Posts by fulltimestudent

10

Evidence of a10,000 y.o. massacre demonstrates that it is in our biology to be aggressive and lethal

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

attention can be drawn to both the age of these skeletal remains and the conclusions that can be drawn.. .

skeletons dating to 10,000 years ago, bearing marks of a violent death and possibly bondage, provides fresh evidence that prehistoric hunter-gatherers did not necessarily live in bonhomie.

disturbingly, two of the 12 people found by lake turkana, kenya were not marked by signs of violence but seem to have died with their hands bound, a team of archaeologists reported in nature on wednesday.. we know prehistoric humans were armed to the teeth, but it's an open question against whom they wielded their stone knives and spears – animals, or each other.

fulltimestudent

DJS : Ms. Mirazon appears to be - or have been - in the 'anthropologists of peace" camp where they believe hunter/gatherers were noble and egalitarian. This camp seems to have had its genesis from the 18th-century philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who believed Native Americans and other pre-state people as peaceful "noble savages". ... "Ms. Mirazon appears to be someone we should ignore, because, based on the evidence, she and her camp have been ignoring or spinning the evidence for politically correct reasons. Perhaps evidence of this massacre will open her eyes and has switched sides"

Ummm! I looked for some indication of Dr Marta Mirazon Lahr (to use her full name) arguing that position in the quotes I posted. I also had a brief look at the titles of various papers attributed to her and didn't see anything supporting the position you suggest. A mere mention that some have believed that some pre-history peoples were peaceful does not (of course) indicate that she once believed that position. Her mention of that position in the YT video merely recapitulates 'the contemporary state of the argument."

Her page on the LCHES ( http://www.human-evol.cam.ac.uk/marta.html ) states her research interests:

Research Interests
My interests cover many aspects of human evolution, from the study of morphological evolution in the genus Homo, to human evolutionary history and dispersals, evolutionary genetics and adaptation in hunter-gatherers, the formation of population boundaries, and the evolution of diversity in technology and tools.

Not, I would suggest, that starting a research from that position is wrong. Research projects may adopt a position with the goal of supporting or refuting a position. And, of course, as Dr Robert Foley, (also associated with that research project) says, its a matter of seeing the interplay between aggression and co-operation

The LCHES page briefly summarising the paper published in Nature* notes:

"This site, Nataruk, provides evidence for inter-group conflict among hunter-gatherers, and so contributes to our understanding of the history of warfare, showing clearly that hunter-gatherers, as well as food-producers, engaged in organised and lethal conflict."

Link: http://www.human-evol.cam.ac.uk/index.html

* Nature (for those not familiar with the journal) is a highly regarded interdisciplinary scientific journal. It would not normally publish highly speculative material.

But thank you DJS, for raising that previous view. The evidence found at Nataruk is important in questioning the veracity of the biblical record. The biblical myth is understood by many to suggest that YHWH created a naturally peacefully inclined human race,who became violent as a result of turning away from YHWH. The reality is, as this paper published in 'Nature' is different. The research challenges not only the biblical view of human origins but also challenges the biblical time-scale of human existence.

And then there is the associated concept (we all likely held as JWs - and maybe by some differently branded believers) that we can regain that peaceful state as a result of being saved by YHWH's alter ego Jesus, who gave his 'blood' (spilt in an act of senseless violence) to 'save' us, because that's the way YHWH sasid it had to be.

But the seer who wants us to believe that he knew the future of humanity (the author of 'A Revelation - to John) believed that even after a thousand year rule of Jesus many humans will still be inclined to violence and will want to fight in the war of Gog and Magog. (Revelation 20:8 ).

In contrast take a look at DJS's mention of Dr. Steven Pinker (I assume that is who he means)

who argues (in this TED video) that,

"... we are living in the most peaceful time in our species."Link: https://www.ted.com/talks/steven_pinker_on_the_myth_of_violence?language=en

So we may move from the primitive human savagery discovered at Nataruk, where the 'invaders' (whoever they were) engaged in an orgy of murder, through the savage ethnic cleansing campaign described in Joshua (ch. 10 and 11 specifically) where the invading Israelites engaged in a similar orgy of crazed violence.

If Pinker's view is tenable, perhaps we are moving to a point where humanity may be able to live without violence, all through human reason (rejecting violence) without the need to rely on YHWH or JESUS.

10

Evidence of a10,000 y.o. massacre demonstrates that it is in our biology to be aggressive and lethal

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

attention can be drawn to both the age of these skeletal remains and the conclusions that can be drawn.. .

skeletons dating to 10,000 years ago, bearing marks of a violent death and possibly bondage, provides fresh evidence that prehistoric hunter-gatherers did not necessarily live in bonhomie.

disturbingly, two of the 12 people found by lake turkana, kenya were not marked by signs of violence but seem to have died with their hands bound, a team of archaeologists reported in nature on wednesday.. we know prehistoric humans were armed to the teeth, but it's an open question against whom they wielded their stone knives and spears – animals, or each other.

fulltimestudent

Attention can be drawn to both the age of these skeletal remains and the conclusions that can be drawn.

Skeletons dating to 10,000 years ago, bearing marks of a violent death and possibly bondage, provides fresh evidence that prehistoric hunter-gatherers did not necessarily live in bonhomie. Disturbingly, two of the 12 people found by Lake Turkana, Kenya were not marked by signs of violence but seem to have died with their hands bound, a team of archaeologists reported in Nature on Wednesday.

We know prehistoric humans were armed to the teeth, but it's an open question against whom they wielded their stone knives and spears – animals, or each other. "Evidence for inter-group violence among prehistoric hunter-gatherers is extremely rare," writes the team led by Marta Mirazón Lahr of Britain's Cambridge University.

Yet she found some. She and her colleagues discovered the remains of at Nataruk, a site near the edge of Lake Turkana, in 2012. Among them were ten bodies with clear signs of lethal traumas.

Moe information is available at this Cambridge University web-site:

http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/evidence-of-a-prehistoric-massacre-extends-the-history-of-warfare?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=University%20of%20Cambridge%20Research%20Bulletin%20Friday%2022%20January%202016&utm_content=University%20of%20Cambridge%20Research%20Bulletin%20Friday%2022%20January%202016+CID_6c66164c835c6f4222917449144c624e&utm_source=Campaign%20Monitor&utm_term=Evidence%20of%20a%20prehistoric%20massacre%20extends%20the%20history%20of%20warfare

and at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05jK_-YThxY

12

Stupid Questions to Ask Gay Guys

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

my friend tells me he gets sick of silly questions.

i tell him its part of the assimilation process.

https://www.facebook.com/buzzfeedvideo/videos/1908211825986357/?fref=nf.

fulltimestudent

Listener : FTS, I think it's interesting that you point out that this gay couple sleep in the same bed but no one cares. The day that no one knows whether they sleep in the same bed or not is the day that no one really cares.

OK, Listener! I'm cool with that - you are more correct than I was.

Why should anyone care? Many str8 people perform the same sexual acts as gay people! So why did the bible make it an issue?

(Though I note that there is nothing to indicate that Jesus saw it as an issue. Some commentators have noted that Matthew's account of Jesus healing the centurion's slave, uses the word pais instead of doulos (servant) -as used by the Lukan account. Pais could be translated as 'male concubine,' which would indicate that the Roman centurion had a young lover, a common practice in the Roman Army. If so, Jesus clearly did not care. According to James Neill*, the Greek term "pais" used for the servant in Matthew's account almost always had a sexual connotation.[4] In support of this view, he remarks that the word pais, along with the word "erasthai" (to love) is the root of the English word "pederasty".)

* Neill, James (2009). The Origins and Role of Same-Sex Relations In Human Societies. McFarland.

12

Stupid Questions to Ask Gay Guys

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

my friend tells me he gets sick of silly questions.

i tell him its part of the assimilation process.

https://www.facebook.com/buzzfeedvideo/videos/1908211825986357/?fref=nf.

fulltimestudent

Simon : Funny ... but really - "woe to us, people are making an attempt to show an interest & be accepting even though they don't always say the right thing" ? The alternative is being ignored or "oh you're gay? yeah, I really don't give a shit" Is that better?

Yes! All those things. According to my (gayxjw) friend there has been some debate within that community concerning the nature of 'acceptance.' I wont recapitulate, others can probably detail that debate better than I would.

Its the highlighted portion of Simon's comment that's worth thinking about.

In the short street where he lives, there are four apartment blocks. In three of the four the only persons willing to undertake the (rather) onerous voluntary task of running the Owners Corporations are same sex attracted. Two live openly with their partners and no-one gives a damn.

They sleep in the same bed. Who cares! ('Gives a shit,' as Simon expressed it)

But to reach that level there is a process that involves questioning by the majority segment of the community.

Sex is something on everyone's mind, but these questions are somewhat superfluous as same sex attracted men and women cant and don't do anything that the majority opposite sex attracted people do or can do.

The Rebel : that was a fun video, and may I say I think it great that such sketches in the year 2016, no longer display Gay men as puny neurotic and with vulnability.

I agree, that, but as one gay guy explained at one of my friend's parties. In the days of social ostracism and police persecution, 'butch' (his word) gay guys more easily escaped detection, but effeminate guys could not. (think the movie, 'The Birdcage').

Actually at some of these parties I've met really masculine gay men. The old stereotypes are false.

The Rebel : Sorry if my post subtracted from the good humor intended with the thread ... Once again sorry about the serious post, but threads like yours, I hope help people like me accept my former prejudice was wrong and what I was taught by an organistion was wrong and many of the films I watched were wrong in there portrayal of what makes a man.

Not at all! When I first saw the clip yesterday, my first reaction was to the humorous aspect. Then I considered further and saw a deeper side. Which I invited people to consider with my question, "what do you think?"

So interesting that people saw the funny side. Even 12-15 years ago many participants in these sort of threads may still have been hostile.

DJS : Is that an I-phone in your pocket or are you happy to see me?

Umm! Wish we could ask Mae West (or, her scriptwriter) whether the gag works the same with an iphone

Coalize did not seem to think the same. (grin)

Still a gun cant be loaded with the grindr app, which is (it is said) has greatly aided gay 2 gay contacts.

(BTW, since you have often expressed your international affairs interest. Did you note that a Chinese company has bought grindr ? My mind is boggling at the possibilities in China.

39

How do you feel about the expression "The Truth"?

by stuckinarut2 in

jw
friends

it's amazing how the expression "the truth" has become such an ingrained term used by witnesses.. "we have 'the truth'".

"is he 'in the truth'?".

most here have found out so many facts about the organisation, and felt the effects of being "gut-punched" as we realised these facts.. so how do you feel about the expression "the truth" now?.

fulltimestudent

And then there's the Russian Newspaper "Pravda.' (pravda=truth)

and what about the Johnny Cash Hit.

from Wikipedia - "What Is Truth" is a single by American country music artist Johnny Cash released in February 1970. Generally viewed as a protest song, a rarity in country music at the time, the simple criticism of the Vietnam War, and war in general, as well as the stereotypical view of many politically liberal hippies made the song a major crossover hit. The song peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles.

And Pontius Pilate got in on the act too, John 18:38

But, of course, Jesus had already raised the matter (without any evidence):

37 “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” (John 18:37NIV)

So you claim to be a Christian, then you claim to have "the truth."

Pontius Pilate was more on the ball than Jesus.

12

Stupid Questions to Ask Gay Guys

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

my friend tells me he gets sick of silly questions.

i tell him its part of the assimilation process.

https://www.facebook.com/buzzfeedvideo/videos/1908211825986357/?fref=nf.

fulltimestudent

My friend tells me he gets sick of silly questions. I tell him its part of the assimilation process. What do you think?

https://www.facebook.com/BuzzFeedVideo/videos/1908211825986357/?fref=nf

13

A Country where no-one under 25 believes the biblical creation story.

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

no icelanders under the age of 25 believe the creation story that god was responsible for creating the universe, a new poll claims.the poll, commissioned by the icelandic ethical humanist association, claims that 93.9 per cent in the under 25 category responded that the universe was created by the big bang.

just over 6 per cent responded with ‘don’t know’ or ‘other’.

none of the respondents, however, believed that the universe had been created by god.

fulltimestudent

Village Idiot : Iceland is very advanced as a society having a high standard of living compared to the United States and a highly competent educational system.

And much more:

1. The first nation (that we know of anyway) to elect a party with a lesbian as leader, who became the nation's first Prime Minister.

2. Just about the only nation to have the guts to imprison bankers, as a result of the GFC.

Iceland just sentenced their 26th banker to prison for his part in the 2008 economic collapse. The charges ranged from breach of fiduciary duties to market manipulation to embezzlement.

More at: http://www.nationofchange.org/news/2016/01/17/iceland-sentences-26-corrupt-bankers-to-74-years-in-prison/

8

The Winter festival in Harbin - piks of this year's ice constructions.

by fulltimestudent in

.

fulltimestudent

flipper :
Thank you, fulltimestudent, for posting this.
My 22 year old niece is living in Jilin and she loves it. She works as a teacher and has made good friends there. The ice sculptures are beautiful there, too.
Mrs. Flipper

Sounds like your nice is enjoying herself. Seems lots of younger people report that the love living in China.

Jilin province, in particular is interesting, being so close to the Russian and North Korean borders and also having its own unique blending of peoples and cultures, down in the South east of the province there is the third Korea, the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture, which is mainly Korean people (albeit Chinese citizens). The majority native peoples of Jilin (and some other adjacent provinces) are Manchus, who captured China in the seventeenth century and formed the Qing dynasty (the last Imperial dynasty). There are Japanese influences also, as the Japanese wrested it off China during the long (150 years) of Qing/China weakness. Pu Yi, the last Qing Emperor became the Japanese puppet emperor of Manchukuo (the Japanese name for Manchuria) until 1945. And also up in the north Jilin adjoins Inner Mongolia (another Chinese province), with a somewhat different culture. The Manchus are a Mongolian sub-group, and the Mongolians (of course) have been one of the most influential peoples in the world. Their influence stretches from France (as the Huns) to Korea and Japan and across the Bering sea to form the ancestry of the north and south American native peoples.

Here's a couple of images of Mongolian 'fun' in winter:

The Winter Camel Culture Festival held in January.

Mongolian herding horses in Winter. Each winter there are also horseback events.

A Reminder of Russian North America

by fulltimestudent in

a research team in alaska believe that they have discovered the site where the iconic russian research ship neva was wrecked.

the team led by former alaska state archaeologist, david mcmahan found the site near sitka, where the survivors struggled to stay alive through the harsh arctic weather.. the story invokes memories of russian attempts, complete with indian wars, to plant a russian colony in north america.. this story from the alaska dispatch news:.

https://www.adn.com/article/20160114/archaeologists-believe-theyve-found-artifacts-alaskas-cursed-warship-neva.

fulltimestudent

A research team in Alaska believe that they have discovered the site where the iconic Russian research ship Neva was wrecked.

The team led by former Alaska State Archaeologist, David McMahan found the site near Sitka, where the survivors struggled to stay alive through the harsh arctic weather.

The story invokes memories of Russian attempts, complete with Indian wars, to plant a Russian colony in North America.

This story from the Alaska Dispatch News:

https://www.adn.com/article/20160114/archaeologists-believe-theyve-found-artifacts-alaskas-cursed-warship-neva

13

A Country where no-one under 25 believes the biblical creation story.

by fulltimestudent in

jw
friends

no icelanders under the age of 25 believe the creation story that god was responsible for creating the universe, a new poll claims.the poll, commissioned by the icelandic ethical humanist association, claims that 93.9 per cent in the under 25 category responded that the universe was created by the big bang.

just over 6 per cent responded with ‘don’t know’ or ‘other’.

none of the respondents, however, believed that the universe had been created by god.

fulltimestudent

slimboyfat : They don't believe in creation, but around 50% believe in elves.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-27907358

Thank you, slimboyfat, for posting that addition to the first story. possibly we may be seeing that there is an age divide in Iceland in connection with superstitious beliefs. Older people accept superstition, younger people may not.

Another perspective: In the BBC report you posted Professor of Folklore Adalheidur Gudmundsdottir is quoted as saying:

"You can't live in this landscape and not believe in a force greater than you,"

Faced with trying to explain natural phenonema ancient man explained it by attribution to unseen forces. Even somewhat more sophisticated humans used similar processes of explanation - the Jews,who saw themselves as having the one true god as 'their' god, were at a loss to explain why their one true god did not protect them from subjection to more powerful states, so went on to invent 'prophecies' that foretold their eventual domination of the world.

The human mind can be very imaginative.