Re: a comment on It's Time by PoeticXTC	31-Dec-05/4:50 AM
Long ago, all people were Black. Then God made a special lake which would turn a person's skin white when he bathed in it. God sent an animal to each tribe, telling them where the lake was. To the Africans, God sent an iguana. If you've ever seen an iguana walk, you'll know how slow they can be (they move each leg back and forth a couple of times before taking the next step.) By the time the iguana had reached the Africans, the lake was already drying up. Add to this the fact that Africans were a naturally lazy people, and it comes as no surprise that by the time they got to the lake it was but a mere puddle. In desperation, they walked over to the puddle and bent over putting their hands flat on the ground to mop up the remaining splodges. That's why Africans are black, apart from the soles of their feet and the palms of their hands. It's also why they hate iguanas.
Re: a comment on It's Time by PoeticXTC	29-Dec-05/5:13 PM
When you say 'deduce everything else' what do you mean? Do you mean deduce all true statements? It can be easily proven that there exist functions which are uncomputable (i.e. for any such function f there is no algorithm* to compute f(x) for all x in the domain). One such function is the function H that maps any computer program P, and input data D, to True or False, depending on whether P halts on input D, or loops forever on input D: i.e. H(P, D) = True if and only if program P halts on input D. The upshot of all this is that there are true statements that are undeducible. Clearly any machine that could 'deduce everything' would have to accept these statements as given. There are infinite such statements. So there is no finite upper bound on the minimum you'd have to program a supersupercomputer to deduce everything. The interested reader is encouraged to have a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halting_problem * Caveat: by 'algorithm' I mean 'Turing machine'. This covers all algorithms (and a lot more) that can be written on any computer, in any language, today. There might be an as yet undiscovered magical means of computation that could solve such problems, but if such a means exists, only Jesu would know about it, and it would be His little secret.
Re: a comment on CHRISTMAS EVERYDAY by amanda_dcosta	18-Dec-05/9:04 AM
Look you have you're beliefs and I have mine. Ridicule me all you want, at least I'm staying true to myself. I happen to be a Christian like you, but there are more historical texts relating to Christ's life than just the Bible. We all have different ways of interacting with God; I've chosen to do so through a medium that I feel the most comforable with. I'd appreciate it if you didn't accuse me of being delusional, that's all.
Re: a comment on CHRISTMAS EVERYDAY by amanda_dcosta	17-Dec-05/2:19 AM
If you knew anything about monotheism, or indeed Biblical scripture, you'd realise that the incarnation known as JESUS died long ago. Following His death He returned to the MOTHERSHIP, where He instructed the Angel known only as JOHN CONNOR to lower His quivering body into a vat of spiritual lava (He being incapable of self-termination.) Once LIQUIDATED, His essence joined forces with the FATHER and the HOLY GHOST forming the single most powerful entity in the Universe: MEGAZORD http://tinyurl.com/9auyb
Re: a comment on CHRISTMAS EVERYDAY by amanda_dcosta	16-Dec-05/2:21 PM
"and i feel that baby jesus is true. there's nothing false about him," Nothing false... apart from His beard. Contrary to popular belief, Jesus's's beard didn't reach full maturity until He was six years old. In the meantime, He made do with a false beard crudely woven by a local shepherd.
Re: a comment on CHRISTMAS EVERYDAY by amanda_dcosta	16-Dec-05/2:17 PM
HE WAS NOT HUMAN. HE WAS NOT OF THIS EARTH. TREAD CAREFULLY, AMANDA. YOU'RE MEDDLING IN POWERS YOU CANNOT POSSIBLY COMPREHEND...
Re: a comment on Oh Merry Fay (part 1) by ALChemy	14-Dec-05/3:13 PM
This is the best Lewis Carroll poeme: And what mean all these mysteries to me Whose life is full of indices and surds? x² + 7x + 53 = 11/3
Re: a comment on Observer by Dovina	11-Dec-05/6:07 PM
My higher level of moral excellence has come about through years of self-imposed discipline. I took to moralizing and reading the Bible from a very young age, and this has made me an excellent judge of moral inferiority. I can quickly spot flaws in my own character, and in the appalling characters of Cockneys. There's no easy way out of moral imperfection. It demands a punishing schedule of introspection and self-degradation. Not the sort of timid, parping-about-when-someone-calls-you-naughty, self-accepting, middle-shelf, look-at-me-I'm-weak, look-at-you-you're-arrogant, trumped-up, spastics-are-people-too, constructive-criticism-only-please codswallop you get from reading Gillian Stokes books. Call me old-fashioned, but my moral system is built on more serious foundations: personal experience, Biblical scripture, heightened spiritual awareness, and Native American wisdom. You've gone completely barking, anyway. How do you find imperfections without performing an act of judgement? Oh wait that happens in phase 2. So what's the point in phase 1? Oh I get it. Phase 1 establishes a mechanism of serene acceptance and contentment -- both important prerequisites for any self-flagellation ceremony!
Re: a comment on Observer by Dovina	11-Dec-05/1:48 PM
Thank you, Paul.
Re: a comment on Observer by Dovina	11-Dec-05/1:35 PM
You're talking a load of bollocks. I doubt you've even thought deeply enough about "serene acceptance" to treat it as anything other than a cosy way looking at life. It was only when I pointed out its moral bankruptcy that you had to start spouting things like, "No I actually look at myself without judgment in phase 1, then I look at myself with judgement in phase 2." Well good for you. I look at myself WITH judgement in ALL phases, which is why I've achieved a greater degree of moral excellence than you. The whole "acceptance" exercise is an abdication designed to make you feel better about yourself. "If I judge myself harshly, condemn or punish for imagined failings, I undermine contentment." Of course you undermine contentment. That's what punishment is all about. You're right about one thing, though: many people have reached the same conclusion as you. They're called Cockneys, and if any of them could read, I'm sure they'd have whole shelves full of Gillian Stokes self-help claptrap.
Re: a comment on Observer by Dovina	10-Dec-05/6:22 PM
"When I truly become present without judgment, serene acceptance and deep contentment follow." Of course you feel contented. You've deliberately chosen to ignore all your failings in exchange for peace of mind. If observing without judgment isn't divorcing oneself from responsibility, then what is it? It's judgment that separates decent, hardworking people from cockneys. If everyone went around serenely accepting themselves, the incentive for correcting dysfunctional behaviour would have to come from outside. Clearly you aren't old enough to live in anything other than a nanny state. Quite frankly, I'm ashamed of you.
Re: Hope by sliver	10-Dec-05/3:17 PM
Needs a little less hope and a lot more sorrow. Just saying "In the midst of my sorrow" isn't enough to convince me -- when you stumble across hope, I end up thinking you don't deserve it.
Re: a comment on Observer by Dovina	10-Dec-05/3:09 PM
I'm sure it's a pleasant feeling to divorce yourself from all responsibility. It's also the last thing this world needs. Condemnation. Punishment. Lowliness. Until you've grown up, that should be your motto. What possible good will come from shamelessly patting yourself on the back?
Re: The Third Fall Of Jesus by amanda_dcosta	10-Dec-05/2:51 PM
This poeme really touched my heart. It made me realise that if you pray, and put your faith in God, He will look after you no matter what happens. All those people who cross the road and end up being majorly spazzed up by a truck (as opposed to being mildly befuddled by a bike) have only themselves to blame. If they'd actually bothered to go to church regularly they would never have ended up so hideously deformed. Excellent work -10-
Re: a comment on Thunder by dooley	1-Dec-05/4:27 PM
It comes from the heart.
Re: AIDS in a van by -=Dark_Angel=-, P.I.	1-Dec-05/2:12 PM
I'd just like to wish everyone on poemeranker a very happy World AIDS Day. (For those that don't know, the 1st of December is a very special time of year when people of all faiths and sexual orientations come together to celebrate AIDS.)
Re: a comment on Us Sinners by BrandonW	19-Nov-05/6:39 PM
'Integrity is something a person does with the appearance of thoughtful conversation, wouldn't you say?' No, I wouldn't say. Spastics are incapable of the 'appearance of thoughtful conversation,' yet many of them are the most heartwarmingly 'integral' people I know. This has nothing to do with whether or not trumping is counter-intellectual, and everything to do with the fact that while you think it's arrogant and beneath you, you continue to trump in the first derivative. Integrate your way out of that one, spazmo.
Re: a comment on Us Sinners by BrandonW	19-Nov-05/5:59 PM
Saying "I could trump you but won't" is the worst of both worlds. Not only do you keep your ego in tact by letting everyone know you could grind your opponent to a pulp, but you also casually 'avoid' the guilt associated with publicly humiliating someone. It's an easy game to play, provided you don't let a little thing called integrity stand in the way. The rest of us aren't so greasy. In future, if you can trump someone, have the balls to trump them openly. If you can't, or won't because you're against trumping on principle, then don't you dare try to take the moral high ground by positing a stealth trump, then pretending it never existed.
Re: a comment on Racism by Dovina	17-Nov-05/4:10 PM
What was the first thing you did when you discovered you were a Black?
Re: a comment on Racism by Dovina	17-Nov-05/4:09 PM
I notice you didn't include Blacks on your list...