packsaddle

NJ, if we DID have a previous thread about that article THAT would be a fact. It might not be a fact that you 'know', however. Therefore I suppose you could have an 'opinion' about it thus making it both a fact AND an opinion??? OK, now roll your eyes and silently listen to yourself thinking, "what-EV-er".

Skeptic, can you see the 'edit' button if you hover the cursor down in the bottom row where the 'thanks' and 'quote' buttons are? If not, we can refer your situation to the gurus.

So...if, hundreds of years from now, someone promotes an unpublished written manuscript by Jerry Falwell as being somehow profound, are we going to develop, in a thousand years more, some future social media (or maybe mental telepathy?) forum debating the fine points of what he meant in his original language (now nearly forgotten) and how it applies to a different time when technology has removed some more social barriers, etc.? Jimmy Swaggart? Reverend Moon? Joel Osteen? Can you imagine the time that would be wasted doing something like that?

Or, Eagledad, you could answer. You started the thread after all. Unless you really want Merlyn to be your voice in these forums.

"I mind my own business and as long as others (any others) do the same, we're good." And I agree completely. If only everyone could just do the same.

So how would you define or otherwise distinguish 'fact' as different from 'opinion'? How would you objectively determine that moral claims are 'fact'?

That's an internal church problem. None of my business.

Stosh, I have had, and still have, many gay friends (as you probably suspect). Not a single one of them has attacked anything other than a plate full of food at our home once in a while. They, however, are quite ready to defend their right to be treated as full members of society, equals in all legal respects, and if the past restrictions on gay marriage are an example of activities they don't agree with then their organized opposition to such unfair (and, I think unconstitutional) laws is justified. But that does not constitute an attack on anything other than an unjust law which denies them

Years ago my really good Jewish friend named his two boys 'Peter' and 'Paul'. Go figure. But they got along just fine together.

Helloooo....reading comprehension time.....the reason I QUOTED YOU was because YOU referred to the local press, not me. YOU were the one who suggested reading the local press to learn about the 'reality' of things there. Pullleeeezzzzz

Interesting. "But it's always easier to believe anything in print, isn't it?" Well...if your earlier statement ("If you bothered to read any of the local press...") is a guide, the answer must be 'yes' for you as well as others. ...or is it kettles and pots...? C'mon! Lighten up, Frances!

Cambridgeskip, While i share your feeling that this doesn't make much sense, I can tell you that when I've asked this in the past, I've been informed that those laws you mention are Old Testament and that everything has been revised in the New Testament, so-to-speak, usually in the writings of Paul. H'mmmm, maybe one person really CAN make a difference.....wait a minute..what am I saying?....of course one person can....look at THE POPE....Joseph Smith....L. Ron Hubbard...Reverend Moon...David Koresh...Bhagwan Shree Rajhneesh Jim Bakker...Jim Jones...Bob Jones...Little Richard...Mayor Koch...

AZMike, Why did you post that second response in which you appear merely to have quoted yourself? Not a criticism, it's a little confusing..or maybe I'm just up too late. Anyway, I'll respond to the last part of that post, the one that isn't a quote. "Certainly, Obama's Solicitor General knows that religious colleges, and ultimately churches, will be pressured not to teach against gay marriages or risk losing their tax-exempt status. He admitted that much during his exchange with Justice Alito last week while arguing on behalf of the administration for recognition of gay marriage as a con

Feels great, doesn't it, to have these kinds of successes? Congratulations!

Is it time to mention pots and kettles?

Crotchety, maybe bordering on curmudgeonly. I should know...I'm there already.

So Rick, how about that Heinie Show? LOL, and just look...54 cents for a movie at the Alhambra, OUTRAGEOUS! But...it's Laughton and 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame'...can't go wrong. Less expensive at the others thankfully. Of course, there's "The African Queen", one of the best of all time playing at Riverside and who could pass up "With a Song in My Heart" at the drive-in? Gonna be some serious smooching tonight!

'Some people' have always been 'out there' but they seem to have taken control of things lately. We can blame ourselves. We put them in those positions. And for once, I can defend Texas (just a little bit) in that it is easy for me to identify other states and authority structures in which the 'nutters', as Beavah used to refer to them, are in charge...both at present and in the past.

Deeeelicious! It's true...you CAN'T make this stuff up, at least I can't. Thanks!

So, what is the threshold for 'major purchase'? I'll pass it on to the people who still have this policy.

You really don't know crap about what happened. There was no 'fine print'. The rental company has a fleet of about 12 cars, purchased used from Japan, most of them with inflated tires. There is no AVIS or Hertz. The rental agreement is MIMEOGRAPHED and then filled by hand and copies made with carbon paper. They run cards with a little attachment to a cell phone. And they don't put a 'hold' on a week's rental, I could have paid THAT out of pocket, they 'held' about $5000 USD. Laugh all you want but when I'm handed a debit card by the state and ordered to use it for official travel instead of

Interesting photo. The eyes, the expressions. Despite all the things we complain about, I'm thankful to be American, that my children are Americans. Edit: the next article on the Saudis was interesting too.

NJ......... decides to bang his head against something else.

Fees? Anyone who is paying fees is paying too much. To me a debit card is no different from a cash transaction, with virtually the same risks...except..... The 'hold' thing is a real problem that I've encountered before too. I had a Wells Fargo debit card and used it to rent a vehicle in another country. I had plenty in the account to cover the rental but BECAUSE it was a debit card, the RENTAL COMPANY (not the bank) put a hold on an amount that was nearly my entire budget, basically the cost of replacing the vehicle. I didn't know this until I later tried to pay for a student outing for my c