Comments by TeraBrat
1. Science is thrilling - except in our schools
Comment #203817 by TeraBrat on July 3, 2008 at 5:18 pm
Titrating is "yawn" boring, unless you have an automatic titrater that you can set up and walk away from and come back to a printout of the results.
I totally agree about the memorization being a waste. School should be about learn skills like problem solving and analyzing. Memorizing for a test is a waste of time.
2. Science is thrilling - except in our schools
Comment #203600 by TeraBrat on July 3, 2008 at 8:15 am
That being said, I think it is foolish to represent science as easy or entertaining. Science is really hard
To me everything except physics is fun and entertaining and easy (biology, chemistry, calculus). Physics is hard and fun.
Just because something is hard doesn't mean it can't be fun.
3. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201596 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 9:16 pm
And their existence HAS been proven.
Prove god."
See Kurt Gödel's Ontological Argument.
That was not proof.
4. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201510 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 6:51 pm
You are not even wrong. Mathematical objects completely shank your jengaship. They are necessary, yet they still require proofs of their existence.
And their existence HAS been proven.
Prove god.
5. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201433 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 4:28 pm
In any event, I do not think the Virgin Birth is an indispensable Christian dogma. Mark, John, and Paul make nary a mention of it, so Christians are free to believe in it or not, IMO.
In that case how can you claim Jesus was the son of god? Isn't the fact that Mary was a virgin when she concieved Jesus supposed to be the "proof" that he was the son of god? Everytime someone proves an inconsistency to you you shake it off and say it isn't important and isn't part of your belief system. Could you give us the points of your belief system so we know what to question.
Among those books which comprise the Bible (Catholic, Orthodox, Oriental, or Protestant), when homoeroticism is treated, it is clearly condemned.
How many versions of the NT are there?
Wouldn't that in itself make you question the validity of these books? How can you know which is the true version? Just because you happened to be brought up withthat particular version is that supposed to make it the true one?
As for homoerection being condemned. Are you aware that homosexuality occurs in all mammals? This has been documented many many times by ecologists and zoologists. How can something so natural be condemned?
6. Aliens need Christ's redemption, too
Comment #201410 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 4:13 pm
"This is merely a sad commentary on the ignorance of newsmen, who seem not to know the noble role the Jesuits have always played in the history of higher education, or what the role her handmaiden science fills in relation to the Church."
Higher education? As in "the earth is flat" and "the sun revolves around the earth?"
her handmaiden science? Didn't the church do everything they could to hinder science?
7. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201338 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 3:28 pm
Virgin Birth != Immaculate Conception
1. Prove the virgin birth.
2. Not necessarily true, you CAN get pregnant without penetration. It's less likely but it happens.
8. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201316 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Goldy,
OK, now I'm crying.
At least they are starting to fight back and are being helped. But, those men should be in jail. I'm glad that one judge who authorized the marriage is in jail.
Has amnesty international done anything?
9. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201303 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 3:04 pm
mordacious1,
Whether or not Mary's husband was the father is irrelevant. I think the whole story of the holy spirit is hanky panky that was made up long after Jesus was dead as "proof" that he was the son of god.
My guess is that the gospels are a mix of about 10% truth and 90% myth. give or take 10% either way.
10. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201284 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 2:49 pm
So you accept that the bible is a bunch of myths (I don't disagree) but the new testament is all "truth".
11. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201279 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 2:40 pm
My comment got lost. We have a history of the man Jesus and the "Nazarenes". I can't think of any reason we would have this history if the man never existed.(edit) According to our history he was a Rabbi who wanted to make some changes in Judaism and the Nazarenes were his followers. While he was alive they followed Jewish law and you had to convert to Judaism to become a Nazarene (end edit).However,
He is mentioned in the Talmud and in Josephus's "Antiquity of the Jews" written about 60 years after the supposed events. But even if he did exist it means diddly squat .
I agree that whether or not he existed means diddly squat
12. Mormons urged to back ban on same-sex marriage
Comment #201255 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 1:50 pm
I don't doubt that the man Jesus existed. It's the so called "son of god" Jesus that I'd like to see someone prove. Can someone prove that Mary got pregnant by the "holy spitrit" and not...say...her husband?
Comment #201187 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 11:46 am
Layla,
I don't think that talking about language and memories is off topic on a topic about the brain.
Hebrew and Arabic have similar roots like Spanish and Italian or English and German. And they are both written right to left as most of the older languages were. That's because when these languages were originally formed people ink had not been discovered and writing was chiselled into rock. If you are right handed as most people are it's easier to chisel from right to left. Modern languages developed after ink had been discovered and it's preferable to write from left to write with ink because it reduces smearing.
Stupid stuff really. No one else should bother to read it.
Comment #201179 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 11:28 am
Not good. If you don't like it don't read it. There's no reason to be abusive.
Comment #201169 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 10:30 am
Comment #201168 by mordacious1 on June 29, 2008 at 10:02 am
Tera
I just watched Borat for this first time the other night. Loved the part where they check into a B&B run by Jews. Looking at the family pictures on the wall, "So, all these people are Jews? Where are the horns?". And then the two bugs crawl under his door and they have to leave because the Jews have "shape-shifted".
I never even heard of it before. I'm not into TV at all and not much of a movie watcher either. I did a google and I'll keep an eye out for it. Sounds like a good laugh.
Comment #201167 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 9:55 am
I'm really scared if it becomes christian/muslim instead of secular/muslim.
Why does that scare you? Christianity has befriended Islam, let Christianity deal with the beast it helped create.
Comment #201163 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 9:35 am
If a Jewish person marries a Muslim person of the opposite sex and they have children the children will be human.
What a shame! The horns and tail are often quite useful :-p
Comment #201161 by TeraBrat on June 29, 2008 at 9:23 am
Layla,
I tend to agree with you about memorizing, I hate having to memorize things even though I have a good memory. But, my good memory is selective. If I can make a logical connection between two things (or more) I remember it.
Memorizing in a language you don't understand makes less sense to me unless you are going to use it to helo you learn the language. I remember asking one of my great aunts who was ultra orthodox and didn't understand Hebrew how she could pray without understanding what she was saying. I don't remember her answer so I'm assuming it was gibberish. I do remember her saying that it was wrong to learn Hebrew as long as we were in exile. The ultra orthodox believe that the state of Israel is an abominaion and that we need to wait for the Messiah before returning to our land. The whole thing seemed quite idiotic to me and put another crack in my faith.
19. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #201013 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 6:49 pm
325, it was.
And I believe that was when the terms "Christ" and "Christian" were coined. They originally called themselves "Nazarines". (I could be confusing something here the history of Christianity is not something I learned much of).
Comment #201000 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 5:47 pm
Thinks - phew, I think I got away with that one...
:-D
Ummm...Maybe....
:-p
21. Common New Atheist Fallacies
Comment #200996 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 5:34 pm
As they come out of the church after the happy event, there are a bunch of xians with anti-gay signs outside and they are screaming homophobic remarks (This, by the way, is happening at gay weddings in CA since in was legalized). I suppose you're going to smile and wave politely? Not me. Nope.
You would floor them if you did.
I can understand getting angry at that kind of abuse.
22. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200990 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Reading all TheIdiots posts, am I the only one coming to the conclusion he is an "Atheist for Christ"?
You actually read all of his posts?
Kudos to you, I couldn't.
Thank you for the imformation about Jesus and his followers.
Comment #200984 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 5:22 pm
Is there a difference between a bog no-no and a swamp no-no in China?
24. Common New Atheist Fallacies
Comment #200980 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 5:12 pm
Mordacious1,
Maybe you could convince him to write the IRS a letter claiming I don't exist. I'd offer him half the tax money I save in return, but...How can I do that if I don't exist?
25. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200967 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Goldy,
Christianity was not Jesus' invention.
If that was aimed at me I'm puzzled. That's what I said.
Comment #200927 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 2:14 pm
If you want to be persecuted forever keep living in the past. Keep reminding everyone that you come from a long line of people who haven't mixed for 4000 years. If we all cling to our history then prejudice will remain forever.
Or maybe we could just learn to live together without losing what we already have. Isn't a 4,000 year old culture worth preserving? I don't expect you to understand.
teapot I have a sense of humor, that's why I said burn all the history books.
esuther,
I know you do. Otherwise you wouldn't be singing it all the time.
Comment #200915 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 1:04 pm
You are draging a history around which would have been long forgotten if you originated from anywhere else.
Burn all the history books!!!
Comment #200901 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 12:32 pm
It's not history, it's the present.
Comment #200898 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 12:22 pm
Layla,
It's kind of funny when you think about it. For two thousand years we were hated because we supposedly killed Jesus. Now we are hated because we are responsible for his birth. No matter what it's always the Jews fault.
Comment #200887 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 11:49 am
Bonzai,
This is why I have a hard time seeing Judaism lumped in with the fanatical, missionary Christianty and Islam.
The truth is you don't have to follow the rules at all even if you are Orthodox. There is no heaven or hell. There is a belief in resurrection when the Messiah comes, but, everyone is resurrected.
The reward for following the rules is supposed to be a more fulfilling and better life. Nothing more, nothing less.
31. Psychiatrists: Least Religious But Most Interested In Patients' Religion
Comment #200885 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 11:44 am
Our curriculum (at Albany and throughout the US)is full of the evidence of evolution and the professors teach it appropriately. She and her ilk are willfully ignorant, they've been presented with the evidence and facts and have chosen to ignore them for superstition.
She didn't even know what her views on Christianity were except that Jesus came down from heaven for HER!!!
Comment #200873 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 11:19 am
epeeist,
By Jewish law the children are not Jewish. If they want to be Jewish they have to convert.
I believe the Reform Jews will accept a child whose father is Jewish as Jewish without conversion. The law may change now that we have DNA testing and can prove who the father is.
Comment #200869 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 11:11 am
We've been around and knocked around a few thousand years longer ;-)
And converting to Judaism is a nightmare. It can take years.
Comment #200866 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 10:57 am
Incidentally...what happens when a Jewish woman marries a Muslim man, what are their children supposed to be? Recall that in Judaism, the children are considered to be Jewish if their mother is Jewish! (I have no doubt that Dawkins would register his disapproval of both these rules labelling children with the religion of at least one of their parents in the harshest possible terms!)
Why not both?
The difference is that you can be a Jewish atheist or agnostic or whatever. I still consider myself Jewish. It's much more than just the religion. One of the wierdest things about Judaism is that you don't really have to believe in god. All you have to do is follow the rules. My father once admitted to me (he'd deny it if you asked him), that he doesn't really believe in god but he likes the rituals and sense of belonging that he gets from Judaism. My mother would never admit that she ever doubted gods existence for a moment.
We're a strange lot, very independant and while there are a few guidelines we are pretty free to have our own interpretations for everything :-)
Comment #200822 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 9:23 am
I was under the impression that the soldier who shot up the Koran was simply unaware that it was a Koran, since the book was in Arabic he couldn't read it.
I'm sure it was reported VERY differently by the Muslim media.
36. Common New Atheist Fallacies
Comment #200819 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 9:17 am
epeeist,
The fact that he keeps throwing the same old at you means that he isn't convinced by your arguments and he's saying it anyways.
37. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200816 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 9:13 am
I'm sure you do. I've come across trolls on other forums and the best way to deal with them is ignore them. They are baiting you on purpose to get you riled up. This will turn around and bite you in the ass because instead of being convinced you are right they go back to their church and tell everyone how they are treated here and the hatred grows.
I'm all for fighting them in the courts and congress.
I'm not saying to stop ridiculing them because it may hurt their feelings, I'm saying it because it may hurt the spread of atheism/agnosticism. How do you know that your arguments aren't being spouted out of context somewhere else? If they come here to bait you on purpose they are up to something. Don't fall for it.
38. Common New Atheist Fallacies
Comment #200808 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 9:00 am
Why take the bait? Why not just let him spout and ignore him and he'll go away. Unless you enjoy ridiculing him.
39. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200804 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 8:56 am
Steve,
I agree with you on your right to attack them back for your rights. The attack should be through better laws that give you your rights.
I was referring to attacking them on the basis of "I'm right and your wrong" when they aren't doing anything more than expressing an opinion that they believe in god.
Comment #200802 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 8:53 am
I recall an incident with Obamas pastor. So why is he Muslim?
In another Stanford study, 48 students, half of whom said they favored capital punishment and half of whom said they opposed it, were presented with two pieces of evidence, one supporting and one contradicting the claim that capital punishment deters crime. Both groups were more convinced by the evidence that supported their initial position.
Yup, and that's why I don't argue with religious people.
41. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200787 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 8:43 am
But you are assuming that people will react to real situations in the same way they react to fiction.
I can laugh at some things my parents and other family members do in the name of god. But I don't laugh in their face.
I was raised religious, I know enough about Judaism to say that I think it's a brilliant piece of fiction. I still read books on Jewish Philosphy and Jewish Mysticism because they are works of art and I admire the thought processes that went into them. If you can ignore the basic fallacy that god exists they are incredibly compelling. I can't ignore that basic fallacy.
I think the whole idea of the trinity is a joke. I think Jesus was a Jewish Rabbi who wanted to make some reforms in Jewish Philosophy and never meant to start another religion. It was his followers that turned it into another religion several hundred years after he died. The "Nazarenes" who were his first followers were Jewish. My landlady is a very religious Christian and I respect her right to believe what she wants to believe. I may offer her "The God Delusion" to read. If she reads it and changes her mind good. If not, It's her business. I think it's ridiculous but why hurt her feelings by saying so?
Fighting them politically and in the courts to keep religion out of world/secular affairs is important. Attacking religious individuals is mean spirited.
42. Texas Supreme Court rules church can't be sued in exorcism
Comment #200778 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 8:24 am
As long as it's stopped. This is not justice!
43. The $10,000-a-Month Psychic
Comment #200772 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 8:18 am
Psychics are not necessarily religious.
She isn't psychic but she IS smart. Look at how she is hoodwinking these "businessmen".
44. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200769 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 8:14 am
I read the remarks and I saw ridicule on both sides. If you want to be offended by it you can.
I also saw two sides that were getting no where with each other just being abusive. If you think I was wrong to point that out. Again it's your right.
On Candide, are you really basing an argument on a work of fiction?
45. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200758 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 7:58 am
Your links didn't work.
See what your reaction is to me ridiculing you?
46. Texas Supreme Court rules church can't be sued in exorcism
Comment #200752 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 7:50 am
I'm stunned. I hope this goes to the federal supreme court.
47. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200740 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 7:27 am
Corylus,
Why don't you listen to Dan Dennet and Sam Harris in Beyond Belief 2. I'm sure you already have but maybe you forgot what they say there.
48. Common New Atheist Fallacies
Comment #200732 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 7:20 am
bugaboo and steve
I know that you know that you can't change that kind of persons mind. As for convincing other people standing on the sidelines. If you saw two people trying to sell pizza and they each tried to tell you that their pizza is better and in reality one of them IS better but you don't know yet which pizza is better. But you've been buying the bad pizza your whole life and so have your parents. The one with the bad pizza won't concede that it is bad because he wants to continue selling pizza and they start calling each other names and ridiculing each other. Are you going to want to buy pizza from either one of them or are you going to look for another place to buy pizza, or change your mind about pizza and go get a sandwich instead?
I know that was a bit simplified.
49. I believe that there is no God.
Comment #200719 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 6:54 am
I sure hope all this ridiculing is convincing people they are wrong.
50. Common New Atheist Fallacies
Comment #200718 by TeraBrat on June 28, 2008 at 6:50 am
mordacious1 gave you a definitive situation where a change had occurred. You obviously didn't like that so you try to raise a hypothetical in order to wave it away.
I hope everyone else has noticed this particular aspect of your character. Your need to be right all the time and your imperviousness to argument.
You ridicule and put down what you can't argue against. Most people won't go against a group for fear of ridicule, but a group will because they have each others support. In the case of religion vs. atheism it is group against group.
People fear ridicule if it will ostracize them from society. We are social animals and need our peers. That's why there is a difference between a single person facing a group and a group of people facing a group.
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