jakee

I've always wondered about this bit. Because in Genesis all old Mighty has to do is pronounce something for it to exist. So it seems that He or She all of a sudden creates other gods at once in order to belittle them. Or is god not omnipotent in that god cannot create other gods... hmm... The least Christians could do is acknowledge their god's actions, and thus recognize other gods, even if they do not worship them. There is only one God (Mk. 12:32, Mk. 12:29, 1 Tim. 2:5, 1 Cor. 8:4, Gal. 3:20, James 2:19, Ps. 86:10, Deut. 6:4,5, Isa. 44:8, Isa. 45:21, Isa. 45:22, Isa. 46:9, Isa. 45:5, Isa. 45:18, Mal. 2:10) Simple quantity of repetition has no bearing on the truth of a statement. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

On the sci-fi side Arthur C Clarke's "001 series and Rendezvous with Rama are classics. The first few Dune books are also well worth a read. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

I would also strongly recommend any of Neil Gaimans novels, though I would put Stardust ahead of American Gods - one review on Amazon describes it as a 'perfect novel', I would tend to agree! Also of course, Pullmans Northern Lights trilogy. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

I haven't read the Bourne books but I did find the Ludlum books I have read to be an absolute mission to get through. Decent enough plots but a slow, plodding writing style. I feel the same way about James Patterson and he's hugely popular too Do you want to have an ideagasm?

The only Bond film that really is a tense, plot driven spy thriller and it is one of the very best. Not to say they have to be like that though - You Only Live Twice is one of my favourites and has the full on volcano base / space warfare / techno gadgetry stuff going on. I think the real problem with the latest Bond movies is that they got lazy. They couldn't be bothered to write good dialogue and measured plots to go along with the set piece action sequences. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

He chose the Israelites above all others to carry his message. He must have thought they were doing something right. And remember that those 'civil' laws of theirs were based on their religion. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

There's civil, ceremonial, and moral law recorded in the Bible. They differ. Unfortunately they do not seem to well differentiated, and different people differentiate them in different ways. That too. As an aside to Paj - the hotel that hosts the British Parachute Ass'n AGM (and pissup) has a 10 foot high statue of Poseidon in their foyer. Is that one of the ten most immoral things they could do? Do you want to have an ideagasm?

There's civil, ceremonial, and moral law recorded in the Bible. They differ. I seem to remember that god was hot on striking down those who disobeyed his moral laws back in those days. The israelites were never punished for their shockingly evil civil laws, ipso facto God approved of them. They may not be moral laws that the bible obliges us to follow today, but they are examples of behaviour that god finds morally acceptable. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

True, and generally I do like those retro hitchcock style animated opening sequences (the on for Kiss Kiss bang Bang is awesome) but I just didn't think this one was done very well. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Ok, in that case I also liked the way that they set up the favouritism that M has always shown for 007 - especially with Judi Dench in the Brosnan films. By having Bond be so stageringly arrogant in breaking into her house/ stealing her passwords etc. I think that shows why she goes on to have such affection for him. Everyone loves a rebel Do you want to have an ideagasm?

The James Bond timeline doesn't need to make sense - it wouldn't make sense even if it was still linear (Bond would be mid 70's). When George Lazenby took over from Connery in OHMSS the first scene included a wisecrack that 'This would never happen to the other guy.' They needed to get away from all the gadgets for at least one film - unfortunately that meant leaving Q out as well. Still, its just not the same without Desmond Llewelyn anyway Totally, the starting credits (and song) were lame. Bring back the naked chicks!! Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Thats lucky, 'cos a lot of the moral law written in the bible is atrocious. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

During the cold war the KGB assassinated a defector on London bridge by firing a ricin pellet into his leg with a fake umbrella. How's that for theatrics? That was the KGB making a statement during the cold war. What statement do you think Putin is trying to make? Is it possibe that someone is trying to frame Putin? Surely Putin could have had him killed without implicating Russian g-men. Given the man I think any method would have implicated the Russians. If it was them, and they'd just shot him then there would probably be more chance of the killers being arrested - this way they were almost guaranteed to get away while still being certain of his death, I guess. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

During the cold war the KGB assassinated a defector on London bridge by firing a ricin pellet into his leg with a fake umbrella. How's that for theatrics? Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Lol. He was wearing a space suit. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Yep. My earlier post about it does now seem quite inadequate at describing the sheer scale of collusion! Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Suddenly put everything in order? You're not, um, under the impression that loads of stars and planets spewed straight out of the big bang in fully formed galaxies are you? This is an example of why it's so hard to argue with creationists. Kids Creationists say the darndest things Do you want to have an ideagasm?

By turning Afghanistan into a peaceful and (relatively) unified nation and ridding it of Al Qaeda I do believe we would have been protecting the US and Europe. but we decided to tread water there while we focused on turning Iraq into the biggest terrorist breeding ground in the world. Now they're both fucked up. Do you think its going to stop now? Do you want to have an ideagasm?

So which of those those excerpts were a) by the administration and b) using genocide as a reason for war? If your answer is none you have completely missed TK's point. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Suddenly put everything in order? You're not, um, under the impression that loads of stars and planets spewed straight out of the big bang in fully formed galaxies are you? Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Thats not the point. You have absolutely no reason to believe that there aren't any other earth like planets in the universe yet you have categorically stated there are not. While we're on the subject though, did you know that around vents in the deep ocean organisms have been found that don't metabolise oxygen? Opens up a whole new realm of possibilities. Believe in the overwhelming likelyhood of space aliens, yeah I do. Believe in aliens that are here, nah. On the one hand, the universe is big. On the other hand, the universe is really, really big. I find it hard to fathom that we (or other civilisations) could ever become advanced enough to conquer the vast distances involved in interstellar travel. And if they did, I doubt they'd waste their time anal-probing toothless dairy farmers. One thing I sometimes idly contemplate (as jcd pointed out about telescopes being 'timemachines') is how many races we may be looking up at in the stars who have long since fallen into dust by the time their light reaches us. Hmmm. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

No its not Did you even read the link you posted? Oh wait, you were too busy making puns... So to refresh your memory, What the hell kind of explanation is that? Its just a piece of vague speculation plonked in their with zero supporting theory or evidence. Weak dude, seriously weak. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Many? Are you kidding me - many? They pale into complete insignificance compared to the number that continue to promote evolution. Do you want to have an ideagasm?

Hi, now I don't know a huge amount about cold weather gear (so take this with a grain of salt) but I do have an awesome top that works for me from Icebreaker. Its made from Merino wool and they do everything from base to outer layers. I've got a base/mid layer top and it is the warmest thing I've ever owned. Its almost as thin as a decent cotton T-shirt but insulates better than my heaviest jumper. Perfect way to stay warm and not look like Michelin man IMO

Dear lord, its called a rhetorical question! Look it up if you've never heard of it, they're quite common. Perhaps you could apologise to Dr Carroll for your blatant misrepresentation by buying the book and finding out the context? Its on Amazon. You can't ask a question and then forbid people from telling you the correct answer. With the exception of some sharks, crocodiles and possibly cockroaches most species around us are in some form of transition - some far more noticeably than others. Yes, I saw that - it did make me giggle! The creator you envision would be endowed with unlimited intellect, innovation and creativity. The unfathomable murk of quantom theory, gravity, sub-atomic particles etc would (if he existed) attest to that. Why then, would he re-use and modify existing "off the shelf" parts that, when taken too far from their original role, start to show serious limitations? Look at us - if we are, as you say, the pinnacle of gods creation why have we been lumbered with a lower back, hip and knee arrangement bodged up from what the primitive apes had left over? So god's been able to knock off early that day but we're left with an awkward, injury prone arrangement that works just well enough to let us go upright but wears out 30 years before the rest of us! It makes no sense, god wouldn't need common design, evolution demands it. By the way, I asked a question on a different tack about creationism and intelligent life in the universe - what is your view? Do you want to have an ideagasm?