Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

Greece 'Paralysed' As General Strike Bites.Give them a bail out which we cannot afford
and they go on strike. Get back to work you lazy b's. Why bother.

This skeletal tower building is about 1000' high. Would you like your kids to be as brave as these Russian kids?

And how about some Quantum Levitation?

Here's a demonstration of it:

Looks like we caught ourselves another one. Come on Goldfish gob, come clean. Strange how this money is declared when the HEAT IS ON...........

City financiers fund Michael Gove's private office 33 minutes ago via

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/8840033/City-financiers-fund-Michael-Goves-private-office.html

Come On Wales.

goldfinger - that should please xstrata shareholders (not).

Lets hope hes caught like the Fox. Skinny.

Guilty as sin from his actions. I think John Mann the labour bruiser knows of a few more aswel. He keeps mentioning 4 or 5 in the cabinet.

The heats on for call me dave.

Don't tell Fred , he will be posting one of his long rant's

> ENGLAND EXPECTS EVERYMAN THIS
> DAY TO DO HIS DUTY
>
> If Trafalgar was fought today.....................................
>
> Nelson at Trafalgar-------------------
>
> Nelson: "Order the signal, Hardy."
> Hardy: "Aye, Aye, sir."
>
> Nelson: "Hold on, that's not what I dictated to the Signals Officer.
> What`s the meaning of this?"
> Hardy: "Sorry sir?"
>
> Nelson: (reading aloud): "England expects every person to do his duty,
> regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religious persuasion or
> disability. What gobbledygook is this?"
> Hardy: "Admiralty policy, I'm afraid, sir. We`re an equal opportunities
> employer now. We had the devil's own job getting "England" past the
> censors, lest it be considered racist."
>
> Nelson: "Gadzooks, Hardy. Hand me my pipe and tobacco."
> Hardy: "Sorry sir. All naval vessels have been designated smoke-free
> working environments."
>
> Nelson: "In that case, break open the rum ration. Let us splice the
> mainbrace to steel the men before battle."
> Hardy: "The rum ration has been abolished, Admiral. It`s part of the
> Government`s policy on binge drinking."
>
> Nelson: "Good heavens, Hardy. I suppose we`d better get on with it. Full
> speed ahead."
> Hardy: "I think you'll find there's a 4 knot speed limit in this stretch
> of water."
>
> Nelson: "Damn it man! We are on the eve of the greatest sea battle in
> history. We must advance with all dispatch. Report from the crow's nest
> please."
> Hardy: "That won't be possible, sir."
>
> Nelson: "What?"
> Hardy: "Health and safety have closed the crow's nest, sir. No harness.
> And they said that rope ladder doesn't meet regulations. They won't let
> anyone up there until a proper scaffolding can be erected."
>
> Nelson: "Then get the ship's carpenter without delay, Hardy."
> Hardy:"He's busy knocking up a wheelchair access to the fo'c'sle,
> Admiral."
>
> Nelson: "Wheelchair access? I`ve never heard anything so absurd."
> Hardy: "Health and safety again, sir. We have to provide a barrier-free
> environment for the differently abled."
>
> Nelson: "Differently abled? I've only one arm and one eye and I refuse
> even to hear mention of the word. I didn't get to the rank of admiral by
> playing the disability card."
> Hardy: "Actually, sir, you did. The Royal Navy is under-represented in
> the areas of visual impairment and limb deficiency."
>
> Nelson: "Whatever next? Give me full sail. The salt spray beckons."
> Hardy:"A couple of problems there too, sir. Health and safety won't let
> the crew up the rigging without hard hats. And they don't want anyone
> breathing in too much salt - haven`t you seen the adverts?"
>
> Nelson: "I've never heard such infamy. Break out the cannon and tell
> the men to stand by to engage the enemy."
> Hardy: "The men are a bit worried about shooting at anyone, Admiral."
>
> Nelson: "What? This is mutiny."
> Hardy: "It's not that, sir. It's just that they're afraid of being
> charged with murder if they actually kill anyone. There's a couple of
> legal-aid lawyers on board, watching everyone like hawks."
>
> Nelson: "Then how are we to sink the Frenchies and the Spanish?"
> Hardy: "Actually, sir, we're not."
>
> Nelson: "We're not?"
> Hardy: "No, sir. The Frenchies and the Spanish are our European partners
> now. According to the Common Fisheries Policy, we shouldn't even be in
> this stretch of water. We could get hit with a claim for compensation."
>
> Nelson: "But you must hate a Frenchman as you hate the devil."
> Hardy: "I wouldn't let the ship's Diversity Co-ordinator hear you saying
> that sir. You'll be up on a disciplinary."
>
> Nelson: "You must consider every man an enemy, who speaks ill of your
> King."
> Hardy: "Not any more, sir. We must be inclusive in this multicultural
> age. Now put on your Kevlar vest; it's the rules. It could save your
> life."
>
> Nelson: "Don't tell me - health and safety. Whatever happened to rum,
> sodomy and the lash?"
> Hardy: "As I explained, sir, rum is off the menu! And there's a ban on
> corporal punishment."
>
> Nelson: "What about sodomy?"
> Hardy: "I believe that is now legal, sir."
>
> Nelson: "In that case - Kiss me, Hardy".
>
>
>
>

=

Hi Haystack,

Like you I am none religious, and whilst believing that religion 'taken to esteems' has cause more trouble in this world than all other reasons put together, I for one will not offend anyone for their beliefs, as long as those beliefs have no harmful intent to others.
I have known many good none believers and many bad believers.
As to myself, I like to think that as I know the difference between good and bad, that often makes me a better person than those pious people who preach that to be a believer makes you good, and none believers bad.
I feel that the worse part of most religions is that 'if you truly repent then all your sins are forgiven.
So if are truly sorry, 'Thats alright then'.

If all people believed in a religion that is true, IE no harm to others, love thy neighbor etc, the world would be a better place.
Unfortunately, many believe that their religion overrules all others.

As to my believe, I feel that this world would be a far better place if a few million people who don't deserve to be on this earth, example Qaddafi, were taken out, it would be a far better place.

No doubt some would feel that if I advocated that action it would mean I was playing 'God' and perhaps it would, but it would certainly improve things quite a lot.

Skinny,

Brilliant, have forwarded it on to several friends.

Regards Greek.

I have often wondered how many very intelligent people have managed to believe in religion. I can see how they are indoctrinated from an early age, which is the initial cause. However, you would have thought that later in life, when they can evaluate things better their views would change. I went through the religious mill. I went to a convent primary school and then a grammar school run by Jesuit priests. The best part was the Jesuits, who encouraged independent thinking. It was during that period that I realised what a lot of nonsense it all was.

I saw an item on CBS News last night that helps to explain the fact tat intelligent people still believe in some extra-terrestrial being loosely called god. The item was about Steve Jobs and his biggest regret.

He had pancreatic cancer of a type that is normally survivable. He was told that an operation to remove the tumour would be needed and the likelihood was that he would get better. He chose instead to go on a macro-biotic diet with organic vegetables etc. This was odd bearing in mid that there is no evidence that it would be effective. It is even more strange bearing in mind that this no ordinary person. This is someone in the top fraction of a percentage of intelligent people with supposedly strong critical faculties. The outcome is well known. After several years of his 'alternative' therapy, he realised that he had been wrong. He then opted for the operation and it was found that the cancer had spread to surrounding tissue that could not be removed. They cut out what they could and told him that he had just a limited time left. He said that his biggest regret was not listening to his mind and instead following some irrational belief. He said that on reflection that he was surprised that he had chosen to go down the particular path that he had chosen and could not understand why he did against all logic.

.

The article is a few years old - the maxim timeless - Give me a child until he is seven and I will give you the man

The use of that phrase in relation to the Jesuits is a bit odd. Firstly it is supposed to be the motto of the Jesuits. This is definitely not true as it is Ad majorem Dei gloriam ("to the greater glory of God"). We had it on our blazers and it is on the Jesuit crest. The use of the phrase is also odd as the Jesuits rarely teach young children at an age under 7. This is usually done by nuns or orders such as the Christian brothers. We discussed the phrase at school and the Jesuits's opinion was that the meaning was a general one to do with What a child is like at the age of seven shows what the child will be grown up.

Haystack - I wasn't alluding to the Jesuits per se - more to the quote itself.

Even just the quote itself may in fact be a reference to the theory that a child at seven is a good indication of what the adult will be. Quotes from St Francis nearly 1,000 years ago are likely to be a bit unreliable.

There's the old question about asking a Christian what was God doing before he created the Universe, the best answer seem's to be that he is a Spirit so HE was not created , another answer was that he was bored being on his own , so created mankind ,which makes him seem almost human if anything.

To say that if you don't believe in him and don't worship him at every possible chance you will burn in hell , makes him out to be a vain egomaniac which is what a lot of cult church leaders are. Most Church's use various degrees of brain washing/mind control , even the Alpha course's , first there is the love bomb as it is called were you suddenly find they treat you like a long lost friend, they also assign someone to be your best friend and report back to the church leader's so they know what your weak point's are such as the death of a close relative.

All religions are cults. They always have been.

Cutting the crap...

These days we can simplify things by merely arguing about

Evolution?
or
Creation?

and then using scientific and/or technical argument to just trash the latter.



What is so very difficult to do, is to trash the idea, that people cannot have really good morals if they are atheists.

This latter argument, is the one where you almost have to fight the government of the day to win the argument conclusively and then get religion chucked out in the trash. Now this is just about impossible to do, because no electable politician will ever distance himself from the religious (and thus moral) section of his voters.

Any politician who says he is an atheist, thus indirectly tells his voters he is, almost by definition, morally corrupt.

And of course, governments also like churches because they are the only ones doing anything at all so as to maintain any kind of a good morality about the place.

IMHO, if we do ever manage to get rid of religion, then we need to put something back in its place to teach and reaffirm good morality to the masses.

And I don't think 'school is the place' to do this. IMHO, I think we need some kind of 'Life and How to Live It' plan - almost a sorta kinda 'National Creed for Every Citizen'. This would then act as the perfect substitute for 'the good stuff' that religion actually does provide.

Having eventually got rid of religion, the currently very important religious concept, that 'life begins when you die' nonsense can also be trashed. Then we might have some much better chance that people would begin to respect the rights of individuals much more and behave better towards themselves as well as towards others.

I would like the government of the day to absolutely state, 'There is definitely not any kind of an entity called God. We are now sure that life evolved out of nothing and was not created by some kind of mystic being'.

Of course, Einstein and his chums and forbears, the Hadron Collider and particularly, the 'Grand Theory of Everything' has a great part to play in all of this task.

But importantly, we cannot remove something, that is so important for people, without devising what else we can put back in its place.

(And of course, we mustn't forget how resistant all those religious leaders are going to be too.)

delete