Hey Y'all

[Discord]

Sorry I haven't been around in a while. I am still in the process of moving at the first of the month and have been making several trips between here and Vermont. I just have been swamped with making the arrangements and finding work up there. I've missed chatting with you all and posting here and in the forums. So I just wanted to take this opportunity to say hello. I hope everything here is going well and hope you all are doing well as well. Hopefully before long I can get back into the swing of things.

Anyone here can feel free to PM me here. I get a notification of a message on my email that I check work work replies, so I will definately respond in a timely manner.

Have a great day everyone and take care!!!

Discord

[trotsky]

1. Sadly, all you've missed is the usual flamewars.

The uproar over "cliques" and some recent tombstones has really stolen much of DU's thunder lately. Plus the most obnoxious folks in R&T have been quiet lately, so what's a liberal atheist to do?

[onager]

2. Yeah, it's about time for another...

"...show us the proof" thread or something to stir 'em up over there.

;-)

"But 9 out of 10 Famous Philosophers believed in God. And C.S. Lewis blah-blah-blah..."

"Proof? Seen any pillars of fire or talking donkeys lately?"

"Hey, look over there, St. Thomas Aquinas blah-blah-blah..."

Ad infinitum, ad nauseum...

[trotsky]

3. Hey, don't forget that guy who was cured of cancer!

A board appointed by the church even found there was no reasonable explanation other than a miracle! If that ain't proof, pal, you're deluding yourself!

[onager]

6. Well, if a CHURCH BOARD proved it...

Then who am I to question? In fact, I hope lots and lots of Fundies resort to faith healing instead of medicine. Chlorine for the gene pool and all that.

There was also a guy claiming a cancer cure in the Pseudoscience group. Said he went to Mexico, used some sort of alternative medicine, and came back completely healed.

If that's true, he'd be the first. I saw a co-worker go to Mexico repeatedly for AIDS cures. He would come back cursing "traditional American medicine," claiming he felt 100% better. Then a few days later he would always relapse and get worse.

[Tafiti]

8. Your first line is so bad.

You can't say those things out loud...OK, maybe you can.

I don't know if you've seen it, but there was a great documentary on HBO called "The Question of Miracles". It's pretty old, 'cause I know I saw it like 3 or 4 years ago, but I just saw it replayed this past week, and it is excellent.

They interviewed Benny Hinn, and asked him about "the placebo effect" of his faith healing services, and he said, "Yes, I too, have wondered why a person will get up out of a wheelchair and walk around on stage, and then be back in the wheelchair just hours later."

You see, God likes to tease people. "See how good it feels to walk after years in a wheelchair? I've healed you! Ha ha, just kidding...Get your ass back in that wheelchair, sucker!"

[onager]

9. I saw that!

Thanks for letting me know it's on again. I'll watch for it.

Didn't they also devote part of the show to that German phony who preaches in Africa?

What I can never forget is that poor--literally and figuratively-- couple who dragged their little son around to all the Hinn healings. They should have been home with him, making him comfortable. The kid had congenital brain damage and was never going to get any better.

And all Hinn cared about was having them put another "love offering" on their credit card. He must have been really annoyed when the kid died. But I don't doubt that the shameless fucker has some sort of Post-Death scam for grieving families.

Even if I believed in Hell, I couldn't imagine one hot enough for a bastard like Hinn.

[Discord]

11. Yeah, fuckers like that need their own special

hell to burn in...

Something like Hellraiser would be ok.

Ya know... show them the... ecstasy of pain....

:evilgrin:

[Tafiti]

13. I only caught the last fifteen minutes...

...so I'll be watching for it, too, so I can see the whole thing again.

They did go back and forth between Hinn and a Russian guy, but I can't remember his name - I think we're thinking of the same guy. Or was he German??? Anyway...yeah, he couldn't answer any questions, either. His answer for everything was something like, "I just believe in the Word of God..." Blech!

As for Hinn and his money scams, I've seen a few Dateline/60 minutes-type investigative reports on him, and he's fucking despicable. He has a private plane, and goes everywhere in a limo. His kids take these "missions trips" (yeah, uh-huh) to Europe for months at a time, and he and his family shop for clothing at the most expensive stores possible. Yep, and families like the one you describe are paying for all of this. It's so disgusting...Hinn deserves to die an extremely painful death, and right quick.

[beam me up scottie]

4. I just stopped by for a reality check,

And to tell you to get your ass back here, there aren't enough of us as it is.

I just spent most of the afternoon arguing why Du'ers should be tolerant of differing religious beliefs.

somebody pinch me

:wtf:

[onager]

5. OK, you're pinched...

I just found a couple of good threads over in R&T! Check out "God & I," Theresa Hayden's hilarious account of being Officially Excommunicated from the Mormons.

She explains a lot of Mormon history and theology...

:rofl:

It's almost as goofy as $cientology history!

Then there's "Good-bye, Dr. Bob," about Bob Jones. But I think I saw you reply to that one.

[beam me up scottie]

7. Thanks for the heads up.

My best friend all through grade school was a mormon. Well, she was in a mormon family, she could never be brainwashed. I knew they were different but it was no big deal. I didn't even know what religion was, nevermind that there were different flavors...
My parents let me go with them to church several times when I slept over, all I remember was we got to go to McDonald's after-a beautiful thing since my rents never took us there!

Ah, the joys of being raised an atheist...:hippie:

And the horror of finding out as a teenager that not all of us were.:hide:

[Discord]

10. *pinch*

there ya go!

:evilgrin:

Hopefully things will get settled down before too long. Almost done with the packing now, and just have to make some arrangements before the end of the month for the final move.

And I'm always tolerant of others religious beliefs... until they mention it anyways. hehe

[beam me up scottie]

12. Ow!

Not that hard, I might like it!

Let me know how it's going, I've been looking at the job market in northern Vermont, kind of bleak. Major shortage of housing as well.
Still, I'm going to try to move back by the end of the year.
I'm jealous-it's unbelievably beautiful up there this time of year.
:D

[Discord]

14. WooWoo

:P

Well, not much of a job market up there this time of year unfortunately. Kinda seems to get slow in the summer and booms in the winter when all the skiers and such head up there.

I still haven't been able to nail down a solid job lead myself yet, but between temping and collecting unemployment I should be able to hold out until August when things should start opening up.