Warden_of_the_Storm said:

Could you call the lack of wisdom teeth, or rather the problems from complications of the eruption of wisdom teeth, in certain world populations evolution? Human diets are now heavily geared towards soft foods, cooked or otherwise, thus eliminating the need to chew so heavily and thoroughly.

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It's related to paedomorphisis, the retention of juvenile traits in adult humans. Humans look more like juvenile apes than adult apes. Big crania, small faces and jaws, longer legs, shorter arms. Much of it is doable by timing of gene expresssion. DArcy Thompson showed that the diffferences are a matter of coordinate transformations:

I tend to use Open Doors for my info about the persecuted church.

Fantine said:

Are you an immigrant yourself?

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Nope. The son of an immigrant and married to one.

Fantine said:

If you left a totalitarian dictatorship you may not realize how far our country has fallen or how horribly abnormal this current administration is.

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You need to turn off The View, matey. FWIW, I grew up poor working class, in a 700 sq ft house. New knew what a new car was, sweated in the Southern summers because AC was for rich folks. Mom made a goodly portion of our clothes. Travel? Oh hahaha! If you could get there in our whatever old car (only the rich had more then one car) we had then we didn't go. Fly? People who lived in $4500 houses didn't fly. Education? Not bad. School was no-nonsense, and a Korean mom meant if you came in with a B on your card you better have a good excuse. No AC in the school, either. Shut up and sweat. Politics? Whoever my dad thought was best. Lessee... Ike, Kennedy, Johnson, Goldwater, Nixon, dad voted for the man, not the party. Pro integration (JIm Crow in those Good Old Days, right?) , anti-war.

On and on. So don't try to school me on how much better it was back then, EVERYBODY now is orders of magnitude better off now than they were then. Black Folks were still second class citizens then. Poverty was rampant. The poor were very poor (we didn't qualify on that score) and lived in vile slums or tarpaper shacks, or both. Education? Better k-12, no sociological experimentation. Root hog or die college, shape up or ship out, back to the factory. Sp spare me the "things have never been so bad" bravo sierra. Gays were routinely beaten and mistreated. Poor women worked in sweatshop "shirt factories" for a little of nothing.

You may or may not get the drift. Trump is Hitler? What monumental ignorance! See any death camps? Where's the Trump Jugend? Where are the pograms? Where's the elimination (read governmental mandated murder) of the gays and trans people. No worry about trans joining the Werhmacht, they were shipped off to the eextermination camps. Ditto Roma (gypsies), Jews, trade unionists, Any religious or political ground that the Nazis found inconvenient or annoying, and of course, bloody unrestricted war. And yet y'all beat the idiotic tub about "Trump is Hitler". Have none of you ever cracked a book? Are you all completely, abysmally ignorant of the past 100 years of history? There is no excuse for that kind of stupidity.

So Trump isn't your cup of tea; sonuvagun, he isn't mine either. But he's a whole lot less dangerous than the conspirators who spent4 years trying to purge him from office because he didn't fit their program for their own rise to power. Do I like everything he does? Nope, but what have your lot to offer instead? Mutilating children?

Let's face it, the American left has gone completely insane. That's that why their polling is in the tank, where it belongs. They're tried to remake the US in their own insane image, and have been roundly, and properly, told to sod off.

An article published by Phoenix Weekly has exposed what it calls a long-standing falsehood:
'Jackie Chan’s claim that he never uses stunt doubles. The piece, titled “Jackie Chan Lied—This Is His Dedicated Stunt Double”,
reveals that many of the high-risk action sequences for which Chan is famous were, in fact, performed by professional doubles.

Renowned Hong Kong action director Law Lai-yin, who has an intimate understanding of Chinese stunt choreography,
disclosed that he himself had served as Chan’s double. According to Law, the notion that Chan performs all his own stunts is
a “beautiful lie.” From the beginning of his film career, Chan has relied on stunt doubles throughout.


(Translated from Epoch Times)

RDKirk said:

I once suggested that line of thought to an Orthodox rabbi, and he jerked me short very abruptly:

"We don't obey God because it makes sense, we obey God because he's God."

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Yeah, that sounds absurd at first, definitely the kind of thing you'ld find as fodder for the New Atheist crowd. What's missing is the relational context. The rabbi's experience with God is what grounds his trust. That's not something that fits within modern epistemology, of course, which is why it sounds so hollow to many moderns.

RDKirk said:

Many of the laws do make sense in various ways. However, there is a category of laws called the Chukim. These are decrees or statutes that do not have an obvious rational basis, and are followed solely out of obedience to God's will. One example is the prohibition against wearing garments of mixed wool and linen.

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Well, there's a very practical reason, perhaps. Mixed fibers tend to pill up and wear out faster.

RDKirk said:

Jews (at least the Orthodox) don't regard the Chukim laws as any less significant than the other laws.

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It depends on what rabbinic source you draw from. Maimonedes, much like Aquinas, distinguished moral from ceremonial law. More mystical strains of Judaism, however, tend not give as much weight to that distinction.

RDKirk said:

IMO, a significant purpose of the Chukim and all the other laws is to create distinction...to make God's people a peculiar people compared to the rest of humanity. And I think that's a significant purpose of the Christian lifestyle as well.

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That's the Christian explanation, and one that some Jews also use. But another possibility is that they often involve symbolic, non-linear thinking. For instance, separating death and life symbolically and ritually is a frequent theme in the Old Testament's Priestly sources. Christianity doesn't place as much importance on that distinction, because we have a figure like Jesus that transcended those categories, quite literally.

Other possibilities are that certain ones originated as cultural customs, like circumcision, which was also practiced by Egyptians, but were re-interpreted. That seems to be common in ancient Israelite culture, to take cultural forms and stories common to the region, but reinterpret them, or iterate them. In fact, that theme appears throughout the entire Bible. Most of the stories in the Hebrew Bible are found in other cultures in similar forms, but the biblical stories often have unique theological emphases, subtle changes that change the meaning of the entire story.

Some interesting examples: the story of the Tree of Life is ancient, probably goes back tens of thousands of years, and can be found even in Native American cultures. The story of a talking snake that deceives humanity and steals immortality also transcends cultures, and probably has its origins in Africa, and may be one of the oldest surviving stories we have. Those are just a few. All those images in the first chapters of Genesis are widespread in all ancient cultures, to one extent or another. What's unique is how they are combined by the biblical authors to tell a unique story about human vocation and responsibility, one that is perhaps only echoed in the ancient Persian culture to any similar degree.

The Barbarian said:

It describes the Earth at creation, not yet formed into what it would become.

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Yes but I think that is sort of describing the void that was prior to the earths form. Something non material in nature. Something that created that which came out of the void. Which was the 'Word' Logos. Which cannot be explained in material terms.

The Barbarian said:

Precisely so. Parables are not falsehoods; they are truths put in story form.

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I agree. But if we consider say the stories of Christs resurrection this is claimed as a real event. The parables are based on this truth which we cannot verify.

The Flood story is another interesting one where it happens within the context of humans being around to witness such an event. Though it being a proven fact is not necessary for believing the message.

But like the Exodus they happened in human lifetime which we can find evidence for. Though no amount of evidence would make any difference to someone who does not believe in God.

These stories are based on real events that have been made into divine messages and revelations.

Lord i pray for the victims in this situation.. Grab a hold of them and stay by their side as you heal them. I pray for their recovery. Amen

The Liturgist said:

That’s not the case; I find most of what you write to be extremely interesting and I’d say you’re one of the more learned members.

I just don’t understand why my recommendation you use AI in a careful manner to test the limits of knowledge would translate to interpreting the posts of other members in the worst possible light.

My goal was to provide a specific technical recommendation - that being, that insofar as AI has problems with reliably conveying information unless used extremely carefully, that the use case you were outlying struck me as one that would warrant additional caution. This is particularly the case with less advanced AIs that many people use, for example, Anthropic or Google DeepMind.

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Alright. But do know, there's a reason I distrust the current trends of technology and LLMs.

idma said:

What I mean is that the loudness, softness, interesting hits/snaps/riffs/melodies, are never heard by the bass. Its done by everybody else, and the bass provides, well, the bass. As in it certainly adds a lot of weight to a part, but it doesn't bring in the interest.

You can argue that bass certainly provides the loudness to a song, but its something everybody builds on and therefore only goes so far in dynamics.

As for leading while playing bass, do you basically give all responsibility for dynamics to your team? How complex does your playing get rhythmically?

The reason I ask is in the P&W song recordings, while the swells, melodies, and over all dynamics can be pretty far reaching, the bass really doesn't contribute much the moment there are more instruments playing.

I can only hear its impact when there is a particularly soft part of the song and barely anything is playing, and the bass stops. Then the song ramps up a little but only the bass is added in. At that point I can feel its weight and how the song feels like its gonna get more exciting. But then the moment everything else comes in, the bass is regulated to just...well...the bass.

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I think you're noticing something common in a lot of modern church music. The bass can sometimes sound lower in the mix when the band is in full swing. But that doesn't mean it's less important—its role just shifts.

The bass is crucial in providing a solid foundation and rhythmic pulse for the band, (hopefully) enhancing the overall worship experience. The bassist's primary job is to establish the groove, lock in with the drummer, outline the chord changes, and create a supportive and cohesive sound.

In big, layered sections, the bass anchors the harmony, groove, and energy. You may not hear it distinctly, but you feel it. Even when it's not in the spotlight, the bass is essential. Remove it, and the song loses warmth, drive, and depth.

The magic often comes from being felt, not featured. The congregation may not always notice you, but they'll notice when you're gone.

As for signalling tempo or volume change, consider some of these:
You can use physical cues and body language. Step forward slightly, make eye contact, or nod your head when a change is coming. Move to face the drummer so everyone knows a change is coming. Nod your head to indicate the new tempo. Lean in toward your instrument or exaggerate your movements to indicate intensity changes.

Disclosure: I have not led a worship group since the mid-1970s, but I have been playing electric bass guitar or double bass to support congregational and choir singing in the Catholic church for about 45 years.

==============
Lady: Are you the police?
Elwood Blues: No, ma'am, we're musicians ... We're on a mission from God.

I have to admit that I'm a bit disappointed to see this study. But it explains why the face looks fake.

In theory, if the Black community of a particular state was more evenly spread out across the state (to a degree where there was no district that was majority-Black), what would the recourse be in that type of situation?


It seems like the concept of "districting" in the first place was a bit of a ill-thought out approach.

No matter how it's done (even if it's done by an "independent bipartisan redistricting committee"), you're still going to end up with a wacky looking map in most cases.



The more I've looked into it, the more I like what Germany has with their MMP system (Mixed Member Proportionality)

From my understanding (and any Germans on here, feel free to correct any misinterpretations I have)

German voters get two votes on their ballot. The first vote is for a local candidate in their district (like the US system), and the second vote is for a political party.

The final composition of their parliament must match the proportional party vote.

So half of legislature is populated by regional winners, and the other half is assigned by party leadership for the "filler seats" based on who needs to get what to make the numbers line up.


So, how that would work would be... (let's pretend the number is 700 just to keep the math easy)

350 of those seats would be populated by the regional winners, the other 350 would be assigned seats by party leadership.

Each "district" would be about 950,000 people (the states can divvy those up how they'd like, because gerrymandering would be a non-issue)


The results come in...
195 Republicans Won the local races, and 155 Democrats won local races
The party vote came in, and 53% of voters said "D", and 47% said "R"

How that would shake out for the "proportionally ensured seats"

• Democrats need: 371 total - 155 won = 216 proportional seats
• Republicans need: 329 total - 195 won = 134 proportional seats

That system not only makes gerrymandering "moot" in terms of unfair advantage, it actually make gerrymandering a liability if someone tried it.

If a party drew some wacky looking districts just to help a few specific guys get a victory, they'd actually be handing more proportional seats to the other party's leadership to assign (not elect), so there's almost an incentive to keep districts as proportional as possible, because you can strategize to beat someone in an election, there's no strategizing if the other party's leader can pick whoever they'd like to fill a seat.

Continued prayers for the German faithful!

To the OP:

I'm really sorry to hear of your struggles. I felt I would reply because I have felt a similiar way too at times. I think its important to identify what real Christianity is and what purports to be christian teaching but is not. By all means make a break with the latter. Anyone reducing all your difficulties to demons needing to be cast out, is wrong. Now some people may have problems in that area because they opened themselves up to it through drugs, or through the occult, but difficulties can be related to other things too: pressures and stresses of modern living, pressures from other christians also.

You said you take less vegitables and fruit, may I ask was your diet overbalanced towards fruit and veg? You just need to eat the right sort of fruit and vegitables and have a balanced diet with a bit of variety. Some fruit may take the edge off your anxiety, but I wouldn't expect an great deal just from change of diet. However it might help a bit.

TV News can also be a source of anxiety, cut down on that if you watch a lot of it. You won't be anymore out of touch than most people.
You can follow stuff at times when you feel you can handle it.

I'll say too you don't have to be a mother, or have children, or even get married if you don't wish to. How you feel about all that now might change in the future however.

God Bless.

Landon Caeli said:

Incorrect answer, sorry.. Herbert Hoover had higher tariffs than DJT.

And so my point still remains, that Trump hasn't done anything new that other presidents haven't already done. So he's as American as apple pie.

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No, Trump is nothing new. We have presidents who were autocrats before and had many who ran the president in orer to line their pockets. Corruption is definitely NOT new in American politics.
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I was under the impression that we were discussing economic policy, specifically tariff policy.

Since 1941, there has been a worldwide move towards what is loosely called globalism, with certain rules governing world trade. There have been many who have taken advantage. However, believe it or not, the goal of US economic policy is NOT fairness. The goal is economic success for the US and its citizens. [I don't mention US companies because the myths propogated just plain silly. US companies are in better shape even by a very long way.

OF COURSE, the country that has benefited most from the system since WWII is the US. The people of the US have benefited considerably more than anyone else. Sure, there have been hiccups, economic success isn't a straight line. However, the US economic situation as of January 1st, 2025 is by far the best in the history of the world. Maybe it will improve under Trump, maybe not.

The MEDIAN US household income (half under, half over) is the second highest in the world, second to Luxumburg, and considerably higher than a few years ago.

There is a MYTH that the average AMerican family hasn't gained over the 70's. COmpare median income and you will find that this is simply not true.
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ALL THIS BEING SAID
It is possible that the US economy and the median Us household will be better off in 5 years or 10 years because of Trump's policies. And yes, threats of high tariffs may indeed force many companies to produce more in the US, raising costs (not likely giving us more jobs).

And is SOME industries, costs may indeed come down through bullying. Drug costs are a good example.

Michie said:

LAHORE, Pakistan — In a rare development, a high court in Pakistan ordered the government to issue a new identity card reflecting a woman’s conversion from Islam to Christianity.

The woman, whose name is being withheld for security reasons, renounced Islam and married a Christian man 15 years ago.

Attorney Lazar Allah Rakha said that for years she had repeatedly tried to get her faith designation corrected on her national identity record, but officials at the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) defiantly refused. She converted to Christianity in January 2009 and married a Christian man four months later.

Continued below.

Pakistan allows Christian woman to remove Islam as her religion in years-long battle over ID card

In a rare development, a high court in Pakistan ordered the government to issue a new identity card reflecting a woman s conversion from Islam to Christianity

www.christianpost.com

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Yes, indeed, this is a great victory. Many people, not only this woman, have been waiting for such a breakthrough. However, here in Pakistan, NADRA refuses to officially change a person’s religion, because under the prevailing law, converting from Islam is punishable by death. There is no alternative legal solution, and very few dare to challenge this system.

Yet, we thank God, for this act will become a great beacon of hope for all those longing for freedom in their faith. May it inspire courage and open the door for many to find life in Christ.

Michie said:

A new report by Pakistan’s National Commission on the Rights of the Child (NCRC) highlights the severe challenges faced by children belonging to religious minority groups, including Christians, and calls for immediate action by the government to curb the high levels of discrimination emanating from systemic bias, social exclusion and institutional neglect.

The report, titled “Situation Analysis of Children from Minority Religions in Pakistan,” also raises the crucial issues of forced conversion, child marriages and child labor faced by minority children, particularly those belonging to the marginalized Christian and Hindu communities.

“The worrying trend of systemic discrimination affects every part of the minority population’s daily life, especially their children. Minority children frequently face discrimination from classmates and educators in schools. They also have to deal with curricula that could reinforce negative preconceptions about their religion. Isolation, below-average academic achievement, and, in many cases, school dropout are the expected outcomes of such an educational setting.

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Dear Brother in Christ, my heart is deeply moved by what you’ve shared. This is not just a report, it is a cry for justice, and as followers of Christ, we cannot remain silent in the face of such suffering.

The Lord Himself hears the groaning of the oppressed: “He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry… The Lord watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and the widow” (Psalm 146:7-9). These precious children our sons, daughters, and the future of our community are made in the image of God. Any harm against them is an offense against the Creator Himself.


We must first respond in prayer, because “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:4). Let us intercede for protection over these children, for courage in their hearts, and for the Lord to raise up righteous voices within government, education, and society who will defend the vulnerable.

But prayer must be followed by action. James reminds us, “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:17). We, the body of Christ, must be advocates writing letters, raising awareness, supporting Christian schools, offering scholarships, and mentoring the next generation so they know they are loved, valued, and called for God’s purposes.

This is our Esther moment. Just as she was placed in the palace “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14), we have been placed in this generation to stand for the rights of these little ones who cannot speak for themselves. We will not allow fear, prejudice, or injustice to have the final word Christ will.


Let us rise together, as one family, and declare: Our children are not for sale. Our children will not be silenced. Our children will fulfill their God-given destiny.

Prayer for Christian Children in Pakistan

Heavenly Father,
We come before You with broken hearts for the children of Pakistan’s Christian and other minority communities. You see their tears, their fears, and the injustice they face. Your Word says, “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed” (Psalm 82:3), so we stand in agreement with Heaven today.

Lord, place Your hedge of protection around these children. Silence every voice of hatred, every plan of harm, and every scheme of the enemy. Replace fear with courage, shame with honor, and despair with hope.

Raise up leaders both in the Church and in the nation who will speak truth, defend the vulnerable, and bring justice to light. Give wisdom to parents, strength to teachers, and boldness to pastors to protect and nurture these little ones in Your ways.

We declare in the mighty Name of Jesus: No weapon formed against our children shall prosper (Isaiah 54:17). They will grow in wisdom, in favor with God and man, and fulfill their divine calling.

We trust in Your promise, Lord, that You are “a Father to the fatherless” (Psalm 68:5). Heal our land, heal our people, and guard the next generation for Your glory.

In Jesus’ Name we pray,
Amen Amen.

YeshuaFan said:

Even though it wrote about it symbolically showing what has already happened to us when saved?

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And you say that you have a verse ?

dan p

bling said:

There is no real relationship between China today and 1900 USA.

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Rleationship: sinful then, sinful today, not right with God at all.

I wonder how there came to be a hole in the bottom of their boat?

I don’t understand how people are able to deny the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

It turns out this kind of revenge against BLS for telling the truth is not a recent thing...

During the Great Depression, William N. Doak, President Herbert Hoover’s Secretary of Labor, told reporters that employment was going up across the country. The reporters, however, had been “fooled before by such cheery statements from politically-minded Secretaries,” Time magazine reported. They sought a second opinion, from Ethelbert Stewart, the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and this “white-crowned, white-whiskered old man telephoned Secretary Doak that the statistics given him warranted no such declaration.” Not long afterward, Hoover signed a law requiring the federal government to, among other things, part with workers who had reached retirement age. Stewart was in his mid-seventies; Doak could have recommended him for a Presidential exemption, but he did not, and so Stewart was out.

Employment numbers aren't good right now, but they are nowhere as bad as they were in the Great Depression. Nevertheless, the news was damaging enough that Trump felt compelled to fire the person responsible for reporting them.

Didn't help Hoover much. Maybe Trump will have better luck with it.

Well July 4th 2024 was the last day that I worked out. September 25th 2024 was the last day I worked. I had surgery December 23rd and January 6th I had a blood clot in my leg and one went to my lungs.
I have to use a walker or crutches to get around. I weigh 370
I have started Weight Watchers and I am going to start working out with bands and chair workouts

Prostitution is illegal in the United States as far as I know so what is the difference between Prostitution and Pornography. With both of them, one pays money to have sex (whether with an actual person or with oneself). Many, many men (and now women too) have been ensnared by pornographic pictures causing them deep guilt and sorrow and addiction. Once one is pulled into looking at that disgusting garbage, the images get burnt into one's brain and they are very difficult to get rid of. Only through God's grace and mercy, can these bonds be broken. It is better to NEVER see such vulgarity.

I understand some people may not be affected by looking at pornography (though, I truly question that answer) but those that pornography bounds, it's a hell if you try to overcome it and leave it forever. I truly hope our country will abolish this industry in all its forms.