Deadly attacks in Paris / Brussels / Nice (07/14/2016)

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  • Posts: 15,117
    patb wrote: »
    Anyone in the UK see Darren Brown last night? I am not sure if it was all genuine but it was a great reminder of how weak humans are in general and always wanting to follow the crowd (or the flock) and how easily figures of authority can manipulate us. Its not a fashion statement that Archbishops dress in gold with a big stick and a big hat etc, they use their image to enhance authority and some follow their orders/doctrines. As a species, independent thought is not one of our strengths.

    I don't see much difference between an archbishop and a witch doctor, if any.
  • Posts: 4,615
    no witch doctors in the House of Lords :-)
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,179
    I did watch a talk show on Flemish television yesterday which featured a panel of four: three representatives of the major religions in my country (a Catholic, a Jew and a Muslim) and then a secular writer. The latter hit the nail on the head when he said (something like this): "You're all talking about tolerance yet you can't get along. But you all bring your own Truths to the table and none of you is prepared to give up his own Truth. In a secular society, there are no such Truths and so nothing to quarrel over."
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    patb wrote: »
    no witch doctors in the House of Lords :-)

    Very good.

  • bondjamesbondjames You were expecting someone else?
    edited January 2016 Posts: 23,883
    patb wrote: »
    As a species, independent thought is not one of our strengths.
    This is unfortunately very true. As much a part of the human condition as religion is.

    Keep in mind though that it is something that is not only the fault of the religious, but also the atheists. Work by Daniel Kahneman & Amos Tversky in particular has conclusively proven how often the human mind deludes itself subconsciously and automatically in several situations based on conditioning and reflex.

    Religion is just one of the more egregious, & perhaps most obvious, examples of this.
  • AceHoleAceHole Belgium, via Britain
    Posts: 1,731
    Bombings & gunfire have killed at least 10 people in Jakarta this morning.
    Another sad entry on the list of futile 'religious' murders this year - and we're only 14 days into 2016...
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    Well done! Your moronic god is proud of you.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,716
    Another attack, this time in a touristic hotel of Burkina Faso. Atleast 27 dead from 18 different nationalities.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    Is it me or is it just getting really f**king tedious now?

    Yeah we get it you want to blow yourselves up for Allah. Now give it a rest.

    In other predictable news the Church of England refuses to join the civilised world:

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/12100648/Anglicans-step-back-from-brink-of-schism-over-homosexuality.html

  • edited January 2016 Posts: 2,015
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    And though I don't want to upset anyone, the Nazis' unethical experimenting on people has gained the medical world a great amount of useful knowledge of the human body which we can all benefit from today.

    Such as ?

    I always heard these experiments were mainly conducted to prove the theories, not to find new theories, and that many were probably fraud. I'm curious what is the "great amount of useful knowledge" you refer to.

    War has brought us a great amount of useful knowledge : young people in very good physical shape who could still live a bit with various body parts missing, including parts of the brain, did help a lot to understand the body, yes.

    But my neurobiology teachers who factually stated that indeed war made neurobiology what it is today, also added that the Nazi experiments in the camps were basically worthless. Because, well, you might guess it, the subjects of the experiments were not in good shape to start with. So even in case there were some people there doing serious research - and we can doubt it, Mengele is not taken seriously by ayone it seems, for instance -, we would only know some things about the body of starving humans having lost their family and knowing they would die there. I don't think you'll be ever in this state of body and mind and benefit from this any day.

    Von Braun sent the USA to the moon, but Mengele is nowhere in your dispensary.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,179
    Guys, guys, I am perfectly aware of the fact that "Nazi science" was more pseudo-science than real science, that its methods were unethical in practically every respect and that most of the madness going on in camp labs wasn't science but repugnant cruelty.

    I have, however, spoken with several academic researchers who independently told me about the Nazis proving a cause-and-effect relationship between smoking and lung cancer long before the rest of the world jumped on that wagon (of course it helped that Hitler himself disliked the habit of smoking). They also told me about the Nazis conducting cruel experiments - often for cruelty's sake - whilst at the same time monitoring things like heart rate, muscle reflexes, ... Those data, apparently, were used by medical researchers after the war to make rapid progress in certain departments. Of course no-one publicly celebrated the Nazis numerical legacy. In fact, because of the unethical methods applied by the Nazis, debates still rage as to whether or not those data should be used in the first place. But, again, it would seem that amidst all the horrendous experimentation, completely devoid of any scientific basis, some pretty useful knowledge was obtained. I'm not involved in medical research myself, but I'm inclined to believe what experts in the field have told me.

    Lest I be mistaken for a Nazi sympathiser - which I am NOT - I wish to point out that none of the suffering was worth it!
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    edited January 2016 Posts: 9,117
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    And though I don't want to upset anyone, the Nazis' unethical experimenting on people has gained the medical world a great amount of useful knowledge of the human body which we can all benefit from today.

    Such as ?

    I always heard these experiments were mainly conducted to prove the theories, not to find new theories, and that many were probably fraud. I'm curious what is the "great amount of useful knowledge" you refer to.

    War has brought us a great amount of useful knowledge : young people in very good physical shape who could still live a bit with various body parts missing, including parts of the brain, did help a lot to understand the body, yes.

    But my neurobiology teachers who factually stated that indeed war made neurobiology what it is today, also added that the Nazi experiments in the camps were basically worthless. Because, well, you might guess it, the subjects of the experiments were not in good shape to start with. So even in case there were some people there doing serious research - and we can doubt it, Mengele is not taken seriously by ayone it seems, for instance -, we would only know some things about the body of starving humans having lost their family and knowing they would die there. I don't think you'll be ever in this state of body and mind and benefit from this any day.

    Von Braun sent the USA to the moon, but Mengele is nowhere in your dispensary.

    Quite.

    Mengle's 'research' had very little scientific validity due to its haphazard nature and lack of basic scientific rigour.

    And to the best of my knowledge most, if not all, of Mengle's research was destroyed after the war. I think you'd be hard pressed to cite any example of where the experimentation on humans in the camps directly benefitted medical science.
  • edited January 2016 Posts: 15,117
    Is it me or is it just getting really f**king tedious now?

    Yeah we get it you want to blow yourselves up for Allah. Now give it a rest.

    In other predictable news the Church of England refuses to join the civilised world:

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/12100648/Anglicans-step-back-from-brink-of-schism-over-homosexuality.html

    The C of E and indeed any Christian Church can boast about Christianity's acceptance, love and understanding, but they can hardly give lessons to Islam. They do not have a violent faction like Islam anymore, but intrinsically they are nearly as backward. Frankly, I wonder why gays would want to be part of any religion. Even if they do believe in God. What was the last faith that were truly accepting of homosexuals?
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,798
    http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/01/imam-arrested-blasphemer-teen-cuts-hand-160117112206147.html

    Religion is a menace to the thoughtless masses unable to think for themselves.
    (sorry. kneejerk there) :-O
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 18,271
    Bill helped me out a lot in regards to the content of this thread when I was on leave from the community:

    JnME56s.jpg
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    Kill Bill if he allows blasphemy.
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 18,271
    Kill Bill if he allows blasphemy.

    I think we should be more like Bill.

    Bill is smart.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    Dragonpol wrote: »
    Bill helped me out a lot in regards to the content of this thread when I was on leave from the community:

    JnME56s.jpg

    Not quite sure who you're aiming this at Draggers. In my experience it's certainly not the atheists who tend to take offence on this subject.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,716
    Atleast 30 dead after gunmen attack an University in Pakistan.
  • Posts: 15,117
    Dragonpol wrote: »
    Bill helped me out a lot in regards to the content of this thread when I was on leave from the community:

    JnME56s.jpg

    Not quite sure who you're aiming this at Draggers. In my experience it's certainly not the atheists who tend to take offence on this subject.

    Indeed.
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35358209

    This terrifies me more than ISIS. This woman almost came within a heart attack of having her finger on the button and somehow she is still given a forum to spout her insane drivel.

    'How 'bout the rest of us? Right wingin', bitter clingin', proud clingers of our guns, our god, and our religions, our Constitution.'

    Love how the two most important things in the eyes of redneck imbeciles like this are guns and God - in that order.

  • MrcogginsMrcoggins Following in the footsteps of Quentin Quigley.
    Posts: 3,144
    In the dictionary under Toxic Harpie. It says see Sarah Palin :-< 8-}
  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    Posts: 18,271
    Dragonpol wrote: »
    Bill helped me out a lot in regards to the content of this thread when I was on leave from the community:

    JnME56s.jpg

    Not quite sure who you're aiming this at Draggers. In my experience it's certainly not the atheists who tend to take offence on this subject.

    No, I was merely referring to myself and my approach to this and similar threads in the future. I come here primarily for discussion about James Bond, not stuff like this. That's all there is to this simple cartoon that has taken the internet by storm. :)
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,798
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35358209

    This terrifies me more than ISIS. This woman almost came within a heart attack of having her finger on the button and somehow she is still given a forum to spout her insane drivel.
    Ohhhhh yeah. 30% of my country is made up of dirt stupid scaredy cats.
  • Posts: 15,117
    It doesn't scare me more than ISIS, but it makes me very cynical about our species. Back in 2001, when the free world was attacked by crazies who were against sex, alcohol, homosexuality, pork, secularism, the people in power... had nothing against eating bacon. I don't think Trump has much of a chance to become POTUS, but this is baffling that he has some slim chances and that Sarah Palin still receives media attention.
  • RC7RC7
    Posts: 10,512
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35358209

    This terrifies me more than ISIS. This woman almost came within a heart attack of having her finger on the button and somehow she is still given a forum to spout her insane drivel.

    'How 'bout the rest of us? Right wingin', bitter clingin', proud clingers of our guns, our god, and our religions, our Constitution.'

    Love how the two most important things in the eyes of redneck imbeciles like this are guns and God - in that order.

    Imbeciles is about right. Don't these fools get it? So much blind patriotism, 'our warriors' guided by God. As bad as that which they oppose, just living in nicer houses. To paraphrase Stewart Lee, the whole lot of them are like 'rats fighting in a ditch, over some piss.'
  • TheWizardOfIceTheWizardOfIce 'One of the Internet's more toxic individuals'
    Posts: 9,117
    RC7 wrote: »
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35358209

    This terrifies me more than ISIS. This woman almost came within a heart attack of having her finger on the button and somehow she is still given a forum to spout her insane drivel.

    'How 'bout the rest of us? Right wingin', bitter clingin', proud clingers of our guns, our god, and our religions, our Constitution.'

    Love how the two most important things in the eyes of redneck imbeciles like this are guns and God - in that order.

    Imbeciles is about right. Don't these fools get it? So much blind patriotism, 'our warriors' guided by God. As bad as that which they oppose, just living in nicer houses. To paraphrase Stewart Lee, the whole lot of them are like 'rats fighting in a ditch, over some piss.'

    @RC7 you cheeky little scallywag!

    I sincerely hope you haven't offended someone religious by describing everything they believe in and hold dear as a ditch full of piss.
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