Heh. Good point. I actually recognized that asking about murder-cults was a stupid question--we can all think of at least one. What would really interest me is an example of a healthy community that included murder amongst its core values.
The translations vary, IG. The general consensus today seems to be that "kill" in this context properly maps to an original word meaning "murder", as opposed to killing an enemy in battle, or executing a criminal after their trial. Certainly, in the context of the larger body of Old Testament law, it seems pretty clear that the God of the Israelites differentiated between rightful and wrongful killing, and that the Commandment refers to the wrongful
Welcome back, drmiler. I'm glad to see I haven't bored you or scared you away yet. Anyway, yes. I know about the cult of Kali. And it's not the only murder-valuing belief system out there. But please tell me "murder your fellow citizens for the glory of Kali" isn't a core value you'd like to see promoted in your neighborhood.
What's wrong with the Ten Commandments, anyway? Name one Commandment that doesn't have a universal application. Name one Commandment--just one!--that doesn't communicate a valuabe principle that every healthy community should firmly believe in. "Thou shalt have no other gods before me"? How about this: Know what you believe, and be true to it. Christian
It's not a question of what the story is. There really aren't that many, and all of them are about the human experience. It's a question of how well that story is told. For me, Frank Herbert does an excellent job of telling the story. It's the same old story of power and responsibility, certainty and doubt, confidence and fear, enlightenment and ignorance, that we all live out every day in our own lives. But he makes it fresh and n
Howard Dean left his church because the local parish would not approve a municipal bike path across their property. If that isn't a textbook example of liberal values, I don't know what is.
Interesting article. You do a good job of summarizing the central question: Is abortion murder or not? This, in turn, becomes a question of whether or not a thing is human because we say it is, or because it is whether we say so or not. Another example would be the Declaration of Independence, which specifies that a human's right to life is endowed by a Creator. The declaration doesn't grant that right; it only recognizes a
Nitpicks: "maddeningly inscrutable" and "logical" cause this article to make much more sense.
Not only is he the Chief Executive Officer, but that means that he has the ultimate decision-making authority (within the limits the board of directors and government regulations have set, of course). And that's why he's paid so much money. Because ultimately the success or failure of the company leads right back to him: to the authority he wields and the authority he chooses to delegate to others. Not that this means anything about the prop
So there was a debate in Oregon last weekend. It was aired on C-Span. It featured Richard Perle (a conservative) and Howard Dean (a liberal, current DNC chair). The debate was conducted in front of an audience. There were liberals in the audience. The debate started with an opening statement from each participant. Richard Perle went first. During his
"International Law" is a joke. Laws are only effective when they are backed by force. Right now, the only entity that had demonstrated any real ability to enforce "International Law" is the U.S. The EU is too busy getting lapped economically and militarily by the entire rest of the world. China is sensibly focusing on its own internal transitions and maturations. Russia is lost to us, or will be soon, for a generation or more.
COL Gene, I asked, "what is the Single Most Important Consideration, in your catalog of reasons to hate Bush? What is the one you would use, if you could only use one, to convert others to your way of thinking?" Your answer seems to be, it's his unsatisfactory National Guard service, during the Vietnam era. Does it really all come down to this, for you? If it turned out that Bush discharged his obligations to the Guard in a
Thanks! Honestly, I'd be surprised if Bin Laden hasn't worked in a quick hit or two about Israel, somewhere along the way of his rants. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if the Lebanese have been protesting Israel vs. Palestine or the U.S. "vs." Iraq all along. So seriously, if you know how it is on the Lebanese Street, please share!
It seems to me that a lot of people blame all the tension in the Middle East on the Israel-Palestine conflict. The spin on that particular ball seems to be, if only the U.S. would throw Israel to the wolves already, tempers in the region would cool, neighboring states would graciously agree to sit down at the negotiating table and sincerely discuss real reform, and-
I'm sorry, but I must respectfully disagree. Let me be clear: I agree with your starting point: that Bush is, in fact, a Liberal. Okay, I don't really agree with it, but as a conservative, I find a large number of his policies distrubingly liberal. To oversimplify, I voted for Bush because I believed that Kerry would be even more liberal than Bush--plus, he'd fuck up the war on terror (which is kind of a key issue for me). Hrm. Is
You're right, Sarah. I'll be more polite in the future. I'm glad to see you didn't wait, but waded right in About the "exporting democracy" dream: The Cold War isn't in effect anymore, to freeze up the status quo. Many previously weak nations are finally entering periods of massive industrialization. Nobody has to align with a superpower if they don't want to. Everybody is
Point taken. But dubya is no Ronnie Reagan in the policy department either. It's funny, but I seem him as being a lot more Reaganesque (Reagan-tastic) then his father was. In fact, I'd say that his biggest failure in the Reagan department is his utter lack of public speaking skills.
gman said: Stutefish, you keep talking about facts but give none. What are your facts supporting a war in Iraq that are not associated with Saddam being a mean old man? The world is full of mean old men in power. P.S. I am a diehard Republican, do drop the liberal crap. Gman, I'm not here to convince you of anything. Quite frankly, "Saddam was a mean old man" is good enough for me (so long as we both agree that "mean ol
NUM TREM PARA BUENOS AIRES ON A TRAIN TO BUENOS AIRES Numa cabine de trem, que ia para Buenos Aires, estavam um brasileiro, um argentino, uma linda mulher francesa e uma velha senhora alemã... A Brazilian man, an Argentinian man, a beautiful Frenchwoman and an old German woman were riding in the same cabin, on a trai
On the other hand, Sarah Stoeckl said: Seriously though, I have many reasons for disliking Bush but my number one/two are the horrific and unnecessary war he has gotton us in to and his destruction of the international respect, if not good will, the US used to enjoy. Thanks for this article though. It's nice to hear an honest call for honest opinions. What prompted your writing it? And, in response, what's your single, ratio
Hrm. COL Gene said: The reason I hate his policies - They are not making life better for the vast majority of Americans! Okay, fine, but is there a specific concrete example here? Anywhere? enigmagnetic and Myrrander said: His scientific policies are the most prevalent things I disagree with. and I don't like his environmental policies and his ignorin
Assume, for the sake of argument (heh), that I am a reasonable man. Assume that I am a reasonable man who--no-one knows why or how--holds an unreasonable opinion: that George W. Bush is, on balance, a good President. So here's my question for all you Bush-haters (and/or rational moderate sensible people) out there: if you were given the opportunity to presen
That One Guy said: That's the great thing about dubya. Just when you think he can't say anything dumber he proves you wrong. That's actually more of a bug than a feature for me. Luckily, there's no relationship at all between "good public speaker" and "sound policy" (for example, take Clinton--please!).
You see it on TV all the time. The Police Detective meets the Murder Victim's Widow, and says, "ma'am, I know how you feel, but if you could just answer a few questions...". And the Widow turns on him, eyes red from weeping, and replies, "you don't know how I feel! Nobody knows how I feel! I just lost my husband! You can't understand my pain!" Etc. A
That One Guy said: But it is a bit of a contradiction. "not getting ready to attack Iran" & "all options are on the table". Kinda reminds me of the Star Trek gag "We come in peace...Fire all phasers Mr. Spock!" it's not even remotely a contradiction. I'm not preparing for college right now, but I'm open to the possibility of going to college in the future. See how that works? I'm not doing something right now, but I'
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