What if I’m atheist not Agnostic? Just asking, to stimulate conversation.

wordywalt comments on May 22, 2019:

Who cares, either way?

Should we create a church of satan in nyc just to piss off the religious people?

wordywalt comments on May 22, 2019:

Why would anyone want to simply piss others off?

I passionately believe that religious organizations that encourage any sort of political preference ...

wordywalt comments on May 22, 2019:

They are supposed to be, by law. But, Republican politicians see that those laws are not enforced.

My Princess Diana clematis is blooming.

wordywalt comments on May 22, 2019:

Very pretty.

FYI for those of you in the southwestern part of the state: Lee County Commissioners pass ordinance...

wordywalt comments on May 22, 2019:

Great idea.

Patriotism is not obedience to government...

wordywalt comments on May 21, 2019:

Absolutely right!! It is loyalty of the principles of democracy, to our people, and to the ideas inherent in our constitution.

Jeff Daniels: 'If the big gamble is to go all the way to 2020… and lose, it’s the end of ...

wordywalt comments on May 21, 2019:

We MUST NOT lose!!!!

I was in a supermarket shopping and saw a loaf of bread, made me think of Donald Trump but when I ...

wordywalt comments on May 21, 2019:

He certainly is an arrogant thick head -- so stupid that he is walking himself into an impeachment trap that will eat him alive.

Trump Money Laundering EVIDENCE [youtube.com]

wordywalt comments on May 21, 2019:

Of course! The entire Trump family is a criminal enterprise and has always been. Nail their crooked asses! Put the entire family in jail.

Well, well. Look who's hearing the appeal. [huffpost.com]

wordywalt comments on May 21, 2019:

What delightful irony!

AG Barr must denounce Trump’s ‘despicable’ campaign speech: Ex-prosecutor warns ‘we can’t ...

wordywalt comments on May 21, 2019:

You are right. Barr is constitutionally required to act. However, he is too morally bankrupt.

Can an atheist be a hippy?

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

Of course. He or she can live for today, knowing that there is no afterlife.

[washingtonpost.

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

That word is certainly applicable to the Trump cabal.

Death with Dignity – endoflifeWA program. . [sanjuanupdate.com]

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

More religious or pseudo-religious mumbo-jumbo. There is no journey of the soul.

I suspect that many of us that don’t live in religious environments can’t appreciate how ...

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

A culture dominated by fundamentalistic religiosity is inherently oppressive, whether the religion be Christianity, Islam, Judeaism, or any other fundamentalistic religion. .

American voters must be embarrassed having a President who sabre rattles with foreign powers on ...

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

Not only embarrassed, but also disgusted and angry

It’s appropriate on so many levels that both Liberty and Justice are portrayed as women in our ...

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

Given half a chance, Republican politicians would oppress us all.

Alabama abortion law: GOP lawmakers flaunted their confusion over women’s bodies.

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

The people of Alabama have never been noted for their wisdom or morality.

This is interesting! Mayor Pete did well! Buttigieg attacks Fox News hosts at Fox News town hall ...

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

He shows both intelligence and courage.

Deutsche Bank employees reported suspicious activity from Trump and Kushner, New York Times reports...

wordywalt comments on May 20, 2019:

The noose tightens.

Might want to put on 60 Minutes right now.

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

Yes, and the Russian money laundering will lead directly to Trump, if they can trace it.

Trump Shut Downs

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

Everything Trump touches dies.

Republican fundraising mailer looks like a U.S. Census Survey

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

Tells us exactly what the purpose of the citizenship question on the census is-- fueling Republican bigotry and control.

I want to promote gardening.

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

We do enjoy the harvest emotionally as well as in the eating, don't we?

If God Is Dead, Your Time Is Everything Martin Hägglund argues that rigorous secularism leads to ...

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

Secularism does lead to a greater focus on what is good for people and for a society, not for a religion. Also, at age 82, I would not want an afterlife, even if it were possible -- which it is not.

Amazon Tribe wins lawsuit against Big Oil, saving millions of acres of rainforest

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

Good news for the world.

Matt Nelson Knows Exactly How to Convert Atheists | Roll to Disbelieve: Another Christian Thinks ...

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

A prime example of fallacious reasoning.

if your mother was on her deathbed and she begged you to pray with her.

wordywalt comments on May 19, 2019:

No.

At our cores, everyone has a set of morals, but I think most people say they “are moral” or ...

wordywalt comments on May 18, 2019:

You are wrong. Some people are truly amoral. Others express morality, but their behavior says otherwise.

Not ridiculing, just curious.

wordywalt comments on May 18, 2019:

Some time ago, I made a similar post saying that I did not understand the phenomenon you describe, and got a lot of negative feedback. I hope you fare better. The simple fact is that those like you and I are long past religion, while those who behave as you describe are not.

Wrong! I once wrote an essay called “Wrong”.

wordywalt comments on May 18, 2019:

What is your point? Every day is rife with mistakes -- large and small -- by many people

Gardening for Good Health: [berkeleywellness.com]

wordywalt comments on May 18, 2019:

I find vegetable gardening healthy in many ways. First, in spading up the garden, laying out the row, planting, mulching, etc. 3 times a year I get great exercise. Second, I get great nutrition from my green beans, yellow squash, red potatoes, tomatoes, white acre peas, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage, I get great nutrition. Third, both the tending the garden and the sharing of vegetables with friends and neighbors, I find good for my mental health-- and the sharing earns me a lot of good will.

Crimes Against Humanity per the United Nations

wordywalt comments on May 18, 2019:

The IUN is ahead of the US.

Yesterday Was a Dark Day for the Rule of Law | The Nation

wordywalt comments on May 18, 2019:

I have lost all respect for Lindseyt Graham. It seems that without John McCain to keep him in line, he has lost all moral and patriotic anchors.

No religion = Empathetic Increase [patheos.com]

wordywalt comments on May 17, 2019:

True belief in a religious dogma means bigotry against all who do not share the addiction.

Several of the Democratic presidential candidates are calling for unity in our country, listen to ...

wordywalt comments on May 17, 2019:

Those are the reasons why I could never again live in the area in north Florida where I grew up. My remaining relatives in th area are still part of that culture.

The most dangerous man in the world is at Trump’s right hand [alternet.org]

wordywalt comments on May 17, 2019:

I agree about Bolton, but Miller needs to be added to the list of most dangerous men.

We all hold some assumptions to be true and they lie too deep to be proved; one could call them ...

wordywalt comments on May 17, 2019:

Living in Germany taught me that over 50 years ago. That experience taught me that, if we are to communicate with clarity with a person from another culture, we must start by laying bare some of most basic assumptions so that we each know where the other is starting from and why. This is something that all skilled international leaders an foreign service officers from all nations know.

Fox Guest: Trump Is Literally Killing Us [youtube.com]

wordywalt comments on May 17, 2019:

Yet, many farmers still support the idiot Trump. WHY????

Christian TV host: Those who oppose Alabama’s abortion ban will be ‘aborted eternally in hell by...

wordywalt comments on May 17, 2019:

Typical of evangelical preachers -- trying to intimidate people into going along with their dogma and propaganda.

Why does cognitive dissonance not seem to be a thing with so many "Christians"?

wordywalt comments on May 16, 2019:

Far too many Christians seem unable incapable or unwilling to recognize that there is much incongruity between their purported religious beliefs and their immoral racial and political stances.

Im starting to feel like I have to hide who I am again.

wordywalt comments on May 16, 2019:

You do not need to hide it, but neither do you have to wear it on your sleeve or advertise it.

Some people think that science has all the answers that matter, and that things that cannot be ...

wordywalt comments on May 16, 2019:

The emotional and aesthetic realms are independent of science, but are informed by reason and intelligence.

I've shared before that my ex and I broke up because after 14 years of marriage I decided that I ...

wordywalt comments on May 16, 2019:

One cannot force another to believe as he or she does, and should never try to.

Russian TV Mocks Trump as ‘This Clown,’ Describes His Foreign Policy as ‘Failures at Every ...

wordywalt comments on May 15, 2019:

They are right on both counts.

Source: [patheos.

wordywalt comments on May 15, 2019:

That judge should be removed from office and disbarred.

Black Children Will Be the Victims of Armed Teachers | Time

wordywalt comments on May 14, 2019:

Unfortunately, probably true.

King of Tax Dodgers

wordywalt comments on May 14, 2019:

True.

Do you believe in Evolutionary Humanism?

wordywalt comments on May 14, 2019:

It appears that the term is an oxymoron.

So there's to be an investigation into the investigation, is there?

wordywalt comments on May 14, 2019:

It is a combination of a delaying tactic, and an attempt to get the most stupid of the Trump supporters to believe that the Mueller investigation was not legitimate.

“Black guys counting my money! I hate it,” said Trump.

wordywalt comments on May 14, 2019:

This vile excuse for a human being becomes more vile by the day.

On the Eve of a Hearing, Trump Lawyers Tell Judge They Aren’t Happy About Fast-Tracked Subpoena ...

wordywalt comments on May 14, 2019:

If I were the judge, I would say to them (in more polite terms) "Tough shit! You are just going to have to lump it."

Trump has no idea what he’s doing By Eugene Robinson May 13, 2019 at 6:14 PM EDT ...

wordywalt comments on May 14, 2019:

On target.

Jerry Falwell Jr. Supports Autocracy over Democracy - TheHumanist.com

wordywalt comments on May 13, 2019:

So did his father.

For previous believers, what was it that made you unconvinced about god and religion?

wordywalt comments on May 13, 2019:

There was no specific thing, but a combination of factors. First, as a teen-ager I did not like feeling myself a sinner for having normal thoughts and desires. Second, by the age of 15 I had read the Bible 3 times from cover to cover. Each time, it made less sense. Third was the exposure to new learning and ideas.

This a good concise article about everything that is currently wrong with the foreign policy of the ...

wordywalt comments on May 12, 2019:

Trump has the stupidity and arrogance to screw anything up.

SCIENCE SALON 65 Jared Diamond — Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis

wordywalt comments on May 12, 2019:

Our people are woefully ignorant of cultural, economic, and political geography and that ignorance makes adequate responses to world situations woefully inadequate.

Climate change: 100 CEOs killing the planet - Big Think

wordywalt comments on May 12, 2019:

We MUST wean ourselves off coal and petroleum.

My area (MS Gulf Coast) got 13 inches of rain Saturday, and just a few miles north of the coast, ...

wordywalt comments on May 12, 2019:

Hang in there! Here in Florida extreme rain storms are not uncommon. So long as one does not live in low--lying areas or have to travel through them, we just hunker down and know we will be okay.

Emotionally-stunted men

wordywalt comments on May 12, 2019:

I have never wanted to burden others with my problems and crises -- they have plenty of their own. I believe that we have to work through and process past pains and losses within ourselves. I agree with Mark Twain,s statement: "joy, in order to be real joy has to be shared. Misery can take care of itself."

Rare photo ...

wordywalt comments on May 12, 2019:

There was no transformation. He always was a hypocritical bigot. Why do you think that the Senate refused to confirm him as a candidate for the Supreme Court years ago? That is also why he sought further power -- to punish those who denied him the Court position.

Which Religious Group Wants To Base U.S. Law On Its Faith?

wordywalt comments on May 11, 2019:

I saw it coming in 1972 when Falwell co-mingled politics and religion with his "moral majority". They were a threat then, and truly dangerous today. They MUST be stopped and exposed as the immoral charlatans, hypocrites, and demagogues that they are.

I am interested in opinions on this statement.

wordywalt comments on May 11, 2019:

A lot of truth in that statement except for one thing. When people are born, they have not actively rejected religion. It is simply not a part of their core psyche.

The Evolutionary Mystery of Left-Handedness and What It Reveals About How the Brain Works - Brain ...

wordywalt comments on May 11, 2019:

As a strongly left-handed person, I find the part about how left handers tend to question more and tend to challenge assertions more interesting and pleasing. I certainly consider it true of me. Also found it true that right-handers often struggle with coping with left-handers in competitive sports. But, because 95 percent of my opponents in two-man sports were right-handers, I was so accustomed to dealing with them that I struggled in competition with fellow left-handers.. I have also been a stubborn left-hander who persisted in almost everything as to doing everything my own way. In that sense, I have always been quietly, but stubbornly independent. I never "fought city hall head-on", but just waited until those trying to change me termed their backs, then I went back to doing it my own way.

Principal, teachers suspended for posing with noose in leaked school photo

wordywalt comments on May 11, 2019:

As a retired educator, I fully agree.

All religions in the world were born/created with a view to leading the people to the right path.

wordywalt comments on May 10, 2019:

Religions are not created with a view of leading people to the right path. They are created out of fear, ignorance, and feelings of helplessness. Then a dogma arises, which in turns, seems to lead to the creation of a priestly cult which becomes the platform for demagoguery of the dogma.

Trump's campaign is actively seeking assistance from a foreign government. [nytimes.com]

wordywalt comments on May 10, 2019:

His entire cabal is corrupt.

I'm friends with one of my bus drivers (I've befriended more than a few over the years actually) and...

wordywalt comments on May 10, 2019:

I am one integrated biological creature, not a duality. When we are young, our physical development exceeds our mental development, as we have yet to experience and learn that gives us understanding. When we are old, our mental abilities exceed our declining bodies, unless we so unfortunate as to face dementia.

I fear as i am getting older i am going to lose control of all the delicate balancing acts i have ...

wordywalt comments on May 9, 2019:

I am 82 years old, but I do not understand your fear. At age 45, I developed diabetes, had back surgery and colo-rectal surgery. At that time, I was wondering if I was coming apart at the seams. But, I overcame all of that and am in better health today than I was then. My 50s were the most productive years of my professional career. At age 57 I ended a horrible marriage which was threatening my sanity. At age 58, I began a new marriage which is a very good one and which will last until one of us dies. Yes, middle and old age is a process of giving up things which you thought you could not live without, but you survive and learn that you can still enjoy life without those things. You have to learn to shift from long range goals to short-term ones and to live in the moment. Today, I know who I am and am content with being me. I do not worry about death at all. The only thing I fear is the possibility of Alzheimer's.

Is American democracy on the brink? [cnn.com]

wordywalt comments on May 9, 2019:

It is certainly under attack and threat from the Trump cabal and its Russian sponsors.

I am not sure if I posted this story previously.

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

Anything to contribute to his downfall.

Trump Keeps Saying He 'Never Met' People He Clearly Knows. Here's Why [time.com]

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

The mental and moral idiot does not know how NOT to lie.

Who says you don't workout?

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

The vast majority of people do not use most of these tools anymore. They hire people to get the work done.

If life had no off button (I.

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

I do not deal with hypothetical questions that deal with impossibility. Will I consider assisted or unassisted suicide? Yes, if I reach the stage in which I have little quality of life and am a burden on others.

All mammals poop in 12 seconds and pee in 21 seconds, but how?

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

Trust me. When you get old, that no longer holds true, at least for men. Prostrate problems greatly lengthen the time it takes to pee, and diverticulosis also makes pooping more difficult.

One strange food combo that you like to eat.

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

You seem to ber asking for diabetes.

Is it possible to be an atheist and a Buddhist ?

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

It is very possible to agree with or accept some of the precepts of Buddhism without buying the whole ball of wax.

The correct answers....

wordywalt comments on May 8, 2019:

I am reminded of a biblical quote: "When I was a child I did as a child, I Spoke as a child. When I became a man, I put away childish things."

Decade in the Red: Trump Tax Figures Show Over $1 Billion in Business Losses

wordywalt comments on May 7, 2019:

Everything about the man shows that he is an incompetent, corrupt fraud.

Some academic institutions support free speech. [reason.com]

wordywalt comments on May 7, 2019:

Yes, in sponsoring open debate between opposing side 00 but not in inviting demagogues to openly spread their poison without having their crap challenged.

Jerry Falwell suggests Trump is owed two more years as president due to Mueller "witch hunt.

wordywalt comments on May 7, 2019:

Falwell is just like his father -- a mean-spirited religious demagogue who willfully and deceitfully co-mingles politics and religion , trying to force his false and immoral view on us.

How Can We Create Inclusive Community?

wordywalt comments on May 7, 2019:

There are atheists of all stripes in this community. Some feel that if you do not try to force your religious ideas on me, you have the right to believe as you choose. Others are more angry due to negative experiences with religion. Similarly, on the political spectrum, the community leans to the left of center, but also includes reactionary right wingers and bigots. On the religious dimension, I do not respond to most posts about religion, as I am some 50 years past religion. On the political side, I will and do strongly and actively disagree with posts that I find offensive and destructive.

‪this man got the medal of honor today!‬

wordywalt comments on May 6, 2019:

No he did not. The Medal of Honor is given only for highly courageous military service. He did get another award, but not the Medal of Honor.

What Happens When a Bad-Tempered, Distractible Doofus Runs an Empire? | The New Yorker

wordywalt comments on May 6, 2019:

There are distinct parallels between Kaiser Wilhelm and he idiot Trump. This is what could happen if Trump is not removed from power in one way or another.

Should we respect other people's beliefs?

wordywalt comments on May 6, 2019:

People have the right to believe as they will. But, once they openly put their beliefs into the public marketplace of ideas, those ideas are and should be open to challenge, refutation, and earned disrespect for being flawed or wrong-headed. I draw the line when one attempt to force his or her ideas on me.

"If neo-Darwinism is true and reproductive success a measure of evolutionary fitness, then every ...

wordywalt comments on May 6, 2019:

Biological evolution is real. Social, cultural economical and political Darwinism are false human constructs used to promote privilege, and as a basis for discriminating against other groups, classes, cultures, and ideologies. Indeed, they are the tools of individuals and groups that are would=be tyrants.

Sometimes starting over/reinventing yourself is a good thing.

wordywalt comments on May 6, 2019:

Be cautious, but not so afraid that you cheat the heart out of life.

I'm a middle school Science teacher.

wordywalt comments on May 5, 2019:

I was also a science and social studies teacher, and I both agree and disagree. Yes, I think that most high school students to not have the depth of thought and experience to really know if they do not believe and why. But, that is what is required -- depth of thought and experience, not great knowledge of history and culture.

"All religions bear the traces of the fact that they arose during the intellectual immaturity of the...

wordywalt comments on May 4, 2019:

I agree party, disagree partly. Yes, religions arose in the immaturity of the human species, but because he species had not yet developed the cognitive or intellectual tools to build realistic conceptions of reality.

Why do men lash out at women after a polite rejection?

wordywalt comments on May 4, 2019:

Please do not judge all men by the louts among us.

Religious fundamentalists and many of today’s atheists share the same approach to texts.

wordywalt comments on May 4, 2019:

All writings need to be interpreted in the language or meanings of the culture and historical time in which they were penned. Still, he most powerful and enduring writings are characterized by great clarity an simplicity transcending culture and time.

Would everybody be in favor of going back to the old way of voting and do it by paper ballot, and if...

wordywalt comments on May 3, 2019:

The Russians would still interfere through the social media and through people like those in the Trump cabal. The only difference it would make would in the machinery of voting.

Morality is not contingent on knowing right from wrong.

wordywalt comments on May 3, 2019:

The only reasonable morality is based on the concept of minimal violation of the dignity and respect of others. That is a reasonable basis for a moral code. We may know that something is wrong, yet not be able to bring ourselves to deal with that fact. We are all fallible, and our lives are a struggle to minimize our flaws.

"It is still a metaphysical faith upon which our faith in science rests – that even we seekers ...

wordywalt comments on May 3, 2019:

That "God is truth" is a baseless assumption, an a priori assumption with no basis.

'Total transparency' ??? That's beyond laughable! [cnn.com]

wordywalt comments on May 3, 2019:

he only thing transparent about Trump is his absolute corruption to the core.

Exclusive: Foreign government leases at Trump World Tower stir more emoluments concerns ...

wordywalt comments on May 3, 2019:

Trump has ben laundering money from Russian oligarchs for almost 30 years.

I urge everybody to watch this video on the Sixties from PBS on YouTube.

wordywalt comments on May 2, 2019:

Like you, I hoped that more persistent positive things would result from the 60s. I was in grad school at the time.

Aristotle Onasis said this. Do you agree?

wordywalt comments on May 2, 2019:

The biological reason for men is to continue the species. Most of my life, I got out of bed to accomplish something and to see what the day brings. Men who only exist to impress women are empty and stupid.

I had always wondered how the German people had fallen under Hitler’s spell !?

wordywalt comments on May 2, 2019:

The Situation for the German people was very different from that of ours in the U.S. At the end of World War I, Germany was economically destitute and their political system was in a shambles. The reparations imposed on Germany at the end of the war bled the country dry and caused a hyperinflation on a scale that we have never seen. It actually took a wheelbarrow full of money to buy a box of matches. That destroyed the German middle class. Then came the world-wide depression. The country was exhausted and desperate. They were vulnerable to anyone and anything that offered them hope and a seeming way out. That almost 20 years of utter political and economic chaos. We have no such mitigating factors and excuses.

What is the difference between brilliance and intelligence?

wordywalt comments on May 2, 2019:

That is simply a matter of personal definition.