1

Flat Earth General / Abook I just found.

« on: April 09, 2017, 11:47:33 PM »

I have just located a book on my Kindle device, called "Is the Bible from Heaven? Is the Earth a Globe?" by Alex Gleason, written 1890 and updated 1893. Can anyone tell me about it?

2

Technology, Science & Alt Science / The nature of calendars, and calendar reform.

« on: April 07, 2017, 11:28:02 PM »

Greetings. Long time no chat. But tonight I have an interesting topic to discuss, namely, calendars. Calendars are a fascinating subject. Ever since the dawn of human history, man has sought to keep track of time. Starting with the seconds, minutes, and hours of a day, to days, weeks, months, years, and centuries, man has tried to perfect his knowledge of just WHERE we were on the schedule of religious observances and agricultual cycles, as well as our own body's bio-rhythms (particularly in the case of the female of the species).   

The fact that we can calculate time according to either a lunar cycle or a solar cycle, or even a luni-solar cycle (as in the case of the Jews and several other cultures),  enables us to be very creative with the making of time measurement devices. It is well known that the Gregorian Calendar used by most Christians and by the majority of the world for secular purposes is a solar calendar. The Islamic Calendar is lunar.

Of course, the benefit of the solar calendars is that they can be used for agricultural purposes. The weakness is the issue of the Earth taking 365.242227 days to circle the Sun. The current system in use says that every four years is a leap year except century years unless that year is evenly divisible by 4. So 1600 WAS a leap year, 1700, 1800, and 1900 were NOT, but 2000 WAS.

Perhaps the most logical calendar ever devised was the French Revolutionary Calendar, also called the French Republican Calendar. Designed to eliminate all religious and royalist influence, it was also part of the overall metrication of France, along with Decimal Time and Decimal Weights and Measures. There were still twelve months in the year, but each month was 30 days long, and divided into 3 weeks of ten  days each, known aas decades. Each month was given a rather poetic name describing the weather or common activity during that month (for example, Vendemiaire, meaning Grape Harvest, or Nivose, meaning Snowy). The first three months rhymed with each other. The second batch of three did as well, and so-on through the  year.

The days of the decade were simply named primidi, duodi, tridi, quartidi, quintidi, sextidi, septidi, octidi, nonidi, and decadi. But EVERY day of the year was given the name of a plant, an animal, or an agricultural tool. This was a direct insult to the custom of the Church marking time by giving each day over to a Saint.

Year I (years were marked in Roman numerals) was adjudged to have started at Midnight on 22 September 1793, 1 Vendemiaire I. This was retroactive, as the calendar was not used until 24 November 1793.  Of course, it was obvious that this was a year of 360 days, so five more were added at the end of each year, to honour such thing as as Virtue, Labour, Genius, Honour, and Opinion. A leap year had another day dedicated to the Revolution itself.

Beacause the New Year began when the Autumnal Equinox was observed from Paris, this meant that things were a  bit inexact., particularly regarding leap years. Ultimately the decision was made to start mathematically regularising things as of 1820, but this never happened, as the calendar was no longer in use.   

There were various reasons for the demise of the calendar. One was that, although the people actually got MORE time off  (a full day on a decadi, and half a day on a quintidi) than they had under the old calendar (a full day on a Sunday), they still rather resented the ten day cycle, no matter how logical it may have been. It interfered not only with Church on Sunday, but other Christian festivals as well. Another problem was simply having to observe the beginning of the Autumnal Equinox. Furthermore, while the names of the months quite accurately described things in Northern France, they certainly would have been a bit odd in French Guiana or parts of Africa.

Granted, the Equinox could have been resolved by mathematics, and has been, by those with interest in the subject. The same applies to the leap year, wherein every fourth year is a leap year unless it can be evenly divided by 128.     

On an interesting side note, the French Calendar very closely reproduced the ancient Egyptian Calendar, except that their New Year began at the start of Summer.

I shall freely admit that I use the French Calendar in my personal scheduling and accounting, and in the memo line of my cheques, I always write the FRC date, and keep it in my cheque book along with the Gregorian date.

So, the question I have for all of you is the following:

Do you think we should change the calendar we currently use, and if so, why, and to which one?I shall be interested to read your responses.

3

The Lounge / Greeting Again.

« on: November 27, 2016, 04:42:53 AM »

Hello. Been a long time since I have been here, so I thought I would start over. First, some major changes in life. One, no computer. it doesn't work, so I am on my new Kindle or a tablet. My previous Kindle would not do this site, but this device will.

2, I have joined the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod. There were profound spiritual reasons for that that I can discuss with ome of you privately.

3, I am glad too be back! Lets hop!

4, I notice you were hacked. NOT COOL, MAN!

4

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Don Quixote (Quijote) and in what language?

« on: August 12, 2016, 04:00:26 AM »

Take this little poll for me. I included it in the section on PR&S, because AFTER you take the poll, there is more to it than that. I would like to see a discussion develop here about culture and ethical values in Spain during the 16th and 17th Centuries, what with the Expulsion of he Moors and the Jews at the end of the 15th Century, and the whole obsession with "Old Christians" v. "New Christians" in Spain at the time.

Ultimately ALL of this led up to Generalissimo Francisco Franco, who considered himself to be the last Crusader against both Communism and Islam, but also, to a point, against Judaism, although he did help out the Jews when push came to shove in WWII.

I can't help but see some parallels with Catholicism in 16th and 17th Centuries with ISIS/ISIL/IS of today.

Muslims have a LONG memory. These people think back to the Crusades. They remember Christian Armies sweeping across the Middle East, killing whatever got in the way.  And they still hold it against us (hence the killing of Christians in the Middle East today, and the explanation being that "they have killed some Crusaders").

Now I say things NOT to excuse ISIS/ISIL/IS. I hate the bastards and think we should go Dresden on them, and kill anything larger than a bunny rabbit over there. But that is not the point. The point is to try to figure out what made tem the way they are.

I believe they are what they are because they don't forget History the way Westerners do. They remember the Crusades, they remember the Exile of the Moors and of the Jews from Spain (1492), and they certainly remember those who stayed behind having to become Christians at risk of their lives, and even having done that, were STILL under risk, just because they were a New Christian and not an Old Christian.

I have read Don Quixote in English a few times. I am now slogging my way through the original Castilian, which is difficult, simply because (1), Literary Castilian is harder than Castilian as spoken on the streets, and (2), Castilian of any variety is harder than the Latin American Spanish I speak (although Costa Rican Spanish IS closer to Castilian than Mexican Spanish was). Don Quixote reflects, in a rather funny way, the culture of Spain as it was during the time that Cervantes wrote. Yet at the time it carries a certain serious undertone that cannot be challenged nor gainsaid.

I think Conker, given his place of birth and residence, would be able to give some of the best answers on this thread, and so I specifically invite him to come to enter the threat and comment at will. You are all welcome of course. But I thought I would invite him special since I know he has many strengths to bring to a conversation of this nature.

Peace.

5

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Noah's Ark Encounter in Kentucky

« on: July 28, 2016, 01:24:25 PM »

Recently, Ken Ham, born in Australia but resident in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and the person in charge of the apologetics organization Answers in Genesis, and the gentleman who brought us the Creation Museum has now brought us, just a few miles away from that, a life-sized version of the Ark. In spite of the fact that it was built using modern architectural methods (bulldozers, power tools, and the like), and could not float if it had to, it is indeed of the same measurements as the one Noah built in the Bible. In said Ark, history is presented as though the Earth is only 6,000 years old, and a child is in fact seen playing with a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Now, I am curious as to what people here think of all this. I personally have always wondered exactly how to interpret Genesis, but I certainly don't believe the Earth is only 6,000 years old, and I don't believe that a human child ever safely played with a Tyrannosaur. So... where is everybody with this?

6

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Re: Religion and the future.

« on: July 28, 2016, 08:43:33 AM »

Go ahead and take this little vote, and then tell me what you think in the comments. Do note that a question regarding Atheism is not included only because by 2050, predictions are that the worldwide percentage of Atheists, while INcreasing in the USA and Europe, will actually DEcrease worldwide, as the Global South simply has more people, and higher childbirth rates than the Global North.

Next point, the Reader may note that the Writer has proposed the poll whilst reading the book titled "Dune" by Frank Hebert. It is followed by five more written by him. Unfortunately he died, and was unable to complete what is widely believed to have been the final, seventh novel. His son and a co-author have been writing squels and prequels to the series, 16 of them as of now, although this Writer has heard on good authority that they are rather awful.

In VERY brief terms, "Dune" is the concept of a man who is taken to be the Mahdi (rather like a Messiah) of a people, and unleashes a Jihad on the Universe. In the book is yet another book discussed called the Orange Catholic Bible, the Official Scripture of the Imperium, also called the Koranjiyana Zenchristian Scriptures, the Accumulated Book, or the Zenchristian Navakoran. As one can see, said book is a blend of most  of the major religious texts on earth.

Now "Dune" takes place 185,000 years in the future. But, what DO you all think of the idea? What do people think will happen (vote above), and what do people think of the idea of religions joining or staying separate? If they ever created a book like the Orange Catholic Bible, would such a book have value? Would the use of one world Scripture unite humanity in a good way? Would it be destructive and dangerous? What about unification of religion? Should occur at all? If so, to what degree? If the Orange Catholic Bible were created, should the religions unite and or stay apart and just use the new Scripture?

Please vote, and then comment, and totally answer the questions as completely as possible. Please, be loquacious, be thorough and complete. If you are an Atheist, you are certainly welcome to answer, but keep in mind that given statistics, an understanding of Religion is that it will survive and play an increasing role in our society's future..

7

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Religion, a topic as such.

« on: July 15, 2016, 05:50:25 AM »

Good morning. As I sit over my morning coffee, with this new topic, staring at me on my computer screen, I am realising that for the first time in many years, my life is no longer certain. Having only my wife and niece for certainties, my philosophical standpoints are, well, up in the air if you will. I have left the comfort of Organised Religion. I haven't left spirituality. In fact, I have embraced Faith, Faith in Christ, but not in Organised Religion as such. Yes, I am attending services in a Lutheran Church, but in my own head I am thinking "outside the Lutheran box".

The Dune Series has a lot to say about Religion. And Someone (or a group of Someones) recently actually wrote the Scripture of that Series, known in-universe as the Orange Catholic Bible. "Thou shalt not disfigure the soul." Being the primary commandment therein. I have found only FIVE copies available anywhere, most for hundreds of dollars, but I did find one for $19.99, so I snatched it up.

I can't figure out why the sucker is so expensive. I mean, I realise its 576 pages, but its a softback, for one. Why is it so hard to find? Did they print that few of them, and decide not to print any more? How strange.

Well, welcome to the world of the strange and beautiful freedom to believe what I choose, and not what Someone above tells me to believe. Its very odd having freedom of this nature. I may eventually revert to obedience, since that is my nature, albeit under the LCMS (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod), but for now, there is only an interesting amount of freedom.

I am an inherently disciplined sort of guy, so I expect that I shan't do anything too radical. Nonetheless...

8

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Plato, Aristotle, Thomas More.

« on: April 26, 2016, 10:46:27 PM »

I thought an interesting thread would be to discuss the men listed above. Which one of them had the best theory of government? In order to answer this question we must read The Republic by Plato,  The Ethics and The Politics of Aristotle, and Utopia by More. All of these can be found cheaply on any decent e-reader, or inexpensively in a bookshop.

As we read, starting w/ The Republic, we can come here to this forum to do that. We can compare notes,
However, let us try to keep civil tongues in our heads. But I think a good philosophical discussion of the Ideal State is a perfect diversion.

9

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Lev (Leo) Tolstoy: Philosophy, Religion, and Literary Accomplishments of.

« on: March 23, 2016, 09:45:32 AM »

Hello, all. I am just now, in my older years, starting to read Tolstoy. In spite of my extensive education, Classic Literature has always been a weakness of mine, except for Shakespeare, whom I started reading at age 8.

I am learning quite a bit about Tolstoy. He converted to a very unorthodox type of Christian Anarchism in about his 50's. He ended up excommunicated from the Orthodox Church of Russia in 1901. He was a believer in non-violent resistence to injustice, whose views influenced men like Gandhi and MLK Jr.

Has anybody read War and Peace (I just started this yesterday), or anything by him? What are your thoughts on him as a writer, a philosopher, a believer, etc? Fire ahead.

10

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-tung

« on: March 02, 2016, 04:48:39 AM »

Chapter 1. The Communist Party.

The force at the core leading our cause forward is the Chinese Communist Party. The theoretical basis guiding our thinking is Marxism-Leninism.

If there is to be a revolution, there must be a revolutionary party. Without a revolutionary party, without a party built on the Marxist-Leninist revolutionary theory and in the Marxist-Leninist revolutionary style, it is impossible to lead the working class and the broad masses of the people in defeating imperialism and its running dogs.

Without the efforts of the Chinese Comnunist Party, without the Chinese Communists as the mainstay of the Chinese people, China can never achieve independence and liberation, or industrialization and the modernization of her agriculture.

The Chinese Communist Party is the core of leadership of the wholke Chinese people. Without this core, the cause of socialism cannot be victorious.

A well disciplined Party armed with the theory of Marxism-Leninism, using the method of self-criticismn and linked with the masses of the people; an army under the leadership of such a Party; a united front of all revolutionary classes and all revolutionary groups under the leadership of such a Party - these are the three main weapons with which we have defeated the enemy.

We must have faith in the masses and we must have faith in the Party. These are two cardinal principles. If we doubt these principles, we shall accomplish nothing.

Armed with Marxist-Leninist theory and ideology, the Commuist Party of China has brought a new style of work to the Chinese people, a style of work which essentially entails integrating theory with practice, forging close links with the masses and practicing self-criticism.

No political party can possibly lead a great revolutionary movement to victory unless it possesses revolutionary theory and a knowledge of history and has a profound grasp of the practical movement.

As we ued to say, the rectification movement is "a widespread movement of Marxist education". Rectification means the whole Party studying Marxism through criticism and self-criticism. We can certainly learn more about Marxism in the course of the rectification movement.

It is an arduous task to ensure a better life for the several hundred million people of China and to build our economically and culturally backward country into a prosperous and powerful one with a high level of culture. And it is precisely in order to be able to shoulder this task more competantly and work better together with all non-Party people who are actuated by high ideals and determined to institute reforms that we must conduct rectification movements both now and in the future, and constantly rid ourselves of whatever is wrong.

Policy is the starting-point of all the practical actions of a revolutionary party and manifests itself in the process and the end-result of that party's actions. A revolutionary party is carrying out a policy whenever it takes any action. If it is not carrying out a correct policy, it is carrying out a wrong policy; if it is not carrying ot a given policy consciously, it is doing so blindly. What we call experience is the process and end-result of carrying out a policy. Only through the practice of the people, that is, through experience, can we verify whether a policy is correct or wrong and determine to what extent it is correct or wrong. But people's practice, especially the practice of a revolutionary party and the revolutionary masses, cannot but be bound up with one policy or another. Therefore, before any action is taken, we must explain the policy, which we have formulated in the light of the given circumstances, to Party members and to the masses. Otherwise, Party members and the masses will depart from the guidance of our policy, act blindly and carry out a wrong policy.

Our Party has laid down the general line and general policy of the Chinese revolution as well as various specific lines for work and specific policies. However, while many comrades remember our Party's specific lines for work and specific policies, they often forget its general line and general policy.If we actually forget the Party's general line and general policy, then we shall be blind, half-baked, muddle-headed revolutionaries, and when we carry out a specific line for work and a specific policy, we shall lose our bearings and vacillate now to the left and now to the right, and the work will suffer.

Policy and tactics are the life of the Party; leading comrades at all levels must give them full attention on must never on any account be negligent.

End Ch. 1. Note that in original, the source of each Quotation is provided. In the interest of saving time and space, I ommitted this. If the source of a given Quotation is desired, it can be provided upon request.

11

Philosophy, Religion & Society / The illogic of debating a person who thinks the world is flat.

« on: February 15, 2016, 10:25:10 PM »

I think it must be pointed out that Jroa is two things. One, he is anti- Jewish. Two, he believes the Earth is Flat. How does a Jew have a rational debate with a person who hates Jews, and how does ANYBODY have a rational debate with someone who thinks the Earth is flat? I have all but buried him in a debate about Israel (see "On the Notion of Israel"), after which he turned to personal insults.

Let it be known there is no further purpose to be gained in arguing with him, so I won't. Making him look like an ass has lost its charm. So, enough.

12

Philosophy, Religion & Society / On the notion of Israel

« on: February 06, 2016, 11:09:57 PM »

Jroa is somehow living, & this topic proves HE doesn't have a brain. How can that be? LOL Just kidding, Mate! That was too tempting to resist!

13

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Madame Helena Blavatsky

« on: January 15, 2016, 07:21:45 PM »

Who here has read any of her works, & what do they think of her? I just downloaded to my Kindle a book of 4,152 pgs that includes 30 of her most significant works. But I'm genuinely curious about what other people think. Fire ahead.

14

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Earth Not a Globe: Scriptural References.

« on: January 14, 2016, 07:29:06 PM »

Hello. I thought it would be interesting to start a topic on Samuel Rowbotham's Scriptural beliefs. It is clear in reading ENaG that he certainly believed in the Bible as a Divine text, & to a degree based his beliefs in the Flat Earth on said belief. This is NOT to say that he wouldn't have believed in FET w/o the Bible. It is only to say that he interpreted the Bible to be understanding the world as flat. Personally, I think he was right. Now, I'm an REer. But the Ancient Hebrew concept of the Earth was definitely of a flat one. I think for him to understand the Bible as presenting a Flat Earth world-view was entirely logical, however erroneous. The Bible is NOT a science text book & was not intended as such. So the question then arises: what do you all think? DOES the Bible put forth a FET? & if so, how coherent is it? I welcome ALL responses from hard core Flat Earthers to convinced REers. All I ask is that the discussion remain civil, & stay w/i the realm of courteous public discourse. Please note that I

15

Arts & Entertainment / Legion Gold or HCGE Rome.

« on: November 26, 2015, 05:51:54 AM »

Question: Who here has played Legion Gold or the smaller version of it for the DS, History Channel Great Empires Rome?

16

Philosophy, Religion & Society / The City of Sodom: Found?

« on: October 20, 2015, 01:49:54 PM »

According to a news article just found on Fox News (although I also saw a similar article on Yahoo News last month), the city of Sodom, as in, Sodom and Gomorrah, may have been found. The article in question can be found at the following link:

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/10/15/city-sodom-discovered-archeological-find-gives-insight-into-story-destruction/

To sum the article up, a team of archaeologists has been doing work there for the last ten years. They believe that the Bronze Age city they have found was destroyed about the time the Bible says Sodom was destroyed. Obviously, they can't say that G-d did it, since there is no evidence of that, obviously. But clearly, if this IS Sodom, and the scholars studying the place seem pretty sure that it is (read the article for more detail), the Bible at least got the verifiable details right. 

Naturally, this leads one to wonder what else the Bible has gotten right over the years that is just waiting to be proven as such. Another example of this is the fact that they seem to think they have found David's Palace in Jerusalem.

But clearly, the finding of Sodom dwarfs anything yet considered. If they can trace biblical history all the way back to Genesis Chapters 18-19, that is doing pretty damned well. Sodom is mentioned earlier in the text, but that is where one can find the story of the destruction of Sodom.

The next question that immediately follows is of of course this: If one is going to say that G-d didn't do it (either because G-d doesn't exist, or some other reason), then what did? And what led Abraham to think that G-d spoke to him the way the Bible describes?

Before anyone answers this post, I encourage you all, believers and non-believers alike, to break out your Bibles (for those of you who don't own one [you atheists, I am talking to you!], the Biblical text is easy to locate in G-d knows how many places on the Internet). If you are going to use a Jewish translation, I would encourage the JPS 1917. Just type that into your search engine. If a Christian one, then I would encourage the King James Version, also called the Authorised Version. The second best Christian translation would probably be the New King James Version. Not as good as the original KJV by any means, but it will do.

In any case, break out your Bibles, and read Genesis 18-19, and the article that I have linked in this post. Then come back and reply. I am interested in hearing what you all have to say.

17

Technology, Science & Alt Science / Unidentifed Flying Objects (UFO's)

« on: September 20, 2015, 09:49:26 PM »

This is a very curious question I have had for some time to see how the people of this site would stand on matters of this nature. Do vote, and then comment accordingly if you so desire. I look forward to hearing what each of you has to say.

18

Philosophy, Religion & Society / The Art of Falconry by Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, Holy Roman Emperor.

« on: September 16, 2015, 09:02:29 PM »

Has anybody read the above text? The full title in Latin is De Arte Venandi Cum Avibus, The Art of Hunting with Birds, commonly translated as The Art of Falconry.

It was written by Frederick II von Hohenstaufen, who lived from 1194-1250. The text was largely written from about 1235 onward, and was added to by his son, King Manfred. Frederick was perhaps best known as a man ahead of his times. He was an extremely tolerant man, having Jews and Muslims at his court as well as Catholics, particularly in Sicily, where he was King. His full titles were Holy Roman Emperor, King of Sicily, and King of Jerusalem. He was able to go on Crusade and get by diplomacy the cities of Jerusalem, Nazareth, Bethlehem, and Acre, without firing a shot. In return the idiot Pope decided that a Crusade without blood wasn't a real Crusade and excommunicated him!

I could go on about Frederick all day, but I'll leave you all to look him up if you have an interest. Wikipedia has a pretty good write-up on him. In any case, he was highly knowledgeable in scientific matters, and believed in putting things to the test, rather than blindly trusting Aristotle on everything, which is generally what people did in those days.

Being an avid falconer, he decided, correctly, that there were no good books on the subject. Even Aristotle had only written books on animals as such, and not on hunting with them, and not on birds of prey particularly.

So he decided to take his thirty-odd years of experience as a falconer and write a book on Falconry. The end result was a superb (or at least I am told it is superb, I have just started reading it for myself) book on the subject. The two volume edition that I have has 637 pages, including the index,and not counting the 110 page introduction, for a total of 747 pages.

So, back to the original question... has anybody read this book before me, that can comment on it, and tell me anything about it? I am most curious to hear as much as I can about it, as I have just started reading it. I am starting Ch. 4 of Book I right now. Looking forward to hearing what anyone has to say.

For centuries this book was deemed THE BOOK to have on Falconry, and even today it is still considered important, hence the fact that it is in print after all these centuries. So, any ideas, thoughts, information, or anything else you can share?  Fire ahead, People!

19

Arts & Entertainment / The Art of Falconry by Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, Holy Roman Emperor.

« on: September 16, 2015, 08:54:03 PM »

Has anybody read the above text? The full title in Latin is De Arte Venandi Cum Avibus, The Art of Hunting with Birds, commonly translated as The Art of Falconry.

It was written by Frederick II von Hohenstaufen, who lived from 1194-1250. The text was largely written from about 1235 onward, and was added to by his son, King Manfred. Frederick was perhaps best known as a man ahead of his times. He was an extremely tolerant man, having Jews and Muslims at his court as well as Catholics, particularly in Sicily, where he was King. His full titles were Holy Roman Emperor, King of Sicily, and King of Jerusalem. He was able to go on Crusade and get by diplomacy the cities of Jerusalem, Nazareth, Bethlehem, and Acre, without firing a shot. In return the idiot Pope decided that a Crusade without blood wasn't a real Crusade and excommunicated him!

I could go on about Frederick all day, but I'll leave you all to look him up if you have an interest. Wikipedia has a pretty good write-up on him. In any case, he was highly knowledgeable in scientific matters, and believed in putting things to the test, rather than blindly trusting Aristotle on everything, which is generally what people did in those days.

Being an avid falconer, he decided, correctly, that there were no good books on the subject. Even Aristotle had only written books on animals as such, and not on hunting with them, and not on birds of prey particularly.

So he decided to take his thirty-odd years of experience as a falconer and write a book on Falconry. The end result was a superb (or at least I am told it is superb, I have just started reading it for myself) book on the subject. The two volume edition that I have has 637 pages, including the index,and not counting the 110 page introduction, for a total of 747 pages.

So, back to the original question... has anybody read this book before me, that can comment on it, and tell me anything about it? I am most curious to hear as much as I can about it, as I have just started reading it. I am starting Ch. 4 of Book I right now. Looking forward to hearing what anyone has to say.

For centuries this book was deemed THE BOOK to have on Falconry, and even today it is still considered important, hence the fact that it is in print after all these centuries. So, any ideas, thoughts, information, or anything else you can share?  Fire ahead, People!

20

Philosophy, Religion & Society / The legacy of Christopher Columbus.

« on: July 12, 2015, 10:14:12 AM »

This is an interesting question. Columbus Day is a very interesting debate nowadays, at least in the United States. Should it be celebrated? If it should, how? Should it be celebrated or reflected upon? What about the man himself? Should he be praised or condemned, or held somewhere in the middle of two extremes? I invite you to answer the question above with your votes, and then comment below. I shall be curious to see your responses.

21

Arts & Entertainment / Don Quijote de la Mancha.

« on: July 03, 2015, 08:42:35 AM »

Aside from all topics of Gay Marriage, Confederate Flags, and other topics of considerable disagreement, how about one of literature? Surely we can be friendly to one another on a topic like that, no?

I am reading, finally, Don Quijote (more often spelled in English, Quixote) de la Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes. I am reading it in English for now, but after that, I shall reread it in the original Castilian, a copy of which I have. Fortunately, I also have a copy of the Diccionario de la Academia Real. But that is another matter.

I have read the book in part before, and gotten about halfway through it (meaning, nearly finished with Part I; there are two Parts to Don Quijote. The Book was originally published in two separate volumes but is now generally obtainable in one volume), but have always gotten side-tracked for various reasons.

On a side-note, it is possible that the only reason Cervantes found time to give us Part II was due to a gentleman named Alonso Fernandez de Avellaneda. This individual apparently was not minded to wait for Cervantes, and so penned his own version of Part II BEFORE Cervantes did!

He got away with it for two reasons. I, Copyright laws then were not what they are now. II, no one then or now knows who the f*ck he was! Other than his name being on the book, there are no baptismal records, burial records, confirmation records, or ANY OTHER KINDS of records that show his name, ANYWHERE in Spain or its possessions.

People have suggested that perhaps it was Lope de Vega, a rival author (and Spain's most successful playwright), trying to discredit Cervantes. It is certainly known that the two disliked each other intensely. But there is no evidence that backs up this claim. Some have suggested it was Lope de Vega's friends. Again, no evidence.

So who was it? Well, we will probably never know. I have a copy of it in English. Its hard to find, but I was able to track one down, and paid a good $50 for a paperback, but it was worth it. I shall read it BEFORE I read Cervantes' own Part II.

There is good reason for this. When you read Cervantes' Part II, according to the commentators, you can tell that he wrote it after having read  Quijote Falso (False Quixote). He deliberately has our Knight doing things in Part II that go directly contrary to what Fernandez had him doing.

Anyway, I just thought I would pop up here. I am curious about as to what people think about Quijote, if they have read it. Conker, although you and I clash on many things, your opinion would be very interesting to hear on this subject.

***EDIT***

Well, I lied. In fact, I just bought a copy of the Castilian version of Don Quijote on the Kindle for $2.99. The Kindle is where my copy of the Diccionario de la Academia Real is. As I expected, when I click on a word for a definition, it goes right to that dictionary, as opposed to an English one.  There are thirty dictionaries on the Kindle, a few being in English, and the rest being in various foreign languages, and various English to (language) dictionaries. So you can not only get a definition of a Spanish word in Spanish (the dialect in question being primarily Castilian), but you can also get a translation of a Spanish word to an English word or vice-versa. This is true for many other languages as well.

Originally I had only the paperbacked version of Don Quijote in Spanish. But with the Kindle version, I can now read it very easily, and call for definitions and translations at my leisure. Therefore, I shall read it in Castilian, and bypass the English altogether, except perhaps for reference purposes. Anybody want to join in reading it with me, in any language of your choice?

22

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Confederate Flag in the Mississippi State flag

« on: June 22, 2015, 08:22:15 PM »

Vote and leave any comments here. I voted Yeeha! Its a part of history. The Civil War was about A LOT more than slavery, like States Rights, and the ability of a State to challenge unconstitutional power grabs by the Federal Government.  Slavery would have ultimately ended anyway. It was an impractical institution that held the South back, and most sensible Southerners knew that. As far as States Rights, one only has to see what the power-hungry Federal Government has managed to do, trampling all over the rights of the States in its quest for domination. Its a bloody disgrace.

Obama has been the worst in that regard, but Bush II wasn't much better. No State is safe from these power-hungry bastards.

EDIT:

Slight Orthographic correction to the poll. My apologies. The voting tally remains unchanged.

23

Arts & Entertainment / Chess

« on: June 18, 2015, 04:04:44 AM »

Greetings!

I thought this poll might be an interesting question to ask. I am a bit of Chess enthusiast, myself. And I have always wondered how other people regard the game. I realise, of course, that more people OUTSIDE the United States play the game than IN it. But, for all of you who do play, I would be curious, what is the perspective you have on the game? Do post your thoughts here, and answer the poll. Thanks.

I personally regard the game as both deeply mystical on one level, and on another level, intensely mathematical. I mean, I get how it can be a commentary on life and all that. I think that any of the answers would have been understandable. But to me, those two answers just seem to fit the bill a little better than the other three.

24

Philosophy, Religion & Society / Black Elk Speaks: Has anyone read it?

« on: June 09, 2015, 07:49:35 AM »

Greetings:

I thought I would write to ask if anyone has read "Black Elk Speaks". I just bought the book on my Nook Reader, since I had a $5.00 gift card from Barnes and Noble, and it was only $10.99. So I saved a bit of money, and its a subject (Native American theology and philosophy) that I have always found interesting.

I was curious to find out if anybody had any opinions of the book. Anyway, let me know. I am curious to see what people think, if anything. I wasn't sure whether to put this in Literature or in Religion. I decided on Religion given the topic matter, but if the Censors move it, that's fine with me.

25

Philosophy, Religion & Society / The New King James Version of the Holy Bible, picked up in a hotel in Omaha.

« on: May 27, 2015, 07:39:17 PM »

Greetings: Most of my readers are aware of The Gideons International. This organisation, w/ HQ in Nashville, places Christian Bibles or New Testaments in hotels, motels, w/ the military, w/ our schools, in hospitals, & in other places frequented by the public worldwide, but especially here in the USA. In fact, "the Bible in the drawer" @ the hotel is so ubiquitous in this country that other groups are starting to do similarly. Rarely, you'll find Books of Mormon (especially @ the Marriott, which is Mormon owned), Qur'ans, & Baghavad-Gitas in the drawer. Whilst on holiday w/ my wife, I did what Gideons asks you to do: I took the Bible. Now I have about 12 Bibles. But this 1 is perfect because it is ONLY the text of the Bible. No notes, no commentary. So: what my purpose is, is to read through the entire book from cover to cover, Genesis to Revelation, & w/ every reading comment here. If anyone comments back I shall read it, & note it, but not enter into discussion or debate. However, I shall enjoy (CONT)

26

Philosophy, Religion & Society / What is the Ideal State?

« on: April 13, 2015, 06:09:46 PM »

This is an interesting question. What do people think would be the ideal State? Please note that this does not ask what exact Government a State should have (ie, should it be monarchical, or a representative democracy, or what-have-you), although some forms of Government work better with certain types of States.

But I should like to see what people think here. Cast your vote, and don't hesitate to comment on why you cast your vote for a certain system if any. I am immensely curious. So fire away!

27

The Lounge / My Opinions on the Merger (Split Topic)

« on: March 19, 2015, 06:59:23 AM »

My advice, for what it matters (which probably isn't much), is that merger is a bad idea. The other website has no controls on ethno-religious or racial insults. But the minute you respond in any real way, you get banned. And I have personal reason to believe that Blanko at least is an anti-Semite. Maybe I am wrong. Granted, I don't deny that I have been more moderate in my political views here than I was there. But I did not suggest committing genocide, which they all said I did. That is just bold-faced lying on the top of it.

I think this site does a much better job of moderating, all told. This is obviously just my personal opinion. At the very least, Blanko should not be allowed to moderate. To put it bluntly, he's a sorry excuse for a moderator, and not much of a better excuse for a human being.

28

Arts & Entertainment / Nintendo DS

« on: March 18, 2015, 10:05:02 PM »

Hey, all. I thought I would start a thread dedicated to the NDS system and games. I'm what you might call a techno dinosaur. I still play NDS, because I am blind in one eye and can't see N3DS in 3D. I just see double. So I haven't bought the damned thing yet. I want to, and just play in 2D mode, but its too expensive to justify when one and one's wife are just getting by check-to-check.

So recently I traded in some old games and got four new ones. Star Wars, the Force Unleashed I and II, Call of Duty Black Ops, and Warhammer Squad Command. I haven't gotten to the last three yet. I tend to have a bit of OCD-ness about the way I play games, and that means I play one until I beat it, and I play it obsessively.

I really like the first Star Wars game with one exception. It is so EFFING LINEAR! I think there are only two or three points in which you can make a choice what to do or not do. And the game will end one of two ways. Otherwise, it is rollicking good fun. Anyway, have any of you played this game? I have also managed to acquire the cheat codes for it, which are very helpful as well. Let me know what you think of it. I'm curious as to what all of you think about something that is NOT effing religious or political.

29

Philosophy, Religion & Society / The Tale of Genji (moved by author from A & E)

« on: March 11, 2015, 08:54:12 AM »

Have any of you ever read The Tale of Genji (original title: Genji Monogatari in Japanese]). I am curious what people think of it if they are familiar with it. I am reading it now for some free reading when I am not doing my research. It makes VERY interesting reading. Let me know what people think of it. Perhaps we can share ideas on the subject.

EDIT:

This was originally placed in A & E. But I decided to also place it here, the reason being that the book goes into a lot of detail about how the Japanese upper class lived, loved, fought, played, etc during the Heian Period. And the fact that it was written by a noble woman rather than a noble man makes it even more interesting on a philosophical level. Anyone who is familiar with the book, lets have a conversation about it.

30

Arts & Entertainment / The Tale of Genji

« on: March 11, 2015, 06:00:44 AM »

Have any of you ever read The Tale of Genji (original title: Genji Monogatari in Japanese]). I am curious what people think of it if they are familiar with it. I am reading it now for some free reading when I am not doing my research. It makes VERY interesting reading. Let me know what people think of it. Perhaps we can share ideas on the subject.