Re: a comment on Genesis by Dovina	ALChemy 24.74.100.11	12-Apr-06/4:40 PM
I absolutely admire your resilience.
Re: a comment on Genesis by Dovina	Dovina 70.38.78.229	12-Apr-06/4:28 PM
Of course, you are facetious in saying that we should base a religion on it. Or that we should base a religion on any text about a god who “has tried very hard to leave no evidence of his existence.” Perhaps you have read the long discussion on this topic following my recent poem “The Battle of Fort Bragg.” While that argument got sidetracked on personal feelings and insinuations, I think your comment brings us to the crucial issue: What is the evidence for God’s existence? God has craftily kept that to Himself, I’m afraid. Or at least He has made it so obscure as to elude impartial observation. It is possible that evidence exists for God's existence, but as yet we don’t know it. Some people claim the miracles as evidence, but I find most of them unverified. Still, I would try not to be hostile to future proofs for God's existence and thereby less objective about attempted proofs. Having no proof for God, we have little with which to even describe Him. But whether or not something exists does not depend on whether or not it can be described. If something exists, it exists independently of our ability to describe it. Things exist whether or not someone knows they exists, let alone accurately describes them. Religious belief can be thought of as circular: Because we long for God, such longing must imply the existence of a deity. One might as well say that because we long for immortality, immortality must be possible. As long as humans cannot bear to contemplate their own extinction, there will always be another Baal, and atheism will always be a minority stance. I respect the atheist position, since my own is based on no more evidence.
Re: a dream by lmp	ALChemy 24.74.100.11	12-Apr-06/4:13 PM
A few minor nitpicks. Don't use "grassy knoll", it harks back to JFK's assasination. "Grassy mound" would work fine. Change "looked" to "seemed". The word look can be the act of looking or it can be just appearing to be and that duality in the word can for a second stumble the reader's train of thought. I think you meant "she waved HER arm" in the last stanza. Otherwise I think this is a very sweet fable and I can imagine telling this as a bedtime story to my niece. Yes, very heartwarming me thinks.
Re: a comment on Behind the storm clouds, the moon consoles the sun.(edited) by ALChemy	ALChemy 24.74.100.11	12-Apr-06/3:25 PM
Thanks Imp. Consider it done.
Re: a comment on Genesis by Dovina	drnick 24.176.22.254	12-Apr-06/2:09 PM
I think we should base a religion off of it. Your speculation is just as good as any other's speculation, which is all we can have for this mysterious "God" fellow. I wouldn't say we are "stuck with Him" since he has tried very hard to leave no evidence of "His" existance anywhere.
Re: a comment on SHOT by tisa7	tisa7 70.119.231.250	12-Apr-06/1:02 PM
well i think it sounded pretty good so i dont care
Re: a comment on Genesis by Dovina	Dovina 70.38.78.229	12-Apr-06/12:06 PM
I don’t think it matters very much what anyone thinks God is like. Whatever He is like, we are stuck with Him. Here, I’ve written a scenario with some evidence in its favor. It’s speculation, of course, but something to think about.
Re: a comment on Genesis by Dovina	Dovina 70.38.78.229	12-Apr-06/12:06 PM
Today is the seventh day since I posted the Battle of Fort Bragg. On the seventh day God rested, and you, created in His image, may rest too.
Re: Behind the storm clouds, the moon consoles the sun.(edited) by ALChemy	lmp 141.154.134.3	12-Apr-06/11:12 AM
pish, posh, a lot of noise on this one, wot? (had to put in a stuff line so my post won't be out of place...) as you know, ALChemy, i love the Sunshine poem. I do agree that this one needs a bit of tweaking, but what doesn't? i agree that the line about wine is a bit out of place. and that the moon reference is not barely there and i would not have known it but for your explanation. however, the sunshine does ride on the shoulders of the moon, else we would scarecely see the moon from our earthbound station. keep working on this one, please. as for the comments, take what you want and leave the rest, i say. if someone bashes your work, whatever. if they have something useful, great, otherwise ignore it.
Re: Random Design by thepinkbunnyofdoom	drnick 141.218.35.109	12-Apr-06/10:56 AM
I agree with what has already been said, and I'd like to add that at the end of the 7th stanza, you should cut the last line: "Only it's not" as that is implied when you say "like a dream." I like the last stanza the most, very nice.
Re: Genesis by Dovina	drnick 141.218.35.109	12-Apr-06/10:49 AM
Sounds like a book of lies used to control the masses and explain what feble minds cannot comprehend that I once read. God sounds like an egotistical bastard, what makes Him so God damn perfect? I like it.
Re: Maybe I Wasn’t Born on a Fool’s Day by Dovina	drnick 141.218.35.109	12-Apr-06/10:42 AM
Pretty good.
Re: College Bound by Miggy	drnick 141.218.35.109	12-Apr-06/10:40 AM
boring
Re: a comment on Semaphores from the Chaos by cyan9	cyan9 213.208.113.137	12-Apr-06/10:25 AM
Touchy as ever
Re: a comment on Semaphores from the Chaos by cyan9	cyan9 213.208.113.137	12-Apr-06/10:25 AM
It was the way you said it
Re: Genesis by Dovina	ALChemy 24.74.100.11	12-Apr-06/8:25 AM
I think I'll just sit back and watch this one if you don't mind.
Re: a comment on The Battle of Fort Bragg by Dovina	ALChemy 24.74.100.11	12-Apr-06/8:15 AM
ps. It probably wouldn't have bothered me so much if I didn't have such admiration for you. So cut a lesser genius some slack will ya. Have a happy Easter Z.- and if Easter's not your thing then have a happy Sunday.
Re: a comment on The Battle of Fort Bragg by Dovina	ALChemy 24.74.100.11	12-Apr-06/8:01 AM
You did it so politely, yet you admit to A) Fucking with my head and B) comparing my beliefs to a joke. Just because you word things politely doesn't mean what you're really saying is polite. Yes, you can say whatever you want. That doesn't mean it makes you any less of a jerk if you're saying something hurtful. But I'm assuming it wasn't intentional. That still doesn't make it right. Yes I'm being sensitive, because you guys just won't let up! All I've been trying to do is defend my beliefs. I didn't start this enormous cluster of a debate and my message has been constant- "Don't bother arguing with us, we are blinded by faith." You've worn me down to the point where I'm fed up with constantly hearing how illogical God is. I hate the fact that we ever got to this point(and I admit I played a part in us getting there) but for the love of God(or whatever) let's stop talking about religion and atheism from now on. Maybe I've taken things to heart a little more than usual because I like and admire you and Zodiac so much.
Re: a comment on The Battle of Fort Bragg by Dovina	ALChemy 24.74.100.11	12-Apr-06/7:39 AM
My point has been that this has been insane from the getgo. To Zodiac: I was calling making fun of someone's beliefs an attack on their beliefs. If you must nitpick and say it's not technically an attack then fine but it's still done in bad taste. Is an argument not a verbal fight? If someone comes up to you and starts a fight with you and you've done nothing to provoke them is that not an unprovoked attack? If someone starts arguing against your beliefs directly to you before you've done anything to provoke them is that not an unprovoked verbal attack? Your the one with the problem. I've got no problem with you being an atheist. I've never gone to any atheist's poem and tried to start arguments about the existence of God. If I did I was surely being a twit that day and my appologies would be automatic. I CAN say something about God. God is the creator of all things and only when we know all things can we truly understand the glory of God completely. But nooo, you want me to give him a little fuzzy beard and dress him like Santa don't you? 'Cause then it's much easier to make fun of. Your just mad because I won't offer a God made of flesh to you so you can verbally crucify him. Fine, here you go, I believe Jesus is the son of God. I hope you'll feel better when you've proven to me what a fool I've been for believing. Maybe I was being a little harsh on ecargo but how many times must I listen to my beliefs be compared to satirical images like purple living marshmellows driving Pintos on Saturn before I decide I'm officially offended. Here's an opposing viewpoint: You walking down a street in Alaska and some guy you and your wife walked by at the store comes up to you and say's "Hey fella, Your wife is a slut. I've read this book that says all women that walk like that are sluts." Do you still think an opposing viewpoint can't in someway be an attack when not provoked. But I guess I was asking for it because some time way way back I must have mentioned something about a logical approach to God's existence. It's as if you were in a bar 2 years earlier and asked everyone if any of them knew your wife in any way and one of them was the guy who later came and said she was a slut. Had you said "This is insane" let's just forget about it earlier I would have agreed and this wouldn't have gone this far. Really, we should agree to never talk about our religious beliefs to each other again.
Re: a comment on The Battle of Fort Bragg by Dovina	ecargo 167.219.88.140	12-Apr-06/6:42 AM
Whatever, dude. It's a public board, so I don't need anyone's permission to talk about any topic, no matter who brought it up or who it's directed to. You said something I considered bullshit originally, so I cried bullshit--very politely too. I didn't realize you were so sensitive or I wouldn't have bothered to try to have a rational discussion with you. In retrospect, it was kind of like having a conversation with someone who, instead of listening to what one is actually saying, just thinks about what they're going to say next. I couldn't give a shit what you believe--that was never the point, and the idea of trying to convert you in some way or mock your beliefs bores me silly. I'll let you go back to fighting the War Against Christmas and all the rest of it. Have fun.