been at least one other proposal to take control away from the board, but that failed also. So, the corruption continues, with no way to stop it.

Maybe you don't understand this because PA isn't the liberal/democrat hellhole that NY is. I can get that, it is really mind boggling just how frakked up this place is.

Here's the deal. A one party system, no matter the party, always breeds corruption and waste. Our two party system has become polarized to the point where it acts as a one party system. You want Trump to "drain the swamp" there is only one way to do it. Break the monopoly that the DNC and GOP hold over American politics and bring about effective and viable third parties. But the darndest thing is that you don't want third parties, you oppose every measure that would open up the political system to multiple parties because you do favor corruption, you favor corruption at the hands of Republicans and only decry it at the hands of Democrats. So I hope you'll excuse me if I don't quite sympathize with your arguments. As long as you only decry one form of corruption, your arguments carry little weight with me. Such is the nature of hypocrisy, it kill credibility.

Is that based on your knowledge of that religion's practices? Or how you expect it to be?


As I said, on an individual basis, certainly. They want their reward. But I don't think you will see the leaders of that or any other organization follow that path. If your organization looses a few individuals, eh, so what? There's more where they came from. The organization can keep pursuing its goals. However, if the organization is wiped from existence, game over. Bad strategy.

[EDIT]
Ran into below after posting this. Kinda supports my point.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opini...-irans-regime/

The main point I'm making is that I have no idea what religious fanatic's mind thinks. I would certainly hope that it makes no sense to me, anyway.
I just don't get how someone can think as they do. To me & you, something may make sense. What makes sense to a nut job may be totally different.

It's odd seeing you two talk about this subject without really (seemingly so) knowing what you are talking about.

Is this the first step, reducing liabilities, MGM is doing for a possible Stargate series?
https://www.latimes.com/business/sto...dalay-bay-sale

I'll believe it when I see a trailer with a release date and a SDCC panel.

[photoglyph]

An observation my wife and I had after watching a recent BBC production of 'A Christmas Carol' (with Guy Pearce, and quite good!) is 'how is it Conservative Republicans in the U.S. never recognize themselves as Ebenezer Scroodge?'

And I say this as an ex-Republican.

[photoglyph]

Blackadder voice: "Ohhh, God."

Reading posts like your's give me cause to appreciate having blocked Annoyed.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/22/u...ter-fraud.html

https://www.salon.com/2019/11/06/two...ey-won-anyway/

https://apnews.com/f5f6a73b2af546ee9...ad-voter-fraud


Republican Voter Fraud History

Republicans know that when everyone votes they lose. In fact the less people who vote the higher chances they have of winning. The Republican party may not have the numbers, but they most certainly have the money. A large majority of money from Big Business is funneled to Republican candidates in order to ensure victory, which obviously gives them sway with our government. Given the hundreds of millions of dollars spent each year on the Republican party it is in the interest of many of Americas most powerful to ensure that the vote goes to the Republicans. Yet as mentioned before this can only be accomplished through a few means and one of the most important is the vote.

[mad_gater]

Oh noez the uber evil Republicans....you know...the ones who freed the slaves (Abraham Lincoln was a Republican) and who supported the Civil Rights Act of 1965

and the REAL voter fraud (illegal aliens voting and dead people mysteriously coming back to life to cast votes) tends to happen in largely Democratic voting districts

[Annoyed]

To be honest, I don't buy it. The guy said that a person tried and failed to do this so there is obviously something preventing that from happening. You said there was a case where an illegal alien registered to vote, and that is not supported anywhere in any source you have provided. It's the guy claiming that clerks recieved secret orders that are found nowhere in writing to mind bogglingly not check the citizenship status of individuals seeking voter registration. Am I to expect that they'll check to see if someone is a felon but not a non-Citizen? That is a huge claim that requires equally huge evidence. In any event, how come thousands of legal aliens haven't registered to vote before any of this? Why isn't there a flood of legal aliens doing so now? Where are the whistleblowers? (oh wait, the GOP hates whistleblowers, nevermind).




More speculation it seems. You seem to be of the kind that sees a little sign that may confirm your preconception and then jump on it as irrefutable proof of the entire preconception beyond whatever said sign actually points towards.



Not sure what unions you've been a part of, but no union I know of is able to coerce its members to do squat.



The early 1900s called, they want their concept of reality back. Look, there's a lot that goes on to a school being terrible but you seem to focus on just one boogeyman and base it off of....mainly speculation and confirmation bias really. Yes, there is something hinky going on there but that's not proof that the sky is falling everywhere else. Wait...aren't you the one that keeps invoking chicken little? How ironic.



It's almost like if a one party system is naturally bad................



Here's the deal. A one party system, no matter the party, always breeds corruption and waste. Our two party system has become polarized to the point where it acts as a one party system. You want Trump to "drain the swamp" there is only one way to do it. Break the monopoly that the DNC and GOP hold over American politics and bring about effective and viable third parties. But the darndest thing is that you don't want third parties, you oppose every measure that would open up the political system to multiple parties because you do favor corruption, you favor corruption at the hands of Republicans and only decry it at the hands of Democrats. So I hope you'll excuse me if I don't quite sympathize with your arguments. As long as you only decry one form of corruption, your arguments carry little weight with me. Such is the nature of hypocrisy, it kill credibility.

Ok, the short version: I've provided references to what I'm talking about, but they don't agree with your worldview, so you're gonna ignore them. Fair 'nuff, you're free to think as you will.

I have no opposition to third parties, in fact, in years past, when there is no major party candidate that I do support (2012 pres., Romney vs Obama for example) I voted for the 3rd party, in order to help them maintain enough votes to survive on the next ballot.

But I admit they face an uphill battle; the key to getting their message out is advertising in our media, which is very expensive. They have to earn the levels of support and donations needed, and that's difficult. Nothing we can do about that. While we can mandate that broadcast media (OTA TV/Radio) carry ads for legitimate candidates (as defined by petition signature counts) and I do support such measures, OTA is a small part of the picture these days, and the govt. doesn't have the right to mandate that other types of media do so.

I don't see a practical solution, do you? Or do you just want to hand out $ ?

[Gatefan1976]

Oh noez the uber evil Republicans....you know...the ones who freed the slaves (Abraham Lincoln was a Republican) and who supported the Civil Rights Act of 1965

The Republican party of -today- is not even a shadow of what it once stood for.

and the REAL voter fraud (illegal aliens voting and dead people mysteriously coming back to life to cast votes) tends to happen in largely Democratic voting districts

Yet, the only politicians proven to encourage it are republican.
How odd.