George Aar

Oh, and Invisible one, I can't tell you how disappointed I and the rest of the Bilderbergers were at your absence from our yearly convention. Really, the whole cabal is beginning to wonder about your commitment. Sheesh, are you in favor of Jewish-world-financial domination or not? Concerned...

"If you want to i'll show Chapter and Verse,not my Opinion" Yeah, O.K., fine. Who could argue with that kind of logic? Golly, you've got Almighty God on yer side (where have I heard that before?) and you've got SCRIPTURE to prove it. Impressive...

ON the paper Jessica! ON THE PAPER!

Yeah, "brights"? Ugh, what a bogus, self-serving term that was. Fortunately, I don't think it caught on. Welcome to the club Seth. The superstition and intellectual dishonesty gets to ya after awhile, don't it? I'm not sure life is all that much rosier on the unbelieving side (well, except for being and to rape and murder without the slightest twinge of conscience - that comes in handy) but at least we don't have to do all the goddam mental gymnastics anymore. I was getting a brain cramp...

Don't call me Shirley...

I spent two dreary years out W.O.W. The first year I supported (for the most part) two less-than-industrious kids while the FC had his girlfriend follow us down to Alabama and move in. That lasted for a month or so, till he finally just took off with her and went back home to Idaho. We floundered around for the rest of the year and went back to the ROA, THORUOGHLY dejected. I signed up for a second year in hopes of erasing the first and hoping in vain to really "see God work" this time. It was another dreary year (in my childhood hometown) and we schlepped back to the ROA again with nothing much to show for it. So, no classes, no wonderful triumphs of God over the adversary or any of the other crap that was supposed to happen. What I DID manage to do was to thoroughly (throughly?) disrupt my life and career. The guy that took over the management position that I left, retired last year with several millions in his portfolio, I'm told. I, OTOH, am doing somewhat less well. So who needs to retire anyway? Of all the crap I did with WayWorld, going W.O.W is EASILY the most harmful, stupid and counterproductive that I ever did. And, it's the one thing that I MOST regret. A REALLY stupid move...

Yakima is where they (were/are?) located...

Personally, when I feel the need to worship, I attend the First Church of the Double-Haul, or, occasionally, The Reformed Church of the Upstream Mend. No sermons, no guilt, and no need to pretend you give a dang about anybody else in attendance. Just the sound of running water and the odd shore bird. And you can sleep in Sunday morning if you like. Afternoon service is generally more rewarding anyway...

Well, I know I was apalled when I found out what birds and bees were doing behind closed doors. They'd always seemed so nice before...

"Must be a hangover from previous days -- right?" Uh, no...

Well, I claim the title of "agnostic" (I actually would prefer "non-theist" but, whatever) as I simply see atheism as connoting a certainty that's impossible to have. How could one KNOW that there is no God? It's pretty hard to prove a negative and - given a being that has the power to create the heavens and the earth - how hard would it be for Him to keep Himself annonymous if that was His desire? Now the religions of the world, OTOH, I think pretty much disprove themselves, just by reading their doctrines. They generally tend toward the absurd, magical, incongruous, and just plain wrong, but usually with a big reward for those that stay faithful. So I don't have any problem in disavowing any acceptance of those. But is there an omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent (and largely capricious and uncaring) God floating around in space somewhere? Well, I dunno (and... I don't much care)...

"Why doesn't God just say what he means?" Well, I think the answer is self-evident if one takes off the religion blinders for more than a moment or two. I've pounded that drum enough lately though, I guess...

Herbiejuan, Re:" Three Gorges Dam (the worlds largest) will alter earths rotation once it's filled " Not trying to be obnoxious (well, any more than usual anyway) but I've got a tough time buying that. Yeah, it's a big dam, but it's a freaking ginormous world. Could ya give us a source for that prediction? I'd kinda like to check it out a bit closer afore I sign up for their weekly newsbulletin. If you think the water pollution in China must be bad, try breathing their AIR. It's the only place I've been where the air had taste. Uh, not a good taste either...

Here's a little "gem" I mined from eBay. http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...em=190135627923 Now don't you think that this person is "sold out" to the teachings they recieved in the cult of their choosing? Sure, they're keeping right with the Lord, just like they were taught. And I'm also sure they're embracing a hurtful, dangerous, even STUPID theology. Just because you STILL believe it, it STILL doesn't make it so. (and no Larry, I"m an agnostic, never claimed to be an athiest)

I used to always smell like carburetor cleaner and brake fulid. Then it was asphalt and maybe a bit of mastic. Now it's usually subfloor adhesive or maybe some ABS cement. Who'd want ot cover up such lovely fragrances with something phoney? (who still has an unopened bottle of "Brut" in the medicine chest for about the last 17 years)

"I try (with varying success) not to make personal attacks on Christians because even the worst of them are God's children and stand righteous and holy without blame in love before Him." I think this type of sentiment is where religion REALLY starts to go wrong. So what about the rest of the inhabitants of earth? Well, they're dogpoop. Do whatever you like with them, rape, pillage, make war on 'em, after all, it's not like they WORTH anything like us good (insert your dogmatic affiliation here). And as for the "It's the Word, word, word, word, .... " screed, does that even mean anything? It's just a slogan that imparts little or no real commincation, near as I can tell. But, whatever blows your skirt up...

At least one of the "sinners" in the original list is rather interesting. Peter Popoff was exposed as the charlatan and fraud that he is many years ago. Yet he returned to do the exact same scam all over again (geeze, and I thought I was gullible!). Yes, he's now in the midst of "Popoff repentance #2. You can forgive anyone you like as much as you'd like. Just don't be stupid again...

With considerable distance between me now and when I was still a TWIthead, and being a bit more circumspect as a result, I find it remarkable that anyone even wants to blather on about the "good" stuff of WayWorld. It strikes me like a bunch of mice reminiscing about how good the cheese was in the trap that caught them. "Aw sure, that wire-thingy hurt a little bit, but BOY! that was some great cheese!" It was a simple scam. We were duped, There's nothing of any real,lasting value in the "bait". It was just bait, sorry...

Oh GAWD, Are they getting their MAL packs prepared again? My sympathies CU. Dealing with culties is kinda like living with an alcoholic or something. You always have to guess what the hell is going on in their heads and dance around issues. And then all the secrecy and stonewalling. Absurd. Well, maybe whatever additional foolishness is in the making will cause your relatives to finally snap out of it? It could happen...

The DSM-IV Diagnostic Criteria for Narcissistic Personality Disorder are: A. A pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, lack of empathy, as indicated by at least five of: 1. a grandiose sense of self-importance 2. is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love 3. believes that he or she is "special" and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people (or institutions) 4. requires excessive admiration 5. has a sense of entitlement, ie unreasonable expectations of especially favourable treatment or automatic compliance with his or her expectations 6. is interpersonally exploitative, ie takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends 7. lacks empathy and is unwilling to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of others 8. is often envious of others or believes that others are envious of him or her 9. shows arrogant, haughty behaviours or attitudes

You seem to have a real fixation on astrology lately, Mr. Bump. What, you get a bad reading or something?

Thanks for that Sunesis, Your account certainly puts together a few more loose ends for me (damn, I thought I'd pretty well figured it all out by NOW), and - far from being a "doozie" - has a very real ring of truth to it. The only place I'd depart from you is, I don't think there's any ultimate consequences for his actions. I wish there were. It'd be nice to think that all the scores in life will be settled in some ethereal courtroom, but I'm afraid such notions don't have much to back them up, YMMV...

As I've said many times, I don't think religion had much of anything to do with Mr. Wierwille's real goals in life, it was just a convenient means to an end for him. A little different upbringing and he would have been an MLM mogul, or conartist, scammer, user and abuser of any sort. Read this and tell me if VPW's picture should be placed next to the definition: "The serial bully displays behaviour congruent with many of the diagnostic criteria for Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Characterised by a pervasive pattern of grandiosity and self-importance, need for admiration, and lack of empathy, people with narcissistic personality disorder overestimate their abilities and inflate their accomplishments, often appearing boastful and pretentious, whilst correspondingly underestimating and devaluing the achievements and accomplishments of others. Often the narcissist will fraudulently claim to have qualifications or experience or affiliations or associations which they don't have or aren't entitled to. Belief in superiority, inflating their self-esteem to match that of senior or important people with whom they associate or identify, insisting on having the "top" professionals or being affiliated with the "best" institutions, but criticising the same people who disappoint them are also common features of narcissistic personality disorder." You can read the whole article here: http://www.bullyonline.org/workbully/npd.htm

Hee! Is that pic from one of your recent stained glass creations? Looking good! Of course now the question becomes, "What brand would Jesus smoke?"

And a word of caution, I don't think a .22 is anywhere near as potent as it needs to be to be an effective defense weapon. I simply wouldn't think of carrying one for that purpose. Were I to start carrying again, I wouldn't get anything less than a .40 S&W. I'm not very confident in a .38 special, a 9 mm and certainly not any of the wimpy "ladies" guns that are made. Looky, if you need a gun for protection, you've got to get yourself one that's up to the task.