What’s the most interesting experience you’ve had with a zealously religious person?

jacpod comments on May 12, 2018:

I wish it had been interesting - I was 15 just left work , and got the wrong train at Charing Cross which was non stop to sevenoaks - The train was a corridor one and crowded and I was pinned to the wall by this man preaching at me about me being a sinner and repenting -& embracing the lord- I had never experienced anything like it in my life before as I have never had a god (not even thor or odin) I then had to get out at sevenoaks and wait for a train going back the way - I didnt get home till 9.p.m

It international nurses day.

jacpod comments on May 12, 2018:

I had my second baby at a military hospital in Woolwich London I was scared because I thought that it was all going to be horribly regimented - It turned out to be great and so relaxed, the nurse who was looking after me in Labour - woke me up - as I had napped for a bit and said "Come on! I want this baby born before the end of my shift!" she was really lovely and my son was born and she was really pleased - In contrast the Hospital I had my daughter in, was supposedly the best teaching hospital in England and it was awful, really regimented . And a 15 year old cadet nurse delivered my baby as everybody else had left us to it.

I get claustrophobic in elevators. But I'm taking steps to avoid it.

jacpod comments on May 12, 2018:

nice one !

The beaver has been busy by the hot springs. I am lucky to see him at twilight periodically

jacpod comments on May 13, 2018:

wow !

Do you care if you are remembered when you die?

jacpod comments on May 13, 2018:

No!

I am the only person in my large latino family who does not believe in god.

jacpod comments on May 13, 2018:

I have Dissociative Identity Disorder so its easy for me to tune out - I dont really have a sense of how it happens it just seems to happen when I want it to - I have 9 alters so someone else is in control of my sensory perceptions - Its pretty handy but I dont reccomend it - It takes a lot of insanity to get this sort of disorder. I think if you practise tuning out or catch yourself when you are capacitous of doing it you might be able to replicate it when you need it. Also singing a silly song to yourself in your head - I think there might be many ways to tune out - I have D.I.D because I was adept at tuning out my mentally disturbed family- I called it 'going away' but its good to be in control of ot yourself rather than going as far as I did and getting alters.

How would you replace religion?

jacpod comments on May 13, 2018:

I wouldnt I have no need of religion, but others do and I am not anyones keeper - people can believe the moon is made of blue cheese if they want its their mind to do with as they want .

As an Atheist, I would like to know if others who also do not believe in a god get tired of arguing ...

jacpod comments on May 13, 2018:

I don't argue with anyone about it - I have no qualms in saying "it doesnt interest me a jot so either talk about something else or I'm off." I don't suffer fools gladly.

Did the latest I.S. stabbings in Paris make the news in your country?

jacpod comments on May 14, 2018:

yes in the U.K. did ours get to you?

Reading through these posts makes me wonder what I have to complain about.

jacpod comments on May 14, 2018:

I feel in a similar-ish place I am so fed up with everything thats happening I think the germans have the word weltsmerz - hurting for the world = I too have always been helpful and don't want to change that but my society is getting so bad i don't really feel connected any more - i think thats why I come here - things are are more work-Outable or able to be tolerated . And I hurt for what was once my world.

What are some POSITIVE benefits of consuming cannabis?

jacpod comments on May 14, 2018:

Pain relief -

Is it wrong to be an introvert

jacpod comments on May 14, 2018:

No; we are how we come. I have no trouble in moving away from people who make comments about me in any way , shape or form - Its a pretty ignorant thing to do - I'd not answer someoen that rude.

As an atheist what do you want done with your remains when you die?

jacpod comments on May 15, 2018:

I thought i wanted to donate them to medical science and sent off for the forms then found out that they might now want my dead body and it would have to be disposed of some other way so probably cremation...

If there existed a completely secular country, completely free of all religion, whos values and ...

jacpod comments on May 16, 2018:

Yes especially if it was warm !

The US blocked a vote in the UN about the hundreds of Gaza residents that the Israelis shot ...

jacpod comments on May 16, 2018:

I have been shaky and horrified all day and don't quite know how to import this lack of humanity into my psyche. It feels like the end of my world , I know that sounds dramatic but I can't quite find the way to incorporate it inot my psyche without dirtying myself in some way - I don't know how else to put it - This is so outrageous I can't cope!

Most of us aren't poets but many have a favourite verse that they carry with them.

jacpod comments on May 16, 2018:

First poem I ever learned hamelin town is in Brunswick , in famous Hanover City the River weser deep and wide Washes its walls on the southern side but when begins my ditty almost three hundred years ago, to hear the townsfolk suffer so, from vermin twas a pity. Rats! I won't carry on its really really long!

Today! On the scene! It still won't matter to Israeli apologists... [youtube.com]

jacpod comments on May 16, 2018:

My word I never thought that these people were that bloodthirsty.

Have you all had a nice day?

jacpod comments on May 16, 2018:

I spent most of my day in the garden planting stuff, weeding ,watering, etc. I live in sheltered accommodation and I collect for charity by doing laundry for other people (we have a laundry room) this morning I did four washes and got £10.00. I also go to the shops for people and collect newspapers. I like being busy don't know what to do with myself if i have nothing on the go. I run a group on wednesdays where we are colouring in from books and then collaging a table - if I get my head round the technical side of it I'll post a picture of our efforts when its done. .

A long time ago I read that the well read patient has a much higher chance of success than the ...

jacpod comments on May 17, 2018:

I don't read much about D.I.D because I have lived with it all my life nd have read a lot there isnt much to know and these days now i am 70. y.o I have ways of coping that mean I can by-pass a lot . I live an extremely simple life. after all my reading I went into coping mode to see what helped for me. Its interesting in a way as I never was very good at meeting other people -'going out for an evening ' etc. I find some people very difficult and it doesn't cost me a jot to slide past them.

Listen to the lyrics ://youtu.be/UhmtefhPkAc

jacpod comments on May 17, 2018:

Nice one !

This post is NOT meant to be argumentative or demeaning in ANYWAY.

jacpod comments on May 17, 2018:

I call myself Atheist only if anyone asks my status and I care to answer - Certainly, not silly ,as something I don't have can hardly get the label 'silly ' I don't think anyone is silly for being devoutly religious either, because its their life to do with what they want. I suggest you go to the boards where most of the people are talking about terms like atheist/agnostic; because I find it seriously unimportant to me and uninteresting .

When in your life have you been humbled?

jacpod comments on May 17, 2018:

My Mother and Father kept talking about divorcing I was about 8 years old and I told my father when we were walking to the Library that I didnt want to be with my Mother (she was manic) and he hit me for the first time ever round my face- I felt both humbled and indignant.

It’s Not a Liberal Fantasy to Ask if Trump Committed Treason

jacpod comments on May 17, 2018:

I am not really qualified to talk about him at all but he does seem to be 'a sandwich short of a picnic'

Are atheists too passive?

jacpod comments on May 17, 2018:

I don't ever do 'should's and ought's' I just live my life and I don't think stripping anyone of their ideals is helpful; so what would you do to help them next? Pay for their therapy? I wasn't baptised, I wasn't married in a church' and I won't be buried with a church service . I don't really see why you are so angry - We have our autonomy others have their needs met - Do you advocate civil war in order to force everyone to be atheist - It sort of hasn't happened very well in the communist bloc.

Why do intelligent people suddenly turn to a god in there darkest hours

jacpod comments on May 17, 2018:

I wish I knew I am very sorry for your situation - would it help if you did some things together like seeing a film that oyu both enjoy so that she has other outlets

Took a walk down to the river this morning (will be making multiple posts from it because too much ...

jacpod comments on May 18, 2018:

When we get storms here we get lots of driftwood on the beach. It probably doesnt last as long as tree wood as its been in the sea adn got salted but I have made geodesic domes for flowers to grow round and also a long arch pretty much using cable ties because the clematis covers all that up.

I accidentally swallowed a bunch of Scrabble tiles. Eventually this could spell disaster.

jacpod comments on May 18, 2018:

Could spell OUCH!

Love music- I’ve played bass guitar, piano and violin- all to various degrees of terrorizing my ...

jacpod comments on May 18, 2018:

I love music too, my partner is a musician. I can only play a school recorder, when I feel like it not really for the music though more for the movement and the cracking the code of the sheet music. Heard today that learning a new language can help stave off the effects of alzheimers so might give that a go too.

Telling children Santa Claus is real? Are you against it or for it?

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

I am okay with it I'd be a bit surprised if my children hadnt twigged by the time they were 6 or 7. My kids played along with the joke when they did catch themselves on. And they were hilarious pretending to believe so they;d still get a stocking I think it was good for us as a family all knowing that we were all pretending but going along with it for the laughs and jokes.

I trust most of us here have studied the Bible more thoroughly than those who profess belief; if ...

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

Misplaced trust ! I know very little about the bible & have no desire to.

Any hotheads here?

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

Not me but my daughter was pranked aged only 10yrs old given a chilli to eat, tears were puring from her eyes for ages.

Something is terribly wrong with our country's leadership.

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

I think you do have a good point here and a clever one if only you had the same in a president - Not that here in the UK we have any room to talk - doh!

As heard on a Jimmy Fallon monologue : Today is National Visit Your Relatives Day! Which means ...

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

Not sure I have any relatives I can visit all those older than me are missing presumed dead and the others are having nice lives and I live accross teh Irish sea from them.

5 Natural Reasons Life is Hard

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

Weather rude people lack of people in power who don't give a damn milk goes off very quickly.

On any Sunday.

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

Took me ages to get this !

I rarely think much about being Agnostic, it's a tiny little aspect of my life.

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

Its no part of my life until someone pulls me up on it - I don't walk around with agnostic on my t shirt or in my mind taking up valuable space and I don't really care any more what people think or feel about me; (perks of being 70 y.o.)

Did the city of Atlantis exist?

jacpod comments on May 20, 2018:

I saw a documentary recently about this with people who were archaeologists from all over the globe they found something that could have been where it actually was sited and had all the answers about why it couldnt be precisely located.

How do you tell religious people that you're an atheist?

jacpod comments on May 21, 2018:

I'm sorry I have a cold - that was one of the non sequiturs in a John Cleese sketch! In godless uk we just say "I'm an atheist" or 'thats for me to know and you to find ou't

Finally got this of the loom! Bamboo, silk and cotton. Can't wait to see what it end up being.

jacpod comments on May 21, 2018:

Wow that looks sublime!

How do people feel about deleting or rewriting certain words in old books?

jacpod comments on May 21, 2018:

Yes I prefer the past to be preserved as well as us carrying on to a better sort of future then at least we do get a comparison and reference points.

Breaking Up: Why Is Leaving Religion So Hard? Hasidic

jacpod comments on May 21, 2018:

I think Ignatius Loyola was the man who said "give me a child till he's six and i'll have him for life!" I think that is part of what makes it so hard as it plays into all insecurities so you can't leave it for fear of the worst thing happening on your watch - I have never had a god nor did my parents but they had that same sort of insecurity.

Discovered Alan Watts about a week ago after much searching about Hinduism, Buddism, and religions ...

jacpod comments on May 22, 2018:

I have loved him long.

Massive Democratic turnout in rural Kentucky propels progressive Amy McGrath to upset victory All...

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

Not sure i really understand,but sounds like you have had a good day - well done !

Quote of the Day: "Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds".

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

Ain't that the truth - happening all aroudn us at the moment

Promise everybody, I'll be less of a downer after Friday. Cross my black heart...

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

I don't mind how, or when, you come, easy here, no pressure.

Your religion is bullshit....every one of you. [youtu.be]

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

Funny- !

Man. If there was ever a week for having bacon. This week would be it.

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

I have no problems with anyone else eating bacon but - Are you usually veggie? I am vegan not through choice just through not liking meat -and happily don't have the urges as i have never eaten meat unless it was fiendishly disguised as something I didn't know about . I was horribly picky as a child and wouldnt eat any food that had touched anything else on my plate or if someone, usually my brother tried to filch something off my plate - My favourite was cucumber sandwiches. Safe.

Stormy Daniels will get the key to the city of West Hollywood today.

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

I thought that she won it fair and square-No?

Thoughts on "things happen for a reason"

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

I rather embrace the chaos - sort of love it - anything can happen at any time and any place - great!

Movie night! What is your favorite drama?

jacpod comments on May 23, 2018:

yes I liked Jean de Florette - I would reccomend 'Kicks' a film based in Liverpool by Lindy heymann and Leigh Campbell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-O3NiidhHE

Dozens of tiny bean seedlings! Thanks to plenty of rain, my garden is getting off to a good start.

jacpod comments on May 25, 2018:

excelllent beans! Most beanie looking beans I have ever seen.

My first water color back in 1985 12x16

jacpod comments on May 25, 2018:

I'd like to be in that landscape!

Guilt and Shame -- how much is too much, how little is too little?

jacpod comments on May 25, 2018:

Ooh that is a hard one to answer - For myself I think shaming and guilt tripping another, is in bad taste so its only me shaming guilt tripping myself thats up for grabs for me. I don't actually do either - most times I feel guilty its about something that I could have/should have done and didn't in which case I can apologise and explain that my faculties are on the wane . Shaming seems to me too brutal to contemplate I have felt shame but wouldn't want to shame myself .

Until people get tired of people, including children, being killed or wounded, they will not take ...

jacpod comments on May 26, 2018:

Its frightening and we do have gun laws - watching america at the moment is really frightening.

The meaning of life????

jacpod comments on May 26, 2018:

Lovingkindness is a buddhist philosophy not a religion - practising it without damaging yourself could fill a void

What's something you finally figured out?

jacpod comments on May 26, 2018:

People! There is an expression in Northern Ireland called "Passing Yourself" It basically means lying / doing, whatever it takes to get people to behave how you want them to. (Like going away) I had a really strange family mad as hatters (not in a good way) They were abusive and mentally unwell . Left home @ 15 yrs old and I had amazing experiences because no one ever passed on any information to me about how people live & get on /or not , with each other. everyone imagines that you pick it up from your family. It has taken me a really long time to 'get it' , 70 yrs old and still not fluent. I tend to go blank all over and even run away when I don't understand what people are wanting from me, for instance, there is a guy in our housing scheme who tells stories of people who were murdered and suchlike and seems to take ghoulish pleasure in the recounting and I don't want to be any where near him but politeness gets in the way as well as realising that he isnt that bright and it would be unkind - So going round in a loop but finally getting to the place where I just make an excuse and leave. Yes passing myself 'fine".

Tip us all

jacpod comments on May 28, 2018:

Nice one thanks

My pal Burnie

jacpod comments on May 29, 2018:

A good eye for the ladies too!

I made these boots at a 4 day workshop last summer in OR.

jacpod comments on May 30, 2018:

nice boots!

I find it fascinating that conservatives are appalled, offended and totally freaking out over the ...

jacpod comments on May 30, 2018:

wow loved it!

Is it just me??

jacpod comments on May 30, 2018:

I think so but I avoid that bit so much partly as I am old and cant really keep up with it all but I have never been interested in my looks/clothes don't wear make up don't style my hair - clean and reaonably tidy is all I need for myself.

How do you transition from being the center of the world, to not?

jacpod comments on May 31, 2018:

It would only be cold cruel and random for you if you were those things yourself - I am sorry that I didnt have your experience. I never had a god. But I know that I am enough to myself my experiences are real and its a fun world if you look at it with humour and intelligence - dwelling on losses I try to tune in to my own lovingkindness - giving out what is missing in my life not particularly with the intent to get anything back just to feel myself as a real person in control of my life and able to love freely whomever I want and to avoid anyone who want s to harm me . I think what is going on politcally in my world is more damaging than religion In my country people are pawns to be played and we are being kept under.

Do you believe that religion is a natural human development resulting fromtheir inability to explain...

jacpod comments on May 31, 2018:

I'd say both because there are always people who want power over others and an all knowing all seeing sky god is just the job too...

Sneeze comment

jacpod comments on May 31, 2018:

That seemed to have come about because it was believed that the soul temporarily left the body when someone sneezed and the devil could get in - So quite a lot of believing to be done there!

Between rains, finally.

jacpod comments on May 31, 2018:

I forgot abotu that suff thanks for the reminder will go buy some tommorrow!

This was a response to someone's post, but being new to the site, I thought I'd post it here to see ...

jacpod comments on May 31, 2018:

How is a non-belief a topic of discussion. I dont sit around spending time 'not believing' its a one time comment for all time I have never had a god I never want one end of no more to be said

I've been struggling a lot since I left my last job.

jacpod comments on Jun 1, 2018:

Yes, Our Lovely, its times we live in these are the hardest times I have ever known and they are draining for those of us who have known easier times - and care about it all, The only way through for me is the braver face, the caring for others who are also feeling the same and somehow knowing that it has to be lived thourhg and that most things do have an end point whether we can see it right now or not. (I think we are all probably with you on the bullshit)

Why Don't Some People Believe In Science? - YouTube

jacpod comments on Jun 1, 2018:

We do but we don't have any authority to make anything happen or not happen because we have a government who alone makes those decisions eventually after a while we stop putting in our two- pennorth because we have no power. (U.K.)

Should you live for today?

jacpod comments on Jun 1, 2018:

I don't do 'should's and oughts' I prefer to live my life in the moment of experience and not have too many ideas about what might be going to happen . I spent too much time fooling around in the garden today but I am not bothered I had a good time - being retired helps.

Is This rdue?

jacpod comments on Jun 1, 2018:

I'd remove the word 'up'

Why Do Atheist Seem More Depressed Than Theists? | Atheist Experience 22.19 - YouTube

jacpod comments on Jun 1, 2018:

I am a pretty happy bunny, 70 years old and and have never had a god - Life is great the only thing that spoils it for me is people who want to hurt me - because they themselves are hurting.

Is anyone else done with all this rain we've been seeing on the east coast?

jacpod comments on Jun 2, 2018:

In N.Ireland we have fog Its really weird as two days ago we had brilliant sunshine all day long- Not seen much rain yet but the way we are going something weird will happen!

Who is the most honest political commentator you know?

jacpod comments on Jun 2, 2018:

There isnt one - There used to be but in 'not so great britain' there isnt one!

Well, I did it.

jacpod comments on Jun 2, 2018:

well done you!

I have nothing to add to this.

jacpod comments on Jun 3, 2018:

I do try but I fail often - People I am meeting these days in the reality of life seem so different to the people I knew post war and in the 60's. Our political and social life is very different now and I do fear for us - Political leaders are failing us big time. in teh U.K we have the hugest 'them and us' problem ever and it isnt racial.

What is your fondest childhood memory?

jacpod comments on Jun 3, 2018:

I had a cousin Alan, and he and I would go to Lee Railway station and sit on the fence and collect train numbers, they were steam trains then and soemhow it was exciting - thinking about it now it seems a weird thing to do but we were extremely happy to see the train and waved at all the passengers who waved back. We also for some mad reason sat outside the window with our legs inside the room to watch Champion the Wonder Horse on childrens T.V . The BBC used ot close down at 6 p.m so children could be put to bed and not be bothered with the news.

I'm not an atheist, and here's why.

jacpod comments on Jun 3, 2018:

The giveaway there is that you think you are god youre not telling us you are god!

I am trying to learn how to navigate around this site, and how to find where I may have posted.

jacpod comments on Jun 3, 2018:

Go to the bell top right hand corner and click on - view all

Why are people stuck in relationships that are basically roommate's you pay bills with?

jacpod comments on Jun 3, 2018:

YOu said in your original bit,,' if there is no affection' 'or sex life' - I am in an extremely loving relationship and neither of us wants/needs sex. In the questions there isn't that option. I wouldn't rather be single. I really love my partner we aren't in each others pockets but live in the same sheltered housing scheme in our own flats and see each other at certain times like for dinner and later maybe to watch I -player

Silly weather

jacpod comments on Jun 4, 2018:

It has been foggy here first, then blistering sun, then showering rain so not sure what to make of this 'summer'.

What is beautiful to you?

jacpod comments on Jun 4, 2018:

Loving kindness and gentleness of heart I think.

What or Who created the universe?

jacpod comments on Jun 4, 2018:

I did. I am very sorry for what I did, but I did it to to see what would happen next. Turned out Ok yeah?

How comfortable are you with the word "Atheist" ?

jacpod comments on Jun 4, 2018:

I use godless.

What is your fondest childhood memory?

jacpod comments on Jun 5, 2018:

I went on my first CND march when I was thirteen years old and loved it went to every demonstration after that amazing being a part of soemthign so large with people looking out for you as well. I also wentto Churchills state funeral because my best friends mother said we would regret it if we didnt go whether we thought he was okay or not it would be a state occasion. I fond being part of a big crowd really an intense experience even if you are not all there for the same purpose

Do you see it as child abuse forcing kids to go to Church when they are clearly sick?

jacpod comments on Jun 5, 2018:

yes!

What is your definition of a godparent ?

jacpod comments on Jun 5, 2018:

I think I would politely decline as I have no god so wouldn't be at all suitable.In England it is usually 2 godfathers for a boy and one godmother, and for a girl the opposite. I only had one godmother and no godftather's; and she died before I got to know her so I wouldn't be in the know, and wouldn't be religious enough to fit the bill- It would be nice if there was a civil ceremony for allotting people to look out for your children.

Hello fellow Angostics, I am keen to know your views on qualities you admire in a person?

jacpod comments on Jun 5, 2018:

Kindness and thoughtfulness

"We accept the love we think we deserve".

jacpod comments on Jun 5, 2018:

I feel that I have found the unconditional love that was denied me by seriously mentally unwell parents - i left home at 15 years old looking for that love and I found it in many different places and in many different ways - Now 70, and loved indeed. I think the biggest part of the process is believing that it is real and not some sort of ploy or trap.

What does it really mean to love , and what does it mean to be in love with another?

jacpod comments on Jun 6, 2018:

Love for me is another of those tricky words meaning so much to so many I don't know if I label my emotions in the same ways as another/others. All I really know is that there are some people I am comfortable around, some I love to see, and its the number of negatives that makes me not want to be around others so I think for myself that maybe love is the absence of fear. I repeat htis is only my take and its only in thi s moment

What are some favorite television shows either on regular networks or streaming networks like ...

jacpod comments on Jun 7, 2018:

We have been watching 'A very British Scandal' about Jeremy Thorpes gay lover.

Avoiding meat and dairy is ‘single biggest way’ to reduce your impact on Earth | Environment | ...

jacpod comments on Jun 7, 2018:

The only meat I have eaten in 70 years that I know about is a goat that I looked after as one of my jobs whan living in a commune - It was the most awful creature ever and when it got butchered on out kitchen farmhouse table and was put in freezer bags I decided I would eat my enemy. I havent eaten dairy - allergic to wheat and milk

Are you a day person or a night person

jacpod comments on Jun 7, 2018:

in bed at 10 o'clock up at 7.a.m

Down the river, with my lovely dogs checking out the willow trees I planted as 2 thin new growth ...

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

Beautiful wow!

Do We Spend Too Much Time Looking at Screens?

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

I have given up the first two of the alternative options for health reasons and I am usually in bed these days by ten but I have never had a mobile phone and never want one so my screen goggling is down to hours at night watching something with my partner and coming here.

Today is my 53rd birthday.

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

happy birthday! you sound like you have it all in hand -

Manipulative vs Controlling and Sociopathy?

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

I have only met one sociopath a woman who was incredibly controlling and extremely difficult she was a client I saw in my own home and it got so very difficult. I had to move. My partner has severe O.C.D and is not controlling over anyone or thing but himself.

Atheists Are Sometimes More Religious Than Christians - The Atlantic

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

How very enlightening - I like the Groucho Marx comment about not wanting to join any club that would have him. there does seem to be a lot of silliness around peoples ideas of godlessness.

We're 100 strong! Time to celebrate...[youtube.com]

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

great!

This is a short self assessment we got to try at work.

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

I am rather glad to be alive, thats enough for me - I have a nice life now- thanks for the look at the program seems ok

Dug up some old artwork from school while cleaning out the garage...

jacpod comments on Jun 8, 2018:

wow Cool!