AlmostAtheist

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Posts by AlmostAtheist

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  261

  "The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character...

  by digderidoo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ...in all fiction:jealous and proud of it; petty, unjust, unforgiving, control freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty, ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevent bully.

  ", says richard dawkins in the god delusion p51.

  he goes on to say, "those of us schooled from infancy in his ways can become desensitized to their horror".. would you agree?.

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  AlmostAtheist

  >> By taking this position she has condoned what happened.

  I don't think she would agree with you. Nor you, with her.

  You say she's voting Yes by not voting No. She says she's Abstaining.

  Which brings us all to that great moment in a debate where we understand each other's positions. We actually know what it is that we disagree on. That we got here at all is admirable -- nobody took their ball and went home before the game could play out.

  >> You are falling into the same trap

  I don't agree that I'm in a trap. Very little in life is truly binary, there's no need to force things into boxes, shove them onto one side or the other. I only wanted to know how Snowbird could take the position she takes, and unless I misunderstand her, I know that now. I don't see how understanding that traps me.

  Dave
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  261

  "The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character...

  by digderidoo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ...in all fiction:jealous and proud of it; petty, unjust, unforgiving, control freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty, ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevent bully.

  ", says richard dawkins in the god delusion p51.

  he goes on to say, "those of us schooled from infancy in his ways can become desensitized to their horror".. would you agree?.

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  AlmostAtheist

  >> 1) Accept the OT as inspired in its totality and by doing so condone all that is contained therein that is attributable to God, Snowbird's present position.

  Is that REALLY snow's position? From what I gather, she accepts the OT as inspired, but does NOT judge the acts of god contained in it. She neither condones them, nor condemns them. You or I may say she tacitly condones them by worshiping the Bible's god, but that's not HER position.

  That's a little different than the position I thought she held which was "God did it, therefore it was righteous". She said some things that could be construed that way. But I get the impression that she doesn't actually believe that.

  It's hard for me to get my head around, but I think her position is this:

  'I love and worship the God of the Bible, whether he has acted righteously in the past or not. I do not take it upon myself to judge his actions right or wrong.'

  Snow, feel free to tell me I'm completely wrong. I'm not trying to put words in your mouth. But I think that's where you stand, isn't it?

  Dave
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  8

  Important enuf 4 a thread of its own. . .Dad's comment about shunning rule.

  by Pioneer Spit...oh, i mean Spirit in

  1. jw
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  me again, about something i said to my dad today (i posted about the conversation a bit ago).

  when he was saying his goodbye because out of loyalty he has to treat me like a disfellowshipped one.

  i said, 'well, maybe they'll change that rule.

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  AlmostAtheist

  >> I'm not criticizing, I mean it, maybe they'll change that rule and we can all be friends again one day

  You never know, that may well stick in his head. "Maybe they'll change that rule"... "Maybe THEY'LL change that rule"... "THEY made the rule, and they can change it"... "it's a 'they' rule, not a 'god' rule"...

  I know it's asking alot, but it's a fairly easy slope to slippery one's way down.

  Good luck!

  Dave
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  22

  I HAVE STARTED A SECOND MONETIZED BLOG!

  by badboy in

  1. jw
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  it is science abstracts.

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  AlmostAtheist

  >>I would congratulate you if you were to start posting links to full stories in your blog entries.

  Have to agree here, BB. Add links to the stories and you'll get even more traffic, I bet.

  Dave
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  38

  Ozzie's Weekend Poll #160 - Why no windows?

  by ozziepost in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it seems a long time ago now, but we used to regularly have an ozzie's weekend poll - kinda weekend stuff, y'know?

  they ran weekly for three years but they faded - my ill health didn't help.

  anyway, it's sunday evening downunderneath youse lot and things seem to be kinda quiet on the board - (where the hell are ya???

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  AlmostAtheist

  I think it's more vandalism than cost. Considering that the Watchtower actually MAKES money on kingdom hall construction, they don't have much reason to lower cost. Particularly a cost like windows, which would mean a particular brother's contracting company could get a slice.

  The kingdom halls out in the rurals tended to have windows, while the ones in the city didn't. Again suggesting vandalism.

  And there's a new hall going up just north of here. Out in the middle of nowhere, and it has windows.

  Non-JW People notice the no-window thing. I've had a few ask me why Kingdom Halls don't have windows, and I found out about this new one when a non-JW friend said, "I see they're building one by me. I didn't know it was a Kingdom Hall at first, since it had windows." (It's not being "quickly built" apparently.)

  Dave
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  14

  My Totally Attention Seeking Post

  by Princess Daisy Boo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ok - i am bored and brain dead today and generally feeling a bit blegh... say some ugly or say something nice - just say something to entertain me!!!.

  princess db (being uncharacteristically bratty).

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  AlmostAtheist

  Sorry, no, corn flour won't do. It has to be corn starch.

  Here's a demo video of it in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uW8Mz_ehMpU

  Dave
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  29

  We have a new "purplebaby"!

  by changeling in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  her name is jada marie.

  she was born on 1/23/08.

  she weighed 8lbs.

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  AlmostAtheist

  Sort of a "purple pillow"?

  Congrats, Purps and family!

  Dave
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  14

  My Totally Attention Seeking Post

  by Princess Daisy Boo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ok - i am bored and brain dead today and generally feeling a bit blegh... say some ugly or say something nice - just say something to entertain me!!!.

  princess db (being uncharacteristically bratty).

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  AlmostAtheist

  If you mix cornstarch and water, you can make a goo that pours like a liquid, but turns into a solid when you squish it. So you can roll it into a ball, but when you quit rolling it, it turns back into goo. Freaky stuff! Makes a mess, but it's easy to clean up.

  And if THAT doesn't entertain you, then I give up!

  Dave
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  261

  "The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character...

  by digderidoo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ...in all fiction:jealous and proud of it; petty, unjust, unforgiving, control freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty, ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevent bully.

  ", says richard dawkins in the god delusion p51.

  he goes on to say, "those of us schooled from infancy in his ways can become desensitized to their horror".. would you agree?.

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  AlmostAtheist

  >> That's why I wouldn't attempt to justify His actions.

  Think of the best, most moral, most loving person you know.

  Now think of the most honest person you know. (If they are the same person, think of the second most honest)

  Now imagine how you'd react if the honest person told you that the loving person purposely drowned a baby.

  You'd probably start by saying, "No! Really? No, he couldn't have! There must be some mistake!" You trust your honest friend, but you also trust in the morality of your loving friend. There is a disconnect here.

  It wouldn't even occur to you to say, "Well, if he did drown that baby, he must've had a GOOD reason." You'd investigate it, if for no other reason than to clear the good name of your loving friend. Your honest friend MUST be mistaken. Perhaps it was someone else? Or an accident? SOMETHING.

  Why would you investigate heinous claims made about your friend, but accept them about your god? Why is it outside the realm of possibility that your god DID NOT drown babies, and commit genocide, and all the other things in the Bible? Perhaps the Bible is not an accurate record of your god's activities. Before accepting that he's a baby-killer, wouldn't it be prudent to check it out? Why would you choose not to do so?

  BTW, I say all this, while knowing *I* worshiped him for 20 years without "checking it out". So I'm not being sarcastic or flip, I'm being sincere and serious.

  >>You will find it refreshing not having to justify murder, rape, terrorism, slavery and genocide.

  Sage.

  Dave
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  13

  Homage to AlmostAtheist

  by KW13 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  that's actually a great opportunity to see if you've got real friend material on your hands or not.

  one of my very best friends is one i don't agree with on some important topics.

  we discuss them until we each understand the other's point of view and can identify the exact point of divergence.

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  AlmostAtheist

  >> Personally, I think he's a bit of a goof.
  >> Maybe even a complete idiot!

  Only a *bit* of a goof? Dan, Dude, you wound me! ;-)

  We need to get together and disagree over some beers soon. I'm still sick at the moment, but soon.

  Dave