A letter to the editor
When was the last time that the Pope called for someone 's murder for the crime of blasphemy? When did you ever hear of a gang of fundamentalist Christians massacring a room full of people for insulting Jesus? Muslims have been doing such things for centuries. Remember the Ayatollah Khomeini's call for the assassination of the author of a book he considered blasphemous. That was in 1989. And that was only the beginning.
But we are constantly told that Islam is a religion of peace, and Muslim terrorists are just marginal extremists, and their murders are just workplace violence, and have nothing to do with Islam. Even when they shout Allahu Akbar while cutting the heads off of innocent people.
Give me a break!
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Monday, March 16, 2015
MORE ISLAM
MORE ISLAM
At the present time the world's
preeminent irrational belief system is Islam. Islam is a absolutist,
totalitarian, imperialistic, expansionist and barbarian belief
system. It needs to be suppressed.
It is not the only such system, but is
is the one that is the most immediate threat to civilization. But it
solves nothing to point out that other such systems are, or have been
just as dangerous. That the Inquisition committed atrocities is a
fact. That the Protestants committed atrocities is also a fact.
That the Crusades were evil is not in dispute. But the thing that
these examples, as well as many others, have in common is that they
were all committed in the name of some religion.
Religion is the antithesis of reason.
Religion denies reason. Religion attacks and oppresses reason. The
religious believe that the end justifies the means. The ends being
universal obedience. This means that any religion will be opposed to
every other religion. Opposition represents an existential threat
and must be exterminated. Thus there will always be religious wars
and conflicts as long as there is more than one religion in the
world.
Unbelievers pose a special threat to
religions because unbelievers are likely to persuade the faithful
into disbelief. This is especially threatening because unbelievers
tend to use logic to point out absurdities and inconsistencies in
religious doctrines. And, as stated above, reason is the antithesis
of belief.
Superstition can be defined as an
irrational belief arising from ignorance or fear. Superstition
denies cause and effect. This is a perfect definition of religion.
Men are ignorant of the way the universe works, and ascribe
unexplained events to supernatural agencies. Men fear death and wish
to deny it's existence by supposing that death will not be the end of
their existence.
Power seekers prey on this ignorance by
providing explanations and myths. They gain power by claiming to
have some kind of special knowledge, or access to the gods. Secular
rulers recognize the utility of these beliefs and support and protect
the “priests”. People who believe that they will be rewarded in
an afterlife for their obedience in this life are easy to control.
It is a natural symbiotic relationship which has served both factions
well throughout history.
All wars have been caused by power
seekers acting to impose their irrational belief systems on others.
Until mankind rejects such superstitious and irrational beliefs there
will be no progress, and the world will continue to be plagued by by
war, oppression and violence.
UNFINISHED 3/15
IGNORANCE
IGNORANCE
What is the difference between ignorance and stupidity? Actually, they go hand in hand. Generally, stupid people are usually very ignorant. This is because stupidity is the inability to learn. On the other hand, ignorance is easily cured by education. The problem is that stupid people can't or won't learn even when exposed to education. Education is basically the systematic exposure to smart people. One purpose of school is to expose the young to (presumably) smart teachers who, (also presumably), will impart factual information to their students. Thus ignorance is cured.Stupid people however are constitutionally unable to process or understand the information which is imparted to them. Thus, they remain ignorant. Stupid people, being unable to learn, are thus forced to get their opinions from other people. Usually other ignorant people. This is why stupid people consistently believe stupid things, and are vulnerable to those who want to manipulate them for their own purposes.
As sad as this is, what is even sadder is the state of American education. Instead of teaching the young how to think and imparting factual information, today’s schools preach pseudo-religious nonsense to the helpless children. Many children "graduate" from high school without ever learning to read or write, much less learning to think. Instead they learn to parrot politically correct slogans. They are taught to hate their country and the country’s accomplishments. They are taught a revisionist brand of history that as no relation to the facts. In fact, they are taught that there is no such thing as a fact. Everything is a matter of opinion, and anybody's opinion is as valid as anyone else's.
wc=273
REPLY 1
This is the reply to the above letter, with my comments in red.
On Sept. 18, The State Journal-Register published a letter
exhorting America to awaken to what was characterized as the dire
threat posed by the Muslim religion (letter to the editor: “Wake
up, America”).
I
was struck with the notion that this diatribe
was better suited to a Ku Klux Klan
pamphlet than the editorial page of my newspaper. I could easily
imagine that in 1920, this same author might have been editorializing
on the dangers posed by “the colored races” migrating to northern
cities, in 1900 on the threat of hordes of
Jewish immigrants and in 1850 on the swarms
of Irish “papists.”
The
“colored people” refered to here were brought here against their
will, or at least the ones I assume the writer is refering to were.
The resentment and anger of some segments of the decendants of these
involuntary immigrants is perhaps understandable however
counter-productive it may be. The writer plays the typical card of
racism with no basis in fact. The Jewish “hoards” refered to
came to this country legally. They for the most part didn't come
here to kill Americans or overthrow the government. To my knowledge
they never tried to compel anyone to convert to Judeism. As for the
“swarms” of Irish “Papists”; I myself am of Irish decent, and
none of my ancestors owned any slaves, or killed any Americans for
religious reasons, or beheaded anyone for refusing to convert to
Catholicism. And for that matter calling people hordes and swarms
seems a little racist and intolerant to me.
Bigotry and ignorance have ever been the unfortunate hallmarks of a
certain segment of American society, and it is apparent from this
letter that they are now redirected toward the latest target of
opportunity.
I
have to agree that ignorance and bigotry is all too common in
america. But I think we would disagree on just who the ignorant
bigots might be.
This letter was an insult to the many God-fearing, patriotic,
(who's god? And for which nation?)
)Muslim people of this community and contrary to the ideals of
tolerance (The writer's notion of tolerance
seems to be different than mine) we claim to hold dear in the
United States. The Muslim people, in fact, follow the world’s
largest monotheistic religion. (I don't
understand why this would be considered a good thing, considering
that islam wants to destroy the world's second largets religion)
Muslims honor the moral precepts of the Ten Commandments and worship
the God of Abraham.(At least according to the
Koran. I think Jews might disagree.) Those of my acquaintance
have uniformly been friendly, generous, devout persons deeply devoted
to their families.
People who are Muslims are mostly like
everybody else. I have nothing against Muslim people, per se. My
distain is for those who accept the tennents of Islam and use them as
a reason to kill me and other unbelievers. I find it very hard to
believe that any civilized person wouldn't feel the same. But
apparently, the writer doesen't)
The
real threat to American values are not Muslims,
(This is total delusional nonsense. Anybody who wants to kill me for
whatever reason is a threat and my enemy.) but those among us
who so easily let fear and hatred take place of reason and tolerance,
and also newspaper editors who publish
hate-mongering without a word of apology, embarrassment or disavowal.
Using
the words “reason” and “tolerance” in defense of any religion
is oxymorinic.
And
the writer seems to be urging the newspaper editors to practice
censorship in aid of political correctness. How very tolerant.
James R. Leinicke
HOW DO YOU LIKE IT?
Imagine
that you came home to find a bunch of strangers camped out in your
living room. When you try to get them to leave, the authorities tell
you that not only do you have to let them stay, but you have to feed
them, pay for their medical care, and send their children to school.
Furthermore,
you are told that since one of them was born in your house, you also
must let all their relatives move in too.
.
When you ask why, you are told
that these people didn’t like where they were living before, and
since you have a nicer house in a nicer neighborhood they decided
to move in with you. They are entitled to do so because you are a
greedy capitalist with a lot of undeserved wealth which needs to be
redistributed to those who are more deserving.
Not
only that but you are suspected of voting for republicans and your
involuntary guests will vote for democrats as soon as they obtain
fake documents to do so.
Welcome
to Progressive America.
Friday, February 27, 2015
wake up
Letter to the editor from 9/15
Wake
up America. We are at war with an enemy that poses an existential
threat to our very existence. Our government does not want to
acknowledge this threat, mostly out of misguided political
correctness. Never the less we are at war. Our enemy has declared
war against us. They explicitly intent to destroy us. It is their
stated goal and purpose.
This
enemy has infiltrated our government, our schools, and our military.
They openly espouse their totalitarian doctrine in the media and in
mosques. They make no pretense of their intentions. Yet we refuse
to acknowledge or even name them.
But
make no mistake about it, the enemy is Islam. Not “radical”
Islam. Not “fundamentalist” Islam. But a barbaric, toxic,
pathological, totalitarian system masquerading as a religion. This
system is diametrically opposed to every value that we in America
hold dear.
Islam
not only condones but mandates practices that are abhorrent to most
Americans. Practices that we condemn as child abuse, slavery,
murder and torture. And as is clear from the activities of the
so-called Islamic State, they practice what they preach. Their stated
intention is to impose this medieval system on the entire world. If
anyone doubts this they should read the history of the Muslim
conquests of the seventh century, and the history of the Ottoman
empire which lasted until the end of WWI. This is what the “Islamic
State” intends for the world. The Ottomans did not have modern
armies and nuclear weapons.
One
often hears that the Constitution guarantees the right of religious
freedom. But this is nonsense. We do not allow polygamy, child
abuse, infanticide, slavery, human sacrifice or other abhorrent
practices in the name of religious freedom. Nor would any civilized
person believe that we should.
But
Islam not only condones these things, and worse, but mandates them.
One has only to read the Koran to learn this.
One
also hears that there are millions of “moderate” Muslims who do
not condone the actions of the “radicals”. I am sure there were
many “moderate” Muslims in Afghanistan when the Taliban took
over. Where are they now? Either dead or keeping their mouths shut
I would imagine.
One
hears it often said that Islam is a religion of peace. It is. If you
are a Muslim. For infidels there is only the peace of the grave.
Wake
up America.
islam
DENIAL
There is a force in the world that is dedicated and committed to destroying civilization as we know it. The civilized world and America in particular refuses to name or acknowledge this force. But it is high time that Americans recognize this threat and call it what it is.
We sometimes refer to this threat as Islamic Fundamentalism. Or perhaps Radical Islam. Terrorists are referred to as “freedom fighters” or “insurgents”. This is a denial of reality.
You cannot fight an enemy that you refuse to recognize as an enemy. You cannot fight an enemy if you refuse to acknowledge the enemies goals. You cannot fight an enemy that you refuse to name. You cannot fight an enemy that you don't want to offend. And you can't fight an enemy if you care what they think about you.
When you have an enemy who's stated aim is to destroy your country, your way of life, your people and your religion you have no choice but to fight them to the bitter end. An enemy who is offended by your very existence presents an existential threat that cannot be ignored.
America and the civilized world has such an enemy. It is called Islam. Make no mistake it is Islam itself, not fundamentalism or radicalism that is the enemy. Islam is a Barbaric, dysfunctional, toxic and pathological totalitarian idea masquerading as a religion.
Islam is not a religion of peace as is often stated. Actually it is a religion of war and conquest. It is the peace of the grave for non-Muslims. This is explicitly stated in the Koran in numerous places. It is explicitly stated by “clerics” who preach in mosques around the world, and even in America.
The founder of Islam attempted to conquer the whole world in the seventh century. After his death his followers continued the program of conquest and forced conversion for hundreds of years. An Islamic Caliphate ruled the middle east until it was defeated and disbanded in the first world war. Anyone wanting to see what Islam intends for the Christian nations need only read the history of the Ottoman Empire.
It is often said that there are millions of “moderate” Muslims who do not support the “radicals”. One may suppose that there were many nominal Muslims in Afghanistan who opposed or at least did not agree with the Taliban. What happened to them? They either converted or died or kept their mouths shut. We have the recent example of the Taliban for those who are too lazy to read history. The actions of the Taliban were typical of all conquering Muslims throughout history.
Now we have the “Islamic State” whose stated goal is to conquer and forcibly convert or murder everyone that comes into their power. Yet our government who's very purpose is to protect us from foreign threats refuses to even acknowledge the threat until forced to do so after the publication of videos showing Americans being murdered by these barbarians. A government that refuses to name the threat for fear of offending our enemies and inciting them to more violence. A government that refuses to take even the simplest measures to protect the country. A government that refuses to protect our border lest we offend the millions of illegal “immigrants”. A government that refuses to investigate Islamic hate groups for fear of offending Muslims. A government that lets American citizens travel to war zones to train and fight with our enemies, and then lets them back into the country to serve their Islamic masters in acts against Americans.
America is in danger of becoming a footnote to history. Our downfall will be seen as the result of willful blindness, political correctness, ignorance and narcissism. I am only glad that I will not be around to see us reap the fruit of our blindness.
What could be done if our government and leader had the will to do it? Many things. The problem is solvable, but only if our leaders are willing to do them and the people are willing to support the necessary measures.
First; secure the border. As it is we have no idea who is crossing our border and what they intend. We also have no way to track them after they get here. Next we must locate and identify those who have already entered the country illegally. We must separate the sheep from the goats, and deport anyone suspected of enemy associations.
Persons from Muslim countries must not be allowed to enter the United States without being vetted. Any person with radical Islamic associations must not be allowed into the country.
We should encourage any American who wishs to travel abroad to join the enemy to do so. Then when they try to return, we should prosecute them for treason. Treason is defined as giving aid and comfort tto the enemy. We have a law against that.
Islamic “clerics” who preach jihad or hatred for America must be suppressed. Persons attending mosques which allow such practices must me identified and watched. We should use the existing sedition laws to prosecute anyone who advocates the overthrow or destruction of our government. This includes, especially, internet sites that advocate jihad and attempt to “radicalize” or recruit Americans to the enemy cause.
And most importantly the government must acknowledge the threat. We must call it what it is: Islam. The American people must be made to realize that we are engaged in a war with practitioners of an ideology that is diametrically opposed to everything America stands for. That these people intend to destroy us if they can. That these people hate us because their god tells them to. That they hate us because they hate freedom. They hate us because we are powerful while they are weak. They hate us because we are rich while they are poor. That they hate us simply for existing.
Civilization is at war with Islam whither we acknowledge it or not. They are coming to kill us whither we believe it or not. They hate us even though we don't want to offend them. Islam is a totalitarian system. We engaged in a decades long war with another totalitarian system, the Soviet Union. In those days most of us recognized the enemy. Then as now, some of us, for various reasons, supported the enemy's ideology. Islam is as much a danger to us as communism ever was. At least the Soviets only wanted to steal your property. Islam wants to steal your life
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WILL BE THE DEATH OF THIS COUNTRY!
There is a force in the world that is dedicated and committed to destroying civilization as we know it. The civilized world and America in particular refuses to name or acknowledge this force. But it is high time that Americans recognize this threat and call it what it is.
We sometimes refer to this threat as Islamic Fundamentalism. Or perhaps Radical Islam. Terrorists are referred to as “freedom fighters” or “insurgents”. This is a denial of reality.
You cannot fight an enemy that you refuse to recognize as an enemy. You cannot fight an enemy if you refuse to acknowledge the enemies goals. You cannot fight an enemy that you refuse to name. You cannot fight an enemy that you don't want to offend. And you can't fight an enemy if you care what they think about you.
When you have an enemy who's stated aim is to destroy your country, your way of life, your people and your religion you have no choice but to fight them to the bitter end. An enemy who is offended by your very existence presents an existential threat that cannot be ignored.
America and the civilized world has such an enemy. It is called Islam. Make no mistake it is Islam itself, not fundamentalism or radicalism that is the enemy. Islam is a Barbaric, dysfunctional, toxic and pathological totalitarian idea masquerading as a religion.
Islam is not a religion of peace as is often stated. Actually it is a religion of war and conquest. It is the peace of the grave for non-Muslims. This is explicitly stated in the Koran in numerous places. It is explicitly stated by “clerics” who preach in mosques around the world, and even in America.
The founder of Islam attempted to conquer the whole world in the seventh century. After his death his followers continued the program of conquest and forced conversion for hundreds of years. An Islamic Caliphate ruled the middle east until it was defeated and disbanded in the first world war. Anyone wanting to see what Islam intends for the Christian nations need only read the history of the Ottoman Empire.
It is often said that there are millions of “moderate” Muslims who do not support the “radicals”. One may suppose that there were many nominal Muslims in Afghanistan who opposed or at least did not agree with the Taliban. What happened to them? They either converted or died or kept their mouths shut. We have the recent example of the Taliban for those who are too lazy to read history. The actions of the Taliban were typical of all conquering Muslims throughout history.
Now we have the “Islamic State” whose stated goal is to conquer and forcibly convert or murder everyone that comes into their power. Yet our government who's very purpose is to protect us from foreign threats refuses to even acknowledge the threat until forced to do so after the publication of videos showing Americans being murdered by these barbarians. A government that refuses to name the threat for fear of offending our enemies and inciting them to more violence. A government that refuses to take even the simplest measures to protect the country. A government that refuses to protect our border lest we offend the millions of illegal “immigrants”. A government that refuses to investigate Islamic hate groups for fear of offending Muslims. A government that lets American citizens travel to war zones to train and fight with our enemies, and then lets them back into the country to serve their Islamic masters in acts against Americans.
America is in danger of becoming a footnote to history. Our downfall will be seen as the result of willful blindness, political correctness, ignorance and narcissism. I am only glad that I will not be around to see us reap the fruit of our blindness.
What could be done if our government and leader had the will to do it? Many things. The problem is solvable, but only if our leaders are willing to do them and the people are willing to support the necessary measures.
First; secure the border. As it is we have no idea who is crossing our border and what they intend. We also have no way to track them after they get here. Next we must locate and identify those who have already entered the country illegally. We must separate the sheep from the goats, and deport anyone suspected of enemy associations.
Persons from Muslim countries must not be allowed to enter the United States without being vetted. Any person with radical Islamic associations must not be allowed into the country.
We should encourage any American who wishs to travel abroad to join the enemy to do so. Then when they try to return, we should prosecute them for treason. Treason is defined as giving aid and comfort tto the enemy. We have a law against that.
Islamic “clerics” who preach jihad or hatred for America must be suppressed. Persons attending mosques which allow such practices must me identified and watched. We should use the existing sedition laws to prosecute anyone who advocates the overthrow or destruction of our government. This includes, especially, internet sites that advocate jihad and attempt to “radicalize” or recruit Americans to the enemy cause.
And most importantly the government must acknowledge the threat. We must call it what it is: Islam. The American people must be made to realize that we are engaged in a war with practitioners of an ideology that is diametrically opposed to everything America stands for. That these people intend to destroy us if they can. That these people hate us because their god tells them to. That they hate us because they hate freedom. They hate us because we are powerful while they are weak. They hate us because we are rich while they are poor. That they hate us simply for existing.
Civilization is at war with Islam whither we acknowledge it or not. They are coming to kill us whither we believe it or not. They hate us even though we don't want to offend them. Islam is a totalitarian system. We engaged in a decades long war with another totalitarian system, the Soviet Union. In those days most of us recognized the enemy. Then as now, some of us, for various reasons, supported the enemy's ideology. Islam is as much a danger to us as communism ever was. At least the Soviets only wanted to steal your property. Islam wants to steal your life
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WILL BE THE DEATH OF THIS COUNTRY!
ISIS 1
A letter to the editor from 9/14
As much as I hate to agree with President Obama, he is right about one thing. We have no friends in the Muslim world, and it would be foolish to arm any of them. As we learned when we armed the Afghan Mujahedin in the 80's and created the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and Osama Bin Laden. More recently the weapons we supplied to the Iraqi army have wound up in the hands of ISIS.
There are no “moderate” Muslims. The Islamists are is perfectly clear about who their enemies are. This ideology requires them to kill or convert all unbelievers. “Moderate” Muslims are those who haven't yet actually killed any. If ISIS succeeds in establishing an Islamic Caliphate the “moderate” Muslims will be right there with them.
The United States should get out of the Middle East altogether. We should let the various factions kill each other as they have been doing for over 1000 years. We should devote our efforts to keeping them out of this country.
Sooner or later ISIS will attack Iran. ISIS is Sunni, and Iran is Shia. Neither can allow the other to exist. When the war between Sunni and Shia begins we can sit back and watch. When it is over we can pick up the pieces should we choose to do so. Meanwhile, we should let them kill each other instead of risking American servicemen in a feckless attempt to civilize barbarians.
As much as I hate to agree with President Obama, he is right about one thing. We have no friends in the Muslim world, and it would be foolish to arm any of them. As we learned when we armed the Afghan Mujahedin in the 80's and created the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and Osama Bin Laden. More recently the weapons we supplied to the Iraqi army have wound up in the hands of ISIS.
There are no “moderate” Muslims. The Islamists are is perfectly clear about who their enemies are. This ideology requires them to kill or convert all unbelievers. “Moderate” Muslims are those who haven't yet actually killed any. If ISIS succeeds in establishing an Islamic Caliphate the “moderate” Muslims will be right there with them.
The United States should get out of the Middle East altogether. We should let the various factions kill each other as they have been doing for over 1000 years. We should devote our efforts to keeping them out of this country.
Sooner or later ISIS will attack Iran. ISIS is Sunni, and Iran is Shia. Neither can allow the other to exist. When the war between Sunni and Shia begins we can sit back and watch. When it is over we can pick up the pieces should we choose to do so. Meanwhile, we should let them kill each other instead of risking American servicemen in a feckless attempt to civilize barbarians.
flame1
A response to a critical letter
It would seem that the writer James R. Leinicke would prefer that the editors censor letters for political correctness. I prefer open and free expression myself, but realize that I am in a minority. So I am moved to reply to those comments.
Ad hominem attacks and invidious and irrelevant comparisons are typical “arguments” of those with nothing rational to say.
Christians believe that the Bible is the revealed word of God. If you don't believe this you cannot call yourself a Christian. Muslims believe that the Koran is the reveled word of Allah. Someone who doesn't believe this is not a Muslim, whatever they choose to call themselves.
The Koran requires believers to convert or kill all unbelievers. A person who claims to not believe this is not a Muslim, whatever they choose to call themselves. Anyone who does claim to believe this is a danger to civilization.
Islamic jihadists, ISIS, Al Qaeda, et al are practicing the Muslim religion, Just ask them. If a persons political correctness or collectivist ideology leads them to deny this, they are simply delusional. Such people commonly use accusations of racism and bigotry to demonize and excoriate those who do not agree with their idealistic world view.
It is of no use to point to those, who, claiming to be Muslims, choose not to commit any uncivilized acts, as being representative of Islam as a whole. My problem is with the religion itself, and the practitioners of this religion who do commit atrocities in the name of that religion. And the undeniable fact remains that the Koran does call for the killing of all unbelievers, whither or not any individual believer chooses to follow this prescription or not.
It is also illogical to point out the bad acts of one person or group to excuse the bad acts of another. In other words the past actions of the Ku Klux Klan, the Nazis, Christian crusaders or witch burners are totally irrelevant with respect to the present actions of Islamists. I would welcome rational comments on this matter.
Incidentally, my letter did not contain the word "terrorist", and facts are not assumptions. Or vice versa.
Send hate mail to:
donnic911@outlook.com
It would seem that the writer James R. Leinicke would prefer that the editors censor letters for political correctness. I prefer open and free expression myself, but realize that I am in a minority. So I am moved to reply to those comments.
Ad hominem attacks and invidious and irrelevant comparisons are typical “arguments” of those with nothing rational to say.
Christians believe that the Bible is the revealed word of God. If you don't believe this you cannot call yourself a Christian. Muslims believe that the Koran is the reveled word of Allah. Someone who doesn't believe this is not a Muslim, whatever they choose to call themselves.
The Koran requires believers to convert or kill all unbelievers. A person who claims to not believe this is not a Muslim, whatever they choose to call themselves. Anyone who does claim to believe this is a danger to civilization.
Islamic jihadists, ISIS, Al Qaeda, et al are practicing the Muslim religion, Just ask them. If a persons political correctness or collectivist ideology leads them to deny this, they are simply delusional. Such people commonly use accusations of racism and bigotry to demonize and excoriate those who do not agree with their idealistic world view.
It is of no use to point to those, who, claiming to be Muslims, choose not to commit any uncivilized acts, as being representative of Islam as a whole. My problem is with the religion itself, and the practitioners of this religion who do commit atrocities in the name of that religion. And the undeniable fact remains that the Koran does call for the killing of all unbelievers, whither or not any individual believer chooses to follow this prescription or not.
It is also illogical to point out the bad acts of one person or group to excuse the bad acts of another. In other words the past actions of the Ku Klux Klan, the Nazis, Christian crusaders or witch burners are totally irrelevant with respect to the present actions of Islamists. I would welcome rational comments on this matter.
Incidentally, my letter did not contain the word "terrorist", and facts are not assumptions. Or vice versa.
Send hate mail to:
donnic911@outlook.com
immigration 2
This
was a letter to the editor from 11/14
Imagine
that you came home to find a bunch of strangers camped out in your
living room. When you try to get them to leave, the authorities tell
you that not only do you have to let them stay, but you have to feed
them, pay for their medical care, and send their children to school.
Furthermore,
you are told that since one of them was born in your house, you also
must let all their relatives move in too.
.
When you ask why, you are told
that these people didn’t like where they were living before, and
since you have a nicer house in a nicer neighborhood they decided
to move in with you. They are entitled to do so because you are a
greedy capitalist with a lot of undeserved wealth which needs to be
redistributed to those who are more deserving.
Not
only that but you are suspected of voting for republicans and your
involuntary guests will vote for democrats as soon as they obtain
fake documents to do so.
Welcome
to Progressive America.
women ears
WOMEN EARS
1. Interpreting a comment to be the opposite of what is intended.
2. When a statement is taken to have the worst possible meaning, especially in the case of a complement.
1. Interpreting a comment to be the opposite of what is intended.
2. When a statement is taken to have the worst possible meaning, especially in the case of a complement.
more peaceful muslims
This was written in 2012 long before ISIS
A prominent lawmaker in Afghanistan is calling for the execution of Afghans who convert from Islam to Christianity.
Mohabat News, an Iranian Christian news agency, reported that Nazir Ahmad Hanafi, head of the Afghan parliament's Legislative Commission, said: "Afghani citizens continue to convert to Christianity in India. Numerous Afghanis have become Christians in India. This is an offense to Islamic law and according to the Koran, they need to be executed."
Thousands of Afghan refugees have fled to India, and a small congregation of Christian converts meets in New Delhi, according to CNS News.
Another Afghan lawmaker, Abdul Sattar Khawasi, reportedly has demanded that the Afghan government pressure Indian authorities to provide the names of Afghans who have converted to Christianity so that the Afghan government can arrest and punish them if they return home.
And Afghan lawmaker Abdul Latif Pedram has blamed the increase in conversions on the presence of American forces in the country. According to Mohabat, he said: "The United States' long-term plan is to attack Afghan culture. Converting Afghan citizens serves that purpose."
Barnabas Fund, a charity that supports Christians in Islamic nations, reported: "For 10 consecutive nights at the end of August, two TV channels broadcast photos of the leader of the Afghan church in Delhi, calling for him to be executed."
A U.S. State Department report disclosed that while there are five Hindu temples and 13 Sikh places of worship in Afghanistan, there are no Christian churches or schools.
The report stated: "Under some interpretations of Islamic law, converting from Islam to another religion is deemed apostasy and considered an egregious crime. Male citizens over age 18 or female citizens over age 16 of sound mind who convert from Islam have three days to recant their conversions or possibly face death by stoning."
Christians are also under fire in Egypt. The Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters have begun forcing the 15,000 or so Coptic Christians in the village of Dalga to pay a "jizya" tax, the Washington Times reported.
Jizya is the tribute "that conquered non-Muslims historically have to pay their Islamic overlords," a source explained.
The tribute ranges from 200 Egyptian pounds a day (about $29) to 500 pounds a day.
And in Syria, Islamist rebels invaded a Christian man's shop "and gave him three options," according to the Christian Science Monitor. "Become a Muslim, pay $70,000 as a jizya tax, or be killed along with his family."
A prominent lawmaker in Afghanistan is calling for the execution of Afghans who convert from Islam to Christianity.
Mohabat News, an Iranian Christian news agency, reported that Nazir Ahmad Hanafi, head of the Afghan parliament's Legislative Commission, said: "Afghani citizens continue to convert to Christianity in India. Numerous Afghanis have become Christians in India. This is an offense to Islamic law and according to the Koran, they need to be executed."
Thousands of Afghan refugees have fled to India, and a small congregation of Christian converts meets in New Delhi, according to CNS News.
Another Afghan lawmaker, Abdul Sattar Khawasi, reportedly has demanded that the Afghan government pressure Indian authorities to provide the names of Afghans who have converted to Christianity so that the Afghan government can arrest and punish them if they return home.
And Afghan lawmaker Abdul Latif Pedram has blamed the increase in conversions on the presence of American forces in the country. According to Mohabat, he said: "The United States' long-term plan is to attack Afghan culture. Converting Afghan citizens serves that purpose."
Barnabas Fund, a charity that supports Christians in Islamic nations, reported: "For 10 consecutive nights at the end of August, two TV channels broadcast photos of the leader of the Afghan church in Delhi, calling for him to be executed."
A U.S. State Department report disclosed that while there are five Hindu temples and 13 Sikh places of worship in Afghanistan, there are no Christian churches or schools.
The report stated: "Under some interpretations of Islamic law, converting from Islam to another religion is deemed apostasy and considered an egregious crime. Male citizens over age 18 or female citizens over age 16 of sound mind who convert from Islam have three days to recant their conversions or possibly face death by stoning."
Christians are also under fire in Egypt. The Muslim Brotherhood and its supporters have begun forcing the 15,000 or so Coptic Christians in the village of Dalga to pay a "jizya" tax, the Washington Times reported.
Jizya is the tribute "that conquered non-Muslims historically have to pay their Islamic overlords," a source explained.
The tribute ranges from 200 Egyptian pounds a day (about $29) to 500 pounds a day.
And in Syria, Islamist rebels invaded a Christian man's shop "and gave him three options," according to the Christian Science Monitor. "Become a Muslim, pay $70,000 as a jizya tax, or be killed along with his family."
superstition
SUPERSTITION
The dictionary defines superstition as follows:
Superstition :
Superstition Su`per*sti"tion, n. [F. superstition, L.
superstitio, originally, a standing still over or by a thing;
hence, amazement, wonder, dread, especially of the divine or
supernatural, fr. superstare to stand over; super over +
stare to stand. See Super-, and Stand.]
1. An excessive reverence for, or fear of, that which is
unknown or mysterious.
This definition is interesting, but not particularly helpful, The dictionary goes on to say:
2. An ignorant or irrational worship of the Supreme Deity;
excessive exactness or rigor in religious opinions or
practice; extreme and unnecessary scruples in the
observance of religious rites not commanded, or of points
of minor importance; also, a rite or practice proceeding
from excess in religion.
This is more useful and emphasizes the nature of religion. Then there is this:
4. Belief in the direct agency of superior powers in certain
extraordinary or singular events, or in magic, omens,
prognostics, or the like.
Syn: Fanaticism.
Which is more to the point.
Another way of putting it is that superstition involves a belief in non-causal relationships between events. So a belief that your “birth sign” has some influence on your life is superstitious because the is no causal relationship between the stars and human life.
Superstition also involves a belief in the supernatural. A definition of this term is also in order:
Supernatural, Preternatural. Preternatural
signifies beside nature, and supernatural, above or
beyond nature.
What is very greatly aside from the
ordinary course of things is preternatural; what is
above or beyond the established laws of the universe
is supernatural.
The dark day which terrified all Europe nearly a century ago was preternatural; the resurrection of the dead is supernatural.
"That form which the earth is under at present is preternatural, like a statue made and broken again.
--T. Burnet.
"Cures wrought by medicines are natural operations;
but the miraculous ones wrought by Christ and his
apostles were supernatural."
--Boyle.
Being beyond, or exceeding, the power or laws of nature;
miraculous.
[1913 Webster]
those are a couple of illustrative examples. What is important is that all superstitious beliefs are irrational, illogical, and absurd not to put too fine a point on it.
So why do so many people have so many superstitious beliefs. There have been reams of paper written on this subject; most of it interesting, but much of it beside the point. What is important for this essay is the reasons that people hold such beliefs, rather than the beliefs themselves. When you say something is irrational and illogical or just plain ignorant and/or stupid, the is not much more to be said about it. There is little point in making distinctions among different kinds of nonsense.
The reasons are important because in order to wean a person away from this firmly held beliefs, you must understand how he came to believe them in the first place. Given that they are absurd on the face.
If many superstitions arise out of ignorance, it must be remembered that in past times all humans lived in a state of ignorance to a greater or lesser degree, depending on time and place. So our ancestors can be excused for believing specious explanations for the objects and events in their world when the true explanation was not obvious, and was beyond the scope of their knowledge.
Humans are explanation seeking animals, and when an explanation is not apparent will make up one to seemingly fit the facts, These may seem laughable to us from our advanced perspective, but may make perfect sense to the believer.
However we are not living in primitive times anymore. We now have the advantage of science and it's tools of investigation and explanation. So there is no excuse for the continuation of superstitious beliefs. Or so t would seem. Unfortunately this is obviously not the case. I would venture to say that a higher percentage of the world population holds superstitious beliefs now than any time in the past, including the “Dark Ages”. This is apparent everywhere you look. Popular media is infested with vampires, werewolves, ghosts and spirits and similar nonsense. Millions of people believe in alien visitations, UFO abductions, and mythical creatures that are supposedly hiding in our midst
So where do these beliefs come from? As I said above, many are the result of ignorance, Yet most such beliefs persist in the face of overwhelming evidence of their nonsense, This calls for some kind of explanation. Belief can be defined as holding a proposition to be true in spite of lack of any evidence of it's truth and in spite of all evidence to the contrary. This is a perfect definition of religious belief, which is nothing more than systematized, organized superstition.
The dictionary defines superstition as follows:
Superstition :
Superstition Su`per*sti"tion, n. [F. superstition, L.
superstitio, originally, a standing still over or by a thing;
hence, amazement, wonder, dread, especially of the divine or
supernatural, fr. superstare to stand over; super over +
stare to stand. See Super-, and Stand.]
1. An excessive reverence for, or fear of, that which is
unknown or mysterious.
This definition is interesting, but not particularly helpful, The dictionary goes on to say:
2. An ignorant or irrational worship of the Supreme Deity;
excessive exactness or rigor in religious opinions or
practice; extreme and unnecessary scruples in the
observance of religious rites not commanded, or of points
of minor importance; also, a rite or practice proceeding
from excess in religion.
This is more useful and emphasizes the nature of religion. Then there is this:
4. Belief in the direct agency of superior powers in certain
extraordinary or singular events, or in magic, omens,
prognostics, or the like.
Syn: Fanaticism.
Which is more to the point.
Another way of putting it is that superstition involves a belief in non-causal relationships between events. So a belief that your “birth sign” has some influence on your life is superstitious because the is no causal relationship between the stars and human life.
Superstition also involves a belief in the supernatural. A definition of this term is also in order:
Supernatural, Preternatural. Preternatural
signifies beside nature, and supernatural, above or
beyond nature.
What is very greatly aside from the
ordinary course of things is preternatural; what is
above or beyond the established laws of the universe
is supernatural.
The dark day which terrified all Europe nearly a century ago was preternatural; the resurrection of the dead is supernatural.
"That form which the earth is under at present is preternatural, like a statue made and broken again.
--T. Burnet.
"Cures wrought by medicines are natural operations;
but the miraculous ones wrought by Christ and his
apostles were supernatural."
--Boyle.
Being beyond, or exceeding, the power or laws of nature;
miraculous.
[1913 Webster]
those are a couple of illustrative examples. What is important is that all superstitious beliefs are irrational, illogical, and absurd not to put too fine a point on it.
So why do so many people have so many superstitious beliefs. There have been reams of paper written on this subject; most of it interesting, but much of it beside the point. What is important for this essay is the reasons that people hold such beliefs, rather than the beliefs themselves. When you say something is irrational and illogical or just plain ignorant and/or stupid, the is not much more to be said about it. There is little point in making distinctions among different kinds of nonsense.
The reasons are important because in order to wean a person away from this firmly held beliefs, you must understand how he came to believe them in the first place. Given that they are absurd on the face.
If many superstitions arise out of ignorance, it must be remembered that in past times all humans lived in a state of ignorance to a greater or lesser degree, depending on time and place. So our ancestors can be excused for believing specious explanations for the objects and events in their world when the true explanation was not obvious, and was beyond the scope of their knowledge.
Humans are explanation seeking animals, and when an explanation is not apparent will make up one to seemingly fit the facts, These may seem laughable to us from our advanced perspective, but may make perfect sense to the believer.
However we are not living in primitive times anymore. We now have the advantage of science and it's tools of investigation and explanation. So there is no excuse for the continuation of superstitious beliefs. Or so t would seem. Unfortunately this is obviously not the case. I would venture to say that a higher percentage of the world population holds superstitious beliefs now than any time in the past, including the “Dark Ages”. This is apparent everywhere you look. Popular media is infested with vampires, werewolves, ghosts and spirits and similar nonsense. Millions of people believe in alien visitations, UFO abductions, and mythical creatures that are supposedly hiding in our midst
So where do these beliefs come from? As I said above, many are the result of ignorance, Yet most such beliefs persist in the face of overwhelming evidence of their nonsense, This calls for some kind of explanation. Belief can be defined as holding a proposition to be true in spite of lack of any evidence of it's truth and in spite of all evidence to the contrary. This is a perfect definition of religious belief, which is nothing more than systematized, organized superstition.
new theory
A
NEW CONSPIRACY THEORY
I
just thought of a new conspiracy theory. Today I went to Office
depot to see about a computer I had bought there. To make a long
story short, I was very dissatisfied with the outcome. So much so
that I decided to complain to the Better
Business Bureau.
Much
to my surprise, whenever I tried
to submit a complaint I was redirected to some place in the
Caribbean. I thought this was odd. But when I tried to complain on
other sites I had more frustrating experiences. For example, one
site would not let me register a compliant unless I downloaded Chrome
and made it my default browser! Other sites tried to get me to pay to
file a complaint after I had gone to the trouble to fill out the
form. Several complaint sites were very slow to load or wouldn’t
load at all.
Googling
for places to complain often
resulted in various glitches, long waits, or redirections to some
site that tred to sell me something.
This
got me to thinking: What if search sites like Google were being paid
to frustrate people who wanted to complain or demand refunds, or just
ask bothersome questions? What if companies in general were involved
in a concerted program to frustrate bothersome
customers by limiting their access to the net, or otherwise making it
more trouble than it is worth to proceed. When you think about it,
these companies could be saving millions by avoiding having to deal
with complaints.
As
everyone knows a retail sales company has no interest
in the customer once he has paid his money and left the store. From
that point on he is nothing but a advertising target. There is no
profit in repairs and returns.
Could
this be the reason that there re so many horrible “customer
service” departments. And why it is so hard to talk to a human.
much less one that has any knowledge? Or one who has the authority
to make decisions?
I
have always thought it was because the companies don’t want to pay
enough to get knowledgeable or
competent employees. But what if it is the result of a deliberate
policy?
If
it is, then many companies have to be in collusion
for it to work.
ufo's not aliens
why
ufo’s aren’t aliens!
- People don’t know what they are seeing. If they did it would not be unknown.
- Check out Huntington Post.com and look for ufo’s
- Google ufo hoaxes
- There has never been any physical evidence of aliens. Any, ever.
- In pre-industrial times people saw angels and demons and ghosts and spirits. Now when we see something in the sky we assume that it is either a bird, or some kind of machine. Primitive people still see demons and spirits.
- What would be the possible motives of aliens to come around here for at least 70 years and never make contact, and never leave any evidence.
- Why are there so many different kinds of ufo’s reported? How many different kinds of aliens do you suppose are coming here?
- It would take massive amounts of energy to travel from one star to another. The closest star to earth is 4.3 lightyears away. At the speed of light it would take 4.3 years to even get here.
- Even if it were possible to travel faster than the speed of light; it would still take massive amounts of energy. Energy is expensive. What economic motive would aliens have for spending that amount of time and money?
- It is admitted by even ufo believers that 90% of ufo’s are hoaxes and misidentification. So, why not 100%?
- The example of the sea bed “crop circle” should indicate that even the most weird things can have a logical explanation. Until they discovered what was making the pattern it was unknown.
- And finally, I repeat, There is absolutely never been any real evidence of aliens, ever! So where are they? Where are the beer cans and sandwich wrappers? Where are the crashed ships?
It
is foolish and illogical to believe anything without evidence.
Lights in the sky are at best, only evidence of lights in the sky.
And do you believe that all the asshole governments in the world
could keep a secret of this magnitude hidden for 70 years? Not
possible. Governments can’t keep anything secret for more than a
few months. And don’t bring up the Manhattan project. Everybody
knew it existed, just not what they were doing. and that only lasted
until they blew up a bomb in the desert. Less than 2 years if I
recall. The Russians managed to steal all our atomic secrets in a
few years. So much for super-secret government secrets!
These
are only a few of the arguments against the existence of alien
visitations. I could go on for pages more. There are NO aliens. At
least not visiting earth. There is NOTHING supernatural. There are
NO ghosts, spirits, ESP, angels, demons, witches, or any kind of
magic. Sorry about that. The world would probably be a more
interesting place if there were.
wierd things
WHY PEOPLE BELIEVE WEIRD THINGS
People believe things that are obviously not true, and should be seen as such after a few minutes of thought. Why is this? One would think that anyone would want to only believe things that were true. The universe cares nothing for anyone’s opinion. Facts are facts and no belief or opinion will change that.
I think there are a number of reasons for this. I will list and try to explain some of them here. First, what are some of the most wrong things that many people believe?
First on the list must be religion. Almost everybody believes in some sort of God. Where does this idea come from? Anthropologists and psychologists who have studied this phenomenon mostly agree that it come from our social organization, which evolved thousands of years ago. Primitive people did and still do live in social groups such as families, clans, and tribes. Prior to agriculture, everybody lived that way. In any group of mammals a leader will always emerge. This is an evolutionary adaptation that helps maintain the cohesion of the group. Once that idea of a leader or ruler, who is usually the oldest and strongest member of the group, arises then it is a short step to imagining a “super leader”. Leaders protect the group and give them direction, and supply them with explanations of how their world works. A god is simply an imaginary “super leader”. Leader types quickly come to realize that their power depends on the belief of their infallibility by the group. So it is to the leader’s advantage to have the group believe that he is getting his directions from a god, which only he and the witch doctor can communicate with.
Once people started living in cities it became possible for a leadership group to live without working. Since the main goal of any ruler is to maintain his power, they will quickly learn the best ways to do this. (The ones who don’t do so don’t remain leaders for long.) Religion turns out to be one of the best ways ever devised for doing this. God can watch and punish those who violate the rules set down by the ruler. Since the god is omniscient and omnipotent there is no escaping from his judgment.
As religion became more sophisticated, the rulers and priests devised even more effective measures for maintaining their power. That’s when you get organized religions and the notion of the “divine right of kings”. This has plagued humans for 10,000 years. The promise of an afterlife where you will get all the things you deserved but didn’t get in the real world is very attractive for humans who have the capacity to imagine the future, and are afraid of death.
This is a very simple explanation of religion, and there is much more to it. But I believe that this describes the basic idea.
The next class of weird things that people believe can be called “conspiracy theories”. A conspiracy theory is a proposition that something is not what it seems and is really under the control of some malicious entity. Such ideas are as old as humanity. People believe in such ideas for a number of reasons. First because of experience. Everybody has been lied to by someone with power over them, starting with their parents. This leads people to suspect that someone doesn’t want them to know the truth for some malicious reason. Humans are designed to be curious and seek explanations for the world they see. If they don’t get these explanations they try to devise them based on their own knowledge and experience. But when someone doesn’t know the true facts of a matter, the explanation he comes up with is likely to be wrong. This feeling that someone is trying to put something over on you is very uncomfortable, and you will try to relieve the feeling by creating an explanation.
When more than one person is involved, the explanations feed on each other and become more and more involved and complicated. Once the idea has spread, it will be found to be very satisfying to anybody who doesn’t know what is really going on and who doesn’t trust authority.
Of course, the fact that authorities often lie and keep secrets for their own benefit doesn’t help the situation any. But even when the facts are well known, many people will choose to believe whatever explanation plays most to their own assumptions and prejudices. Once people become emotionally invested in an idea they become very resistant to change. They come to see disagreement as a personal attack, and react accordingly.
Most people are pretty ignorant of anything outside their own personal experience. The cure for this is education, of course. Unfortunately education in the United States is very lacking in a number of important respects. A subject for another essay, perhaps.
When people don’t know what’s going on they get anxious and uncomfortable, and naturally seek information. When acceptable information is not forthcoming they will grab on to anything that relieves their feeling of impotence. Thus, they become easy prey for any demagogue or self-interested conman.
And again, once a person becomes emotionally invested in a position he is very hard to change. The belief becomes part of his self-image and any disagreement is seen as a personal attack. This is most easily seen in a Muslim’s reaction to anything he considers an attack on his faith. But all believers have the same reaction to a greater or lesser extent. This is what makes unthinking belief so dangerous.
Another class of erroneous things that many people believe is an ignorance of or misunderstanding of science. This stems from deficient education and perhaps conflicting beliefs acquired from religion or culture.
When I first started working in the education department at Ordway, I was completely amazed at the profound ignorance of the students about the simplest matters of science and how the world works. I won’t catalog the misconceptions here, but only say they were universal and amazing. I wrote many essays like this one for the GED classes, but it was a futile exercise. Their ignorance was too deeply ingrained.
Most people because of lack of proper education have a very limited understanding of science. I’m not talking about scientific knowledge, though that is woefully lacking too. I mean that people have no understanding of the principles of science, or the basic principles of logic and reason. As a result they are able to believe things that anybody with a basic understanding science would know were not true or not likely to be true. And because they don’t recognize these basic principles, it is almost impossible to explain or convince them that they are wrong.
The result of this is conspiracy theories and things like creationism, environmentalism, and luddism in general.
Few people understand what constitutes evidence and proof. They are prone to all the logical fallacies. For example, there is no logical reason to believe that a person’s expertize in one area confers similar expertize in another area. Yet we often find athletes and entertainers pontificating on various matters completely out of their area. There is no reason to pay more attention to a professor of English literature, even if he is famous for it, or works at Harvard, when he is talking about climate change than you would pay to any stranger on the street. In fact, the stranger might actually know something about it, while the professor is only parroting what his colleagues have said.
Also, the fact that any number of other people believes something is no evidence of its truth. Truth is not a matter of opinion; even a lot of opinion. Examples of this principle are all around us. The foremost example is religion, as said before.
Other areas of society are rife with ignorance and misconceptions. Most people would say that the US is a democracy, for example. Very few people understand how the government works; how laws are made, etc. Even fewer people understand something as basic as money and finance. I could go on and on, but you get the idea.
In the end, what it comes down to is that people believe whatever makes them feel better, or feel vindicated, or safe, or better than others, or important and in control. Since they are usually none of these things they tend to be very defensive about their beliefs.
The solution to this problem is simple in theory, and very difficult in practice. JUST THINK! The main difficulty is that most people have been failed by the education system, and have never been thought to think. And make no mistake, thinking has to be taught. No one is likely to figure it out by themselves. There are many more ways of being wrong than ways of being right.
Here are the basic principles:
Learn what constitutes real evidence and demand it before believing anything.
Real evidence is not opinion, antidotes, hearsay, or “everybody” says.
Recognize and avoid wishful thinking. Things exist as they are not how you would want them to be.
Nature, i.e., reality, is all there is. Everything real is “natural” There is no supernatural anything. No gods, no demons, no witches, no ghosts, no ESP, no sprits, no heaven and no hell (except the one we make for ourselves).
Magic does not work, and wishing will not make it so. There is no such thing as a free lunch. If you think something is too good to be true, you are probably right.
9/23/2012
People believe things that are obviously not true, and should be seen as such after a few minutes of thought. Why is this? One would think that anyone would want to only believe things that were true. The universe cares nothing for anyone’s opinion. Facts are facts and no belief or opinion will change that.
I think there are a number of reasons for this. I will list and try to explain some of them here. First, what are some of the most wrong things that many people believe?
First on the list must be religion. Almost everybody believes in some sort of God. Where does this idea come from? Anthropologists and psychologists who have studied this phenomenon mostly agree that it come from our social organization, which evolved thousands of years ago. Primitive people did and still do live in social groups such as families, clans, and tribes. Prior to agriculture, everybody lived that way. In any group of mammals a leader will always emerge. This is an evolutionary adaptation that helps maintain the cohesion of the group. Once that idea of a leader or ruler, who is usually the oldest and strongest member of the group, arises then it is a short step to imagining a “super leader”. Leaders protect the group and give them direction, and supply them with explanations of how their world works. A god is simply an imaginary “super leader”. Leader types quickly come to realize that their power depends on the belief of their infallibility by the group. So it is to the leader’s advantage to have the group believe that he is getting his directions from a god, which only he and the witch doctor can communicate with.
Once people started living in cities it became possible for a leadership group to live without working. Since the main goal of any ruler is to maintain his power, they will quickly learn the best ways to do this. (The ones who don’t do so don’t remain leaders for long.) Religion turns out to be one of the best ways ever devised for doing this. God can watch and punish those who violate the rules set down by the ruler. Since the god is omniscient and omnipotent there is no escaping from his judgment.
As religion became more sophisticated, the rulers and priests devised even more effective measures for maintaining their power. That’s when you get organized religions and the notion of the “divine right of kings”. This has plagued humans for 10,000 years. The promise of an afterlife where you will get all the things you deserved but didn’t get in the real world is very attractive for humans who have the capacity to imagine the future, and are afraid of death.
This is a very simple explanation of religion, and there is much more to it. But I believe that this describes the basic idea.
The next class of weird things that people believe can be called “conspiracy theories”. A conspiracy theory is a proposition that something is not what it seems and is really under the control of some malicious entity. Such ideas are as old as humanity. People believe in such ideas for a number of reasons. First because of experience. Everybody has been lied to by someone with power over them, starting with their parents. This leads people to suspect that someone doesn’t want them to know the truth for some malicious reason. Humans are designed to be curious and seek explanations for the world they see. If they don’t get these explanations they try to devise them based on their own knowledge and experience. But when someone doesn’t know the true facts of a matter, the explanation he comes up with is likely to be wrong. This feeling that someone is trying to put something over on you is very uncomfortable, and you will try to relieve the feeling by creating an explanation.
When more than one person is involved, the explanations feed on each other and become more and more involved and complicated. Once the idea has spread, it will be found to be very satisfying to anybody who doesn’t know what is really going on and who doesn’t trust authority.
Of course, the fact that authorities often lie and keep secrets for their own benefit doesn’t help the situation any. But even when the facts are well known, many people will choose to believe whatever explanation plays most to their own assumptions and prejudices. Once people become emotionally invested in an idea they become very resistant to change. They come to see disagreement as a personal attack, and react accordingly.
Most people are pretty ignorant of anything outside their own personal experience. The cure for this is education, of course. Unfortunately education in the United States is very lacking in a number of important respects. A subject for another essay, perhaps.
When people don’t know what’s going on they get anxious and uncomfortable, and naturally seek information. When acceptable information is not forthcoming they will grab on to anything that relieves their feeling of impotence. Thus, they become easy prey for any demagogue or self-interested conman.
And again, once a person becomes emotionally invested in a position he is very hard to change. The belief becomes part of his self-image and any disagreement is seen as a personal attack. This is most easily seen in a Muslim’s reaction to anything he considers an attack on his faith. But all believers have the same reaction to a greater or lesser extent. This is what makes unthinking belief so dangerous.
Another class of erroneous things that many people believe is an ignorance of or misunderstanding of science. This stems from deficient education and perhaps conflicting beliefs acquired from religion or culture.
When I first started working in the education department at Ordway, I was completely amazed at the profound ignorance of the students about the simplest matters of science and how the world works. I won’t catalog the misconceptions here, but only say they were universal and amazing. I wrote many essays like this one for the GED classes, but it was a futile exercise. Their ignorance was too deeply ingrained.
Most people because of lack of proper education have a very limited understanding of science. I’m not talking about scientific knowledge, though that is woefully lacking too. I mean that people have no understanding of the principles of science, or the basic principles of logic and reason. As a result they are able to believe things that anybody with a basic understanding science would know were not true or not likely to be true. And because they don’t recognize these basic principles, it is almost impossible to explain or convince them that they are wrong.
The result of this is conspiracy theories and things like creationism, environmentalism, and luddism in general.
Few people understand what constitutes evidence and proof. They are prone to all the logical fallacies. For example, there is no logical reason to believe that a person’s expertize in one area confers similar expertize in another area. Yet we often find athletes and entertainers pontificating on various matters completely out of their area. There is no reason to pay more attention to a professor of English literature, even if he is famous for it, or works at Harvard, when he is talking about climate change than you would pay to any stranger on the street. In fact, the stranger might actually know something about it, while the professor is only parroting what his colleagues have said.
Also, the fact that any number of other people believes something is no evidence of its truth. Truth is not a matter of opinion; even a lot of opinion. Examples of this principle are all around us. The foremost example is religion, as said before.
Other areas of society are rife with ignorance and misconceptions. Most people would say that the US is a democracy, for example. Very few people understand how the government works; how laws are made, etc. Even fewer people understand something as basic as money and finance. I could go on and on, but you get the idea.
In the end, what it comes down to is that people believe whatever makes them feel better, or feel vindicated, or safe, or better than others, or important and in control. Since they are usually none of these things they tend to be very defensive about their beliefs.
The solution to this problem is simple in theory, and very difficult in practice. JUST THINK! The main difficulty is that most people have been failed by the education system, and have never been thought to think. And make no mistake, thinking has to be taught. No one is likely to figure it out by themselves. There are many more ways of being wrong than ways of being right.
Here are the basic principles:
Learn what constitutes real evidence and demand it before believing anything.
Real evidence is not opinion, antidotes, hearsay, or “everybody” says.
Recognize and avoid wishful thinking. Things exist as they are not how you would want them to be.
Nature, i.e., reality, is all there is. Everything real is “natural” There is no supernatural anything. No gods, no demons, no witches, no ghosts, no ESP, no sprits, no heaven and no hell (except the one we make for ourselves).
Magic does not work, and wishing will not make it so. There is no such thing as a free lunch. If you think something is too good to be true, you are probably right.
9/23/2012
Second Ammendment
SECOND AMENDMENT
There is a much maligned document called the United States Constitution. In the clearest possible language it says that the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
There is a reason for the Second Amendment. It's not just some afterthought or triviality. When the constitution was written we had just fought a war of revolution with a tyrannical government. The only reason that we were able to win this war was because the people had the will and the means to effectively resist. The will came from a desire for freedom and liberty, and the means was firearms. If collectivist style “gun control” had been in effect in 1776, we would still be singing 'god save the king' instead of the Star Spangled Banner.
The founders understood history and human nature, and they knew that a tendency to tyranny was part of that human nature. They knew from history and personal experience that the only way to oppose tyranny is with force, and the only to prevent it is by vigilance and the threat of force. A potential tyrant needs to know that his intended victims have the will and the means to resist.
But beyond the constitution and any social/political considerations there is a fundamental principle which is beyond the scope of any law. And that is the principle of the right of self defense. This is not a privilege granted by the state for good behavior. It is the fundamental human right without which all other rights are meaningless. Staying alive precedes any other interest you might have.
A right without the means to exercise it is meaningless. Therefore if you are to have a right to life and the right to protect and preserve that life, then any attempt to restrict your ability to do so is tyrannical. Providing the means to exercise your right to life is the purpose of the Second Amendment.
immigration1
GIMMIE A BREAK!!
It
seems to me that the problem with immigration policy is that it doesn't
work. If it can even be said that there
is a policy, which is arguable.
Here
is what a very politically incorrect and rational immigration policy would look
like.
The
only reason that people want to come here is because it is better than where
they were. And who's to blame them. Who would not rather live in America than
some impoverished third-world despotism?
But that's not our problem. By
coming here these people guarantee that things will never get better in their
own country. They should overthrow their
tyrants and establish a government more to their liking. Just like we did. Just like many other countries have done in
the past. If all the people who want
change leave, there will never be change.
That's one reason
But
as I said; that's none of our business.
What is our business is the fact that we are being swamped by illegal
immigrants, and refuse to do anything about it.
So what would I do if I was in charge?
I
would remove all incentive for anyone to come here illegally. How to do that? First I would make it illegal, with teeth, to
pay, hire, rent to, sell to, or provide any taxpayer funded service to any
illegal alien. No free education for
their children, no social security, no unemployment insurance, and in fact no
insurance at all. It would be a crime
for an illegal to apply for or obtain any official documents such as a driving
license, passport, Medicare card, etc.
It would be a crime for any illegal to have a bank account, credit card
or any other financial instrument issued by a US institution.
Hospitals
would be barred from providing any other than acute trauma treatment to any
illegal alien. It would be a crime to
fail to report the presence of an illegal alien, or any attempt by an illegal
alien to circumvent any provisions of the law.
An
illegal alien who committed any crime would be ineligible for probation or
parole of community corrections etc.
Upon completion of whatever sentence he received he would be immediately
deported to his country of origin, without any right of appeal.
Any
illegal alien who was once deported or convicted of a crime in the US would be
forever barred from entering the US for any reason.
Any
illegal alien who was deported and was again found in the US would receive a
substantial prison sentence, and be deported again.
It
should go without saying that any American who hires, pays, employs or receives
any services from any illegal alien will be subject to serious penalties. As will any American who aids any alien to
enter the country illegally, or provides any assistance in aid of illegal
immigration or illegal immigrants.
This
should pretty much remove all incentives to come to this country
illegally. Of course it would have to be
enforced.
Also
I would provide free transportation to the border to any illegal who applied,
no questions asked.
And
another point: The fact the the
“Hispanic” community doesn't like it only implies that they are not law abiding
citizens. If all politicians would
ignore the “Hispanic vote” it would be meaningless. To clarify: if no politician supported your
position, who would you vote for? If no
politician promised your group special favors in exchange for your vote, who
would you vote for?
It
is only the greed for votes that encourages politicians to make promises to
special interest groups. If no
politician did so, there would be no special interest groups. At least none with any political power.
Of
course this would require congressmen of integrity and principle. Unlike the present crop of ego maniacal greed
driven specimens now in office. Don't
hold your breath waiting for that to happen.
The
bottom line is that the “immigration problem” is insoluble under present
circumstances. So you might as well get
used to higher taxes, fewer services, lower wages, and all the smart money
fleeing the country. Fortunately I will
be dead before it gets intolerable here.
I just feel sorry for the young, who will have to live through the
coming disaster.
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