Science says Conservatives happier than Liberals...

[Jucdor]

First: This was about Right and Left. What Happened?

Second: Islam is TOLERANT?! Whoever suggests that is insane, or at least is ignorant of what the Koran and Hadith dictate, and have dictated since the days of Muhammad.

I didn't say is. I said was. And if you take any history book that goes into detail of that time you notice that indeed Islam and islamistic countries were much more humane in general and they were a zillion times more tolerant to other religions than christian ones. Sure, it's fun to read what the popes had to say about the islamic people, but that doesn't make it true.

This one isn't directed to you, but I don't understand why is it so difficult for some people to even consider the fact that where we trace our culturural bonds, we could've been far behind the rest of the world. That we once were in the depraved state a lot of islamic countries are now in.

The same goes with homo neanderthalensis by the way. The issue interests me a lot and even though it was evident from the very first founding of the species that they had larger brains than modern people there hasn't been a single research that I've read that would've even gone into detail about the possibility that they could've been more intelligent than we are. Most have just focused on explaining why they were more stupid than were in spite of their larger brains. And with that let's not forget that the modern man also walked the earth for about a hundred thousand years before a rapid scientific evolution took place.

[Jucdor]

Second: Islam is TOLERANT?! Whoever suggests that is insane, or at least is ignorant of what the Koran and Hadith dictate, and have dictated since the days of Muhammad.

Oh and another thing I forgot to write. Whatever is written in the Koran or in the Bible is less important than the general state of the society. Religion has always been a mean to use power and to justify things. Europeans were barbarians who made Christianhood to be the bloodiest religion out there about a thousand years ago. Richard Lionheart was one of the most disgusting kings there were and yet he has a nice nickname like Lionheart thanks to the fact that he killed a lot of heathens. That's our cultural heritage. If I had to choose with modern standards who was more noble and civilized leader in the medievals, there wouldn't be anyone who could compete with Saladin. And the only competition would come from Byzantium which for some reason isn't seen as part of our cultural tradition which is why Byzantium isn't part of general knowledge even if that was actually equal to Roman Empire who continued to flourish for extra thousand years. The education system is most European and American countries is fixed to make you know just the things that make you feel good about your roots. As I've talked with a lot of people who have studied history the general history education is really pathetic in most countries. And in this case I don't put any patriotism into this, but Finland is the one country that has at least some sort of objectivity on the matter (and I think even here the history they teach is extremely Euro-centric... China, India, America (native) and Africa should be covered even from the period when Europeans didn't have any contact with them).

[tzor]

My general reference (the Encyclopedia of Witchcraft and Demonology) is burried somewhere in my room, but I seem to recall that there were a lot of men killed by the hunters. Anyone with significant property was subject to be killed and robbed by the hunters in the name of the law.

The reason you don't see "scientists" of that day saying "there is no god" is for the most part that was not something even the scientists believed in. Even into the 18th century the notion of fill in the blanks was given to a "higher power." Many might have strongly questioned the God of Christianity but no one was throwing out the divine baby with the religious bath water.

I'm not saying that the church was the greatest institution that ever lived. I'm just saying that there were good people and there were bad people and this is true for all people. And through this all there were people with ideas. Sometimes revolutionary ideas. But were they perfect? No. Could they sell their ideas? Sometimes yes and sometimes no. Some of the greatest inventions in the world were lost and forgotten because the person could not convince others. Some of the greatest discoveries in the world were strongly opposed by other scientists.

By the way the general notion of "Papal Infalibility" wasn't really brought up until the late 19th century and even then it was only brought up on the matter of "faith and morals."

I am a Secular Francisan and my model of "church change" has always been Francis. The Pope told him no at first too. He changed the Pope's mind without leaving the Church. The Pope told Clare no too, but she got her way without leaving the church. The reformation was a horrid disaster through all of Europe that caused wars and divisions and bloodshead and death. It drove the true potential reformers out of Europe where they were tollerated by neither Protestant nor Catholic and who in turn went to become the backbone of the United States.

[Jenos Ridan]

Yes. Yes I do. Any more pointless questions?

No. Just one statement:

Wow, you are conceited. And arrogant does not begin to describe you. Pompass, too, does not quite cover it all. But troll covers enough.

I'll spell this out for you kid, you know nothing. No if's and's or but's, You truelly do not know a damn thing. You think you do, but you have not earned that right. That is why the above statement is there, to lay this down in no uncertain terms.

Come back when you have graduated from high school and swallowed some humble pie.

You know, I seldom agree with the Little Corsican, but I don't see how you can accuse him of knowing nothing. He may be wrong usually (what do I mean may be? ), but he is seldom uninformed. Conceited, yes. Arrogant (yes it does begin to describe him). Pompous, certainly. Wrong, mm-hmm. But totally ignorant? No.

There are times I can agree with him. This is not one of them. It's like some nasty bug has crawled up his arse and is irritating him immensely and that he feels that this is somehow my fault.

I say he knows nothing because he seems to think that he knows everything. As it stands, he has no life experience (being some snot-nosed teenage twit) and has the nerve to think he has done something worthy of pride. So he might as well be ignorant.

[Jenos Ridan]

Yes. Yes I do. Any more pointless questions?

graduate from high school

I might suggest the same to you, sir.

You do reallize you just proved my point. The one about you being a conceited little twerp with delusions of god-hood. No, no, I didn't think so, your shroud of arrogance is impenetrable.

Please, feel completely free to dig yourself a deeper hole. I'll help fill it back in once you've managed to bury yourself.

[tzor]

I say he knows nothing because he seems to think that he knows everything. As it stands, he has no life experience (being some snot-nosed teenage twit) and has the nerve to think he has done something worthy of pride. So he might as well be ignorant.

Life experience is not all that it is cracked up to be. (So says the 46 year old man with gray hairs on his head.) It can be an excellent source of education and inspiration but only for those who know how to use it. In short it makes the good better. People often learn wrong things and adopt bad habits as much as they learn correct things and gain good habits. Sometimes the greatest discoveries ever made were by people from a different field than the field of the discovery because they were not exposed to the wrong information which the "experts" simply assumed and passed down from generation to generation.

In short life experiences are like glasses. Sometimes they help improve vision but other times they are just dirty and obscure vision.

[Napoleon Ier]

Please, feel completely free to dig yourself a deeper hole. I'll help fill it back in once you've managed to bury yourself.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I believe we have a winner in the "most bizarre ever attempt at a humorous analogy" department. So, when would you likeyour trophy delivered?

[Neoteny]

Chuckle chuckle.