WordWolf

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/27/books/review/Caldwell-t.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1 Ok, let's see.... "Forsaking his education, Koestler moved to Palestine. Allergic to the hard physical labor it took to make the desert bloom, Koestler didn’t last long." Ok, THAT sounds like vpw. He was not to be found when it was time to do his chores around the farm, and avoided physical labor in general. "But there is a consistent note of autodidactic crankiness, too. Koestler’s enthusiasms included Lamarckian evolution, telepathy and ESP, a theory of creation that we would call intelligent design, levitation and the belief — laid out in his late book “The Thirteenth Tribe” — that Ashkenazi Jews are descended from the Khazars of the North Caucasus." vpw also has "a consistent note of autodidactic crankiness." He claims to have picked it all up without conventional sources, and God help you if you disagreed with vpw! "Crankiness" puts it mildly! Koestler's poor science- he embraced Lamarckian evolution, which is simplistic science fiction, and knowing THAT, it's no surprise he could come up with the idea that Ashkenazi Jews weren't "Jews" but Khazar converts to Judaism. (Both Lamarckian evolution and Koestler's ideas about Ashkenazi have been disproven conclusively using genetics.) " But the Koestler he depicts is consistently repugnant — humorless, megalomaniac, violent. Like many people concerned about “humanity,” he was contemptuous of actual humans. He ignored and snubbed his mother (who had pawned her last diamond to pay for his passage to Palestine), and he rebuffed every attempt to arrange a meeting between him and his illegitimate daughter. What made him such a creep? Perhaps alcohol — Koestler threw tables in restaurants and was arrested for drunken driving on many occasions. Perhaps insecurity — he was tormented by his shortness (barely 5 feet 6 inches) and used to stand on tippy-toe at cocktail parties. “We all have inferiority complexes of various sizes,” Koestler’s Communist editor Otto Katz once told him. “But yours isn’t a complex — it’s a cathedral.” In the late 1990s, Jill Craigie, the wife of the Labour politician Michael Foot, told Cesarani that Koestler had raped her decades earlier. The scandal that resulted when Cesarani’s own Koestler biography was published embroiled Scammell, who had defended Koestler in 1995 against an allegation of attempted rape made by Foot. Scammell argues here that “the exercise of male strength to gain sexual satisfaction wasn’t exactly uncommon at that time” and that “Craigie’s story and Cesarani’s embellishment of it have left a stain on Koestler’s reputation far larger than he deserves.” He is wrong. Posterity has let Koestler off lightly. Every scrap of evidence that Scammell himself has so impartially gathered argues in favor of crediting Craigie’s story. Bertrand Russell’s wife claimed Koestler tried to rape her, too. “Without an element of initial rape,” Koestler wrote the woman who would be his second wife, “there is no delight.” One girlfriend called him “an odd mixture of consideration, thoughtfulness and extraordinary brutality.” Certain aspects of Koestler’s sexism — in particular, his expectation that his girlfriends serve him as stenographers and maids — are indeed mitigated by the era in which he lived. His pattern of predation and violence, though, is a vice of a different order. It shocked those who encountered it. " I don't think Koestler INSPIRED vpw, but if vpw knew, he surely ADMIRED him for it- vpw admired Stiles for an unkind word that "put his wife in her place", as they'd see it. "The point can be made more generally: In print as in life, he was driven by ego, not principle. His subject was himself." Now, THAT would be a neat summary of vpw for the curious, as well!

Welcome! You'll find that the posters here run the gamut between Christian, non-Christian atheist, etc. If you're looking to find Christians who are still Christians after twi, this is not a bad place to look. (Keep in mind the messageboard as a whole is not about Christianity, and if you want an open discussion on beliefs, please post it in "DOCTRINAL".) That having been said, hello. You'll find that here, the rum is NOT gone. ;) BTW, before I forget to ask, if you're a Jedi Master, what lightsaber forms do you practice?

Seems like a decent enough place to build the next Jonestown...

"Hey, Hey, we're the Monkees!"

The Dark Night.

Yes. "Journey's End." Actually, The Traveler (aka "Lakanta", was already involved and disguised as a settler. No idea how that worked. Actually, there was no Maquis resistance at this time- the decision made at the beginning of the episode was what eventually INSPIRED the Maquis resistance. Picard: "I must point out that when you first came to this world, you were warned that it was the subject of a dispute between the Federation and the Cardassians. You were asked not to settle here." Wakasa: "Do you know how long we have searched for a home? Almost two hundred years. Then we found this world... Can you blame us for not wanting to give it up?" Picard: "I understand and respect the long journey of your people. But I believe we can help you find a new home." Troi: "As you can see, there are three other planets in this sector that have environmental conditions similar to those here on Dorvan Five. They are all uninhabited... and could be colonized immediately." Picard: "And if those worlds don't meet with your approval, then we'll find you other choices." Wakasa: "You don't understand... the choice of this world was not limited to... "environmental conditions." There were other... more intangible concerns as well. My people have always had an... intimate bond with nature. We think of ourselves as being a part of it... and it being a part of us. One of the reasons our ancestors left Earth two hundred years ago was because that bond had been severed. They began to control the weather. We believe -- very strongly --that nature should not be "fixed" or controlled. Droughts and floods... tornadoes and hurricanes... these are natural events. By putting man above nature... an imbalance was created. We could no longer live in harmony with our environment." Picard: "I can assure you that we will not impose a weather control system or anything else on your people. Whatever world you choose to colonize will be completely yours to do with as you please." Anthwara: "Captain, once the bond between us and Earth had been broken, we had to find a planet where we could establish a new bond... a planet that would welcome us. When I came here twenty years ago, I was welcomed by the mountains... the rivers... the sky." Wakasa: "He's laughing at you, Anthwara. He thinks you're talking about old superstition and nonsense." Picard: "That's not true. I have a great deal of respect for your beliefs and the meaning they hold for your people." Anthwara: "Then you should respect the fact that this planet holds a deeply spiritual significance for us. It took us two centuries to find a place where the mountains gave us permission to use their stone for our houses... where the rivers let us drink from their waters... and where the wind sang to us at night. We don't want to spend another two hundred years searching for what we already have." The settlers, for all their convictions, and the spiritual significance of the planet, faced the same questions as Goshaven several seasons earlier. Leave the planet-which they didn't WANT to do- or be killed off by another group of "settlers"- which they really have to avoid. No point in having a deep spiritual connection to a planet you're on if it's going to get you turned into an oily smear. How did they know that the other planets Picard offered would not welcome them just as much, or even more? They didn't even entertain the notion that they could find any candidate to be acceptable to their spiritual criteria. If they tried and it didn't happen, then they lost nothing by sending a few people to look around. We even saw them prepared to make the same mistake Goshaven was prepared to make. "Why have you taken these men prisoner?" "They were invading our homes...violating our privacy... this is not their world. They have no right to be here." "The terms of the treaty do give them the right to... survey this planet." "We don't recognize that treaty. We're not going to let the Cardassians have Dorvan Five. No matter what the cost." 1) Disregarding a treaty signed by the Federation means they're breaking Federation law- and that's exactly what they want. 2) Fighting an overt, "hot" war with the arriving Cardassians was more than stupid. Gul Evek's response was obvious and predictable. "Two of our men on the surface have been taken prisoner. Prepare to send an armed squad to rescue them and to occupy the village." Picard talked him into just beaming his men up instead- rather than shooting and dragging the Enterprise into another shooting war right then and there. "Gul Evek, those people down there are Federation citizens and I am sworn to protect them. If your troops attack the village, my security forces will respond..." The settlers ultimately had 3 choices: 1) Resettle on a different planet. 2) Stay and resist-and be bombed to bits once the Enterprise left. 3) Forswear their Federation citizenship and take their chances the Cardassians will somehow treat them fairly, despite little motivation to do so. "Anthwara... I want to make absolutely sure you understand the implications of this agreement. By giving up your status as Federation citizens... any future request you or your people make for assistance from Starfleet will go unanswered. You will be on your own... and under Cardassian jurisdiction." "I understand, Captain. And we are prepared to take that risk. Will the Cardassian government honor the agreement you've made here?" "I believe that I can convince them this is an... equitable solution. I cannot speak for every Cardassian you will encounter..but if you leave us alone... I suspect that we will do the same." Now, see, if all settlers in the new Cardassian territories who chose to stay ALSO made the same agreement, they were NO LONGER Federation citizens and their own problem from then on. The real problem with the Maquis was not the utter stupidity of the Maquis, but the Federation's refusal to stick to its OWN agreements. They should have said "Well, it's tragic that the Cardassians are wiping out their own colonies, but those ARE Cardassian colonies, after all, and that's a purely internal matter, and the Federation does not involve itself with the internal problems of the Cardassians or anyone else." After all, that's what was said in OTHER episodes, and even how they dealt with the Romulans arming the sisters of Duras in a Klingon Civil War. (They prevented the Romulans from interfering, and ended their involvement there.) Instead, the Feds disregarded the legal status of the FORMER Federation citizens, and interfered anyway.

It IS "Moonlighting."

"Earl Grey Tea... watercress sandwiches... Bularian canapes...Are you up for a promotion?" "I'm trying to establish a new relationship with the Admiral. There's been a certain amount of... tension between us in the past." "Tension's not the word I would use..." "What do you know about your family, Captain?" "A great deal actually. My father was a strong believer in passing along the family history and traditions." "Tell me about your family. We have very strong ties to our ancestors... we believe their actions guide us even now. Knowing more about your family might help me to better understand you." "There are many things you don't understand yet... but you will." "I don't mean to be rude, but I wish you'd stop talking about me in the future tense." "...at that time they were warned the planet was hotly disputed by the Cardassians. The bottom line is... they never should have settled there in the first place." "Remember how we always talked about improving the quantum efficiency by creating a new plasma-dyne relay? Well, feast your eyes on this." "You've only got one micro-fusion inter-relay in here... the converter interface will never hold up." "Hey, I ran the diagnostics myself.This little baby will withstand over five hundred Cochranes of warp field stress." "I don't think so. You better put a secondary phase inverter in there. In fact, this entire subprocessor matrix needs an overhaul."

"Well, let me remind you Mr. Addison, that one case does not a detective make." "Well, let me remind you Ms. Hayes, that I HATE IT WHEN YOU TALK BACKWARDS." "David, may I please have some ANSWERS?" "Delaware, all of the above, 90 degrees." "Where's Dave and Maddie?" "They're not in this episode." "Fire at Will! Or Al, or Harry! Or whoever the hell else you can hit!" "Get serious? Maddie, I just touched your rear end, if I get any more serious they're gonna move us to cable!" "You need me, Maddie Hayes." "I need you to leave." "You need me to live, lady. You are one cold, icy broad. You've got your nose so high in the air, it's snowing on your brain." "Did you call?" "I called you ever name in every language."

Next episode. "Earl Grey Tea... watercress sandwiches... Bularian canapes...Are you up for a promotion?" "I'm trying to establish a new relationship with the Admiral. There's been a certain amount of... tension between us in the past." "Tension's not the word I would use..." "What do you know about your family, Captain?" "A great deal actually. My father was a strong believer in passing along the family history and traditions." "Tell me about your family. We have very strong ties to our ancestors... we believe their actions guide us even now. Knowing more about your family might help me to better understand you." "There are many things you don't understand yet... but you will." "I don't mean to be rude, but I wish you'd stop talking about me in the future tense."

"Well, let me remind you Mr. Addison, that one case does not a detective make." "Well, let me remind you Ms. Hayes, that I HATE IT WHEN YOU TALK BACKWARDS." "David, may I please have some ANSWERS?" "Delaware, all of the above, 90 degrees."

Right. The episode is the ST:TNG episode "Second Chances." Due to a freak accident involving the planet they were evacuating from, William T. Riker barely escaped a planet several years ago during beam-out... but a second William T. Riker materialized back on the planet as the first materialized on the starship. The ship left with Riker and the crew had no idea anyone was left behind. Years later, they visit the planet again-and both Rikers meet. After an episode with some interesting character development and interaction- and both Rikers grating on each other from the differences in their experiences since the accident- they go their separate ways, our usual Riker staying on the Enterprise, and the rescued Riker accepting a posting on the USS Gandhi. To distinguish himself from our usual Riker, he legally changed his name to "Thomas", his middle name. (One book said "T." stood for "Thelonius", and another said he had 2 middle names, Thomas AND Thelonius. That's not completely unheard of even in our present.) Anyway, my cryptic question was understood- "Thomas" means "twin", and was also translated "Didymus" in the Bible (also "twin".) So, I asked if that was the episode without giving the episode name. Personally, my favorite scene in the episode is in the prologue, when Riker is playing in a jazz band and asking for requests. Troi keeps requesting "Nightbird" because she knows he's never gotten the hang of playing the instrumental bridge. As he prepares to try, Picard pages him to report to the Bridge. (Once again, Jonathan Frakes said a LOT with his face in that scene. He ignored Troi, then he gives her a flat look when he accepts the request, then he focuses and pumps the slide as he gets ready, and finally looks so pleased when he has to answer the call. :)

It's not Christmas without "a Charlie Brown Christmas" and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" for me either. Songs outside those who speak of the season-to me- include "Snoopy's Christmas". As fanciful as it is, it reminds me of the "Christmas Truce" of World War I (which I expect it was meant to.) http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/truce.asp http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_truce http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyPQ8cXzBZw =============== Normally, I don't seek out Christmas songs of various kinds, but the thing that bugs me especially is hearing a song with more than one stanza- sung as if it is only ONE stanza, sung over and over. Like "Silent Night"-with the first verse sung twice and the song ending. Where's the shepherds quaking at the sight?

Didymus?

"Yes. Where on earth am I gonna get that kind of money?" "I don't know. But we will." "We will... How?" "We'll make it." "Where? On the Xerox machine?!" " I'm going to the museum. They're exhibiting a new Gauguin." "Gauguin? Oh, I heard of him. That's the guy who duked it out with Godzilla, right?" "That man belongs in a pound!" "Pound of what?" "You can't just burst in here like that!" "Oh yeah? Tell that to the writers." "Wipe that stupid grin off your face." "This is the smartest grin I know." "You are eye crust!" "The better to see you with, my dear." "You are navel lint!" "Expensive navel lint." "You are..." "Don't go much lower, they'll take us off the air." "...I don't want you to panic but there is a dead man in the back of the car. "Dead?" "Either that or that man wears an obscene amount of blue rouge." "Heeeerre's PETRUCCHIO!" "Wait a second, wait a second, wait a second, there's a page missing out of my copy of the script." "I always play my horn with my shirt off. Late at night, by an open window, next to a flashing neon light. I know I look good that way." "I walked the streets for hours that night, my mind was reeling. I felt alone, adrift, I had never murdered anyone before. I had so many questions. How long was I supposed to walk the streets? How much guilt was I supposed to be feeling? How long will those signs float over my head? I wasn't ready to stop talking to myself yet, so I figured I might be better company if I had a couple of drinks." "Just extending the metaphor. "Extend it somewhere else." "Doesn't it seem a bit... quiet to you?" "Well, this is our slow time." "Morning?" "Well...." "Mondays?" "Kind of." "Spring?" "The eighties."

Another quote might make the difference. (Or maybe not, but you can try.)

Nothing so old.

Nothing so recent.

If it's a "Die Hard", Bruce Willis HAS to be in it, so.... Bruce Willis Hudson Hawk Andie Mc Dowell

"Yes. Where on earth am I gonna get that kind of money?" "I don't know. But we will." "We will... How?" "We'll make it." "Where? On the Xerox machine?!" " I'm going to the museum. They're exhibiting a new Gauguin." "Gauguin? Oh, I heard of him. That's the guy who duked it out with Godzilla, right?" "That man belongs in a pound!" "Pound of what?" "You can't just burst in here like that!" "Oh yeah? Tell that to the writers." "Wipe that stupid grin off your face." "This is the smartest grin I know." "You are eye crust!" "The better to see you with, my dear." "You are navel lint!" "Expensive navel lint." "You are..." "Don't go much lower, they'll take us off the air."

I am able to accept a sufficient description of the movie in place of the title. Since there's only 1 movie where Indiana Jones and Sean Connery went after the Grail, I accept this as correct. ("Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.") So, it is your turn!

"He chose poorly."

*snicker* What is this, yankees falling from the skies? Aaaaaah! *whump* Yes, El Guapo. That's "THE THREE AMIGOS!"

Yeah, I know..... "Yes. Where on earth am I gonna get that kind of money?" "I don't know. But we will." "We will... How?" "We'll make it." "Where? On the Xerox machine?!" " I'm going to the museum. They're exhibiting a new Gauguin." "Gauguin? Oh, I heard of him. That's the guy who duked it out with Godzilla, right?" "That man belongs in a pound!" "Pound of what?"

One thing I find interesting about Loy's "Rise and Expansion" class/book/whatever... In the course of 10 years time, the man took a ministry of perhaps 40,000 people and reduced it to a ministry of about 4,000 people (and falling.) From 1988-1989 alone, he had reduced the numbers by 4/5. Forgive me if I can see a man do that, and refuse to take seriously the idea that BEFORE he did that, he studied out how the First Century Christian Church expanded in numbers and thrived under persecution, and understood it.