Mermaids preventing peace and harmony

[awitch]

No - really? I think I need to see a citation for this. Not from US politicers, but from some decent study.

The Pew Research Center is reliable, IMO:
On Darwin's 200th Birthday, Americans Still Divided About Evolution - Pew Research Center
(probably hasn't changed much in the last 2 years).

NJ, home of the Jersey Devil and the headless horseman.

The horseman is actually from Sleepy Hollow in New York.

"Atheists have significantly less woo" - Insane duck

I never said that!

 

[Gardenia]

Now wait, you know that many people within 1 mile of you are going to have diverse views on religion. You could have a meaningful discussion with them about how to help the unemployed couldn't you? Could you keep a straight face when discussing the same politics with someone who insists that the first item on the agenda is how to provide food for unemployed mermaids?

How likely is it that people who believe in bigfoot are going to campaign to help all those poor unemployed bigfoots out there? Seems pretty freaking unlikely to me. On the other hand, how many times have I seen people stand against X or Y political point for religious reasons only? All. The. Time.

So I'm sorry, but I still don't see how this is really an issue. Gullibility in itself may be an issue, I won't argue that, but politically religion has proven itself to be the bigger player than mermaid or bigfoot or anything else. People forcing others to live by the morals and laws of their religion... I mean, you really don't see this as the bigger problem across the globe?

 

[razeontherock]

I never said that!

You have never met Insane Duck?

 

[awitch]

You have never met Insane Duck?

I know "Silly Green Duck" (that's me) and "Crazy Duck in Space" (that's Scrooge), but not Insane Duck.

 

[PHenry42]

Strangely enough, widespread belief in mermaids (and a whole lot of other creatures that we today know to be nonexistent) didn't stop Roman, Greek, Phoenician or Medieval Italian democracy from functioning.

 

[Eudaimonist]

Strangely enough, widespread belief in mermaids (and a whole lot of other creatures that we today know to be nonexistent) didn't stop Roman, Greek, Phoenician or Medieval Italian democracy from functioning.

Democracy in Greece didn't function very well. Plato, with some justification, considered democracy the next worst political system from despotism.

Democracy in Rome crashed when the Ceasars took control. It's difficult to see what followed as democracy in any meaningful sense.

Medieval italians might be surprised to learn that they had democracy in the modern, or even the Greek or Roman, sense. What they had was a "guild democracy". While this may have had some influence on modern democracy, I do wonder if they would agree that it worked well.

If one's standard of success here is simply that a system doesn't crash immediately, I suppose that those democracies "functioned". But did they function well? Or were there plenty of people being manipulated because of their gullibility?


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[MattRose]

How likely is it that people who believe in bigfoot are going to campaign to help all those poor unemployed bigfoots out there? Seems pretty freaking unlikely to me. On the other hand, how many times have I seen people stand against X or Y political point for religious reasons only? All. The. Time.

So I'm sorry, but I still don't see how this is really an issue. Gullibility in itself may be an issue, I won't argue that, but politically religion has proven itself to be the bigger player than mermaid or bigfoot or anything else. People forcing others to live by the morals and laws of their religion... I mean, you really don't see this as the bigger problem across the globe?

I think you're only looking at how Americans handle differences in other American's religions. Most of the bigfoot supporters would be laughed out of the room in the USA. This other country would not discern a difference between those who have a different religion and those who support bigfeet (they prefer bigfeet to bigfoots).

 

[MattRose]

Strangely enough, widespread belief in mermaids (and a whole lot of other creatures that we today know to be nonexistent) didn't stop Roman, Greek, Phoenician or Medieval Italian democracy from functioning.

You're right up to a point. Consider this, do you want to be governed by politicians relying on top economists or by politicians using extispicy?

Extispicy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



Actually, hold that thought...

As I feared, reports show that some disemboweled animals were recently found in a dumpster midway between the Whitehouse and congress.

 

[Robban]

You're right up to a point. Consider this, do you want to be governed by politicians relying on top economists or by politicians using extispicy?

Extispicy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



Actually, hold that thought...

As I feared, reports show that some disemboweled animals were recently found in the Whitehouse dumpsters.

Matt you speak much of intelligence. Do you consider that Adolf Hitler was intelligent in being able to turn Germany around in such a short time as he did, the idea seems to have come from him, but without financial backing it would most probably not have been, in the end it turned sour, he did not achieve anything other than thin out the world population.
I am not a fan of doing Google searches but was curious enough to do a search on "Hitlers backers". Much on the internet is to be taken with a pinch of salt or even ignored totally, but even so, things are seldom so simple as they seem.

 

[MattRose]

Matt you speak much of intelligence. Do you consider that Adolf Hitler was intelligent in being able to turn Germany around in such a short time as he did, the idea seems to have come from him, but without financial backing it would most probably not have been, in the end it turned sour, he did not achieve anything other than thin out the world population.
I am not a fan of doing Google searches but was curious enough to do a search on "Hitlers backers". Much on the internet is to be taken with a pinch of salt or even ignored totally, but even so, things are seldom so simple as they seem.

This is supposed to be a lighthearted thread. With that in mind I don't know what you're referring to... something I posted or linked to, or just the topic in general?


I will probably not participate here for about a month. I hope no one misses me, but if you do, I aplogize. I post here when I'm waiting for my computer to do some data processing. I only work a month on and then a month off and when I'm home I don't visit here.

 

[Robban]

This is supposed to be a lighthearted thread. With that in mind I don't know what you're referring to... something I posted or linked to, or just the topic in general?


I will probably not participate here for about a month. I hope no one misses me, but if you do, I aplogize. I post here when I'm waiting for my computer to do some data processing. I only work a month on and then a month off and when I'm home I don't visit here.

Ok Matt, enjoy your time at home. I find your posts not unintressting, so sorry if there has been a missunderstanding.

 

[MattRose]

Ok Matt, enjoy your time at home. I find your posts not unintressting, so sorry if there has been a missunderstanding.

Not uninteresting? That sounds like a left handed compliment. LOL

 

[Robban]

Not uninteresting? That sounds like a left handed compliment. LOL

I wondered if I had got it right myself
So I say instead, thank you for taking your time in being here on this forum. I find your posts intressting.

 

[Rationalt]

Democracy in Greece didn't function very well. Plato, with some justification, considered democracy the next worst political system from despotism.

Democracy in Rome crashed when the Ceasars took control. It's difficult to see what followed as democracy in any meaningful sense.

Medieval italians might be surprised to learn that they had democracy in the modern, or even the Greek or Roman, sense. What they had was a "guild democracy". While this may have had some influence on modern democracy, I do wonder if they would agree that it worked well.

If one's standard of success here is simply that a system doesn't crash immediately, I suppose that those democracies "functioned". But did they function well? Or were there plenty of people being manipulated because of their gullibility?


eudaimonia,

Mark

Democracy based on certain principles(rooted in Golden rule) generally brings good results.When you have theologicalD) democracies like islamic states it only brings more troubles for nonmuslims.

Turkey is fast on it;s way to be a dangerous islamic theocracy erasing the Good work of Dictator Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

 

[MattRose]

Turkey is fast on it;s way to be a dangerous islamic theocracy erasing the Good work of Dictator Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

No that I'm doubting you, but erasing the Good work of Dictator Mustafa just sounds wrong doesn't it?

 

[Rationalt]

No that I'm doubting you, but erasing the Good work of Dictator Mustafa just sounds wrong doesn't it?

That is right.Kemal Mustafa Put islam in it's place by declaring islam as the theology of an immoral bedoin.Secular turkey is gone and you have NATO Trained people with Jihadi aspirations(Read Allah's heaven) on Loose.

And the removal of dictator saddam Hussein with democracy in Iraq unleashed Jihadi aspirants.The party has just begun.