Since the Earth is only 6,000 years old and Adam and Eve were created as homo sapiens, these 'neanderthals' are obviously either yet another fossil trick put there by Satan to fool us, or they are the bones of fallen angels who followed the Evil One into perdition. QED! THIS IS SCEINCE, SINCE IT IS LOGICALLY DERIVED FROM THE FACT THAT EARTH IS ONLY 6,000 YEARS OLD. PLEASE TEACH IT IN YOUR CLASSROOMS.
A decade ago, I'd have reacted passively and tolerantly toward a medical provider who offered to pray for me. I'd have said something like "I don't believe in your God, but sure, you can pray for me, thank you."
I would also, however, have thought it inappropriate, for various reasons that other people have already elucidated... but I'd have considered it pretty trivial and let it go without complaint.
After eight years of the Bush administration, eight years of pushy, bullying Christians doing everything possible to insert their irrational and nonsensical beliefs into my government's workings, into State and Federal law, into our courtrooms, our classrooms, and our bedrooms, I have become entirely intolerant of Christianity. If this was a different kind of world, I would be burning down churches on a daily basis at this point. I will not tolerate even a hint of this inane, insane, irrational, infantile, ignorant, idiotic belief system in any place where it does not explicitly belong, and I urge other sane, rational folk to be similarly on guard.
The intolerance of Christians has destroyed my tolerance for Christianity. The great majority of these deluded fools are dangerously violent, war-mongering, tyrannical, un-American, Constitution-hating, bullying jerks who are looking forward to the end of the world. There should be no place for their nutjob eschatonic fantasies in healthcare just as there should be no place for it in government, education, the judicial system, etc.
Tibet has been an acknowledged part of China for a long, long time. The Chinese government granted them autonomy until the 1950s, but the Tibetans voluntarily took part in Chinese government functions like the signing of the new constitution after Mao's revolution, showing that they were indeed voluntarily part of China.
Before the Dalai Lama left Tibet in the '50s, he personally owned more than 2,000 slaves. Before the Chinese took away Tibet's autonomy and chased the Dalai Lama out, most of Tibet's population were slaves who lived and went untortured and unmutilated only at the pleasure of their lama masters. There were taxes on dancing, on drumming, on traveling, on looking for work, etc. etc. etc. etc. ohmygod etc., and tax debts were inherited from generation to generation until the interest made them so onerous that they couldn't possibly ever be paid, at which point the family became slaves to the lamas.
Since the Dalai Lama left Tibet, the CIA has been paying him quite a lot of money every year. The man does a good job of mouthing platitudes about peace and love and harmony, but he's nothing but a paid CIA propagandist.
All you activists out there: Get some RELIABLE information before you go making asses of yourselves protesting something you know nothing about. It's right to be skeptical about Chinese propaganda, but you must also question the propaganda handed to you by the CIA-backed Dalai Lama.
I'm a psychic myself, and I'm getting very strong visions of little Victoria's principal, vice-principal, teacher, and educational assistant. I see them molesting children, sacrificing stolen pets to Satan, and sleeping naked together on a big bed made of dicks.
Someone notify the authorities, oh the humanity, won't someone think of the children?
I have to wonder how rigorously they determined it was a Christian church rather some other kind of church, especially when they refer to it as possibly being "the first church in the world" as though no other religions existed before Christianity.
Worshippers of Dionysus, Mithra, and Osiris all believed that their god lived as an earthly human, was born of a virgin, turned water into wine at a wedding, was violently martyred in order to redeem humanity, rose from the dead after three days, etc. etc. There are even iconic depictions of Dionysus showing him nailed to a cross in exactly the same posture commonly used for Jesus, with the knees together and the legs turned to one side.
A reputable, unbiased, decently-educated archeologist would probably be aware of all this and be able to tell the difference... but I can see how some fundie dickhead who thinks evolution is a sham and who is working from an agenda to spread his delusions to the rest of us might well ignore or even be ignorant of the possibility of this being a temple of Dionysus. Or Mithra. Or Osiris.
Meh, religion. If there was a button that could be pushed to make all true believers of every religion on the planet disintegrate into their component atoms, you'd have to kill me to stop me from pushing it at my very earliest opportunity.
This is a ridiculous example of form overpowering function. It's not even interesting or even well-executed enough as sculpture to be worth $748 except to the most gullible art collector, and as an actual useful fire pit... well, my first thought was what eecue said: you could easily end up skewered and attached to a bucket of burning wood.
On the other hand, it looks like it would be perfect for burning those hideously ugly and equally overpriced hoodies they sell at BoingBoing.
I would also, however, have thought it inappropriate, for various reasons that other people have already elucidated... but I'd have considered it pretty trivial and let it go without complaint.
After eight years of the Bush administration, eight years of pushy, bullying Christians doing everything possible to insert their irrational and nonsensical beliefs into my government's workings, into State and Federal law, into our courtrooms, our classrooms, and our bedrooms, I have become entirely intolerant of Christianity. If this was a different kind of world, I would be burning down churches on a daily basis at this point. I will not tolerate even a hint of this inane, insane, irrational, infantile, ignorant, idiotic belief system in any place where it does not explicitly belong, and I urge other sane, rational folk to be similarly on guard.
The intolerance of Christians has destroyed my tolerance for Christianity. The great majority of these deluded fools are dangerously violent, war-mongering, tyrannical, un-American, Constitution-hating, bullying jerks who are looking forward to the end of the world. There should be no place for their nutjob eschatonic fantasies in healthcare just as there should be no place for it in government, education, the judicial system, etc.
You mean VALOR?
Looks like someone needs to work on their reading fundamentals! Repeat after me: A, B, C...
Before the Dalai Lama left Tibet in the '50s, he personally owned more than 2,000 slaves. Before the Chinese took away Tibet's autonomy and chased the Dalai Lama out, most of Tibet's population were slaves who lived and went untortured and unmutilated only at the pleasure of their lama masters. There were taxes on dancing, on drumming, on traveling, on looking for work, etc. etc. etc. etc. ohmygod etc., and tax debts were inherited from generation to generation until the interest made them so onerous that they couldn't possibly ever be paid, at which point the family became slaves to the lamas.
Since the Dalai Lama left Tibet, the CIA has been paying him quite a lot of money every year. The man does a good job of mouthing platitudes about peace and love and harmony, but he's nothing but a paid CIA propagandist.
All you activists out there: Get some RELIABLE information before you go making asses of yourselves protesting something you know nothing about. It's right to be skeptical about Chinese propaganda, but you must also question the propaganda handed to you by the CIA-backed Dalai Lama.
why doesnt this surprise me
Someone notify the authorities, oh the humanity, won't someone think of the children?
Worshippers of Dionysus, Mithra, and Osiris all believed that their god lived as an earthly human, was born of a virgin, turned water into wine at a wedding, was violently martyred in order to redeem humanity, rose from the dead after three days, etc. etc. There are even iconic depictions of Dionysus showing him nailed to a cross in exactly the same posture commonly used for Jesus, with the knees together and the legs turned to one side.
A reputable, unbiased, decently-educated archeologist would probably be aware of all this and be able to tell the difference... but I can see how some fundie dickhead who thinks evolution is a sham and who is working from an agenda to spread his delusions to the rest of us might well ignore or even be ignorant of the possibility of this being a temple of Dionysus. Or Mithra. Or Osiris.
Meh, religion. If there was a button that could be pushed to make all true believers of every religion on the planet disintegrate into their component atoms, you'd have to kill me to stop me from pushing it at my very earliest opportunity.
On the other hand, it looks like it would be perfect for burning those hideously ugly and equally overpriced hoodies they sell at BoingBoing.