proudathiest

Istvan if you told any powerful religious institution that their claims were not literal you would be executed or excommunicated. If it is not literal then it is not true. It isn’t real. Adherents would be living lives in accordance with tiresome rituals and strictures and having expectations that were unachievable. It is the very heart of…[Read more]

Istvan, care to elaborate?

From my vantage religion is making literal claims. Whether it is or is not is not germane to antitheism. I judge of religion from the perspective-what is it, what is its nature, what does it do? Am curious where you are coming from…

I think in the matter of Rittenhouse both Fox & CNN, MSNBC made hay as the facts were spun to fit their respective narratives.

Yes Unseen Machiavelli explains as much then as now.

My point is that the masses are fed platitudes…democracy, liberty, freedom, human rights. On the other hand our actions betray our real interests. Us! And only some of us and whatever our perceived self interest is. The US has fucked over democratically elected governments and repeatedly…[Read more]

https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/03/1113972

Maybe you were aware of this…i just learned this morning. It is exactly what i was pointing out-how disingenuous and hypocritical and selective and driven by media is our collective bleeding heart for humanitarian nightmares. Everything is bullshit, hypocritical nonsense. But the shit will be…[Read more]

Enco,

I am rushed and i know there were other mistakes you made but one of em is your definition of insanity. Most of the American definitions are based on a 19th century precedent-the M’Naughton or is it Mcaughton rule. Essentially if the defendant at the time of the commission of the act that represents the crime the defendant because of a…[Read more]

Enco, all people have a right to their own facts unless and until the government acts. Were that not so there would be no religion. All religionists utilize mythology. They’re not simply opinions about the nature of reality. They posit a world in which mythology is real. Journalism and news is replete with utter BS-not just opinion but spin and…[Read more]

Enco i am surprised you affirmed and doubled down on that stance.

In the past you advocated blanket wholesale balls to the wall unabridged don’t tread on my ass FREE MUTHA FUCKIN SPEECH, BITCH!

You’ve carved a loony toons exception for fake hate crimes. You say not because it is offensive to me but no one has a right to their own facts. Does…[Read more]

This is the intermediate portrayal of our present/future and worth a look.

Autumn,

i wasn’t familiar with SLAPP. However i made up my own acronym with SLAP-sounds like a plan.

Yah when claims are dubious at best adjusters hit attorneys with NO PAY! That means sew me or screw. Under the federal rules of civil procedure there is a procedure to challenge a lawsuit immediately-failure to state a claim upon which relief…[Read more]

The part of the equation i neglected is the jury. When i first passed the bar i recall going to a seminar run by trial lawyers and they indicated that in trying a case to a jury ya absolutely had to discuss a case that was in the public imagination-the McDonald’s spill coffee and jury awarded silly money case. The anti lawyer propaganda had truly…[Read more]

Unseen:

Regarding the outcome of Rittenhouse’s trial. “Not guilty” or “Not proven”? And does it make a difference?

Also, as I noted above, “murder” has both legal and colloquial meanings, and colloquially murder can mean killing someone no matter the circumstances. So, was the NY Times describing his actions using a legal or a colloquial vo…[Read more]

Civil defamation claims are one of many exceptions or limitations to 1st amendment. It is unavailing to a defendant in a claim of slander or libel to assert 1st amendment. Truth is always a defense to defamation claims. There is also a different standard-more protective of private citizens than of celebrities.

The first thing Rittenhouse will…[Read more]

From Autumn:

In the Rittenhouse case too, we see this sort of dynamic. In the grand scheme, Kyle is likely pretty unimportant, but he’s become emblematic of either the violence that preserves an oppressive and abusive status quo, or of a resistance to a violent threat to tear apart the stability that allows Americans to live free. Kyle is a l…[Read more]

Encotunes,

Fake hate crime hoaxes are not under first amendment umbrella?

Is that what you are saying? If so what happened to your unsophisticated blanket view? Is it because the content is offensive to you?

Autumn,

Good v. evil is an old and emotionally appealing theme. But isn’t that present in all of the humanitarian crises?

Upending status quo is also present in all conflicts. The difference in the case of Ukraine is that it threatens a democracy and a part of the planet that feels more relevant to the dominant groups. I agree though that…[Read more]

Interesting timely topic typical of Autumnal testimony…

Yeah i have been wondering how the Ukraine news has become all-consuming 24/7 on the popular networks. Can’t help but juxtapose the relative harm with other invasions/civil wars/genocides. And of course it is Russia/USSR which is a super power and has had a profound influence on history of…[Read more]

Unseen I hope the fuck things turn out better than i expect. No doubt you have cited a way for Putin to end it without losing face too badly.

The universe thought the pale blue dot sought to make humans nought with slogans they fought that wrought their demise.

Not sure of the tally but it is pretty bad already…how many dead, how many refugees, how many traumatized, how many more will starve to death, how many will be fucked by ridiculous price of gas and how much greater the…[Read more]