http://www.democraticunderground.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Mon, 20 May 2013 01:47:18 Mon, 20 May 2013 01:47:18 Inspired by this passage of Friedrich Nietzsche's [i]Thus Spake Zarathustra[/i]:

[div class="excerpt"]"...Altered is Zarathustra; a child hath Zarathustra become; an awakened one is Zarathustra: what wilt thou do in the land of the sleepers?

As in the sea hast thou lived in solitude, and it ha... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/47 Sun, 24 Dec 2006 14:32:22 Sure, this prose was decent, but I think Martel fell flat on his face at the end, when Pi is having the conversation with the men sent by the company to investigate his story. He pretty much told them this fantastic story which, while more interesting than its alternative, could be translated into p... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/46 Sun, 03 Dec 2006 12:40:52 You know, one of the greatest aspects of liberalism is that we have a broad world-view, and are willing to expand it by reading positions we don't necessarily agree with, or *gasp* respect people even though one or two of their positions might disagree with ours. Let's leave thinking in absolutes to... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/45 Thu, 28 Sep 2006 21:51:29 Your point that all progressives, religious and non-religious, should band together to defeat the Christian Right is well taken. It is for that very reason that I oppose the concept of a second DU forum for atheists. If atheists and believers are to work together, it is first essential that they und... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/44 Mon, 14 Aug 2006 20:34:44 Israel's government allowed them to get their start in southern Lebanon when it made clear in the eighties that Syrian soldiers entering the area would be considered an act of war. This allowed Hezbollah to get its start, as there was no one there to provide social services.

Israel's government h... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/43 Wed, 02 Aug 2006 12:48:32 If anti-abortion protesters are allowed to scream and protest women entering women's health clinics, then why should the Westboro Baptists be barred from protesting military funerals? Both groups obnoxiously protest and harass people who are going through very difficult times.... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/42 Sun, 30 Jul 2006 13:09:31 Or whatever you have in its place.

I'll go first: "Namaste" is a Hindi greeting, used in place of both "hello" and goodbye" in English. It is usually said with the pressing together of the hands and a slight bow. Literally it means "reverential salutation to you", but in a religious context it ca... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/41 Mon, 24 Jul 2006 00:11:11 Kindly throw aside the accusations of "Israeli apoligist", "Hezbollah supporter", or whatever other inflammatory label you prefer.

"Lebanon supporter" is what I hope we can all label ourselves.

I think we can all agree that it's unfortunate that Lebanon and the Lebanese people have suffered as... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/40 Sat, 22 Jul 2006 23:08:11 that this chane of the God concept you mention is taking place is related to the vast political changes that we are seeing. For example, the change of the Mediterranean world (the cradle of civilization at its time) from paganism to monotheism was happening at the same time as the imperial system of... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/39 Fri, 21 Jul 2006 22:28:16 From [link:today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=televisionNews&storyID=2006-06-23T033638Z_01_N22173912_RTRIDST_0_TELEVISION-FUTURAMA-DC.XML|Reuters]

[div class="excerpt"] Comedy Central has resurrected the former Fox animated series from "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening and David X. ... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/38 Sun, 16 Jul 2006 22:44:25 Not an inherently violent religion at all. My theory regarding major religions is that they go through violent and peaceful stages. In the 14th century, Christianity was at a pretty violent point (Crusades, etc.), while Muslims were rather more intelligent and enlightened than the Christians of thei... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/37 Sat, 15 Jul 2006 13:10:55 The problem is that people don't think about their religious beliefs' validity enough. By challenging them, we get people to think about their validity more, so they can decide for themselves whether to keep Christianity or leave it by the wayside, like I did after a deep examination of my beliefs. ... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/36 Wed, 12 Jul 2006 18:33:59 I've been studying Ancient Rome lately, and I noticed something interesting when I was learning about the myths regarding Rome's founding, namely those of the Trojan prince Aeneas and his descendants Romulus and Remus.

It seems that the ancient Romans never bothered to investigate the validity of... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/35 Mon, 10 Jul 2006 21:48:40 The "objective" code of morality that your Christian friend cites is not objective in any way. His holy book contradicts itself on morality so many times that every Christian is forced to pick and choose which parts to follow. Objective would be if God did an interview on Larry King Live and said EX... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/33 Fri, 07 Jul 2006 19:31:53 First off the Gospel of Thomas mentions none of Jesus' actions. Instead, it is merely a list of quotes attributed to Jesus, some we know from the other gospels and some we don't. Each verse in Thomas begins with "Jesus said..."

Secondly, Thomas was almost certainly written after Matthew, Mark, Lu... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/34 Fri, 07 Jul 2006 19:04:40 The Cold

The cold, dark water surrounded the swimming bear, as it had from time-to-time throughout his long life. Always he would swim for a while, then eventually he would find ice after having found and eaten a seal or something of the sort. He was not a truly massive polar bear, and so he nev... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/32 Sun, 02 Jul 2006 19:36:51 that the 10 commandments would be much more meaningful if they were a list of do's rather than dont's. This would make them much harder to follow, true, but they would have more meaning and people would not try to claim holiness based on a simple list of prohibitions.... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/31 Tue, 27 Jun 2006 23:29:42 Most historical evidence suggests Jesus, or at least his original followers, believed he was a herald of the apocalypse, and that the Kingdom of God would arrive during or shortly after his lifetime. Hence why the gospels were not written down until several generations after his death.... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/30 Mon, 26 Jun 2006 12:20:06 to force God's hand. That sounds like hubris to me.

And the Mahdi is not the "Muslim messiah". Only the Jews continue to wait for a Messiah, Muslims and Christians recognize Jesus as that person.... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/29 Sat, 24 Jun 2006 18:20:13 [div class="excerpt"]"What God Wants, Pts. 1-3"
By Roger Waters

-Part 1

What God wants God gets; God help us all
What God wants God gets
The kid in the corner looked at the priest
And fingered his pale blue Japanese guitar
The priest said:
God wants goodness
God wants light
God wants m... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/28 Fri, 16 Jun 2006 13:14:09 The Dead World

I look out on this world, and I see
Poisonous fruit dropping from dead trees
Particles of dirt swirl through the smoky miasma
Filthy fire flying from hazy mountains

People once lived here, I suppose
I know from the ruins:
Inky glyphs smeared on dull metal
Paper and plastic... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/27 Mon, 12 Jun 2006 14:04:45 [div class="excerpt"]But I would not say that Hitler - when he was using Christianity (or Bush* now) was necessarily a Christian. If you have someone who sees a religion as a tool to manipulate people and that person is using religion for his own gain - then I think that that person is no longer (ne... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/26 Fri, 09 Jun 2006 00:31:29 I'm reading Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov", and in it there's a very powerful passage where the elder of a monastery dies, but before he does, he relates his beliefs regarding God, love, Earth, and hell to his friends who are by his deathbed. He states that he believes that Hell is not a plac... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/25 Sun, 04 Jun 2006 16:27:06 [div class="excerpt"]God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we, murderers of all murderers, console ourselves? That which was the holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet possessed has bled to death under our knives. Who will wipe this blood off us? With what wat... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/24 Fri, 02 Jun 2006 21:21:06 He has been very misunderstood since his time... I suggest you read some of his works. I would reccomend "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" or "Will to Power".

He has been labelled the Nazi philosopher, a statement which is almost the exact opposite of the truth. He was opposed to anti-Semitism, however wo... http://journals.democraticunderground.com/catbert836/23 Wed, 31 May 2006 21:17:49