Fiannan

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Everything posted by Fiannan

  1. Great quotes against following church leaders blindly such as:
  2. During his last public sermon John Taylor stated: Journal of Discourses 26, page 152. That is one of the quotes from John Taylor. I know there are many other statements to this effect by him and otehr leaders but...
  3. I think that would depend on what branch of Judaism. Certainly orthodox Jews and maybe even a significant number of conservative Jews would have supported Prop. 8. I would bet the vast majority of reform Jews would have sided with the opposition (note: Most Jews in the entertainment industry are reform).
  4. Hey there. I was wondering if people have access to quotes from LDS leaders that make a distinction between following laws based on righteous principles and not following laws based on man-made philosophies that are counter to the scriptures. Where I used to live I had access to a wonderful institute library with lots of books containing such information (i.e. John Taylor's quote that if given the choice of obeying God and obeying man he would follow God) but unfortunantely now I only have the internet and that makes it more difficult to search down quotes. So if anyone has any examples I would really appreciate responses.
  5. I do not believe that homsexuality is in and of itself something we are born with. There may be personality or genetic predispositions that can make one more likely to experiment with this lifestyle though. Perhaps novelty genes (the predisposition to seek out things that are different) would cause someone to try this out. Perhaps being highly sensitive could make one more vulnerable to disturbances in early childhood when we should bond or imprint on a desire to seek out the opposite sex. As for the idea that the rate of homosexuality has remained constant that is highly doubtful. Perhaps this is based on the flawed Kinsey studies (the myth of 10% still creeps out into popular culture). If the culture is more positive to homosexual expression then obviously you will have more people adopt it. Now I know that there are those who claim that the only people truly fluid in their sexual choices are bi-sexuals, and that they are the only ones who could go one way or another, but that is merely explaining something after it has occured (Joe left homosexuality when he became a Christian so he probably wasn't really gay in the first place). In today's society I think it is quite apparent that people engage in more same-sex situations than in the past because the social stigma has been removed (heck on MTV there is a show where a woman has a group of men and a group of women and she eventually gets down to the one she wants to try a relationship with). Now if we accept Spencer W. Kimball's statement that we marry the people we date it is only logical that if people experiment with the same sex many will indeed pair up with them just like if they were dating a member of the opposite sex.
  6. Why do people always bring up the Hitler issue? I thought that there was an unwritten rule in cyberspace that once Hitler is brought up in a discussion then the point was moot? Just for clarrification, Hitler was not all that pro-family. He only supported measures that would increase the number of Germans. Abortion and pornography was legalized in nations Germany took over. Abortion was illegal in Germany unless thre was reason to believe the child would not be healthy. Hitler also wanted to do away with traditional marriage as he saw it as limiting the strength of the population (he was very much wanting a society based on the ideas of Plato as well as a eugenic policy based on Sparta). Now to the main point, we have to weigh issues. Personally, if there were a candidate running who was a lesbian who favored gay marriage but she was pro life running against a guy who was in favor of Roe v. Wade but aslo against gay marriage then I'd vote for the lesbian. Abortion is a major issue as it relates to life. Other issues are important but not as important in my opinion. So yeah, if Dirty Harry Reid were runnning against a pro-abortion Republican and I were living in Nevada I'd vote for Reid.
  7. What's okay is that people have a right to believe how they want and unless you want to say that anyone who has a preference for certain hair color, skin pigment, size, facial structure, etc. is flirting with racism then you should recognize that. I think you know the context of the post I made but then again if you want to get all offended then be my guest even though that was not my intention.
  8. On the issue of interracial dating I think it depends on why you are against it that could make one a racist. I don't think that a person wanting to preserv etheir racial/ethnic/cultural identity and group is a racist for teaching their kids not to date outside their group..I also don't believe one is a racist if they want their grandkids to look like them. However, people who might be against it because they hate a particular group or think them inferior would probably be racist.
  9. Sure it wasn't in the New York Times? I mean the NYT and the National Enquirer are at about the same level. Okay, yeah I know, that's an insult to the National Enquirer. Then again, the LA Times and the Weekly World News...now that would be a tossup on journalistic integrity.
  10. Okay, just to put this into perspective -- a couple of irresponsible mortgage lenders go belly up and the only thing that sames them is the taxpayers forking over nearly a trillion dollars. That's okay though, it's doubtful China will demand its money back very soon. The ripple effect is worldwide in case people have not noticed. And more is to come, a lot more. Then there is still the terrorist threat. A terrorist group merely has to get their hands on a nuke and evaporate a major city like London or New York and then what do you think the outcome will be? Then again, if they have medical expertise they only have to go into an area like Canada or Alaska, dig up a frozen victimn of smallpox and cultivate the virus and welcome to a repeat of Africans and Europeans meet Indians and pass on microbes. The effect would be catastrophic since nobody except active duty military personell in several nations have been vacinated. Then there's mother nature without human aid. The potentials are there and we should not fear -- but should always be prepared.
  11. "Thou sahalt not kill" has been interpreted by Jewish, Islamic and Christian scholars alike to mean that you will not murder the innocent. I cannot remember the talk I heard way back in the late 1970s but in times of war we are supposed to try to subdue our opponents if we have the chance rather than kill them. So does that mean those in Britain who ordered the fire bombing of Dresden, Germany in World War 2 are guilty of murder and will be accountable? In my opinion yes. Yet if you are a soldier on a battlefield and you know that if you don't shoot the guy approaching you with a gun you will be killed are you guilty of murder if you kill him? No you aren't. A baby in the womb, where there is a healthy pregnancy should be allowed to live. Killing it is taking innocent blood and that is wrong. God will probably punish the nations who allow this sort of thing quite severely if He still has the characteristics whown in the Book of Mormon and the Bible. As for executing a murderer we find in Alma as well as much of the Bible that the death penalty is justified for murderers. All the talk of cost, revenge or other factors brought up by opponents of the death penalty are immaterial.
  12. Buy your guns quick. Depending on the election next week your window of opportunity might close in the near future.
  13. Gun control advocates either don't trust you with a gun or don't trust themselves. I think it's the later with projection involved towards others.
  14. Loudmouth_Mormon, psychology generally teaches us that there are underlying motives for extreme behavior. For instance, reaction formation totally explains why when you question a peace activist they often get violent in words or deeds. There are underlying emotional motives that are far removed from rational thought. Our entire economic structure of consumption and commercialism is based on this and it originates in theory from Edward Bernays who is basically the father of public relations and marketing. Look up his book called Propaganda online and you will find what he was talking about.
  15. Raging Against Self Defense: A Psychiatrist Examines The Anti-Gun Mentality, By Sarah Thompson, M.D. This is an excellent article originally printed at Jews For The Preservation of Firearms Ownership, Inc. . It explains what defense mechanisms are involved when a person wants to ban guns. Very good analysis.
  16. Not sure about that one. The Bible does discourage parents from letting their children see them naked -- not sure if the OT was talking about nudity in the home or "naked" as in in some sort of sexual activity though. I do know that children raised in nudist colonies tend to remain virgins longer and have a better understanding of sexuality once they are teens but I would assume that the British education stuff is dealing with more than "Here is what a naked man looks like and here is what a naked woman looks like.". In Islam parents are encouraged to let their children sleep in the same room as the children but there are extreme limitations on what the children are allowed to witness -- so it is unlikely that children see their parents have sex. However, a friend of mine from Afghanistan was griping about western culture to me one time (most Muslims I know have little respect for "modern" western "values") and she said that most western women are terrified of pregnancy due to the way childbirth is presented on TV as well as the mystification of mom going off to the hospital if she is ready to give birth. However, in traditional societies young women can be with female relatives when they give birth but not young boys. This allows the young women to get a rather positive appreciation for pregnancy and childbirth. Again, in respect to Britian and the people wanting to have this in the USA, what is the point of this sex education prior to the child being able to grasp abstract concepts? I suppose in England the goal is to get young people on birth control as well as accepting homosexual pairings as okay. Indoctrinate the child young and then you control his or her mental framework pretty well.
  17. I think it goes against traditional psychology to expose children to sexuality well before their physiological and psychological mechanisms are prepared for them to understand it. I think this is merely the attempt to circumvent traditional morals and indoctrinate the young into a hedonistic view of life and reproduction. Of course, whether one believes this, or in the Creator, the obvious conclusion is that it goes against basic human nature as well as the innate desire to protect children. If England and eventually the USA adopt such practices then an unintended consequence will result...people will seek something to anchor their beliefs in stronger than an ammoral government policy based on questionable assumptions. If the Christian faith is unwilling to take up the fight then people wil see that the only alternative is a religion that upholds traditional values and will fight to preserve tradition no matter how powerful the state is. That religion will be Islam. Muslims wil either take over after the native peoples die out from hedonism or will grow and also convert many of the people seeking something better. It has happened in the past and will happen in the future.
  18. Joseph Smith said that it would be immoral for someone to be prevented from his first obligation of defending himself and his family from those who would do them harm.
  19. When Harry Reid was slected to be the Senate Majority Leader he was pondering how he could lead a party that he was at odds with on almost every issue. That evening the ghost of Richard Nixon appeared to him. Nixon: "Harry, you want to be an effective leader -- you must do everything I tell you" Harry: "I'm all ears President Nixon." Nixon: "You must put aside personal convictions and say and do anything that advances your power. Attack those who question your party leaders, use your position to promote yourself and above all go to Circus Circus and play that old slot machine next to the clown on the first floor." Harry: "Why that slot machine?" Nixon: "Very good Harry, I knew you'd ask about the clown...my work is done."
  20. Then there's always Big Love which is pretty much the most pro-family show on TV.
  21. Where is that a federal law?
  22. The first step of making homosexual marriage equal to heterosexual marriage will then lead to homosexuality becoming more and more a protected class. Then civil rights laws will confirm the same privledges to homosexuals as all other protected groups. I would say that religious schools (BYU included) will be threatened with losing tax exempt status if homosexual "rights" become enshrined in federal law. Then temples could lose tax exempt status and then even church meeting houses as it could easily be shown that homosexuals were "discriminated" against when not allowed to be married or even when the Church disciplined members if they admited to engaging in same-sex relations.
  23. From my understanding psychopaths are drawn to such professional situations. So what?
  24. I don't know... I would just suggest you screen over your list when forwarding anything of a sensitive nature. About 5% of the people on my Facebook friends list are Muslim, so if I were to send out something that could offend a Muslim (in regards to religion) I would not forward it to them -- yet that does not mean I screen out everything I forward. As for the question about the hypothetical anti-Mormon it would depend on what they forwarded. If it were a link to one of those on-line re-enactments of a temple ceremony I would be upset but if they forwarded me something they believed in I would then use it as an opportunity to clarrify what our church really stands for. We can't walk on eggshells all the time. I mean really, do I get offended when I am in China and people will sometimes make their eyes round and laugh when they see westerners? We will constantly rub each other the worng way -- it's going to happen all our lives. If someone does get a letter that promotes a view on marriage that the person doesn't like then they also have to appreciate where the sender is coming from.