Range_This11

As a History major and a future History teacher, I have to say that there are almost no historical facts in the bible. None.

Hahahahahaha :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

I am of a religion that doesn't persecute people for what some see as "flaws". I am of a religion that leaves people's personal lives alone. I am of a religion that never tells people that they "aren't good enough" or that they need to "change their evil ways".

I only criticize other religions when it encroaches on the rights and individual freedoms of others. For instance, homosexuality.

Well since god didn't create me, and I don't have any homosexual urges, how do you explain that?

Well, considering god doesn't exist, I don't see how your argument is relevant.

As long as it doesn't violate the law, it's not my life and I have no business controlling it. Parents aren't there to control their children and their lives, just to guide them to the best of their ability.

What do you mean "more out there"? As in very outwardly gay? I would treat them just the same.

I would not care in the least if my child were gay or lesbian. Doesn't matter a bit to me. They're no less of a person and I would love them just as much.

Sounds of the Loop by Joe Morello Genius.

I had a very interesting and compelling professor last semester for my Principles of Sociology course. His name was Dr. Abbas Mehdi and he is an Iraqi. He has served under Saddam Hussein (unwillingly) and now serves as a trainer for Minnesota National Guard troops being deployed to Iraq. He has traveled to every continent (except Antarctica) and fluently speaks 7 languages. Needless to say he is a very experienced person when it comes to dealing with social problems around the world. Some of you may also remember the "Iraq Aid Money Stolen or Wasted" topic I posted a few months ago featuring his testimony to the U.S. Supreme Court. My point in this is that Dr. Mehdi had a very interesting viewpoint on why suicide rates are so high in Western and "civilized" countries and why, as he said, there are hardly any cases of suicide (aside from suicide bombers) in his home country of Iraq compared to the United States. Dr. Mehdi concluded that because well-off Americans are so task oriented, they tend to have more stress than the most impoverished farmer in Iraq. Think about it, how many things in your day are task oriented? First of all, you've got your daily tasks. Get up, feed the family pet, catch a bus/ride/drive to work/school. Finish all your work at school, maybe participate in a sport after school, and of course worry about the big game coming up against your conference rivals. Now balance that with your every day course load of homework. Don't forget you also have to worry about managing a girlfriend or boyfriend if that's what is going on in your life. And those are just your every day tasks. What about long term tasks? Mid-term papers, band or choir concerts, the all-school play, what college you're going to pick, maybe the military, how about what your major is going to be, do you have a job to pay for school? How are you going to pay for school if you don't have a job? As you can see, those are just a few examples of tasks that young Americans have to face EVERY DAY. Now Iraqis, as Dr. Mehdi put it, do not face those kinds of issues. They live simplistic lives (of course not all of them, but a majority of them do). Every day they get up and either farm their land or go to their job to simply provide food for their families and to save up what extra money they can. There aren't these ridiculous tasks we have every day as Americans. They have less stress, even though they may be impoverished. And that is why, Dr. Mehdi concluded, a higher percentage of Americans kill themselves, and will continue to do so, compared to Iraqis and even more impoverished people.

Just finished On the Waterfront. In my opinion, Marlon Brando's best performance of his career.

You should definitely switch, it's much better for you and works a lot better than any chap stick/lip balm I've ever used and I've had to use chap stick regularly since I was 5.

Go talk to Israel for army size. It has one of the smallest, yet best trained military in the world.

First couple episodes were decent, but after that, they really dropped off in quality.

Gustav Holst :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: If you haven't (which I'm sure you most likely have), listen to his First Suite in F and Second Suite in E flat. Absolutely amazing pieces. I've had The Planets CD since I was 8. Great stuff.

Haha, High School. Must be a tough life.

Taxi Driver. I'm on a rampage of classics and I loved this one.

Fireworks/Fire (I work at one of Wisconsin's largest fireworks store) My Girlfriend of nearly 2 years Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Table Tennis Running My best guy friends Movies (especially ones pre-1960) Music My dog Maggie, she's a Weimaraner and she's amazing.

Homosexuality would not be a taboo had the Christian church not condemned it for thousands of years :|

Actually the date is changed to June 5th in Europe and June 7th in the US. Both the songs (Soap on a Rope and Down the Drain) are on their MySpace.

http://www.myspace.com/thechickenfoot Joe Satriani's new gig. He finally found a band with a singer. This album is going to kick major [wagon].

Why?

Countless slapshots to the foot playing hockey. That's what I get for playing defense, though, I guess. The worst pain was definitely my Senior year in hockey I took a slapshot directly jamming my thumb upwards and breaking it. My coach helped me reset it in between periods, taped and braced it. I played the rest of the game and season with a broken thumb because I would have had to take time off from playing to let it heal and I wasn't about to do that when we were close to a conference championship. I've had countless hockey injuries, none have been treated haha.

This season is so good. They're becoming more and more blunt as the seasons progress and I love it. They have a way of describing events in the simplest ways that make the most sense. Great social commentary.