Oz the Great and Powerful

Not only is it not a crime, someone will stand up for your freedom of speech rights!

you could use the same argument to invade North korea, Iran, China,,, the list goes on. Yes, but those countries were actively threating us with destruction. If they do, we may need to do the same thing there.

Outstanding Benjiman Barber pot, Dystopic. I don't agree with all of it, but good stuff. Gentlemen, check out the link. It is very pertinent to this discussion. I think he sounds afraid that nationalism will disappear. I think we are seeing the beginning of that now. We are not fighting a nation-state, we are fighting individuals. Maybe that is the solution. If the planet truly does become globalized maybe we all will live in small, fragmented states. And then maybe we

the Imams only speak for the Shi'a, which is a minority of muslims. and they don't even necessarily "speak for" every Shi'ite. most muslims are Sunni: I didn't know that. But then shouldn't there be some Sunnis preaching tolerance and understanding? Maybe there are, but why don't we hear them? their governments don't complain; hell, they put these protests down No, those governments don't compl

there's as much diversity among muslims as there is among christians Then where is the internal Muslim debate about what they are doing? I'm a practicing Christian and I don't have any insight into current Muslim worship. What I do see is a consistent message from the imams supporting the jihad view. I know that there must be differing views. Where are they? is the american christian bombing of abortion cli

If this ever happened I wouldn't know what to do. This is really the challenge in these discussions, I think. Not to overthrow the government, I mean, but what would you change if you could? And how can we begin to effect that change, even on a small level? I don't think I would sacrifice my eternal soul for my mortal flesh... know what I mean. I am always struck by the fact that the founding fathers

don't people have to take civics in high school anymore? Nope. That's why I strive so hard for accurate thinking. Many people are very passionate about beliefs which are inaccurate. In Illinois last year we had an election for governor. The Democrat incumbent is, IMO, a fool. The Republican candiate was the incumbent state treasurer, and I wasn't happy with her either. So I voted for the Libertatians out of frustration. The small victor

If anyone else has any ideas on how to stop muslim extremista apart from using a bullet, then i would like to hear it? The Muslim religious leaders, the imams, could preach a message of love, compassion, and understanding. But they don't. This week an American imam called for the death of an Iraqi woman author living in the US because she wrote a book criticizing the Islamic treatment of women. They continue to spread their message of death. <d

"Man is not born knowing hate, prejudice and intolerance... man learns these traits" I'm not sure I'd agree. We all fear what we don't know. The solution is to learn about each other. I've come to know people of all backgrounds over the years. I'm trying to make sure my kids get the same. It is much harder to judge a group of people when you know people in that group, be it economic, ethnic, or whatever. But does Osama Bin Laden want to know abo

saying that he isn't representing the people (in which case it's a bit odd that he was elected TWICE by the people he's "not representing" Keep in mind - he won by electoral college votes. He lost the popular vote both times. I'm generally Republican but it is a valid argument that he is not really the people's representitive. So was Hilter when he turned things around economcially in Germany in the mid 1930's. <b

But don't go off about you being the "leader" of the free world if you only allow two political parties to go at each other. Absolutely true. It seems like the rest of the world gets a wide variety of candidates to choose from. We get two. There is a fair amount of grumbling in the country that "None of the above" should be included on our ballots. Well on the bright side, our daily average temp is still way above 20

Oh, man, I'm just checking the post before I leave for work. I don't have time to respond - I'll try to get back later. Good thoughts, all of you. I don't agree with you all (what fun would that be), but great discussion. I'm going to spend my commute trying to organize my thoughts.

but I will say that we have definitely lost more 'control' of our lives in a sense, instead of our 'rights'. Some quick thoughts of mine (and no, most of these probably aren't rights so...) are: The war on drugs/drug laws in general Gun control laws Right to life laws/abortion laws Consumer laws/rights Private citizen laws/rights (this is mainly in response to some recent 'eminent domain' cases that I've read about but can also encompass what lo

[ I'll bite on this one since it's a quick answer (and it will drive all of you guys nuts!). The appropriate response to evil is to do as Jesus did... show love, compassion and understanding. Stormbringer, I would have bet (what's left of) my paycheck that you would have said "Kill 'em all and let God sort 'em out!" You suprise me! You know, tha

The cancellation of Star Trek...the original series! Live long and prosper! Man, I miss Spock. I'm grumpy that I am sitting at work right now. I'm grumpy that I still get CTD's... I'm grumpy that I can't have my RAM next day delivered (just purchased some OCZ Platinum series RAM on Newegg last night and I just can't wait... two more gigs, yahoo!) I'm extremely grumpy over the weather here in the southwest

it IS OUR FAULT that the government/media has such a hold on us, Yup. We did it to ourselves. I do believe that the government tries to act in our best interests, but sometimes those interests lead to dependance on government programs when we should be more self-reliant. And please guys, let's try to keep all of this as 'civil' as possible Agreed. I'm not looking for a flame war. <div class="Ar

The terrorists want to effect our lives in a negative way. They want our lives to be degraded by their actions. If our Governments restrict and therefore diminish our freedom and consequently our lives are constricted by laws that are in direct consequence of the terrorism. Then these acts alone are what the terrorists want. Therefore our governments are actually, either deliberately or unintentionally collaborating with or at least enforcing the t

am actually amazed that you have the temerity to even try and support this view, I accept there maybe many people who think like this but most leave their white robes hidden Careful, Marcus. I don't think Kryo is entirely approving of this thread, but I bet he is enjoying it. I know I am. Don't start flaming, here - I'm having a good time with this discussion and don't want to see it end.

This argument has been so misunderstood that any side can claim to be the good apposing evil. A belief on any side can claim victory over this statement and therefore a false moral initiative. I think this quote should stay in the ambiguity of history where it belongs. A good question here is what is good? Is there a system of beliefs that is inherently good? I would say yes. Our belief system tends toward openness, inclusion,

Who died and left us in charge of the world's 'moral compass'? "For evil to triumph, it is only neccessary that good men do nothing" - oh, I can't remember who said it but it's a good quote We are charge of the world's moral compass because we can be. We are the last superpower - well, until someone (China?) knocks us off. So, should the quo

So because the 'poor' people over here have these things are they truly better off than other 'poor' people throughout the world? Again, great topic for discussion. Our current view would be, I think, that our poor people are better off. So does that then mean that it is OK to leave them in their new, improved poverty? Your comment that I quoted above pretty much reeks of materialism Yeah, it does, does

There is a great line in the book version of "Black Hawk Down". Michael Durant has been captured from his wrecked helicopter and is being held while the troops are searching for him. He is talking with his Somali captors and one asks, "Did you think you could come here, kill the warlords, and Jeffersonian democracy would just spring up?" Well, yes, that's what we do think. We have the highest standard of living in the world because, in part, of our democratic society. There are

I've never seen or read anything regarding Islamic radicals attempt to convert fifty thousand Christians in New York City so am I missing this 'threat' somewhere? The threat comes from the jihadist belief that all infidels must be destroyed. That is where I draw the line. When you believe that I need to be dead, well, I'm a big believer in peace through superior firepower. Are all Muslims trying to kill us? No. A fairly small group of fringe e

I would call it AI situational awareness. Yup. I agree. The value of goods changes based on what the current situation is, and the game doesn't do that. Which is exactly what you said. But it's not. It's basically just a dialog full of weighted values. But if the AIs could take the situation into account, oh, that would be beautiful. And then, while we're wishing, could you make a patch that re

"How do you overcome that? Opportunity and prosperity". Errrr, wrong answer. Look at what happened to Lebanon, once it was one of the richest and most beutiful countries on Earth, but Muslim stubborn pride still contributed to it's downfall. Darn, I hate it when someone is more right than me... My point is that if more young people in the Middle East thought that they could have a rewarding life then they would be a bit less likely to blow thems