Posts by fulltimestudent

88

Are we on the brink of another world war?

by slimboyfat in

i don't want to be an alarmist or anything... .

but i read this article in the economist today that argued it is only a matter of time until china and japan exchange shots over some small islands in between the two countries, it could escalate to full scale war, and the united states is treaty bound to come to aid of japan.

on top of that the united states is making diplomatic visits to various countries borderning china in a move that is viewed extremely negatively in beijing.

fulltimestudent

I doubt very much that there will be a war over this issue. I suggest you have to see this issue in the context of Obama's policy of 'pivoting to Asia' and the USA as an existing hegemon, marshalling the nations it controls to cause trouble.

However, in a future post I will explain why this territorial dispute is an issue. But note also that it divides the allies of the USA as much as it causes problems for China. South Korea and Taiwan are both opposed to Japan on this territorial issue. It also involves Russia. The island named Sakhalin to the north of Japan is also a disputed territory.

The background to all these disputes is very complex, but centre around the re-balancing of world affairs during the 19th C when European imperialism reached its peak (so the crises we have now are the embers of that period as the last "European" power of significance (the USA) (IMHO, Russia is more Asian than European- though I admit its arguable) attempts to maintain "European" control of the world.

For the moment, I'd like to focus on the island of Sakhalin. It came under Russian control as part of Russia's conquest of Siberia, mainly in the 18th C. (you will recall this extended as far as Alaska-later sold to the USA, without a democratic vote-grin).

In the late 19th C the Japanese elites made a decision to permit western influence. They quickly adapted (modernised) and by the turn of the 20th C found itself in conflict with Russia over control of Manchuria (Picking over the carcass of Imperial China). In 1805 war broke out between Russia and Japan. In a surprise attack (no declaration of war) Japan neutralised the Russian Eastern fleet and then a second. In the treaty of Portsmouth, Russia ceded half of Sakhalin to Japan.

In 1945, in the lightning, and very powerful attack on Japanese held Manchuria, Russia (now the USSR) decisively defeated the Japanese Army. From August 9, soviet forces sped over a landmass the size of Europe, including the Korean Peninsula. Only a last minute request from the USA, prevented Russia conquering all of Korea. Why the Russians agreed to the American request is something of a mystery. In the resulting peace negotiations Russia took back the half of Sakhalin previously ceded to Japan. From cold war days, (with some support from the USA) Japan has been asking for Russia to give it back.

88

Are we on the brink of another world war?

by slimboyfat in

i don't want to be an alarmist or anything... .

but i read this article in the economist today that argued it is only a matter of time until china and japan exchange shots over some small islands in between the two countries, it could escalate to full scale war, and the united states is treaty bound to come to aid of japan.

on top of that the united states is making diplomatic visits to various countries borderning china in a move that is viewed extremely negatively in beijing.

fulltimestudent

Some random comment:

(Quote): Europe enjoyed an even longer period without a continent-wide war in the nineteenth century, starting from the end of the Napoleonic wars in 1815. That came to an abrupt end in 1914 of course. Which demonstrates the dismal truth about peaceful periods in human history, that they inevitably come to an end with a bang not a whimper. (unquote)

Well, OK! within the context of "continent-wide" war, you could say that. But that did not mean peace. What about for example, the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Collage_Franco-Prussian_War.jpg

and, just using wikipedia references we have this list of 19th C disturbances in Europe.

809 Polish-Austrian War
1815-1817 Second Serbian Uprising
1817-1864 Russian conquest of the Caucasus
1821-1832 Greek War of Independence
1821 Wallachian uprising of 1821
1823 French invasion of Spain
1826-1828 Russo-Persian War
1827 War of the Malcontents
1828-1829 Russo-Turkish War
1828-1834 Liberal Wars
1830 Ten Days Campaign (following the Belgian Revolt)
1830-1831 November Uprising
1831 Canut revolts
1831-1832 Great Bosnian uprising
1831-1836 Tithe War
1832 War in the Vendée and Chouannerie of 1832
1832 June Rebellion
1833-1839 First Carlist War
1833-1839 Albanian Revolts of 1833-1839
1843-1844 Albanian Revolt of 1843-1844
1846 Galician slaughter
1846-1849 Second Carlist War
1847 Albanian Revolt of 1847
1847 Sonderbund War
1848-1849 Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence
1848-1851 First Schleswig War
1848-1866 Wars of Italian Independence
- 1848-1849 First Italian Independence War
- 1859 Second Italian War of Independence
- 1866 Third Italian War of Independence
1853-1856 Crimean War
1854 Epirus Revolt of 1854
1858 Mahtra War
1863-1864 January Uprising
1864 Second Schleswig War
1866 Austro-Prussian War
1866-1869 Cretan Revolt
1867 Fenian Rising
1870-1871 Franco-Prussian War
1872-1876 Third Carlist War
1873-1874 Cantonal Revolution
1877-1878 Russo-Turkish War
1878 Epirus Revolt of 1878
1885 Serbo-Bulgarian War
1893-1896 Cod War of 1893
1897 Greco-Turkish War

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_conflicts_in_Europe

And an illustration of one of the above conflicts:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:January_Suchodolski_-_Akhaltsikhe_siege.jpg

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24

Sex and drugs in university

by Xanthippe in

so this jw friend that got in touch out of the blue a few months ago after 24 years of shunning us agrees that the borg is not keen on university.

it is so difficult to keep to your principles because of all the immorality there according to her.

yes same old story we have been hearing for years.. if that is the case they should be fine with distance learning.

fulltimestudent

Bungi Bill mentions heavy drinking. Now that's something the Australian branch knows all about. Some 25 (?) years ago a member of the branch committee, named Dave Madzay and a small clique of other bethelites were really getting stuck into the slops at night. No criticism from the other members of the branch committee, until one night he drove somewhere and was picked up by the police and charged with driving under the influence. Now that friends, is a serious matter (looks bad) and Dave gets removed from his position and has to leave Bethel. Which all led to heavier drinking, and one cold winter night he mistakenly filled his kerosene heater with petrol instead of kerosene. He did not survive! Are we to asume then that going to Bethel can lead us to bad associations (grin)?

Right in the heart of Yahweh's spiritual paradise, many learned to do something harmful. And it was always so. Go back to 1940s to the time when the Australian branch was banned and although the Government allowed the Bethel family of the time to continue to live at Bethel, it was placed under Army occupation, with sentries controlling access. The Branch Servant was Bro. MacGillivray, and brother Mac as he was known, was out dining well one night and comes home late at night filled with his favourite spirit, and when challenged "Who goes there," by the sentry, makes a smartarse response. So the Sentry shot him, (but did not kill him) - Bet he thought carefully next time he got challenged.

In any case, it is not neccessarily the close bad associations with worldly people that troubles Yahweh, the WT god. Yahweh's problem is that at University you are taught to interrogate ideas. That is anathema to Yahweh and his Jesus sidekick. It leads to seeing the light and realising that Yahweh, Jesus and the whole construction is an illusion. That's their problem!

12

India- The Maha Kumbh festival- the world's largest demonstration of faith

by fulltimestudent in

the world's largest religious festival, and arguably the most fascinating is underway right now in the city of prayag (also known as allahabad) in the north india state of uttar pradesh.

for 55 days, hindu worshippers from all over the world (including many western converts) will converge on the area for a ritual cleansing in the ganges at the point where ganges, the yamuna and the (mythical?

) saraswati converge.

fulltimestudent

James - one thing is sure - there's no way I'm getting into that water.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClK3JI-sMkk

There is another video on Youtube, that shows dead bodies (likely incompletely burned bodies of the dead) bobbing about in a river(s). I didn't post that, simply because I can't verify whether it is a common occurence or whether its a collection of still shots built up over a period of time.

Incompletely cremated bodies are a problem though, as poorer people can't buy enough fuel. This happened to an Australian missionary in Cambodia. His partner died of a sudden infection, and the tropical climate demands quick disposal. Generous mummy watchtower had not provided funds for such a contingency,and the survivor did not have enough money to buy sufficient wood for the cremation. So the body kept rolling out of the fire and this poor guy had to keep pushing the body back into the fire with a stick.

He came back to Australia having an emotional collapse. Much more to that story, but that's enough to illustrate the role of fuel in cremation. I suspect that in India, since the practise is to push the ashes into the river, that incompletely burnt corpses are routinely pushed into the river to decompose.

As to your comment on wealthy religious leaders, (FTS switches on his sardonic voice) - Isn't that what religion is for? To make the spiritual leaders wealthy in some way?

I quote Karl Marx (in a fuller version)...

(quote)

The foundation of irreligious criticism is: Man makes religion, religion does not make man. Religion is, indeed, the self-consciousness and self-esteem of man who has either not yet won through to himself, or has already lost himself again. But man is no abstract being squatting outside the world. Man is the world of man - state, society. This state and this society produce religion, which is an inverted consciousness of the world, because they are an inverted world. Religion is the general theory of this world, its encyclopaedic compendium, its logic in popular form, its spiritual point d'honneur, its enthusiasm, its moral sanction, its solemn complement, and its universal basis of consolation and justification. It is the fantastic realization of the human essence since the human essence has not acquired any true reality. The struggle against religion is, therefore, indirectly the struggle against that world whose spiritual aroma is religion.

Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.

10

Communist sta art & WTS publication art

by Gorbatchov in

today i read in a newspaper an article about north korean and chinese state art.

the style of painting is "extreme naive".. these paintings remembers me of the wts paintings in their publications.

with a smile, and also with pain in my heart i'm watching the similarities.. .

fulltimestudent

Thnx for the collection Gorbatchov, its great to have.

By the way, the third poster down (two sad young girls) is South Korean, if I'm not mistaken, protesting at some action possibly by one of the military dictators that controlled South Korea for years.

For those that may want to look further in East Asia, you can find some collected posters here: http://chineseposters.net/gallery/

that collection also contains some non-communist art work from the warlord era and the Guo Min Dang (Republican- Chiang Kai Shek) era. There's a good place to start an understanding of wht was happening, in this web-site.

http://www.crestock.com/blog/design/vibrant-chinese-propaganda-art--part-1-revolution-revolution-revolution-171.aspx

However, we categorise this images, we should remember the function and the target audience.

In the case of China, the different administrations wanted to convey different messages to a mass audience that was itself quite unsophisticated (naive). Illiteracy was widespread, and simple (and positive) images could convey more than the proverbial 1000 words. The WTS has also aimed at less sophisticated people, the am haratetz. I guess that may explain the similarity.

Artwork of one kind or another bombard our minds every day. Some commercial images are now very sophisticated, targeting emotions far different to the intellectual level. Political propaganda has also changed.

The WTS styles also changed over the years. Compare the simplicity (a neccessary simplicity because of the technology then available) of the WT illustrations etc in Russel's day.

Now jump to Joe Rutherford's books. I'm thinking of Riches, Vindication I and II and Light (I think 3 volumes) maybe we can still call it 'naive' but I suggest both the style and the content picks up the 'spirit' of the 1920s and 1930s.

If someone has those books and can scan the illustrations, I think we'd all find them interesting to compare with the later images in Gorbatchov's posts (I chucked mine out years ago, and now (grin) regret I've lost a lot of content that's interesting from a sociological perspective.

44

Is North Korea Changing ?

by fulltimestudent in

there's a good chance that a process of change is occurring in nk, which i'll come back to, as first i'd like to briefly explain how korea became divided.. i've spent a lot of time this past calendar year on the history and development of korea, this last semester focussing on modern korea with all its sadness, commencing with the japanese takeover in 1905, and the full annexation and military occupation in 1910. .

many korean's (naturally) opposed the japanese occupation.

some actively fought the japanese as guerilla's in the mountains.

fulltimestudent

In a previous post I demonstrated how easy it is, to 'look' at NK via googlemap. Yesterday, Leonid Petrov posted a link to this Huffington Post report:

The report has piks, of what is claimed to be some of the prison camps in NK. It mentions the figure of 250,000 prisoners who are supposed to be in the camps, prisoners who, " suffer through starvation and intense manual labor in these camps. " The saddest aspect may be that there are rumoured to be 2nd/3rd generation prisoners being held in detention. For example, a rich landowner and his family in NK in the 1950s, may have been arrested as a politically unreliable person and sentenced to imprisonment. Any children born in the camps, are then it is claimed, automatically held in detention also. If your family is unreliable politically, it is then assumed that you are also a risk. On the other hand, if your parents are judged as politically reliable - it is assumed that you are also. Only politically reliable people get the better sorts of work. We can assume that all the 'nice' people we see in Pyongyang streets in tourist's videos, come from families that are 'politically reliable.'

You can see the HP's piks at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/22/google-north-korea-prison-camp_n_2526539.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000009

No figures (that I know of) on their prison populations are released by the NK administration. It is claimed by some that the figure of 250,000 comprises political prisoners only. You can work out the percentage against the total NK population of 24,589,000. North Koreans are apparently reproducing at a negative rate. South Korea, on the other hand, now has a population of 50 million.

As I noted, some try to separate political prisoners from ordinary criminals. I'm not sure about this. How do we count this man - Oscar Lopez Rivera, who has been in prison in the USA for 30 years as he serves a 70 year sentence in the early 1980s following a conviction (along with a number of colleagues) for conspiring to "overthrow" the governments of the USA and Puerto Rico. They perceived of themselves as freedom fighters, desiring independence for Puerto Rico. Yes, Clinton offered to release him, but Rivera would only accept freedom if all his fellow prisoners were released.

It is also noteworthy that it is now difficult to know if there are 'political' prisoners in western nations. Australia, for example, has laws forbidding discussion of any person arrested for suspected 'terrorist' activity.

12

India- The Maha Kumbh festival- the world's largest demonstration of faith

by fulltimestudent in

the world's largest religious festival, and arguably the most fascinating is underway right now in the city of prayag (also known as allahabad) in the north india state of uttar pradesh.

for 55 days, hindu worshippers from all over the world (including many western converts) will converge on the area for a ritual cleansing in the ganges at the point where ganges, the yamuna and the (mythical?

) saraswati converge.

fulltimestudent

Thnks for the additional images, Satanus - that mass crowd scene is great.

10

Video of a Dolphin being rescued by a Scuba Diver! Beautiful footage!

by ohiocowboy in

jw
friends

below is a video of a dolphin being rescued by a scuba diver in hawaii during a night time manta ray feeding excursion.

the dolphin has a big hook in him and is twisted in fishing line, which is cutting into it's flesh and limiting it's range of motion.

watch the dolphin go to the diver, and "ask" for help.

fulltimestudent

Must be fake, the Bible clearly says, that animals are 'unreasoning' (NWT) - 2 Peter 2:12

66

What Status are you? Ex JW, Inactive, elder, MS...etc

by enigma1863 in

i am technically inactive.

i was just curious if there are many people on the inside.

are there any within bethel itself?

fulltimestudent

Haha- I got kicked out, and instinctively started to run and just kept running and running. - now I'm a long, long, long way from Yahweh's theocratic paradise, so far in fact that I've nearly caught up to the 17 y.o me, that was captured by those roving Christian bandits.

44

Is North Korea Changing ?

by fulltimestudent in

there's a good chance that a process of change is occurring in nk, which i'll come back to, as first i'd like to briefly explain how korea became divided.. i've spent a lot of time this past calendar year on the history and development of korea, this last semester focussing on modern korea with all its sadness, commencing with the japanese takeover in 1905, and the full annexation and military occupation in 1910. .

many korean's (naturally) opposed the japanese occupation.

some actively fought the japanese as guerilla's in the mountains.

fulltimestudent

Yes, Shamus - my thoughts.

A real but minor change is that 'foreigners' are now allowed to keep their mobile phones (wonder if that would extend to a 7" tablet?) in NK. Previously, you had to leave it at the customs barrier.

I wondered why the change, then I thought of the increasing numbers of PRC tourists that are visiting NK. There are some reports that Chinese tourists can be very demanding (i.e. think of the near riots in China, when planes do not take off on time) and that they are also a bit irreverent. Perhaps, they are complaining about leaving their phones at customs, so perhaps the NK administration bowed to the inevitable.

Also, there are reports that increasing numbers of 'unapproved' phones are being smuggled into NK across the border with China.

In any case, NK phones (sim cards) cannot contact 'foreign' phones, so there does not seem much problem for the govt. Nonetheless, every small change is welcome.

Here's a report from Radio Australia (owned by the Australian Government):

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-01-21/an-north-korea-allows-foreigners-to-take-in-mobile-phones/4477056

(Quote)

North Korea allows foreigners to take mobile phones in

Posted Mon Jan 21, 2013 8:37pm AEDT

PHOTO: Chinese state media says foreigners visiting North Korea are now allowed to take their own mobile phones into the country. (ABC News) MAP: Korea, Democratic People S Republic Of

Foreigners visiting North Korea can now take their own mobile phones into the country, China's Xinhua news agency reports.

It says a technician with Koryolink, the North Korean-Egyptian joint venture that operates North Korea's 3G phone network, saying the move took effect on the 7th of January.

Previously, foreigners were required to leave their phones with customs and pick them up when leaving the country, the report said.

"We have tried hard to negotiate with the Korean security side, and got the approval recently," the technician, identified as an Egyptian, said.

He added "It has nothing to do with the Google trip", referring to a visit earlier this month by Google chairman Eric Schmidt, who said (after the trip) he told officials in the North that the country would not develop unless it embraced Internet freedom.

"Once the Internet starts, citizens in a country can certainly build on top of it," Mr Schmidt said.

"The government has to do something. It has to make it possible for people to use the Internet, which the government in North Korea has not yet done."

Limited access
Highly secretive North Korea has a domestic Intranet service with a limited number of users.

Analysts say access to the Internet is for the country's super-elite only, meaning a few hundred people or maybe 1,000 at most.

The Koryolink technician said foreigners need to fill out a form to provide their phone's International Mobile Station Equipment Identity (IMEI) number with North Korea's customs agency to bring in their personal device.

He also told Xinhua that foreigners using a phone based on the WCDMA 3G mobile standard can buy a SIM card in North Korea from Koryolink for around USD $67 and make international calls.

Mobile Internet service will also be available soon for foreigners in North Korea, Xinhua said.

"It is not a technical problem, we just wait for" North Korean approval, the Koryolink employee said.

North Korea's 3G mobile network has 1.8 million users, Xinhua said, though beyond voice calls their options are limited to text messages and video calls.

Their phones can't make international calls or connect to the Internet, while North Koreans and foreigners cannot call each other because of different settings on their SIM cards, Xinhua said.

AFP

(unquote)