Comments by Colwyn Abernathy

401. Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov tries suicide after realising he was wrong about doomsday

Comment #155687 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 8:48 am

Ultimately all our posts on internet forums are a form of self-expression. Some people feel it more important to give the impression "I am a sensitive person who feels for the plight of the mentally ill", others "I am a person with a sense of humour and an appreciation for good slapstick" or "I am a person who believes passionately that no area of human activity should be arbitrarily excluded from the remit of comedy". Just because you prefer to emphasise the one in no way means you reject the other. I like to think I am both sensitive and passionate about freedom of comedy - and I most certainly can laugh and cry at different aspects of the same situation at the same time with no trace of hypocrisy.

And the Cool-Ass Quotable Award goes to Cartomancer! Couldn't have said it better meself! I really can't add anything more to that.

402. Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov tries suicide after realising he was wrong about doomsday

Comment #155684 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 8:41 am

I may be a heartless git (hell I've been called worse in this very thread, despite admirably resisting the temptation to stoop to ad-homs myself) but I have never wished death upon another. Ever.

Then I commend you greatly, for I yelled at the top of my lungs when I'd heard Jerry (Dick in a Box) Falwell bought it: "GOOD FUCKING RIDDANCE! Tho your hate may continue on in your followers, at least I don't have to listen to your feckin' ignorant ramblings."

And if I'm going to be honest, I can't deny feeling that way. WON'T deny it. And I cannot deny that I find this story hilarious. If that makes some think I'm an elitist asshole, then they're certainly welcome to feel that way.

403. Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov tries suicide after realising he was wrong about doomsday

Comment #155683 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 8:29 am

Empathy is not political correctness. It is about being a civilized human being.

Very well put, Steve. Tho I would like to add that often people mistake the two. ;)

404. Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov tries suicide after realising he was wrong about doomsday

Comment #155680 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 8:04 am

So much so, that one day my "god" voice even mumbled, "you're not giving us much to work with..." I gotta say, that was amusing.

HA! Help me help you...

405. Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov tries suicide after realising he was wrong about doomsday

Comment #155679 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 8:01 am

If one poops on someone for pooping on those who poop on a guy hitting his head with a log, does that break the irony meter?

No, but it exceeds the limit of the "fair use" of the word "poop". ;)

406. Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov tries suicide after realising he was wrong about doomsday

Comment #155662 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 7:11 am

Religion loves misery; I don't really understand this yet.

And misery loves company. Suffering is a virtue, apparently, and to suffer greatly in THIS life will offer great rewards in the NEXT one, assuming there IS a second life after this. (HA HA! Virtual Real-Estate) Mother Theresa was a BIG fan of this idea, oh, and by "studying" suffering she'd be closer to understanding the nature of Sat...er...god. Bullocks all round if you ask me. Best to make the most of what little time you DO have. Makes more rational sense.

407. Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov tries suicide after realising he was wrong about doomsday

Comment #155633 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 5:53 am

Pyotr Kuznetsov, the leader of a Russian doomsday cult, who tried to kill himself by banging his head with a log

SRSLY...you're shitting me, right?

HA HA HA! Darwin Award Honourable Mention...

408. Anti-gay Okla. lawmaker attracts 1,000 backers

Comment #155628 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 5, 2008 at 5:43 am

"Tsk, tsk. Don't you know that the attacks of 11 September 2001 were god's punishment for America's tolerance of homosexuality and abortion? I mean...everyone knows that!

HA HA! Sarcasm noted, and APPROVED! Thank you for your patronage. ;)

409. Anti-gay Okla. lawmaker attracts 1,000 backers

Comment #154611 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 2:01 pm

I think they are annoyed that other people are enjoying things like raucous oral sex on a pretty frequent basis. And they get it only on Christmas and maybe on Easter

HA HA HA! Happy Birthday...

410. Anti-gay Okla. lawmaker attracts 1,000 backers

Comment #154595 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 1:33 pm

I believe he is intending to deal with her in the same way as he did with the ghastly Rick Santorum.

My sister's STILL pissed he got trounced. I keep telling her he shouldn't have been a dumbass and presented a document stating weapons of mass destruction were found...that'd ALREADY been shown to be wrong. I certainly voted against him. ;)

411. Anti-gay Okla. lawmaker attracts 1,000 backers

Comment #154580 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 1:24 pm

That is the Family Guy episode where the terrorist gets to heaven and he says "Where are my virgins"... It is a bunch of dorky dudes on laptops, and one is wearing Mr. Spock ears.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-sSmX8pCYo
Precisely: 4:30 ;)

412. Anti-gay Okla. lawmaker attracts 1,000 backers

Comment #154571 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 1:12 pm

I'll check out the book. I love how Muslims attempt to erase any traces of homosexuality in Islamic lands, given the strong tradition of homosexual practices in pre-Islamic Arabia. Even the practice of BacchÃ¡ continues to this day in certain Islamic lands.

Not to mention the CBC's expose of Iran's gay community. They don't exist MY ARSE.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAzMuHyg8Eg

413. Anti-gay Okla. lawmaker attracts 1,000 backers

Comment #154544 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 12:22 pm

"You cannot separate your faith from life," she said.

Because you need your crutch to get through the day, we get it. But you also need not apply YOUR faith to someone else. That would be unconstitutional. Your rights end where mine begin.

414. Thy will be done

Comment #154542 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 12:17 pm

But for anyone clinging to the slightest belief in God, surely going to war would be the time of greatest inclination to pray?

So long as they recite ALL of The War Prayer. ;)

415. BBC 'too scared to allow jokes about Islam'

Comment #154434 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 8:24 am

Good evening....Infidel...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8GgB4EVAJ8

EDIT: Not the whole bit. ;)

Tim Minchin genius
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSmuaaH1g60

MOOOOOHAAAMMMEEEEEEEED!

EDIT: Tim Minchin doesn't have an open mind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFO6ZhUW38w

416. BBC 'too scared to allow jokes about Islam'

Comment #154422 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 7:55 am

"Come to think of it, is "The Vicar of Dibley" or "Father Ted" shown in the US?

Sure do. At least Father Ted. It airs on local Philadelphia WYBE, and I think, BBC America. Me Mum's a fan. Tho I like My Hero better. :)

417. BBC 'too scared to allow jokes about Islam'

Comment #154408 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 7:32 am

I thought living freely was more important than safety anyway.

"Those who would trade a little freedom for a little security, deserve neither freedom nor security." -Benjamin Franklin

Spot on...

418. BBC 'too scared to allow jokes about Islam'

Comment #154396 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 3, 2008 at 7:12 am

Oh COME ON! Even Mitzy Shore encouraged her arab comics to use their cultural material after 9/11! That's how you disarm them.

"In all of humanity's poverty there lies one weapon: Laughter. Against the assault of laughter nothing can stand." -Mark Twain

419. Vote on freedom of expression marks the end of Universal Human Rights

Comment #153363 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 1, 2008 at 12:23 pm

Lucas wrote:
So, certain particularly sensitive Muslims (notice the qualifiers everybody?) are really hurt just by words alone. Okay. That's easy. My words are weapons now? Cool, I'll never run out of ammo.

And the Cool Ass Quotable goes to Lucas. I just love the last line. Spot on! :)

420. Christian Founders 3D Adventure Computer Game

Comment #153321 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 1, 2008 at 11:40 am

This has got to be the stupidest idea for a computer game ever conceived...

Achievement Unlocked!

Sweet!

421. Christian Founders 3D Adventure Computer Game

Comment #153316 by Colwyn Abernathy on April 1, 2008 at 11:34 am

Three words: Read Mark Twain. ;)

422. Anti-Quran Film Fitna Pulled From Web Due to 'Threats'

Comment #152467 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 31, 2008 at 5:34 am

In case anybody missed it, YouTube still has it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCrCsTMokTU

423. My quest to get de-baptised

Comment #152447 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 31, 2008 at 3:58 am

My plan for de-baptism started to formulate when travelling on the Trans-Siberian Railway.

HA! Reminds me of the time Henry Rollins told of taking the same trip...a week straight with the Angry Woman of the People's Hallway, The Voice, The People's Toilet, and examining his vomit up close and personal. Good times...

424. Police: Girl Dies After Parents Pray for Healing Instead of Seeking Medical Help

Comment #152446 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 31, 2008 at 3:44 am

You ask "isn't it true...?"
Well, no, it isn't true, in the sense that not all of the millions of people who visit Lourdes each year are the sick seeking a miracle cure.
Don't imagine that I am defending Lourdes and it's delusional function, but we need always to address the reality of what believers are claiming rather than what we imagine they are claiming.
Many of the pilgrims at Lourdes will speak of the "miracle of faith renewed, or faith strengthened".
Or simply a faith boosting experience without particular reference to a miracle.
My personal "miracle" happened just 30 kms from Lourdes, at a place called Luz-Saint Sauveur, where I was healed of a lifelong fear of heights and vertigo.
On the Napoleon Bridge, to be precise. A bungee jump of 90m!! A terrifying experience, but, darn it, it worked! And I know how. So, in fact, no miracle at all.

OIC...thanks muchly for the clarification, Richard! :)

425. Iowa county board gives initial OK for ghost hunters to investigate asylum

Comment #152438 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 31, 2008 at 2:57 am

And they would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for them darn kids!

And the award for the obligatory Scooby-Doo reference goes to...oh and just to be a nitpick, it should be "meddling" kids...Just sayin' ;)

426. Police: Girl Dies After Parents Pray for Healing Instead of Seeking Medical Help

Comment #152173 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 30, 2008 at 10:57 am

"It's OK. It's nice to know I am irresistible in at least one way

Dude, it's gotta be the colour of your hair. Wait...what colour is that again? ;)

427. Police: Girl Dies After Parents Pray for Healing Instead of Seeking Medical Help

Comment #152167 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 30, 2008 at 10:41 am

"the aim wasn't to bring them back without their disablility, it was to give them a nice time. It succeeds year upon year. It succeeds because people are generous with their time and money. Prayer seems to be the common denominator between the volunteers and fundraisers involved."

If the aim is to show them a nice time, why not petition Hannah Montana to throw them a concert, staffed by volunteers? Trip to Disney World? If it's to give them a chance to see and do things they wouldn't be able to do otherwise, why take them to a place of false hopes and disappointment? After all, isn't it true that the main reason pilgrims go to Lourdes is to experience a miracle? Why would they go otherwise?

428. Police: Girl Dies After Parents Pray for Healing Instead of Seeking Medical Help

Comment #152156 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 30, 2008 at 9:24 am

"Now if these parent's had merely beaten their kid and the child had lived, they likely would go to jail."

Agreed, and my friends complain that I "hafta be so militant." This is a GOOD reason NOT to keep quiet about religious nonsense. As was stated before...it kills, and those responsible aren't held accountable, because religious beliefs are above criticism and challenge.

429. Iowa county board gives initial OK for ghost hunters to investigate asylum

Comment #151785 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 29, 2008 at 11:36 am

"IOWA CITY, Iowa - County officials have given their informal OK for ghost hunters to check out a one-time Iowa insane asylum to see if any spirits are lurking about."

OOO! I can answer that!

No...and that didn't cost you anything. ;)

430. 'We Make Our Own Heaven'

Comment #151784 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 29, 2008 at 11:33 am

""The way they do, I'm not impressed. I believe we make our own heaven right here, or hell, and I said, I'm going to come back in an afterlife as a leaf on a tree."

I had hope until here. Oy...just goes to show people can be credulous about even the silliest notions.

431. Police: Girl Dies After Parents Pray for Healing Instead of Seeking Medical Help

Comment #151281 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 28, 2008 at 11:34 am

"They are still in the home," he said. "There is no reason to remove them. There is no abuse or signs of abuse that we can see."

THAT THEY ALLOWED ONE OF THEIR CHILDREN TO DIE FROM A PREVENTABLE DEMISE ISN'T CHILD ABUSE?! WILL THE OTHER CHILDREN BE SUBJECTED TO SUCH BARBARIC NEGLIGENCE?!

My apologies for shouting, but this is simply INFURIATING!!

432. Expelled Overview

Comment #149788 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 26, 2008 at 8:23 am

Most theaters in the USA do not check tickets once you've purchased a ticket and entered the main hallway. Purchase a ticket to another movie and attend this one instead.

I would recommend RUN FAT BOY RUN. Simon Pegg is teh shitz... ;)

433. Expelled Overview

Comment #149783 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 26, 2008 at 8:20 am

I liked it too. I imagine Stein's reaction: "Can you believe the arrogance of that Shermer guy?!"

"I mean...who ELSE gets famous by saying one name over and over again?"

434. Expelled Overview

Comment #149711 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 26, 2008 at 7:00 am

You'd have to be pretty stupid to think that Panspermia is the same as a 1950's flying saucer movie, but once again, Stein and Mathis know their audience.

OOO! BUUUUURRRRRRN!! Good one, Timonen.

Timonen....Beuller...ah, it wasn't funny the first time either. I apologise. I won't do it again, I promise.

435. Expelled Overview

Comment #149708 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 26, 2008 at 6:54 am

I know it doesn't sound funny written out, and it wasn't funny on-screen,

I'll take your word for it Timonen.

Timonen......Timonen....Bueller...Beeuuuuuulller.

436. Wicked untruths from the Church

Comment #149270 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 25, 2008 at 11:17 am

"Hilarious. Good thing my mouth was not full of something...."

Ooo...so many jokes. Must...resist...the...obvious...ones... ;)

437. Wicked untruths from the Church

Comment #149269 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 25, 2008 at 11:15 am

"Haven't you seen them on the streets and on your screens, all got up in their God Is Dead, Christians Should be Deader atheist headbands and red robes, burning Bibles, insisting on the teaching of Dawkins and Hitchens in school RS lessons, smashing icons and creeping up behind bishops and lifting their cassocks?"

No, actually I haven't. Where are they? And WHY wasn't I informed?!

438. Biology prof expelled from screening of 'Expelled'

Comment #148457 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 23, 2008 at 6:10 am

"If anyone had a right to see the film, it was him. The incompetence, on a public relations level, is beyond belief."

HA HA HA! Truth in irony...

439. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146928 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 3:00 pm

And it's fair enough that your stance on homosexulaity turns you off, but surely one can't rubbish the work of an organisation just because of one view they hold?

It isn't the view or the stance, it's the actions they take to "correct" a "problem" that isn't one. They force their worldview on vulnerable, confused women, causing more harm than good. This is reprehensible.

Was the work of Martin Luther King Jr, Mother Theresa, David Livingstone, William Wiberforce (etc) invalid just because of their views on homosexuality?

Irrelevant. And don't bring up Mother Theresa, there've been books written about her hypocrasy. For example Martin Luther King didn't proclaim homosexuality as a disease.

EDIT: Blockquote fixed. Sry! :(

440. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146904 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 2:34 pm

And I personally know a card carrying member of the Church of Satan. A good friend of mine, who rawks the house. See what I did there?

441. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146899 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 2:28 pm

Mercy Ministries is an international NPO "providing homes and care for young women suffering the effects of eating disorders, self harm, abuse, depression, unplanned pregnancies and other life controlling issues."

See, there's that life-controlling again. Do they prohibit touch amongst these women as well? I'm sorry, their stance on homosexuality completely turns me off to whatever good they may do. Even Hamas built schools and helped the poor, that doesn't excuse them from using children as shields, or shooting an innocent in cold blood simply because he was accused of passing information to the Israelis.

442. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146896 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 2:24 pm

"And I usually slowly work my way to the nipples Al."

DO go on... ;)

443. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146863 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 1:49 pm

It was in response to someone claiming that saying it was an aberration was an assumption. I was asking, that in the absence of evidence, isn't everything an assumption?

A good point, al. Aberration was the wrong word to use, even though I was putting the assumption into a moral context, and not a biological one. The assumption is that it's an abberation because it's deviant from the personally accepted norm, and must therefore be immoral. Does that make sense? Apologies for any confusion.

As for my gay percentage (male) I'd say I'd top out at 15%. I can only count one guy I seriously thought about experimenting with. Tho I can see the aesthetic quality of the human figure in general. Two words: Hugh Jackman.

444. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146835 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 1:25 pm

"RIP Gary Gygax, lover of icosahedra."

Gary shall be critically missed for 1D20 moments of silence :_(

445. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146826 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 1:15 pm

"What rubbish. You have a problem with Practicing homosexuals. What happens when they get good enough that they don't need to practice any more?"

They go pro, of course! :) Jeepers, how far are we from an Olympic event?

446. God's cure for gays lost in sin

Comment #146818 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 1:00 pm

Assumption: homosexuality is an aberration and not part of the human condition, and that "sin" is even a viable concept today.

Further Assumption: There is a god who gives a shit who you bone, and punishes sin.

Further Further Assumption: It's my business as to know who you bone, and to declare this person or that person as sinful.

I find the argument of reprogramming not just scary and vile, but completely illogical and repressive.

447. Jesus saves

Comment #146813 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 12:49 pm

Jesus saves sinners...and redeems them for valuable prizes!

448. Jesus saves

Comment #146812 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 12:47 pm

Apparently since the dawn of time, a belief in a supreme being, who keeps a note on what we are up to, has given individuals a reason to live and get along with each other.

Funny...it fails to mention the bloodshed wrought by those of different faiths. That faith is a polariser, and essentially exclusive. How does this enable us to get along?

449. Writer Arthur C Clarke dies at 90

Comment #146806 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 19, 2008 at 12:30 pm

Any significantly advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic...

We'll remember you, Arthur. :( You'll be missed.

450. Religious groups want Russian cartoon channel shut down

Comment #146037 by Colwyn Abernathy on March 18, 2008 at 1:57 pm